Page 6 of Captive Hearts
‘You gonna take much longer?’ Ashley asked.
Gina put down a case gently and put a hand on her hip. ‘It would go faster if you leant a hand.’
‘Can’t handle equipment. Insurance thing.’
‘Guess it’s good I packed my guns then,’ Gina grinned, lifting another box with her brawny arms.
Ashley watched Gina placing her cases in the van, her eyes drawn to the aforementioned arms for a second time. She had a nice body in general, it had to be said. Her plain red t-shirt and jeans were well suited to her body shape, and the jeans strained just nicely when she bent over…
Ashley suddenly realised what she was doing, and she jumped into the front of the van, pulling out her phone and having a look at the email Shelly had sent. Another crap story. But still, it was something to focus on that wasn’t Gina’s bottom. Anyway, that sort of thing was wont to happen when you’d been single a while. A long while, actually. Ashley did a few sums and realised she hadn’t been on a date in over two years. Jesus, give her another month and she’d probably start eyeing up Bernie.
‘Right,’ Gina said, jumping in beside her and belting up. She started up the engine with keys sat in the ignition waiting. And then turned it off. ‘Wait, my bad. Did you want to drive?’ She shook herself. ‘Oh no, silly me, you don’tdodriving, do you?’
‘Icoulddrive the van,’ Ashley said before realising Gina was most likely messing with her.
‘No, I wouldn’t want to screw your morals. You just sit there and let me drive you. I’m a lost cause. Greta Thunberg will probably murder me personally,’ she said, starting the engine up and pulling out of the garage. Instead of rising to the bait, Ashley closed her mouth and opened her notebook, making notes on the ‘story’ she was going to cover.
They arrived at the church twenty tense minutes later. Ashley got out. ‘Wait here, I’m just gonna go and chat to the vicar, you get set up, and I’ll come and get you in a few.’ She went into the church to find the vicar. In the distance, she thought she heard a siren. But it was only brief, then gone. Probably some copper running a light.
