Page 103 of The Christmas Invitation
He shivered pathetically in his vaguely Byronic jacket, worn over a thin cashmere jumper, and then sneezed.
River materialized out of nowhere, as usual, his bright, deep blue eyes glinting from under the mistletoe crown, and quoted, ‘“I had a grievous ague.”’
‘I haven’t got an ague,’ snapped Rollo. ‘And I didn’t expect to seeyouhere.’
‘Brief Livesby John Aubrey,’ Clara said, delightedly. ‘My favourite line of his is the one that goes, “Sciatica; he cured it, by boiling his buttocks.”’
They smiled at each other, which seemed to annoy Rollo even more. He’d never really taken to River on the few occasions that they’d met.
‘Clara kindly invited me to stay for the Solstice,’ River told him. ‘I was Old Winter – were you not at the ceremony?’
‘No, it was late afternoon before we arrived at Flora’s aunt’s guesthouse and since I appear to have caught a chill, only the hope of meeting the great Henry Doome induced me to come out tonight.’
He employed the languishing look from under his long eyelashes that he considered irresistible to women. It was the male version of Flora’s technique, which I found amusing.
‘I doubt the feeling is mutual,’ Clara said, dampeningly. ‘And if you’re breeding a cold I’d much rather you didn’t meet Henry because he might catch it.’
‘It’s not a cold, but a chill,’ Rollo said. ‘My room at the pub wasn’t very warm either, though the food was good and—’ He broke off and stared across the room. ‘Isn’t that the pub landlord over there, near the table?’
‘Yes, Fred plays a part in the Solstice ceremony. If you have a word with him, he’ll probably take you back with him tonight, and then you can get straight off home again tomorrow, once the garage have finished with your car,’ Clara suggested sensibly. ‘I expect he’ll be leaving soon, in case the road up over the moors freezes.’
‘Oh, I couldn’t face that chilly room again tonight,’ Rollo protested faintly, with a shiver. ‘I feel so ill.’
‘You don’t have to face it,’ Flora assured him. ‘You can stay at the guesthouse tonight and I expect you’ll feel much better in the morning.’
Rollo gave her a look of gratitude. ‘You’re so kind.’
Flora cast me a triumphant glance, as if she’d put one over on me. Clearly Rollo had convinced her that we were in some kind of relationship.
‘You don’t mind, do you, Mark?’ she said, turning to him and taking him by surprise.
‘What?’ He gave a start. ‘No, why should I mind?’
Then his eyes caught sight of his mother and he beckoned her over.
‘Mum,’ he said, putting his arm around me again and drawing me forward, ‘Meg had a fall up on the hill. She almost went over the steep drop near the bonfire. Her hands and face are a bit scratched and could do with some antiseptic.’
‘Oh, you poor thing!’ said Sybil sympathetically. ‘Didn’t anyone warn you to keep away from the edge?’
She didn’t wait for an answer, but added firmly, her maternal instincts clearly roused by my state, ‘You come with me and I’ll do a bit of first aid.’
I was glad to go. Not only were my hands stinging terribly, but by then I was desperate to get away from Rollo.
29
Prickly
Sybil cleaned up my face and then competently removed several thorns from my hands. I bet she wielded a mean hoof pick.
‘You’re so kind; thank you,’ I said gratefully when she’d finished. ‘My hands feel so much better already!’
‘Good, and the scratch on your face is barely visible, though I’m afraid there might be a bruise tomorrow.’
‘Never mind, I think I got off lightly.’
‘How did you come to fall?’ she asked curiously. ‘No one had moved the white stones marking the edge, had they?’
‘No, but I was standing very close to them and a sudden gust of wind caught me. I just managed to grab that gorse bush as I was going over!’ I shivered in recollection. ‘Lex spotted me and pulled me back.’
