Chapter 63
Roman, Miles and Tony worked to put the dance floor down. There may have been some beer involved.
"So come on what are you wearing?" Tony asked Miles.
He grinned.
"I have flares and a wide collar shirt." He told him. "What about you?"
Tony grimaced.
"Rachel has got me a white disco outfit." He groaned.
Roman laughed.
"I've got a pair of flared jeans somewhere I think and a few things I can adapt. I haven't really given it much thought." Roman said, taking a swig from the bottle.
"How is Ella?" Tony asked.
"She seems better." Roman said noncommittally.
Miles looked at him noticing the lines of strain on the other man's face.
"Are you boy's finished your break or should I just do the rest for you!" Alf grumbled.
Tony laughed.
"We were just discussing what we are wearing tomorrow night." Tony told him. "What are you wearing Alf?"
"Flaming Nora!" Alf exclaimed. "You turned into a bunch of girls?"
Roman chuckled.
"I think that is Alf talk for get back to work!" he said.
Miles nodded.
The three men stood up and went back to work.
They laid the floor, the wooden planks fitting together like jigsaw pieces. Alf lifted the speakers into place for the disco. He waited until they had completed the middle section and he set up the ladder for Miles to help him string lights and put the disco ball up. He plugged them in and switched them on checking they worked.
Tony and Roman put in the last section of floor, before setting up tables and chairs around it.
They put lanterns on each of the tables. And then watched as Alf brought out some posters. Roman chuckled as he saw one of them. The cartoon character Snoopy in flares and headband with the slogan 'Peace Dude' on. There was another one with the peace symbol on and 'Make Love not War' across it. A silhouette disco couple was on the final one with the phrase 'Disco lives forever' on it. He helped Alf put them up.
"Is the disco hooked up?" Miles asked them.
Alf nodded assent and Miles went over and put some music on. He grinned as he heard an old Temptations hit. He clicked the next track and the Animals hit 'We've got to get out of this place' came on.
They looked up in surprise as Roman laughed.
"It's one of El's favourites." He said to them in explanation.
"I can remember exactly where I was when I first heard this." Alf told them.
Roman handed the man a beer.
"Nam?" he asked.
Alf nodded.
"How many tours?" Miles said softly.
"Just one but it was one too flaming many. I don't mind the fighting for my country bit, I'm proud of that. It's the men who didn't get to come home."
Roman nodded.
"Yes." He said softly. "To fallen comrades." He began a toast. He looked at both Tony and Miles. "And lost loved ones."
The four men looked at each other solemnly for a moment.
"Miles I think we need something cheerier to listen to." Roman told him.
He grinned and clicked on an Elvis track.
"Now that is more like it." Alf grinned.
They finished their beers before heading their separate ways. Roman sent a quick text to Ella to say he would be home after dropping Miles off.
"Ella." Nic called out.
"I'm here." She answered walking down the stairs. "What is it?"
Nic grinned.
"I need to ask a favour." She said and pulled Geoff into the room. "We both do." She added ignoring Geoff squirming beside her.
"Ok what do you want?" Ella asked puzzled.
"Well two favours." She looked at Geoff who had gone slight red.
"Nic just spit it out." Ella told her.
"We need you to get my dad not to get them too drunk tomorrow. Apparently Geoff and Aden are a little worried about it." She looked at Geoff and folded her arms.
"I'll do what I can." Ella said. "But I don't know if I can promise."
"And the other thing is. We need to learn to cook." Nic told her.
"I hope you aren't going to ask me for lessons I'm hopeless." Ella told her, grinning.
"No you aren't. I looked in those cookbooks I know." Nic said. "And I also saw what my Dad didn't."
Ella looked up.
"Nic?" she said.
"I'll tell him about the Cordon Bleu certificate." She blackmailed her.
"You wouldn't dare." Ella said. "And how come you saw it anyway?"
"Harry showed me." She said. "When he showed me that kitchen."
Ella swore.
"I only did the course as a bet. I still can't cook." She said.
"You can cook enough to teach us so we don't starve." Nic muttered.
