Читать книгу The Taylor TurboChaser - David Baddiel - Страница 18

“Hi, Dad!”

“Amy … how are you?”

“I’m fine, Dad. How are you?”

“Oh, not bad. I’ve got a lot of work on. But you don’t want to know about that.”

Actually, Dad, Amy wanted to shout down the phone, I DO want to know about that. She was sitting in their hallway, speaking to her dad on the landline (she wasn’t allowed a phone yet, which was annoying, as Jack was on his ALL the time).

Peter Taylor, her dad, called about once a week, and Amy really looked forward to it, even if sometimes she looked back afterwards on their conversations as not being quite what she had hoped for. Jack wouldn’t speak to their dad at all.

But, yes, Amy did want to know about her dad’s job, because her dad’s job was … designing cars! Supercars – which are basically very fast cars – to be exact. Some of them even had his name – and therefore her name – on them!

“Are you working on the new GT 500, Dad, or is it—” she began.

“What? Oh yes. The meeting. Of course. Just give me two minutes.” Amy realised he was speaking to someone else on the other end. But then his voice became loud again. “What were you saying, Amy?” And then before she could answer he said, “How’s the new chair?”

“Oh yes, it’s great! Thank you so much!”

“No need to thank me. Although you could send me a photo of you in it. That would be nice.”

“Er … yes. At some point.”

“Pardon, Amy?” He spoke suddenly strictly, which he sometimes did.

“Sorry, Dad, yes. I will. Soon.”

“OK. Can I speak to your mum?”

Amy felt a dip in her stomach. So often when she talked to her dad, the conversation ended sooner than she would like.

“Sure, Dad. Mum!”

“And, Amy?” he said.

“Yes?”

“I’d really like to see you in that chair. Mobilcon’s prices are daylight robbery – I’d like to know it’s worth it.”

Amy nodded. Which was pointless, because he couldn’t see.

And gulped.

Which he couldn’t see either.