Fiction Serial: A Truly Magical Christmas (Part 4)
WRITTEN BY DELLA GALTON
Here’s the final part of Della Galton’s warm Christmas romance… and you can read Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 here if you missed them…
Katie clutched the phone a little tighter to her ear as she stood in the middle of Lindsey’s beautiful kitchen.
Had she heard Aiden right? What kind of proposition could he have for her?
He cleared his throat and before she had the chance to say anything, he added,
Obviously, you must feel free to say no, but I was wondering if you could give Holly some piano lessons? I’d pay you.
“I’d be delighted,” she said. “I didn’t realise she was keen.”
“She used to have lessons before… you know…” He hesitated. “She gave up, but she’d like to restart them and I think it would be good for her.”
“Do you mean after Christmas?”
“Before, if you could fit it in – she’s already broken up from school and she’s really keen and –” He broke off. “Sorry. What am I thinking! You must be rushed off your feet.”
“I’m not,” Katie said firmly.
“I’m free tomorrow morning if you are?”
“If you’re really sure – that would be brilliant. Thank you.”
She’d be back in plenty of time to take Jimmy to his party booking in the afternoon, Katie thought, feeling a jolt of pleasure as she put down the phone.
William and Dean were totally engrossed in the film, she saw when she took the popcorn back into the lounge.
Babysitting duties weren’t too onerous – which was probably just as well as her brother and Lindsey didn’t roll in until just before midnight by which time Katie had put the boys to bed and was on her second episode of Loose Women, which she’d discovered in a box set.
They came in flushed and smiling and looking very pleased with themselves, to Katie’s delight.
“Sorry we’re so late. It was hard to get a taxi,” Jimmy told her. “It’s mad in town.”
“It went well, then,” she said to him, as she drove him home. “When are you seeing her again?”
“As soon as I possibly can,” Jimmy said. He had a great big smile on his face.
She’s amazing, Sis. Funny, sassy, kind…
He broke off. “Sorry – you probably don’t want to hear this…”
“Why? Because of Marcus? Don’t be silly. I’m delighted you’ve found someone nice. You deserve it… and do you know what? I’m not really that upset about Marcus. If he hadn’t ended it, I would have done. I’ve thought about it a lot – and call me cynical, but I’m not sure that Marcus ever really wanted a girlfriend. He wanted a free PA.”
“My, that is cynical.” Jimmy yawned.
“But if that was the case, then you’re much better off without him.”
“My sentiments exactly.” She told him about Aiden’s phone call. “That was quite exciting,” she said softly. “You know how I used to dream about a career in music?”
“I do. And you’re brilliant with kids.”
She blushed in the darkness of the car. “Thanks. Who knows, I might even be on the verge of a new career.”
“New beginnings all round then,” he said. “They’re supposed to come in January, though, aren’t they? They’re not suppose to turn up and whack you over the head four days before Christmas.”
When Katie woke up next morning, feeling bleary-eyed – it had gone one before she’d got to sleep – there was a part of her that wished the new beginning had waited until January.
She hadn’t played the piano for weeks.
It was one of the few possessions she was actually anxious to liberate from her ex’s house. But pianos required proper removal companies. Expensive removal companies. And it wasn’t as if she even knew where she was going to live. As soon as Christmas was over, she needed to seriously look for a place to rent.
Illustration: Mandy Dixon
The thought started a flutter of excitement. She knew now where she wanted to live; somewhere near Jimmy. It had been great to see so much of him. She wanted to come back to Dorset. This had nothing to do with the fact Aiden lived here too, she told herself as she set off to his house just before ten. Although it would be handy to live in the vicinity of one of her pupils, of course!
As she threaded between the three blue fir trees and the silver snowman on her way to his front door, she found herself wondering where their piano was – she’d never seen one.
Holly greeted her with a beaming smile, and her pigtails bouncing. There wasn’t much trace of the serious little girl that Katie had first met.
“She’s taken a real shine to you,” Aiden said, his voice warm. “Can I get you a coffee? How would you like to proceed?”
“I think…” Katie began, “Holly should show me what she can do. Then we should have a chat about what she – and you – would like to achieve.”
The piano turned out to be an electric one – a good make, though – and at least it wouldn’t need tuning, which had been one of the many things that had been running through Katie’s head since last night.
Holly sat on the stool and her customary serious expression returned.
She wasn’t a bad little player, Katie thought, letting her finish and then giving her a round of applause, which brought back her smile.
They went through the music she’d learned in the past, and finished with Katie giving her a new piece to learn.
