He nodded. “Yes. More or less.”
“What does that mean, more or less?”
“What does it matter?” he asked, making no attempt to hide the exasperation in his voice.
Ceci grinned. “What do you think, Pixel? Holly. Feminine. Delicate. Dainty …”
“Holly Golightly?” her friend ventured.
Ceci snapped her fingers. “Of course! That’s it!” She turned to Clarke. “It is, isn’t it?”
He sighed. “Yes.”
“And I’m assuming that’s the movie version of Holly Golightly; dainty, demure and delicate, just like the woman who played her, Audrey Hepburn.”
“Okay, yes, fine, you are correct.”
“Well, maybe not entirely,” said Piper. “Did you know she wore a size ten and a half shoe?”
“Pixel has a photographic memory,” Ceci said. “It’s nearly impossible to stump her. I’ll show you. Who is the youngest driver ever to race Formula 1?” She shot him a triumphant smile.
“That would be Sir Leo Clarke.”
Her head swiveled and she stared at her friend. “Wait? What? Not …”
“Who?” he asked.
“Nobody,” she said.
“Were you thinking it was Anker?” he asked, grinning back at her.
“Anker started driving F1 when he was seventeen years and six months,” Piper said. “Clarke was seventeen years and five months.”
“Big deal,” Ceci scoffed. “One month.” She paused. “Okay, how about this one? Who has mounted the podium the most times in a row?”
“Without a break?” Piper asked.
Ceci nodded.
“Just mounting the podium? It doesn’t matter whether or not he came in first?”
“That’s right,” said Ceci.
“Again, that would be Sir Leo Clarke.”
“What?” Ceci swung around. “What about Rocco Vittori?”
“Rocco Vittori had eighteen consecutive podiums. Clarke—nineteen.”
Clarke smiled at Piper. He liked this girl.
Boudica and Holly began running circles around them, barking like mad.
“These two are in love!” Aunt Delilah cried, watching the two romp and tumble.
“Looks like a lot of oxytocin flooding to me,” Pixel said.
Clarke grinned. “They did a study in 2014 and discovered the level of oxytocin in dogs didn’t rise from the dog initiating interaction. It was when the other dog reciprocated that it did.”
