Page 5 of The Perfect Gift

The last sentence didn’t make any sense to him, but Ed had enough to worry about for now. ‘And your boyfriend, I’m assuming, if you’re sleeping here…’

The woman’s brows edged further down, more a scowl than a frown now. ‘I don’t know what kind of gossip you’re trying to stir up but you can pack it in, right now! I’ve barely spoken to the man other than in passing.’

‘So what are you doing in his house – our house – in the middle of the night, then?’

That frown morphed into a full-on glare. ‘This is my house – well, technically it’s the production company who are renting it for me – but I can assure you that no one else lives here.’ Her eyes widened and she shot a glance towards the front door and then back at him again. ‘Do you have a key? Is that how you got in?’

Ed hadn’t thought things could get any more confusing, but apparently he was wrong. ‘Of course I have a key, I live here.’

‘Well, that’s the first I’ve heard of it! I’ve been living here for six weeks and it was empty when I moved in, I can promise you that.’

‘Matt wouldn’t give up on this place of his own free will, not after he’s poured so much of his heart into it.’ Exhaustion hit Ed like a wave and he raised his hands to rub his tired eyes.

‘Stop!’

He froze with his hands inches from his face, the bright red on his palms blurring in front of him. ‘Bloody hell!’

‘Move out of the way and I’ll turn on the taps for you.’

Ed stepped aside as instructed and the small woman hurried over and twisted the taps. Though there was nothing funny about their current situation, he was faintly amused by the way she held her fingers under the stream of water, checking the temperature as though she was worried it would be too hot or too cold for him. It was a simple, instinctive kindness and Ed found himself warming to her. He still didn’t understand how she came to be living there, or where Matt was, for that matter, but she was clearly as confused as he was. ‘Thank you,’ he said when she moved out of the way and gestured for him to return.

He held his hands under the tap, wincing as the water turned blood red as it ran over his skin and down the sink. It seemed to take an age before the water turned clear again, and although the stickiness had gone his palms were still badly stained. He grabbed the bottle of washing-up liquid and poured out a generous amount. He scrubbed and rinsed and scrubbed again, but it made no difference. With a sinking feeling in his gut he turned to look at the woman over his shoulder. ‘What the hell did you spray me with?’

‘It’s for self-defence, so when someone attacks me it marks them with a permanent dye. It makes them easier to trace.’ She had the grace to look slightly abashed.

‘Technically it was you who attacked me,’ Ed pointed out with a smile he wasn’t really feeling. He turned off the taps and reached for a tea towel to dry his hands. Whatever she’d used on him didn’t look like it was coming off any time soon.

‘Technically, I could call the police and report you for breaking and entering.’ The woman folded her arms across her chest, her entire posture turning defensive.

‘Technically, I didn’t break anything and I had no problem entering because I have a key.’ Good God, why couldn’t he keep his big mouth shut? He was too tired and too grumpy to be rational, but picking a fight wasn’t going to get them anywhere. Ed took a deep breath and tried again. ‘I’m sorry again that I frightened you, but I’ve been travelling for the best part of forty hours and all I want to do is get to bed and try and sort all this out in the morning.’

The woman nodded. ‘I’ve got a really busy day tomorrow so I need to get back to bed.’ She unfolded her arms and held out her hand. ‘If you hand over your key I’ll agree to forget all about this. You’d better give your brother a call and warn him you’re on your way over so you don’t give anyone else a fright tonight.’

It took a few moments for his tired brain to process what she was saying. ‘You’re kicking me out?’

A noise that was somewhere between a laugh and a scoff escaped her lips. ‘What did you think I was going to do, invite you to bed down in my spare room?’

It was on the tip of his tongue to point out that her spare room was actually his bedroom, but some tiny shred of self-preservation stopped him. ‘I can’t call Harry, I’ve lost my phone.’

The woman rolled her eyes. ‘That’s a you problem, not a me problem.’ She tipped her fingers in a gimme gesture. ‘Key, please.’

Exhaustion washed through him and suddenly Ed didn’t have an ounce of energy left to argue the toss with her. He dug a hand in his pocket and yanked out his key ring and slapped it down on the table. ‘Help yourself.’ Without another word he marched out of the room and grabbed his suitcase from where it was still standing near the front door. He made a point of slamming the door closed behind him.

Petty? Him? Abso-bloody-lutely.

5

It wasn’t far from the cottage to Harbour Road, where his brother lived, but Ed was shivering like a whippet in a thunderstorm by the time he reached the alley that ran down the side of the row of buildings that included Harry’s new cookery school and the popular restaurant where Harry had learned to cook. Harry and Kat shared a lovely little two-bedroom flat above the restaurant and the only access to it was via an external staircase in the restaurant’s backyard. Ed rolled his suitcase down the alley and came to an abrupt halt outside the gates that gave access to the yard – the very tall, very solid gates that they always kept locked. He gave them an experimental rattle then said the worst swear word he knew. Followed by the second worst one. Once again his failure to think through the consequences of waiting to replace his phone came back to haunt him.

Now what the hell was he going to do?

He ran through his choices. He could traipse home to his mum and dad’s place, but that was a good fifteen-minute walk. The most logical option would be to try over the road where his eldest brother, Liam, lived above the café owned and run by his fiancée, Issy. Ed groaned out loud at the thought. Not because he doubted for a moment that they would let him in, but Liam already thought Ed was a waste of space.

Going away was supposed to prove to everyone that Ed could manage without them fussing over him, or bracing for the next screw-up. He’d been home less than an hour and was in it up to his neck already. A shiver ran through him and Ed grabbed the handle of his suitcase. Catch pneumonia and expire in the alley or face the disappointment of his big brother? It was more of a toss-up than it should’ve been.

He was about to turn away when a bright light flashed on and Ed had to close his eyes against the sudden glare. The light was followed by the sound of footsteps pounding on metal then a few seconds later by the scrape of a key in a lock. The gate swung open and Ed found himself face to face with the person he loved more than anyone else in the world. ‘Hello, Harry.’

His twin glared at him. ‘Don’t hello me, you stupid prat. What the hell did you think you were doing scaring poor Frankie like that?’