Kat scowled at him as she tried to take it back. ‘What is it with your family tonight?’
Ed’s brows drew down in confusion. ‘What did I say?’
‘Forget it!’ Embarrassed at making a fuss over nothing, Kat made another grab for the bottle. ‘And I can open that myself, thanks.’
Ed lifted the champagne out of her reach. ‘Come on, Kitty, let me pretend I’m needed.’
She snorted a laugh because it was impossible to take offence at anything Ed did. ‘You’re such a goof.’
‘That’s me.’ He leaned over and pecked a kiss on her cheek. ‘How was your Christmas?’
‘Christmas was wonderful. With Issy and Liam off in New York I had the flat to myself. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of spending the last couple of days back home with my parents.’ She pulled a face that told Ed everything he needed to know about how that had gone.
‘That bad?’ Ed’s grin immediately disappeared. ‘Do you want to talk about it?’
He might try to hide it behind his silly jokes, but Ed had a heart of gold and a sensitive streak a mile wide. Kat put her arm around his waist and gave him a quick squeeze. ‘What I want to do is drink enough so I can forget about it.’
The corners of his mouth kicked back up into a wicked grin. ‘Now that’s something I can get on board with. If I get you just the right amount of drunk, do you reckon I’m in with a chance of a snog at midnight?’
Kat burst out laughing. It was a preposterous suggestion; kissing Ed would be akin to kissing her brother, if she had one. He couldn’t possibly be serious, could he? She scanned his familiar, cheeky expression and could see nothing other than his usual teasing humour. It was strange, really, that apart from the scar bisecting his eyebrow he was identical to Harry and yet she’d never mixed them up. Harry had this low-level buzz about him, a sense that he hadn’t lost that wild energy of his youth that had got him into so much trouble, merely tamed it enough to keep it caged. Ed was much more laid back, as if life was a perpetual joke he would always laugh about, even if he was thepunchline. Raising a hand, she patted his cheek fondly. ‘Shut up and open that bottle.’
‘Is this idiot bothering you?’ Harry reached out and took the champagne from Ed. ‘Give me that before you spray fizz everywhere.’ He turned to Kat. ‘Where’s your glass?’
By the time she’d retrieved it from behind her, Harry had removed the cork in one fluid move. He held the bottle the way a professional wine waiter would, his thumb pressed into the indentation in the base, the weight of it resting in his palm like it was nothing. He tilted the champagne and poured at the perfect speed so there was never any danger of the bubbles frothing over the rim of her glass. There was something about those quick, sure movements that stirred that funny, fizzy feeling inside her. ‘You’re very good at that,’ she found herself saying.
The corner of his mouth twitched, an acknowledgement of the compliment. ‘Plenty of practice.’
‘Thanks for nothing, bro,’ Ed grumbled as he held out a glass for Harry to fill. ‘How am I supposed to persuade Kat to be my midnight date with you showing off?’
Harry raised his brows as he looked between them. ‘Midnight date?’
‘Ed’s trying to line me up as his back-up kiss,’ Kat replied, her voice as dry as the champagne.
‘Hey!’ Ed protested, eyes wide in faux-innocent outrage. ‘I never said you were my back-up!’
‘You say that like I’ve never met you before, Ed.’ If it was a showdown between an alley cat and Ed Penrose, Kat knew who her money was on. No, that wasn’t quite fair; Ed didn’t just sleep around for the sake of it, he was more an eternal romantic who fell in and out of love at the drop of a hat.
‘I thought you were dating someone from uni,’ Harry interjected, proving Kat’s point.
Ed’s face flamed as he scrubbed awkwardly at the back of his neck. ‘That… uh… that didn’t work out.’
Harry rolled his eyes. ‘I’m shocked, shocked, I tell you.’ A sly smile curled his lips. ‘Doessheknow that yet?’
Ed was saved from further squirming because Rachel called them over and they were both dispatched with large trays covered in nibbles to hand around. Kat watched the two of them work the room. Harry was all serious as he explained each offering. Ed, his polar opposite, shrugged when someone asked him a question before popping a bite into his mouth and offering an instant verdict.
Different and yet identical in the confidence they exuded. Everyone in the family was the same, sure of the space they occupied in the world and comfortable with it. That confidence flowed from Ma and Pa, through their sons and into their grandsons and granddaughter. Some might read it as arrogance or entitlement – her father certainly did – but Kat knew it to be something else, something deeper. This was a family sure in its love for each other, safe in the knowledge that, no matter what happened, they had each other’s back.
Kat sighed into her champagne as a familiar pang rose inside her. It wasn’t quite envy, because there was no ugliness or resentment in what she felt. The feeling was more plaintive than that, a yearning, a longing to experience that same connection with her parents. But that was never going to happen because Kat had always been a bit-part in the psychodrama of her parents’ marriage. Some might look at the offer her father had made tonight as proof of his love for her, of his desire to give her a secure foundation and a career of her own that would take her into the future. But she knew enough to recognise the truth. He might claim he was giving her the chance to strike out on her own, but he’d never let her run the business without constantly interfering. And the choice of location was as deliberate as itwas cruel. Opening a competing café directly opposite The Cosy Coffee Pot was designed to hurt Issy and Maud and to drive a wedge between Kat and one of her oldest friends.
Raising her glass, Kat took a mouthful of champagne and washed away the bitterness of that truth then shook it off. Tonight was about spending time with her best friends and celebrating a year of successes. Whether it was new relationships or new business ventures, they’d achieved so much in the past twelve months. Kat would toast them and share in that joy and tomorrow she’d sit down and work out a plan so that this time next year, she’d have things to celebrate too.
6
Harry only escaped his hosting duties by begging his dad to abandon his in-depth discussion about the long-range weather forecast with his sailing buddies to please-for-the-love-of-God get his mum out of the kitchen because she was driving them all mad. Jago was more than happy to come to the rescue and he whisked Rachel outside for a dance. The patio had been cleared of furniture and plant pots to create a makeshift dancefloor and lots of couples were taking advantage of it, including Harry’s two older brothers and their girlfriends.
Given he’d rather poke his own eyes out than watch any of his family smooching, Harry grabbed a fresh beer from an ice-filled tub and wandered inside. There was no one he wanted to talk to in the kitchen so he continued through into the hallway. A familiar burst of laughter caught his attention and he followed the sound into the lounge to find Ed holding court. He had a beer in one hand and a glass of champagne in the other, both threatening to spill on to the carpet as he gestured wildly to emphasise whatever tall tale he was telling. At a casual glance you’d think his twin was having the time of his life.
But Harry knew better.
