'When was that?' asked Thora. 'Recently?'
Grimur laughed again. 'No, not recently. I don't remember exactly but it was a good while ago. It didn't yield much, as expected. They found remains of animal bones and a hole that was apparently used for cooking.' He pointed to a hole in the ground near the altar. 'No, the little that remained to be found has already been found, I assure you.'
Thora's last question was whether the man had noticed Harald visiting the caves. He did not recognize the description but added that it didn't necessarily mean he hadn't been therethe caves weren't fenced off and were easy for people to reach without being noticed.
'Go and get changed, then, Crocodile Dundee,' Matthew said when they were back at the hotel. 'I'm so lucky I can just throw off my jacket and go to the barand win back the time I lost on that slope.'
Thora stuck her tongue out at him, but went to her room to change. She put on nice slacks and a plain white blouse, washed her face and put on a little lipstick. There was nothing wrong with a little makeup for a dinner invitationthat didn't necessarily mean you were expecting anything. Yet she paused at the word 'necessarily.' It wasn't quite convincing enough, and worried her slightly. She brushed the thought aside and went up to the bar. Matthew was standing there deep in conversation with the barmanpresumably Oli. Matthew smiled at her, clearly pleased with the transformation.
'Nice,' he said succinctly. 'This is Oli. He was telling me about Harald and Harry Potterhe remembers them well. They drank a lot and stood out a bit from the other guests.'
'That's putting it mildly,' Oli said, and asked Thora what she wanted to drink.
'A glass of white wine, please,' she replied, then asked him to explain.
'Well,' he said. 'They drank one shot of tequila after anotherplayed air guitars and did other things you don't see very often around here. Not to mention Harald's appearance. The other guests just gaped at them both. And they smoked like chimneysI couldn't sell them cigars fast enough.'
Thora looked all around at the cozy bar, which was located under the gabled roof. She agreedan air guitar did not exactly spring to mindan air violin at most, if there was such a thing. She turned to Oli again. 'Harry Potterdo you happen to know his real name?'
The barman smiled. 'His name was Dori. As the night wore on they were both way too drunk to remember that he called himself Harry Potter. They put on quite a good act for much of the evening, though.'
There was nothing else to learn from Oli. They sat down on the big leather couch, drank a toast, and discussed the events of the day. The waiter brought the menu and after ordering, Matthew decided to have another drink. Much to Thora's surprise she had finished hers as well, so she accepted a second. After dining they went back to the bar, and by her third Cointreau Thora was on the verge of whipping out her own air guitar solo for Matthew and Oli. But she settled for snuggling up against the former instead.
CHAPTER 27
Thora woke up with her head throbbing as if her brain was trying to escape her skull. She clutched her forehead and groaned. Cointreau, of all drinks. She ought to have learned by now that 'liqueur' was Latin for 'hangover.' With a sigh she rolled over onto her side. As she did so her hand knocked something that felt so warm she opened her eyes wide in horror. There was a man in her bed. She looked at Matthew's back. Or was it Oli, the barman? She recalled the previous night and sighed softly at the realization that she had at least opted for the lesser of two evils. The fog in her head obscured her view of a clear exit strategyhow could she slip out unseen without waking Matthew? And an even bigger question: how could she maintain her dignity? Could she pretend nothing had happened? Maybe he couldn't remember anything either. That was the answersneak out, meet him afterward, and pray that he had drunk four times as much as she had.
Her plan evaporated when Matthew turned over and smiled at her. 'Good morning,' he said, his lips parched. 'How are you doing?'
Thora pulled the duvet up to her chin. She was naked under it. If she could be granted one wish, it was to be fully clothed. Her throat produced a strange rattle before her vocal cords kicked in. 'Just one thing. To make everything perfectly clear, you know.' Matthew looked puzzled but allowed her to continue. 'Last night, that wasn't meit was the alcohol. So you slept with a bottle of Cointreau, not with me.'
'Oh, I see,' said Matthew, propping himself up on one elbow. 'Those bottles of booze never fail to surprise. I didn't know they were capable of
Thora blushed. She tried to think up a different defense for her virtue but her mind was empty. Gradually the night all flooded back to her and she had to admit to herself that she didn't particularly regret it. 'I don't know what came over me,' she said, and blushed again.
'You worry too much,' Matthew said, putting his hand on her over the duvet.
'It's just not like me at all. I'm the mother of two children and you're a foreigner.'
'Well, since you have children you ought to be familiar with the process.' He smiled. 'It's pretty much the same everywhere, I expect.'
Thora's cheeks grew even redder. And her horror doubled when Amelia Guntlieb suddenly crossed her mind. 'Are you going to tell the Guntliebs about this?'
Matthew threw his head back and roared. After laughing his fill he looked at her and said calmly: 'Of course. There's a clause in my contract that says I have to submit a sex report to them at the end of each month.'
When he realized that Thora was unsure whether or not he was joking, he relented: 'Of course not; how could you think that?'
'I don't knowI just don't want people thinking that I make a habit of sleeping with my colleagues. I've never done anything like this before.' Given that she worked with the aging Bragi, Bella from Hell, and the un-assuming Thor, that wasn't saying much.
'I didn't take it that way,' Matthew said. 'I took it as meaning that you wanted to sleep with me at that momentthat you simply found my sex appeal irresistible.' He looked at her playfully.
Thora rolled her eyes. She did not want to answer, because to some extent he was rightat least, she was the one who made the first move, if her memory did not betray her. 'My hangover's killing me. I can't think straight at the moment.'
Matthew sat up. 'I have some Alka-Seltzer. I'll fix you one, you'll feel better straightaway.'
Before Thora could stop himshe realized that he was as naked as she wasMatthew had got to his feet and gone to the bathroom.
She opened them again only when she was sure Matthew was back under the quilt. He was holding a glass of fizzing water and Thora braced herself, sat up, and drank it in one draft. Then she threw herself back on the pillow and waited for the nausea to subside. She lay like that for a few minutes until a finger prodded her shoulder through the covers. She opened her eyes.
'Listen.' Matthew turned to face her. 'I have a suggestion.'
'What?' Thora managed to keep her voice normal. She was almost feeling a little better.
'How would you like to review your opinion that this was a mistake?' He smiled at her. 'I can put on my nice shoes, if you want.'
Thora woke up again, this time to the sound of running water from the shower. She leaped out of bed and threw on some clothes, hopping around on the floor. She could not find one of her socks, but gathered up the rest of the clothes in her arms. She called into the bathroom that she would see him at breakfast. It was a huge relief
