Page 64 of The Tide is High

“That conniving little…” Evie turned to glare at her niece, but the doorstep was empty, and the lights were going on inside. “She set me up!”

Amy’s chuckle dragged Evie’s gaze around to her. “In more ways than one,” she said with glee.

Evie’s mouth opened, but no sound came out, so Dani filled the void. “Looks like someone’s been watching too many chick flicks,” she said, chuckling to herself.

“See, I told you that cut-off-their-head zombie flesh-eater movies would be better for that child,” Amy said, and when Evie stared at her open-mouthed with disbelief, she shrugged. “She wouldn’t be getting any ideas about you and Beast Boy with those movies.”

“He’s not a green tiger,” Dani said, chuckling. “You can’t call him Beast Boy.”

Amy lifted her shoulders as high as she could and dropped them again. “Beast shifts so does he, and if it worries you that much, I can buy some spray paint and….”

“You will not spray a poor defenceless wolf green!” Dani said, horrified at the thought.

Amy was going to answer, but Evie stomped her foot on the concrete and grumbled a growl of annoyance, snatching her attention.

“I’m going to kill her,” Evie said. “Jennifer!” She set off for Amy’s place on fast feet when the sound of a window opening made her turn her head in that direction.

Parker pushed his backside away from Evie’s car and growled long and hard, and the window was yanked closed again without a word, which was good because she had plenty of words for her niece.

~

“A cup of tea just how you like it,” Marvin said, placing the steaming brew down on the bedside table beside Nana, and she eyed it with contempt.

“Go ahead, rub salt in the wounds,” Nana bit out, annoyed that she’d been confined to bed with her ex-husband as her nursemaid. Still, it was better than being shipped off to some foul-smelling hospital from which there was no escape for a woman of her age.

“Would you prefer coffee?” Marvin asked with a smirk.

“I’d prefer you pack up and leave,” Nana sniped.

Marvin offered her one hell of a grin of amusement; it reminded her of the man she had fallen for all those years ago; there was something of a cheeky chappy about him, and she still liked that – even if she didn’t like him.

“You can’t always get what you want…”

“Don’t quote a Rolling Stones song at me,” Nana grumbled, looking anywhere but at him.

“Someone has a short fuse tonight,” Marvin said, and Nana snapped her head around so fast he was half expecting her to bite him like a rabid dog.

“I don’t appreciate…”

“Being electrocuted?” Marvin said, nodding. “I can see how you wouldn’t.”

“Your sense of humour on the matter,” Nana tossed back.

“Smile and the world smiles with you, laugh and…”

“Get a kick in the balls,” Nana almost growled.

“Touchy,” Marvin said, but his eyes were full of laughter. “You are a live wire tonight.”

“Go home, Marvin,” Nana said, taking a moment to smooth down the covers around her waist so she didn’t have to look at him. She wished she was standing up instead of sitting in bed; it made her feel … fragile while he still had a sense of power and strength about him.

“I saved your life,” he said, mocking her.

“And stayed around to torture me.”

“I ordered a new kettle,” he said, and she narrowed her eyes at him. “Just in case you wanted to try again with the wet hands and electric appliance thing.”

“Out,” Nana said, her voice deepening with annoyance. She pointed at the door.

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