Simple Complexity

Part 7

'Oh, uh yeah, we did, it's on Amazon if you want a copy,' she said with a smile.

Josh nodded, hesitating and he didn't respond, looking up to Holtz and Patty as they returned from the bar and the blonde handed Erin a wine glass.

'They didn't have what you wanted so I just got that sugar syrup stuff you like, added to a different wine.'

Erin took the drink, their eyes locked, and Josh noticed again, taking his beer from Patty, bringing it to his mouth in a long sip.

Abby returned not long after, and she reached for her glass, holding it up.

'A toast I think,' she said with a smile, 'to these two cuties,' Erin rolled her eyes, embarrassed, 'to Josh and Erin.'

They all held up their glasses, pushing them into each other, and Josh pulled Erin into him, kissing her and she beamed as she pulled away, putting her drink down and picking up the menu.

'I hear you make the proton packs?'

Josh was turning towards the blonde and the woman nodded taking a sip of her beer, Erin leaning forward, 'I told you she was a genius.'

The blonde licked her lips and she blushed, smiling at Erin, furling her brow, looking down, and Erin noticed her deep flushed cheeks, the way she wasn't meeting anyone's gaze and she kept looking down.

Holtz was embarrassed, this was the first time she'd ever seen her embarrassed.

'Yeah, they're my babies,' Holtzmann said eventually, looking up at Josh.

'She can basically invent anything,' Erin said, taking a bite of the bread that was on the table.

'Not anything,' the woman replied.

Erin nodded at her.

'Like the drone the other night.'

Holtzmann chuckled, 'Yeah true.'

Josh looked over at Abby and Patty, but they were both engrossed in their own conversation.

'And you knocked that up, in what forty-eight hours?' Erin continued.

'Well maybe just over forty-eight hours, but it worked huh?'

Erin nodded, taking a bite of bread again, looking at the woman and then back down in thought.

'We should look at making some new stuff this week Er.'

Erin nodded, pointing toward Holtz with a breadstick offering her some, 'Can we make the proton gun improvements? Oh, or the shotgun?'

Holtzmann nodded eagerly, sipping her drink as she did, taking some of the bread from the woman, 'Mmm, yeah.'

'You have the parts, so we could get it done in a few days?'

'Mhmm,' Holtz said, taking a bite of bead, responding with her mouth full, 'I reckon we could.'

'Maybe find a secondary pipe, make a pair?'

'Yeah, I've probably got another...somewhere?'

Josh watched them go back and forth, his head moving like he was watching a tennis match.

'You two want me to switch seats or somethin'' Josh asked with a laugh.

The engineer nodded, 'Mmm yeah, sure bud.'

Josh looked at her, his mouth a little open and Holtz punched him in the shoulder.

'Joking buddy, stay sitting next to my wifey.'

Erin froze at the word, and Holtz's eyes darted down to her lap and then slowly back to Erin, the woman was staring at her, and the blonde gave her a tight smile and then looked back down to her lap, fumbling with her fingers, then changing her mind and taking a long swig of her beer.