‘You’re right.’ She wiped her eyes. ‘I have a project now. Your father isn’t going to win this one, Beth. And if he wants to be with that woman, then so be it.’
I never thought I’d hear my mother speak about Dad like that. I loved them both, they were my parents after all, but I couldn’t not be on my mother’s side on this one. My father wasn’t being fair. He was seeing another woman, for a start, and clearly didn’t care who he hurt in the process – not my mother, or the whole of Glendale.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Drew had jumped at the chance to come out with us and picked me and Izzy up in his jeep to take us to the garden centre. I told him on the way all about our plan for the trail.
‘I think that’s a great idea,’ Drew said. ‘I haven’t liked seeing how much Glendale has changed whenever I’ve come home. I think we probably have noticed it more than your family or Rory as we don’t live here. It’s a shame. Growing up I loved going into the village. I would be happy to help out all I can.’
‘Really? That would be great, wouldn’t it, Iz?’
She nodded. ‘I can’t wait to buy lots of cool things today.’
‘We might need reining in, we tend to go big at Christmas – although our small flat doesn’t let us go too crazy – but now we have acres at our disposal,’ I said to Drew.
‘Mum, if you can’t go big at Christmas then when can you?’
‘I’ve taught you well,’ I replied with a grin.
‘I’m nervous now,’ Drew told us. We just laughed.
The garden centre was huge and packed, most of the inside had been set aside for Christmas things, which rendered Izzy and I a little bit speechless when we saw it. ‘Wow,’ I said, taking it all in. Izzy immediately ran forward into the thick of it.
‘You guys really are big on Christmas, aren’t you?’ Drew asked with a laugh.
‘You used to be, too. Remember when you made me go to that panto in Inverness? It was hilarious.’
‘Unintentionally,’ he agreed. ‘I suppose Christmases here were always magical, weren’t they? Boston goes pretty overboard with lights and trees, but it never feels quite the same without family, which is why I like to come home if I can.’
‘I know what you mean,’ I said, picking up a box of snowflake lights which I thought would look pretty on the trail. ‘In London, we’ve tried really hard to develop our own festive traditions, but I always think about Glendale Hall. I’m glad Izzy finally gets to have a Christmas up here.’
‘I think she’ll love it,’ he agreed.
‘Mum, look!’
We hurried over to Izzy who was pointing excitedly with both fingers at something. ‘Oh my god,’ I said when I saw what she was looking at. There was a six-foot, inflatable, lit-up Santa on the floor. ‘We have to have it!’
‘And this,’ Drew said, pointing to the matching snowman. ‘You could have them at the start of the trail, one on each side.’
‘Yes!’ Izzy cried. ‘And we could have a banner hanging across the trees so people know it’s the start of the trail.’
I laughed. ‘You two are on a roll. Iz, text Heather and ask her to make a banner.’ I passed her my phone. I knew Heather would make a really beautiful one, and it would be the perfect entrance to the trail.
‘I’ll get a trolley for these,’ Drew said, picking up two boxes and putting them at my feet.
‘Mum is going to kill us for buying these; we better pick up some more tasteful bits too,’ I said to Izzy. She hurried off again, eager to find more things. When Drew came back with the trolley, we put the inflatable Santa and snowman boxes in along with the snowflakes lights and set off after her. ‘John had already started hanging the lights we had back at the house. I feel like we need something else other than just more fairy lights though.’
‘What about these?’ Izzy showed me a set of reindeers in different sizes made out of lights. ‘They are so pretty.’
‘They would be lovely,’ I agreed. ‘Let’s get a set for sure.’ Gran had given me her credit card before we left, which I was grateful for as I was sure these were going to add up to a fairly hefty amount. ‘And these are cute,’ I said, picking up some star lights.
‘How about these?’ Drew came over carrying a box of icicle lights. ‘You could hang these in a bush or round a tree?’
‘Perfect,’ I said with a smile. We loaded the trolley and agreed that we should get out of there before we bought the whole place. Drew picked up a set of lights for the farm, saying that they needed to decorate the outside of the house. It seemed our festive spirit was contagious.
