Page 45 of Christmas All the Way

‘I’ll see what I can do,’ Raff said gravely.

At that moment, something cold and wet touched Grace’s hand. She looked down to see a pair of soulful amber eyes gazing up at her. ‘Hello,’ she said, reaching down to ruffle the golden ears of the Labrador she hadn’t even noticed was lying under the table. ‘Who’s this?’

‘His name is Bilbo,’ Raff said, with an affectionate glance at the dog. ‘My self-appointed shadow and the scourge of squirrels everywhere.’

‘I see,’ Grace said, smiling. ‘That’s quite a varied job description.’

‘He’s got a side hustle in scrounging crisps,’ Amanda put in. ‘Beef if he can get them, but he’s not that fussy.’

‘Noted,’ Grace laughed, stroking the soft fur of his head. ‘One look from those big amber eyes and I bet no one can resist.’

‘They haven’t failed him yet,’ Raff admitted ruefully. ‘Much to the disapproval of our vet.’

The meeting moved on to the logistics of the kissing booth, which was really going to be an enormous, free-standing photo frame for romantics to pose inside. Trevor, a quietly spoken man who seemed to listen a lot more than he spoke, volunteered to take care of that. ‘As long as someone with some artistic talent promises to decorate it.’

Next was the arrival of the stallholders, who were due to set up the day before the switching-on ceremony. ‘That way, they can be part of the dry run,’ Paul explained to Grace.

‘Great. I’ll have some themed Nutcracker decorations to put in place,’ she said, and looked up from her notes. ‘What about the tree? There’s a net of lights to fit as the finale of the trail but when do you think it will be in place?’

‘Over to our resident horticulturalist,’ Gavin said. ‘Raff has kindly offered to source a tree for us this year.’

He glanced at Grace. ‘I’ve got a friend who owns a Christmas tree farm. I can ask him to deliver and secure it in place on 26th November, if you want to tie it into the light trail installation.’

‘That would be great,’ she said with a smile, and ticked another item off her list. ‘Thank you.’

Another round of drinks was ordered. Grace noticed Raff stuck to Coke, and guessed he must be driving. At length, Gavin wrapped the meeting up, reminding everyone to submit any receipts to the committee treasurer as soon as possible. As everyone got to their feet and began reaching for coats, Bilbo stood up and stretched. ‘Time to go, boy,’ Raff said, clipping a lead to his collar before turning to Grace. ‘I think you said you’ve moved in with Keeley for a while. Is that right?’

She nodded, impressed he’d remembered. ‘Yes. Apart from anything else, it makes the journey to work much easier and I’m working my way through her Agatha Christie collection.’

‘I’m parked not far from her cottage,’ he said, smiling. ‘Shall we walk together?’

Feeling her cheeks grow warm, Grace glanced around to see if anyone was paying attention but they were too busy wrapping up warm and saying goodnight. ‘Okay,’ she said.

Outside, the temperature had dropped, causing their breath to billow into clouds as they walked. The sky was cloudless; a smattering of stars shimmered against the blackness and the moon hung full and bright in their midst. Grace tucked her scarf more firmly into her coat. If she hadn’t already known winter was on the way, the frost glistening on the grass of the green would have been a clue.

‘Are you enjoying working with Gavin and the others?’ Raff asked, as Bilbo snuffled along the pavement.

She gave him a sideways look, wondering whether he might count any of the people in the pub as friends. They’d certainly seemed to know Bilbo. She decided to err on the side of caution. ‘Yes, it’s been fun. Although I meant it when I said I spend far too long looking at the Met Office website.’

Raff’s expression was thoughtful. ‘Can they accurately predict the weather that far ahead?’

‘Not really,’ she conceded. ‘But it doesn’t stop me checking.’

He laughed. ‘Do you regret volunteering?’

‘No,’ she said. ‘I’m excited to see the light trail in action. I love the idea of bringing a little bit of Christmas joy into people’s lives.’

‘The organisation of anything like this is always a bit bumpy,’ he reassured her. ‘It should all be smooth sailing once everything is in place.’

‘I hope so,’ Grace replied, trying to squash a fresh worm of worry. ‘I might only be a temporary resident, but I want this year to be Freezy Tye’s best year ever.’

‘I’m sure it will. Gavin says you’ve been a breath of fresh air. He wants to know if there’s a way to persuade you to move here permanently.’

Grace pulled a face. ‘I’m not sure how Keeley would feel about that. But between working for your mum, organising the light trail and helping out at the cottage, it sometimes feels as though I do live here.’

‘But next year things will be different,’ he observed. ‘Your son will be back home, won’t he? How would he like living in Freezy Tye?’

Jack’s return wasn’t something Grace allowed herself to think about much, mostly because it still felt impossibly distant. She had no idea what he’d make of the quaint, pastel-coloured houses of Freezy Tye, or the close-knit community that meant everyone knew her business almost before she did. ‘He might not want to come back at all,’ she said, voicing the fear that made her heart ache the most. ‘My mother keeps telling me I have to think about myself now – do what’s right for me.’