Page 56 of Winter Nights at the Bay Bookshop

LARS

I’d been out first thing on Sunday morning with my Christmas Paperback Pixie books and I couldn’t wait for Lily’s reaction but I knew she’d be too busy during the day to notice my Instagram post. By Sunday evening, I was on tenterhooks, waiting for her to ring to say she’d pieced together the clues and ask if I was really the elusive Paperback Pixie.

It was midnight before I finally accepted I wasn’t going to hear from her and settled down to sleep.

I felt a little disappointed at first but I told myself not to be so daft.

She probably hadn’t even seen the photos.

Even though both Lily and Cassie followed the Paperback Pixie, it was nearly always Cassie who spotted the updates and flagged them to Lily but Cassie was away on her mini-moon just now.

As I approached Bay Books on Monday morning, I felt a mixture of nerves and excitement, wondering whether Lily might have seen the feed this morning. I unlocked the front door and was surprised to find Alec behind the counter.

‘Hi, Alec! I thought you were doing the lunchtime shift.’

‘Lily asked if I could do a full day instead. Her grandparents are coming in over lunch.’

‘So Lily’s not in today?’

‘No. Didn’t she tell you?’

‘She didn’t, unless I’ve missed…’ I checked my phone but there weren’t any messages.

‘She’s taking a day off. Shattered after working so many hours.’

‘Oh, okay. I’m not surprised. She looked drained on Saturday and she had a headache.’ I tried to sound unconcerned but I was puzzled. Why hadn’t she told me she wasn’t coming in today?

Going downstairs to drop off my coat, I rang Lily but it connected straight to her voicemail. I left a message saying I’d heard she was taking a day off, I hoped she was able to rest and I’d hopefully see her tomorrow. What more could I do?

When George and Bluebell arrived, they reiterated what Alec had said that Lily needed to recharge her batteries.

It seemed she’d actually spoken to them and also to Alec, so why hadn’t she spoken to me?

Or even just sent me a message? I tried calling her again during my lunch break but it went to voicemail so I didn’t leave a second message.

I rang once more as I walked back to my car at the end of the day but it was still voicemail. This wasn’t like Lily so I drove to her house after work but the annexe was in darkness. Marcus must have seen me arrive as he poked his head out of the side door.

‘She’s not in,’ he said. ‘She’s gone to see Kadence in York. Do you want a coffee?’

Thinking they were going to tell me what was going on, I joined Marcus and Shelby but they told me what everyone else had – that Lily was feeling shattered and wanted a day off.

Marcus shared how guilty he was feeling that he hadn’t insisted on them taking an extra person on and joked how strong-willed Lily could be when she set her mind on something.

They were surprised Lily hadn’t told me and thought perhaps she’d sent an undeliverable text and hadn’t realised.

The pair of them were as warm and friendly towards me as they’d always been and there were no awkward silences or loaded looks between them, which helped reassure me that I hadn’t upset Lily.

Not that I could think of anything I could have said or done that would have upset her.

‘Do you know what time she’ll be back from Kadence’s?’ I asked.

Shelby shrugged. ‘She said late. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind you waiting, but late could mean any time up to midnight.’

‘No, it’s fine. If she is back late, she’ll want to go straight to bed. It’s my day off tomorrow but I’ll pop into the shop at some point to say hello.’

Driving back home, I wondered if Lily had put together the clues and discovered that I was the Paperback Pixie but it hadn’t delighted her as I’d anticipated.

What if she was annoyed with me for keeping such a big secret from her?

It would explain why she’d spoken to her grandparents and Alec but was seemingly avoiding me.

I tossed that idea around for a while before dismissing it as ridiculous.

It didn’t fit with the Lily I knew and loved.

I remained convinced that she’d love the Pixie reveal.

Something else was going on and hopefully she’d tell me what it was tomorrow.