Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 130255 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 651(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130255 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 651(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
“Meeew!” Winston shouted from the doorway, staring at me expectantly.
“All right, all right. Christ, excuse me for looking after myself. It’s not like you’re starving, you shouty little cretin,” I muttered as I made my way down the stairs.
Something clanged from the kitchen, and I frowned.
Winston was next to me.
Either Vincent van Goat had broken in, or that smell of toast was someone making me breakfast.
I assumed it wasn’t going to be the goat making toast.
Winston bounded ahead of me like there was a fresh tin of tuna waiting for him. I rubbed my eye as I walked into the kitchen to the sight of Max spooning steaming hot beans onto two slices of toast.
He looked up at me. “Good morning, sleeping beauty.”
“Hardly.” I walked over to the drawer where I had some ibuprofen stashed. “What are you doing here?”
“Making you the ultimate hangover cure. Or at least it was when I was in university.” Max shrugged and pushed a plate across the island.
“Everyone knows it’s ready salted crisps,” I replied, getting the orange juice from the fridge so I could take the tablets. “But that does look good.”
His lips tugged to one side. “Sit. I’ll pour that for you. I’m guessing you aren’t feeling too great this morning.”
I grimaced, handing him the carton and doing as I was told. “I… yeah. Mistakes were made last night.”
His shoulders shook as he tried to suppress a laugh. “I tried to warn you it was a bad idea, but you insisted a couple of drinks would be fine since you’d eaten.”
“Please don’t remind me,” I replied, taking the orange juice and throwing back the ibuprofen I’d popped from the blister packet. “Thank you for this. I’m guessing you brought me home last night?”
“After I’d taken Penny and Grandma home.” He poured a second glass of juice and eyed me with twinkling eyes. “You asked me to stay, so I stayed. I slept in another room because you were snoring quite enthusiastically.”
I winced as I cut into the toast. “Sorry.”
“Don’t be. It was quite amusing.”
“All right, all right.”
“If it helps, Penny wasn’t feeling much better when she called me wondering how she got home.”
I swallowed my toast. “Did it… bother you?”
He raised his eyebrows. “Did what bother me?”
“Having to look after us.” I set down my fork and reached for my juice, eyeing him tentatively. “I know how you feel about alcohol. I’m sorry for putting you in that position.”
Max’s lips curved. “Ellie, the worst thing the three of you did last night was insist upon the karaoke machine being turned on for an impromptu karaoke night. You were the one who put a stop to alcohol at about eleven because you knew you’d hit your limit, even though they kept drinking.”
“I know, but—”
“You were drunk, but you weren’t out of control. You could walk, talk, and I only stayed because you asked me to. If you hadn’t, I would have been entirely comfortable leaving you here knowing that you just needed a good sleep and some water. Which you insisted on having before bed, by the way.”
I nodded slowly. “That explains why my head stopped exploding after I started moving.”
“Yeah. See? You’re a responsible drunk. It’s amusing.”
“Thanks, I guess.”
Max laughed. “Ellie, you don’t have to feel bad about drinking in front of me. I barely drink out of choice, but that doesn’t mean everyone else around me has to toe that line. I have an aunt who’s vegan and she insists that nobody even drink cow’s milk when she’s around. We’re talking not even in tea or coffee kind of militant. I’m not that person, nor do I want to be.”
“I suppose it’s nice to know that I’m a responsible drunk,” I replied. “I’m still sorry I made you have to look after me.”
“All you needed was a lift home. Otherwise, you really did look after yourself. Apart from the five minutes of you arguing with Winston over the pros and cons of wearing a tank top to bed.”
Oh, no.
“You had a full-blown conversation with him about how you shouldn’t wear one because your, and I quote, ‘damn boobies will pop out all night.’”
Wow. I really was a responsible drunk.
I buried my face in my hands. “Drunk me was right.”
“Drunk you also let a silent cat talk you into wearing it to bed. I really should have videoed that.”
All right. Not that responsible.
“I am extremely glad you didn’t.”
He grinned. “I’m sure. I’m happy to give you a full run down of it, if you want.”
“I think I’ll pass, thanks. Some things should not be remembered, and that sounds like one of them.” I scraped up the last of the beans and finished them. “Thanks. That… weirdly worked. Why have I never tried that before? How did you come across it?”
“Bad choices in university,” he mused. “Fred and I lived together while we were studying, and we were typical students. Both of us were absolutely dreadful at grocery shopping and our kitchen was filled with exactly what you’d expect from a couple of idiot students who didn’t have to worry about money.”