Christmas on Lily Pond Lane: A fabulously festive, heartwarming romance (a standalone in the Lily Pond Lane series)

by Emily Harvale

  Pete nodded. 'I'd go along with that. But it has to be the right one. You think you're immune and then, wham! Love smashes you in the face and you're a gonna.'

  'How romantic!' It was Ella's voice and Glen and the others all turned around as she carried a tray of mugs out of the house; steam rising from each one.

  Glen smiled. 'Hettie's hot, spiced cider punch?'

  Ella nodded. 'We thought you men might need warming up, and possibly a break from all the hard work, but there doesn't seem to be much work going on.' She grinned and handed the tray to Glen. 'I would stay and supervise but it's freezing out here.'

  'You're right about that,' Bear said. 'It is freezing.'

  'Then stop gossiping and get on with it. Supper will be ready in an hour and you haven't even got one set of lights up yet. When Gill's finished in the kitchen, I'll send him out to help.' She hurried back inside, closing the front door behind her.

  'I see what you mean,' Bear said, sarcasm written all over his face as well as in his tone. 'I've clearly never been in love. I can't wait to find 'The One' and be ordered around by her. Gill's a very lucky man. You all are. Oh. Apart from you, Glen. You obviously need to fall madly in love too.'

  After seeing Jenny again tonight, Glen was certain he was already halfway there.

  Chapter Ten

  Mia was very pleased with how the evening was going apart from the fact that Little M had got herself entangled in a string of fairy lights, tried to eat a robin ornament and almost got hold of the plate of turkey Gill had prepared to go in the curry. It had also taken Jet and the other men a little longer to complete the outdoor decorations than Mia had expected, especially after Little M was banished outside with them. But together with the rest of the girls – and she included Hettie and Fred amongst the girls on this occasion – the indoor decorations were finished with time to spare before the turkey Thai curry was due to be ready.

  There would be thirteen people seated around the table, where Mia had carefully placed name cards to ensure that everyone sat exactly where she wanted them to. She had put Jet at the head of the table, naturally, and she would be sitting to his right. Jenny would be to his left and Glen beside Jenny, with Ella next to Glen. Then Gill, and beside him, Hettie, who would be next to Fred. Lori and Franklin were to sit beside Mia; Bear beside Pete, whose wife was a nurse and couldn't make this evening due to being on shift, then Toby, who arrived just in time to help put the finishing touches to the outdoor decorations.

  'Now that Bear and Toby are single again,' Mia said, as Ella placed the last of the wine glasses, Christmas crackers and intricately folded napkins on the table, 'we really need to find more single women. It's a pity Anna's gone to Tenerife for Christmas, or I would've invited her.'

  Ella grinned. 'Has she forgiven you for Jet? She seemed pretty upset when we all went out for drinks the day you told her.'

  'I think so. Although I haven't seen her or any of the girls I met on the beach, for weeks. But the rest of them have kids and I know they're rushed off their feet at the moment.'

  'Do we know any other single women?' Ella scattered a mixture of tiny red and silver glittery stars along the entire length of the extended, antique mahogany table.

  'No. And that's the problem. I was hoping to get Jenny and Glen together in time for Christmas, but now that Bear and Toby are available again she may prefer one of them.'

  'Bear's lovely to look at, with his black hair and rugby-fit body, but we both know he's a flirt, and sex-mad. Not that that's a problem, but he isn't terribly romantic either, is he? I get the feeling Jenny could do with a bit of romance.'

  'I thought that too. Toby's more romantic.'

  'True. But he's also got red hair. Not as red as Jenny's but even so. Could you imagine their kids?' Ella pulled a face.

  'Don't be mean. There's nothing wrong with redheads.'

  'Except they get called all sorts of names at school, like gingernut, for example. Kids can be cruel.'

  'Gingernut isn't that bad. I love gingernut biscuits. But Jenny's hair is so dark, it's more burnt copper than ginger.'

  'Then they'll be called conkerhead or something. Why Jenny and Glen? Just because you thought they were the only singletons in the village at the time?'

  Mia shook her head and met Ella's eyes. 'Not just because of that. Hettie thinks Glen's keen on Jenny, and so do I.'

