Snowy Nights at the Lonely Hearts Hotel: A heart-warming feel-good romance

by Karen King

  ‘I’ll take the cases upstairs then sort out the twins while you two have a catch-up,’ Lee said, pulling two of the cases along the hall. ‘Just give me a few minutes.’

  ‘You’re a superstar.’ Hannah blew him a kiss.

  ‘Don’t worry, there’ll be payback,’ he called as he hauled the cases up the stairs.

  ‘There will be too,’ Hannah told Saffy, her eyes twinkling.

  They picked up a twin each, Hannah holding Miles and Saffy holding Lily, carried them into the kitchen and made coffee, sitting the twins at the table with milk and biscuits. Oscar had settled down now and was chewing his bone.

  ‘I’m so glad the twins are okay. It must have been so awful for you,’ Saffy said.

  ‘It was. But it’s over now and I’m really grateful that you took over and organised the party for me. Thank you so much.’ She reached out and touched Saffy’s hand. ‘And for being there for me when I was so worried about the twins, your messages and calls meant so much to me.’

  ‘It’s fine. I was worried about them and felt so sorry for you. It must have been hard to be out there, with the twins so ill.’

  Hannah looked over at her little son and daughter tucking into their milk and biscuits, crumbs over their faces and a mess on the table around them. ‘It was. If anything had happened to them…’

  Lee came in a few minutes later and took the twins off for a nap, leaving the sisters to chat.

  ‘Right, now tell me about Logan,’ Hannah said, giving her the ‘I’m not letting you go until you tell me everything’ look Saffy knew so well from her childhood.

  ‘There’s nothing to tell, really. His Christmas cake was delicious – we’ve saved you a slice, by the way – and he and Chloe have kept me company a little. She’s a cutie, isn’t she?’

  ‘She is. Do you think Logan is a cutie too?’

  ‘Well, er…’ Saffy felt her cheeks grow hot. Damn, Hannah always had the knack of worming everything out of her. ‘Yes, he’s very nice.’

  ‘Nice? A lot of women think he’s really sexy. In fact a few of them were vying for his attention last Christmas,’ Hannah said, teasing. ‘Are you immune to his appeal?’

  ‘Well, he is kinda sexy and he was really helpful with all the party stuff. And he rescued me when I was locked out – even though I’m sure I could have managed by myself,’ she added, explaining what had happened as she was sure that Hannah’s neighbour would tell her anyway.

  ‘Oh gosh, you mean you fell off the roof? You could have been really hurt!’ Hannah said, her hand to her mouth. ‘Oh, Saffy. I’m so sorry, you’ve had an awful Christmas, haven’t you?’

  ‘Not at all, it’s been good actually. I wasn’t hurt, just a couple of bruises, and I enjoyed the party.’ She paused as her phone buzzed, and glanced at the screen. It was a message from Logan. Really enjoyed last night… flashed across the screen, then disappeared. But not before Hannah had seen it.

  ‘And what did you do last night?’ she asked, a grin spreading across her face.

  Saffy decided it was best to confess and, without going into too much detail, told Hannah what had been going on.

  Hannah looked delighted. ‘I was so hoping you two would get on. Logan’s such a lovely man.’

  ‘He is. We’ve decided to carry on seeing each other. I’m hoping to come down about once a month – if you don’t mind putting me up? And maybe Logan and Chloe can come up to Birmingham too.’

  ‘Of course we can put you up. It’ll be lovely to see more of you,’ Hannah said with a squeal of delight. ‘I can’t believe you actually stayed overnight. That’s a first for Logan. He must really like you.’

  ‘Jade had Chloe overnight so we spent the day together, then the evening and it just sort of happened,’ Saffy replied.

  Hannah’s eyes widened. ‘What? Jade had Chloe overnight?’ She leaned forward, elbows resting on the table. ‘Wind it back and tell me from the beginning.’

  So Saffy explained, and about Chloe phoning while she was wearing Logan’s dressing-gown. ‘Jade wasn’t very pleased.’

