Page 131 of Meet Me Under the Mistletoe
“We should still have time for Jake Noel’s annual Christmas cocktail hour, though.”
Nory groaned. Every Christmas when she and Ameerah arrived home, her dad would prepare them a “London-style” cocktail, the recipe for which he would find on the internet before adding his own personal touch. These cocktails were generally lethal with alcohol and often peculiar. Last year’s concoction had been a New Fashioned Old-Fashioned. Nory was fairly certain her dad had obtained some moonshine from one of the farmers on the Robinwood estate; she had almost slept through Christmas. She congratulated herself now on buying them a host of filthy car snacks to line their stomachs before they reached home.
“Are you coming back to the city for New Year’s?” Nory asked.
Ameerah developed a sheepish look, like she was trying and failing to stop the corners of her mouth turning up into a smile.
“What?” asked Nory, grinning at her friend.
“It only just happened.”
“What only just happened?”
“Dev’s taking me to meet his parents, and we’re staying with them for New Year’s.”
“Oh my god. Ameerah! Oh my god. This is huge!”
“I know,” Ameerah squealed, and it was for the best that they were stationary in gridlocked traffic because neither one of them was fit for anything for a good five minutes.
“And...” Ameerah began.
“There’s an and?”
“I told him I love him!” Ameerah clapped her hands to her mouth as though she couldn’t quite believe the words had come from it. Further screaming from both women, of course.
“Congratulations! Oh my god, this is the best thing ever. What did he say?”
“That he loves me too.” If Ameerah’s smile got any wider her lips might have looped around her ears. “He said he knew he was in love with me after our second date. We hadn’t even shagged yet.”
“I’ve never seen you like this.”
“Oh! I love him, Nory, I really do. I absolutely love him. I didn’t even know Icouldlove someone this much.”
“Oh, Amie.” Nory welled up for the second time that day.
“I didn’t want to tell you because you’re so sad about Isaac and I didn’t want it to seem like I was gloating or rubbing your face in it...” Now Ameerah was crying too.
“I would never think that! I am so happy for you. You deserve to be in love and to be loved, Amie. This is so amazing. And Dev is just bloody wonderful.”
“He is, isn’t he,” said Ameerah dreamily.
“Are you nervous about meeting his parents?”
“I was, but then his mum rang me up and told me she’d heard so much about me and she was so proud that her son was in love with a barrister, and that she couldn’t wait to meet me.” Ameerah was now bawling her eyes out, as was Nory.
“That’s so lovely,” Nory sobbed.
“I know, right!” Ameerah cried. “I love him so much!”
“And I love you!”
“And I love you more!”
There was a knocking at the window, and a worried-looking man with gray bushy eyebrows peered in.
“Is everything all right, ladies?” he asked. “My wife and I, we couldn’t help hearing a lot of screaming and crying coming from your car.”
“Oh, everything’s fine, sir, thank you,” Ameerah hiccupped through her tears. “It’s actually better than fine. It’s brilliant. I’m in love, you see.”
