Life’s too short. Let’s get that date fixed. Marry me! X
ChapterOne
Five weeks to Christmas
Libby stepped over the cardboard boxes that were dotted about the living room and made her way towards the kitchen. She hadn’t even managed to have a cup of tea yet so she switched on the kettle. She asked Alexa to playHeart Christmasand immediately Christmas songs began to filter through the living room, adding to the festive feel.
For the last few days she’d been slowly packing her possessions. She was looking forward to her move to New York in the new year.
‘I declare it’s officially Christmas,’ she sang to herself as her favourite Christmas song, ‘Fairytale of New York’, began. Jigging over to the fridge, she grabbed the milk.
Once upon a time Christmas had brought her painful memories, because it reminded her of the time when her life had changed for ever. But time was a great healer and she’d come to terms with the past. She was now at a very good place in her life, with a successful career, and about to embark on a whole new adventure. With a cup of tea in her hand, she looked around at the boxes that held her life. She couldn’t possibly take all this stuff with her to New York, could she?
This rented house had served her well in the last ten years. Between these four walls she’d laughed – though no doubt cried more – and it had been her safe haven, allowing her to rebuild her life in the wake of everything she’d gone through. Feeling suddenly proud of how far she’d come, she picked up the letter that had changed her life and re-read the job offer from Frazier. She’d applied for the job on a whim and never in her wildest dreams had thought she would be offered the position. But here she was holding the confirmation letter to her brand-new life.
Her obsession with clothes had started when she was just a little girl. Her father was a man of outlandish suits and hats, which fascinated her, and most weekends – much to her brother’s discomfort – she would make Flynn stand still for hours while she dressed him in outfits that she’d concocted from local jumble sales.
Finishing her drink, she looked towards the bay window. Even though it was still November, the next job on her list was putting up the Christmas tree. Libby was hoping Flynn and Julia would invite her to spend Christmas with them, but in the meantime, she still wanted to be surrounded by twinkly fairy lights and decorations in the run-up. Climbing the stairs, Libby pulled down the loft ladder and clambered into the attic. The artificial tree and a box of favourite decorations were just in front of her but as she was about to grab them, she stopped in her tracks. Above her there was a deafening drone and a whirl of rotors – a noise Libby recognised instantly. There was a helicopter above her house.
After lowering the tree and decorations onto the landing, Libby shut the loft and dragged them down the stairs. Moving towards the bay window she could immediately see a sea of bobble hats on the edge of the green, their owners pointing up at the sky. The crowd was both amazed and amused.
‘I can always rely on you to make an entrance, can’t I?’ she murmured to herself. She watched the helicopter with her brother’s initials descend onto the blanket of snow that covered the green and then went to open the front door. Smiling in the face of the cold blast of air that greeted her, Libby leaned against the door frame and folded her arms. She was always happy to see her brother.
Within seconds, Flynn had shut the door of the helicopter and hurried over the fresh, undisturbed snow. As soon as he noticed Libby waiting for him in her doorway, he grinned and bent down, scooping snow up in his hands.
‘Don’t you dare!’ she shouted.
‘I dare!’ He laughed, playfully throwing a snowball in her direction, making her shriek.
‘Hey!’ She laughed, stepping back as the snowball hit the step in front of her.
‘Hi, sis! Surprise!’ He kissed her on both cheeks before stamping the snow off his boots.
‘A surprise indeed!’ She pointed towards the helicopter. ‘You do know you’re testing your luck with the local constabulary, don’t you? That is not legal.’
‘They all love me, and anyway it’s worth the risk if it means I get to come and see my sister.’
Libby opened the door wide and Flynn stepped inside.
‘And what are you doing here in this weather? I texted you only this morning and you never mentioned you were coming.’
‘A brother can come and see his sister just because, can’t he?’ His tone was jovial as he took off his coat and hung it in the hallway.
‘He can, but in this weather? I reckon it means you need a favour and it’s such a big favour that you can’t ask by text. Don’t forget, I’ve known you all my life.’
‘Funny that,’ he replied, following Libby into the living room and walking straight into a cardboard box. ‘You’ve been busy.’
‘I’m just trying to sort out everything before I go to New York. You really don’t realise the volume of crap you acquire until you have to pack it all up.’
‘Where are you going to store all this? Surely you’re not taking everything with you?’
Libby screwed up her face then gave Flynn a cheeky smile. ‘I was actually going to ask if my favourite brother could help in any way.’
‘I’m your only brother,’ he pointed out. ‘And of course I can! I could even go one better than that.’
Libby narrowed her eyes.
‘I can get someone over to pack up all the rest of your stuff for you.’
