Page 142 of Kiss Me Like You Mean It

Gran blinks. ‘All right, Ophelia,’ she says at last. ‘Perhaps it’s not as straightforward as I thought, and it’s possible that my pride has been getting in the way a little bit…’

Her gaze moves from Nico to me and back again, her expression troubled. ‘I’ll have to think about it.’

‘Sure,’ I shrug. ‘We all will. It’s not a problem that needs an immediate solution. We have time to work this out.’

‘For now, perhaps you can show me around this town of yours?’ Gran suggests.

I smile. ‘I’d love to.’

‘I’ll come too,’ Nico says. ‘I can give you a tour of the inn afterwards.’

There’s a knock at the door.

Nico sighs. ‘I swear we never used to have unannounced visitors before you turned up, Daisy.’

I hold up my hands. ‘I don’t see how it can possibly be my fault when I’m the most anti-social person on the planet.’

‘Who could it be this time?’ Nico mutters as he pushes his chair back. ‘Your ex-boyfriend, perhaps? My high school nemesis? My father back from the dead?’

To our surprise, it’s Frankie, looking extraordinary in a teal satin suit.

‘If you’ve come by to threaten to feed me to the pigs, now is not the time,’ Nico grumbles. ‘We’ve got a guest.’

Frankie gives one of his booming laughs. ‘Sure, pigs are efficient but there’s the smell to consider. What you want to do is dump a body in the desert and let the vultures have at it.’

‘Good to know.’

‘Who,’ Gran perks up, her eyes glued to Frankie as he sweeps inside, ‘is that?’

I watch as his gaze lands on my grandmother and a wide smile breaks over his face.

Oh god, I think hopelessly.

‘Yeah,’ Nico mutters, clearly reading my mind and imagining the havoc these two combined could wreak. ‘We should have seen that one coming.’

‘Are we interrupting?’ a voice asks, and Cynthie stands in the doorway, hand in hand with Jack.

‘Of course we’re not interrupting,’ Jack jumps in before Nico can come back with a scathing response. ‘We’re their cherished visitors. My best friend, and my little sister.’ The smile he gives Nico implies that he’s still not sure if he should be making outdated threats to protect my honour.

I try not to roll my eyes. ‘We’re about to give Gran and Frankie a tour of Roseport. Why don’t you join us?’

‘We’d love that!’ Cynthie’s face lights up. ‘I’m so into this place.’

‘Cynthie made friends with half the town in Darlene’s bar last night,’ Jack says. ‘Apparently they’re having a bonus Dollyoke night before we go so we don’t miss out.’

Nico groans. ‘There’s no possible way this ends without me having to sing “Jolene” in a bar full of camera phones, is there?’

‘Shouldn’t think so,’ my brother the West End star grins, any animosity forgotten. ‘This place is amazing. Think we’ll be able to fit in a trip to Acadia? We haven’t hiked together for ages.’

Nico perks up at the mention of the nearby National Park. ‘Yeah, could do.’ He’s got that dreamy look in his eye that means he’s thinking about taking photographs.

‘Magda also sent us with some news.’ Cynthie is practically dancing from foot to foot. ‘She’s throwing a party at the inn on Saturday night to celebrate the reopening!’

‘A party?’ Nico looks panicked. ‘I haven’t finished the place yet.’

‘Don’t be silly, Nico,’ Gran chides. ‘It all looks wonderful.’

‘And Jack and I can only stay a couple more days,’ Cynthie looks genuinely sad about it. ‘We want to make sure we meet everyone.’