Page 70 of The Jealous Girl

He rolled his eyes. ‘Don’t,’ he cut in. ‘Just don’t.’

‘You were my friend. The only person at Blackwater who would really talk to me, let alone help me. And then you just left. You disappeared. You didn’t even say goodbye or keep in touch.’

‘Why would I keep in touch with you after the allegations you made?’

I pressed my hand to my head, but it did nothing to ease the throbbing. ‘What allegations? What are you talking about?’

Ben shook his head. ‘Are you seriously going to stand there and act all innocent? Pretend you didn’t⁠—’

‘I didn’t,’ I urged. ‘Whatever you think I did to you, I didn’t.’

‘Ben?’ His mum appeared behind him, staring at me over his shoulder. ‘Is everything okay?’

Ben shook his head. ‘It’s her. Kirsty Palmer.’

My skin prickled at the way he said my name, full of contempt.

‘The girl from the stables?’ Recognition flashed across her face, before her expression darkened. ‘You need to leave,’ she said firmly, striding forwards, to stand shoulder to shoulder beside her son.

‘But, I⁠—’

‘Now,’ she said, flatly.

I hesitated. I couldn’t just leave. Not like this.

Ben shook his head. ‘Just go home, Kirsty. And don’t come back.’ He reached for the door and slammed it shut.

I stood there for a moment, staring at the dark wood.

My hand lifted slightly, desperation urging me to ring the bell again. To force him to listen. To make him understand.

But I didn’t.

His expression left no room for discussion. His hostility, his certainty, wasn’t going to allow him to hear me out. To believe me.

My shoulders slumped as I turned away and walked back down the driveway towards my car.

Nothing was going to plan.

Worse still, nothing was making any sense.

Instead of gaining Ben’s help, all I’d found were more questions.

And more enemies.

26

THEN

Early August

Ryan leaned over the hob, peering into the saucepan as he stirred the bolognese sauce.

‘Thanks for taking care of dinner,’ I said, lingering in the doorway. Not quite in the kitchen. Not quite out of it either. ‘That’s the downside of working in a hotel. Irregular hours. Especially in the summer.’

‘I’ve not been in long either,’ Ryan said, a hint of irritation in his voice. ‘It’s tourist season for us too. Rides on the beach and through the forest have got really popular in the last couple of years.’

‘Hey, that’s great. The social media campaign paid off, then.’ I smiled, glad to know that I’d at least made one successful contribution to the business. Even if it was a small one.