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‘Will you be at the mince pie and mulled wine evening?’ Ben asked.

Jay looked blank.

‘Valentina and I only just started planning it today,’ Frankie said, feeling a blush rise to her face from being put on the spot. ‘We still have to work out a date and time. And venue! But yes, of course, you’ll get an invite!’

‘I’ll look forward to that. I’d better get back. I picked up a couple of extra sausages in the butchers for Toffee as a treat.’

‘She’ll love that.’

‘Yeah. Nice to meet you, Ben.’

‘Likewise, Jay.’

They nodded at one another in a friendly enough way, but Frankie felt there had been a whole other level of subtext going on that she didn’t understand.

Once Jay had walked off, Ben turned to Frankie. ‘Jay. As in Jay Costello?’

‘Yeah.’

‘Ah, right. Er, would you like to go for a drink?’

‘A drink?’

‘Yeah, you know, a beverage. We could get a hot one if you’re cold, or a cold one with an alcoholic content if you fancy a bit of day-drinking.’

At Ben’s words, unexpected tears prickled in Frankie’s eyes as nostalgia ached in her chest, a thumping echo of a lost time and her lost self.

Ben looked at her in concern and Frankie felt quite silly for her reaction.

‘I can’t, I’m sorry, I’ve got a ton of stuff to do. Good seeing you again.’

‘Yeah, you too. Drinks soon?’

‘Yes, that would be good.’ As long as she didn’t get any more flashbacks, Frankie thought as she hurried away, momentarily forgetting where she’d parked her car, before realising it was in the opposite direction from the one she was heading in.

CHAPTER 21

FRANKIE, THEN

Frankie stopped to look in at the sparkly festive window display of the Drumkeldy gift shop, eyeing up a beautiful pair of Italian leather gloves with embroidery on the cuff. The gloves, in a soft dove grey were perfect for her nonna, who often reminisced about the glove shops which lined the streets of Florence.

‘Hey, Frankie!’

She turned to see Jay. He was wearing sheepskin ear-muffs and an oversized chunky knitted jumper, his nose red from the cold. Frankie felt momentarily tongue-tied. She hadn’t seen him since the puppies were born, a few nights previously. They’d texted numerous times; random Christmas-themed nonsense but nothing particularly personal and Frankie wondered if she’d imagined the “moment” they’d shared in the kitchen seconds before her mother interrupted them.

Jay smiled, his blue eyes sparkling. ‘What you up to?’

Frankie took a breath. ‘Swithering over getting those gloves for Nonna.’

Jay peered over her shoulder and looked at them through the glass. ‘They’re gorgeous. She’d love them.’

Frankie was torn. She wanted to go into the shop and buy the gloves, but she also wanted to stay outside and talk to Jay. Realising she looked a bit silly, just standing there, dithering, she pushed open the door of the gift shop. ‘You’re right, they’re perfect.’ She gave him a little smile, as if to say “see you later”.

The shop had the heater turned up full and with her hat, coat and mittens on, Frankie could feel sweat gathering at her temples when she paid. Almost passing out with the heat, she watched the shop assistant carefully wrap the gloves in tissue paper before placing them carefully in the little gift box. She got a piece of scarlet ribbon from the drawer and was about to tie it around Frankie’s purchase, when Frankie interrupted.

‘Don’t worry about the ribbon,’ Frankie said, fearing she’d faint if she stayed a moment longer in the roasting hot shop.

‘Oh, okay, I’ll just pop it in the bag and you can do it yourself at home.’