The walk-in freezer was up the other end and she opened the door. Several blocks stood along the back wall, waiting patiently to be turned from large ice cubes into masterpieces. Along the side were about ten sculptures that were finished and ready to go out.
She had been carving ice for about ten years and she never tired of seeing the finished pieces, never failed to feel proud of turning a block of ice into something beautiful. She even enjoyed creating her most commonly requested piece, the swan, which almost every wedding party asked for.
She grabbed one of the ice blocks, which was resting on a wheeled platform, and pulled it out into the cool room, closing the freezer door behind her. She snapped the brakes on the wheels and looked at her blank canvas.
This one was going to be a Christmas tree. She had already stuck the template on a few hours before, now she was going to carve it. She pulled on her gloves, slid her safety goggles over her eyes and picked up the die grinder to trace the outlines of the template. The thin drill bit on the end was the perfect tool to sketch out the design. She pressed very lightly because the main detail would come later.
She could lose herself for hours in here, spending time perfecting each curve, swirl, feather or leaf. When she was in here, the only thing that filled her mind was carving, chiselling, scraping, sawing and creating something intricate and beautiful. That was why she loved it so much, because there was no time to think about how the whole town of White Cliff Bay seemed to be moving forwards with their lives while Penny’s life had stagnated, frozen in time, there was no time to focus on her loneliness, or the heartbreaking feeling that her loneliness was probably going to last a lifetime. She could get lost in a sculpture for hours and never have to think about these things. It was only when she stepped out of the cocoon of her cool room to warm up that the real world invaded her thoughts.
Having finished marking out the lines of the template, she picked up the chainsaw and started lopping off the big pieces she wouldn’t need. She wouldn’t think about Henry and his slate grey eyes and she wouldn’t think about how her loneliness had seemed to have inexplicably doubled since he had pushed the bookcase in front of the connecting door.
* * *
Henry hovered at Penny’s back door, unsure whether to knock or not. As he raised his hand to tap on the door, Penny stepped out from some room off the kitchen. She was wearing black waterproof trousers and a black jacket which clung to all her wonderful curves, making her look sexy as hell. She looked like she was about to get on a motorbike and drive off into the sunset. She pulled off a pair of workman’s boots and unzipped the jacket. He quickly looked away in case she was naked underneath. After a few seconds he chanced a very brief look back and was relieved to see she was wearing a tiny vest and, as the waterproof bottoms came off, he could see she was wearing black leggings underneath too. She hung the clothes up in a closet and pulled on a huge, oversized hoodie, obscuring that sexy body from view. Her conker brown hair that had cascaded in curls down her back earlier was pulled up in a messy ponytail. She looked dishevelled and messy and utterly adorable. Her green eyes looked sad and he wondered whether he’d put that look there or whether she always carried it with her.
He looked down at the white roses he was carrying and wondered whether it was too much. He didn’t want her to attach any romantic motives to the gesture.
Penny suddenly spotted him and he waved. She didn’t wave back; the cheery persona she had presented earlier had vanished, the sparkle in her green eyes had gone out. She visibly sighed and then came to open the door
Tiny flakes of snow swirled around them, settling on her eyelashes and in her hair. There was something about her that he felt drawn to. She was beautiful, there was no denying that, but there was much more to it than that.
Henry offered out the roses. ‘I wanted to apologise for my behaviour earlier. As moving days go, this had to be the worst. Even before I got here, everything that could go wrong did go wrong. I was grumpy and tired and I’m sorry. I was wondering whether that offer of lasagne and mince pies was still open.’
Penny stared at him in confusion. ‘I, erm…’ She looked around as if an excuse would suddenly present itself. She didn’t want him there and he felt like an utter ass. He had a lot of making up to do. As she clearly couldn’t think of somewhere important that she had to be, she nodded reluctantly and stepped back to let him in.
He handed her the roses and she took them.
‘I see you moved the bookshelf,’ Penny said, trying and failing to keep her voice casual as if she didn’t care. He had hurt her with that too.
