A Merry Little Christmas

Chapter 29

Merry

Merry gripped Cole’s arm tightly as he guided her from the kitchen at Meadow View out into the dark garden. She was pretty sure that being led blindfolded wasn’t what the midwife had in mind when she’d advocated delegating chores.

‘I’ve never been more nervous in my life,’ she said, her voice muffled under the scarf Freya had tied over her face.

Cole was very strong, and she trusted him, but the ground was slippy underfoot and there was probably a frost.

‘I’ve got you,’ Cole assured her. ‘I won’t let you fall.’

‘Keep your eyes closed,’ Freya chimed in front of her. ‘No peeping.’

‘I can’t see anything with your scarf over my eyes. I promise!’

She felt the hard surface of the terrace beneath her feet.

Cole stopped and tucked an arm around her waist. ‘OK, you can look.’

‘Surprise!’ yelled Harley and Freya together as she pulled down the scarf.

‘You guys!’ Merry beamed. ‘This is amazing!’

The back garden at Meadow View had been given a full-on Christmas makeover: the beech hedge twinkled with lights, a fir tree had been fully decorated with lights too, as well as baubles and even an angel on top. There was a picnic table set with a flask and mugs, marshmallows and biscuits. And as she took in the circle of deckchairs around a glowing firepit, Harley turned on the Christmas music and ‘Last Christmas’ by Wham! blasted out across the terrace.

‘This is a lovely surprise, thanks, you three, I’m really touched.’

‘We wanted to do something to cheer you up because your dad has died and you’re probably sad,’ Freya said earnestly.

Cole’s arm tightened around Merry. ‘Yes, well, we probably didn’t need to bring that up, but thank you, Freya.’

‘I’d be sad if you died, Dad,’ she said innocently. ‘I’m only saying.’

‘It’s very sweet of you and has definitely cheered me up.’ Merry hugged Harley and Freya and reached up to kiss Cole’s cheek.

‘We haven’t finished yet,’ said Harley, wiping his cheek, even though Merry had kissed his father not him. ‘This is only the first part.’

‘Yes, there’s s’mores. Get it?’ Cole nudged Harley. ‘Get it? There’s more, except I said there’s s’mores.’

‘That’s such a dad joke,’ Harley groaned, trying not to laugh.

‘We’re lucky to have a dad,’ Freya piped up. ‘Merry—’

‘Why don’t you get the marshmallows, Freya?’ Cole interrupted, sending a look of apology to Merry.

‘I don’t mind us talking about my dad,’ said Merry. ‘In a weird way, it helps to get used to it. When I was talking to Woody earlier, the words got stuck in my throat. I don’t think I even got around to telling him in the end. And you’re right, Freya, you are lucky to have your dad.’ She smiled at Cole, who gave her a squeeze. ‘And so am I.’

For the next few minutes, Cole organised his children into finding long sticks in the garden and preparing the marshmallows for roasting. Merry was given strict instructions to do nothing at all.

Cole had turned up with the kids to collect her from Merry and Bright, promising her a nice surprise. When they’d pulled up outside Meadow View, for one happy moment, she did think that he’d worked miracles and the house was ready for them to move into. But even she had to admit that there was still so much to be done before it was habitable, and now that there was Ray’s funeral to arrange, her priorities had changed.

‘This was one of your better ideas, darling,’ Merry sighed as Cole tucked a blanket around her knees.

‘It was forecast to be a clear night and I thought it would be romantic to sit under the stars beside the warmth of a fire,’ he said, brushing his cold lips against hers. ‘You’ve had a tough few days, I wanted to do something special to show you I care.’

Her heart swelled with love for him. ‘I love you.’

‘Er, this hot chocolate smells of sick,’ said Harley, pouring some into a cup. ‘I’m going to have Coke instead.’

Merry and Cole exchanged smiles.

‘OK, maybe not that romantic,’ he added.

She caught hold of his hand. ‘It’s family time, and it’s just what I need to distract me.’

For so many years, she hadn’t had any family. Astrid had been as close to a mother figure as she’d had, and Nell, her gorgeous, funny, kind-hearted Nell, had been like a sister. The rift between them was huge and hurtful and she wasn’t quite sure how to heal it. But they would soon enough, she was sure: as soon as Olek told her that her dad had passed away, she’d turn up with hugs and flowers and they’d make up and it would all go back to normal.

And, in the meantime, thanks to Cole, she did have family. She had a wonderful husband, a whole bunch of in-laws, two stepchildren and a baby on the way. And courtesy of Emily’s detective work, she had a half-sister and a father too. Or, rather, had had a father.

