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Jem snorted a laugh. “Seems fair to me,” she said. “And I’m she/her, just for the record.”

“Good to know,” said Mo.

“Alright, alright, if we’re done with the business of pronouns, could we move on to locations please,” Ellie said.

She realized now that she’d been anxious about Jem coming here because she didn’t know how she’d fit in, whether she’d be accepting of Mo, of Carys, of herself even. And that seemed silly now, because Jem might be rich and spoiled and all the rest of it. But she also looked very much at home sitting in the little office. Oddly at home.

She wondered if Jem felt at home everywhere. And then she wondered what Jem’s home actually looked like. And then she wondered what Jem looked like in her home. And then…

“El,” Mo said. “Earth to El.” They turned to Jem. “She gets like this sometimes, all up in the air.”

“There are worse places to be,” Jem said.

“Sorry, I was miles away,” Ellie said. “Tell me about the locations you’re thinking about.”

“Real work time,” Jem said, rubbing her hands together. “Alright, let’s start with the least likely and work our way up the list.”

CONSTABLE RUBBED AGAINST Ellie’s legs. “You’ve had dinner already,” she reminded him.

Unlike herself. Her stomach rumbled and she wondered if she had the energy to go back out to the shop to pick something up. She was just starting to persuade herself that she really did need a nutritious meal when someone knocked at the door.

“Checking up on my patient,” Paul said when she opened the door. He held out a tupperware container. “And bringing Butter Chicken if you’re hungry?”

“I’m hungry,” Ellie said, beaming and accepting the box. “Come in.” She led him into the tiny kitchen. “You know, I can’t help but wonder just what kind of restaurant it is that you work at. Hungarian goulash one day and butter chicken the next. I’ll have to come and visit you at work one night.”

“It’s eclectic,” Paul laughed. “And good luck getting a reservation.”

“Good luck getting the money to pay the bill as well,” Ellie said, tipping the chicken into a microwavable bowl.

“Good day?” Paul asked, leaning against the counter.

“No attacks, if that’s what you mean,” said Ellie, pressing the start button. “But in general, yes a good day.”

Jem’s ideas had proven satisfyingly good. In fact, once the three of them had narrowed down the list to three solid choices, Jem had been sent off with instructions to run them by her father the next morning. Ellie was actually starting to feel like she had a handle on this situation.

“Anything exciting?” asked Paul.

“Jem, the new girl, came to the office,” Ellie said, not going intoall the details. “And she was good, great even. She even got along with Mo, so she’s really fitting in.” The microwave beeped and she pulled the bowl out, only then turning to look at Paul.

He had an odd look on his face. “Ah.”

“Ah?” Ellie asked, opening a drawer to find a spoon. “Well, I suppose your day was much more exciting than mine anyway.”

Paul shrugged. “Not really. Just did a shift at the restaurant, so no excitement, I’m afraid. Who is this Jem girl then?”

“Long story,” Ellie said. “Fancy some chicken too? There’s loads.”

Paul looked at her for a minute before he finally smiled. “Nah, I’m good thanks. I’ll leave you to it, I suppose.” He bent down and patted the purring Constable. “Bye, Con.”

“Thanks,” Ellie called after him.

The chicken was good, just what she’d needed. She’d lucked out having Paul living next door. And now that her belly was full she could focus on getting preliminary designs for the party knocked up.

“Come on, Con, let’s take this party to the couch.” The journey was all of two steps, but Ellie was happy to settle into the cushions and reach for her laptop. There was a book waiting on the coffee table for when she was done.

Chapter Fifteen

Okay, so things hadn’t exactly gone according to plan. But then, maybe this was a better plan. The more Jem started to think about it, the better things seemed to be going. After all, what better way to butter her father up than by excelling at something? And maybe this was something she could do well. Plus, there was a time limit here, the party was going to happen and then she’d be back where she started.