Page 71 of Twilight at Croftwood Library
Lois’s heart sank. It was Christmas Eve. Literally, the last chance to get anywhere – or not. ‘I won’t be able to come, Dad.’ Although she’d had mixed feelings about spending Christmas at her brother’s with the rest of the family, now that it wasn’t an option she was devastated. ‘Say sorry to Jim and Lizzie for me.’
‘I will and not to worry, love. Better that you’re safe. See how it goes, maybe try on Boxing Day or whenever the trains start again.’
Lois knew he was right, but the prospect of spending Christmas alone was not that appealing. Steph had gone to her parents with Tom, and Andrew and Luke had gone to St Lucia. There was nowhere else she could invite herself to apart from Linda’s or Rosemary’s if she didn’t want to be by herself.
‘Okay, Dad. I’ll call you later. Love you.’
She pulled her hood up and zipped her coat right to the top then grabbed her case and headed home. The snow was a couple of inches deep and in true England-in-the-snow style, there was not a taxi to be seen outside the station. She would have to walk. It was normally only a twenty-minute walk but with her wheelie case behaving like a snowplough, she had to carry it, and then it seemed like it was going to be a very long way home.
The snow was falling steadily and when she wasn’t cursing the spare pair of Doc Martens she had packed and the Le Creuset milk pan she had bought for her mum for Christmas, she enjoyed seeing how the city changed in the snow. The sounds were muffled, the traffic almost non-existent and the Christmas lights made it all magical.
She crossed the river bridge and was almost tempted to walk right in the middle of the road where there was virgin snow and no cars on a normally very busy road. She didn’t hear the car pull up next to her, it was going so slowly.
‘Lois?’
She turned to see Oliver in his Mini. He had a dusting of snow across his shoulders and his hair was damp.
‘Get in.’
She was not about to refuse a lift. She brushed the worst of the snow off her case and heaved it into the back seat then gratefully collapsed into the front.
‘Thanks. You’ve saved my arms from being wrenched from their sockets by that bloody suitcase.’
He grinned. ‘Where are you going?’
‘I was going to York to stay with my brother and the rest of my family, but the trains are cancelled so I’m going home.’
‘To spend Christmas with…’
‘Myself?’
He looked at her, maybe trying to gauge whether she was joking. ‘Seriously?’
‘Yep. But I’ll be fine. I’ve got my beautiful tree which would have been lonely without me, and I can watch theStrictlyChristmas special with no interruptions.’
‘Come to mine.’
‘What? No. That’d be weird. Amy wouldn’t be up for that.’
‘She’s gone to her parents. I was supposed to drive down there today but that’s not going to happen now.’ He shrugged. ‘I thought I’d take the car out to see what the roads were like. It’s always worse in Croftwood but it’s getting pretty bad everywhere.
Lois noticed now how slowly he was having to drive to keep traction on the snow. Could she spend Christmas with him?
‘Look, I know you’ve been trying to stay away from me because… well, you know. But it’s Christmas, Lois. It makes no sense for two people who have had their plans thwarted by the weather to both be alone for no good reason. It’s Christmas,’ he said again with a beseeching look for good measure.
It was a solid argument. It seemed silly for both of them, people who were at the very least friends, to be alone when they didn’t have to be. It was Christmas. And with Amy away Lois didn’t have to worry about what she was going to think because she’d never know.
‘We can’t tell anyone. I mean, we can’t let Amy find out, it’d be awful.’ She paused, waiting for him to enthusiastically agree. ‘Wouldn’t it?’
‘It would. I accept your terms.’
It was the craziest thing in the world to be considering this. Spending Christmas together. Snowed in together.
‘Okay. But why don’t we do it at mine? I have a very nice tree and a spare room.’ She knew she wouldn’t be able to enjoy herself at Oliver’s amidst all the evidence of his and Amy’s life together.
‘Deal. But I’m bringing the food.’
Oliver drove them to Croftwood where he spent less than five minutes getting everything that he needed for a couple of days while Lois waited in the car wondering whether she’d made the right decision.
