* * *
Getting off the train, I was slightly annoyed there was no welcoming party at the barrier. Where was Dad? He was supposed to chauffeur me home in style in his Jag. It was probably just as well. No doubt he would have asked me what was wrong, given me tons of sympathy and made me feel even more self-pitying.
Wandering past the ticket office and out on to the road, I was hailed by a sudden honking from the beaten-up old Mini parked nearby.
‘Ollie, over here!’
‘Ben,’ I said with surprise. My brother didn’t normally get out of bed for anything less than a willowy blonde. ‘How much did Dad have to bribe you?’
‘Hi, Sis.’ He grinned before giving me a big bear hug. I wrestled my bag into the back seat.
‘Mum was dropping heavy hints about cleaning the barbecue. You were less hassle, except she wants me to stop off and pick up another barbie on the way back.’
I looked at him and raised my eyebrows. ‘Erm, Ben. Just how do you propose getting a barbecue in here?’ I indicated the back seat.
He looked blankly at me. ‘Bollocks. Knew I’d forgotten something. I was meant to bring Dad’s car.’
Honestly I do wonder about him sometimes. He’s about as much use as a chocolate fireguard. The epitome of a dumb blonde. Very cute and sometimes very dopey.
During the summer when his eyebrows and hair turn white blond, he looks just like a Thunderbird puppet. This combined with the surf-boy look he’s adopted means that wherever he goes, young impressionable teenagers turn their heads and drool. Not that he would know what to do with a surfboard — I dread to think how much damage he could do with one.
‘Are you sure it won’t go in?’ he asked, looking puzzled.
‘It’s a Mini not a bloody Tardis,’ I pointed out, my mood beginning to lighten. You could never take anything too seriously with Ben around. He’s very easy to be with and at that moment, just what I needed.
‘With the best intention in the world — unless it’s one of those little portable jobbies...’
Ben’s faced screwed up comically. ‘No! It’s huge. It’s Daniel’s folks one, you know the one we borrowed last year.’
My heart sank. Five minutes and already his name had to crop up. ‘Can’t you get him to bring it over tomorrow?’
‘Good idea, Sis. He can bring it in the Land Rover. Give him a call.’ With that he turned the ignition and slammed into first and tossed his mobile into my lap before wheeling off into the road.
Shit. How did I get out of this one? I tutted and picked up the phone, my pulse picking up. If I refused, Ben would only make a big deal of it. I needed to pretend everything was normal and that for some reason Daniel didn’t hate me and that he was nothing more than an old mate.
I picked up the phone and scrolled through the address book. ‘Digger, Five O, Fossil, Foxy, Gasper, Gert... Don’t any of your friends have proper names?’ I queried. ‘And what’s this one, Me?’
‘So that I can give people my number. Can’t remember it.’
I rolled my eyes and carried on scrolling. I still couldn’t find Daniel’s name anywhere. ‘Ben, it’s not here.’
‘Five O.’
‘Why?’
‘Book ’em, Danno. You know that TV programme.Hawaii Five-O.’
I shook my head. Boy logic, I’d never get it.
Finding the right number, I reluctantly pressed call.
‘Ben.’
‘I—’
Before I could get a word in, Daniel was saying, ‘Make sure you stay off the beer tonight, we’re relying on your bowling.’
‘It’s me, Olivia,’ I said. For a second I thought the line had gone dead. ‘Hello. Are you there?’
