Page 62 of Under A Sicilian Sky
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At the end of their meal, Dougie stood. ‘I’m getting spoiled, you know. The food’s not usually this good on security detail. Anyway, I’m away to watch telly in ma room.Strictly Come Dancingis on repeat and I missed the last show, so…’ He lifted his hand in a wave before leaving and heading upstairs to his room.
Mitch and Ruby shared a look of surprise and they both grinned.
‘Now I wasn’t expecting that,’ Mitch said with a chuckle.
Shelby burst in through the door and slammed it behind herself before storming up to her room without saying hello. Mitch and Ruby looked at one another.
‘I wonder what that was all about,’ Ruby said as she picked up her wine glass. Although she had an inkling it might be something to do with the call she’d overheard.
‘I’m keeping well out of it,’ Mitch said as he cleared the table.
A lilting song played quietly in the background and Ruby strained to listen to the lyrics. The lead vocalist was singing about someone feeling like home and grounding her and Ruby’s breath caught as a sudden rush of emotion washed over her.
‘Are you okay?’ Mitch asked, topping up her glass. ‘You look a little lost in thought.’
‘What’s this song?’
He smiled. ‘It’s called “Somersault”, by a band called Zero 7. It’s quite old. I think it came out in the early two thousands. This track has Sia singing on it and I love her voice. It’s great background music, eh? Very chilled out.’
‘Yes. But the lyrics are so beautiful.’
He paused for a moment and listened. ‘Aye, I suppose they are. I think we all want someone to make us feel like that, eh?’
‘Absolutely.’
He sat again and closed his eyes. She fixed her gaze on him as he nodded gently to the music’s waltzing beat, carried away by violins and guitars. Her stomach did a little flip as she took in the contours of his angular jaw and the small smile that turned his lips up ever so slightly. He ran his hand through his hair and a strand flopped back over his forehead. She wondered what it would be like to touch his hair, run her thumb across his cheek, feel his lips on hers… She was lost for a brief time, just watching him as his lips parted. But when she looked up, she realised he was watching her now too. If she hadn’t known better, from his hooded expression, she’d have presumed his thoughts mirrored hers. Her heart skipped, but then she remembered his comments about relationships, and how he had protested at the thought of people thinking they were an item. She shook her head, attempting to rid herself of the desire for him that was building inside her. What the hell was she thinking?
‘That meal was delicious, Mitch. Thank you,’ she said, breaking whatever spell she had imagined had been cast.
He frowned, an infinitesimal action that she might have missed had she not been paying attention, and he said, ‘I’m glad you enjoyed it. I was taught to cook from a young age. Mamma always said she wanted me to be a good husband.’ He laughed. ‘So, she gave me all the skills. I’m good at ironing too.’
Ruby smiled. ‘Wonders never cease.’
Mitch leaned his elbows on the table and fixed his gaze on her. ‘Look, I’m sorry I barged in on you earlier. That was out of line.’
Ruby frowned and placed down her glass. ‘Hey, it’s okay. It’s your house after all. And I am, yet again, squatting in your room.’
He sighed. ‘Aye, it’s weird having the house so full. I’m not used to it.’
The landline rang and Mitch stood to pick up the kitchen handset.
‘Hello?’ There was a pause as someone spoke. ‘I see… Aye…’ He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose as there was another long pause. ‘Okay. Maybe we should meet now. At the pub? Aye, she’s here. Only bring the people you’ve mentioned though, eh?’ He hung up and sat down again with a long huff. He rubbed his hands over his face and then squinted at Ruby. ‘I’m afraid your cover’s kind of blown again.’
Ruby was surprised at how unaffected she felt by the news. ‘Okay. What’s the plan?’
He rolled his eyes. ‘We’re meeting at the pub with the equivalent of yourPontefract Gazetteladies. I’d better go tell Dougie and Shelby. Look… let’s not mention the work Archie is doing for us, okay? Let’s keep that between you, me and him.’
Confused as to why that mattered, Ruby pursed her lips and shrugged. ‘If you say so.’
* * *
Half an hour later, the main bar at the Coxswain looked a little like a village meeting. Chairs were arranged facing the fireplace and Ruby looked around nervously at the faces, some familiar, some not.
Mitch introduced people to Ruby as they arrived. Dougie stood at the back of the room by the entrance, his arms folded over his chest like a nightclub bouncer, and Shelby had joined them, her eyes were red and puffy, clear signs that she had been crying. Ruby decided she must speak to her and make sure she was okay. Jules, Reid and Evin were there, so too were the red-haired lady from the bakery who Ruby now knew to be Caitlin, Caitlin’s twelve-year-old daughter, Grace, and Morag with her husband, Kenneth, who helped her run the shop and the B&B. There were a few more faces she didn’t recognise, but they all smiled at her warmly.
They were soon joined by Archie, but Mitch whispered in his ear before he entered the room; Ruby guessed he was being instructed to keep the hacking investigation under his hat.
