“A couple. I needed a break, and I’ve always liked being near the water.” Saffron’s gaze wandered to the lazy waves. “I like it here.”
“I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else.”
“Maybe we can spend more time together.”
“Of course. When you visit Ginger during breaks in filming, it’d be nice to catch up.”
Saffron eyed the lighthouse, wishing it could guide her way to Kirsty’s heart, because right now, Saffron seemed to be drifting firmly in friendly waters with no hope of more.
Chapter 19
Kirsty walked along the beachfront to the back deck of Ginger’s house, finding its occupant sitting at the table squinting into her phone. Having spent years walking past this house and wondering who lived there, she was more than thrilled she could just walk in now. Especially when the owner didn’t see her coming and Kirsty could creep up on her.
She made her final steps light, then sprang forward. “Boo!”
Ginger jumped in the air, her phone leaping from her hand.
Kirsty caught it with her right hand as if it had been choreographed all along.
Ginger moved her sunglasses to sit on top of her platinum blond hair. “You can go off people, you know that?” But her blue eyes told a different story.
“You could never go off me. When it comes to the Oliver sisters, I’m like a lucky charm.” At least, she was with one Oliver sister. The other one, who the fuck knew? They were so hot and cold, she’d given up even trying to work Saffron out of late. She’d been very sweet in the market, almost as if none of the previous stuff had gone on. Why couldn’t Kirsty meet a woman with no history, no issues to work out? Did they even exist?
She sat beside Ginger, crossing one leg over the other. She returned Ginger’s phone, then fished her laptop out of her bag. No more brooding on Saffron and what might happen. She had to live in the present. Ginger’s divorce party was in a handful of days. “Ready to go over your drinks order? You’re ordering too much, so I’ve toned it down.”
Ginger held up a hand. “You don’t know my friends. If there’s booze left over, I’ll give everyone a goody bag. Leave the order as is, please.”
Kirsty raised an eyebrow, but let it go. If that’s what Ginger wanted, she could have it. She amended the order. “Next thing. Cake topper. Did you sort that?”
She got a wide grin in return. “Oh yes. Wait till you see it. I’ve been chuckling since it arrived.” She pulled her sunglasses down again, peering up into the blazing hot morning. “I need to get an umbrella for this deck. That’s something I never thought I’d say living at the UK seaside.” She sat forward. “I wanted to ask you about a suit that turned up this morning. I wondered if you’d ordered it?”
Kirsty frowned. “Not that I recall.”
Ginger blew out a breath. “That’s what I thought. I’ve been sitting here wondering if I’m going mad. My parents died too young to get dementia. My grandparents were all dead by the time I was ten. So I’ve no idea what our family history is when it comes to losing your marbles. Is this the first step? Ordering suits you don’t remember?”
“What’s it like?”
“Sparkly.” Ginger jumped up. “You know what, even though it’s not really my style and it’s a bit big, I was intrigued. Somebody’s put a lot of work into it.” She pointed a finger at Kirsty. “Stay there, I’m going to try it on. Help yourself to coffee.”
Kirsty did as she was told, pouring herself a cup from Ginger’s cafetière. Five minutes later, someone clearing their throat made her look up. She did a double take at the sight in front of her.
“Wow. You look…” Kirsty couldn’t quite find the words.
“Like a gameshow host?”
She let out a strangled laugh. “Or perhaps an extra from Studio 54.”
Ginger shook her head. “Liberace’s love child?” She looked down at the sequined silver trouser suit, tapping its shoulder pads, before stroking its black velvet lapels and pocket trim.
“If you were a pop star, you could get away with it.”
“But I’m not. I’m a web developer from Sandy Cove.”
A wolf whistle split the air. When Kirsty raised her head, Saffron was running up from the beach. Was she stalking her? It was a small town, but she didn’t bump into anyone else as much as she did Saffron.
“It came!” Saffron opened the gate, wiping sand from her jeans. Barking sounded from behind her. She ran back out to Rufus, getting down on her haunches and making a fuss of him. “See you tomorrow, Greg!” She waved them off, then came back in, closing the gate behind her.
“You found out the owner’s name, too?” Kirsty asked, impressed.