  'Really? What makes you think that? The poor guy's only been here two weeks and Hettie's started gossiping about him already.' Ella shook her head but she was grinning. 'But his post here's only temporary. He may be gone before the end of January. Is it wise to throw two people together if we already know one of them won't be staying?'

  Mia stood back and admired the table, grinning at Ella when she was satisfied it looked precisely as she'd hoped. 'He might change his mind and stay. If he had someone to stay for.'

  Ella laughed. 'He told us yesterday, after a few glasses of Hettie's cider, that he was only here as a favour to his uncle, the Bishop, and that this was his first posting to a village. He didn't look thrilled. And Gill told me they were talking about London when they were on the roof because Gill mentioned he was taking us to the ballet in the New Year. Glen apparently said he loved London and was hoping his next position would be there, or some other large city. I can't see him staying.'

  Mia spotted a spoon a fraction out of place and quickly realigned it. 'Remember how we felt when we came here. We were dreading it, but look at us now. Would either of us leave unless we had to? I know I wouldn't.'

  Ella shrugged. 'That's true. Look. Here come the others.'

  Everyone piled into the dining room, the men from outside, the others from either the direction of the kitchen, or the sitting room, where more decorations had been put up. After taking a quick look around the room, Jet went straight to Mia, pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

  'I was wrong,' he said, when he released her. 'I wasn't keen on having decorations inside and out. At least, nowhere near so many. But the whole place looks beautiful. Thank you.' He looked around the room and smiled. 'And thank you all for helping.'

  'I'm only here for the curry,' Toby said. 'But Jet's right, Mia. I've never seen this place look so festive, even when Mrs Cross was alive. Your mum loved Christmas, didn't she, Jet?'

  Jet nodded and kept his arm around Mia, squeezing her to him. 'She did. And she would've loved this. All of it.'

  'Even the light-up candy canes?' Ella asked, both her grin and her voice dripping with sarcasm.

  Jet grinned at her. 'Even those. Are we going to have a big switch on of all the lights before we eat?'

  'I want to see what you've done outside,' Mia said. 'Especially the trees. Gill? Do we have time to go and see the lights and have a glass of champagne?'

  Gill nodded. 'I can leave supper to simmer and keep the rice warm in the steamer for another five or ten minutes.'

  'Great,' Jet said. 'Come on everyone. I'll get the champagne from the fridge.'

  'Ella's put a tray of glasses in the hall,' Mia said. 'Let's go and grab our coats, go outside, and officially turn on the lights.'

  Less than three minutes later, everyone stood on the drive of Little Pond Farm facing the aged sandstone façade of the Georgian farmhouse. A glass of champagne in their hands, they were all wrapped warmly in their coats, gloves and scarves, and all wearing Santa hats which Ella had handed out to everyone. Even Little M had a hat perched jauntily on her head. She seemed very keen on catching the white bobble at the tip of it, in her mouth.

  They counted down from ten, and Jet flicked the outside switch the second they said, 'One.' Mia felt tears well up in her eyes and when she glanced at Ella, Ella had them too.

  'It's like a winter wonderland, deary,' Hettie said. 'I'm getting all emotional.'

  'Me too,' Mia said, stretching up to kiss Jet on the lips when he came back and stood beside her, while everyone else 'ooh-ed' and 'ahh-ed' at the gorgeous display.

  The Norway Spruce now stood either side o
f the white portico in the lead effect square planters which Mia had specifically bought for them that day; strings of delicate white lights were draped around the trees and twinkling brightly. Identical lights were wrapped around the columns of the portico and across the arch between. On the black front door, hung a wreath of holly, evergreen, poinsettia, shiny red baubles and sparkly frosted white ones, all interlaced with a wide, red ribbon tied in a large bow at the top. The antique lamp hanging from its hook in the centre of the portico ceiling held a realistic but battery-lit large candle, glowing warm white in the shadows. More white lights were strung along the fences either side of the house, and the light-up candy canes began at the top of the drive and ended halfway down just before the wooden gate, which was also strung with lights.

  'No snowmen?' Ella queried, grinning at Jet.

  'They melted,' he replied, with a wink. 'But we have put some of those twig reindeer beside the path leading to the barns.' He pointed to the right.

