Page 43 of Mistletoe and Mystery

‘Hey! You two, come on, we’re about to raise a toast to the best cookery school in the world!’ cried Tim from the kitchen door. He paused, flicking his eyes from Claudia to Millie and back again. ‘Have you told her?’

‘Yes. Have you told Zach?’

‘Yes.’

Millie raised her head from studying the contents of her glass where she’d hoped to find all the answers to her problems but had drawn a blank. Through a shimmering haze of tears, she saw Tim was beaming and cast a quick look at Claudia, and then noticed Zach standing behind Tim, also grinning.

‘What’s going on?’ she asked, feeling like she was the only sane person in the room.

Zach strode across the kitchen, dragged her from her seat and kissed her. She ignored the satisfied smiles of Claudia and Tim, and the rest of the guests for all she knew, and kissed him back, enjoying the swirl of excitement, pleasure, and something altogether more physical as she pressed her body against Zach’s muscular torso, desperate for more.

After what felt like an eternity but was probably only a few seconds, she heard Mitch perform his best wolf-whistle and she pulled away, laughing, her heart soaring, knowing with utmost conviction that she had made the right decision to stay in London, in her little attic above the patisserie so that she could spend every spare moment in Zach’s arms.

‘Did you say yes?’ he asked.

‘Yes?’

‘To running the Paradise Cookery School for Claudia?’

‘No, I… Hang on. Why?’

‘Because Tim has just told me that he wants me to relocate to that gorgeous wooden lodge overlooking the Caribbean Sea and to manage the cocoa plantation whilst you scatter all manner of culinary debris around the villa’s kitchen. He has very sensibly decided that someone needs to be around to tidy up afterwards and I thought—’

‘Oh my God! Oh my God! You will be in St Lucia!’

‘Yes? I thought Claudia—’

‘Hadn’t quite got around to telling Millie that bit,’ said Claudia, snuggling under Tim’s arm and gazing at Millie and Zach as if her heart would burst. ‘But I can assure you, Zach, if you need any assurance, that Millie was prepared to give up the opportunity of a lifetime to be with you.’

Millie laughed as her heart burst with happiness.

‘I love you, Zach! You make my life zing with excitement and joy! But there’s one thing I want you to do before I agree to go to St Lucia with you.’

‘What’s that?’

‘Order in a year’s supply of Marigolds!’

Everyone laughed as Zach curled his arms round her shoulders and stared into her eyes with such intensity she gasped.

‘The feeling is mutual, marvellous, maddening Millie Harper!’

Their audience drifted away to give them some privacy and the rest of the evening disappeared in a whirl of congratulations, of hugs, of tears – mainly from Blake – of carol singing, and of fond farewells.

At midnight, Millie found herself strolling arm-in-arm with Zach down the driveway towards his lodge. It was cold, but she was snuggled into a warm padded jacket and had one of Tim’s old hats pulled down over her ears. She looked across at the expanse of smooth white snow that had been untouched for almost a week, save for the impression of snow angels she and Zach had created which were still evident, alongside the mound of snow where she had tried to recreate a likeness of Binks.

‘Come on, said Zach. ‘I’ve got something to show you. I had no idea the snow would last so long, but I’m glad it has because I want you to see this.’

‘See what?’

‘Always the questions! Trust me.’

Millie felt his hand slot into hers as if it were the most natural gesture in the world. A wriggle of excitement meandered through her stomach. She couldn’t wait to fly out to St Lucia, to take her place alongside Ella behind the Paradise Cookery School’s demonstration bench, and the added sprinkles on her cupcake of dreams was that Zach would be with her!

As they made their way towards the lodge, her thoughts meandered through the myriad possibilities for romantic moonlit walks along the beach at Soufrière, gossip-filled evenings with Ella and Denise, Henri and Dylan, indulging in one of Lottie’s potent cocktails, or simply sitting out on the veranda overlooking the Pitons starring up at the stars and thanking the director of her destiny for their benevolence.

She dragged herself back to the present and followed Zach through the front gate of his home, but instead of going inside as she had expected, he led her around to the back garden where she stopped in her tracks.

‘Oh my God! Is that… is that…?’

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