‘Maybe.’
There were two stops to go before the bus crossed the bridge that linked Glensheil to Heartcross and as they watched, the stranger rang the bell and the bus slowed down, pulling up outside Heartcross Castle.
‘He’s getting off,’ Pippa whispered, linking her arm through Elle’s. They must have looked like smitten kittens as their eyes synchronised to watch him disappear down the stairwell.
‘Mmm, possibly a newbie in town,’ shared Pippa.
‘Or a tourist. They do visit in their droves.’
‘Fair point.’ Pippa leaned over and wiped the condensation off the window with her coat sleeve. ‘There he goes, down that alleyway at the side of the bistro.’
He must have sensed they were watching him as he looked back over his shoulder towards the top deck of the bus. Pippa quickly slumped back in her seat leaving Elle to lock eyes with the stranger once again. With a sheepish smile, he paused for a brief moment. Then he dug his hands into the pockets of his green bomber jacket before turning, quickening his step and disappearing from view.
Elle groaned, rolling her eyes. ‘How embarrassing.’
She had had a few opportunities to go on dates in the last eight months, but she’d always shied away from a second date. There was no one who’d caught her eye or with whom she had that instant spark – like with Noah.
‘Well, that’s that, the most excitement we’ve had on the bus in a long time. We definitely need to find out who that man is!’ Pippa insisted.
‘Come on, here’s our stop,’ said Elle, standing up and grasping the metal bar to steady herself.
As the bus came to a halt, Pippa stood up and lost her balance, tumbling into the aisle and then falling onto the seat opposite.
‘Steady on.’ Elle held out her hand to pull her up.
‘It gets me every time!’ Pippa exclaimed, finally upright and smoothing down her skirt.
Elle’s eyes were fixed on the black rucksack lying on the seat. ‘Crikey, look.’
Pippa twirled around. ‘The handsome stranger has left his bag! What shall we do with it?’ she asked, picking it up and passing it to Elle.
‘What are you giving it to me for?’
‘Because you’re the boss and most responsible one out of the pair of us,’ Pippa replied, looking at Elle with amusement.
‘I can’t argue with that,’ agreed Elle, heading down the stairs. ‘We could drop it off at the village police station but we won’t have time now.’ She flitted her eyes towards the electronic sign at the front of the bus which displayed the details of the destination, the next stop and the time. ‘We open up in less than fifteen minutes.’
‘Have a good day, girls,’ Henry chirped as he opened the doors to let them disembark.
‘You too, Henry. Oh, Henry, you might be able to help. The man who got off the bus at Heartcross Castle, have you ever seen him before?’ asked Elle.
‘Afraid not, he’s not a regular on my bus.’
‘No problem,’ she said, slinging the rucksack over her shoulder as they stepped off the bus. ‘See you later, Henry, have a good day.’
They began to walk up the driveway of Foxglove Farm, which led to The Heart of the Village, a number of barn conversions turned into shops along with a library.
‘Are we going to have a sneaky peep inside the bag?’ asked Pippa, with a mischievous twinkle in her eye.
‘We can’t do that! It’s someone else’s property.’
‘Who’s going to know?’ Pippa looked at Elle, tilting her head. ‘There could be something in there that leads us to the identification of our mystery man.’
Elle had to admit the thought had already crossed her mind. ‘No, we’re going to do the decent thing and hand it in at the police station.’
‘Are you not a little bit intrigued?’ probed Pippa, clearly trying to change Elle’s mind.
‘It doesn’t matter whether I am or I’m not, it’s snooping,’ Elle made clear, taking a sideward glance towards Pippa.
