Page 7 of A Scottish Christmas Hideaway
‘You enjoy your five minutes of peace, Dad. I’m away for a nap.’ Jessica smiled as she slowly plodded up the stairs towardsher bedroom. The third step from the top still creaked and she chuckled, remembering how she and Murray would always avoid it if they came back from a night out later than they should. Reaching the top, she turned right at the landing. She was never quite sure what to expect when she came up here. The dark red carpet was still there and the walls were still an off-white. The same pictures were hanging on the wall. There was the one of their old golden retriever, Charlie, who had gone to Rainbow Bridge fifteen years ago, and another, a watercolour of Loch Lomond. Everythinglookedthe same, but she knew when she opened the door of her old bedroom, she could be faced with anything. It could be a crafting room, yoga studio or gym. Her mum was always repurposing her room for different hobbies which changed frequently. Her brother’s room was now a small library which housed her entire collection of Mills & Boon books. Jessica and her brother called it theloveroom. In fact, her mum had started calling it that too. She wondered how that was going to work when Murray and family were back for the holidays. It was hardly the appropriate surroundings for a small family with a toddler.
Gingerly, she swung open the oak door of her old bedroom; it still squeaked reassuringly. Jessica gasped when she looked inside. Her mum had indeed redecorated since she’d last been home. This wasn’t what Jessica had been expecting at all. But fortunately, Mum had gone for the shabby chic look, something she was obviously embracing at the moment. The walls were a vintage pale pink, and the bedspread was white with the palest pink roses. She had strung white flower fairy lights around the bed, giving the room a warm glow. A new fabric tub chair sat at the window with its view over the back garden. Her old pine wardrobe had been stripped and repainted white, along with the floorboards. A large dusty rose rug had been added, along witha matching Roman blind to the window. It was the perfect room for her to retreat to.
Yawning again, she decided to unpack later. She lay down on the bed, pulling the blanket over her, and within a few minutes she had fallen fast asleep.
Chapter Five
By the time Jessica made it downstairs the next morning, there was no sign of her parents. It was after eleven and she was still wearing her pyjamas and fluffy socks. She opened the fridge door and idly thought about what to make for breakfast. Realising she wasn’t actually all that hungry, she closed the fridge, turned and saw the handwritten note on the kitchen table. Her parents always reverted to notes when they were at home rather than text messages. ‘Why would I send you a text when we’re in the same building?’ her dad asked in bewilderment when she’d previously suggested texts rather than notes.
She picked the piece of paper up and read it.
Dear Jess, we hope you had a good sleep. I kept checking on you but you were out for the count! You must be tired. Dad and I are away out on some errands. There’s some broth in the pot for lunch in case you’re hungry. Mum and Dad x
She couldn’t remember when she had last slept so long and so soundly. Other than a couple of trips to the loo, she’d managed to sleep for almost a day. Yet it was amazing how much better she felt for it. The morning sunshine was weak but it looked nice out, and although she was tempted to make a mug of tea and go back to bed and burrow under the covers again, she knew that a walk and some fresh air would do her good. She could hear her mum’s voice saying the very same thing. Making herself go out now would mean that she’d get that outdoor box ticked and then could come back and just relax. She fully intended to spend as much time as she could in her pyjamas while she was here.
Twenty minutes later, having given her hair a quick brush and pulled on her jeans, sweatshirt and trainers, she was wishing she’d packed a more practical jacket instead of her woollen coat. She would just need to borrow one of her dad’s. She spotted a warm-looking padded red jacket with a hood on the peg and slipped it on, grabbing her hat and gloves. The cool air caught at the back of her throat as she made her way down the lane. Shivering, she shoved her hands in her pockets and walked towards the shores of the loch. The sun was still shining, just about, but the sky looked heavy as though it was ready to dump lots of snow. Nothing would surprise her. Growing up in the west of Scotland, with the hills in the background, meant she was prepared for anything. She would often go to school in the morning wearing a light cotton summer dress and by the time the bell went in the afternoon it would be hailing and freezing. Her parents were always in and out the garden hanging washing only to bring it in again ten minutes later.
