“I didn’t hear you leave again. I thought you were still asleep.” I congratulated myself on how calm I sounded, not aloof or indifferent, but curious. “Ash, can I talk to you?” I gestured to the hallway and as he followed me, I decided to change tack. Making him grovel with Lily around wasn’t going to work. “About our argument last night,” I said, bowing my head. “I was worried when I got up and you weren’t home. I was scared.”

“I understand,” Ash said. “I shouldn’t have shouted at you like that, it was wrong.”

“So, we’re okay?” I said, looking up at him.

“We’re fine, I promise.” He glanced toward Lily, smiling. And just like that, as he headed back into the kitchen with me following behind, I became the proverbial third wheel, exactly as I had when he’d started hanging out with Celine and then Kate. More anger bubbled beneath my cheery facade, threatening to crack it clean down the middle.

“I’ll get back to work in a minute and I have a shift at the Cliff’s Head later,” I said, trying not to grit my teeth. “What are you doing, Ash?”

“Not sure,” he said. “Out for a drive or a walk somewhere. Maybe check out the beach.”

“The beach?” I said. “Considering what happened?”

“Yeah. I can’t explain it, but Lily and I got talking and I realized I miss the water. Anyway, we haven’t decided.”

We. I needed to intervene before they made themselves a dainty little picnic and skipped toward sandy shores and blue skies as if we were in the middle of a vomit-inducing romantic comedy. “Oh, well, actually I was hoping you’d start working on the garage.”

“We’re building a proper storage room for Maya,” Ash explained, as if Lily needed to know. She didn’t, not when I’d make sure she wouldn’t be sticking around town long enough to see its completion. “And we’re adding a shower.”

“Can I help?” she said, her voice eager and bubbly, like an annoying puppy bounding around, looking for attention. “I used to when you worked on the kitchens.”

He opened his mouth to say something but when he looked at her, he frowned. He crossed his arms, a sly smile spreading over his face. “Only if you don’t run a paint roller over my back again.”

Lily stared at him, her lips forming a perfect O in surprise. “You remember that?”

“It’s real? It happened?”

“Yes! I couldn’t help it. You’d taken your shirt off. It was the perfect—”