Escape To Christmas at Corner Cottage

by Sarah Hope

  ‘So, tell me, what’s in the notebook?’ Taking another chip, he pointed it at Chrissy’s sketchbook.

  ‘That’s got your sister’s wedding dress design in, among other things.’

  ‘Can I?’ Leaning across the table, Luke slid the sketchbook towards him.

  ‘Will she mind? She’s not keeping the final design a surprise or anything?’

  ‘Nah, she won’t mind. She showed me the first design anyway. The one that the runaway dressmaker drew for her.’

  ‘Ok then.’ Shrugging, Chrissy took a long sip from her drink. Natalie liked her design so she wasn’t sure why it mattered what Luke thought. Although, for some reason, it did. It mattered a lot. She took another sip and rested her elbows on the table, leaning across, trying to gauge a reaction from him. ‘So?’

  ‘It’s great. Really detailed, much better than the one she had drawn out for her before.’ Luke tilted the sketchbook up. ‘Yes, it’s beautiful. You’ve got a real talent for fashion and design, haven’t you?’

  ‘Hardly! Look at me.’ Standing up, Chrissy twirled around, her faded jeans had a hole in the knee from where she had tripped over a few months ago, and her dark green jumper had seen better days, the threads hanging from the sleeves were a constant distraction which she frequently fiddled with.

  ‘Oh, I don’t know. I think you look rather sexy.’

  ‘Luke!’ Laughing, Chrissy sat back down.

  ‘Too much?’ Flicking through the rest of the sketchbook, Luke paused and looked back up. ‘What’s this?’

  ‘Oh, ignore them. They’re just some silly sketches I did.’ Waving her hand dismissively, Chrissy took a gulp from her drink, hoping the icy alcohol would cool the flush creeping up her neck.

  ‘They’re not silly. They’re actually really good. ‘Chrissy’s Creations’, ‘Speedy Dressmaker’, ‘Chrissy’s Tidy Tailoring’. These are good, and I love the way you’ve got the needles with the thread writing the name on this one.’

  Reaching across, Chrissy pulled the sketchbook back to her, closing it and setting it to the side. ‘As I said, they’re just some super quick sketches.’

  ‘Are you thinking of going into business properly?’

  ‘Yes, I think so. I need to start earning some money to support us and this way I could work from home and be there for the girls. Plus, that’s what I used to do. It was only when I had the girls, and with them being twins everything was twice as manic, I just didn’t have the time. And then when they started school, Andrew, my ex, didn’t want me working.’

  ‘Why not?’

  ‘I don’t really know, really. He said it would be too much hassle, that it would take up too much of my time.’

  ‘When are you going to start up your business then?’

  ‘I’m not sure. After Christmas maybe. I’d like to get everything in place, you know, do it properly. And I want to finish your sister’s dress before I take on anything else anyway.

  ‘I think it’s a great idea.’

  ‘Thanks.’ Chrissy took a final swig from her glass and stood up. ‘Same again?’

  ‘SHHH, YOU’RE SUCH A loud drunk.’ Clinging onto Luke’s arm, Chrissy laughed as she stumbled down the kerb.

  ‘Here, let me be a gentleman, even if I am a loud one, come on this side before you get run over.’ Holding onto Chrissy’s hand, Luke pulled her across to the inside of the path before linking arms with her again.

  ‘Oh yes, careful, look at all the traffic.’

  ‘No need to be sarcastic. You never know, we once had a herd of sheep roaming the road. Now, they were dangerous, they sneaked up on the tipsy people as they were chucked out of the pub.’

  ‘A flock, not a herd.’ Laughing, Chrissy leant her head against his shoulder. ‘And if tonight is anything to go by, I bet you were more than a little tipsy.’

  ‘Maybe a tiny tiny bit.’ Luke squeezed his thumb and forefinger together.

  ‘Here we are.’ Chrissy stopped outside Corner Cottage, and threw open the gate, watching as it bounced off the hedge and shut itself again. Shrugging, she looked at Luke. ‘Are you coming in for a coffee?’

  ‘I was rather hoping you’d offer something a little stronger.’

  ‘I do actually have a bottle of wine this time, if that will tempt you? It’s red wine though and I’m normally rubbish at knowing which one to get so it may taste of vinegar.’

