village shops when possible, the occasional sortie to the supermarket was inevitable. Putting murder out of her mind, Libby went upstairs to dress.
Wandering round the aisles an hour later with only a newspaper and a bunch of flowers in her trolley, Libby became aware of the advisability of always putting on make-up no matter how trivial oneâs outing.
âHello, Lib,â said Ben.
He was leaning on the end of a freezer cabinet wearing jeans and a T-shirt, his short grey hair as neat as ever.
Libby felt dampness break out all along her hairline as her heart rate accelerated. Sheâd noticed these unfortunate teenagerish manifestations before when suddenly confronted with Ben, and they didnât get any easier.
âHi,â she said.
âHavenât seen you for ages.â Ben looked at her intently.
âWell, you moved back to your flat, didnât you? You havenât been in the village much.â
âMy mother had her hands full with my sister and dad.â
âItâs not been easy for any of you,â said Libby.
âOr you.â Ben gave a small forced smile. There was a short silence.
âIâm sorry ââ They both spoke together, then stopped. Libby laughed.
âWell, I am sorry,â she said. âYour turn.â
âIâm sorry, too.â Ben stood away from the freezer and looked down in to her trolley. âI got a bit emotionally unbalanced for a time.â
âGee, thanks.â Libby felt her insides contract with mortification.
He looked up quickly. âNo, I didnât mean that, Lib. Oh, lord, Iâm putting my foot in it again. I meant afterwards. The family kept coming first, and it was all so awful â¦â
âI know, but I was a bit â well â insensitive about it. Iâm the one who put my foot in it.â
âHow about we start again, then? Come to Harryâs tonight with me.â
Libbyâs heart jumped. âOh, Ben, Iâd love to, but I canât. Franâs coming down.â
âOh.â Ben looked nonplussed. âWell, couldnât she come, too?â
âShe was down the night before last and we went there then.â
âAh.â Ben nodded and looked down into the trolley again. âHow longâs she staying?â
âHer auntâs just died and sheâll stay until the funeral, I think.â
Ben raised his eyebrows. âDid the aunt live near here?â
âIn a home just outside Nethergate. I gather that part of the family came from round here originally.â
âCoincidence. She never mentioned it before, did she?â
âI donât think she knew before. Itâs all come as a bit of a shock to her.â
âWell, how about dinner on Friday, then? That Thai place we went to before? Or we could go to the pub. Their foodâs got a lot better, apparently.â
Libby smiled. âOK, thanks. Iâd like that. If Franâs here, Iâm sure she wonât mind.â
âThe pub?â
âYes, please. I think Iâd prefer to be out of Pete and Harryâs sight line, and it means you donât have to drive all the way out from Canterbury and back again with me. Or I could drive in and meet you, I suppose.â
âAnd not have a drink? Heavens above! Wouldnât think of it.â He grinned at her, the old teasing Ben once more. âAnd Iâll stay at the Manor for the night so I can drink, too.â
Libby just stopped herself from saying âYou can stay with me.â
âSee you about seven thirty on Friday, then?â He leaned forward and kissed her cheek. âAnd lets hope nothing happens this time.â
âLike murder, you mean,â she said, and could have bitten her tongue out.
He smiled again, a little crookedly. âYes, like murder.â
Marion Headlam looked surprised as Charles and Fran walked in through the front door of The Laurels.
âWell, hello
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