Page 68 of A Christmas Wish for the Village Midwife

‘I’ll take that as a no. If I made you something simple, even just toast, would you try to eat some?’

‘I’ll do my best.’

‘Good. That’s what I’m going to do then. We’ll have a chat as we go, and then I’ll do my checks, and then you can have a nap. Do you know what time Mason will be back?’

‘I’m not sure. I suppose it depends how long he wants to sit with Ophelia and what time his parents want to leave. He said he wouldn’t be late. He told me to have a sleep too, but I just can’t drop off.’

‘If you don’t sleep, at least resting is better than nothing.’ Zoe clapped her hands together and turned to the door. ‘Try to relax while I sort out your toast.’

‘But you won’t know where everything is⁠—’

‘I’m sure your kitchen layout isn’t so crazy that I won’t be able to figure it out.’ Zoe gave a patient smile. ‘It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve done it either.’

There was a distinct feeling of déjà vu as Zoe pulled up in the car park in Windermere and locked up. She’d dashed around the shops here last Christmas too, and apart from the blizzard that had raged for days in the lead-up to it, this was almost an exact rerun. Christmas was racing towards them once again, and once again she was nowhere near ready. She’d bought no gifts, not even one for Shabana, whose leaving do was arranged for the Friday of that week, which was also the last full working week until Christmas. Every year, she vowed she wouldn’t do everything last minute, and yet every year she seemed to cut it finer still.

Alex would tell her not to worry, that everyone knew how busy she was and how hard it was to get out to do things like this, but that didn’t make her feel any better. She had more presents than ever to buy this year too – with the addition of Louisa and Beau – her new baby half-brother – and Benji and Ezra and Anthony and William… there seemed to be so many babies in her life these days she could hardly keep track. And though she could have scrolled idly through some online site and ordered a few generic bits and pieces, that just wasn’t her style. Zoe had always been picky about gifts, and it bothered her that they were just right, which often meant mooching around shops for hours, comparing, studying, until she felt inspired to make a purchase.

At least she wasn’t battling the snow this time, though there was a hard frost, and every breath felt as if it was filled with ice. Coldest night of the year so far, the weather forecast had said, and though Zoe had wrapped up in anticipation of that, it still penetrated her coat too.

Windermere was alive with lights, a constellation shining from every shop window. On a street corner, a brass quartet played carols, and a little further down the high street, a collection of stalls sold hot dogs, raclette, roasted chestnuts and hot chocolate. The smell made Zoe’s mouth water, but food would have to wait because she had plenty to do first and a strict time limit she was only too aware of.

Despite having a lot of Christmas gifts to buy, Shabana’s leaving present had to be first. It was the easiest too because Lavender had been doing some digging on behalf of everyone in the office to compile a list of things Shabana had mentioned in passing (and in response to Lavender’s covert prompting) that she either liked or needed. And so she headed straight to a colourful shop window filled with soft toys, beanbags and blankets adorned with ornate embroidery. Lavender had shown her a photograph of a throw Shabana had been admiring, and Zoe had taken a screenshot so she could go straight in to ask for it.

As the assistant led her to the item, her gaze fell on another on display – one that looked very familiar. It was then she realised that – though not identical – it was very similar to the one Alex had bought for Billie the previous Christmas, one he’d had shipped over from Spain especially. It reminded her of how much she’d loved the gift and the effort, and also that Zoe had absolutely no clue what Billie might like this year. She’d told Zoe not to bother, that she’d rather have stuff for Louisa, as if Zoe was going to take any notice. Of course she was going to buy for Louisa, but there was no way she wasn’t going to buy something for Billie too.

The trouble was, she’d struggled to come up with something no matter how much she pondered it, and it made her realise how little she knew about what Billie wanted in general. She didn’t covet expensive make-up palettes or designer perfumes, she bought basic skincare and didn’t always use it, didn’t fuss much about hair products, wore basic, practical clothes and didn’t care for booze either way. Even if she did enjoy booze, she was still breastfeeding, on and off, and so wouldn’t have had a use for it anyway. She enjoyed cooking and photography (when she had time) but already had everything she needed for those hobbies.

After going into half a dozen shops, Zoe settled on an elaborately decorated photo album. It seemed a little too on the nose, but she simply couldn’t come up with anything else. Louisa, however, was a different matter entirely, and Zoe spent far too much on her, unable to resist every cute toy or dress she saw.

She and Alex had made a pact not to buy anything expensive for one another and that they’d put the money towards a holiday instead, but she blew the budget for him too. She’d bought books the previous year, uncertain whether he’d like them, but they’d been a huge success, and so this year she gathered every volume she could find about conservation and nature and paid on her credit card, deciding the bill was something she’d worry about in the new year.

As she was walking back to the car, her phone pinged. Juggling her bags, she managed to get it out and saw a message from Rachel. Attached was a photo of her at home with her baby, finally discharged from NICU. Rachel was glowing, a far cry from the woman Zoe had tried to comfort on that first home visit only days ago. Zoe smiled as she locked the phone and put it away again. She’d reply when she got back to the car and had a spare hand to do it. But she was glad that Rachel would have a happy Christmas after all, reunited with her baby and hopefully things going from strength to strength. Zoe decided she would make certain to visit before the surgery closed for the break.

She was unlocking the car when her phone pinged again. This time it was Alex.

Where are you? You’ve been ages and I need to see your face. x

Zoe grinned as she hurled her bags into the boot before typing a reply.

None of your business, and you’re going to have to make yourself scarce when I get home because you can’t see what I’ve bought. x

Tell me it’s not loads!

It’s not loads. Happy? x

His reply was a laughing emoji, and as she slid her phone back into her pocket and got into the car, she was more excited for Christmas than she had been so far that year. They’d had some wobbles in the lead-up, but they were almost there, and it was going to be wonderful – at least, if she had anything to do with it.

14

Lavender frowned at the spread she and Zoe had just put the finishing touches to.

‘It looks… wrong.’

‘Because there’s no meat?’ Zoe asked.

‘Yeah! It’s not a buffet without sausage rolls and pork pies… and those little satay chicken things and drumsticks… and ham sandwiches and cheese and pineapple on sticks… and it’s nearly Christmas too, and I’m craving my pigs in blankets.’

‘You can have pigs in blankets next week. And if you can’t wait that long, you can go home and have some. Come on, Lavender. It’s a party for Shabana who’s a strict vegetarian; you can hardly put meat out that she can’t eat.’