Which should’ve eased the tightness in my chest but somehow made it worse, because now I had no idea if I was part of the reason she was unhappy and something she’d decided to keep at arms’ length.
“There’s a lad who needs a pint,” Graham said, following my gaze to Liora.
“Och, Irn-Bru for me, mate. Driving.”
“Nae bother.”
“Hiya, Torin,” Agnes said, turning from her stool to smile at me. “You want to join our team?”
Agnes was looking lovely in a pretty scoop-necked jumper, auburn curls framing her face.
“You’re late,” Graham said, bringing me my drink. “First round of trivia starts in ten.”
“I was lecturing people about responsible shrubbery care,” I said, reaching for the can.
“That’s the saddest sentence I’ve heard all week,” Agnes observed, then elbowed Graham when he leaned on the bar too close to her. “Excuse me, but have you heard of personal space?”
“Personal space is a construct,” Graham said cheerfully, unbothered. “We’re team-mates tonight, darling. You cannae push away the brains of the operation.”
She snorted. “If we were relying on your brains, we’d list Finland as a kind of fish.”
“Is it not?”
She rolled her eyes so hard I worried she’d detach a retina. But there was warmth there too, a fondness that made Graham stand a bit taller. He reminded me of a plant shifting upward when the sun shone on it.
It was clear he was hopelessly in love with her. Everyone knew it except, apparently, Agnes.
“You two need a room or another teammate?” I asked.
“Liora promised to be on our team if she ever puts down her tray,” Graham said, scanning the room. “Oi, sunshine!”
“Sorry,” Liora said, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear, as she hurried back over. “I’m really not sure how I’m meant to be of much help when I’m working.”
“It’ll be fine, I promise,” Graham said. “We need all the help we can get. Agnes keeps answering every question with Outlander.”
“Oh sod off! There wasonequestion about television ages ago,” Agnes said, her mouth dropping open. “And I’ll have you know that I was correct.”
Liora laughed, the sound tripping up my spine. “Okay, okay. As long as I can still serve my tables.”
“You can sneak a look at their answers too,” Graham said and Liora shook her head, the smile still hovering on her lips. It was nice to see. I didn’t even care that it wasn’t from something I had said. I was just happy to see her marginally more relaxed than she had been all week.
“We need a team name,” Agnes said, tapping the paper with her pen.
“I’m telling you, Quiztopher Columbus is a solid name,” Graham said. “It’s topical.”
“It’s offensive,” Agnes retorted. “We are not naming our team after a colonizer, you arse.”
“Fine. Agnes and Her Useless Menfolk,” he offered.
“That has a nice ring,” I said, and Agnes laughed.
“I’m keeping that one for my autobiography,” she muttered.
Liora laughed, her gaze bouncing between the three of us. “Right. Let me just see if any of my tables need anything else before we start.”
As she turned, I couldn’t resist letting my hand drift down the center of her back—just a light touch at her waist as had become habit.
She went still for half a second, like she always did when I touched her, and the door to the pub opened. The air in the room seemed to shift and somehow I knew before turning.