"I also had a very fat aunt who stank of wee,"she said. This was only partly true. Her aunt hadn't been very fat. "It was worse when she sat by the fire."
At this they all burst out laughing again, Alison included.
Unable to contain herself any longer, Heather grabbed Alison's arm. "What did you say?"she demanded.
This time Alison did stop to interpret and Heather laughed as well. The old man with the fat aunt lifted his hand to the barman and ordered more drinks. When they came there was more wine for Alison and Heather as well. And more tapas. In no time the conversation had turned to searching questions about the girls. Where did they live? How old were they? What did they do for a living? Why had they chosen to visit their village in February?
Alison answered as best she could, except for the last one, of course. She said it was a holiday for schools in England and she felt she needed to brush up on her Spanish.