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To be honest, that sounded like a pretty great deal.
“Oh. And you do a class just for the older generation?”
She bobbed her head. “Every Monday, and it’s not exactly open to the masses. Heck, they don’t even pay me, but it does mean none of them get on my back about how miserably single I am. Granny does insist on bringing Tofu, and Viv sometimes brings her little dog, but it’s pretty fun.”
“Who or what is a Tofu?”
Ash wrinkled her nose up. “Tofu. Her cat.”
“A cat in a ceramics store? Sounds like a terrible idea,” I said.
“He’s pretty chill. He has a little corner out the back, but he usually sits on the counter and judges us,” she replied. “Anyway, it could be a good place to start. Plus, I’m going to hear a lot with my customers tomorrow. People love to spread stuff around.”
I sighed, running my hand through my hair and fluffing it up. “That’s the problem. People don’t care if what they’re sharing is true or not. And if they did know anything, why not tell the police?”
“Because nobody wants to get involved. It just so happens that I have an inside track.”
“I am not spending any time with your brother.”
“You don’t have to,” she reassured me. “We can gather information, filter out what’s obvious bullshit, and do a bit of snooping into stuff we think might be true. Come to the store at eight tomorrow night. Granny will be happy to see you, anyway.”
I stared at her for a moment. Her gaze was one of steely determination, but there was a glint of excitement in there, too.
Wow.
She was enjoying this.
“You cannot seriously be excited about this,” I said, still staring at her.
“A little bit,” she replied. “I’ve always wanted to be a sleuth.”
“We’re not sleuthing.” My voice was firm. “But I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to see if we can get any information on Declan Tierney, if only to try to clear my name.”
“That’s the spirit, Lottie. Meanwhile, I’ll get Granny to keep her ear to the ground. If there’s anything to find out, she’ll be the one who does.”
CHAPTER NINE
Imanaged to leave the house before my parents woke up the next morning.
I didn’t want to worry them too much, so I left them a note that said I was going for a run on the beach, and I’d be back soon.
I didn’t know if I would be. As much as I wanted to hide away from the outside world, I didn’t want to stay home to be fussed over. Mum would only worry, and she was dealing with enough right now without having to baby me into oblivion.
The woman would wrap me up in cotton wool and bubble wrap if she thought she’d get away with it.
I just needed some fresh air.
Ever since we’d arrived in Fox Point, everything had been go-go-go. Preparing for Grandpa’s funeral, the funeral, the will, the wake, the chaos of the bed and breakfast, and now the whole dead body thing…
That was before I even thought about being formally questioned by my teenage love.
It was a lot for a girl to take.
Seeing Noah at the bed and breakfast had thrown me for a loop. I didn’t know he was a police officer, and I definitely didn’t expect him to show up when he did, but of course, he would. That was how it worked, wasn’t it?
I hadn’t been prepared to see him at all. I’d never had closure for the end of our relationship, and while I took partial responsibility for not telling him how I really felt, he was the one who’d disappeared into the sunset without a word, breaking my little heart in the process.
After that, I’d wiped Fox Point from my life entirely, until now.