‘I really do want to come and help, if you can stand to spend more time with me?’ Drew said as we loaded the car up with our purchases.
‘Honestly, that would be great, we need all the help we can get.’
‘And those mince pies would help, too,’ Izzy suggested sagely, nodding at the packet he had bought inside.
Drew chuckled. ‘You’re a real chip off the old block.’
‘What does chip off the old block mean?’ Izzy asked as we piled back into the overflowing jeep.
‘It means you’re going to turn into me one day,’ I replied, giving her a shocked face.
She groaned. ‘But I hate coffee.’
‘I hated it when I was your age, so watch out.’
‘As long as I don’t start liking wine, I’ll be okay.’
Drew and I burst out laughing. ‘I’m going to remind you of that sentence when you’re a teenager, you know that, right?’
‘Fine because I’ll still feel the same way then,’ she said, stubbornly.
‘I think we need to bet some money on this,’ I said, still chuckling.
‘I think we definitely need it in writing,’ Drew agreed. We headed off back home. It was a second before I realised what I had thought to myself – that Glendale Hall was home. It had been a long time since I had felt that way, but as we drove back there, it really did feel like it.
* * *
We all stood in the garden, wrapped up against the chill, after unloading our purchases, so we could plot out the trail. John had found three men from the village to come to help and with Drew as well, they made quick work of getting everything out of the car.
I had drawn a diagram of how I pictured the trail, and we were debating how we could create it for real. ‘We’re going to need lots of help with this. Can we really pull it off by Christmas Eve?’ I asked them.
‘We can do it,’ Mum said, firmly.
‘How about this?’ I walked over to two fir trees which stood tall and proud with a walkaway between them. ‘If we start here, then people will walk through all the Christmas trees and end up at the stream. We could guide them around it and out towards the rose garden, which would make a good finish to the trail as it’s close to the driveway,’ I suggested. Everyone looked at me. ‘What?’ I asked, wondering why they had all gone silent.
John strode forward. ‘Beth, that is perfect. We can hang all the fairy lights in this section, then by the stream put up the standing lights and in the rose garden we can have the grotto.’
In my absence, they had decided we needed a finale for the trail, so we were going to create a grotto using a tent Heather’s dad had loaned to us and turn it into a winter wonderland, complete with fake snow, and a sleigh inside which one of John’s friends was hiring from his brother in Edinburgh. Everyone seemed excited, and the idea just kept getting bigger and bolder so no one could blame Izzy and me for getting carried away by Christmas: it seemed like the whole village was along for this ride.
‘Great, let’s get started then,’ I said, passing out lights and pointing to where they should be hung. John had already hired a generator and they were sorting out the cabling under my mother’s directions. Together Drew and Izzy carried the inflatable Santa over to the start of the trail.
I saw a car pull into the driveway and I waved when I saw Heather hurrying over to us. ‘Wow, you guys are already in full swing,’ she said. ‘What
do you think?’ She thrust a leaflet at me. Glendale Hall Christmas Trail proclaimed the leaflet promising twinkling lights and a winter wonderland. She had designed it beautifully.
‘It’s perfect!’
‘I wanted to come and see where this banner is going to hang so I get the size just right,’ she said, as we set off to the garden together. ‘And then I’ll drop off the leaflets around Glendale. I’ll obviously have them in the library, the pub, and the shops that are left,’ she said with a sigh. ‘I’ll leave some here for you guys as well. I’ve also posted on the Glendale Facebook page so make sure you ask everyone to share that, okay?’
‘You’ve thought of everything,’ I said. ‘Here’s where the trail will start.’ We watched Drew and Izzy put the snowman on the other side of the Santa creating a pathway for the trail. ‘So, we can hang the banner here between these two trees,’ I said, pointing upwards.
Heather looked up. ‘Right, I need to head to an art shop then, I need a much bigger paintbrush.’
‘You really bought an inflatable Santa?’ My mum appeared then, putting her hands on her hips.
