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She parked in the Harbour Arm car park first. Her mum wanted a jar of honey from one of the stalls in the Marketplace, and Grace wanted to check out some of the other stalls there and also in The Goods Yard and on the Harbour Arm itself. At this time of year there was a Christmas Market which increased the number of stalls in and around the area by at least twice the amount.
She found several rolls of wide, white ribbon on one stall, perfect for making bows, tying things to the trees, and various other uses. She found some white and green cards, ideal for the gift tags she had told Griff about last night.
There were even some small white poinsettia plants on another stall, potted, as it so happened, in little silver pots. She could tie a green sparkly ribbon around each pot and have those dotted between the larger plants she was hoping to find. If she could have those in green pots and find some silver ribbon to match the green ribbon, that would look stunning on the tables. It wasn’t long before she spotted exactly what she wanted.
And it wasn’t long before she also spotted Griff. Not that spotted was the right word. She squeezed through a crowd of shoppers only to find herself staring at his chest. She didn’t realise it was his chest until she heard his voice.
‘This is a nice surprise.’
She raised her eyes to his. So much for avoiding him by coming into Folkestone.
‘Yes. Isn’t it? I wouldn’t have thought a Christmas Market was exactly your thing.’
‘Wouldn’t you? Well there you’d be wrong. I love Christmas Markets. I love the variety of stalls, the smells, the food and drink, the unusual gifts, the people you can bump into. I was thinking of going for a mug of hot chocolate. Fancy joining me?’
She raised her brows. ‘Hot chocolate? With cream and marshmallows?’
‘Obviously.’
She scrunched up her face. ‘I’d love to but … Mum’s given me a list twice as long as Santa’s and I need to get to the florist, the butcher, the baker and–’
‘Don’t tell me, let me guess. The candlestick maker?’
‘What? Oh yes. Hilarious. No. But close. The chemist.’
‘Or … I could treat you to a glass of champagne at The Lighthouse Champagne Bar at the end of the Harbour Arm. Come on Grace. Five minutes, that’s all.’
‘Okay. You’ve twisted my … harbour arm.’
‘Hmm. Don’t give up the day job.’
He took her hand in his to lead her through the crowd, and as he did so, they shot a look at one another.
Had he felt that bolt of electricity too?
Grace blushed and averted her eyes. Griff coughed to clear his throat, but they still held hands as they wove their way towards the Harbour Arm.
The Lighthouse Champagne Bar was packed, but it seemed Griff knew one of the staff and before many minutes had passed, they were seated at a table holding a large glass of bubbly each and toasting to the preparations for the Mistletoe Dance to run smoothly.
‘How is Bianca today?’ Grace asked.
‘In a good mood, surprisingly.’
‘Mum is sending you the deposit invoice today, so that might not last.’
‘I’ll pay it before she sees it. Dad is taking her out for lunch, which could go either way.’
‘It’s none of my business, I know, but have they been having troubles for long?’
‘Since the day after their wedding,’ he said, and although Grace assumed he was being facetious, she wasn’t entirely sure due to the serious expression on his face.
‘They’ve been married for about sixteen years, haven’t they?’
‘Yep. Sixteen glorious years of Bianca living in our house. What a joy that’s been. Sorry. That was mean.’
‘You’ve never really liked her, have you?’
He shook his head. ‘No. And that’s partly my fault. As I said yesterday, I was so upset about losing Mum. When Dad met and married Bianca I couldn’t really believe it. Obviously, I didn’t expect him to pine for Mum for eternity, but I did sort of hope he wouldn’t rush into marriage with someone else. Even if he’d married a saint, I don’t think I’d have been pleased though. I did try to get along with Bianca and I still do, but we’re as different as chalk and cheese. I think we tolerate one another.’
