In Need of a Wife

Daniel took a deep breath. There was a pitiful crack in his voice as he confessed, ‘You are making my life hell, Mr Parnell. Please...please...will you stop setting off the alarms?’

‘The system works, Daniel,’ came the stern reproof.

‘It does indeed, Mr Parnell,’ he agreed effusively.

‘You’re absolutely convinced of that, Daniel?’

‘I shall laud this system, and your genius in making it work, to the four corners of the earth, Mr Parnell.’

Nathan sighed. ‘Well, if you’re prepared to guarantee it that far, I’ll stop testing it.’

‘Thank you, Mr Parnell. Thank you. Thank you.’

‘You can now have your diamond back, Daniel,’ he said, as though bestowing a great favour. He extracted it from Bonnie’s nappy and started polishing it on his lapel.

‘Kind of you, Mr Parnell. Very kind.’

‘And I won’t set the alarms off again. Or have my photos taken.’

‘Mr Parnell, I’ll mention you as a beneficiary in my will. Thank you.’

Nathan held out the diamond and Daniel gratefully accepted it. With great care and precision, he positioned it on its stand, then stepped away with the air of a man who’d had a great burden lifted from his shoulders.

‘Computer games,’ Sasha muttered, intensely relieved that it was a case of Nathan Parnell nailing someone rather than being nailed himself. He might be a rogue but he wasn’t a villain.

Nathan grinned at her. ‘I like practical results, even from games.’

‘It works. It all works,’ Daniel repeated with fervour, then made a hasty withdrawal.

‘Seen enough?’ Nathan asked Sasha.

‘Yes, thank you.’

‘Sorry about upsetting Bonnie. I didn’t think of that.’

‘You didn’t think of my heart, either.’

‘Maybe I did.’ His eyes danced with unholy mischief. ‘You don’t have any hankering to lead an exciting life?’

‘Not so I’ve noticed,’ she replied drily.

‘Don’t worry about it. A little more exposure, a little more training, and you’ll soon be doing things you never thought possible.’

‘That is highly unlikely.’

‘We’ll s

ee,’ Nathan said blithely.

They made their exit from the exhibition centre, thankfully leaving behind the speculative interest of onlookers. Sasha breathed in the sweet air of freedom, released from the prospect of visiting Nathan Parnell in Long Bay Gaol. Whether it was sheer relief or Nathan’s outrageous behaviour she didn’t know, but she broke into laughter at the whole crazy incident as they walked towards the car park.

‘What do you find so funny?’ he asked.

He didn’t look at all amused. Perhaps he thought she was laughing at his idea that more exposure to his way of living would immure her to anything happening.

‘It just feels good to be alive,’ she answered. He certainly put some new zest and zing into her life. In fact, she couldn’t remember ever having had such a wildly eventful day. Maybe Nathan was right. Not only had she sustained a number of shocks, she seemed to be thriving on them.

She grinned at him. ‘Next time you decide to walk into such a prestigious place and play a game with one of your toys, you could give me a hint that pandemonium is about to break out.’