  ‘I think I’m brave enough to take my chances.’ Luke swung the gate open, holding it for Chrissy as she stumbled through.

  ‘Oops.’ As the keys clattered on the concrete step at her feet, Chrissy glanced across at the neighbours. They were safe, there was no twitching of curtains or lights being turned on.

  ‘Step aside, madam.’ Luke cleared his throat, bent to retrieve the keys and opened the front door.

  ‘Thank you.’

  ‘Bliming heck, it’s freezing in here!’ Following Chrissy inside, Luke wrapped his arms around his middle. ‘Can we have the wine on the doorstep? I’m sure it was warmer outside.’

  ‘Drat. I forgot, the heating’s broken.’

  ‘Did you leave the wood burner on? Please tell me the wood burner’s on and it's toasty and warm in the living room.’

  ‘Umm...no. I didn’t want to waste the logs.’

  ‘I can’t believe you.’ Luke laughed and pulled her towards him, holding her hands and making her wrap her arms around him.

  Throwing her head back, Chrissy laughed. ‘What are you doing?’

  ‘Trying to take all of your heat. If I’d known you were leading me into a house colder than an igloo, I would have insisted we trekked the extra half mile to my house.’

  ‘Aw, poor Luke. We can always go there now if you’re too much of a wimp to withstand the temperature in my house.’

  ‘Nope, we’re here now. I’m not risking going out into the night again, those sheep are probably prowling the streets by now.’

  ‘Come on then, come through. I’ll light the log burner now.’ Chrissy unwrapped her arms and pulled him through to the living room.

  ‘No, you find the wine, I’ll tackle the matches.’ Rubbing his hands together and breathing warmth onto them, Luke walked over to the mantelpiece to get the matches.

  ‘Ok.’

  ‘HERE, BUDGE OVER.’ Placing the glasses and bottle on the coffee table in front of them, Chrissy joined Luke on the sofa, pulled the pink checked throw from behind them and laid it across them both.

  ‘Warm enough?’

  ‘No, it’s still freezing.’ Chrissy shivered under the blanket.

  ‘The wood burner will soon start throwing some heat out.’ Leaning towards her, Luke rubbed her leg through the blanket.

  ‘Do you want to try this wine then?’

  ‘The vinegar? Why not?’

  Reaching forwards, Chrissy took hold of the glasses and watched as Luke poured the red velvety liquid, filling them to the brim.

  ‘Cheers.’

  ‘Cheers.’ Taking a deep breath, Chrissy tentatively took a sip. ‘It’s not that bad, actually.’

  ‘No, it’s not. You’re more talented at choosing red wine than you give yourself credit for.’

  ‘Well, thank you very much.’ Chrissy laughed and leant her head back against the sofa.

  ‘How are you finding living here?’

  ‘It’s ok. I quite like the village life and I’m warming to the cottage.’ Chrissy laughed at her own joke.

  ‘It does take a little bit of getting used to, doesn’t it? Living in such a close-knit community, everyone knows everyone’s business.’

  ‘I guess. I like it though. How long have you lived here for?’

  ‘I grew up here. In the house that Natalie and Graham live in. Our parents passed away when we were in our early twenties, one after the other. My dad got ill and then after he’d gone, my mum just seemed to give up.’

  ‘That’s awful.’ Chrissy laid her hand on Luke’s arm.

  ‘It was. Natalie and Graham had just found out they were expectin
g Adam, so it seemed like the right thing for them to stay living in the house. And me, I hate to admit it, but I had to get away. I went travelling for a year to clear my head.’

  ‘And then you came back?’

  ‘Nope, I met my ex-wife, Meredith. We were backpacking through the Philippines at the time.’

  ‘I didn’t know you had been married.’ Chrissy traced Luke’s name on his forearm with her index finger.

  ‘Yep. It lasted all of nine months.’

  ‘What happened?’ She glanced up at Luke. ‘You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.’

  ‘No, it's fine. Nothing horrible. When we finished travelling we both landed jobs up near Leeds and realised that we didn’t actually have that much in common. She started seeing someone else and I came back down here for a bit.’

  ‘Sorry to hear that. What makes some people think that cheating is ok?’

