Page 7 of Dead in the Water

“It is pretty surreal when I think about it,” Lily agreed.

She could have left it at that. Or she could have confided in Seren about the issue with Maria. She didn’t want to do that yet, though. Not until she knew for sure that Maria was the owner.

There was one other problem she could share with her friend.

“I had dinner with Flynn last night,” she blurted out, before she could talk herself out of sharing.

“That’s not exactly news, is it?”

“No. But he invited me to his place, which is unusual. And he said he was going to cook.” She dragged in a breath. “I got it into my head that it was a date…”

“Was it?” Seren asked.

“No. Definitely not.”

“Okay.” Seren seemed confused. “But you two decided you were going to stick to being friends, didn’t you?”

“Yes. We did. And that seemed logical. But last night when I got to his and realised it wasn’t a date, I was disappointed.” That didn’t quite cover it. “Actually, I was really annoyed with him. Which is a little unfair, but I couldn’t help it.”

“Did you say anything?”

“No.”

Seren squeezed her elbow. “Just because you agreed to be friends doesn’t mean you can’t change your mind about that. Talk to him and tell him you don’t want to just be friends.”

“I don’t know,” she said with a sigh. “He seems fine with things the way they are.”

“It doesn’t matter how heseems– you won’t know for sure what’s going on in his head unless you ask.”

“Maybe.” She glanced up at the promenade and spotted a large group entering the shop. “I should get back and help Jessica.”

“I better get to work, too.” They continued to the promenade together, then went their separate ways.

Lily got straight to work helping Jessica, and the rest of the afternoon was pleasantly busy. She sent Jessica home at closing time, but ended up staying open an hour later since every timeshe went to flip the sign on the door, more customers would arrive.

Keeping the customers happy by staying open longer had seemed like a good idea until she realised she still had to make new batches of ice cream.

The thought of that final task was tiring, but she soon got into the rhythm of chopping and blending ingredients. There was something soothing about the process and time went by without her noticing, but the tiredness hit her again when she moved three new batches of ice cream into the freezer.

Glancing from the back room into the shop, she spotted the tables and chairs which she’d forgotten to take inside for the night. Now, the task felt overwhelming. Mostly, because there was someone sitting out there in the fading light, and the idea of having to make small talk – when all she wanted to do was collapse in bed – wasn’t at all appealing.

For a moment, she considered abandoning the tables and chairs for the night. But if there was a storm and they got blown around, she’d curse herself for her laziness in the morning.

Taking a breath, she psyched herself up for it.

It wasn’t as though she had to chat. All she had to do was politely shoo them away and pack up for the night.

She’d be tucked up in bed in no time.

Chapter Four

Only a sliverof the sun was still visible when Lily stepped outside. While it disappeared into the sea, it sent streaks of orange and yellow across the darkening sky. The reflection of the vibrant colours on the water drew Lily’s attention – like twinkling lights as far as you could see.

Suddenly, the effort of putting the tables and chairs away was worth it. She inhaled the briny air and gazed out at the mesmerising view.

After a couple of minutes of taking it in, she turned to the grey-haired man sitting at the furthest table. “I’m afraid you’re a little late for ice cream,” she told him.

“I was just enjoying the sunset.”

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