Page 95 of The Twelve Dates of Christmas
“None at all,” said Richard. “I’ll get someone on it right away.”
“Much obliged,” said Kate. “So how was your Bond night?” she asked.
“Oh, you know,” said Richard, suddenly vague. “It was one of those awkward, nothing-to-talk-about dates. She looked the part, but there was nothing going on behind the eyes, if you know what I mean.”
Richard had also signed up for the escape room date, but they had already been paired with different people so Richard suggested they meet for a drink first.
By the time the call ended, Richard was back to his usual charming self. Kate flopped back onto her bed. That was one drama averted. Nowshe had to work out how to be casual around Matt without making a complete twit of herself.
She lay there for a while looking at the ceiling. The sound of her dad snoring in the sitting room below rumbled through the house. She would throw herself into thiswhatever it waswith Richard. She liked Richard, she really did. She certainly lusted after him. There were worse positions from which to start a relationship. It definitely had the potential to become something if she just gave it a chance. She refused to be one of those drippy heartsick women with hundreds of cats; she would hurl herself into the path of true love so that it couldn’t possibly not hit her!
Kate dragged the rest of her Christmas decorations down from the attic. There were a lot. She couldn’t seem to pass a Christmas display without making a purchase, and after a decade of such behavior, her Christmas collection was becoming obscene. When she added the musty boxes and bags to her haul from the market, it almost filled the kitchen.
At three o’clock Laura and the kids came round to help decorate the house. Her dad, refreshed after his nap, took charge of entertaining Charley, while Mina—dressed in a Rudolph onesie—raided the boxes and ran about the house hanging baubles on door and drawer handles and anything else she could reach.
Kate and Laura were bejeweling a garland draped over the fireplace in the sitting room. The one resting on the mantelpiece over the wood burner in the kitchen had all manner of sparkly Christmas ornaments thrown at it: teal reindeer, glittered doves, purple Christmas trees, candy canes, and baubles covered in multicolored shiny buttons. But for the sitting room, Kate kept it classic: reds, golds, and greens. Matt was delivering all the Christmas trees later for Evelyn, and the tree would go in here too, in the bay window.
It would feel strange not having Christmas dinner here, Kate thought. But she was happy that her dad had found someone to care for, and she was even happier that it was Evelyn.
“So, tomorrow is?” Laura asked, attaching a porcelain kitten in a red-and-white-striped stocking to a piece of spruce.
“The escape room,” said Kate.
“Cripes!” said Laura. “Who’s your date?”
“Edward. An IT guy from Ipswich; he’s forty, never married, no kids, traveled the world, and writes graphic novels in his spare time.”
Kate was struggling to unravel a string of lights for the garland.
“Handy in a PC crisisandcreative!” said Laura. “And he’s well-traveled. At least you won’t be stuck for conversation. You can swap diarrhea disaster stories about India!”
“You know, sometimes I wish I didn’t tell youeverything,” said Kate.
“Sorry. But he sounds good anyway. Just who you want with you in an escape room.”
“Yeah well, I’m meeting Richard before we go in and probably afterward too,” said Kate.
“Sounds to me like you’ve already written Edward off,” said Laura.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Kate replied. “I really like Richard. And I don’t want to be closed off to other possibilities. It’s just that...”
She stopped, wondering how much to divulge to her best friend. She was scared that if she said the words out loud, then they would become real. They would be out there, out in the world, and she could never lock them back in again. Equally, she would need Laura’s counsel if she was going to get over Matt and forge ahead with Richard.
“Yes?” Laura said.
“The thing is,” said Kate hesitantly. “The thing is, I’m fairly sure I’m in love with someone else.”
“Someone else?” said Laura. “Who?”
Kate took a deep breath. “Matt.”
“Matt who?” Laura asked.
“Matt Wells!” said Kate.
“Our Matt!” spluttered Laura, dropping the gold bell she’d been twiddling. Kate made movements with her arms to indicate to Laura to keep her voice down.
“Yes,” she hissed. “Our Matt.”