  ‘Beats me. Natalie said your ex cheated on you? Is that right?’

  ‘Yes. With his childhood sweetheart!’ Chrissy let out a hollow laugh.

  ‘That must have been difficult.’

  ‘It was. Especially since we had to carry on living together until our home was sold. Don’t get me wrong, our marriage was far from perfect. For the last couple of years we had almost become strangers living in the same house, trying not to piss the other one off. But, it was still hard. It was hard seeing how it affected the girls too. How it still affects them.’

  ‘I guess at least I had somewhere to come to get away when I found out what Meredith had been up to.’

  ‘I guess.’ Twisting around to face Luke, she pointed at him, her wine sloshing perilously close to the rim of the glass. ‘Do you know what really hurts? It’s not just the fact that my husband, sorry, ex-husband, views our marriage, the life we had together as worthless but it’s also the way that I have been totally ostracised from his family and friends. We used to get on really well, really well. My ex-mother-in-law used to say that she viewed me as a daughter. And now, nothing. Nothing at all. They don’t speak to me, they don’t ask me how I am. I am nothing. I have been well and truly, totally replaced by perfect Susan.’

  ‘Is she the mistress?’

  ‘Yes, the mistress. I bet she’ll be sat around the table chatting away for hours after Sunday lunch with the in-laws. Yuck, yuck, yuck.’

  ‘You’re not over him, are you?’

  ‘Andrew? Oh yes, I am totally over Andrew but I still feel let down by them. By those people who were supposed to be my family.’

  ‘I guess I can understand.’

  ‘But I am totally, totally over Andrew. I hate him now. I hate the way he waltzes in and takes my kids away every other weekend. I mean, that’s not right, is it? It was him who broke our family up. Not me. I should get to keep them, shouldn’t I?’

  ‘Well...’

  ‘Ssshh. Don’t answer that.’ Chrissy held her finger to Luke’s lips. ‘I’m sorry, red wine always does this to me. It makes me cross and sad, I shouldn’t have had any. But I promise I am over Andrew, it’s just that everything carries on, there’s always more drama. I’m always going to be tied to him. I’m always going to be reminded of what he did to me and what we should have had.’

  ‘But would that have been better? Being with him still if you were living like strangers?’

  ‘No, no it wouldn’t. It all went so wrong a long time ago but it shouldn’t have, we were good together, years ago and we should have had a different future.’

  ‘People change though, don’t they?’

  ‘I know. It still doesn’t stop me feeling as though I’ve lost something. I know I need to get used to the idea that my future is now going to be different. I guess, I didn’t ever think I’d become a single mum, scrimping and saving to pay the bills.’

  ‘You won’t be for long, scrimping and saving, I mean. You’ve got a solid business idea. You start that, and you’ll see, it’ll be a success.’

  ‘I hope so. And I know I’ve got a lot to be thankful for since splitting up with Andrew, that I wouldn’t have otherwise. I don’t need to walk on eggshells in my own home for the first time in at least three years. I’m in control of my finances. I’m not in debt.’ Chrissy raised her glass, red wine dribbling down the sides. ‘If I was still with him I’d still be paying for food and petrol on my credit cards while he went to play rugby every week, drinking and eating a meal out after every match. I can follow my dreams, do what I want to do, like the business. But, most importantly, my girls aren’t growing up in a home full of arguments.’

  ‘See, that sounds positive.’

  ‘It is. I am so so much happier than when I was with him. I really am. And, of course, I wouldn’t be able to have cosy nights in with a gorgeous property developer.’ Leaning forwards, Chrissy kissed Luke, his lips warm against hers.

  ‘Now, that’s a bonus for me too.’

  ‘I’m sorry, I’ve rattled on too much about my ex. You probably didn’t want to hear me whittling on about him.’ Slumping back into the sofa cushions, Chrissy downed the rest of her wine before slamming the glass on the table.

  ‘It's ok. I like to know what I’ve got to live up to.’

  ‘Very funny. So, who have I got to live up to then? You must have had more than one ex. I don’t believe for one second that you’ve been single since Meredith.’

  ‘You’re right, I haven’t.’ Luke shifted his position and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back towards his side. ‘I admit I have a few stories to tell.’

