Her howl’s subsided and her voice has gone all peculiar and small. ‘Bart, you bought me Tiffany earrings? Do you know how long it is since anyone bought me jewellery?’
Bart’s sitting next to her, looking very pleased with himself. ‘Well, the first day we met, you told me you always bought your own. But as we know, every Cornish pirate needs rings in their ears.’ He gives a sniff. ‘Well, open the box. See how you like them.’
Jess does as she’s told, but when the box springs open, she looks puzzled. ‘But there’s only one? So it reallyisa pirate earring?’
Bart gives a whoop, then his face creases up in laughter. ‘Pass it here, it’s actually upside down in the box, I’ll show you how to put it on.’
‘Okay.’ Jess is blinking in confusion as she passes over the box. ‘Whoever knew Tiffany did earrings for pirates. Whatever next?’
As Bart takes out the piece, he holds it up and it flashes in the light.
‘Oh my.’ I’m murmuring under my breath to Rory. ‘That’s not an earring.’
Bart looks at Jess. ‘Give me your hand.’
‘Mywhat?’ Jess hesitates.
‘Your hand, Jess. Your left hand.’ A second later Bart’s dropped down on his knee beside her. And he’s still laughing. ‘Jess, only you could spend three solid weeks searching for an engagement ring in every chocolate fountain in Switzerland, and miss it when it finally arrives in Christmas gift wrap. That’s why I love you. That’s why I want to grow old with you. Make me the happiest man in Cornwall. Please, Jess, will you marry me?’ The next instant, he slides the ring onto her finger.
It’s a good thing he’s not waiting for an answer, because she’s still opening and closing her mouth minutes later as she wipes her eyes on her serviette and stares down at her finger and sniffs. ‘Thank Christmas I anticipated an emotional day and put my waterproof mascara on.’ She’s almost growling at him. ‘Come here, you old pirate. Of course I’ll marry you. So long as you promise to behave, of course.’
Bart’s laugh is very low and his eyes flash. ‘You’ll have to make me.’ He stands up and dips in for a kiss. Then he rubs his hands ‘Great work, me hearties, this calls for a toast. I’ve got the best champagne on ice. And how about elderflower fizz for the alcohol-free?’
We all file round the table, and wow, Jess’s treasure is worth inspecting. It’s a glorious solitaire, with smaller diamonds embedded in the ring all the way around. For someone who’s always leading the way, Jess has gone remarkably quiet. But we all go in for squeezes and pecks on the cheek anyway.
Now it’s Immie’s turn to growl. ‘I thought I’d hold out at least until the Christmas Pudding Martinis.’ She lets out a long groan. ‘Elderflower fizz or vintage champagne?’ She bites her lip. ‘Okay, Hols and Pops. It’s official! I’ve cracked. Off to the cloakrooms and give me the go-ahead. For one day only I’m back on the bevvy.’
I pick up my bag and Poppy and I make our way out to the loo, which is so posh it has its own liquid soap dispenser.
‘Jeez,’ I say, as I get one of the test sticks out and dip it into Immie’s pee. ‘This toilet is bigger than my entire London flat.’
Poppy laughs. ‘Yet another reason you should move back here. Just saying.’ She takes the box from me, reads it, then pops the stick back in the box and puts it back in my bag. ‘Early detection. That’s good. Immie only wants to know if it’s positive. It’ll be ready in three minutes. Shall we help Bart in with the glasses while it’s cooking?’
We’re so busy delivering ice buckets and dodging popping corks, by the time I creep into my seat and get to peep at the stick in the bag, most people are sitting with full glasses in their hands.
‘What are you doing, Berry?’ Rory’s looking at me over Gracie’s head again.
I’m peering at the stick, looking for the line in the little perspex windows. When I see which window the line is in, I don’t know what to do. ‘Pops, quick, can you come here a minute?’ She diverts from where she’s walking back to her seat. ‘Can you look at this?’
Her face comes over my shoulder. ‘Oh shit.’ She’s looking at me with wide eyes. ‘Do you think it’s real?’
We’re agonising. When we said we’d do this we assumed it would be negative. Staring at a test stick that sayspositive, how do we break it to Chas and Immie? We don’t want to get their hopes up if it’s wrong.
‘Immie …’ As I call her she’s waving her champagne. ‘We’ve got a bit of a situation with the stick. You might need to come over for a look.’
As her chair scrapes back, she passes Teddie over to Morgan, who’s sitting next to her, then she bustles over. ‘Don’t tell me another one of those toad-arse tests hasn’t worked. Where the hell will that leave me?’
I’m trying to put her right. ‘No, there’s definitely a line.’
Immie’s voice is a whisper as she squints at the stick I’m holding. ‘Ass hats, badger bottoms and toad bollocks.’ As her fist goes to her mouth, tears begin spurting out of her eyes. ‘Chas … Chas … I’m not sure … but I think we might be …’
Chas ambles over frowning, looking especially snazzy in hisI’m having a meltdownfleece with the picture of a collapsing snowman. It takes Immie a while to make him understand, because her voice has disappeared and there are rivers of tears flooding down her cheeks. But when he does finally get what’s happened, he sweeps her into his arms.
I watch as he hugs her. ‘I’msohappy for you.’ She might put the pregnancy success down to the Serendipity classes and alcohol-free beer, but I’m sure it’s got much more to do with the hours she’s spent cuddling Teddie. Whatever the reason, it’s still the best Christmas present ever.
After a whole lot more hugs, Jess and Bart’s engagement toast is postponed for long enough for Immie to go and pee on the second stick, just to make sure. But this next test says the same as the first. If I know Immie, she’ll have another hundred sticks back at the farm and she’ll use every one in the next few days. But for now, she’s swooningly happy to swap her glass of vintage bubbly for elderflower fizz.
Immie wandering back from the cloakroom punching the air is the signal for the toasts to get underway again. As the gentle late afternoon sunlight floods into the Winter Garden and illuminates the bubbles rising in the golden champagne, we stand and hold up our glasses.