  ‘Well, it’s none of her business. She waltzed out and left Logan to bring up Chloe by himself and has hardly seen her since. Don’t let her bother you. She’s no right to be upset about anything Logan does. It’s about time he had someone in his life.’

  ‘He has seen other women since they split up,’ Saffy reminded her, thinking of Toni’s friend Sonja, and there must have been more.

  ‘Yes, but never at the house. He’s always kept them well out of Chloe’s life. He must be really smitten with you to let you in.’

  That made Saffy think. She liked Logan, and Chloe, but she knew she couldn’t let whatever they’d got together become anything serious.

  She didn’t want to say goodbye either.

  Just then one of the twins started crying. ‘Back in a mo,’ Hannah said as she got up from the table, leaving Saffy with her thoughts.

  * * *

  The rest of the day passed quickly, playing with the twins and catching up with Hannah and Lee. Saffy felt closer to her sister than she had for a long time and was determined not to leave it so long before she came down to visit again. She wanted the twins to get to know her, to be part of their lives. She might not be able to have children of her own, but she had a nephew and niece she could spoil.

  Saffy had a quick message from Logan to say that Chloe was going to be home soon and asking her if she would have time to pop over later for an hour. ‘I know she’d like to say goodbye to you. We both would.’

  Should she? What would Hannah think? She hadn’t seen her sister for months and it seemed wrong to desert her to go over and see Logan. Even though she was dying to see him again.

  ‘Go on, I don’t mind. Me and Lee have got a million and one things to do,’ Hannah suddenly said.

  ‘What?’ Saffy asked, puzzled.

  ‘I heard your message come through and by the look on your face, it’s from Logan. I’m guessing he’s invited you over and you want to go but don’t want me to feel upset that you’re not spending the whole evening with me.’

  Saffy looked up at her sister’s smiling face. ‘How do you do that? I swear you were a witch in your last life.’

  Hannah chuckled. ‘I know you so well. Honestly, you pop and see Logan for a bit while we get the kids to bed, unpack etc. We’ve had a catch-up, and can have a drink together later – you will be back later, I presume?’

  ‘Of course I will,’ she promised.

  * * *

  ‘Daddy!’ Chloe threw herself into Logan’s arms. ‘I’ve missed you.’

  ‘I’ve missed you too, poppet.’ Logan scooped his daughter up so her face was level with his and they rubbed noses, then he kissed her on the cheek. ‘Have you had a nice time?’

  ‘The bestest time ever. I slept in the bed Mummy slept in when she was little like me. And I met my aunties and my cousins.’ She held up four fingers. ‘I have that many cousins.’

  It was a bit of a family gathering, then. Butterflies flittered uneasily in the pit of Logan’s stomach. What was Jade up to?

  ‘And I’ve got loads and loads of presents. Mummy’s saved some at Nanny and Grandad’s house so I have some toys to play with next time I go. Mummy’s going to take me again in a couple of weeks.’

  Logan looked over Chloe’s head to Jade, standing behind her. Jade’s green eyes met his and he saw the determination there. Okay. He needed to address this. He kissed Chloe on the forehead then gently put her down. ‘Why don’t you take your new toys into the lounge and you can show me them in a minute? I need to talk to Mummy first.’

  ‘Okay.’ Chloe scooped up the big bag Jade had just put down on the floor. ‘Will you come and say goodbye to me, Mummy, before you go?’

  ‘Of course I will,’ Jade replied. ‘Remember what I promised you. You’re going to see a lot more of me from now on.’

  Logan fought down the anger surging inside him. Did Jade really think she could call the shots and just waltz back
into Chloe’s life as if nothing had happened?

  ‘We need to talk. Come into the kitchen,’ he said firmly, walking on ahead and leaving Jade to follow him. She did.

  He closed the door, then crossed his arms and leaned back against the worktop. ‘What are you playing at?’ he demanded.

  ‘I’m not playing at anything. I want to see more of Chloe. I want to build a relationship with her,’ Jade said, folding her arms too and meeting his stare with a determined one of her own. This was how it had always been with them, he remembered. Jade decided she was going to do something and that was it. She did it.

  ‘You’ve never wanted to before,’ he reminded her.

