Players, Bumps and Cocktail Sausages (SAMPLE)

Players, Bumps and Cocktail Sausages - Chapter Three

“Holly’s not a big drinker,” I said.

“Okay,” Oakley replied slowly. “Well we have non-alcoholic stuff too. Come with me and we’ll find you something.” They walked off, leaving me alone, chatting as they made their way into the conservatory that looked like a brewery. How fucking much alcohol did they buy?

“How come Holly’s here?” Abby asked, doing Everleigh’s ninja thing and just appearing in front of me.

I frowned. “Because her brother’s here. I said she could come rather than hanging out at her parents’ house alone. Plus I thought she would get on well with Oakley, and I was right.” Jesus it wasn’t liked I’d asked her on a date.

“Right,” she replied. “Are you going to introduce me too?”

Shrugging, I nodded my head and walked into the conservatory after them. Abby’s mood swings were beginning to piss me off. In the car over she was okay, minus the head band thing, when we arrived she was lovey wife but now she was acting pissy.

“Holly,” I said, “this is my wife. Abby this is Brad’s sister.”

Abby stepped forward. “Nice to meet you, Holly.”

“You too.” They shook hands and Holly took the cocktail from Oakley’s hand, thanking her.

“Drinking today?”

She shook her head. “It’s a non-alcoholic cocktail.”

“You don’t drink?” Abby asked as she poured herself a glass of red wine.

“Not much.”

“How do you survive Uni without alcohol?”

Holly laughed. “I have no idea. Did you go too?”

“Yeah, to study teaching and English literature and language. What’re you studying?”

“Children’s nursing,” she replied. I felt like a dick for not asking her the other night.

“Wow, that’s great,” Abby replied. I was glad they had something in common because if they hadn’t Abby probably wouldn’t have tried that hard to get along with her. She could be kind of selfish like that. She wouldn’t necessarily ignore Holly but she wouldn’t have tried to make friends or anything.

Holly smiled shyly and I realised the men were outside, cooking the meat on the barbecue with a cooler of beer beside them and I was inside chatting to the women who were drinking girly drinks. I shook my head and backed away. “I’ll be outside.” They were too busy gossiping to notice I’d left. Rude.

I walked to the man area and grabbed a beer. “Tell me there’s Jack Daniels in that?” I said to Cole.

“Just coke,” he replied and I raised my eyebrow. “Well since my wife is now on her third cocktail I’m guessing I’ve been nominated the designated responsible parent for today.”

“She’s getting drunk?” I frowned. She never got drunk, drunk. “Is everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine, Jasper.”

I didn’t like it. Oakley didn’t drink until she got drunk, just tipsy. The last time she was drunk was when that bastard sperm donor we were supposed to call Dad sent her a letter. It was almost two years ago. She got in such a state Mum and Miles took Everleigh for the night so she could calm herself down. I hated seeing her like that. I wanted to kill him even more than I normally did.

“Seriously, Jasper, she’s fine. It’s Miles’ birthday and she wants a few drinks. She’s twenty-four, old enough to have a few cocktails.”