Her mind went back to last night at the home and the trauma of watching him fade out of this life and onto the next, whatever and wherever that might be. She looked up at the velvet of the night sky and gazed into the stars, thinking once again of the first night Emily had introduced them, and how they’d danced around his room to Fleetwood Mac. Merry didn’t have many memories of him, but the ones she did have were all the more precious for that.

‘OK?’ Cole looked at her, concerned.

She nodded. ‘More than OK.’

The night air was bitingly cold and the garden at Meadow View was unmistakably still a building site. But by the time Merry had been handed a mug of hot chocolate and fed a toasted marshmallow squished between two biscuits, she was perfectly able to see past the piles of bricks and the cement mixer and churned-up lawn and imagine how lovely this place would look next summer.

‘I love it here,’ said Freya, wriggling her bottom onto the chair beside Merry, as if reading her thoughts. She had a paper plate with two s’mores on it in one hand, her hot chocolate in the other, and a wide smile adorning her little face. ‘You picked a cool house, Merry and Dad.’

‘Thank you.’ Merry felt her eyes prick with tears and tried to blink them away quickly. This time last year, she remembered feeling daunted about the prospect of becoming a stepmother to these kids. It had been a steep learning curve, with some bumps on the way, like the time Freya had told Santa that what she wanted for Christmas was for her parents to get back together. But a year on, with her stepdaughter beside her paying her compliments and her stepson proving to be a reliable member of staff at weekends, i.e. choosing to spend his Saturdays with her, she reckoned she hadn’t done such a bad job.

‘Let’s have s’mores on Christmas Day,’ said Harley, through a mouthful of marshmallow. ‘This is way better than Christmas pudding.’

‘Can we?’ Freya joined in. ‘I hate Christmas pudding.’

‘Fine by me,’ said Merry. ‘Your dad is cooking Christmas dinner this year.’

‘That’s right.’ Cole puffed his chest out. ‘Soggy sprouts and lumpy gravy all right for everyone?’

‘Hey, Dad, can we have Christmas dinner here?’ Harley asked.

‘Yes!’ Freya bounced in her chair. ‘It’ll be cool.’

‘I’d love that,’ said Merry, ‘but the house isn’t quite ready yet. We’ll be here next year, definitely.’

Freya sighed. ‘But next Christmas Day we’ll be at Mum’s. And you’ll be with the new baby without us.’

They took it in turns, with Cole and his ex-wife Lydia sorting out the child-sharing between them. Merry didn’t get involved, but it was heart-warming to hear Freya speak so fondly about the baby already.

‘I’m not sure whether Father Christmas will find you here,’ said Cole slyly.

Freya gave him a knowing look. ‘I’m not worried about that, Dad. I think you’ll find us wherever we are.’

‘That’s the magic of Christmas,’ said Merry, smiling to herself at the disappointed look on Cole’s face. ‘Santa will always find the good boys and girls.’

‘Better make sure you’re not naughty then,’ Cole murmured in her ear when the children weren’t looking.

‘Define naughty,’ she said, touching the tip of her tongue to his lips as she kissed him.

‘Oh gosh,’ said Cole, clearing his throat. ‘It might be time to take the kids back home.’

‘Shooting star!’ Harley yelled, pointing up into the night sky.

‘Wow! You’re right, son,’ said Cole, bending down to Freya’s level to show her where it was. ‘Everyone make a wish.’

‘I wish we could have Christmas Day at Meadow View,’ said Freya, looking beseechingly at her dad.

‘I wish we could have Christmas Day here and we get loads of snow,’ said Harley.

‘I wish you two would stop ganging up on me,’ Cole grumbled good-naturedly. ‘And I’m sorry, but I’m wishing for a non-white Christmas this year, just in case the baby comes and I have to drive through snowdrifts to get to the hospital.’

Merry was thinking about that last message from Nell. Every time she remembered their argument, her stomach would churn. How had it come to this? Her favourite Christmas tradition was that they would speak on the phone on Christmas morning, and they’d wish each other a happy Christmas. Even last year, the day after her wedding, they’d chatted first thing, Merry blissfully in love and Nell over the moon for her. And the year before, when she’d woken up on Christmas morning at an airport hotel so that Cole could catch his early-morning flight to see his kids. And every Christmas morning before that in all the years they’d been friends.

‘And I wish that you all get what you want for Christmas,’ Merry said, mustering up a smile.

But what she really wanted was to get her best friend back, because Christmas simply wouldn’t be Christmas without Nell.