Twelve Days The Beginning - By Jade Reyner Page 0,76
saying?”
“I just wondered what junction we needed on the motorway and if there was a service station nearby. I could really do with a coffee.”
“Oh right – erm yeah. If we get on the M5 here,” she pointed with her finger to the right place on the map, “then we can pick up a service station after about 10 miles. Would that be okay?”
“Sounds perfect!” he said with a wink, “Woman – take me to my coffee!”
Chapter Twenty
The service station was pretty busy but they managed to find a table where they could drink their coffee in relative peace. Vaughn had ordered a bacon sandwich and Elise had gone for a Danish pastry so they were sat waiting for their food order to be brought out.
Their table was next to the window overlooking the motorway so to pass the time they played the number plate alphabet game, which Vaughn had played as a kid. You took the last three letters of the number plate of the last vehicle that you saw, and had to make up a silly sentence of three words using the letters on the number plate as the first letter of each of the words.
Vaughn started and picked a car with the letters AVS. ‘Antelope’s Veer Sideways.’ He pronounced and looked at Elise, seemingly immensely proud of himself.
Elise had BGW and decided on ‘Big Green Whales’ which caused much amusement.
Next Vaughn chose TRU and declared ‘Trumpeter’s Ride Umbrellas’ at which Elise burst out laughing. “How on earth can a trumpeter ride an umbrella?” she asked.
Vaughn shrugged “It’s the game – it doesn’t have to make sense.”
“Ok then, if that’s how we’re playing,” Elise said “I’m going for INL – ‘Igloo’s Need Lights!’”
“Igloo’s Need Lights?” Vaughn repeated, “There’s no electric where igloos are built. How do you suppose they’re going to get lights?”
“You’re the one that said it didn’t have to make sense!” She pointed out, “C’mon, buster – you not up the challenge any more, is that what it is?”
“Are you threatening me, Miss Grayson? You ought to know by now that I don’t back down from threats. Bring it on!” He wiggled his eyebrows playfully at her and turned back to the road waiting for the next car.
After some really ridiculous sentences from both of them over the following few rounds, Vaughn decided to up the stakes and insisted that any number plate with an E or a V in it, had to figure their names.
Elise got VIK and went slightly risqué with ‘Vaughn Is Kinky’ to which Vaughn countered MEP with ‘Me Elise’s Prince’. Motioning for a sick bucket after that one, Elise got TEE and stated ‘Totally Exquisite Elise’ followed by Vaughn with GRV which he made into ‘Greatly Ripped Vaughn’. By now they were both in hysterics with tears running down their faces and when the waitress arrived with their food, she looked at them warily, clearly wondering if they needed to be carted off to the nearest asylum.
Reluctant to finish the game, they decided to carry on in-between mouthfuls, Vaughn going for ‘Elise Is Sexy’ when he got EIS, and, waiting for a number plate with a V in it, Elise was finally rewarded with VIB which gave her ‘Vaughn Is Big-headed’. Vaughn then watched for a suitable plate for his next one, and when he saw VWE he immediately settled on ‘Vaughn Wants Elise’. Seeing the direction that this was headed and wanting to move it onto safer ground, Elise spotted VEB and pronounced ‘Vaughn Elise’s Boss’. To which, when VAM went past, Vaughn stated ‘Vaughn All Man’ and promptly winked across the table at Elise, his meaning unmistakable.
Realising that they could be potentially moving into very dangerous territory, Elise suggested that they pause the game whilst they finished their food and coffee. Vaughn however was not ready to let it go and Elise had the distinct feeling that he was starting to relish the fact that the game had taken on a different turn.
“How about you just eat your food and let me carry on alone?” he said.
“Ok......” she said intrigued – she couldn’t imagine he would have much fun playing the game by himself.
She watched as Vaughn waited for the number plates to come past, seeming to know exactly what he was looking for. First of all he got ICB to which he declared ‘I Can’t Believe’ swiftly followed by OWA which was ‘One Week Ago’. The next one was IHM ‘I Hadn’t Met’ and then, unbelievably EGG ‘Elise