Page 50 of Dead in the Water

“And you don’t just see her as a friend, do you?”

He rolled his shoulders, uncomfortable having this conversation with Seren.

“You two should be together,” Seren said firmly. “Just tell her you’re an idiot and you made a mistake. Ask her on a date.”

“It’s not that simple,” he said wearily.

“Only because you’re making the situation more complicated than it needs to be. Worry about the future later.”

He took a long swig of his pint. “Thanks for the advice,” he said flatly.

She muttered about him being an idiot as she walked away.

He wouldn’t disagree with her there.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Walkinginto the restaurant at the hotel, Lily felt a stab of guilt over ignoring Flynn’s messages. She’d had a busy day, though. Also, they’d spoken the previous morning, so it wasn’t as though she’d been ignoring him for long.

Forcing her mind to the present, she smiled as she weaved through tables to join her dinner companions at the far side of the room.

“I hope you’re up for a double date,” Russell said, eyes twinkling as he stood and pulled out the chair beside him.

“Oh, for god’s sake!” Kerry muttered. “Don’t put the poor girl off her food.”

“James didn’t feel up to it,” Russell explained. “And Joyce felt it was disrespectful to go out for dinner while James hid away in his room.”

“She’s ridiculous sometimes.” Kerry sipped her water, leaving a bright red lipstick stain on the rim. “What difference does it make if we go out or not? It doesn’t change anything. And James wanted to be alone, so it doesn’t matter to him what we do.”

Lily hid her disappointment at not getting to meet James and picked up a menu. “How is he?”

“As you’d expect,” Kerry said.

Vic’s attention had been fixed on his phone, but he placed it face down on the table. “The police screwed up the arrangements for Joseph’s body, so that hasn’t helped things.”

“I don’t think they screwed it up,” Russell said. “I think they changed the plans on purpose.”

“It screwed things up for James,” Vic argued. “Which seems a little insensitive at a time like this. I don’t see why they couldn’t have held off…”

Finally, Lily could get a word in. “What happened?”

“They moved the body to the mainland this morning,” Russell said. “Apparently, the coroner wanted the post-mortem carried out immediately.”

She cursed herself for ignoring Flynn’s calls. He’d probably wanted to tell her about it himself, and her precious pride had got in the way of the investigation.

“Is that normal?” she asked.

“Apparently there’s always a post-mortem for an unexpected death.” Kerry shot her husband a wary glance. “That’s what the sergeant told you, isn’t it? It’s just routine…”

“Yes.” Vic reached for his phone again. “That’s what he said.”

Kerry tapped her red nails against her glass. “James considered not making the trip, since he mostly wanted to view his dad’s body, but he decided to come over anyway. He’ll sort through his dad’s things on the boat tomorrow. I think he just needs to feel he’s doing something.”

“It’s probably good that they’re getting the post-mortem done quickly,” Russell said. “It’s not something you want to have hanging over you for ages.”

“I don’t even see why they need a post-mortem.” Kerry huffed and picked up her menu. “But let’s not talk about such morbid things at the dinner table.”

When the food arrived, it was delicious, but the atmosphere as they ate was decidedly dreary. Kerry spent most of the meal complaining about Joyce and exclaiming repeatedly about how they needed to eat, and questioning what good it did anyone for them to eat in their rooms.

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