Page 74 of Coming Home to Maple Tree Lodge

‘We’ll be there cheering you on every step of the way,’ promised Lily.

At that moment Ben passed by the doorway and Lily stopped to watch him briefly before turning her attention back to folding napkins.

However, Ella had spotted her looking.

‘Hey,’ she said. ‘By the way, did I interrupt something last night when I found you and Ben by the shore?’

Lily instantly shook her head. ‘No. It was nothing.’

‘Nothing, huh?’ Ella raised her eyebrows. ‘Nothing was making you two stand awfully close to each other.’

Hannah sucked in a breath. ‘Wow! Is something going on between you and my brother?’

‘No!’ began Lily before hesitating. She was still not comfortable with opening up with them but they were her best friends and she had promised that she would be more honest with them. So she forced herself to carry on. ‘Well, maybe a little something. I don’t know.’

‘Aha!’ said Ella, looking triumphant.

‘This is so exciting,’ said Hannah. ‘My future sister-in-law!’

‘It’s so romantic,’ said Beth with a sigh.

Lily rolled her eyes. ‘I think you’re all getting slightly ahead of the current situation. Nothing has happened yet.’

‘So you haven’t kissed?’ asked Hannah.

Lily shook her head.

‘But you want to, right?’ asked Beth.

Lily hesitated before finally closing her eyes and nodding. It was the truth. She couldn’t deny it to herself any longer.

‘But please don’t say anything,’ she urged her friends. ‘I mean, we’re getting along really well, me and Ben. I just don’t want to ruin whatever it is that we have.’

‘Or what you might have in the future,’ said Beth, still looking starry-eyed.

‘Right,’ said Ella in a firm tone. ‘So no blabbing,’ she added, looking at Hannah and Beth. ‘Promise?’

‘Promise,’ they chorused in return.

Lily gulped, still blushing and feeling embarrassed about opening up about her tentative feelings for Ben.

She waited for the inevitable regret and yet, to her surprise, it didn’t come. Instead, she felt a lightening of the burden that she had been carrying around for a while. Absolutely no regrets. Just the support and love that only true friends could provide.

And she found herself smiling and giggling with her best friends as they carried on working.

38

Ben tugged at his tie, which he had only just knotted over his shirt.

‘Damn thing’s strangling me,’ he muttered, pulling at it as he checked his appearance in the large mirror in the entrance hall.

‘Leave it alone,’ said Hannah, reaching up to pat it back into place. ‘I’ll loosen it a little but we’ve all got to look smart this evening.’

He had to admit that even his sister had made an effort that evening, teaming high heels and black trousers with a silky blue top.

‘Don’t know why we have to be trussed up like this,’ he moaned. ‘I mean, these are local villagers. I went to school with some of them.’

‘Not everyone will be,’ she reminded him. ‘Ella’s put the word out and you’ve got local travel bloggers and influencers coming here as well, thanks to her. These professionals could make a real difference to our success.’