Under New Management by June Hopkins Page A

before, and he presumes, the boyfriend. They look like something out of the Village People and Kieran actually snorts with laughter causing the not yet swallowed drink to whoosh back out of his mouth and into his glass. He splutters and has a quick furtive look about to see if anyone has noticed but he needn’t have worried as everyone is gawping at the new arrivals.
    Jim, Lindy, Dan and Julie are not ones to miss out on a buffet. They are also not ones for queuing. As soon as the waiters start their prancing (as Jim would describe it) they make their way nonchalantly towards the end of the table where the plates have been stacked. Mollie is being dragged by her father even though she doesn’t want food, only alcohol, but Jim is insistent that she eat something. The waiters complete their impressive performance and Liam the lead singer gives his speech. The plan has worked and they are at the front of the queue. They begin to move along the table adding mouth watering food to their plates. As they reach the quiche Mollie notices the room go ominously quiet. She glances round to see what is going on and then notices that the rest of her family, apart from Jim who is moving onto the new potatoes, are staring at the door.
    Following the direction of their stares she is horrified to see David and Kevin standing arrogantly just inside the doorway wearing the most ridiculous costumes possible, given recent events. She feels her eyes widen and her mouth open.
    Jim, pleased with his haul, turns from the table with his loaded plate and eventually notices the hush. He frowns and looks round to locate the cause of the silence and stifled sniggers. When his eyes rest upon David and Kevin standing bold as brass in the doorway looking as if they are off for a night out at the Blue Oyster Club, his anger ignites in approximately ten seconds.
    Dan noticed the spectacle before the rest of the family; he nudged Julie in the ribs quietly to grab her attention and carefully put down his plate, his huge fists clenched at his sides. The cheeky bastards! Glancing over his shoulder he located his dad, who was oblivious at the end of the table. Dan knew that it would not be long before his dad saw what he was seeing and that would not be good. Dan needed to be ready.
    Jim places his precious plate onto the nearest table whilst apologising to the occupants who are looking warily at him. They are locals and Jim has a reputation. This should be entertaining, as long as they were a safe distance from the action.
    He marches towards David and Kevin purposefully, feeling rather than seeing Dan move to his side.
    In deference to the Sedgwicks Jim takes a deep breath and keeps his seething anger under control. Eyeing David steadily he asks in an ominously controlled voice, “Dave, what do you think you are playing at?”
    David and Kevin have visibly paled but both refuse to be intimidated. They love each other and if the locals can’t accept that, they would just have to get over it.
    David and Kevin are now officially a couple and they want everyone to know and besides, David absolutely detests being called Dave. Jim has been doing that deliberately to wind him up for the past six years and David has had enough. The man is a bully. Now that he has Kevin to stick up for him he is going to stand up to Jim Brown once and for all.
    Kevin is terrified, Jim and Dan Brown are not small men. They are well known for not taking any shit and both had been arrested on various occasions for fighting. Neither of them had ever been taken to court though; there had never been enough evidence. Perhaps tonight after he is dead the Police would get that evidence.
    Kevin loved David; has done for the past eighteen months and he wants everyone to know it. He feels genuinely bad for Mollie but it has been seven weeks and as David pointed out, they couldn’t hide forever.
    Kevin hadn’t planned tonight. In fact he hadn’t told David about the invitation. He had felt that