‘It’ll only be a few days. You won’t even know he’s here.’
Izzy thought that was unlikely.
‘Now that the blue room is finished, he can stay in there.’ Xanthe gave her a slightly patronising smile. ‘He’ll be gone before Christmas and I’m sure you’ll find him utterly charming. I’ve known him for aeons. He’s very well connected. He’s related to the Highland Sinclairs, you know.’
Xanthe’s verbal flood was a definite sign that she was hiding something.
‘Which reminds me.’ Xanthe’s eyes brightened as her enthusiasm for something else ping-ponged back into life. ‘Now that we’re having a proper Christmas party staying, we need at least three Christmas trees. I do love the smell of a real tree. There’s nothing like it, is there, Izzy? And this year we can get everyone to decorate the tree together. What fun!’
Izzy smiled as the memories of Christmases past bloomed in her head like popcorn bursting out of their shells. They’d always had a real tree, even when money was tight, and it was a tradition to gift each other a new ornament every year. When Izzy was younger they’d been handmade at school and no matter how rubbish they were – the little mouse in a walnut shell, the tufts of cotton wool on a string or the fairy made out of a doily and wooden peg – Xanthe would exclaim in delight over them and insist they went in a prime spot. Decorating the tree had always been a big deal and when Izzy had got older they’d always opened a bottle of fizz to celebrate and have an official toast to switching on the lights.
‘As I said, I’m thinking we’re going to need at least three trees: one for the hall, one in the dining room and one in the lounge. And it won’t cost us anything because Duncan says we can cut some down from the forest on the edge of the loch, although we’ll need to buy some new decorations. I wonder if there are any up in the attic.’
‘You’re going to cut a tree down?’ asked Izzy with a teasing smile.
‘Well, not me, obviously. I’m sure we can persuade this strapping young man to help us,’ said Xanthe, giving Ross a coy smile. ‘Don’t men love to swing their axes about and play He-Man?’
‘All the time,’ agreed Ross, his mouth quirking as he glanced at Izzy who shook her head. Xanthe really was the end.
‘That’s all sorted, then.’ She beamed at Ross. ‘Alicia Strathallan’s son under my roof. How marvellous. I must tell my sewing WhatsApp group – Sewing for Glory.’ With a skip in her step, she left the kitchen, humming loudly.
Looking rather bemused, Ross watched her go before taking his own coffee and leaving the room.
With the kitchen to herself once more, Izzy sat with a notebook and marked the first page, writing:To do list.She underlined the words twice, thinking about all the lovely things they could do to make this Christmas one to remember.
Marking out several pages in her notebook, excitement bubbled as she broke things down into manageable portions.
‘Hi, Izzy,’ said a small, tentative voice and she looked up to find Jeanette and Jim hovering in the doorway.
‘Come in.’
‘Sorry we slept so late. I haven’t had such a good night’s sleep in weeks. I always worry a sheep or a deer’s going to start eating the tent. Thank you so much for letting us stay.’
Izzy smiled gently at her. Despite the extra sleep, the poor girl’s eyes were shadowed and filled with anxiety. ‘It isn’t a problem. I’m glad you slept well. Would you like some breakfast?’
Jeanette looked uncertainly at her husband.
‘If it’s no bother,’ he said, urging her forward into the kitchen.
‘Would you like some bacon and eggs?’
‘No, it’s fine,’ said Jeanette, but Izzy saw the droop to Jim’s mouth.
‘Honestly it’s no trouble and there are plenty of eggs. Duncan is a bit of a hen whisperer and they’re still laying. I don’t think they’ve realised winter’s arrived.’
‘We certainly have,’ said Jeanette, looking out of the window and wrapping her arms around herself.
‘That would be grand,’ said Jim hurriedly and Jeanette nudged him.
‘He’s always hungry.’
‘Take a seat,’ suggested Izzy.
‘No!’ said Jeanette almost jumping forward. ‘Let me help. You’ve been so kind letting us stay last night.’
‘I could hardly throw you out,’ replied Izzy with a kind smile.
‘Maybe not but you made us feel welcome and not as if we were a burden. We’re very grateful.’
