‘He was horny.’ She smirks.
‘You haven’t even told me his name.’
‘Terence.’
‘Terence?’
‘Yeah. Terence Horn.’
‘You have got to be kidding me.’
‘I’m not.’
We both burst into hysterics. I back away from the desk, shaking my head with laughter as some visitors enter the building.
‘I’m off out for lunch,’ I manage to say through my giggles.
She surreptitiously wipes away her tears and smiles politely at the approaching people. ‘Good afternoon. How can I help you?’
God, she cracks me up.
That night I can’t wait to get home and tell Richard all about my day, but he seems distracted.
‘Are you okay?’ I ask, as soon as I see his face. He’s sitting on the sofa with a beer, but the telly is off.
‘Had a bit of a rubbish one today.’ He sighs and rests his head back on the sofa. I sit down next to him.
‘What happened?’
He looks at me and his features relax. ‘Some bits and pieces have gone missing from a building site and Nathan suspects one of our apprentices.’
‘That’s awful,’ I say. ‘What are you going to do?’
‘It’s hard to know unless we catch him in the act. But the trust has gone – even if he’s innocent. He’s a hard worker, it’s such a shame.’
‘Why does Nathan suspect him?’
‘It’s a feeling he’s got.’
‘That’s not very concrete.’
‘No. But he also thought his backpack looked a bit bulky yesterday when some tools went walkabout.’
‘I’m sorry. That sounds like a nightmare.’
‘It’s a bit of a shit. How are you?’ he asks.
‘I’m pretty good.’
‘Cool. Shall we get a pizza in?’
‘Sure.’ I pull out my mobile phone, knowing that this task will fall to me because it always does. ‘Ham and pineapple?’
‘That’s the one.’
I dial the number and place the order, then turn back to Richard, asking, ‘What do you want to watch?’ He chucks me the remote control. This is not the time or the place. My day can wait.
Chapter 19
