Page 79 of A Change of Heart

“Here’s a plan,” Holly said. “We’ll drink shots at the party, and if the opportunity arises you can kiss her.”

“That’s not going to happen. I can’t kiss her now that she told me she’s not interested. I’m also not getting drunk. I’m working in the morning.”

“Not early though. You’ll have plenty of time to get rid of a hangover.”

“I can’t,” he said, swatting at a wasp that buzzed by his ear.

“Why not?”

“It’s not really that Ican’t,I just won’t. It’s not worth it.” He smiled at a kid who walked past with one of his balloon animals in his hand – he’d been on his last ride of the day. “When I bought the train, some of the residents were against it. There were a lot of people who either wanted me to fail or expected me to. They were looking for any possible thing they could complain about. People thought I was too young to run a business and make a go of it … I went out of my way to make sure I never put a foot wrong.”

“Surely no one can comment on what you do in your spare time.”

“How long have you lived on this island for?” he asked jokily.

“Okay, good point. People would definitely comment … but you could always ignore them.”

“I’d rather not give them anything negative to comment on. Besides, I hate the thought of being seen stumbling out of the pub by some family on their holidays who’ve been on the train with me. Or turning up to work with a hangover. It’s not the image I want to give out.”

She squeezed his elbow. “Very sensible. I guess I’ll be drinking alone this evening.”

“I didn’t say I won’t have a beer or two.”

“Have a beer or two and introduce me to your mystery woman.”

He decided not to respond but smiled at how eager she was to know who it was.

“Oh, I forgot! You don’t need to introduce me because I already know her. You may as well just tell me who it is.”

He pointed in the vague direction of the horizon. “I reckon it’s going to be a great sunset this evening.”

“And I reckon you’re trying to change the subject, but you’re also right about the sunset.”

By the time they reached the party, the sun had dipped low, streaking the sky with swathes of pinks and reds.

The living room of the spacious house felt like a school reunion, with the majority of people they’d gone to secondary school with milling around. Having lost track of Holly the moment they’d arrived, Kit sought her out after half an hour.

“I heard there’s food in the kitchen,” he told her, nodding in that direction.

“There are more people than I expected,” Holly said. “Is your lady friend here? We could play a real-life game of Guess Who …” She scanned the crowd. “Does she have purple hair?”

He laughed. “No, it’s not Georgia Hart. And she’s not here, so the game is pointless.”

“I see, that’s why we’re moving to the kitchen? To see if she’s in there? Good plan.”

“We’re moving to the kitchen for food,” he said, but he was definitely on the lookout for Seren. There was no sign of her, and he felt a pang of disappointment. Maybe he should have messaged her earlier to casually encourage her to come. But it might be a good thing that she wasn’t there … it wasn’t really her crowd, and while he liked to think she’d hang out with him, there was also the possibility that she’d spend the evening hanging out with Felix.

A buffet was laid out on the kitchen island and Kit helped himself to a couple of sandwiches before moving along to the selection of sweets.

“The brownies are amazing,” Holly told him with her mouth full.

Rebecca appeared behind them. “They’re my own recipe.”

“They’re delicious,” Holly said, turning to Rebecca.

Kit held up the remainder of his brownie as he chewed slowly. “Have they got peanuts in?”

Rebecca’s eyes widened. “They’re peanut butter brownies. You’re not allergic, are you?”