Page 46 of Christmas All the Way

‘She sounds like a wise woman,’ Raff said. ‘I’ve said pretty much the same thing to my mother. The stress over the rent hike has really taken its toll. Unfortunately, I think it means Santa’s Secret will be closing after Christmas.’

It wasn’t anything Grace hadn’t been expecting but the news still came like a punch to her stomach. ‘Oh,’ she said, and swallowed the sudden lump in her throat. ‘That’s very sad, especially since she’s worked so hard and made such a success of it.’

He sighed. ‘I know. But I can’t see anyone else taking it on, not when Jesse is hell-bent on making the business unprofitable.’

‘Can’t you find another premises?’ she asked. ‘There must be other barns.’

‘Perhaps,’ Raff said. ‘But our chances of finding one that’s in good enough condition, with decent parking and enough storage for the stock and the display goods, are pretty slim. It’d be a tall order, and I suspect her heart wouldn’t really be in it.’

Grace fell silent, grappling with her own disappointment. Her job at Santa’s Secret had only ever been temporary and was due to finish on Christmas Eve, but she now realised there had been a small part of her that hoped she might find a way to keep working there, perhaps by branching out into other types of celebrations, like baby showers and birthdays, to build a year-round business. She’d been waiting for the right time to raise it with Ivy, but now it seemed Jesse’s intervention had torpedoed any possibility for it to go ahead. ‘I understand. Relocating would be a huge task.’ She puffed out a long breath. ‘It’s such a shame this has happened. I’ve loved working there.’

She stopped talking, afraid the ache in her chest would leak to her throat. For a long moment, neither of them said anything and the only sound was Bilbo’s cheerful snuffles as he moved from one interesting smell to another. At length, Raff glanced across the green, lit by pools of light from the streetlamps. ‘This time next month, we won’t be able to move for visitors to the village.’

Grace followed his gaze. ‘And in two months’ time, it will all be over.’

That was something else she couldn’t allow herself to think about. What was she going to do when she didn’t have Santa’s Secret and Juniper Cottage and Freezy Tye to fill her time?

‘You’ll be able to stop checking the weather forecast, at least,’ Raff said.

Grace forced herself to smile. ‘Yes, I won’t miss that.’

Just everything else, she added in her head, keeping her eyes fixed on Bilbo’s wagging tail. And maybe even Raff.

They reached the gate of Keeley’s driveway. ‘Here you are,’ Raff said, looking at the front door, where Grace’s rescued wreath hung, illuminated by the glow of the small lamp. ‘It looks like she’s home.’

Grace nodded. ‘Thanks for walking me back.’

‘It was no trouble. My car’s just over there.’ He gazed down at her, and for the briefest second, she thought he would say something else. But Bilbo chose that moment to let out a volley of barks and race off along the street. Raff swore as he stared after him. ‘Bloody dog – he must have seen a cat. I’d better go.’

‘Yes, go,’ she urged him, because Bilbo was already out of sight. ‘I hope you catch him!’

Raff was already moving. ‘He won’t get far,’ he called over his shoulder as he jogged away. ‘But don’t wait. Go in – I’ll drop you a message to let you know when I’ve found him.’

‘Okay,’ she called to his retreating back. ‘Good luck!’

She watched him vanish into the darkness, then turned to crunch up the drive. Inside, she found Keeley asleep on the sofa, surrounded by paperwork, the BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice running unwatched on the television. She looked so peaceful that Grace was almost tempted to let her sleep but she knew Keeley would get more rest if she went to bed. ‘Hey,’ she said, touching her gently on the shoulder. ‘You’re about to miss Colin Firth coming out of the lake.’

Instantly, Keeley’s eyes snapped open. ‘What? Where?’ Her gaze flew to the screen, where Elizabeth Bennet was blushing beautifully at the sight of a dripping Mr Darcy. She smiled sleepily. ‘What good timing – that’s not the worst view to wake up to.’

‘No,’ Grace agreed, because this had always been one of her favourite moments too, even though it didn’t actually feature in the novel. ‘And it never gets old.’

Keeley sighed and stretched, blinking up at her. ‘How was the meeting? Anything I need to know?’

‘Not really,’ Grace said, deciding to keep Raff’s involvement in the group to herself for now. ‘Everything seems to be coming together well. How was your day? No altercations in the car park today?’

‘Not as far as I know,’ Keeley replied, wincing as she massaged her shoulders. ‘It was still mad. But the good news is that the Christmas tours have officially sold out.’

‘Wow,’ Grace said. ‘Already?’

Her friend raised her eyebrows. ‘Already. Apparently, discovering an unpublished Victorian manuscript in a hidden drawer is good for business. Who knew?’

Grace laughed. ‘Er – everyone? But I bet they would have sold out anyway. The time and effort you and Xander put into making the experience sound irresistible did most of the heavy lifting.’

‘Hmm,’ Keeley said, glancing down at the piles of paperwork spilling onto the floor. ‘Let’s hope it was all worth it.’

There was an edge to her voice that Grace didn’t need an explanation for. The relationship between Keeley and Xander had remained strained following the discovery of Eliza’s manuscript and no amount of denial on his part could convince Keeley that he hadn’t been the one to reveal its existence to the trustees. The fact that everything had worked out better than she could have dreamed had done nothing to resolve the tension between them and they now communicated almost exclusively via email. It was, Grace couldn’t help thinking, a bit of a shame. She was still convinced they would make a great couple. ‘It’s going to be brilliant,’ she said. ‘It might even become a Christmas tradition.’

Keeley held up a hand. ‘I think we’d better see how this year goes before we start thinking about that. Who knows where we’ll be in twelve months’ time?’