Chapter 53
Fifty-Three
When Delilah came back to the cabin, she was alone.
Ashley had slotted her in for a last-minute self-tape audition, just two lines for some rubbish daytime medical show. Shaky as things were, Delilah couldn’t afford to turn it down. So she’d rattled through it on her phone, eager to get back to the cabin and see where Cassie stood after Kiss-Gate.
Because Cassie had blushed, hadn’t she? Which meant… what? That she liked it? That she liked her? If only Petra hadn’t pulled her little jump scare and ruined the moment.
Only Cassie wasn’t at the cabin to be read.
A terrible thought struck Delilah. While Delilah was standing behind a bush, looking into her phone and saying, ‘Sometimes the hardest part of this job isn’t the injuries.
It’s watching people fall apart,’ Cassie had run off to find Petra.
That the jealous look Petra had given them was what Cassie had been waiting for all along.
That’s why they were really here. For Cassie to get Petra back.
Forget about that silly actress. It’s always been you, Cassie would say, and Petra would fall upon her like a hungry Russian wolf.
Delilah sat on the edge of the bed. The lamp on her bedside table glowed weakly, casting her reflection in the dark window: she looked tired.
In no position to win Cassie’s heart, that was for sure.
Whatever the situation with her and Petra, however toxic, Delilah had to look at it as though she were trying to play tennis against Petra.
She simply couldn’t compete. She was vastly lacking in the needed skills. She didn’t even know what they were.
She stood, padding barefoot across the room to head for the shower. That’s when she heard the door.
But it didn’t open. It was like someone was simply… scrabbling at it.
Delilah frowned and stepped closer. The noise was persistent, a frantic scraping followed by a muffled thunk. Delilah opened the door.
Cassie was there, face pink and slightly sweaty, balancing a box so large she could barely see over the top of it. A keyring dangled uselessly from her other hand, clinking with every failed attempt to fit a key into the lock.
‘Cassie?’ Delilah blinked. ‘What on earth—’
‘Oh my God—hi—uh—hang on—wait—don’t—’ Cassie shuffled sideways, nearly toppling the box, clutching it to her chest like it contained priceless artefacts.
Delilah instinctively reached out. ‘You’re going to drop it—’
‘No! Don’t!’ Cassie yelped, twisting away. The keys fell with a jangle onto the porch. She froze, staring at Delilah with wild eyes. ‘It’s… It’s fine. I’ve got it. Totally fine.’ She frowned. ‘I should have just put the box down first.’
Delilah tilted her head, trying to peer over the box. ‘What are you even—’
Cassie shifted her weight, and the lid shifted too, just enough for Delilah to glimpse a bright yellow, suspiciously familiar packet.
‘Oh my God,’ Delilah whispered. She put a hand over her mouth. ‘Are those… Jelly Babies?’
Cassie winced like she’d been caught red-handed. ‘It’s nothing! Just, just a thing. Just… supplies.’
‘Supplies?’ Delilah stepped forward, tugging at the edge of the box until Cassie, panicked, let her look inside. The sight nearly made Delilah burst out laughing: a teetering, jam-packed stack of Jelly Babies bags.
‘Yes?’ Cassie’s voice wobbled. ‘I mean, it’s too much, isn’t it? I was just trying to make sure you didn’t run out again. The village shop had a surprising amount. They didn’t want to sell me all of them; I had to haggle for them. I’m pretty sure I got shafted.’
Delilah turned to her, eyebrows raised. ‘Cassie. What is this?’
‘I thought—’ Cassie looked like she wanted the ground to swallow her whole. ‘I know you ran out. And you know, I just… wanted to… do something nice.’ She trailed off, shifting from foot to foot, clearly mortified.
It hit Delilah then: this wasn’t about Jelly Babies. It was about her. Cassie had lugged this ridiculous, enormous box all the way up here because she wanted to make her happy.
This was an unignorable gesture.
Delilah’s pulse jumped. She could feel the fear rising in her chest, nudging at an instinct to laugh it off, to play dumb. But she forced herself to stand steady. To not run.
‘Cassie,’ she said softly.
Cassie grimaced. ‘I know, it’s stupid. I should’ve just—’
‘It’s not stupid.’ Delilah put her hand lightly on the box, steadying it. She could feel Cassie’s fingers tense beneath the cardboard. ‘It’s… perfect.’
Cassie blinked at her, wide-eyed. ‘It is?’
Delilah swallowed. Then, with a shaky laugh, she said, ‘Look, if you’re going to bring me the village’s entire supply of Jelly Babies, the least I can do is buy you dinner. Properly. Not here.’
For a second, Cassie just gaped at her. ‘Really?’ she managed to say eventually.
‘Really.’
Cassie let out a disbelieving laugh, her whole body relaxing against the weight of the box. ‘OK. Yeah. That sounds fine. Good, I mean. Nice.’
Delilah grinned, nerves fizzing like Jelly Babies dropped into Coke. She reached down, scooped up Cassie’s dropped keys, and pushed the door open wider. ‘But first, let’s get this giant box inside before your arms fall off.’
Cassie laughed again, following her in, and for once, Delilah didn’t feel like she was competing with anyone.