  Mia and Ella both rushed to look, and there they were; four reindeer, just like the ones on the roof of Sunbeam Cottage, covered in white lights, with bunches of holly around their necks stood on the snow-covered grass beside the path leading from the drive to the barns and the farmyard.

  'They look so cute,' Ella said, smiling gleefully.

  'It's a pity they're not real,' Mia replied.

  Ella glanced at her, an excited look on her face. 'They could be. You're rich. You could hire real reindeer for Christmas. Think how great that would be.'

  'Er. Excuse me,' Jet said, coming to stand beside Mia. 'Real reindeer? I thought you didn't like farm animals.'

  'Reindeer aren't farm animals.' Mia linked her arm through his. 'They're Christmas animals.'

  'The Sámi may disagree with you about that.' He smiled down at her. 'Oh God. I'm going to be having reindeer, aren't I?'

  'Would you mind?'

  He sighed and shook his head. 'I suppose not. But only if you agree to help look after them. And I have no idea where one goes to shop for reindeer. And don't say the North Pole, Ella.'

  Ella laughed. 'Google will know.'

  Mia flung her arms around Jet's neck and planted kisses all over his face. 'You're the best boyfriend any girl could wish for. I love you, Jet Cross. Come on. Let's tell everyone we're getting reindeer.'

  Oddly enough, no one seemed particularly surprised, other than Jenny and Glen.

  'Reindeer?' Glen said. 'Real, living, breathing reindeer?'

  'Do you need a permit for those?' Jenny asked.

  Mia stood beaming at them. 'I've no idea if you need a permit. But I know there are reindeer farms in England, and I'm sure there's one in Kent or Sussex, so we'll soon find out. Ooh. Perhaps we can hire someone with specialist knowledge to come and look after them. Gosh. It really is wonderful being rich.'

  'And if we get the really heavy snow they forecast,' Ella said, 'we could hire a sleigh and drive around the village in it. This is going to be a fabulous Christmas. But it's freezing out here. Let's turn on the indoor lights and then eat. I'm starving.'

  'Excellent plan,' Gill said, and Mia and Jet followed their guests inside.

  'Reindeer,' Jet said, shaking his head and chuckling. 'I'm going to have to clear out one of the storage barns to make room for them. And find out what reindeer eat. And God knows where we'll find a place for a sleigh. If anyone had told me this time last year that I'd be talking about such things, I'd have laughed in their face and told them they were mad.'

  'We don't have to do it,' Mia said, smiling at him as they walked into the hall. 'It's a nice idea but it'll probably be a lot of work, and I honestly don't mind if you'd rather not have more animals running around.'

  'Nope.' He grinned at her. 'I quite like the idea of having reindeer. Now, let's see what you girls have done in here.'

  Everyone had already seen the tree in the hall, festooned with red gossamer ribbons and sparkling red baubles, gold poinsettia leaves, heavenly scented bunches of cinnamon sticks tied with red ribbon and myriad twinkling white lights. The decorations of evergreen intertwined with more white lights and red ribbon trailed up the banisters, but when Jet walked into the sitting room, Mia heard his sharp intake of breath.

  'Do you like it?' She looked into his eyes, a little nervously.

  'I love it.' His voice cracked with emotion and she could see from the expression on his face that he was genuinely happy.

  She entwined her fingers with his. 'I remembered seeing a photo of this very room at Christmas, which Mattie must have taken when your mum was still alive. I used all the decorations in the box you gave me from the attic, but Ella and I bought some today in town that we couldn't find in the box. I wanted it to be as close as possible to the photo.' She picked up the photo from a side table and handed it to him. She had printed it out that morning and taken it with her to the shops. 'I thought it might make us feel as if your mum was sharing Christmas with us.'

  The log fire crackled in the huge hearth while Jet scanned the room and Mia watched him as if only they were here and none of the guests.

  'I remember this so well,' he said, looking and sounding very emotional, but in a good way. 'It was the year Mattie lent me the money to buy this place. Our first Christmas in this farmhouse. Mattie bought the tree, and she took Mum into town to buy more decorations without telling me. They spent the rest of the day baking mince pies and shortbread, sausage rolls, cheese straws and cinnamon biscuits with red and green sprinkles.' He laughed cheerily. 'I came in from a long day in the fields to a roaring fire, just like this. The tree, with pine cones, dried orange and lemon slices pinned with cloves, those cinnamon sticks, the multi-coloured lights and those red, white and silver ribbons, bells and bows. This is it exactly. Even the evergreen on the mantle and the candles – although ours were real. I take it these ones are battery operated.'

