He grinned and looked at her arm. ‘Woah, you look like you’ve been eaten alive.’
‘Yes, those puffins quite liked the taste of me.’
‘You can’t blame them though, can you?’ He grinned.
‘What can I say, the puffins have good taste.’
‘They do,’ he replied, catching her eye and giving her a warm smile. ‘I’m just back to feed Jimmy and escape from the restaurant for half an hour before heading back. We’ve got a busy night ahead; all the tables are booked and there’s a fresh delivery of fish.’
‘Business is booming.’
‘And that’s something I can’t complain about. How was your morning? Did you enjoy counting puffins?’
‘I did – and it was great to spend the time with Pete. He’s such an interesting character and very knowledgeable, not to mention intelligent. He told me all about the band and his work at the surgery. He didn’t give too much away about his love life but my reckoning is that he had his heart broken when he was young and is still hoping she may walk back up that cliff top and into his arms one day.’ Verity knew she was babbling but the words just kept coming out, because Sam’s face wasn’t as smiley as it was two seconds ago. She recognised the look well; it was nearly the same look her ex used to give her whenever she said something he didn’t like. He was clearly disturbed at what she was saying, but Verity didn’t want to walk on eggshells – she’d had years of that with her ex.
‘I can tell that you don’t like me speaking well about Pete, but he’s actually been lovely to me today and I honestly don’t have a bad word to say about him. He was professional, good company, funny, informative and completely easy to be around.’ She watched Sam bristle. ‘But I’ll tell you this, when he noticed the photo of Joe down by the bay, he became very emotional. Your grandfather’s death still has a massive effect on him.’
‘Probably because of a guilty conscience eating away at him,’ said Sam, coldly.
‘But you have no concrete evidence. What if – and just hear me out because I’ve got nothing to lose by throwing this out there, but – what if nothing went on that night? What if it was truly just an accident and you’re making Pete’s life a misery for no reason? It’s a little immature, don’t you think?’ Verity really wished she hadn’t added the last sentence as Sam’s eyebrows shot up and his intense stare as he processed her words unnerved her for a second.
‘This has nothing to do with you. You’ve been on this island for a matter of hours?—’
‘Days,’ she interrupted, holding her own.
‘Hours,’ he repeated. ‘And you’re giving an opinion on something you know nothing about. I’ve shared my thoughts with you, which was difficult enough, and now you’re attacking me.’ Sam was defensive and the dark look on his face didn’t go away.
‘I’m not attacking you. I’m just trying to present a different side.’ Verity kept her voice soft, hoping to calm the situation a little.
‘Something doesn’t stack up. We all know as coastguards about the rip currents and there was no way my grandfather would willingly enter the water without backup.’
‘Maybe he slipped off the pier into the water and just couldn’t get out.’
‘If that’s the case then why has Pete never explained where he was that night or why he was late for his shift? Because he’s hiding something.’
‘Or maybe he doesn’t need to explain anything to anyone as there’s nothing to explain. He’s devastated to this day. He lost his best friend and has never got over it.’
‘SoIshould just get over it?’ asked Sam, coldly.
‘I know you want justice for your grandfather, but Pete was his actual friend, his best friend. They were inseparable. They’d just landed a huge music contract and were about to conquer the world together.’
‘But they didn’t, did they? Because somehow my grandfather ended up being taking by a rip current.’
Verity took a deep breath. She knew what she about to say was not going to go down well at all. ‘Forgive me when I say this, but you never met your grandfather?—’
‘What are you implying, that it hurts less?’ Sam cut in, his voice raised. ‘I was robbed of a relationship with my grandfather.’
‘That’s not what I’m saying, but Pete was there at the time. Just from today I can see he’s genuinely cut up about it. Wouldn’t your energy be better spent uniting and coming together in memory of your grandfather? I bet Pete has lots of stories about their friendship and growing up that you’ve never even heard. You might find it comforting. I really don’t think Pete wants any sort of animosity with the grandson of his best friend. You’d be like the grandson he never had. Today, despite everything, he didn’t have a bad word to say about you.’
Sam shook his head. ‘I’m really not sure why you think you can come in here and give your opinion on something that doesn’t even involve you.’
They stared at each other.
Stalemate.
Even though Verity knew she had overstepped the mark, she still thought that this argument that had been going on for years was a waste of energy, and that some good could actually come of it if Sam wasn’t so stubborn and learned to let go and move on.
‘I think you should go,’ Sam said at last.
