Lissa snorts quietly – at least she hopes it’s quiet – into her wine glass, just as Mark comes back, sliding a pint over to Ash before taking his seat again. He smells pleasant, Lissa thinks – eucalyptus maybe. Pleasant is good, right?
‘We need a team name,’ Darcy announces. ‘I suggest Darcy and the Diamonds.’
Mia laughs. ‘I’m actually all for that. As long as it’s not blood diamonds.’
‘Darcy and the Ethical Diamonds?’
‘The Fellowship of the Quiz?’ Mark suggests. Darcy blinks at him.
‘Lord of the Rings, Darce,’ Lissa says.
‘Ah.’
‘Ctrl Alt Defeat?’ This from Ash, earning a laugh all around.
‘Cute,’ Darcy says, ‘but it’s not optimistic enough. We will not be defeated!’ She punches a fist in the air for emphasis.
Mia taps her fingers against her cider glass. ‘Les Quizérables?’
There are general impressed nods all around, and Darcy writes it at the top of the quiz sheet.
At that point, a man wearing, for reasons best known to himself, a beanie hat propped and tilted to one side on his head gets up and makes his way towards the mic next to the bar. There are now six other tables set up ready to compete, and all eyes turn to beanie-man.
‘Hello, everyone! Welcome to our Sunday-night quiz! You know the drill. Three rounds, plenty of drinks on us if you win, anyone seen checking an answer on a phone is banned for life.’ He says it cheerily enough, though he could be deadly serious – Lissa knows some of them take pub quizzing very seriously around here.
‘So without further ado, here is question number one. How many hearts does an octopus have?’
‘I know this,’ Darcy says excitedly, writing the answer down immediately. There is a general hum around the pub as other tables confer.
‘Question number two. In what year was the US Constitution ratified?’
‘Mia?’ Lissa looks across the table at her cousin.
Mia scoffs. ‘My mum might be American, but that doesn’t mean I know all there is to know about the country.’
‘You’re half American?’ Darcy asks. ‘That’s cool.’
‘I think it was the 1700s,’ Ash says, just as Lissa’s phone buzzes in her pocket.
She gets it out, sees a text from her mum.Food shop arrived. Thank you for sorting.
She types back quickly.Great. Thanks for letting me know.
‘Lissa!’ Darcy exclaims. ‘No phones!’
‘Right,’ Lissa says, shoving her phone into her pocket and glancing up at beanie-man, who doesn’t seem to have noticed. ‘Sorry.’
Mark tuts teasingly. ‘Shame on you, Lissa, cheating so early in the game.’
‘Ah well, you know me. Never trust me to play fair.’
He grins, showing off those white teeth, and his hand comes back to her thigh under the table, staying there for the next few questions.
‘Question number seven. What is the smallest species of shark in the ocean?’
‘Ash?’ Mark prompts.
Darcy cocks her head at Ash. ‘Shark expert?’ Lissa isn’t sure how she’s managing to makethatsound flirtatious.