‘You have to have something tacky at Christmas,’ I replied. ‘It’s a festive law.’
She rolled her eyes. ‘Sometimes I do wonder where you came from,’ she said before going up to Drew and telling him to move it so it looked straighter.
We all got stuck in to the work and time seemed to fly by. Sally called out from the back door that there was tea inside, so we all gratefully trooped into the kitchen. As it was Sally, there was not only hot tea for everyone but an array of cakes and biscuits too.
‘I’m going to make chilli for later,’ she told us. ‘You’re all welcome to stay for it. I think you’ll be needing it by the looks of it.’
‘Sally, you’re a star,’ I told her. I took a sip of the hot, sugary tea. ‘Thanks so much for helping out, guys,’ I said to the room. ‘This is what I missed about Glendale – everyone pitching in together. This really will remind everyone what our village is all about.’ Everyone cheered and raised their mugs of tea in agreement.
After we had had our tea break, we all went back out into the chilly afternoon and made good progress on the trail before the sun started to set. Heather left to go shopping to make her banner, and my mum returned inside to see to Gran. I placed the reindeer lights along the trail and watched as Izzy gripped a ladder so Drew could string lights on a tree.
‘How’s it looking?’ Drew called down to her.
‘There’s a bare patch there,’ she called back, pointing to where he needed to add more lights. It was lovely to see them working as a team on the trail. For us all to be working on it.
I loved seeing Izzy outside and having fun; the problems of London seemed like they were irrelevant out here. For me, too. My worries about money and being a single mother, and trying to juggle it all, were all very far away. London seemed like a different universe to Glendale.
‘Beth, are these straight?’ Drew called out to me then, so I went over to check. I wrapped an arm around Izzy as we looked up. ‘Perfect,’ I said, giving her a squeeze. She grinned at me. Drew gave us a thumbs up and started to climb down the ladder.
I knew then that we’d made the right decision to come back. It felt like Christmas would really be a special one for us all.
Chapter Twenty-Six
We worked on the trail until we had completely lost the light, and then Sally called us all inside. ‘You folks deserve this, I think,’ she said as we walked into the cosy, bright lit kitchen. The smell of the chilli hit my nostrils instantly, and my stomach rumbled on cue. Everyone grabbed a plate and queued up for Sally to spoon chilli and rice onto their plates and then we crowded around the table. Mum was pouring wine and handing out beers, her hair for once wavy and free around her face, and she looked happier than I had seen her since we arrived.
‘Working outside suits you,’ I told her as I took a glass of wine from her. She, of course, had a large glass on the go for herself already but I couldn’t begrudge her that.
‘You too,’ she replied with a smile. I knew she was right. Being outside in the garden had given me a glow that I hadn’t had in a long time. I hadn’t quite realised just how much I’d missed gardening, and I was already wondering what I could do about that when I was back in London. I sat down next to Izzy as we tucked in. I don’t think we have tasted a better meal than we did that night.
‘Sal, I need the recipe for this, it’s so good,’ I said, knowing that I’d never get it to taste quite like she made it.
‘I’ll have to give you my recipe for mac and cheese,’ Drew said. ‘It’s taken me years, but I have perfected it now.’
‘Have you ever uttered a more American sentence?’ I teased him.
‘What’s mac and cheese?’ Izzy asked. Drew described it for her. ‘Pasta and cheese, why have we not had this before?’ she demanded of me.
‘We have but we used a packet mix, and it was awful.’
‘Right, that’s it, I’m going to make it for you,’ Drew declared.
‘Yay,’ Izzy said, going back to her food. I smiled across at him, pleased that he wanted to cook us a meal. Izzy. Cook for Izzy, I corrected myself, feeling my cheeks grow warm.
My phone buzzed with a message from Heather – a picture of the banner in progress. I showed the table, to murmurs of approval, and replied to her to say it was looking good. ‘I think this trail might give the one at Kew a run for its money,’ I said to Izzy.
‘What is it like?’ Drew asked. ‘I’ve never been.’
