He said nothing further as he turned and headed down her path.
It was only once he was out of sight that she realised he hadn’t told her exactly what it was that Symes had said.
TWENTY-SIX
Penn held the two napkins and wondered where they were supposed to go. Did they go underneath the cutlery or to the side of it? He thought about his last restaurant dining experience and personally he hated having to move his cutlery to gain access to his napkin. He placed it to the side of the cutlery.
He took a breath as the clock struck nine. She would be here any minute.
Lynne had responded to his text message invitation almost immediately when he was at the morgue. He’d felt the smile form on his face the moment he’d seen the bobbed-out-tongue emoji. He could imagine her taking a quick, sneaky look at her phone when no one else was looking or while Travis was giving one of his long, laborious briefings.
Keats had asked him to find his happy place, and Penn had realised that he was rarely happier than when he was with Lynne. He hadn’t realised it when they’d worked together, but he’d missed everything about her once he’d transferred back to West Mids. She’d still been engaged when he’d left, and even when that relationship ended, he hadn’t wanted to rock the boat of their friendship.
But now it was a boat worth rocking because the very thought of her meeting someone else and talking to him about it like they were just buddies filled him with a rage he wasn’t used to feeling. It also brought a little bile to the back of his throat.
On cue, three light taps sounded on the glass panel of the front door.
She always did that, and it made him smile.
‘Come on in,’ he said, opening the door.
Her short brown hair had been freshly blow-dried, and her elfin features had been shown the make-up brush. It didn’t bother him in the slightest. He’d seen her covered in mud and sweat after a brutal foot chase, but it pleased him that she’d made the effort. For him.
‘Blimey, Penn, what’s all this?’ she asked as a smile pulled her lips upwards. ‘I thought we were doing pizza and beer like we normally do.’
Despite her protestations, he could tell she was delighted.
‘Doesn’t hurt to be civilised now and again,’ he said, pulling out her chair.
‘Why, thank you kindly,’ she said, removing her jacket first.
He quietly admired her sequinned top, which was not a beer-and-pizza kind of top.
‘Wine?’ he asked.
‘On a school night?’
He would never presume that she was not going home. ‘Uber?’ he asked, with the bottle poised above her glass.
She nodded and he poured.
‘What smells delicious and how much did you have to pay Jasper to prepare it for you?’ she asked, sitting back in her seat.
God, how he loved that playful sparkle in her eye when she was winding him up.
‘An Xbox game and cinema tickets for him and Billy.’
Lynne threw back her head and laughed. The sound washed away every stress of the day.
‘Just kidding. It’s lasagne and I made it myself.’
‘Oh.’
He rounded on her, laughing. ‘Hey, I can cook you know.’
‘Jasper,’ she called towards the stairs. ‘We need you.’
‘He’s not going to hear you. He’s at Billy’s tonight.’