Page 97 of The House Swap

When she had first found the cameras, she had immediately assumed Tom had put them there. It would have made the most sense. But she had heard his shock upon realising that whoever had put them there had been spying on him too. He hadn’t faked that.

‘Yes, I do,’ she said decisively.

Jem was quiet for a moment.

‘You should go to the police.’

‘It’s not my villa. Anyway, Tom’s flying back tomorrow.’ She shook her head. ‘He’s going to confront Martin and then we’ll speak to the police.’

Something changed in Jem’s expression. ‘Why do you think it’s Martin?’

‘We don’t for sure. But he has a key and he’s always coming around. And well, after yesterday…’ She stopped herself. ‘He seems the most likely suspect.’

It helped talking about what had happened, even though she could tell Jem didn’t trust Tom still. She supposed it was understandable. He simply didn’t know Tom as well as she did, and unless she was mistaken, she detected there was a little jealousy.

Which was stupid. Nothing had happened between her and Jem, just as nothing had happened between her and Tom. Eventually, she managed to change the subject, relieved when they moved on to safer topics.

Still, it played in the back of her mind that she would have to return to the villa alone again later tonight. She was starting to dread the place. Even though the cameras were no longer up, she still felt so nervous.

She took her time over her food and made sure to order dessert too. Not because she was hungry, but it meant longer in the restaurant. More time before she had to go back.

Eventually, though, the evening came to an end and it occurred to Poppy that this might be goodbye for her and Jem too. With Tom back tomorrow, they probably wouldn’t have a chance to meet up again before she flew home. Would he want to stay in touch? She hoped so.

What had initially seemed like a holiday romance waiting to happen had settled into a budding friendship, both of them seeming to realise it wasn’t the right timing for anything more. She would be sad to lose him from her life.

For now, she tried to enjoy their remaining time together.

They were back in Jem’s car when she realised she wouldn’t be going straight back to Tom’s villa.

‘Shit,’ he muttered, as soon as he started the engine.

‘What’s wrong?’ Poppy asked, peering at the flashing warning light on the dashboard.

‘One of the headlights is out,’ he told her. ‘I’m going to need to get it fixed before I can take you back.’

‘Will there be anywhere open this late?’

‘I have a spare bulb back at my dad’s place. We can make a detour.’

At first, Poppy nodded, but then her chest tightened, realising the significance of going to Jem’s villa. The Pritchards lived next door.

‘It’s okay. I’ll get a taxi back,’ she said quickly, already reaching for the door handle.

‘Don’t be silly. It will take me minutes to change the bulb.’

‘I don’t mind. It will be easier.’

She must have looked like a deer caught in headlights, because his surprised expression softened to one of understanding.

‘You’re worried about Sue and Ian.’

‘I don’t want to see them, Jem.’

‘You won’t have to. They’ll mostly likely be in bed.’

Poppy glanced at the dashboard clock: 23:10. Was he right? She supposed it was getting late.

‘You know I wouldn’t take you there if it wasn’t an emergency,’ Jem reasoned. ‘I can’t drive you all the way home with one headlight and I’m not just going to leave you here alone to wait for a taxi.’