It didn’t take her long to get to the gravel stretch of beach she was aiming for. She walked, pausing occasionally to skim a stone across the flat surface of the water. She smiled as a pebble bounced in and out three times, leaving a trail behind. It was something she never tired of as a child, especially as her brother always tried to beat her with more bounces but never could. Retrieving her phone from her pocket, she took a picture of the loch to send to him later. Although they had never been particularly close, and now he lived on the other side of the world, he was always very good at keeping in touch and checking in. She bit her lip when she thought about the number of times he’d asked how she was and she’d replied, ‘fine’ or ‘tired’. She wasn’t quite sure how he would respond if she told him she was ‘heartbroken’ or ‘shattered’ and it wasn’t just work that had caused her to burn out. Her whole life was such a mess. It wasgoing to be harder to hide the truth from him when he was actually here in person, too.
Taking in a huge gulp of air, she slowly blew it out through her mouth, trying to expel the small niggle of anxiety and sadness starting to swirl again in her stomach. It was like a shadow that followed her around. Turning to walk back up onto the road, she plodded slowly towards the high street, noticing the holly wreaths, hanging on the doors of cottages, dressed with ribbons, berries and pine cones. The shopfronts were decorated with festive lights and as snowflakes started to softly fall, she felt as though she was in a perfect postcard scene. She passed the butcher’s and the cheese shop, the small Co-op, the Coffee Pot coffee shop, which looked busy with all the tables in the window taken. She glanced at the gift shop, The Bay, wondering if that was new as she hadn’t noticed it the last time she was home. The Wee Bookshop was definitely a new addition and Jessica was looking forward to checking it out. She smiled to herself, feeling as though she was really noticing it all for the first time.
Then she walked past the bakery and the comforting smell of cinnamon and fresh bread made her pause. When she saw someone coming out with a takeaway coffee, she impulsively decided she would do the same. She walked towards the door just as the man with the coffee was about to close it. He was obviously a painter and decorator given the state of his splattered overalls.
‘There you go,’ he said with a cheery smile, holding it open for her.
‘Thanks.’ Jessica wondered why he was staring at her. And why was he now grinning at her? She frowned, slightly irritated. Why was he lingering? Why couldn’t he just accept her thanks and get on with his day?
‘Hey,’ he said softly. ‘How are you?’
She hovered in the threshold of the doorway, puzzled. ‘Erm, okay, thanks, just taking shelter from the snow,’ she said, aware that her voice was a bit clipped. Remembering she was no longer in London, she put in a bit of effort to be friendlier. ‘Thanks for holding the door.’
‘I think that’s the snow finished for now.’ He gestured at the sky. ‘Nice jacket,’ he said with a chuckle and then walked away. ‘See you later.’
Jessica walked into the bakery with a frown. Should she have known who that was? With the overalls and the boots and the woolly hat pulled down over his ears, she had no idea. The voice was vaguely familiar but she still couldn’t place him.
The woman behind the counter interrupted her thoughts. ‘What can I get for you?’ Her eyes widened in delight when she realised it was Jessica she was serving.
‘Jessica, you’re back!’ she cried with delight. ‘Your mum said you were coming up for a few weeks as you had loads of time to take off work.’
‘Gillian.’ Jessica smiled in surprise at her old school friend. They were once quite close, especially when they had played on the school hockey team together, but then had drifted apart. She hadn’t expected to see anyone she knew quite this quickly or to get such a warm welcome. ‘How are you?’
‘I’m good thanks. Living the dream.’ She chuckled and rolled her eyes. ‘It’s great to see you. I’m sure your folks will love having you back.’
‘It’s really nice being here,’ she said, with genuine warmth.
‘What can I get you?’
‘Just a coffee please? Um, a flat white, if you have it?’ Then she immediately felt guilty for making it sound as though they were in the back of beyond where instant coffee was the only option.
Gillian grinned. ‘Yes, I can do that for you, no bother, and I can offer you our special Christmas coffee blend? I can even do you a cortado or a pea milk latte. They’re all the rage with the mamils.’
Jessica looked at her quizzically. ‘The what?’
‘The middle-aged men in lycra. The cyclists,’ she said with a chuckle.
‘Ah,’ said Jessica grinning. ‘I’d love to try the Christmas blend. Now it’s the start of December I may as well embrace all things festive.’
‘Anything to go with it?’ Gillian pointed at the baskets loaded with goodies.