‘I’ll show you our pictures of it,’ I said. We had had a lovely evening, Izzy and I, walking the trail on a crisp December evening, mesmerised by the lights, and I hoped if we could capture some of that magic, everyone in Glendale would have a lovely time and remember just how special our community was.
After we finished the chilli, followed by chocolate cake, we helped Sally clear everything up, and then everyone started to disperse. Drew showed no signs of wanting to leave, so after Mum went up to check on Gran, I took him into the living room with Izzy and pulled out my laptop so I could show him what the Kew trail had looked like. We sat side by side on the sofa, and Izzy curled up in the armchair and put on Home Alone again after falling asleep last time. Sally had draped the mantelpiece in holly and berries from the garden lending a wild festiveness to the room, and we were perfectly cosy with the fire lit underneath it.
‘It looks stunning,’ Drew said, looking at the photos on my laptop. ‘But they don’t have an inflatable Santa, and we do.’ He smiled across at me. ‘Do you think the council will think again?’
‘I really hope so. I hate the idea of just giving up and letting the village go.’
‘Even though you don’t live here any more?’ he asked, gently, seeming interested in why I cared so much.
I closed the laptop and leaned back against the sofa. ‘It never left me though. I fought for so long, and so hard, to make a new home for myself, so much so that I thought I’d left it behind. But coming back, and seeing it so changed, it has upset me. More than I ever thought it would. I want to help get it back to how it was. Back to the Glendale I remember.’
‘I understand. I may live far away from Glendale, but I don’t think it’s ever stopped feeling like home, you know?’
‘I know what you mean,’ I agreed. I looked over at Izzy who chuckled at the film. I suddenly wished I hadn’t kept this place from her for so long. If only I had known what Gran revealed earlier then we maybe we could have spent every Christmas at the Hall. But at least we were here now. She yawned then . ‘Iz, you should go up to bed: it’s been a long day, and it’s getting late.’
‘Just a bit longer, please? The film is nearly finished,’ she pleaded, giving me puppy-dog eyes.
I sighed. ‘Okay but straight to sleep then, no reading.’
Izzy nodded. ‘Okay, Mum. Could I have a cup of tea, though?’
‘Actually, that’s a good idea, I fancy one too. Drew?’ I
asked, getting up.
‘I should be going soon,’ Drew said, looking at his watch.
‘Have a cup and then head out,’ I suggested.
He came with me to the dimly lit kitchen as I put the kettle on and got out three mugs. I leaned against the counter to wait for it to boil and watched as Drew looked at a photo propped up by the sink. It was a school photo of Izzy when she was eight. I remembered sending it to my parents, never knowing they had put it out on display. I saw a shadow pass over his face, and I felt the lump in my throat return. I hurriedly made the teas, trying to pull myself together, though I couldn’t stop thinking about how much time together the two of them had lost.
‘Are you all right?’ Drew said, from behind me.
Reluctantly, I turned around, sure that he could see my eyes glistening. ‘Watching the two of you together today… it’s my fault that you both missed out on that for all these years. I am so sorry.’
Drew was thoughtful for a moment but then he reached out and squeezed my hand once. ‘I can’t pretend that I haven’t thought about all the milestones that I missed out on, but I do understand why you didn’t tell me back then. I wouldn’t have got on that plane if I had known.’
I nodded. ‘I know.’ I had always known that, which was why I had let him go without telling him.
‘I’m glad that I know now. I can be there for the rest of it. I want to be here from now on, Beth.’
‘I’m so glad,’ I said. ‘Izzy already loves you being here.’ It would be tricky living in different countries, but I was pleased that Drew wanted to keep building a relationship with Izzy. It would mean the world to her. It meant the world to me, too.
‘I love being here,’ he replied, and he smiled, and it felt as if the past ten years had melted away.
We went back into the living room, and drank our tea, the film playing to itself as we chatted. I curled my legs up beside me on the sofa as I watched Drew and Izzy on the opposite one, talking about their favourite Christmas movies. It was everything I had always wished for.
Coming Home to Glendale Hall Page 14
