A Perfect Cornish Christmas

by Phillipa Ashley

  He nodded at the leaves in her hand. ‘Are those for Christmas lunch?’

  She answered warily. ‘No, they’re for dinner tonight. I’m not sure Mum could cope without her Brussels sprouts.’

  ‘They may not be traditional but I think they’re a lot nicer. My mum wouldn’t agree either though. It’s hard to let go of old habits and try something new.’ He smiled warmly, stirring hope in her heart. ‘Isn’t it?’

  ‘We could always start a new tradition …’

  ‘Yes.’ He came closer. ‘Scarlett. I came to say I’m truly sorry for kicking off last night. I think I can sum up my shitty behaviour by saying that the truth hurts.’

  ‘I was probably a bit insensitive. I do have a habit of putting my foot in it.’

  ‘I hadn’t noticed.’ A fleeting smile briefly touched his lips. ‘For a start, I’m sorry I accused you of wanting to be close to me because you were looking for your real father. It was an overreaction … you see, I have a habit of being a moody bugger so forgive me, and … as for my dad, you were absolutely right. He has had affairs, but not with your mother, I hope.’

  ‘No. I’m sorry I even thought it, and that I’d thought for a moment you and I were … I’m still ashamed, but I was so sure it was your dad.’

  ‘Don’t be. Now I know you were searching for your father, I realise it’s no wonder you thought that. I – I – was angry when you told me, but not at you. At him. At everything. Dad’s not been the most loyal partner to my mum. His flings with other people have hurt her badly. They don’t think I know about all of them, but I’m aware of at least three.’

  ‘My mum and your dad did have a holiday romance before she went to uni, but they were both single then.’

  ‘That must have been the late seventies, but the postcard doesn’t look that old,’ Jude said. He swallowed. ‘I did keep and hide the card and I’m so sorry I wasn’t honest. Forgive me, but when you asked about it, I panicked.’ He grimaced. ‘When I found the card and read the message, I had a pretty good idea that it had to be from my dad to your mum and what the implication of it might be, although I never made the leap you did.’

  ‘Yes. Nothing happened, though. It turns out it was only your father …’ She faltered, ‘reminding my mum of the old days.’

  Jude shook his head angrily. ‘You mean he was trying to get her into bed again?’

  She winced. ‘He might have only been flirting, or winding her up.’

  ‘I doubt it. I guess he’s been trying it on over the past few weeks?’ Jude asked bluntly.

  ‘There’s no chance of that happening.’ Scarlett tried to be gentle, not wanting to light the blue touch paper again. Her heart went out to Jude even though she’d been angered by his reaction.

  ‘On your mother’s side, maybe not, but I wouldn’t put it past him. Jesus Christ, he may be my father but sometimes, I think I must have been switched at birth. I know what he’s like but I haven’t always wanted to face up to it. I kept the card and I thought of confronting him with it, but he’d probably have lied. I was terrified he might have been carrying on a long-running relationship with your mother or starting it up again while she was estranged from your dad. I didn’t want to accept the truth. Please forgive me, Scarlett.’

  ‘It’s OK. It’s hard to face up to our deepest, darkest fears.’

  ‘My dad has hurt so many people,’ he said, swallowing hard.

  ‘He can’t be as bad as my biological father. I promise you that. I’ve even met him, although he has no idea I am his daughter.’

  The line between his eyes deepened. ‘My God, that must have been tough. Do you want to tell me who he is?’ he added gently.

  ‘I’m not sure I’m ready to share that yet. It was hard to handle. Jude, you’re the only person to know that I’ve found out who he is, apart from Mum and Ellie. I can’t tell you his name yet because even my dad – Roger – doesn’t know his identity. It’s …’ She hesitated. This felt surreal. ‘It’s a guy from the local area.’

  Jude was too polite and sensitive to pry for any more details. ‘I’m sorry. So is it worse now you actually know who he is?’

  ‘I don’t know. I can’t make my mind up whether I’m relieved to know or not. I …’ Scarlett had to tread carefully, not wanting to betray Ellie’s confidence. ‘I wish it wasn’t this particular man. I haven’t heard good things about him,’ she said, knowing it was the understatement of the year.