“You can practise it over Christmas – if you have time,” she said. “Or we can pick it up afterwards. No pressure.”
“I’ll practise every day,” Holly said, looking pleased at the prospect and Katie had the feeling that she was the kind of child who really would.
“Talking of Christmas, what will you be doing?” Aiden asked her, his eyes as warm as his daughter’s. “Cooking for your brother?” He broke off.
Forgive me – I’m making a huge assumption that you don’t have anyone waiting for you at home.
Katie was about to tell him that she didn’t when the doorbell rang and he excused himself to answer it.
Seconds later she heard a female voice in the hall. It was hard not to eavesdrop because the voice was quite loud.
“Do say you and darling Holly will join us. I absolutely hate the idea of you guys spending the festive season alone… Especially in view of what happened to dear Sarah…”
The sound of the hall door closing cut off whatever was said next so Katie didn’t hear Aiden’s reply. But she had recognised the voice as belonging to the mother she’d nicknamed Darling Woman
who’d shepherded Aiden away from her at Holly’s birthday party.
She and Aiden clearly knew each other socially. Well, that explained why the woman had shot daggers at her then. She’d been perceived as a threat.
Aiden came back into the lounge, looking slightly flustered.
“Sorry,” he said. “What were we saying?”
“We were just going to plan Holly’s next lesson,” Katie replied. “Then I’d better get back. Jimmy’s off to a party.”
The last thing she wanted to hear about were Aiden’s Christmas plans with Darling Woman, which she’d feel obliged to ask him about if she told him hers.
It was only when she was driving home that she remembered that, in her haste to get away, she’d forgotten to charge him for Holly’s lesson. Duh! Some businesswoman she was turning out to be.
“I’m sure he won’t have forgotten though,” Jimmy told her when they’d finished for the day and were back in his cosy cottage. “Or maybe he’s expecting an invoice. He certainly paid me on receipt of mine.”
“Did he?” She felt a little despondent. Not because Aiden hadn’t paid her, but because of Darling Woman. Somehow, she wouldn’t have put Aiden with her – she seemed brash and not his type.
Hang on a minute, berated her inner voice. How do you know what his type is? You’ve only met the guy a handful of times. Are you jealous, Katie Willis? Is that what’s going on here? Surely not.
“You’re quiet, Sis,” Jimmy said.
Penny for your thoughts.
“They’re not worth it,” she said, forcing a smile.
He smiled back. “Well, if you were worrying about the prospect of slaving away over a hot stove on Tuesday I’ve got some good news. You won’t need to. Lindsey’s invited us both for Christmas lunch at hers. Isn’t that cool?”
“That’s brilliant,” she said brightly, knowing that there was no way on earth she could tell him that the prospect didn’t fill her with as much glee as it clearly filled him. Playing gooseberry was not high on Katie’s list of My Favourite Ways Of Spending Christmas.
There was no way on earth she would ever tell him this, either.
Suddenly it was Christmas Eve. It was weird how the lead-up had seemed to take forever and then the big day was here all in a rush.
“And… breathe…” said Jimmy, as he poured them both a generous glass of Christmas port. “Would you like a mince pie to go with that?”
“At least two,” Katie said. “I’ll heat them up.”
The doorbell rang. It would be Lindsey, Katie thought, going to answer it. She was coming round for a Christmas drink. But it wasn’t Lindsey. It was Aiden.
“I hope you don’t mind me calling. But I’ve just dropped Holly at her friend’s up the road and I realised I’d forgotten to pay you. So I thought…” He held out an envelope. “I’d drop it by in person. I won’t stop.”
Is that Aiden’s voice I hear?
Jimmy appeared behind her with a plate of mince pies. “Hello, come in, have you got time for a mince pie?”
Aiden looked at Katie and she smiled.
“I’d love one,” he said.
Lindsey arrived literally minutes later and very shortly they were all crammed into Jimmy’s tiny lounge.
Katie made the introductions and the conversation turned to the following day and what everyone was doing.
Katie fixed a smile on her face when Jimmy asked Aiden about his plans.
“Holly and I are having turkey and sprouts,” he told him. “Very traditional.”
“And roast potatoes, I hope?”
Lindsey said. “Are you a cook, Aiden?”
“Er – I’m getting there…” He went pink and then confessed that he’d bought everything in ready-cooked so it was just a case of heating it up.
So he wasn’t going to Darling Woman’s then, after all? Katie glanced at him, but Lindsey was in full flow.
“You’d be very welcome to come over to ours as well,” she said. “I always get carried away with quantities – and I love cooking.”
