plenty of fresh country air and TLC from you,â David said.
Jake returned with a bottle of water and four glasses. He sat next to David, across the table from Emily.
âTo good friends,â Barbara toasted when they each had a glass in hand.
âGood friends,â David, Emily, and Jake replied, and they all clinked glasses to complete the ceremony.
âWe would have invited you to join us, but we thought weâd give you your space,â Barbara said, after theyâd all taken a sip. âWasnât expecting to run into you lovebirds quite so soon,â she added with a knowing expression, which caused both Jake and Emily to blush slightly.
âActually, weâre hiding from Mum,â Emily said with a laugh.
âOh?â
âShe phoned and then wouldnât take no for an answer about dropping by for coffee,â Jake said. âSo we decided to give her a little wake-up call.â
âOh, bravo!â Barbara said.
âI told her it wasnât convenient; that we were heading out,â Emily said.
âAnd she said she was coming over anyway, right?â Barbara said.
âHow did you guess?â Jake laughed. âIf I hadnât got all insistent, sheâd probably be interrogating poor Em as we speak,â he added, stroking Emilyâs hand that was wrapped around her glass on the table. âSo, here we are.â
âGood! Iâve been telling her for ages she needs to redraw the boundaries,â Barbara said.
âShe was doing okay, just needed some reinforcement,â Jake said. âBut Iâm here now.â
Hello people, Iâm sitting right here.
âSo, other than hiding from the lovely Enid, weâre actually here on our official first date. And what are you guys doing so far from home?â Jake asked.
âFirst date, eh? About bloody time,â David said jovially.
âYes,â Barbara agreed.
âHereâs to many more.â David raised his glass and they again went through the ritual.
âAnd here we are making you celebrate with water,â Barbara added with a tight laugh.
âYouâre not making us do anything,â Emily said.
âWell, anyway, itâs just lovely,â Barbara said.
âSoâ¦?â Jake asked, looking from David beside him to Barbara across the table with raised eyebrows.
âSo, what?â David said nonchalantly, though Emily didnât buy it for a second.
Jake continued to look at them expectantly.
âOh. Us ? Oh, well, weâre um, er,â David stammered, looking at Barbara.
âWeâre actually here celebrating the anniversary of the day we met,â Barbara cut in.
âYes,â David said, taking a slug of water.
âSilly, really,â Barbara added, looking down at the table.
âNot at all,â Jake said.
âI donât think we do nearly enough celebrating,â Emily said emphatically, trying to cover up the slight unease that seemed to be hanging over them all. Something just wasnât quite right. Not actually between David and Barbara; they were as close as ever. Just as she had the thought, they exchanged another doe-eyed look.
âRight, whoâs for one of these wood-fired pizzas?â David said, picking up the stiff, laminated menu cards from the end of the table. He handed them each a copy.
Emily reluctantly dragged her mind back from her misgivings, accepted the card with a thank you, and tried to focus on the long list of pizzas on offer.
It took them ten minutes to decide they would share one large pizza â half gourmet meat for the guys and half barbeque chicken and roast capsicum for the girls.
After they ordered, Jake raised the topic of moving Emilyâs unfinished hayshed.
âGood idea,â David agreed, âbut Iâm busy rolling stubble for the next few days â if the forecast of hot weather turns out to be accurate. Iâm happy to look into it after
Jake returned with a bottle of water and four glasses. He sat next to David, across the table from Emily.
âTo good friends,â Barbara toasted when they each had a glass in hand.
âGood friends,â David, Emily, and Jake replied, and they all clinked glasses to complete the ceremony.
âWe would have invited you to join us, but we thought weâd give you your space,â Barbara said, after theyâd all taken a sip. âWasnât expecting to run into you lovebirds quite so soon,â she added with a knowing expression, which caused both Jake and Emily to blush slightly.
âActually, weâre hiding from Mum,â Emily said with a laugh.
âOh?â
âShe phoned and then wouldnât take no for an answer about dropping by for coffee,â Jake said. âSo we decided to give her a little wake-up call.â
âOh, bravo!â Barbara said.
âI told her it wasnât convenient; that we were heading out,â Emily said.
âAnd she said she was coming over anyway, right?â Barbara said.
âHow did you guess?â Jake laughed. âIf I hadnât got all insistent, sheâd probably be interrogating poor Em as we speak,â he added, stroking Emilyâs hand that was wrapped around her glass on the table. âSo, here we are.â
âGood! Iâve been telling her for ages she needs to redraw the boundaries,â Barbara said.
âShe was doing okay, just needed some reinforcement,â Jake said. âBut Iâm here now.â
Hello people, Iâm sitting right here.
âSo, other than hiding from the lovely Enid, weâre actually here on our official first date. And what are you guys doing so far from home?â Jake asked.
âFirst date, eh? About bloody time,â David said jovially.
âYes,â Barbara agreed.
âHereâs to many more.â David raised his glass and they again went through the ritual.
âAnd here we are making you celebrate with water,â Barbara added with a tight laugh.
âYouâre not making us do anything,â Emily said.
âWell, anyway, itâs just lovely,â Barbara said.
âSoâ¦?â Jake asked, looking from David beside him to Barbara across the table with raised eyebrows.
âSo, what?â David said nonchalantly, though Emily didnât buy it for a second.
Jake continued to look at them expectantly.
âOh. Us ? Oh, well, weâre um, er,â David stammered, looking at Barbara.
âWeâre actually here celebrating the anniversary of the day we met,â Barbara cut in.
âYes,â David said, taking a slug of water.
âSilly, really,â Barbara added, looking down at the table.
âNot at all,â Jake said.
âI donât think we do nearly enough celebrating,â Emily said emphatically, trying to cover up the slight unease that seemed to be hanging over them all. Something just wasnât quite right. Not actually between David and Barbara; they were as close as ever. Just as she had the thought, they exchanged another doe-eyed look.
âRight, whoâs for one of these wood-fired pizzas?â David said, picking up the stiff, laminated menu cards from the end of the table. He handed them each a copy.
Emily reluctantly dragged her mind back from her misgivings, accepted the card with a thank you, and tried to focus on the long list of pizzas on offer.
It took them ten minutes to decide they would share one large pizza â half gourmet meat for the guys and half barbeque chicken and roast capsicum for the girls.
After they ordered, Jake raised the topic of moving Emilyâs unfinished hayshed.
âGood idea,â David agreed, âbut Iâm busy rolling stubble for the next few days â if the forecast of hot weather turns out to be accurate. Iâm happy to look into it after
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