  ‘I’m very sorry you’ve had to go through this and that the answer, when it came, isn’t what you would have wanted to hear.’

  ‘That was always the risk I ran. Mum warned me all along it wouldn’t do me – any of us – any good to know his name. I didn’t understand why she said that at first, and then of course, well … you know why I wanted to know the truth. That’s why I forced her to admit it wasn’t your father, which was a massive relief.’ Her face heated up at the assumption she’d made, but Jude listened patiently this time.

  ‘But yesterday afternoon, my mum saw him in Porthmellow and she was so shocked, she decided to tell me and Ellie everything. That’s when things got complicated because – well, because they are.’

  ‘Come for a walk with me?’ Jude asked.

  She nodded. ‘I’d like that.’

  They walked down to the beach, side by side at first but feet apart. They stopped to look as the wind blew ripples on the flat pools on the beach. She felt so small against the sky and sea, but Jude was closer now and she felt the tickle of his fingertips against hers. Without saying anything or even looking at him, she slipped her hand in his.

  She was grateful for the warmth of his hand and the quiet solidity of his presence. She could have cheered for joy but sensibly for her, she thought, she only smiled and looked out to the horizon.

  ‘Funny, but I always thought I’d want my father to know who I was, that he deserved to know about me. I wondered how I’d feel, not knowing I had a child, but now I’m not sure he should know. He isn’t the kind of man to embrace responsibility, even though he has his own family and things are complicated … more complicated than I ever dreamed of.’ She glanced at Jude. ‘I can’t share the details, but that’s not because I don’t trust you. It’s because it’s not only me who’s involved.’

  ‘You don’t have to share anything. Say as much or little as you like. This whole business must have turned your world upside down. Sorry I haven’t helped, acting like a total knob.’

  Scarlett laughed softly, thinking of how different he was to Rafa. ‘A man who can admit he’s been a knob is refreshing. Last year I felt my world had caved in and when I started rebuilding it at last, it collapsed again.’

  Jude’s hands rested on her upper arms. ‘I think this is the start of it staying intact. It won’t be easy but you can move on, now. You’ll work it out. Your family were strong before, you’re the same people, you still love each other.’

  ‘If Mum and Dad could be honest with each other, it would help.’

  ‘There’s no sign of that?’

  ‘Maybe. Mum says she’ll sort it out in the new year. We have to get through Christmas yet.’

  ‘I can help with that.’ Jude gathered her to him and they kissed. His mouth was warm and the kiss was all the sweeter after the bitterness of his last attempt at closeness. This time, she held him tight and long, making sure he broke the kiss first, but only so he could breathe one word into her hair.

  ‘Wow.’

  ‘I’m making up for lost time,’ she said.

  ‘Man, I hope so.’

  ‘Would you like to come home with me?’ The words fell out naturally. ‘There’s no one in at the manor. Ellie’s at work. Mum’s gone on a last-minute shopping trip and won’t be back until later.’

  ‘I’d love to. I’ll help you prepare your sea beet, if you like.’

  ‘Prepare my sea beet? I’ve not heard that one before.’

  His eyes shone with sensual promise and real deep feeling. Scarlett wasn’t sure it was love yet, b
ut her own feelings were different to anything she’d ever shared with Rafa, or any man. She felt like she and Jude were knocking on the door of love, and it was opening … they only had to step through.

  They walked hand in hand back to the manor and Jude followed her into the kitchen, where she put the bag of greens into the fridge.

  Jude gasped when he saw the contents. ‘What the hell is that? An ostrich?’

  ‘It’s an enormous turkey. You’re welcome to come over and help us eat it tomorrow, if you like.’

  ‘I’d love to but I’m helping at the Lunch for the Lonely at the pub and then I’ve got to go home for the family Christmas dinner.’ He gave a wry smile. ‘Now you know about my family, you know why I volunteer for it. It gives me an excuse to stay out of the way of some of the festivities. We have our main meal in the evening. My gran comes over earlier though, along with a cousin, her husband and her children. No one will miss me at lunchtime.’

  Scarlett giggled. ‘I’m sure they will. I’d join you at the pub but I don’t want to leave Ellie and Mum, especially not this year.’ She closed the fridge. ‘It’s going to be difficult, although nothing could be worse than last year.’

