Page 111 of In at the Deep End

Before Jamie could respond, Matt bent down and retrieved Jamie’s tablet from where it was tucked beneath the couch.

“What do you fancy watching?”

Jamie considered the question with the seriousness only a three-year-old could manage. “Bluey.”

Matt smiled. “I thought you might.”

Owen relinquished hold of the wriggling toddler. “Here, you take over, and I’ll put the kettle on.”

Matt wrapped Jamie in a dinosaur blanket, and started the episode.

Owen had no clue who Bluey was, but it was plain to see the cartoon was a favourite. Within seconds Jamie was absorbed.

“Are you hungry?” His own stomach rumbled, reminding him they hadn’t eaten since breakfast at the hotel. Given everything that had happened, he doubted Matt had noticed either.

Matt gave a distracted shrug.

Owen smiled to himself. That wasn’t a no.

“I’ll make sandwiches.”

Matt opened his mouth, clearly thought better of it, and nodded. Owen headed for the kitchen.

Looking after people didn’t always require grand gestures.

Sometimes it was as simple as making sure they remembered to eat.

Matt watched Owen move around the kitchen, one ear trained towards the lounge, listening for Jamie. Owen buttered bread, laid slices of ham and cheese onto it, then picked up a knife and cut the crusts off one lot.

Matt chuckled. “Are those for Jamie?”

Owen nodded. “He looks like a crust remover.”

He smiled. “You’ve known him all of ten minutes.”

“And I stand by my assessment.” A moment later, he set a mug in front of Matt. “Tea.”

Matt wrapped both hands around it. “Thank you.”

“And perhaps we should take our lunch to Jamie. I doubt we could drag him away from Bluey anyway.”

He had a point.

Matt grabbed a plate of sandwiches and his mug, and followed Owen into the lounge where he placed the small plate on Jamie’s blanket-covered lap.

Jamie looked up from the tablet. “Triangles.”

Owen glanced at Matt. “Three years old and he knows what a triangle is.”

Jamie frowned at the sandwiches. “Not triangles.”

Owen blinked. “Oh.” Without a word he disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a knife. He cut each rectangle diagonally before placing the plate back on Jamie’s lap. “Problem solved.”

Jamie’s face lit up. “You clever.”

Owen’s grin was immediate. “Don’t spread it around. I have a reputation to maintain.”

Matt laughed again, and Owen welcomed the sound.