Page 27 of The Christmas Star

‘Angry.’

A host of red lights came on as numerous drivers ahead hit their brakes and with traffic slowing, I did the same. Wondering what was going on, my pulse quickened and I tried not to imagine Dad’s Volvo all crumpled and folded in on itself. I turned to Theo. ‘You don’t think this traffic jam is to do with Mum and Jackson, do you?’

CHAPTER 20

I fidgeted in my seat as we yet again inched forward. We’d been stopping and starting for what felt like forever and the longer it took traffic to get going again, the more I panicked over Mum and Jackson.

‘You don’t need to worry,’ Theo said. ‘They’ve got to be at the port by now. They could even be in France.’ He placed a hand on my knee and gave me a reassuring smile.

My gaze went from his Henry Cavill face to his Henry Cavill hand and my body temperature shot up again. ‘Okay,’ I replied, my voice higher than I would have liked.

He gave me a wink and needing to pull myself together, I took a deep breath and exhaled.

Thinking about Mum and Jackson again, I knew Theo was right; they had to be way ahead of us. But finding ourselves forced into a sudden stop brought home just how vulnerable the two of them were. Mum might have had a full licence but neither she nor Jackson were experienced drivers, and I worried it was only a matter of time before they really were involved in an accident.

The traffic began to move, only to slow down again.

‘This is ridiculous,’ I said, my patience running out.

‘I agree.’ To my surprise, Theo suddenly flipped the gearstick into neutral and yanked on the handbrake. He quickly got out of the car and raced round to my door.

‘What are you doing?’ I asked as he flung it open.

‘Shove up.’

With no choice but to oblige for fear of us causing an accident, I did as instructed before traffic started moving again.

Getting behind the wheel, Theo flipped the left indicator switch, looked behind us and swung the car onto the hard shoulder.

As the car sped up, I gripped the sides of my seat. ‘Jesus Christ, Theo. Are you trying to get us into trouble?’

We sailed past our fellow travellers and heading for an upcoming slip road, Theo drove us off the motorway, only slowing down when he reached the signed service station car park.

‘Not only was that manoeuvre illegal…’ I said as he pulled into a space. ‘…we don’t have time for this. We need to keep going.’

Theo turned off the car engine and unbuckled his seat belt. ‘What we need is coffee.’

I stared at the man aghast. ‘You mean you expect me to get out?’ I indicated my clothes. ‘You have seen how I’m dressed?’

Sniggering, he opened his car door. ‘Which has nothing to do with stretching your legs. Come on.’ Theo clearly wasn’t taking no for an answer. ‘Out.’

I hated being at the whim of someone else and being stubborn I continued to sit there.

‘If you’re that worried, you could always check out what’s on sale here.’

Rolling my eyes, I did as I was told and disembarked, but as we made our way towards the building and I caught my reflection in one of its huge windows, I wished I hadn’t. I’d known Mum’s clothes wouldn’t look great, but I hadn’t realised to what extent.

‘Walk with confidence,’ Theo said, clocking my embarrassment.

I buttoned up my coat. ‘Easy for you to say.’ As the entrance doors slid open, I nodded to the shop. ‘Wish me luck.’

With Mum’s slacks and anti-slip boots still visible, I’d hoped to at least find some age-appropriate footwear to change in to. Even a pair of trainers would have done. However, as I perused the clothing section I found it both limited and naff. There was a rail of rainproof jackets, much like those I’d seen advertised on the back of Mum’s Peoples Friend magazine; various T-shirts, mainly in sizes S, XL and XXL; and a wide selection of headgear. Santa hats, woolly hats, bucket hats, baseball caps, there was even a couple of cowboy numbers. The only reference to footwear I could see was the Boots chemist aisle next to the meal deals.

Giving up all together, I left the shop behind and headed for the food and drink area. Theo was still in line waiting to order when I got there and sticking my hand up, I waved to catch his attention. The place was packed and with only one vacant table in sight, I pointed it out to Theo who gave me a thumbs-up.

I continued to observe him as I took my seat. Although I wasn’t the only one. From the number of women discreetly checking him out, with coy smiles and fluttering eyelashes, Theo appeared to be building his own little fan base. I understood the attention. Theo wasn’t lacking in the looks department and the fact that he seemed to have no idea about that made him even more attractive. Even after a night of no sleep and goodness knew how many hours stuck in the world’s tiniest car Theo oozed gorgeousness. In comparison, I looked like Gollum.

I turned to the rest of my surroundings. An instrumental of Wham’s ‘Last Christmas’ played through the building’s sound system and with people everywhere, the air of festive excitement was palpable. A nearby family talked about what Santa might bring and as the littles ones in the group squealed in delight, the older children rolled their eyes. At another table, a woman in her twenties made a point of waving her left hand around as she chatted to her boyfriend. It didn’t take two guesses to know what she hoped to receive, although the fact she had to hint in the first place indicated he wasn’t worth her time and energy. She’d be better off single.