  Mia nodded and smiled. 'Safety first. The only things I couldn't find were the Christmas stockings. But I did find the hooks. So if it's okay with you, we'll buy new stockings tomorrow. Unless you know where they are.'

  'I think I do.' He turned to face her, his eyes full of love and his smile overflowing with warmth and thanks. 'But let's buy new ones for us. Mum would like that.'

  'Oh God,' Ella said, wiping her eyes. 'This is so emotional.'

  'Imagine how I feel,' Jet said, not taking his eyes from Mia's face for a second. 'I love you, Mia Ward. And I'm so glad Mattie wanted us to be together. I owe your great-aunt more than I can ever say.'

  'You and me both,' Mia said, as Jet bent his head to kiss her.

  Chapter Eleven

  Jenny was feeling happier than she had for a long time. The supper party was far better than she expected and she actually enjoyed herself.

  What's more, Mia had insisted on paying for the cakes Jenny took with her, which meant Jenny had not only had an evening of fun, laughter, delicious food and copious amounts of wine, all in good company, but she had also made money. Who wouldn't be happy about that?

  Even when it had started snowing again as she and the others had walked home, it didn't sour her mood. Mia had stayed at Jet's, of course, and Lori and Franklin had returned to their farm cottage, and Pete to his, but everyone else had walked back through the village saying good night along the way as each reached their doors. Only she, Glen, Toby and Bear, continued farther on, but as Toby and Bear were in deep conversation regarding Toby's sister, Jenny and Glen had time to talk.

  'Tonight was fun,' Glen said, his hands stuffed into his coat pockets, the Santa hat still sitting skewed on his thick, blond hair, and his cheeks almost as red as the hat. 'But it's so cold. Be careful where you're walking. There are several icy patches on this part of the lane.'

  Jenny smiled at him, thankful that such a tiny village as this not only had streetlights, but also multi-coloured Christmas lights strung between each lamppost, making it much easier to see where she was walking. She had almost slipped again, coming down Jet's drive, but Gill had offered his free arm, El
la already clasping the other. When they reached Sunbeam Cottage and said good night to Ella and Gill, Bear had once more offered his, as had Glen, but Jenny had said she would be fine, now that she could see the path before her.

  'Thanks.' She avoided a treacherous looking spot and smiled again at Glen. 'You're right. Tonight was fun. To be honest, I wasn't looking forward to it, but I'm very glad I went. Mia and Jet are so in love, aren't they? It almost restores my faith in romance.'

  'Oh?' He raised a brow. 'Does your faith need restoring? On the romance front?'

  She gave a little cough, threw him a brief glance from under her lashes, and sighed. 'I don't think that's possible, unfortunately.'

  'I remember you saying that your boyfriend in Florence broke your heart. I thought it was a figure of speech. Was it more serious than that? Would you like to talk about it? I'm a good listener.'

  She let out a little peal of laughter, but it didn't sound jolly even to her ears. 'Thanks. But no thanks. The less said about it, the better, as far as I'm concerned. I just want to put the whole thing behind me, forget it, and get on with my life.'

  'And are you? Getting on with your life?'

  She felt, rather than saw, his gaze on her, and she shrugged. 'I'm trying. I couldn't believe my luck when Justin told me he was moving away. I immediately asked if I could come and take over the bakery, and when he said yes, and that I could even change the name, I thought it would be a whole new start for me. And it has been. But I've never lived in a village before and … well, let's just say living in a fishbowl would probably be less public.'

  Glen laughed, and it was the kind of laugh that brought a smile to your face whether you wanted it to or not. A warm, friendly sound, full of hope and promise.

  'I know exactly how you feel. I was born in a village, not a million miles away from here in fact, and no matter what I did, it seemed that someone had seen me do it, and was eager to tell my dad. He was a vicar too. Still is. But he and Mum are living in China now.'