Daisy's Christmas Gift Shop by Hannah Pearl

Author:Hannah Pearl [Pearl, Hannah]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, contemporary, romantic comedy, Holidays, Romance, suspense
Publisher: Ruby Fiction
Published: 2019-10-28T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Eighteen

‘I’m such an idiot,’ I said, turning from Eli and beginning to pace as much as I could in the tiny kitchen.

‘Are you still talking about the cup, or is this about me?’ Eli asked, leaning against the counter-top.

‘When Ben first left, we thought that he had been home because some of his clothes were gone but the washing up was still there. If Ben had seen it he wouldn’t have left without doing it. And the passport, it was on the floor by the bin but not in the bin. He wouldn’t have left it like that.’

Anyone else might have scoffed in the face of such scant evidence, but Eli knew Ben well enough to immediately realise the import of what I’d realised. He dug his mobile phone from his coat pocket and swiped the screen to wake it up. He lifted it to his ear, speaking to me as he waited for the call to connect. ‘When we find Ben, and we will, you and I have some unfinished business.’

I gulped, and was trying to process how I felt about Eli, when he began to speak again. It took a second before I realised that he wasn’t talking to me. ‘Ben!’ I shouted, reaching for his phone. Eli pressed another button and set it to speakerphone, before holding it in the middle between us.

‘How are you doing, mate? We’ve been worried about you,’ Eli said. It was more polite than the ‘where the hell are you?’ that I’d bitten back.

‘I’m fine, just needed to get away for a bit.’ My brother’s voice sounded quite cheerful. It was a stark contrast to how worried I’d been and I felt my temper rise at his tone.

‘You’d only just got back from holiday!’ I pointed out. Eli shot me a look. ‘I’m sorry Eli and I were arguing the other day. We didn’t mean to scare you away.’

‘I don’t like fighting,’ Ben said, ‘but this trip is for me, I need it.’ The relief I felt was palpable. Eli must have felt the same as he held his arm out and I ducked under it for a cuddle.

‘Where did you go?’ Eli asked him.

‘Away,’ Ben said, as if that were all the detail anyone might need. I stared at the phone, imagining that if my brother were in front of me right now I might hug him first then wring his neck for being so vague. Finally, Ben began to speak again. ‘I was upset that you were shouting at each other. You two are my best friends. I hate that you don’t get on.’ I began to blush, aware of just how well Eli and I had been getting on recently.

‘We’ve been … talking … a lot since you left,’ Eli told him then winked at me. Ben couldn’t detect the undercurrent of humour in Eli’s voice, nor the amount that he’d left unsaid, and responded as if Eli had been giving him the full story.

‘I’m pleased to hear it.

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