Page 34 of The Side Road (Love Chronicles #3)

BUTTONS

As Oliver approached the school gate, he noticed a tall man leaning against the fence, knitting.

The lanyard around his neck pointed to a staff member and not a parent, but Oliver didn’t like to make assumptions.

His neatly groomed appearance – pressed pants and a tailored shirt – suggested he was organised, in a relationship, or he still lived at home with his mother.

The man paused his knitting and looked up as Oliver approached. After studying Oliver for a moment, he held out his hand. ‘Josh Healey. I’m Tash’s homeroom teacher. Please, call me Josh.’

Oliver took the man’s hand and introduced himself. Josh’s nail polish matched the colour of his yarn.

Using the narrowest needles Oliver had ever seen, Josh appeared to be making a scarf for a small animal. Concentrating, he returned to his knitting and finished the arrow-shaped end.

Seeing Oliver’s interest, Josh said. ‘It’s a bookmark. I’m only using three stitches. I’m hoping it doesn’t scream, “beginner”.’

‘Not at all. I’ve just finished my first scarf. It’s addictive once you get the hang of it.’

‘It is,’ Josh agreed. ‘For the record, Tash is great. She’s one of the brightest students in the class.’

Oliver smiled.

‘Who does the least amount of work.’

Oliver wiped the smile off his face. ‘Did you say the least amount?’

‘Yes.’

Oliver let this sink in. ‘It’s lucky she’s bright, then.’

Josh smiled. A small laugh escaped from his chest.

‘She reads a lot. And she’s twelve.’ Oliver felt the need to defend his daughter.

‘Her art essay on Howard Arkley is due soon. I haven’t seen her draft. Could you chase that up?’

‘I will.’

Josh was casting off. ‘Any plans for the school holidays?’

‘No.’

The school bus pulled in and Josh disappeared into the sea of twelve-year-olds who were returning from an excursion to the historic Stockman’s Museum.

Oliver knew it was time to add dancing to the Monday dating routine. With a little work and some inventive low lighting, he could make the garage into an acceptable dance venue. A quick trip to the electrical section of the local hardware store was all he needed.

After giving the music some thought, he added the obvious slow dance classics from the 1950s and ’60s to his playlist. But he wanted a more contemporary vibe for their date.

Music from the 1990s – the decade he was born – was also appropriate.

His playlist included ‘All My Life’ by K-Ci the animal’s legs were held in place by slip knots. Its inability to move allowed the owner to run the clippers over its fur.

‘It looks medieval,’ Oliver said.

‘No animals were harmed,’ Mary said.

Oliver spun around.

Mary had a disconcerting habit of silently entering rooms, which Oliver found unsettling.

Lately, she had been spending more time at the parsonage.

Her weekend sleepovers had started in May, every Saturday night.

Last week, she had taken over the spare room, leaving a pair of pyjamas and a knitted dog on the bed.

The dog looked a bit like a German shepherd.

The following morning, she had asked for potato pancakes for breakfast.

Oliver found a recipe with 489 reviews and an average rating of 4.8. Nutritionally, they were high in calories, cholesterol, sodium, and carbohydrates. They were also addictive.

Oliver liked Mary – she was good-natured with a wicked sense of humour that came from being invisible and the youngest member of a large family. He added pretzels and bratwurst to the weekly shopping list.

‘Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind,’ Mary said.

‘Can you make it?’ Tash asked.

Oliver nodded. ‘I’ll figure something out. Manual or automatic?’

‘I think, manual. I can shave one side and then turn him over and do the other,’ Tash said.

‘Have you thought about what material you want for the ropes?’

‘We’ll leave that to you,’ Mary said.

Two days later, after a trip to the hardware store and the Men’s Shed, the Buttons Shaving Rack was complete.

Tash tied the rabbit to a frame attached to a rotisserie element that Oliver had repurposed from an old BBQ.

Ropes secured three paws, and Tash slipped the final noose over Button’s right leg.

Gently, she tied it to the frame. The only thing Buttons could move was his nose.

They stood back and considered the splayed rabbit.

‘He seems comfortable,’ Oliver said.

‘He’s not complaining,’ Tash said.

Oliver agreed. Buttons looked surprisingly relaxed; the animal had submitted. ‘Get this done before someone calls animal cruelty.’

Tash collected her electric clippers. After switching them on, she looked Buttons in the eye. ‘Don’t move,’ she said.

With short, regular strokes, she trimmed the rabbit’s hair. When the underside was done, she turned Buttons over rotisserie style and started on the animal’s back .

Button’s appointment at the salon took less than ten minutes.

‘That went better than I expected,’ Oliver said. He looked at the wire rotisserie rack. ‘I could patent this.’

Tash collected the rabbit hair and scooped it into a bag. ‘I’m going to spin this into wool and knit something. He’s a sustainable bunny.’

The following day, Buttons escaped.