It wasn’t long before we had agreed that May Day would be the very first Damson Day, put a volunteer team in place and left the whole room buzzing with anticipation after they had agreed one last suggestion from Caris Smith.
We would start the evening festivities with a funeral pyre. The deceased? Why, the Feud of Ferrington.
I was so excited I almost forgot to worry about the stalker.
I did not, however, forget to grab Becky and drag her into a quiet corner as soon as the meeting was over. I’d not missed her doe-eyed glances over at where Luke hovered near the back of the room, or how he wove through the clusters of people chatting and leaned in close to say goodbye before he left.
‘So?’ I asked eagerly, pleased to be on the other end of the romantic interrogation for once. ‘How did it go?’ I’d obviously messaged her on Saturday, but the answers had been about as descriptive as if I’d asked Luke.
‘The pie was… not too bad!’ She squinted. ‘The pint was better.’
I jabbed her in the ribs hard enough to make her squeak.
‘Okay! We had a lovely time. We stayed until last orders and even managed some decent conversation. Not the whole time, but when we were quiet that was fine, too. Like, a companionable silence.’
‘A dreamy, transfixed-by-Luke’s-gaze silence?’
‘Well. That, too,’ she giggled.
‘Everything you’ve imagined it would be when mooning at him in year nine Geography lessons?’
She hugged herself, letting out a heartfelt sigh. ‘Better.’
Alice sauntered over. ‘All right, Becky? Survived your evening on the New Side?’
‘Yes, thanks.’
‘Only when I was locking up, I thought I saw Luke giving you the kiss of life.’
‘He kissed you?’ I grabbed her arm in delight.
‘Nope.’ Becky looked strangely happy about that. Before Alice could protest, she declared, ‘I kissed him!’
‘What?’
‘I’ve waited twenty years for a chance with Luke Winter. It might have been my one and only date, I wasn’t about to waste it.’
I grinned. ‘Sounds like he kissed you back?’
‘With all the passion and attention to detail that he put into grouting my kitchen,’ Alice chipped in.
Becky’s pink cheeks said it all.
‘Did he take your breath away?’ I asked.
‘On the contrary, I feel as though for the first time in forever I’ve stopped holding my breath.’ She looked it, as well. ‘He called me on Saturday. Not even a text, acall.To say that he’d had a great time and would I like to go out on his boat next weekend. I’m so happy I could pop.’
‘I could pop I’m so happyforyou. Look at us, all loved up.’ I glanced at Alice. ‘Speaking of which, it was good to see Jase here.’
Alice shrugged. ‘I hid the controller to his Xbox. Said I’d help him look for it if he came.’
‘Alice.’ Becky screwed up her nose. ‘He’s not being supportive if you’ve tricked him into it.’
‘I know.’ She shook her head, morose. ‘Where do you draw the line, though? If I was going through a bad patch, I wouldn’t want him to just bail on me because I needed some time to sort myself out. That’s not how relationships work.’
‘If you were going through a bad patch, would he even notice?’ I couldn’t help asking.
‘He bought me a box of chocolates when our cat died.’ She sniffed. ‘But then he did eat all the white ones and he knows they’re my favourites.’
