Page 41 of Oz
I wriggle round until I’m in front of him. He groans under his breath as I get comfortable, my arse banging into his crotch. “Where?” I whisper.
Then I hear the voices of Niall and the builder. “Mr Johnson, I’m not really sure what the problem is here.”
“Oh no,” I whisper and go to open the door but he stops me.
“Ssh. Stay right where you are.”
Mr Johnson says something and Niall’s voice comes closer. “Well, there’s an easy way to settle things. We can find Oz.”
“No, no,” the builder says quickly. “There’s absolutely no need forthat.”
Silas gasps a laugh and I elbow him.
“Why is Chewwy sitting there?” Niall ponders and clicks his tongue. “Come on, boy. Let’s go and find your beloved.”
“Is Lord Ashworth around?”
“Oh, I wasn’t talking about him,” Niall says in a very dismissive voice. “Chewwy has a very pronounced attachment to Oz. I think it might be because he’s actually taller than Oz. He enjoys the feeling of superiority.”
“Cheeky twat,” I hiss and Silas pinches me to be quiet.
The voices move on and the next second I’m spun around, and he kisses me. He takes his time, sucking on my lower lip and rubbing his tongue against mine while he pins me against the door. When he pulls away I feel almost dazed and follow his lips for a second. “What?”
He pulls back. “I didn’t say good morning properly,” he says simply. “You ready?”
“For what?” I ask faintly, but he grabs my hand and pulls me towards a door set under the stairs. I follow him through, looking around as I do. “This house is like fucking Hogwarts. Every time I think I know everything, I find something else. Where does this go?”
“Behind the stables. We can cut around to the car from there.”
I follow behind him. “Why did you hide?” I hear myself say. I almost want to look behind me because that nervous voice surely doesn’t belong to me.
He stops abruptly and turns back, grabbing my face in his warm fingers. “Not for the reason you’re thinking. I just didn’t want anything to stop us going out.” He sounds horrified and I relent.
“Okay, that’s fine.”
He doesn’t let go. “Did you think I was ashamed of you?” He sounds so incredulous I relax.
“I didn’t know. It wouldn’t be the first time. Wait, where are you going?”
He’s turned and is walking back, still holding my hand. He stops and looks back at me. “I’m not ashamed of you. I’mproudto be seen with you. Come on. We’ll go through the front door. I want everyone to see.”
I laugh and tug free. “No. If we go through the front everyone will see us and someone will magic up thirty problems instantaneously. Silas, stop, it’s fine.”
He turns back reluctantly. His kind face is clouded. “Who treated you like that?”
I smile. “No one, and I mean no one. Don’t worry about it.” He opens his mouth, but I forestall him and turn back towards the car park. “Come on, for goodness’ sake. I want to start the date.”
“Now, it’s a date,” he says dolefully and makes me laugh.
We climb into his old Land Rover. It’s battered, with dog hair on the back seat and a strange smell that seems to be a mingling of some sort of antiseptic and wet dog. However, for some strange reason I feel utterly at home.
I stay quiet for a few minutes while he drives and then turn to face him. He’s sitting comfortably in the driving seat, the breeze from the open window making his hair fly around. This close I can see the laughter lines at the corners of those amazingly coloured eyes. He turns, and I don’t even try to pretend I wasn’t staring.
“What?” he asks, a smile tugging at his lips.
“Just surprised we’ve not driven into a bush yet,” I say, a smile tugging at my lips.
“Fuck off,” he laughs. “I’m a good driver. I was just a nervous wreck when I was a teenager. I just covered it well, unless you were a driving instructor. It was harder going back and telling my father I’d failed than it was breaking that poor bloke’s nose.”