‘I can move it back, I just… I’ll move it back.’
‘No it’s fine, it’s your home, do what you want.’ She shrugged.
He hadn’t even thought what Penny would think about him blocking the door – of course she would be upset by that.
‘Listen, the last place we lived, we not only locked all the doors and windows at night, but we locked the bedroom doors too and I slept with a baseball bat under my bed. We moved here because it’s a better area, it’s better for Daisy. It’s just going to take a bit of getting used to that everyone is so friendly and helpful. I’m sorry if I upset you. I’ll move it back tonight.’
Penny stared down at the flowers and clearly softened. ‘I’ll put these in some water and make us some dinner.’
Henry breathed a sigh of relief.
‘Would you like a glass of mulled wine, while you wait?’ She filled a vase with water and plonked the roses in some haphazard arrangement.
‘Yes please, it smells wonderful,’ Henry said, sitting down at the large dining table. He watched her as she moved around the kitchen. There was something so captivating about her, he couldn’t take his eyes off her.
‘It’s my own recipe, I just sort of threw some ingredients together.’ Penny lit the hob under the saucepan and gave it a stir. ‘It’s sort of a Sangria and mulled wine mix. Red wine, rum, brandy, fruit juice, fruit, some spices.’
‘Sounds very potent.’
Penny laughed and he liked that he could see the warmth and spark back in her eyes.
‘Yeah, it might be. I haven’t tried it. At least neither of us are driving.’
A giant, deep red, shaggy beast ambled into the kitchen, sniffing at the lasagne that was warming in the oven. Henry laughed; he had never seen anything so ridiculous-looking in his entire life.
‘Wow, what breed is he?’
Penny laughed. ‘I don’t think even he knows. Half red setter, half English sheepdog, half Newfoundland maybe.’
‘That’s a lot of halves.’
‘I know. He thinks he’s a tiny lap-sized dog too, always climbs on my lap for a cuddle and then squashes me to death, he must weigh seven stone. Seriously, he could give pony rides to small children.’
‘He looks like a Muppet.’
‘Don’t say that, you’ll upset him, but yes I know. The vet says he has never seen any dog so red before and with his shaggy fur he does look as if he’s just walked off Sesame Street. Henry, meet Bernard. Bernard, this is Henry, our new neighbour.’
Bernard came and sniffed him with a vague interest. Clearly Henry met with Bernard’s approval as he sat on Henry’s feet, demanding to be stroked. Henry stroked his head and rubbed his chest. He looked up to see Penny smiling at him and then she quickly looked away.
He watched as she poured two large glasses of the mulled wine concoction and brought them to the table. She passed Henry his glass.
‘Should we make a toast?’ she asked.
‘How about… to new beginnings.’
She stared at him and then smiled, chinking her glass against his.
* * *
His grey eyes were so intense, like he was studying her, searching for answers to some unanswered question. He took a sip without taking his eyes off hers and she noticed straight away that he didn’t have a wedding ring.
‘Thank you for decorating next door for Christmas by the way. Daisy will love
it.’
‘My pleasure. I didn’t get you a tree. I guessed that you and Daisy would want to get one together.’
‘She’d like that, thank you.’ Henry smiled and Penny felt her heart leap. She had never been the sort of girl to fall in love with a smile before, but there was something about his smile that filled his whole face. He was married, she had to remember that.
She focussed her attention on Bernard for a moment so she wouldn’t have to look at the smile.
‘So what brings you to White Cliff Bay?’ Penny asked, taking a sip of the wine.
‘Work mainly. I have a job at the White Cliff Bay Furniture Company, starting after Christmas.’
Her eyes widened. ‘As a carpenter?’
He nodded. That at least explained the lack of a wedding ring; he worked with tools like she did, and wearing jewellery could cause injury.
‘Wow, they are so selective about who they take on,’ Penny said. ‘I hear they have something like five hundred applicants every time they advertise. Isn’t there some crazy interview process?’
