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‘The clown?’ Ellie asked.
‘Yes. And the grim reaper is Max Jenkins who works at the library.’
‘I don’t know Max,’ Ellie said. ‘But perhaps I should get to know him if and see if there’s any work going.’
‘Don’t forget I have a permanent vacancy at the shop, mind.’ Darcie nudged her and Ellie laughed.
‘I won’t. And I am grateful for that.’
‘When Fletcher handed them their drinks, they left the table and went back to Ross. Ellie sipped her drink and shivered with delight. The combination of the black sanding sugar around the rim of the glass along with the silver tequila, triple sec and lime juice was delicious. It didn’t look as appealing as it tasted because the drink was black, dyed with a mix of food colourings, but it was a perfect Halloween cocktail. And it was strong. The alcohol hit her empty stomach and sent a gentle buzz through her veins.
‘Shall we have a dance?’ Darcie gestured at the space in the middle of the floor where people were gathering. The lights in the hall dimmed and a new song started up from the speakers on the stage.
Ellie looked at the dancers and chewed at her lip. ‘Maybe after another of these.’
‘OK! But I’m going in with Mille.’ Darcie handed her drink to Ross then she grabbed Millie’s hand and they headed for the dance floor.
Watching them, Ellie sipped her drink and swayed gently. Darcie might be closer to fifty than forty but she had the energy of a teenager as she twirled around, laughing and dancing with her daughter.
‘Evening.’ A deep voice at her side made the tiny hairs on her arms stand on end. She’d know that voice anywhere.
Turning, she looked up at the handsome doctor in blue scrubs next to her. The scrubs were covered in blood and there were purple shadows around his eyes and his throat appeared to have been fake slashed, but he was still handsome.
‘Hello, Finn,’ she said. ‘You’ve got something on you.’ She pointed at the fake blood. ‘And something’s happened to your throat.’
‘Really?’ He frowned but his eyes were sparkling. ‘I thought it felt a bit drafty around my top half.’
They laughed and the tension in the air between them dispersed.
‘How’ve you been?’ Ellie asked him.
‘Not great. OK. But not great. You?’
‘Same.’
She went to sip her drink and realised she’d finished it.
‘Another?’ he asked.
‘Go on then.’
‘Back in a few minutes.’ He took her glass then touched her arm gently before crossing the hall, avoiding the dancers that were spreading out across the dance floor as Michael Jackson’sThrillerboomed from the speakers.
Ellie waited, hands clasped in front of her, aware that she needed to have a frank conversation with Finn. Whatever they decided going forwards, they needed to be honest about what they were feeling because life was too short to feel this sad and lost.
Chapter26
Finn
Finn handed Ellie her drink then gestured at the doorway. ‘Do you fancy going for a walk?’
‘Sure,’ she said.
They grabbed their coats from the cloakroom area, left the main room of the hall and went outside. Hay bales had been set up around the exterior so they found one away from the rest and sat down.
‘Ellie… I need to tell you how sorry I am for hurting you. I never wanted to do that.’
She watched him, her eyes filled with emotion, her pretty face highlighted by the glow from the pumpkin lights that were hanging from the trees.
