‘Fish supper?’ she asked, feeling a little breathless. ‘Or do you prefer a pie or a portion of chicken?’
‘What’s a fish supper?’
‘It’s what we call fish and chips.’
‘I’ll go with the fish supper.’ He got out of the car, saying, ‘This is my shout. After all, I did invite you to dinner.’
‘I can pay my own way.’
‘I’m not suggesting you can’t.’
‘Halfsies?’
‘You mean go Dutch?’
‘Yes, that’s what I said, halfsies.’
‘I’ll have to pay, and you can owe me. I don’t have any cash on me.’
‘Of course you don’t.’
‘And you do?’
She patted her chest, and he guffawed. ‘Please don’t tell me you still keep your money down your bra!’
‘It’s the safest place for it. Money can fall out of pockets.’ She also had her house key in the left cup, but she wasn’t going to tell him that.
‘What about your mobile phone?’ he asked.
‘I didn’t bring it with me.’
‘You’re not some hippy chick who lives off-grid, are you?’
‘Hippy chick? How 1960s of you. No, I’m not. I just don’t see the point in carrying it everywhere.’
From the pained expression on his face, she assumed his phone was surgically attached to him. ‘That must be… freeing,’ he said after a pause.
‘It is. You should try it sometime. Do you want a can of pop?’
His lips twitched. ‘I suppose I’d better have something to wash my fish supper down, since I doubt they’ll have champagne.’
She didn’t flinch at his barbed comment. ‘No champagne, but they’ll probably give you a wee dram of whisky, if you ask nicely.’
His loud guffaw made her jump. ‘I’ll stick to cola, since I’m driving.’
There was a mild tussle when it was time to pay, which Giselle won because she told Shawn, who owned the place, that Rocco’s card was probably stolen and that he’d be better off insisting on cash only. Shawn gave her a dubious look, followed by an even more dubious one aimed at Rocco.
‘That’s my reputation in tatters,’ Rocco joked as she handed over some notes.
‘I wouldn’t worry about it. You won’t be here long enough. Aren’t you leaving tomorrow or the next day?’
‘No.’
‘When?’ Her heart skipped a beat.
‘Friday, probably. There’s a great deal to go through.’
She should be able to avoid him for two more days. Mind you, she wasn’t doing too well so far, was she? She blamed Jinny for asking her to find out whether Rocco already had a buyer in mind.
