Lainey nodded. “I don’t want to put my foot in it. And I’m pretty good at that.”
“So was I. Then I just decided to put two feet in it and state what everyone else was thinking or what everyone wanted to know. Now no one’s shocked when I come out with something shocking.” She gave a cheeky wink, ever the entertainer. “So, Jonny married Grace, his childhood sweetheart. Rayah had a huge crush on him all the way through school – he was Jake and Maynard brothers’ best friend, so they pretty much grew up together. When Ray was at university Jonny and Grace got married and had Charlie young – I think they were twenty-one. Ray had just moved back home when Sadie was born. Grace was killed in a car accident when Sadie was three or four months old and Rayah stepped in to help Jonny out, like we all did. I think most adults in the town have bathed Sadie at some point – that’s why she gets away with murder.” Marley picked up her phone and showed Lainey a photo of Sadie sitting on a tree branch, undoing the knots that fastened a swing to it.
“How did Rayah and Jonny get together then?”
“She tried setting Jonny up with one of the parents of a kid at the school. I think it worked out from there. She’d have never properly wanted him if Grace had still been alive, although who knows? They’re together now and his kids think of her as their mum, especially Sadie.” Marley took a long drink of the tap water she’d insisted she had instead of anything sparkly. As bat shit crazy as she could come across, she followed all the advice on how to look after her voice. “What else do you want to know?”
Lainey wasn’t sure. All small towns had secrets, she knew that. There'd be some here she wouldn’t find out for years, if ever. “What else do I need to know about tonight?”
“Probably that Jake was in love with Scott’s wife for years.”
Lainey sat down on her bed, a mascara digging straight in her leg. “What?”
Marley smiled as if this was some bedtime fairy tale. “Jake had a huge crush on Keren when they were in school. They were in the same year group. Scott and Keren were part of the same group of friends as the rest of us until he started being really off with her. It turned out that he’d mentioned to Jake that he wanted something more with Keren and Jake twisted it.”
“I didn’t think Jake would be like that.”
Marley shrugged. “I don’t think he is any more. I don’t think he really was back then. Scott studied music at university, he was in bands and could’ve made it as a session musician or more, but he didn’t want that life. I don’t think Jake realised how serious Scott was about Keren. Anyways, it’s all sorted now.” She picked up her coat off the bed. “I’ll give you a lift over to Sorrell’s. It’s on my way.”
“I was going to drive.”
“Don’t. Have a drink. Jake’ll be walking home so you’ll get home safe.” Marley passed Lainey her bag. “And if you decide it’s too much of a temptation to walk home with Jake, call me and I’ll pick you up on the way home, but that’ll be about one.”
“What time are you up in the morning?” Lainey had seen Marley late one evening when she’d been up with a poorly animal and meeting the vet at the bottom of the long drive. Marley had been heading home after a gig at Scott’s. She’d then seen Marley just a few hours later loading stuff into her pick-up truck, ready to start work on someone’s garden.
“Seven, I think. Come on, city girl, let’s go.”
There were morepeople there than Lainey had been expecting, or at least more people than Sorrell had promised. Sorrell was a children’s therapist, although she’d semi-retired from practising after moving to Severton to open her boutique hotel, and fully given up after the birth of her daughter. Lainey hadn’t ruled out having her come in to take on a few sessions a week, but any suggestion she’d made had been quickly covered up with invitations to her and Zack’s home for dinner.
She’d avoided them all until now, not because she didn’t like Sorrell, or hadn’t wanted to attend, but because she’d just been so damn busy and then so damn tired.
“I thought you said there’d be just a handful of people.” Lainey hissed the words at Sorrell over her glass of wine. “Not half of the town.”
Sorrell smiled sweetly. “This isn’t half the town, trust me. There’s no sign of the Coven.”
There was no sign of Jake either. Lainey didn’t know if she was disappointed or relieved.
“I need to speak to Gran. I need to thank her for the committee’s present.” Lainey did appreciate the security system. Once it was fully installed, and she’d suffered the lecture from Killian and then her cousin, Claire, she’d found that she had slept easier. That might also have had something to do with the dog she’d gotten from the rescue too. Jake had mentioned that there had been a mongrel with some German Shepherd blood that was looking for a home when he’d dropped some food off – and picked up some hens from there. Two hours later, she’d acquired a new, oversized puppy that stuck to her like glue, and three stable cats. Pip, the dog, had been abandoned at the sanctuary, probably because she wanted to chew everything, possibly through boredom. She needed fields and gardens to lope about in and a person to own and be owned by. She suited Lainey down to the ground.
“What committee?” Sorrell squinted at her. “Severton has several.”
“The Welcoming Committee.”
Sorrell squinted again and shook her head. “That’s not a thing. There’s the Gardens Committee; Neighbourhood Watch; Charity and Fundraising; Christmas – probably another couple that I can’t remember because I’ve had wine, but no welcoming. There aren’t that many newcomers into Severton to need one.” She dropped her voice to a whisper. “Once you’re here you can never leave.”
Lainey chuckled, deciding now wasn’t the right time to tell Sorrell Jake’s lie about the security system and how it was paid for. There were questions, but the best person to answer them was the man striding into the room now.
Jake’s hair was tousled from the wind, his stubble the longest Lainey had seen it since she’d met him. He looked as if he’d been practicing his mountain man skills, given what he was wearing – a heavy padded coat, beanie hat and fleece gloves – and today wasn’t that cold. The cold part of spring was near an end. His attire didn’t sit with that.
A cheer went through the room; Lainey joined in, unsure what she was cheering for. Even Jake, as enigmatic as he was, didn’t usually command this sort of reception just by entering a room.
“Well done, man!” Olly, the accountant, slapped him on the back. Someone handed him a glass of whisky. Scott pulled him in for a brief, rather manly, hug.
“You did well. Both back, all safe.”
Ah. This was a rescue thing. Lainey leaned against the wall and nursed her wine, listening in to find out what she’d been so oblivious to. She hadn’t come up for air for a couple of days and it wasn’t uncommon for her not to see her neighbour for several days at a time. Like her, he had his fingers in a lot of different pies, and then there was his rumoured love life. From what she’d heard, she was surprised he had the time to plan this battle of the bands thing that she was starting to see posters about across time.
Zack Maynard, Sorrell’s husband and Jake’s cousin, passed him one of the giant pulled pork wraps that was masquerading as a starter. From what Lainey had learned already, this wasn’t a formal sit-down meal; instead, it was a help-yourself-buffet which suited her just fine.
