Page 70 of A Festive Surprise

‘No. Not at all. I wasn’t what he wanted.’ She rubbed at her forehead. ‘I made a big mistake. I didn’t think to ask him what he wanted. I assumed he wanted the same as me.’

‘Which was?’

‘A traditional family life. Big white wedding, a nice house, kids, two cars and a family holiday to Corfu every year.’

‘You wanted that?’

‘Yup. And I was sure he did too. His parents were like that so it seemed a reasonable assumption. They were Christmas freaks and very well-to-do; they own a chain of whisky distilleries. So I decided one Christmas, it was time to get engaged.’

‘You decided?’

‘I did. I thought it would be a fun idea if I proposed to him, and better still, if I did it in front of all his family at Christmas dinner. I thought they’d be thrilled and then I could tell my parents I’d reversed the roles, bagged Gavin as my husband and prove I was as good as any son.’

‘Ah, jamilati, I guess none of this worked?’

‘Nope. It was an epic fail. Oh, god. Worse even than epic. I baked a Christmas cake, like the one in there. I made a wish, and you can guess what that was.’

‘That you and Gavin lived happily ever after?’

‘Exactly. I iced it and put little treasures on top of it. One of them was a box with Gavin’s name on it. I put a ring in the box with a slip of paper, saying will you marry me? Then I made sure after dinner he got the right piece.’ She paused and stared at Farid. ‘Can you see where this is going?’

‘He said no.’

She lifted one shoulder in a half-shrug. ‘He didn’t have to. His face said it all. He asked for a private word and we went into the kitchen. He said he had no idea I was that serious and he needed time. That was when I realised what an idiot I’d been. His parents were horrified I’d done something so ridiculous, spoiled the evening and humiliated myself and everyone else in the process. I never told my family the truth. They think he proposed to me and I said no. I just hate it so much. It’s so humiliating.’

Farid put his arm around her and gathered her into his chest. The gorgeous scent of his aftershave calmed her. ‘This was a horrible thing to happen. But it’s over and you are strong.’

‘When I hear Christmas music and see the trees, it reminds me of the effort I poured into the surprise only for it to backfire.’

‘Not just effort, jamilati, love. You offered this man your love and he chose not to take it. Maybe it was best. Your love wasn’t wasted.’

Farid released her, then fell to his knees in front of her, placed his hands on her thighs and gazed up at her.

‘What are you doing?’ He better not think about reversing the trick on me. What the hell would she say? Could she pull a Gavin on him? How was that remotely fair after what she’d just told him? Must get away.

‘Come with me tonight, please. Not because of Christmas. Christmas is a bad name for something good; it doesn’t tell the whole story. What you celebrate here isn’t just the birth of Christ, it’s so much more. It’s about celebrating the beauty of the land in winter when everything is cold and miserable; people, family, kindness, sharing and giving. It’s about love. One day, you and I will be old and look back at this Christmas. The one where we learned about love.’

The drumming in Holly’s chest hit fever point. The L word. She swallowed and took Farid’s hands, raising them from her thighs. ‘You’re right. You always find the right words. I’ll get ready.’

She stood and almost ran to her room. What was he doing? He’d said they would grow old and remember this year. Did he mean grow old together? She’d told him unequivocally that wasn’t going to happen, but when he talked, his words made sense. He’d been through real pain in his life, while she got hung up on one silly Christmas, but he still made time to comfort her and didn’t belittle her. She scrambled out of her clothes and pulled on the only evening dress she had with her, a red satin mini that sat off her shoulders and hugged her figure before flaring into a wider skirt.

Giving into Farid was the easy short-term solution. She picked up her phone and spotted a message from her sister.

ALICE: Just touching base. What are you getting Ma and Dad for Christmas? I never know what to buy them. Was talking to them earlier. Dad says you’ve been having trouble with a refugee who’s trying to marry you. What’s going on? I know Dad’s stupidly paranoid, but seriously? Where has he got that idea?

Holly slowly closed her eyes and breathed. Her father would never understand how much Farid meant to her. Maybe she’d underestimated it herself.

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