that green one’s… weird.’
‘That green one is Japanese green tea. Sencha, to be precise.’ Ben lifted the pot and poured a little into three cups, then passed a cup to each of them. ‘Try it.’
Poppy tried not to laugh as Joe’s face screwed up when he lifted the cup to his lips and sipped. ‘It’s…’
‘Really something,’ Sophie piped up, then took another sip, smacking her lips together. ‘Fresh. Almost zesty.’
Poppy sipped the tea. ‘Kind of grassy, but not in a gross way. And almost… seaweed-ish? Or am I imagining that?’
‘No, you’re not imagining it.’ Ben nodded his approval. ‘It’s all that. And the reason it’s a nice kind of grassy is because it’s quality.’ He rounded up their empty glasses and rinsed them out. ‘Now try this.’ He poured the pinky concoction. ‘This is a fruit tea, also known as a tisane. Tell me what you taste.’
Joe took a sip. ‘Too easy. Strawberry. It’s yum.’
‘And?’ Ben raised an eyebrow.
‘There’s more?’ Sophie set her cup down and tapped her finger on her chin.
‘Apple.’ Poppy grinned. ‘Definitely apple.’
‘You really do have a good nose.’ Ben’s eyes widened. ‘Maybe you should be working on my side of the shop.’
‘Don’t know about my nose, but my eyes can see bits of apple drifting about in the infuser.’ Poppy set her cup down and ducked out of the way as Ben went to give her a friendly flick. ‘It is creamy though.’
‘That’s because it’s a strawberry and cream tisane. Or did you see the tin it came from?’ Ben went about rinsing the glasses fresh for the next tasting.
‘No. Just tasted it. Turns out my tongue’s quite talented.’ Heat rushed to Poppy’s cheeks that had nothing to do with the warmth of the tea. Beside her Joe and Sophie snorted into their closed fists, their faces matching the colour of the strawberry tea. Meanwhile Ben began to cough, his eyes filling with tears.
‘Omigod, I’m so sorry. That sounded…’
‘Filthy.’ Joe filled in the blank.
‘And hilarious,’ Sophie added. ‘Keep that up and I might enjoy working here.’
Poppy went to remind Sophie she was lucky to be here, that she and Ben were the only people willing to take her and Joe on, but held her tongue as the door squeaked, announcing a visitor to the store.
‘Hello?’ A voice as smooth as Ben’s tisane floated through the air to greet them. ‘Anyone there?’
‘Are you expecting another delivery?’ Ben asked as he straightened up and wiped his eyes.
‘No. I’ve got all I need. You?’
Ben shook his head as he put on a welcoming smile and marched into the main shop. ‘Welcome to Sparkle & Steep, what can we help you with today?’
Poppy trailed after him, and lounged against the doorway, curious to see who the visitor was.
The unexpected visitor turned to face Ben, a bright smile on her face. ‘Oh, this place is divine. A high-end tea shop? Genius. I love it. You’ve done a marvellous job, Ben. Now I hope you don’t mind my popping in unexpectedly, but my mother saw your mother and mentioned your shop was close to opening, so I simply had to come by, say hello, and have a sneak peek.’ The woman laid her perfectly manicured hand on his forearm and gave it a squeeze.
There was something familiar about her, but Poppy couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She clearly knew Ben, felt comfortable striking up a conversation with him, but she was dressed too… well, too much like Poppy to be someone he knew. Denim cut-off shorts, frayed at the bottom, were embroidered with multi-coloured flowers around the pockets. Her cream camisole was loose and billowy, yet sheer enough you could see her turquoise bra underneath.
Her hair was the perfect blonde. Not too white, not too yellow. Princess golden… just like…
‘Oh my God.’ Poppy took a step forward, her eyes wide, hand covering her mouth. ‘Milly? Is that you?’
Ben squinted in an effort to see what Poppy was seeing. Milly? His Milly? No. Surely not…
Oh hell. It was Milly. But the carefully curled blonde locks she’d sported when they were younger were now effortlessly beachy and tumbling down her back and over her bare shoulders. The formerly nude lips were now a bright red pout. And the smile was bright-white and straight. Milly Smith, his teenage girlfriend, had gotten her teeth straightened, possibly whitened, and had grown into a woman.
A beautiful one at that.
Bloody hell.
‘In the flesh.’ Milly grinned and did a quick shimmy.
Milly shimmied? When did Milly shimmy? She was a wallflower when they were young. Her idea of revealing clothing had been a skirt that sat on her knee. Or a boatneck top as opposed to a turtle neck.
Milly took another step into the shop, picked up the unicorn ornament and held it up to the light, sending a skittering of rainbows across the floor. ‘Interesting.’ She set it back down, her distaste obvious.
‘Shooting for a younger target market than you with that, I’m afraid.’ Poppy crossed the floor, swept up the ornament and placed it on a shelf. ‘Everything will be out by tomorrow when we open. Maybe you should pop back then and have a look?’
‘Oh, tomorrow’s out for me. Wall-to-wall meetings, I’m afraid.’ Milly turned her back on Poppy and focused on Ben. ‘That’s why I thought I’d come by today, say hello and wish you good luck.’
‘Oh, well, hello.’ Ben shifted from foot to foot, unnerved by the way Milly was looking at him, her smile spreading wider by the second, showing off those gleaming, straight teeth. Was this how a mouse felt when cornered by a cat? ‘Have you been visiting your mum just now?’
‘No, not today. Remember when I said I’d be round these parts? What I meant was that I’ve bought a place here. I was just over there while the movers dropped off my furniture. It’s so nice to settle down, lay some roots, have a place to call my own. Life can’t be all cocktails and dancing ’til dawn…’ Milly glanced over at Poppy, her upper lip curling in disdain.
Ben mashed his lips together as Poppy ripped into a box with her bare hands, her eyes murderous. He didn’t want to believe that Milly was taking a pot shot at Poppy’s lifestyle, but the two had never seen eye-to-eye when they were younger. Milly believed Poppy was a bad influence on Ben, whereas Poppy thought Milly far too boring to spend time on. Yet that hadn’t stopped Poppy from urging him to go out with Milly in the first place. Something he’d never quite figured out. One of the many Poppy mysteries he’d yet to uncover.
‘Oh, I absolutely know what you mean, Milly.’ Poppy’s tone was light enough, but Ben caught the taut, tense edge to it. ‘After seeing so many wonderful parts of the world, experiencing all the amazing things different countries and cultures have to offer, I’ve found it a real joy to come home and know that I’ll be waking up in the
