‘Has Daddy shown you the video?’ asked Holly, looking at the paused screen on the monitor. ‘You look like a ballerina on skates.’
‘But without the tutu,’ added Guy with a grin, then mouthed to Libby, ‘Don’t worry, she hasn’t seen it all.’
Holly began to gracefully dance around the room with her arms open wide. ‘I want to learn to skate. Will you teach me?’ she asked as she stopped in front of Libby.
‘I’m sure Libby is busy with all the wedding preparations,’ Guy said, giving Holly a look to make it clear she wasn’t to push the issue.
Libby noticed the smile slide off Holly’s face and decided to put it right back on. ‘I’m sure we can find time for a couple of lessons.’
Instantly, Holly threw her arms around Libby’s neck and hugged her tight. ‘Thank you!’
The look on Guy’s face was heart-warming as Libby glanced at him over Holly’s shoulder.
‘Now let me get you a snack and a drink,’ he said. ‘You must be freezing. Go sit by the fire and get warm.’
‘Daddy, can we pick a Christmas tree this afternoon?’ Holly’s eyes were wide and hopeful.
‘How can you resist such an adorable face?’ Libby whispered.
‘Pleeeease. Libby could come too.’
‘They’ve got freshly cut Christmas trees up at Foxglove Farm,’ added Cynthia, switching on the kettle. ‘Or Drew is offering tractor trailer rides to the forest where you can pick your own tree and he’ll transport it back for you.’
‘Can we do that, Daddy?’
‘We’ll see,’ he answered with a big smile on his face.
Libby gave Holly a wink and leaned in towards Guy. ‘Go on, you know you want to.’
‘You’re all ganging up on me!’ he objected. ‘Next Saturday. I promise we can go and get the tree then.’
‘We called in at Bonnie’s Teashop on the way back,’ said Cynthia. ‘Starcross Manor is the talk of the village.’
Libby knew what she was going to say next and realised she hadn’t had a chance to tell Guy about her conversations with Flynn or Florrie this morning.
‘Everyone was talking about the skating incident last night.’
‘There was no incident,’ Libby was quick to point out. ‘Just after you left, David fell over on the ice, which happens all the time in skating.’
‘There were a bunch of reporters hanging around the teashop. Apparently something has been posted about it online. They were asking questions.’
‘What sort of questions?’ Libby probed.
‘Just whether anyone was present last night and what they had witnessed.’
‘Unbelievable! Nothing happened that was newsworthy.’
‘These vultures like to make up stories from the slightest of mishaps,’ Cynthia said sympathetically.
‘It really has been blown out of all proportion.’ Libby shook her head in disbelief. ‘I best leave you all to it.’ She suddenly wanted to get back to the lodge and see if she could find any comments online. Standing up she noticed Holly tugging on Guy’s sleeve and whispering something in his ear.
‘She may be busy,’ replied Guy.
Whatever it was, Holly wasn’t giving up. Her eyes were wide and she was tilting her head between her dad and Libby.
‘Go on, ask her,’ Holly urged.
‘Libby, if you have nowhere you need to be next Saturday, would you like to join us to go and pick a Christmas tree?’
