Page 58 of The Secret Holiday Kiss

‘That’s it?’ Harry said. ‘A thank you? No pushing back? No reminding me that you’re a strong independent woman and I should stay out of your business?’

She shrugged, because she was learning a lot of things, being back in Mistingham. ‘Sometimes it’s good to ask for help. I don’t need it with Lars, but I have realized that no man or woman is an island, capable of surviving entirely alone.’

Harry slowed the car, turning onto the smaller road that would take them up to the coast. The stars were bolder out here, a glossy patchwork, and she knew the sea would be inky black, cloaked in darkness but still so present. She couldn’t wait to be back there.

‘That’s exactly right.’ Harry tapped the steering wheel. ‘Will you throttle me if I tell you I’m proud of you?’

Daisy laughed. ‘Maybe just some light hair pulling. But thank you.’ She sighed. ‘Maybe we should get together and remind Avery of that,’ she muttered, thinking she’d said it too quietly for Harry to hear.

‘Remind Avery of what?’

Daisy pressed her lips together. ‘Nothing. Just something I wanted to say to him about Mary and Winnie’s place. Renovation stuff.’

‘You can ask him when we get back, if you like.’

Daisy sucked in a breath. ‘Really?’

‘He’s round at ours. Spending the evening with May and Sophie. He was still there when I spoke to Soph just before we started off, so he might well be there when we get back.’

‘Right.’ Daisy swallowed hard, tasting the rich fruitiness of the brandy she’d drunk. ‘How fabulous.’

Chapter Nineteen

They arrived home to Mistingham Manor looking like a fairy-tale house, the floodlights shining on the front façade, the golden glow from the windows inviting, a star-spangled midnight sky above. Daisy sucked in a breath, because it looked like somewhere she would always want to come back to, and it was a long time since she’d felt like that.

‘OK?’ Harry asked, as they got out of the Land Rover. ‘I can make excuses for you if you want to bypass May and Avery.’

‘No, it’s fine.’ Her hands were clammy, because the last time she’d seen Avery he had been angry with her, insulted her, and she’d just been propositioned by smooth-talking Lars. Her thoughts were a tangle of the two men, but over the course of the drive she had got used to the idea of seeing Avery, and she knew she would be disappointed if he’d already gone home.

They were in the living room, the Christmas tree twinkling in the corner, carols playing low in the background while Sophie, May and Avery sat on the cosy sofas positioned around the crackling fire.

‘You’re back!’ Sophie sprang up and she and Harry embraced. ‘Did you have a good night?’ she asked Daisy.

‘It was fine,’ Daisy said.

‘A ringing endorsement,’ Avery replied from the sofa.

She felt a flash of irritation, but she didn’t want them to rile each other up tonight. ‘It was a business dinner, and Lars is happy with my progress, so it was worth going. But it isn’t how I would have chosen to spend my Saturday night.’ She sat next to May, with Avery at an angle to her, Sophie and Harry on the sofa opposite.

‘Wine?’ Sophie had fresh glasses waiting, and Harry accepted a glass of red.

‘I’m good, thanks.’ The brandy was still swirling inside her, and she thought she might get heartburn. ‘I’ll get some water in a bit.’

‘What have you been up to while we’ve been in Norwich?’ Harry asked. ‘And where are the dogs?’

‘The dogs are in the kitchen,’ Sophie said. ‘I cooked pasta and we’ve been catching up. Hearing about Avery’s mishap with an enthusiastic Christmas shopper and an open door in Norwich.’ She pointed at Avery, and Harry peered at him.

‘Ouch, that looks nasty.’

‘It’s nothing,’ Avery said.

‘So he says,’ Sophie replied. ‘But, injured or not, the treasure hunt is really taking shape.’

‘Literally,’ May said, smiling at her brother. ‘My back garden looks like an animal graveyard.’

‘Hey,’ Avery said with a laugh. ‘They don’t look dead.’

‘No, but some of them aren’t finished.’