Page 40 of The Gingerbread Cafe
‘You can go up with Farmer Wilbur if you prefer. But I think he’d rather nip off to the pub to meet Gordon and leave us to it. He’s Bea’s kind of eccentric dad,’ Lukas explained.
‘Ahh, so that’s what you were thanking Bea for earlier.’
‘Friends in high places.’ Lukas gave her a nudge as he looked up to Wilbur in the cradle, clearly pleased at his terrible joke.
It turned out Wilbur ran the local lavender farm, amongst other peculiar projects that generally made poor Bea roll her eyes. He parked the cherry picker next to the Christmas tree and after a bit of a demo with the controls he was off on foot in the direction of the pub, promising to return after his pork scratchings and shandy.
‘A cherry picker with fairy lights,’ Gretel mused, as she admired the cradle, which was festooned with glittering lights, not unlike the solar lights which lived on the tree, even if most of those needed replacing. The ones that worked were twinkling now too. ‘Farmer Wilbur must be an old romantic.’
Lukas shrugged. ‘He’s in charge of the Christmas decorations and general tree maintenance, even if both could do with some love. Maybe he found a spare set lying around. He has specific approvals to use his machine here, so he’s promised to fix the dud tree lights soon too.’
She could tell from the smile Lukas was trying to hide that he may have put in a few special requests. The thought warmed her on an evening that was beginning to get quite chilly. She suddenly noticed she was shivering. Lukas stepped to grab his backpack, pulling out his coat for her. It was the green parka with the furry hood that he’d been wearing on Christmas Day when she’d bumped into him up the hill.
She’d sensed even then that there was something about being around him that made once-dormant parts of her begin to shimmy to life. Now there was no denying it. Against all her carefully laid plans to keep feelings of closeness at bay, she was falling for him. Did he feel something too? The toasty green coat he was draping around her shoulders as he helped her step into the fairy-light-strewn cradle told her he might, and that was scarier still.
‘But what will we put up there?’ She turned to him with a quizzical look as he stepped into the cradle behind her.
‘Ahh. That’s lady’s choice.’ He dug into the bottom of his backpack and pulled out a carefully packed cardboard box. ‘I swung by the café earlier and picked something up. But there are a few options in the bag, in case I’ve done the wrong thing.’ He ran a hand over his stubbly face as though he was genuinely nervous. ‘Look, I know today must have been difficult for you,even if most of this was your fantastic idea.’ He nodded to the street around them as shadowy bunting fluttered in the night air and the tree at their side bowed abundantly with lovingly made offerings. ‘You’re doing a brave thing.’
She huddled further into Lukas’s coat. ‘Maybe things lose their sparkle if you don’t give them the chance to rest.’
‘Well, I felt your huge reluctance to pack your favourite glass fairy away the other night when we cleared away the Christmas decorations at the café. It’s the one you were making when I barged into you with the spiky end of a Norway spruce the Christmas before last.’
Gretel remembered the scene when the fairy had gone flying, but he’d somehow caught it. ‘She’s called Brigitte. It was my mother’s name.’
Gretel took the box from Lukas and opened it, gently peeling back the tissue paper to reveal Brigitte. As she held her up by her purple ribbon, the light from the moon flickered across her iridescent wings like she was preparing for flight. ‘She adored being outdoors and she belongs here. Thank you.’ As they huddled there, a memory came to her. One that must have been lost for a while. ‘Mum will love getting a great view of the February Fair. I remember sharing our first cinnamon hot chocolate there, cosying up outside Nell’s café, little red-cheeked Rosa tucked up in her pram. She’d be excited to see the fair returning. They both would.’ Gretel lifted her eyes to the sky. This wasn’t all about losing things.
Lukas rubbed her back gently and she took a deep breath. When she was ready, she nodded and he pressed the controls so the arm of the cherry picker moved up towards the top of the tree. As they rose serenely, the mechanical buzz sending a mellowing vibration through them, Gretel held the angel to her chest.You can watch over us all, Gretel told her silently. It’s what you always did best. I don’t need to grasp on to you untilyour poor wings break.Gretel knew that later she would find a space on the tree for her little glass Rosa too. They belonged together.