  Jude held her. ‘You’ll get through it. You’ll definitely do the Boxing Day swim, though? We all go to the pub afterwards and then why don’t you come to the cottage with me? We’ll both have earned some time to ourselves.’

  ‘We’ll probably be stuffed,’ she said, already thinking of the vintage bathing suit she was going to unveil. Only a few days ago, she’d decided she was going to skip the swim after all.

  ‘I wasn’t thinking of wasting too much time on food,’ Jude said, lifting her hair and kissing the nape of her neck.

  The edge to his voice sent a shiver down her spine. ‘Me neither.’

  Scarlett led him upstairs to the bedroom. All her worries faded to nothing as Jude carefully unwrapped her as if she was his best Christmas present ever. And, oh my … what followed in her bed blew away anything she’d ever read in Auntie Joan’s novels – even the steamiest ones with the black and red covers.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Ellie was first up on Christmas morning, having tossed and turned half the night; unlike Scarlett, who was still gently snoring when Ellie put the turkey into the oven. The vegetables had already been prepared and were sitting in a steamer on the Aga, while the farm shop parsnips, stuffing and pigs-in-blankets had been crammed into the fridge.

  She wandered into the sitting room with a large cup of coffee. The tree had a smaller pile of presents beneath it than the previous year, of course. There were fewer of them, and no one had felt like going over the top anyway. Carols were drifting out of the radio, but there was no thud of feet as the boys thundered downstairs, no shouts from Heidi begging them to behave, no Marcus grumbling that he couldn’t find his Christmas boxer shorts.

  No Dad, standing on the patio, mug in hand, contemplating the peace of the garden before he had to join the ‘fun’ in earnest. Ellie recalled their conversation a year before.

  ‘Are you ready for the fray?’ he’d asked.

  ‘The fray? We’re supposed to be enjoying it. You love it really, Dad.’

  ‘I love you. All of you, but Christmas … the jury’s out.’

  He’d laughed though and Ellie hadn’t taken him too seriously. She wished he was here now so they could share a private joke. She would phone him later and looked forward to staying with him after New Year when the café closed. Spend a lot of time with him and try to get to know what he wanted. Try to build a bridge between him and Scarlett and bring everyone together again if it was possible.

  However, the thought of leaving Porthmellow also had a bitter edge. She had once hoped to spend more time with Aaron. What would he be doing now, at home with the Carmans? Pretending, like she was, that he was OK, when he really wasn’t? Was he with Liza? Ellie wouldn’t have believed it until she saw them in town the previous day. It was more likely that he – and his family – were together. She wondered if he’d told them about Liza yet and how that might affect their celebrations.

  The picture of Julian Mallory flashed into her mind, most unwelcome at any time and particularly today. He’d also probably be acting the perfect grandad with his kids and grandchildren. Maybe his dalliances were a thing of the past and he was now only concerned with keeping his skeletons – her and Anna – in his closet and acting the devoted grandpa.

  ‘It’s Christmas, but not as we know it,’ she murmured.

  ‘Ellie?’

  Scarlett walked in, cradling a mug, still in a dressing gown. Their mother followed, in a new top, smiling. Ellie suspected she wanted to make the day as special as possible in the face of the odds.

  ‘Shall we open the presents now or after breakfast?’ she said.

  Ellie glanced at the parcels, touched by her mother’s efforts. ‘After?’ she asked, hoping that was the answer her mum and sister wanted to hear. It was so hard to know what they would prefer to do, but that was family life much of the time: walking a tightrope of compromise, all in the name of love.

  ‘I’ll make breakfast,’ said Scarlett, disappearing into the kitchen and reappearing at amazing speed with a tray with three sundae glasses, with tall spoons in them.

  Ellie whistled. ‘Wow.’

  ‘Ta da! Christmas breakfast granola!’

  ‘This looks delicious,’ her mother said. ‘And very quick.’

  ‘Made them last night and hid them in the back of the scullery. It’s freezing in there.’

