‘Ah, a guy?’
‘It’s not like that.’
‘Of course not. I am sure he is helpful to everybody who walks in off the street.’
‘I think he is!’ Iris laughed. ‘Anyway, he travels a lot and thinks it’s good to spend time with locals to really get the feel of a place.’
‘He is probably right about that. Is this your hotel?’
‘Yes. Thank you so much, Bjarkey. It’s been great to meet you.’
‘Email me. We will take a trip to Hraunvik next week, yes?’
‘Okay.’ Iris was thrilled. ‘I can’t wait.’
‘Enjoy yourself tonight!’
Back in her room, Iris contemplated what she might wear for a night on the town. All she had at her disposal was a reasonable pair of jeans. They were dark, at least. Having not planned on a night out in Iceland, she had nothing fancier than a long-sleeved t-shirt and short-sleeved t-shirt layering situation to fall back on. If it had been warmer, she had a couple of pretty tops she’d bought in Hawaii but she’d freeze in those here, even in a centrally heated bar. Luckily one of her t-shirts was a vintage Fleetwood Mac one that she’d taken from her mother’s drawer back in the sixth-form. She put it on and thought she looked okay. After all, how dressed up did anyone need to be if they were going to a bar?
She ran some hair oil through her fingers and scrunched it into the ends of her curls to take some of the frizz out, then finished with a lick of mascara and some lipstick. At that moment, her phone buzzed with a message from Siggi saying he was outside.
Iris grabbed her coat, betting on the fact that the bar wouldn’t be too far away because she left her hat behind, not wanting to flatten her hair, which looked better than she would normally expect for such minimal effort.
She flew down the stairs and out of the hotel, finding Siggi waiting, leaning against the wall with his hat on and his hands in his pockets. His face broke into a smile when he saw her.
‘You look great,’ he said easily, as if they did this kind of thing all the time.
‘Thanks. So do you.’ He actually looked exactly the same as every other time she’d seen him, but he was the kind of guy that probably always looked effortlessly good.
‘You had a good day?’ He took Iris’s hand and tucked it into the crook of his arm.
‘Yes, and it was a good job you didn’t wait for me because I only got back an hour ago.’
He shrugged. ‘I would not have minded.’
They walked only for another minute or so before Siggi stopped beside some concrete steps that led up into the building on the corner of the street.
‘Here we are,’ he said. ‘This is where they come every Friday. Islenski Barinn.’
Iris went up the steps, thinking that it was a little odd that Siggi was distancing himself from his group of friends by saying “they” come here every Friday.
‘You don’t come all the time?’ she asked before she pulled the door open.
He shook his head. ‘I am not always here. And I don’t mind working on a Friday so that they can come here.’
The bar was lively, dimly lit and pretty traditional from what Iris could see. Certainly it wasn’t trying to be trendy and didn’t seem to follow any particular theme. It was welcoming and comfortable.
‘Over here,’ Siggi said, holding his arm out, gesturing for Iris to go ahead of him. His friends had commandeered a table next to one of the windows that looked out onto the street. There were six of them. Iris recognised Olafur from the office earlier that day. Siggi did some quick introductions, but basically they were three couples. Jonas, who owned the tour company that Siggi and Olafur worked for, his wife Rachel, who was English, thenOlafur and his girlfriend Gudrun and Brun and his girlfriend Fliss, also English.
‘Ned and Anna are in London this weekend, but they’re usually part of the gang too,’ said Rachel.
‘It’s great to meet you all,’ Iris said, feeling a little overwhelmed. She hadn’t had a night out like this in a group since she was at university. It felt good, and everyone was so welcoming.
Siggi suggested they go up to the bar together and took orders from his friends,which he repeated to Iris. ‘I’ll never remember,’ he said. ‘What would you like?’
Iris scanned the bar and opted for a locally brewed beer.
‘It’s a good choice,’ Siggi said, then adding his and everyone else’s drinks to the order.
