‘I hear little footsteps’ Kester whispers, his face turned to Helen and his sleepy smile just visible in the darkness of the room.
‘So do I’ she groans, returning his smile before laying her head on his chest and closing her eyes again. ‘We could’ve kept the carpet....’
‘....If you’d known we might be having visitors before we stripped the room bare’ he finishes for her ‘Yes, I know’
Helen squirms as he digs her in the ribs. ‘We could have’ she says, nudging him with her head.
Kester listens intently ‘It’s gone quiet again. You think we’ve had a reprieve?’
‘I do hope so, it can’t be time to get up yet, surely? I feel as though I’ve only just got to bed.’
He rolls to the side to be able to see the clock on the bedside table and rolls back again. ‘Half past one’
‘We HAVE only just got to bed!’ Helen snuffles and turns over, folding her hands under her cheek and ready to go back to sleep. ‘Thank goodness for that’
‘Excited, I expect’ Kester lays with one arm behind his head and smiling up at the ceiling. ‘Isn’t she great?’
‘Not at half past one in the morning, she isn’t’
‘You wait until we’re doing night feeds’ He laughs softly then realising what he has said, turns to lay behind her with his hand resting on her hip. ‘I saw you watching her’ He moves his arm to hug and give reassurance ‘It will happen, Helen’
‘We are not having this conversation now.’ she mumbles. ‘Go to sleep’
‘And if it doesn’t, we’ll be the best brother and sister a kid can have’
‘Best does not mean getting them so wound up playing games before they go to bed that they have a restless night.’ Helen says on a yawn. ‘Now, please...if you want this Christmas to work, I need sleep’
‘It IS working...I can feel it’
Hmm, so can I.’ Helen mutters a protest ‘Get back to your side’
Fox Hollow, Uppper Milliwick
Chapter Forty-five
Later at Fox Hollow
‘Good morning’ Helen says in hushed tones, meeting Harriet on the landing ‘Merry Christmas’ she says, giving her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. ‘Did you sleep well?’
‘Wonderfully well, thank you’ Harriet booms and Helen casts a meaningful glance towards the bedroom that Christopher and Lynn have been allotted. ‘Oh, you are far too late to be worrying about waking Cerys. I was about to come and wake you.’ she smiles with delight. ‘We are all gathered in the Great Bed of Ware and Christopher has gone to fetch tea. Come along......You too, Kester’ she calls to him, putting her head around the door to their room. ‘My granddaughter is anxious to see what else Santa has brought her. ‘
‘On my way!’ Kester scrambles out of bed and grabs his dressing gown. ‘Merry Christmas, Harriet’
‘And to you too, dear’ Hugs and kisses are exchanged again and Harriet leads the way back to the master bedroom ‘Cerys is being wonderfully patient for such a small child.’ she declares with some pride. ‘Once one had been opened, she was quite happy to wait until everyone had assembled to unwrap the remainder of her gifts.' She lifts a finger as she issues the caution 'It is as well to check the bedclothes for Lego before you get in’ she warns on a bubbling laugh ‘it can be rather painful to sit on, as I have found to my cost!’
‘More!’ Cerys claps her hands as soon as they reach the door and rushes back to the bed and the red fur fabric sack set in the middle of it.
‘As soon as Daddy has brought the tea.’ Lynn reminds her and pushes back the bedclothes for her to get in again.
‘Morning!’ Ellis grins at Kester and Helen from the middle of the other end and shuffles to one side to make room for them. ‘Merry Christmas!’
‘Merry Christmas, Bro’ Kester jumps in beside him and Helen follows with a giggle.
‘Tea up!’ Christopher rattles his way forward with a tray and sets it on the bedside table before getting in next to Helen, Harriet reclaiming her spot the other side of Cerys.
‘Jeeze, your feet are cold!’ Ellis complains, quickly moving his own. ‘Put some socks on or something’
‘Daddy here now’ Cerys looks first at Lynn then at Harriet, her hands crossed on top of the duvet, assuming a look of long suffering patience as her eyes fall on the sack.
Kester turns his head from side to side, finding the sight of them all in the same bed comical and snorting a laugh. ‘There were.....’ he makes a quick count ‘...Seven in the bed and the little one said....’
‘Roll over! Roll over!’ Ellis readily joins in.
‘And they all rolled over....’
‘And one fell out’ With a yelp, Ellis lands on the floor after a little persuasion from Kester and crawls around the foot of the bed to get in again on the other side as the song and the rolling carry on.
Cerys giggles, her presents temporarily forgotten as Kester, Helen and her father follow Ellis onto the floor one by one, only to get back in to do it all over again. The giggles develop into unstoppable laughter, her eyes watering and spittle dribbling from her open mouth. Harriet and Lynn shake their heads, grinning.
