A Girl Called Malice. Aurelia Rowl B.

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      Charlie didn’t quibble over getting in whereas Zac continued to stare at my car, apparently traumatised. He still hadn’t moved by the time I’d smashed up my hands some more getting Charlie clipped into his car seat.

      ‘Is there a problem, Zac?’

      ‘Huh?’ He mentally shook himself before my eyes. ‘No, no, not at all.’

      ‘Glad to hear it.’ I carefully lowered myself into the passenger seat for what had to be the first time ever. ‘I wouldn’t want a four year old to show you up, after all. If you ask nicely, maybe he’ll share some testosterone with you?’

      I had to turn away to hide the massive grin splitting my face so I didn’t get to see Zac’s reaction but, within seconds, the driver’s door opened. Zac sank into the vacant driving seat without saying a word and slid the key into the ignition just as Charlie piped up from the rear.

      ‘What’s testos…test…test-oster-thingie?’

      Perfect. It gave me the excuse to avoid detection for a little longer so I spun around in my seat to answer. ‘Testosterone, Charlie, is the stuff that separates the men from the boys,’ I said, shooting him a wink.

      ‘Hey, I saw that.’ Zac jabbed me in the thigh with his index finger and set free a wave of hope that my redemption plan could work.

      ‘And if you’re a real man,’ I continued, ignoring Zac’s interruption, ‘then you’re more than macho enough to wear pink clothes and drive pink cars without worrying about corrupting your manhood.’

      ‘I’ve got a pink shirt,’ Zac protested. ‘And a tie with some pink in it.’

      ‘Excellent, then this should be a doddle. Let’s go…’

      Zac gnashed his teeth together and grumbled something under his breath but he reached behind for the seatbelt and buckled up. ‘Do you need a hand with yours?’ he asked. ‘If you’ll pardon the pun.’

      ‘That would be good, thank you. I think I managed to rip even more skin off when I sorted Charlie’s.’

      Zac leaned across to grab the seatbelt before I’d finished speaking. His running shirt must have been drying out because there was a slight aroma coming off him from such close quarters. It didn’t register as unpleasant though. Quite the opposite, in fact, so I breathed in deeply, albeit subtly since I wasn’t a complete moron.

      Once I was safely belted in, Zac turned the key in ignition and the engine roared to life. He put the car into first gear, then reached for the handbrake but didn’t release it. ‘What’s wrong?’ he asked.

      ‘Huh?’ I looked up from my lap to find him staring at me.

      ‘Is it your hands? Are they really bothering you?’

      ‘No.’ My response was met with two arched eyebrows. ‘Well, I mean yes, they hurt like hell but I’m OK. Why?’

      ‘You look…worried.’ He took his hand off the handbrake and put the car back into neutral. ‘I’m insured to drive any car if that’s what’s bothering you?’

      ‘No, it’s not that. Although good to know and I probably should have checked first—’

      ‘Do you always ramble when you’re nervous?’

      ‘Ugh. Fine. This is going to make me sound like a total loser but it just dawned on me that you’re the only person aside from me to get behind the wheel of my car.’

      ‘Ah…’ His eyes softened with understanding. ‘I promise I’ll drive carefully.’

      ‘You’d better. I’ll have you know this car is my pride and joy.’

      ‘Duly noted.’

      I waited until Zac was on the road and moving before I spoke again. ‘So what do you usually drive?’

      ‘A Land Rover.’

      ‘Oh, but of course.’ I smacked the heel of my hand off my forehead and successfully stabbed myself in the head. ‘How very manly. I should’ve known. Which model? Discovery? Defender?’

      Zac took his gaze off the road for a second and grinned. ‘Freelander. The three-door version.’

      ‘Nice. Let me guess…it’s green, right?’

      ‘A-ha, no. You’re wrong.’

      ‘Black?’

      ‘Nope.’

      ‘Silver.’

      ‘Yep. Um…Alice?’

      ‘Yes?’

      ‘Where am I supposed to be going?’

      ‘Oh. Ha-ha. Oops.’ The rest of the journey consisted of me giving Zac a series of directions and it left little opportunity for conversation. I toyed with the idea of taking him the long way but he would have sussed me out as soon as we arrived at the house so I led him directly there. Going home wasn’t nearly as daunting when I knew there was nobody else there.

      Zac made the final turn and pulled up outside the gates. His jaw dropped and he stared open-mouthed at the driveway on the other side. ‘You live here?’ he asked, finally finding his voice. ‘Are you like royalty or a celebrity or something?’

      I let out a choked laugh. ‘Hardly.’ My response earned more raised eyebrows from Zac but I wasn’t about to elaborate, especially not with Charlie in the car. ‘There’s a remote control to open the gates on my keyring.’

      ‘Oh, right. I wondered what that was for.’ Zac found the button then waited for the gates to open before driving through and cruising slowly along the driveway to take in the scene. ‘Wow, nice place,’ he said, bringing the car to a standstill in front of the house.

      ‘If you say so,’ I mumbled, earning another quizzical glance until Charlie saved me from an interrogation.

      ‘Can I show Zac my bedroom, Aunty Alice?’

      Zac made a tiny sound; a sort of gasp in reverse. He wasn’t the first person to wonder about my relationship to Charlie and he sure as hell wouldn’t be the last so I pretended not to notice. In a backhanded way, I found it extremely flattering. If I ever had a child then I’d want him—or her—to be just like Charlie.

      ‘It’s fine with me, Charlie, but it’s up to Zac really.’

      ‘I’d love to see your room, Charlie, but I seem to recall you saying you were hungry so why don’t you show me after you’ve had some lunch?’

       Impressive.

      ‘Yay,’ came Charlie’s standard answer to anything that involved getting his own way. ‘Can you sit next to me, Zac?’

      ‘Um…’ Zac’s gaze darted to meet mine. ‘I don’t—’

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