“Oh,” Georgia said. “Daddy loves us very much, so I think he’s nur— nur?—”
“Nurturing,” Duncan said. “That’s not really something to say about men, though.”
“Pardon?” Zane said.
“I mean, not in front of our uncles,” Duncan said. “Not when you’re the leader. Leaders are meant to be strong and tough, not all … all soft like that.”
“In what way,” Gordon said, “is Zazza the leader? I object. Brilliant tucker, Skylar. You don’t have a sister, do you?”
“No,” she said. “I have a recipe, though.” Which was a pretty good retort. She was more relaxed today, somehow. Sassier, too. He liked sassy. It went well with the sweet.
“Dad’s the skipper, though, Uncle Gordon,” Scarlett said. “And the eldest.”
“Well, pardon me if I don’t bow and scrape,” Gordon said. “As my season with the Blues is over, I reckon I’ll be my own boss, thanks.”
Geoffrey said, “Nothing wrong with a man being soft with a woman, young Duncan. Or with his kids. It was a poorer world back then, and that’s the truth. My own dad never said ‘I love you’ to any of us kids in his life, and if he said it to our mum, I didn’t hear it. A hard man, though he was a hard worker, I’ll give him that, and brought his pay packet home every week. He’d have thought that was enough.”
“Really,” Skylar said. “That’s the first time I’ve heard that.”
Geoffrey said, “You didn’t ask. Luckily, your Gran let me know in no uncertain terms that that wasn’t good enough. Now, Zane here knows better. A good husband, Maureen says. Good material there.”
“Not exactly asubtlepush, is it?” Jade asked the air.
Skylar said, “Who wants more lamb? Also, your whanau farms, is that right? What do they farm?” Neutral topic, Zane supposed.
“Grapes,” Gordon said. “Vineyard.”
“Ah,” she said. “The excellent white wine last week, not to mention what I found in your rack today. Ithoughtyour wine knowledge was on the sophisticated side, Zane.”
“For a knuckle-dragger, you mean,” Zane said.
She smiled cheekily. “Possibly. But now that I know you’re nurturing …”
“There you are, bro,” Jack said. “Either you’ve just lost your man card, or you’ve just punched it. Modern life, eh. Confusing.”
“I don’t understand this conversation,” Scarlett said.
“Join the club,” Jade said. “Undercurrent City. So you and Zane are … involved? Not involved? I’m getting ‘involved,’ but there’s something …”
“Oh, no,” Skylar said, blushing to the skies as usual. “I’m Georgia’s teacher.”
“Ah,” Jade said. “Of course, that tells me nothing.”
“Possibly because it’s none of your business,” Zane said. “Am I asking who you went out with last night?”
“Well, as she’s righthere …”Jade said.
“That reminds me,” Geoffrey said, as innocently as ever. “Maureen and I came up with a bit of a plan.”
“Oh, no,” Skylar said.
“I thought she was lying on a bed of pain,” Gordon said. “Didn’t even want to see us. How’s she coming up with plans?”
“That’s just the germs,” Geoffrey said vaguely. “School holidays coming up in a week, though.”
“I wonder where this is going,” Skylar said.
“I like school holidays,” Finlay chimed in, “but I don’t like the winter ones as much. You can’t play outside as often, the sea’s too cold to swim, and most of my friends are in special programs all day. Some of the programs sound pretty fun, but I haven’t ever done them, so I don’t know for sure. Or they’re in day care, even though kids my age shouldn’t have to be in day care. They say that’s pretty boring, so I’m glad I don’t have to go. I think school should make the winter holiday shorter and the summer one longer.”
