Page 100 of The Secret Mistletoe Promise
‘What’s that?’ May asked with a laugh.
‘Northanger Abbey. The beautiful edition you left on Birdie’s doorstep for me?’
May’s face blanched for a split-second, and Imogen knew she had her. When she said, ‘I don’t know what you’re referring to, but it’s always lovely to receive books as gifts,’ she wasn’t having any of it.
‘I know it was you. I may not have picked Frank and Valerie for the mistletoe vandals, but some of the things you said made me wonder, and then that day in Sophie’s shop – when I mentionedNorthanger Abbey– I saw your face.You’rebehind the Secret Bookshop.’
May’s shoulders dropped a fraction. ‘Have you told Dexter or Birdie?’
‘I haven’t told anyone, because I wanted to check I was right. It’s such a lovely thing to do. I don’t know why you picked me, orNorthanger Abbey, but it helped me realize it was OK to be unconventional, and it gave me the perfect scene to perform with Dexter. It’s done a lot for me, that book, so if you want me to stay quiet, then I will.’
‘Thank you. I didn’t know you when I left it for you, but you arrived under such difficult circumstances, and I wanted to help. So I picked one – Harry binds them all, and he and Sophie know what I do – then I trusted the magic of the book to work on you.’
‘The magic of the book?’
May shrugged. ‘Booksaremagic: that’s something I believe wholeheartedly. I wasn’t surehowit would affect you, but Iknew itwould. I’m so glad you’re staying, that you’re going to be part of Mistingham’s community, and you and Dexter are obviously made for each other.’
‘I think so, too.’ She wasn’t entirely happy with May’s cryptic explanation, but she was glad she’d got it right. She helped her finish the stuffing, then they went to join the others for pancakes at the kitchen table.
Imogen didn’t want to spend a lot of time comparing her Christmas Day to what it would have been like if she’d been in London, but she couldn’t help indulge in it a little bit. She would have been walking on eggshells around her frazzled mum, who needed everything to be perfect; putting up with Edmund’s public displays of affection alongside comments he thought were flattering rather than patronizing; spending fifty pounds on crackers, for goodness’ sake!
Here, after the delicious pancakes, they had all decamped to the lounge. The stage had been dismantled and the chairs taken back to the village hall, so it looked like a lounge again – albeit a huge, very luxurious one. Everyone unwrapped their presents with unpractised eagerness. Lucy, Dexter and Birdie were delighted with the notebooks she’d bought them, and with the beautiful shells she had found on the beach and painted with metallic paint that she’d found in one of Birdie’s cupboards. She couldn’t have been happier with the fantasy book – the first in a series – from Lucy, woolly bed socks and a clothes voucher for Hartley Country Apparel from her gran, and then, from Dexter …
She opened the card first. Inside was a handwritten pieceof paper, a voucher that said:One sandwich a day, of your choosing, from Mistingham Bakery.‘This is the best gift ever,’ she said, shocked. ‘Are youserious?’
‘Completely,’ Dexter confirmed.
‘He’s only given you that so he gets to see you every lunchtime,’ Harry pointed out, as he stoked the fire and flames shot up in a whoosh.
‘I know, and it means I get to see him too,andI get a delicious sandwich. It’s almost too much!’
‘You young lovebirds,’ Harry cooed, and Dexter picked up a cushion. Harry laughed and pointed to the fire as a reason for him not to throw it.
‘You should think about doing genuine vouchers for the bakery,’ Fiona said.
‘I’m not sure everyone would get such a kick out of seeing me at lunchtimes,’ Dexter said with a grin.
Fiona rolled her eyes. ‘I meant for sandwiches. Imogen could draw up some designs – if you went to the community hub when she was there and asked her nicely.’
‘My only worry is that role is going to keep expanding,’ Sophie said. ‘You’re very good at organizing things.’
‘You won’t be short of work, that’s for sure,’ Ermin chuckled, then turned serious. ‘Actually, the village events folder is in a bit of a pickle. Supplier contact details are all over the place, and we could do with a schedule of when we need to start planning each event, when we need to have things in place by.’
‘As opposed to simply deciding on a whim that the Oak Fest would be snowed out and doing a set of mini plays instead?’ Birdie asked.
‘It worked, though,’ Harry pointed out.
‘Only because we could use this beautiful space.’ Fiona gestured at the room.
‘What do you say, Imogen?’ Ermin asked. ‘Does that come under your remit as Community Hub Champion? Only once it’s a properly paid role of course. I wouldn’t want to take advantage.’
‘Thisis what I’m worried about,’ Sophie huffed. ‘You need to set some boundaries.’
‘I don’t even have the job yet. I’m just a volunteer at the moment.’
‘You’ll be top of the list if you want it,’ Dexter said, brushing her hair off her forehead.
‘Biased much?’ Fiona asked, but she was looking at them fondly.
