“Are we hosting a film crew or something? What am I missing?”
“Jamie’s girlfriend loves Christmas movies. I’m trying to create the perfect Christmas.”
He rubbed his forehead. “The perfect Christmas? Isn’t that a bit unrealistic?”
“Nothing wrong with aiming high.” She handed him the car keys. “If you could bring everything in, that would be great.”
If he was feeling that his life had no purpose then the answer was to fill his life with purpose. And right now that purpose was Christmas.
Chapter7
Rosie
Are we lost?” Declan peered at his phone. “There’s no signal.”
They’d been driving all day with just one brief stop to eat the sandwiches Rosie had packed. Now it was dark and both of them were tired.
“We’re not lost.” Rosie was driving, navigating her way more through instinct than knowledge.
They’d made surprisingly good time driving up north but then the weather had worsened and so had the traffic. With visibility reduced, the road conditions deteriorating and too much traffic, accidents had been inevitable. The fields and trees were coated with snow, the landscape ghostly in the pale winter light.
“Isn’t it beautiful? Don’t you just love this time of year? The snow is luminous.” Rosie sighed as she scanned the frosted landscape. “It transforms everything. It even makes ugly things beautiful. Like that building over there in that field.”
Declan squinted. “You mean that abandoned cow shed?”
“Is that what it is? Doesn’t it look magical?”
“Um—it looks like an abandoned cow shed. Are you sure you know where we are?”
“Well, notexactlywhere we are, but roughly. I know we’re going in the right direction. We’re not far from home. An hour maybe?”
Declan put his phone down. “There is a lot of snow.”
“I know. Isn’t it fantastic? It makes me think of winter fairy tales and carol singers and tramping across snowy fields with my mother to get to school because the bus wasn’t running.” She allowed herself a dreamy moment of nostalgia and then glanced at him and saw that he was frowning. “What does it make you think of?”
“Train delays. Frozen pipes. Dangerous roads and multiple accidents.”
“Oh.” She came back to earth. “That’s very pessimistic. Is my driving making you nervous?”
“No. You’re a good driver.”
It wasn’t the compliment she would have chosen, but she’d take it. “Thank you. My brother taught me. And Will.”
“Who is Will?”
“Jamie’s closest friend. He was at our wedding.”
“I remember. Tall guy. Glasses. He sat next to Becky.”
“That’s him. He’s mad about cars, and he took me out in snow a few times after I passed my test. Either he has nerves of steel, or he thought I was a good driver.” Rosie slowed down at a junction and saw a signpost. “I know where we are! We’re about forty minutes from home. It’s going to be fine. There’s a great pub near here. They make the most incredible cauliflower cheese. It has this crunchy topping and it’s so delicious and creamy it should probably be illegal.”
“Sounds good. I’m starving.”
“Me too, but we’re not stopping. In under an hour you will be facing more food than you know how to eat.”
“That’s hard to imagine. You’re sure your mother will have cooked a meal, even though she doesn’t know what time we’re arriving?”
“Of course. My mother is relaxed about that kind of thing. Probably because my father was always being called to see a patient just as she was about to serve a meal. She’s very flexible and there’s always masses because she over-caters. You will be fed until you beg for mercy.”