‘Yes, it kind of felt like The Generation Game with all these tasks that we had to do. We were shown once how to do a process and then had to replicate it within a certain time with the utmost quality and care. It was a whole day thing with the woodwork skills demonstration in the morning and a panel of seven interviewers grilling me for over two hours in the afternoon. I came out feeling like I had run a marathon.’
‘They only take on the very best so you clearly did something to impress them. It will be a huge feather in your cap if you ever decide to move on. Everyone knows how prestigious the company is.’
Henry took a big swig of the wine. ‘We don’t intend to move on. I hope to stay in White Cliff Bay for some time.’
The way he said that, staring right at her, sent shivers down her spine. Was he flirting with her? She shook that silly thought out of her head, taking a big gulp of the wine. It was spicy and fruity and, as Henry said, very potent.
She tried to tear her eyes away from Henry’s gaze but struggled to do so. She quickly turned away from the table to dish up the lasagne.
‘Have you always been a carpenter?’
‘Yes, I love it. There is something wonderful about creating something beautiful with your own hands. I’ve made and sold my own furniture but I’ve also made wooden jewellery and statues too. That’s more of a hobby, though, but it’s something I like to do in my spare time. I know I asked the agency about this, but they said you would be happy for me to use the shed as a sort of workshop?’
Penny nodded. ‘Yes, it’s huge and I only really use a small part of it. Feel free. I would love to see some of your jewellery and statues. My job is quite similar.’
‘What is it you do, Penny?’
‘I’m an ice carver.’
‘Oh, that’s cool. And do you get enough work in that line of business?’
She placed the plate of lasagne down in front of him and sat down to eat hers. ‘Do I get enough to pay for this place, you mean?’
Henry’s eyes widened slightly. ‘Sorry, that came across as very nosy, didn’t it? Ignore me. I hate it when people ask me about my work and my money. It’s absolutely none of my business.’
‘The house belonged to my parents, I grew up here, but they emigrated to Italy several years ago and left the house to me and my brother. He lives in the next town and I bought him out of his half of the house. I’m the only ice carver for miles and there are weddings every weekend, business functions, parties. I have to turn down many jobs because I just don’t have enough time to do them. It pays very well.’
Henry looked surprised but she’d got used to those comments by now; no one took her job very seriously and certainly didn’t believe that she could support herself on it.
‘And, erm… is there a Mr Meadows?’
Penny stabbed a piece of pasta with her fork. Why did people assume that she needed a man to keep her happy? She was perfectly fine on her own.
‘I’m presuming by the way you are murdering that piece of lasagne that I’ve stepped on a sore nerve there. My apologies.’
Penny smiled as she looked at the massacred piece of lasagne.
‘I only asked because that hoodie looks way too big to belong to you,’ Henry said.
‘I just like big jumpers or hoodies. They’re comfortable. There isn’t a Mr Meadows, there never has been. Everyone in the town says I should be married with babies by now so it gets a bit wearing. I… I’ve had my heart broken in the past and I guess I’m wary of falling in love again.’
She stared at her dinner in horror. Why did she feel the need to divulge that to him? She barely knew the man. How much wine had she drunk to loosen her tongue that much? It wasn’t even true. She wasn’t not with someone because she was scared of falling in love again, she was just happier on her own. It was easier this way. She took the last sip of wine in her glass and went to the stove to pour herself some more.
‘So you’ll have to go to the Christmas Eve ball now you’re a resident of White Cliff Bay,’ Penny said, desperately trying to change the subject. ‘Daisy will love it, there’s music and fine food and dancing, there’s also a big ice carving competition there this year.’
‘I’m not sure a ball is really my sort of thing. I’m too big to dance gracefully.’
‘Everyone goes, you have to go. It’ll be a great way for you to meet people and I’m sure Daisy will be upset if you don’t take her.’
Henry still seemed undecided.
‘It’s for charity, you sort of have to go.’
