Page 18 of Mistletoe Kisses at Cwtch Cove

Waiting in the queue for drinks, Jack had to force himself not to turn around and search out Lucy again. He’d had a shock when he’d seen Ellen dressed as Santa but then she’d explained why she was wearing the onesie and it had made perfect sense. But seeing that Lucy had dressed up as a reindeer so Ellen wouldn’t feel like she was the only one who stood out, tugged hard at his heart. Not only did Lucy look incredibly cute but she was kind and caring, prepared to make a fool of herself to support her sister. She must have a good heart and it made him want to get to know her better. If he hadn’t promised to get his parents drinks, then he would have stayed with Lucy and Ellen for a while longer, spent more time chatting to them both. Perhaps asked her if she did fancy a date as Ellen had suggested. The thought made his stomach flip with excitement.

It was a chilly evening with a clear sky, the stars tiny diamond pinpricks in the vast ebony canvas. As he ordered drinks, his breath emerged like steam and the cold tingled his nose and lips. Frost was forming on car windscreens and on the grass, making everything seem to sparkle around the green. He loved evenings like this when the world around him felt clean and fresh, when the possibilities of the new year that lay ahead seemed endless. Jack didn’t feel this sense of hope often, but this year, something was different, something was finally changing inside him. He knew it had to do with talking to his mum about things, with seeing Kelly and getting that all important closure and, of course, with Lucy’s arrival in Cwtch Cove. Jack didn’t think of himself as being terribly romantic, but he did think he was quite intuitive and sensitive, and he wasn’t wrong now in feeling that something was definitely different. He was excited to find out where things might go if he did get to know Lucy better, if, that was, she liked him too.

He took the mulled wines over to his parents and they accepted them with smiles.

‘Thank you, darling.’ His mum took a sip. ‘Delicious. Aren’t you having one?’

He shook his head. ‘I’m fine at the moment.’

‘Who was that you were speaking to?’ She peered at him over the steam rising from her cup.

‘Ellen Chenery and her sister, Lucy.’

‘Ellen’s dressed up as Santa?’ His mum chuckled. ‘And her sister as a reindeer. What lovely girls doing that for the event.’

‘It’s more because Ellen’s so heavily pregnant now that she can’t fit into her clothes, apparently,’ Jack said.

‘Poor thing. I remember that well.’ His mum patted his dad on the arm. ‘Do you remember when I was pregnant with Jack, love? I was huge.’

His dad laughed. ‘You were never huge, my angel, merely shapely.’

‘Ha! You old charmer, Euan. I felt like an elephant. But then you were a big baby, Jack.’

Jack inclined his head. He’d heard this story many times before. He’d been a big baby and his mum had been in labour for three days before she’d been able to push him out into the world.

‘But worth every extra pound, stretchmark and three exhausting days, right?’ his dad asked.

‘Without question.’ His mum smiled. ‘I would do it all again a thousand times over to have you in this world, Jack.’

He gave her a hug, taking care not to spill her wine.

‘So… that Lucy… is she the one Rosemary was talking about?’ his mum asked.

Jack sighed softly. If they got into this now, he’d never hear the end of it from his dad.

‘She might be.’ His reply was non-committal and his mum winked in response.

‘Who knows, right love?’ she whispered.

‘What’s all this?’ his dad asked.

‘Nothing for you to worry about, Euan. Drink your wine.’ His mum nudged his dad and they grinned at each other like a pair of newlyweds. Jack knew that if he did fall in love again, the relationship his parents had was the type he wanted. Even after many years together, they were still in love, still flirtatious, still enjoying their time together. Finding that was a precious gift indeed.

‘Here’s to a magical December with plenty of mistletoe.’ His mum raised her wine and tapped it against his dad’s but her eyes were on Jack and he knew exactly what she meant.

CHAPTER9

‘What’re you doing?’ Ellen leant over Lucy’s shoulder and stared at her laptop screen. ‘Oooh! Is that the book you’re writing for the celebrity you can’t tell anyone about because you signed the NDA and no one will ever know it was you who wrote it.’

‘Exactly that.’ Lucy closed the screen. ‘So stop trying to see who it’s for.’

‘Spoilsport!’ Ellen pulled out the chair next to Lucy’s. ‘Do you know though that I’m so forgetful at the moment that I’d probably forget who the celeb was as soon as you told me?’ She leant her chin on her hands and fluttered her eyelashes.

‘I can’t, honey. I really can’t.’

Ellen blew a raspberry into her hands then sat back and sighed. ‘I know. I know. When’s the deadline?’

‘Not until late January.’

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