  ‘You mean you slept around?’ Closing her eyes, Chrissy snuggled against Luke’s warmth.

  ‘Yes and no. I spent a couple of years as a tour rep in Ibiza and, yes, I probably had a few too many holiday flings, but when I came back to England I met up with a group of people I used to go to school with and me and this girl, Laura, started seeing each other. Things got pretty serious and we ended up moving to London together.’

  ‘What is it with men and old friends from school? Are you literally all the same?’

  ‘No, I wasn’t seeing anyone at the time, so I am most definitely not like your ex.’ Luke kissed the top of her head. ‘And besides, I didn’t used to go to school with her, she was tagging along with an old friend. She’d just split from her fiancé and I was the rebound. Or so I found out five years later when she dumped me because she still had feelings for her ex. Who, I might add, had strangely enough just moved to London, to the same borough we were living in.’

  ‘She cheated on you? Just like Meredith did?’

  ‘No, no it wasn’t anything like that. She split from me first and then three months later I saw a post of hers on social media announcing that she was in a relationship with her ex. She didn’t cheat, I’m a hundred percent certain on that, but I do think I was just rebound material. Whether she knew that or whether she did think she loved me at the time, I’ll never know.’

  ‘That’s rubbish. What is it with us? Do you think we’re too trusting or just thick?’

  ‘I’ll go with us being too trusting!’

  ‘I’m sorry, I have made a complete fool of myself tonight. You’re just so easy to get drunk around. And I’m not a pretty drunk.’

  ‘You are a very pretty drunk and you haven’t made a fool of yourself. Plus, I’ll add the fact that I’m easy to get drunk with to my list of many talents. Of course, I could argue that you are easy to get drunk around too.’ Twisting his neck, it was his turn to kiss her. ‘I can think of a way to keep us warm.’

  ‘WAKEY, WAKEY. BREAKFAST time.’

  Chrissy lifted her eyelids, immediately closing them again against the bright sunlight streaming in through the thin curtains. ‘What time is it?’

  ‘Nine o’clock.’

  Forcing her eyes open again, Chrissy pushed herself up on the pillows behind her.

  ‘Breakfast is served. I hope you don’t mind me helping myself to your food?’ Placing a tray of toast and scrambled egg on her knees, Luke perched on the edge of the bed.


  ‘Mind? Not at all. Help yourself to food every day of the week if this is how you treat me. I haven’t had breakfast brought to me in bed since... nope, I can’t remember. Thank you.’

  ‘You’re very welcome.’

  ‘I apologise for my ramblings last night. Please don’t ever let me drink red wine again.’

  ‘You were fine. It was quite nice to get to know you a little better.’

  ‘It was nice to get to know you too.’ Chrissy smiled at him. It was nice, what they had together. Luke made her feel wanted and worthy as a person, which she hadn’t been made to feel in a very long time.

  Chapter 12

  Holding Star back by the collar, Chrissy opened the front door.

  ‘Hi, Mum.’

  ‘Hey, Evie.’ Bringing her in for a hug, Chrissy kissed the top of her head. ‘Did you have a nice time? Where’s your sister?’

  ‘She’s coming. Yes, it was nice. I just need to go to the toilet and then I’ll tell you all about it.’

  ‘Ok.’ Standing aside, Chrissy watched Evie kick her shoes off before running through the living room, heading to the stairs. Turning back, she furrowed her brow as Sophia came tearing down the garden path, her rucksack dragging along the path behind her. ‘Soph...’

  Pushing past her, Sophia ran into the house.

  ‘Chrissy.’

  Hooking her thumb through Star’s collar, Chrissy pulled her through to the living room and shut the door before straightening her back. ‘Andrew. Is everything ok?’

  ‘Just sort your daughter out before they come next time, will you?’

  Taking a step back, she took a deep breath, she hadn’t heard him speak so gruffly before, not about the girls anyway. ‘I beg your pardon.’

  ‘You heard. Sophia’s a disgrace. She needs to sort her attitude out before she gets herself into trouble.’

  ‘What the hell do you mean?’ Pursing her lips, Chrissy narrowed her eyes. What was Andrew on about? What had happened with Sophia? And how dare he speak about her, their, daughter in such a way?