Page 18 of A Scottish Christmas Hideaway
Reuben smiled as he flicked on the fairy lights which were now draped around the Christmas tree. It had always been a family tradition when he was growing up that the lights didn’t work no matter how carefully his dad had stored them away in the loft each year. He briefly wondered what his dad would make of Primrose Cottage now and he hoped he would be proud of what he had done with it. He had chosen warm white stars which gave the tree a comforting glow and went perfectly with the red and gold baubles and tinsel that he had found in the attic. Who knew that decorating a tree could be such an enjoyable process. He hadn’t bothered with a tree in his flat last year at all and it hadn’t even occurred to him to get one this year. There seemed no point when he was hardly there. But knowing that wee Lexi would be spending Christmas here in Primrose Cottage had given him a focus. He wanted it to be magical for his best friend’s daughter.
As he stood admiring his handiwork for a moment, he saw the outline of two women pass the front of the window. He could just make out Catriona and Jessica and gave them a wave, unsure of whether or not they could see him as it was dark outside. They didn’t wave back so he guessed not. Jessica had been right in encouraging him to get a bigger tree. It looked perfect in the room. He smiled thinking about the spark in her eyes when he called her Jessie. She was still so easy to wind up.
He turned and surveyed the rest of the room, pleased that it looked so cosy. The stripped and polished wooden floorboards were covered with a charcoal-coloured rug. He had chosen a mustard L-shaped sofa, and a dark grey bat wing chair to go by the fire. The large watercolour on the wall, of Rowan Bay beach, looked perfect in its new home and he was glad he’d decided to splurge on it when he saw it in the window of the local art gallery. It was the perfect room to relax in.
Earlier he had briefly thought of asking Jessica to come in and see it, to stay and have a drink. He could picture her relaxing on the sofa here and laughing the way she had at the Christmas tree farm . . .
Determined to distract himself from all thoughts of Jessica, he thought about his flat in Glasgow and the loose plans he had made to drive there tonight to meet up with friends in a new bar in Byres Road in the West End. The idea really didn’t excite him at all, and when he glanced at his watch and saw the time, he realised it was already getting late. He was tired and hungry and wasn’t in the mood for being in a noisy pub tonight. Or any night now that he thought about it — how anti-social he had become this past year. Pondering only for a moment, he sent a message on WhatsApp apologising that he wouldn’t make it. He silenced his notifications so he didn’t feel guilty about the inevitable replies that would start to come in, ribbing him about his elusiveness. He had made too much of a habit of bailing out of social plans with his friends.
Twenty minutes later he walked into the bar at the Rowan Bay Inn and was given a warm greeting by Lily, the manager, who immediately led him to his favourite table in the corner by the fire. It felt different tonight, perhaps with the Christmas decorations draped around the bar and the tree by the fireplace.
‘How’s things?’ asked Lily, her wide smile reaching her eyes. ‘It’s been a while since we’ve seen you.’
He nodded at her. ‘Yeah, I’ve been busy with the renovations. But they’re almost finished. I thought I would treat myself to dinner out.’
‘Quite right. It’s the week before Christmas that your guests arrive, isn’t it?’
‘Yes,’ he said. ‘So we have a bit of time. Just a few last-minute wee things to sort including getting some fairy lights for the garden . . .’ He hit his hand on his head in a dramaticgesture and chuckled. ‘Listen to me,’ he said self-deprecatingly. ‘Going shopping for fairy lights is not something I ever imagined I would be doing.’
Lily chuckled too. ‘I don’t know if that’s necessarily a bad thing,’ she said and winked.
Just then, a man walked into the bar and waved at him.
‘Ah, the very guy I need to talk to,’ said Reuben.
Lily looked over and grinned. ‘Brodie. Nice to see you.’ She glanced back at Reuben. ‘What can I get you in the meantime?’
‘Just a pint of Loch Lomond please,’ he said.
‘I’ll bring it over in a mo with a menu.’
Reuben placed his jacket on the back of his chair, keen to linger by the warmth of the fire but also wanting to chat to Brodie. ‘Hey, how are you?’ he said, walking across to the bar.
‘Good thanks. Unbelievably busy though. This used to be a seasonal job but you would not believe how many people want work done in their gardens in the winter. It’s bonkers.’
Brodie was a talented landscape gardener and man of all trades. He’d moved to the village three years ago when he realised that he wanted to live near the water having had enough of life in Glasgow. He also painted and was a trained joiner, so it was little wonder he was always in demand. No job was too problematic and he quietly got on with things, always striving to do his best for customers. Reuben had hired him to do the garden at Primrose Cottage and he’d done an incredible job of landscaping it, adding decking and the small summer house. He was hoping he might be able to help him with some last-minute things he couldn’t do himself. But it sounded like he was up to his eyes.
‘Can I get you a pint?’ he asked as Lily placed his beer in front of him at the bar. ‘Thanks, Lily.’
‘Sure,’ Brodie said with a grin. ‘I’ll just have what he’s having please, Lily. Why do I get the feeling you have an ulterior motive though?’
Reuben kept his fingers crossed that the bribe of beer would be enough. ‘I was hoping that you could maybe find time to do a wee window seat in one of the bedrooms upstairs?’
Lily swiftly poured the pint and put it down next to Brodie.
‘Cheers,’ said Brodie, clinking his glass against Reuben’s. ‘Um, when do you need this done?’ He took a drink of beer.
‘Any chance you could do it sometime next week?’
Brodie put the glass down on the bar and laughed. ‘For you, yes, but don’t tell anyone else. I can’t keep up with demand just now.’
‘Thanks, mate,’ said Reuben with a grateful smile.
‘No worries. Always happy to help you out if I can. I’ll give you a shout and pop in. Will you be around?’
He nodded. ‘I definitely won’t be far away. Murray and his family arrive the end of next week so it’s just a case of doing the last bits and pieces.’
Brodie narrowed his eyes as he looked at him. ‘Then what will you do? You’ll need to find yourself another project.’