‘She’ll be sick!’ Lynn cautions, hardly able to believe the pantomime in front of her.
‘There were....none in the bed’ Christopher puffs, out of breath. ‘So nobody said...’
‘Over! Over!’ Cerys gurgles.
‘That’s enough now, sweetheart. You’ve got presents to open’ He re-ties the belt on his dressing gown and staggers to the tea tray.
‘That has certainly woken us all up’ Harriet accepts her cup with a laugh. ‘I cannot remember a Christmas Day that has started with such fun!’
‘Nor me’ Kester beams happily and nudges the sack closer to Cerys with his feet. ‘Come on you, hurry up! We all want to see what Father Christmas has brought you’
16 Sadler's Grove, Highlawton
‘I’m back!’ Peter Smith calls and closes the door behind Edna and Charlie, gesturing for them to go ahead of him as he unzips his jacket. ‘Let me have your coats and I’ll put them upstairs when I take your bag up. I’ll show you where everything is once you’ve warmed up a bit’
‘My feet are like blocks of ice’ Edna complains as she pulls off her gloves.
‘Yes...er...sorry about that, Couldn’t have been a more inconvenient time for the car to pack up. Still...we got here eventually, that’s the main thing’
Charlie unwinds the scarf from around his neck and gives a throaty chuckle. ‘You allus promised t’show us the bright lights, boy, but I never reckoned you meant on a tow truck’
Peter grins at his father, glad that at least one of them has found some humour in the situation.
‘’Ow we goin t’get back, tha’s what I want to know’ Edna relinquishes her coat reluctantly, still feeling chilled despite the warmth of the hall.
‘We’ll sort something out, don’t worry.’ Peter drapes their coats over the newel post, looking up and smiling when a figure appears at the top of the stairs. ‘Mum....Dad...This is Judy’
‘Nice to meet you, I’m sure’ Edna strangles the vowels and all but curtsies to the tall, elegantly dressed woman as she descends to welcome them. She elbows Charlie in the ribs ‘Hat’ she hisses.
Charlie whips off his best cap and stands with it scrunched in his hands. ‘Ow do’ he nods, mesmerised. ‘Cor, this is an improvement on the last ‘un!’ he says to Peter, passing the nudge on and earning himself another from a censorious Edna.
‘I think so too’ Peter puts his arm around Judy’s waist and kisses her cheek. ‘Hope nothing’s spoiled’
‘No...It’s fine’ she assures him with a smile and moves forward to offer her hand to Edna ‘Really pleased you could come. I’ve heard such a lot about you’
‘We’ve ‘eard bugger all about you’ Charlie puts in and lobs his cap over her head to land on the stairs. ‘Best stick that wi’me coat else I shan’t know where t’find it’ he issues his instructions to Peter and stands ready to shake Judy’s hand too.
‘That’s something we’ll have to put right, then, isn’t it?’ she says, lightly gripping his fingers in the briefest of handshakes. ‘What would you like to know?’
‘Where the lavvy is fer a start! I’m busting. ’
‘Of course, I should have thought, I’m sorry.’ She flusters, her cheeks warming. ‘You’ve had a longer journey than you expected’ she indicates a door further along the hall. ‘The downstairs cloakroom is there.....Mrs. Smith...’ she offers Edna a faltering smile as Charlie scuttles past. ‘Would you like to go through to the sitting room....or...’ she hesitates over asking if she might need to use the lavatory too.
‘You need to go, Mum?’ Peter poses the question without preamble.
‘I’m perfectly fine, thank you, Peter’ Edna inclines her head, anxious to appear accustomed to polite society.
‘Apart from your feet’ he smiles, hoping for a more relaxed atmosphere. ‘Mum got very cold while we were waiting for the AA to come out’ he explains.
‘You must be absolutely frozen...come in and get warm by the fire. Did you bring slippers?’ Judy asks.
Edna draws herself up to her full height, her indignation overriding any need to keep up appearances. ‘Me shoes are clean!’
‘No..no...’ Judy starts to laugh. ‘Cold feet need slippers. I thought you might be more comfortable in them...and warm! Shoes take almost as long as feet to warm up’
‘Oh...well...Yes..’ Edna reddens at the misunderstanding. ‘They’re in me case’
Judy threads her arm through Edna’s and leads her towards the sitting room. ‘Let Peter sort those out for you while we get you warm on the inside’ she smiles over her shoulder at him then down at Edna. ‘A little brandy, I think....or would you prefer sherry? We’ve got time for a glass or two before lunch’
‘A drop of sherry wouldn’t go amiss’ Edna starts to thaw.
