Page 76 of Merrily Ever After
Will looked around them furtively, pretending to be undercover. ‘Maybe she’s even in the pub,’ he whispered.
‘Wouldn’t that be amazing,’ she laughed. ‘I’ve found out lots more about her too. But the thing that was troubling me was, why now? What has sparked Dad to start talking about his secret daughter after all these years of saying nothing. And I think I’ve worked it out. Watch this.’
She shuffled closer to him, opened the internet browser on her phone and played a clip of the shopping channel which Lavinia was obsessed with. She hit the pause button. ‘There, look.Thatis Merry Shaw presenting her company’s range of candles. And I reckon this is what Dad must have seen to trigger his memory.’
Will brought the phone closer and studied the screen. ‘That makes perfect sense. I’m sure he had his reasons for not telling the rest of his family about this other child. But now because of the dementia, he doesn’t have the same control over his brain as he once did.’
‘I feel a bit guilty,’ she admitted. ‘He’s been saying that his daughter was on the television, but I dismissed it because I thought he meant me, and he was just getting confused. But if my research is correct, my sister is an entrepreneur with her own business called Merry and Bright. How cool is that?’
Will whistled under his breath. ‘What an incredible discovery.’
‘Isn’t it?’ She grinned at him. ‘I’ve been watching the TV show on catch-up and what sealed it for me was the episode last month when Merry talked about her mum, Sam, who died when Merry was small. Her new candle was even inspired by the smell of her mum’s perfume. It was very emotional to watch.’
A shiver ran down the length of her spine. The thought of her sibling growing up without her mother, when only a few miles away, in the same county, Emily had always had Tina looking after her made her heart break.
‘Poor kid,’ Will murmured. ‘So she grew up without either of her parents?’
Emily nodded sadly. ‘Let’s hope she had a relative to take care of her like you did.’
‘Yeah. Good old Grandad,’ Will said, his voice full of affection. ‘Merry turned out OK, though, didn’t she? Her own business, a slot on television. That’s impressive.’
‘It is,’ Emily said proudly and then pulled a face. ‘I’m going to have to up my game.’
She was only half joking; Merry had made such a success of her life and what did she have to show for hers?
Will looked bemused. ‘I can’t believe you’re getting competitive with a sibling you haven’t even met yet.’
‘Ah,’ said Emily. ‘That’s where you’re wrong. Wehavealready met.’
He choked on his Coke. ‘You’re kidding me?’
‘Nope.’ Her eyes sparkled. ‘Drink up, I’ve got more to show you.’
Will downed the last of his Coke straight away. ‘The plot thickens.’
The dark night air was crisp and frosty, and Emily gasped as her foot skidded on a patch of ice as they left the pub.
‘Oh no you don’t,’ said Will, darting an arm out to steady her and then taking her hand in his. ‘Not on my watch. One twisted ankle is quite enough for now.’
She met his gaze shyly, secretly thrilled to have an excuse to touch him. ‘If you insist.’
Even though she had planned this evening, had known what she was going to tell him, she hadn’t expected this: this deepening chemistry between them. She felt exhilarated and giddy with it all.
As they crossed Wetherley market square, their warm breath swirled around their faces. The stalls which had been full of life and colour and noise when she’d been here with Tina were shuttered and closed, but even after hours most of them glowed with the twinkle of Christmas lights strung around every surface and along rooftops. There were still people around: couples, hand in hand, heads down against the cold, a family trailing past, the man jiggling a small jubilant child on his shoulders, the woman pushing a buggy, all of them singing ‘Jingle Bells’, an older couple out walking their little dog.
‘Magical, isn’t it?’ said Emily softly as they headed towards a magnificent Norwegian fir tree, resplendent in lights and sparkling with hundreds of coloured baubles.
Will smiled at her. ‘You’re a fan of Christmas?’
They were almost there; her destination was already in her sights and nerves fluttered in her chest like butterflies’ wings. She glanced sideways at Will to see if he’d noticed what was ahead of them, but his gaze was fixed on the Christmas tree.
‘Absolutely. There are no children in my social circle,’ she explained. ‘I really notice it at this time of year. It’s oneof the best things about working in a school; kids give you an excuse to find the child inside yourself at Christmas.’
‘I don’t think mine was ever lost,’ he said wryly, and they both laughed.
‘OK, stop there,’ she said, tightening her grip on his fingers and forcing him to stop in his tracks. ‘Look over there.’ She pointed at the row of shops opposite the marketplace. Pretty black and white half-timbered buildings housed all sorts of businesses, from a hair salon to a hardware store and there, right in front of them, with a bunch of mistletoe suspended under the entrance was Merry’s shop.
‘Merry and Bright!’ Will exclaimed. ‘You found her shop? That is so cool.’