“I – um…” Aiden looked as though he was going to refuse.
“Go on, mate,” Jimmy added. “It’s hardly worth me doing my magic show for two kiddies, but if there were three…?”
“Dinner’s at one,” Lindsey added. “But everyone else is coming over about ten. Can I twist your arm?”
Katie felt a warmth stealing through her as Aiden nodded.
In a perfect world, they’d all have been sitting round the table at one p.m. the next day wearing Christmas hats and about to tuck into Christmas lunch.
But what actually happened was that at just after ten-thirty Lindsey had realised her oven wasn’t very hot.
“I don’t believe this,” she’d said, prodding the still cold turkey. “Of all the flaming days to pack up.” She turned to Katie, who was standing behind her.
“What on earth are we going to do?”
Um – how well do you know your next door neighbours?
“Good idea. I’ll phone them.
“They’re in Tenerife,” she reported back a few moments later. “But they said there’s a key under one of the flowerpots and I’m welcome to use their oven.”
For the next ten minutes they ferried stuff back and forth between kitchens.
“So much for my perfectly planned schedule,” Lindsey said, grabbing all her neatly written lists.
She looked at Katie and they both giggled.
“It’ll be fine,” Katie said. “Perfect Christmases only happen on television. They’re not real life.”
“You can say that again,” Lindsey muttered as the pair of them reloaded everything into the oven. “The children are getting on well,” she added, “that’s something. My boys can be a bit much but
they’re being lovely to Holly.”
“Maybe they can sense that she’s vulnerable,” Katie said. “This is her first Christmas without her mum, bless her.”
“Yes, Jimmy told me. It’s kind of why I asked them over. It must be difficult.”
Katie told her about starting to teach Holly the piano.
“That’s fantastic,” Lindsey said. There was a little pause. “That Aiden’s pretty fit, isn’t he – are you and he, er…?”
“Definitely not,” Katie said, feeling herself blushing to the roots of her hair. “The timing’s not right.”
“For you or for him?”
“For either of us,” Katie said firmly.
Although she had to admit a little later, that the day – while being far from the one they had planned – was brilliant. The things that had gone wrong somehow made it even more brilliant. No one cared that the dinner would be three hours late! They were all too busy watching Jimmy’s magic show. He’d commandeered Aiden as his glamorous assistant and was teaching him how to juggle – but the juggling balls in true magical fashion kept disappearing into thin air until Aiden didn’t have enough to juggle! His expression was so comical that Katie and Lindsey laughed until their sides
ached.
Holly, Dean and William were so caught up in it that they didn’t even mention being hungry.
After the late lunch, they played Charades and Pass the Christmas Present and the laughter continued.
This was what Christmas should be like, Katie thought: spontaneous, imperfect and full of warmth.
“I thought you had other Christmas plans,” she said to Aiden when they were doing the washing-up later to give Lindsey a much-needed sit down. “The mother who came round the other day?”
He looked puzzled.
“Ah – you mean Charlotte? Yes, she did invite me. But I said no. Her heart’s in the right place but I think she wants to be more than just friends.”
“And you don’t?” Katie queried.
“Not with Charlotte,” he said, and there was something in his eyes. Just for a second. Before they both looked away.
Later on, Lindsey caught her again when they were both in the kitchen.
He really likes you – you do know that, don’t you?
Katie smiled, glancing at Aiden through the hatch between kitchen and lounge. He chose the exact same moment to look up straight into her eyes. He was wearing a yellow paper hat, twisted at a rakish angle, courtesy of Holly. He winked at her and she winked back.
“There’s some mistletoe over the front door,” Lindsey added. “I’m just saying…”
Much, much later, Katie helped Aiden and Holly carry their bits and pieces to their car outside.
“Thank you for making today so lovely,” Aiden said, touching her cheek very gently as they stood in the hall to say another goodbye. “Do you think we could have another day – maybe like this – what I mean is, can we see you again? Hell. I’m out of practice…” He shuffled his feet.
“I’d love that,” she said, “To see both of you, I mean. And, um – especially you…”
There was a little pause and she thought what a spontaneous, imperfect and full-of-warmth proposition that had been too.
They smiled at each other in perfect understanding. The timing wasn’t quite right for mistletoe, Katie thought. But it would be – one day very soon.
We’ve picked out some of our favourite Christmas fiction serials from the archive to share with you. This is the first serial, a 4-part, warm-hearted Christmas tale. Click below to read Parts 1, 2 and 3. And look out for a brand new serial we’ll share with you from Oct 12.