He smiled at her again and she cursed herself for reacting like a silly schoolgirl with a crush.
‘Well, if it’s for charity then I can’t say no, can I?’
Penny grinned and shook her head. Noticing he had finished his lasagne, she stood up and took his plate to the sink. ‘Shall we go into the front room? It’s a bit cosier.’
What was she doing? She didn’t need to get cosier with this beautiful man, with this beautiful married man. But Henry was already standing up and moving in there, taking his new best friend Bernard with him.
She watched him go. She could do this, be in the same room with a man she was insanely attracted to without launching herself at him. A giggle burst from her throat at this thought. She had never launched herself at anyone in her entire life; it was unlikely she was going to start now. She was rubbish when it came to approaching men or even talking to them. Henry was easy to talk to. Although she was attracted to him, being married meant he was safe and she had spoken more to him tonight than she had to almost any man recently. She would just enjoy his company tonight and hopefully tomorrow she could pick up in the same place with his wife too.
She plated up two mince pies and followed him. She stopped when she saw him on all fours in front of the fireplace trying to light the fire. Good lord, his arse was a sight to behold. She couldn’t help but stare at it as he wiggled it around setting twigs and papers in between the bigger logs.
Bernard seemed transfixed by his arse too and she quickly grabbed his collar before he decided that humping Henry was a good idea. She had almost forgotten that Bernard liked to hump most of the guests who came to the house. She didn’t get too many visitors up here, but poor Jill, her cleaning lady, had been humped several times over the years, especially when she got on all fours to dust or clean. Bernard thought the whole thing was clearly a game and the more his victims tried to wiggle or escape, the more Bernard clung on for dear life, like he was riding a bucking bronco.
‘Bed!’ Penny said, pointing to Bernard’s basket. Bernard seemed to sigh theatrically at having his fun thwarted. ‘Bed, now.’ Bernard slunk off with disappointment and climbed into his basket.
‘Erm, that’s a very nice offer, but we’ve only just met,’ Henry said and then laughed as he watched her flush.
She sat down on the sofa and to her surprise he sat down next to her. There were three other chairs that he could have sat in b
ut he chose to sit next to her. She wanted to get up and move away from him but that would have appeared rude. His smell was intoxicating, sweet but spicy like cinnamon, zest and cloves. He smelt of Christmas, of the pomanders she used to make with her parents when she was younger and hang over the fire. She wanted to press her nose to his neck and breathe him in.
He didn’t say anything, he just stared at her like a starved man would stare at steak.
He suddenly leaned forward and brushed his finger across her cheek. Electricity sparked through her at the softest of touches and she leapt back away from him.
Henry’s eyes widened in horror. ‘I’m so sorry, I’m not normally this creepy, I promise. I don’t normally go round touching strange women. You had sauce on your cheek, I was just wiping it off. With hindsight I probably should have just told you.’ He stared down at his wine. ‘What did you put in this thing? It’s gone straight to my head.’
Penny tried to find her voice, to try to say something to put him at ease, but she could still feel his touch on her cheek. Had it really been that long since she was touched by a man that her body reacted this insanely over a simple graze of her cheek?
She cleared her throat. ‘I didn’t think it was creepy.’
‘You didn’t?’
‘A bit inappropriate maybe, but not creepy.’
‘Very inappropriate, I’m sorry.’
Silence descended and sparks seemed to crackle between them like the flames in the fireplace.
Penny passed him a mince pie, suddenly feeling nervous around him for the first time that night. He took it and bit into it, obviously still embarrassed by his overly tactile moment earlier.
‘Mmm, this is delicious. I’m so rubbish at making mince pies, I just can’t seem to get them right.’ He took another bite and moaned softly with pleasure. ‘So tell me more about this ball, will I have to wear a suit?’
She was relieved to move the topic back onto safer ground, although the sudden vision of Henry in a suit was doing nothing to stop these inappropriate thoughts from swirling around her head.
Christmas at Lilac Cottage: (#1 White Cliff Bay) Page 2
