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‘Call it a draw?’ Hazel asked, out of breath as the kids discussed carrying the match on for longer.
‘Light’s starting to fade,’ Gus told Peter and Abigail.
Hazel came close enough that he could see a mischievous glint in her eyes. ‘So that’s your excuse, is it?’
‘Fact, not an excuse.’ He liked how close they were, how he could see the amusement on her mouth while he argued back.
‘Are we going to the ice-creamery for our ice-creams?’ Abigail’s question pulled him out of his daydream.
‘There’s no better place,’ Hazel smiled. ‘And we’ll go just before midday, if that suits everyone.’
‘Good for me,’ said Peter. ‘Mum is collecting me late afternoon. I’m working in the waffle shack at lunchtime.’
‘Isn’t that illegal?’ Hazel said quietly to Gus as they all sat down on the ground near the swing ball set and got their breath back.
Peter had good hearing. ‘It’s not a proper job, I’m too young to work but I get some extra pocket money if I wipe down tables or do some washing up.’
‘Daniel sounds a bit like a dad,’ said Abigail. ‘Why?’
Gus almost leapt in to point out that she didn’t like people asking her personal questions, but Peter didn’t seem to mind the query.
‘Daniel is kind of a stepdad. He married my mum once, but they were only friends really, like they are now. Then I have my biological dad who isn’t around, ever. And now there’s Stu, who is married to my mum.’
‘What’s he like?’
‘He’s nice, I like him.’ It was his turn to ask a question now. ‘I heard you telling Barney and Lois about a horse. Is it your horse?’
‘His name’s Denby and he’s staying with Hazel at the Heritage View Stables.’
Hazel nodded in acknowledgement and glanced over at Gus, who realised he’d been staring her while the kids carried on their banter. He cleared his throat. ‘Denby likes his new home.’
‘Do you ride him every day?’ Peter asked Abigail.
‘I try to see him once a day,’ Abigail explained. ‘I didn’t ride today, my mum came to visit. But I saw him before school.’
‘I’m scared of horses,’ said Peter, seemingly unaware or unbothered he was admitting that to a girl.
‘Why?’ Abigail wanted to know.
‘I got bitten by one once, all I did was stroke it.’ He explained he’d been in a field and his friends wouldn’t dare touch any of the horses. He went up behind one and tried to pat it.
‘He didn’t see you coming,’ said Hazel softly. ‘Horses like to know what’s going on, so you probably frightened him and he turned and bit.’
Peter thought about what she’d told him. ‘That sounds about right. He had a bit of a scowl on his face.’
This amused Gus more than anything else, imagining a horse with an extra-long face or a perturbed expression.
‘Did it hurt?’ Abigail asked Peter.
Peter hesitated and then admitted, ‘I cried.’
‘I would’ve cried too,’ said Abigail. ‘Denby stood on my toes once, I screamed and I think I scared him.’
‘Do you still have all your toes?’ Peter asked the question so innocently Abigail began to giggle.
‘I still have ten toes. And he didn’t mean to do it. I’m extra careful now.’
‘What do you wear?’