"Fine." Ella muttered. "But in secret. I do not want your Dad to ever find out."
Nic nodded.
"I think I can conveniently forget I saw anything." She told Ella with a grin.
Ella walked into the kitchen and Nic followed.
"You dad will be home soon. I'll give you a lesson tomorrow. We'll go to Yabbie creek and do some shopping and then take it back to your house." Ella said. "What else is wrong?"
Nic looked up.
"Nothing." she said quickly.
Ella looked at Geoff.
He shrugged.
"I bumped into the man who hurt Nic." Geoff explained.
"I hope you bumped quite hard." Ella said with a grin.
Geoff explained what happened.
"Well fine. I didn't expect you to take his side." Nic muttered.
Ella looked at Nic's face and pulled the other girl to her and gave her a hug.
"Nic it's not a question of sides. Geoff is taking care of you. I think he did the right thing. He stopped the other man from being in the Bay and from you bumping into him without warning. And Aden was there too which you know is your brother taking care of you too. They didn't have to tell you but they did. There is someone who tried to hurt me once and my brother hit him, but we weren't in a position for me to avoid him so I would still bump into him and it was awful." Ella said in a rush with a shudder.
"Oh Ella." Nic said and held her.
"It's ok sweetie. I loved the bit where you threatened him with Roman." Ella grinned.
Nic looked up and smiled.
"I suppose that was kind of funny." She admitted.
Geoff leaned over and kissed her and then pressed a kiss to Ella's cheek.
"Excuse me." Roman said walking in on the scene.
Ella giggled.
"Just bonding." Ella told him.
Roman walked over to her and kissed her.
"You look tired." She said softly.
He nodded.
"What have you been doing?" Nic asked.
"Something with Miles." Roman told her.
Nic nodded and she looked at Ella.
"Tomorrow at 9am." Ella said to her.
She grinned and turning led Geoff up the stairs.
"Something I should know about?" Roman asked her.
"Last minute shopping with Nic." Ells told him.
She went to the oven and lifted out the pasta dish she had prepared and the garlic bread.
"I went for simple." She said to him.
"Smells great." Roman told her sinking on to a chair.
She served it up and placed it in front of him.
"So you want beer?" she asked.
He shook his head.
"I'm going to eat this grab a shower and head to bed." He said.
She smiled at him.
"And you should know the bed hasn't been used. I slept downstairs last night." He confessed, not mentioning that he had been too tired to go upstairs and that he missed her too much to sleep in a big double bed without her.
She leaned over and kissed him.
"How about instead of the shower I run you a bath?" she suggested. "Soak those tired muscles."
He nodded after a moment.
She waited until he cleared his plate and then cleared the table.
"Give me a minute and then the bath will be ready." She said giving him another meltingly good kiss.
He nodded and lent back in the chair. She made sure she walked away form him with and extra wiggle in her step and heard him chuckle behind her.
She climbed the stairs and went into the bathroom. She lit a few candles while the bath was filling with hot water. She added relaxing bath foam and swirled it in the water.
She looked up and saw him in the doorway.
"I was going to call you."
He grinned.
"I found my eyes drifting shut." He said.
She smiled at him and watched as he undressed quickly. He tested the water in the bath and climbed into it with a blissful sigh. She picked up a sponge and started washing him all over.
"El I love you." He said with a sigh.
She grinned and leaned forward to kiss him.
She dropped the sponge in the water and began to give him a back massage.
"Ok I really love you." He said.
"Feeling better?" she asked after a time.
He nodded.
She kissed him again and reached for a towel watching as he climbed out and she it handed to him. He dried his body and went through to the bedroom. She tidied up the things and blew out the candles as the water was swirling down the drain.
She walked in the bedroom and saw he was already in bed.
She stripped and pulled on a nightdress before climbing in next to him. He turned so he was facing her and she pulled his arms around and snuggled next to him.
"Goodnight lover." She said.
"Ella" he murmured tiredly.
"Tomorrow." She said to him with a chuckle.
He sighed as though he were planning to say something to her but she felt his breathing even out and knew he had fallen asleep. She grinned and soon she was asleep too.