  ‘I know.’ Her voice softened. ‘I was wrong to walk away from her. I realise that now. But I want to make it up to her. I want to see more of her, my family want to see more of her. She’s my daughter too,’ she added.

  ‘You didn’t care about her being your daughter when she was up all night teething, ill for weeks with croup, when she had to stay in hospital overnight with concussion after falling off her bike.’ He could have cited a long list of incidents that Jade had been absent for. ‘Where were you then?’

  She looked a bit shamefaced. ‘That was then, this is now. I want to be here for her from now on. I intend to be here for her from now on. And if you fight me over this I’ll go to the courts.’

  ‘Chloe lives with me. I decide when you see her, and if you take her away overnight. I’m her legal guardian,’ Logan reminded her.

  ‘Legal? So that was decided by the court, was it? When did this happen, as I wasn’t informed?’

  Logan felt a wave of nausea. That was one thing his mother had advised him to do when Jade left but he hadn’t seen the need. Jade had made it quite clear she didn’t want custody of Chloe.

  ‘She’s been living with me for her whole life. I’ve been her sole guardian since she was less than one year old,’ he retorted.

  ‘Yes but I have legal rights too, as her mother. I have the right to see her when I want to and if you don’t let me I’ll go for custody of her.’

  Go for custody. The words were like a knife slicing his heart. Was Jade really going to try to take Chloe off him?

  ‘You gave up any rights to Chloe when you walked out on her. I’m happy for you to see her. I’ve never stopped you. But she’s in my care and I’ll decide what’s best for her, so you run everything by me first before making promises to Chloe. Do you understand?’

  He tried to keep his voice low, although he was shaking with anger. How dare Jade threaten to take Chloe away?

  ‘You’re always the perfect one, aren’t you? So confident in how right you are, that you’re the better person, that you know everything.’ She put her hands on her hips and tilted her chin. ‘I know I messed up, Logan, but that doesn’t change the fact that Chloe is my daughter. I love her too. And I intend to keep seeing her. If you think I’m going to let your girlfriend take my place and become Chloe’s mum then you’re very much mistaken.’

  ‘Saffy is not my girlfriend.’

  ‘Really? Just a one-night stand then? Charming.’

  He wasn’t going to let her turn this into an argument, not with Chloe here. Logan clenched his fists as Jade turned and walked out of the kitchen.

  ‘I’m going now, Chloe. I’ll see you soon, darling. Do you have a goodbye kiss for me?’

  ‘Bye, Mummy.’

  Logan stood in the doorway of the kitchen, watching as Jade and Chloe hugged, panic stabbing his heart as he saw the delight on his daughter’s face as her mother hugged her.

  Jade couldn’t take Chloe from him, could she?

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  As soon as Logan opened the door, Saffy could see by his dark eyes and the frown etched across his forehead that he was troubled over something.

  ‘Is Chloe back?’ she asked, remembering the conversation that morning when Jade had demanded to keep Chloe for another night.

  A patter of feet along the hall as Chloe rushed to greet her answered the question before Logan could.

  ‘Saffy! Come and see all the presents my mummy and nanny and grandad and aunties bought me!’ she said, grabbing Saffy’s hand and pulling her along the hall. ‘I’ve got lots more at their house too. And Mummy said she’s going to buy a house by Nanny and Grandad, so I can see them more often.’

  ‘Hey, watch you don’t pull my arm off,’ Saffy teased, seeing the shock on Logan’s face at Chloe’s last remark. She shot him a ‘speak to you in a minute’ look as she followed Chloe.

  Judging by the pile of toys Chloe showed her, Jade and her family had certainly gone out of their way to make the little girl happy. Is that why Logan looked so tense? She spent a little time ooohing and aaahing over the gifts Chloe showed her, then excused herself saying she needed a drink.

  Logan was in the kitchen drinking what looked like Scotch.

  ‘That bad, eh?’ she asked sympathetically.

  ‘I’m only having the one, don’t worry. I’d never be drunk in front of Chloe. But yeah, it was pretty bad.’ He picked up the bottle. ‘Want one?’