  Scarlett’s special breakfast perked them all up briefly, but no one was in the mood for Buck’s Fizz so they settled on Christmas coffee from the hamper sent by Marcus and Heidi. The three of them sat in the sitting room, opening their presents while Ellie pictured the scene in Marcus’s house. Was the atmosphere the same as here at the manor? Subdued and hardly festive, with the grown-ups trying to be happy and going through the motions for the boys’ sakes?

  Despite the absence of half their tribe, the presents were given and received with love and pleasure, perhaps even more so than the previous year now that they felt more precious and personal. Ellie shed a few tears when she opened the wrapping on the bracelet that Scarlett had given her.

  They cleared away the paper and checked the turkey again. Its rich smell filled the house. Everyone seemed eager for something to do. A sense of purpose …

  Scarlett got up. ‘You know what, I keep thinking about Jude getting ready for the Lunch for the Lonely.’

  Anna shook her head. ‘They don’t really call it that, do they?’

  ‘No. It’s the Community Christmas Lunch but according to Jude, that’s what Troy and Evie started calling it, and it caught on among the volunteers.’

  ‘Who’s going to it?’

  ‘All kinds of people. Some are elderly, some rough sleepers, some students who can’t get home for Christmas and a few foreign workers. Jude says they don’t know who will walk in on the day. Maybe a mad woman who dropped a bomb on her family.’

  Ellie smiled. Her mum hugged her. ‘Or a wonderful daughter who’s kind and a bit mad and still has her sense of humour despite everything.’

  ‘Yeah. Call me Saint Scarlett.’ Scarlett rolled her eyes. ‘Thanks, Mum.’

  Ellie laughed. Then there were a few seconds of silence. She looked at the gifts and the tree.

  ‘You know, this is weird,’ she said.

  ‘It is a bit sad,’ Anna murmured and the three of them exchanged glances. ‘Tell me if I’m mad, but I have an idea. We all know that turkey’s far too big for us and we have far too much food so … why don’t we take it to the pub and share it around?’

  Scarlett’s mouth opened in surprise, but a second later she grinned broadly. ‘That’s a brilliant idea.’

  Her glee spread to Ellie, who nodded. ‘It does seem like the perfect solution.’ She laughed. ‘Lucky we kept off the eggnog this year!’

  Scarlett phoned Jude and headed off with the uncooked veg and
trimmings while Ellie and their mother waited for the turkey to finish cooking. It had been put in so early that it would be ready before the pub served up lunch.

  An hour later, she and her mother packed the turkey into the car and drove to the pub. A few people were out and about, enjoying a drink in the various inns before going home for their own Christmas dinners, and one of the restaurants was hosting a lunch. Families were out for a stroll, new scooters and first bikes wobbling on the quayside cobbles.

  Ellie and Anna walked into the pub, with the foil-wrapped turkey in a laundry basket. It would have to be carved and served cold, but with all the piping hot trimmings and gravy, no one would mind.

  The noise and colour as they walked in was such a contrast to Seaholly. Their quiet house was too big for three. It wasn’t the turkey, presents and enormous tree that made Christmas, but the company, friends and family … even strangers. Never had she realised that so fully until now.

  The pub was packed. The tables were laid for around forty people, she guessed, though that included the helpers. She recognised all of them, of course, among them Sam and Gabe, Zennor and Ben from the festival committee. Scarlett was laying out crackers and party hats with Jude. They were laughing and kept touching each other – unconsciously, probably. Ellie was happy for her. She deserved to be happy after the turmoil of the past year. Jude was a bright spot in her sister’s life and they both needed some light, and no matter how disappointed she was by Aaron, she rejoiced for Scarlett.

  Ellie and her mum announced themselves to Gabe and Sam in the kitchen.

  ‘No Evie and Troy?’ Anna asked Sam.

  ‘Not this year. Evie’s having a family Christmas with Aaron at home. Her daughter and family are there too. She’s a cracking cook and she loves welcoming people.’ Sam gave Ellie a knowing look. ‘Are you going round tomorrow after the swim?’

  Ellie was floored by the question. She’d been looking forward to the family event so much until Liza had landed. How could she skate over her disappointment? Despite Liza’s reappearance, Sam obviously didn’t know there’d been a rift between her and Aaron.