Lukas operated the machine deftly without disrupting her thoughts. When they reached the top he stopped them gently and turned away to give Gretel privacy, but she pulled him back. ‘It’s OK, you can help me. I want you to.’ She kissed the angel’s small face and then, balancing carefully, reached over and used the ribbon to tie her to the top of the tree. She expected to feel a wrench when it was time to let go, but it was the opposite. The simple gesture felt freeing and right.Gute Nacht, Mama.
And then something told her it was time for her to rise too. Just a little. So she pressed the foot switch like Farmer Wilbur had showed them and moved the controls until they were gliding up above the tree, interrupted only by Lukas’s surprised laugh. When she stopped them safely she realised he had one arm around her waist as though he was keen to help anchor her. She liked that thought. They turned together slowly, taking in the magnificent view. Every part of her body felt exhilarated, her mind almost dizzy with mischievous joy.
They were as high as the chimneys which puffed in the distance, the dark hills standing guard around them. Above, the stars shone brightly on this clearest of nights, as though bathing them in their blessing. Then she noticed that Lukas’s jaw was tight where he was trying not to shiver. Of course. Without cloud cover it was cold if you’d given your coat away, even if your colouring did look magical by starlight.
Before she could overthink it she turned to face him and opened the front of the coat, which was rightfully his, and beckoned him in. He paused briefly to check she was sure and then moved in closer, his arms slipping around her waist and finding the warmth of her back, his cheek brushing against hers. Her skin tingled as he exhaled, releasing a shiver that could havebeen cold but somehow seemed like more. When he pulled his head back to look at her his eyes were like silver as they caught the moonlight. She felt almost breathless.
And yet …
‘Are you OK?’ He smoothed a few wisps of blonde hair away from her face to get a better look. She might not understand him yet, but he seemed to know when she needed to talk. ‘Is something troubling you?’
She sighed, conscious he’d feel her every breath against his skin. She wondered if he could even make out her quickening heartbeat. ‘What if all of this comes to nothing?’ He’d probably assume she meant their hard work to turn Green Tree Lane around, but she was also terrified this absurdly romantic moment would fizzle out to nothing more than another awkward blunder.
‘Is this about Franny Whimple again? Because you know your misplaced jealousy was doing strange things to me this morning.’ He gave her a cheeky smile.
‘Are yougamefor her?’ She felt silly even saying it, but isn’t that what Swingy Bob had said?
‘I’m game for you.’ As he pulled her in more tightly to his firm chest she lost sense of whose rapid heart she could feel beating.
‘That wasn’t the question.’ Was now the time to be pedantic? But if she was going to let her fragile heart keep falling, she wanted to feel sure where it would land. ‘Would you let her win?’
‘The café, or my heart?’ His eyebrows knitted. ‘Franny is misunderstood, Gretel. Most of her behaviour is driven by others. But trust me, I definitely don’t think of her like that.’
Gretel pulled away, freeing herself from his embrace. ‘But the café is still fair game.’
He raked a hand through his hair. ‘Look, I don’t have all the answers, OK? But I do know something is changing in me. Today has been one of the best days I’ve had since I don’t know when.Being around you and becoming part of this community you’ve created felt incredible. It’s like you’re giving me something I didn’t even know I needed. And I know already that it feels addictive.Youfeel addictive.’ He took a tentative step towards her and she didn’t stop him. It was almost as though she couldn’t. ‘Like you, I still have broken parts to fix. I can’t promise how I’ll feel in a few months’ time about the café or the future life plans I’d always thought I wanted. So if you want to put your foot on the pedal now and manoeuvre us back to the safety of solid ground, I’d understand. We’d never have to mention this.’ He took another small step in, his grey eyes fixed on her in a way that was making her melt. ‘I know your world is fragile. And yet …’ He closed the gap between them, his body fitting snugly against hers once more. ‘If you’re willing to take a chance, I want to be gentle.’
Before she could stop herself she lifted her arms upwards, grabbing the back of his hair and pulling his face towards hers. ‘Not too gentle,’ she whispered into his mouth as their lips met in a kiss that stirred every part of her.