  ‘A small one, with a dash of orange juice if you have it.’

  She waited until he’d fixed her drink and handed it to her before asking, ‘What happened?’

  ‘Jade’s decided that she wants to play a bigger part in Chloe’s life and says if I don’t let her she’s going for custody.’

  He looked so wretched that Saffy’s heart went out to him and she instinctively wrapped her arms around him in a hug, then stepped away in case Chloe came in. ‘Look, Chloe hardly knows Jade, does she? The courts aren’t going to take custody away from you and give it to her.’

  ‘That’s just it. I never went for legal custody, I didn’t see the need.’ His eyes were clouded. ‘Jade made it clear that she didn’t want to take care of Chloe and I couldn’t see her changing her mind over that.’

  ‘Even so, Jade walked out and you’ve been Chloe’s sole carer for almost all of her life,’ Saffy pointed out. ‘I’m sure there’s no way the courts will uproot her and send her to live with her mother, who is practically a stranger to her. That is if Jade is serious about going for custody. Do you think she is?’

  He took a slow sip of the amber liquid then shrugged. ‘I’ve no idea, to be honest. Jade can be pretty stubborn and she seems determined to see more of Chloe.’ His gaze met hers. ‘She said there’s no way she’s going to let “my girlfriend” replace her and become Chloe’s new mum.’

  Ouch. So this was her fault for walking in when Chloe video-called him and letting them both see her in his dressing-gown. Damn.

  ‘Sorry,’ she said. She hesitated. ‘But what if Jade has actually realised what she’s missed and genuinely wants to be a mother to Chloe? Is that such a bad thing?’

  ‘She walks away from Chloe, hardly sees her for years then decides to waltz back in her life and take her off for nights away whenever she feels like it.’ Logan sounded bitter. ‘She doesn’t deserve a second chance to be a mother to her.’

  Saffy thought back to how her father had walked away from them, the infrequent visits then nothing at all for years. Would her mother have let him back into their lives if he’d wanted to? And would she have wanted her mother to allow him? She knew she would. It wasn’t so much the divorce that damaged children, it was the absent parent, the one who walked away and stopped caring. The wounds of feeling like one of your parents didn’t love you enough to be part of your life never really healed. You papered over the hole, but it was always there.

  ‘Maybe not,’ she said quietly. ‘But Chloe deserves a second chance to get to know her mother, doesn’t she?’

  A muscle twitched in Logan’s jaw and he walked over to the window, staring silently out. She knew he was battling with himself, wanting to do what was right for Chloe but – naturally – struggling with this new development. It must be difficult for him. For years it had just been him and Chloe and now her mother was back and there was a whole new fam
ily –grandparents, aunts, cousins – wanting to spoil his little girl.

  She put down her glass and crossed the kitchen to him, touching him lightly on the arm. ‘You said yourself that Jade is very career-orientated. She probably just wants to see more of Chloe and said she is going for custody just to show you she meant it.’

  He ran his hand agitatedly through his hair. ‘I never expected this. Not in a million years. I don’t know how to deal with it. Of course I want, have always wanted, Jade to be part of Chloe’s life. She needs her mother. But I don’t trust Jade not to let her down again. Chloe’s older now, she’ll be heartbroken if her mum decides she can’t be bothered to keep up regular contact again.’

  ‘I don’t know what to tell you except to remind you that Chloe’s the important one in this. It’s about her. Not you or Jade.’ She kissed him on the cheek. ‘Look, I’m sure it will all work out.’

  He reached out and pulled her to him. ‘I hope so.’

  Then they were both kissing, gentle, soothing kisses at first, then more urgent.

  ‘Are you two getting married?’

  They sprang apart at the sound of Chloe’s voice.

  ‘I hope you are,’ she said, her face shining with delight. ‘Then I might have a sister. My cousins Maisy and Lena are sisters. I’d like to have a sister.’

  Shit. This was exactly what she didn’t need.

  ‘Of course not. We were just saying goodbye because I have to go home tomorrow,’ Saffy told her.

  Chloe’s eyes filled with tears. ‘I don’t want you to go home.’