Page 50 of The Little Shop on Silver Linings Street
‘Then how could I possibly let you down. Lead on, Sir.’
He bowed and, laughing, caught hold of her arm. ‘I’ll race you to the swings,’ he said, taking off and running across the field.
‘You swine!’ Daisy raced after him but her wellies were not really made for running in the thick snow and he beat her easily.
‘Oh, my gosh,’ she panted. ‘I can’t breathe!’ She swept a pile of snow off the top of the swing seat next to Kit and collapsed onto it, grinning. ‘I used to come here all the time as a child. My dad used to—’ She stopped suddenly. ‘It was a long time ago, it doesn’t really matter now.’ She stood back up, annoyed with herself for breaking the mood, but no longer wanting to swing. ‘Shall I push you?’ she asked Kit, anxious not to make him feel awkward.
‘Go on then,’ he replied. ‘I think my masculinity can take it.’
And just like that the mood changed again, and Daisy found herself grinning at the ridiculous notion of two adults playing on the swings in the snow.
‘Higher, higher,’ yelled Kit as she shoved him as hard as she could. He was heavier than he looked, but soon he was soaring into the air and Daisy stood back watching him. His grin was infectious and before she knew what she was doing she had climbed back on her own swing, working her legs furiously to get herself to move.
It had been years since she’d been on a swing and the edges of the seat rubbed painfully at the sides of her thighs, but the sensation was one she remembered keenly. And she was almost there…
And then, without even thinking about it, her swing dropped in line with Kit’s and for several seconds they swung together. It seemed for a moment as if time everywhere else stood still and there was just the two of them, their swings carving an arc through the cold still air in perfect harmony. It didn’t last of course, Kit had a distinct weight advantage and they pulled apart, but something else had aligned in those few moments and Daisy would have sworn from the expression on Kit’s face that he had felt it too.
Daisy automatically allowed her swing to slow, knowing that Kit would do the same. It was getting late and they should probably get moving again. She risked a glance at him, feeling a little awkward, and was relieved to see that he didn’t look uncomfortable at all, he looked just the same. He smiled at her.
‘Childish,’ he said, ‘but incredibly good fun.’
She nodded and returned his smile. How had she never noticed before how easy Kit made everything feel? They fell into step once more as they carried on walking across the park and within minutes were passing through the market square.
Daisy turned her head automatically to look at Buchanans. Like all the other shops, it was still twinkling with festive lights, but she didn’t want to think about it any more today. Tomorrow would be soon enough.
The town was quiet for a Friday night, apart from a large bunch of people obviously headed for a night out. An office party perhaps, but they seemed to belong to a different world from the one that Daisy was in and she exchanged a look with Kit. It wasn’t his cup of tea either by the look of things. They walked the rest of the way in near silence and, almost immediately it seemed, they had left the lights of the town behind them again and the quiet stillness of the canal beckoned.
The moon was still full, but there were more trees here and it was darker than out in the open expanse of the fields. However, Kit walked confidently beside her, navigating the towpath by night just as well as she did.
She breathed in deeply as her hand unhitched the gate into her garden. The cottage was in darkness but it still looked inviting, and she was glad to be home, albeit sad that their walk was coming to an end. She laughed as Kit followed her up the path.
‘You really did mean to the door, didn’t you?’
He bowed slightly. ‘I hope you consider yourself rescued, my lady,’ he said.
And the strangest thing was that Daisy did.
16
Saturday 14th December
Eleven shopping days until Christmas
‘Good morning!’
Bea’s greeting was as cheerful as ever as Daisy pushed open the door to Buchanans the next morning. She was even earlier than usual, knowing that the day was going to be incredibly busy, but pleased to see that Bea had also made sure she arrived in good time. Bea usually covered for either her or Kit when it was their Saturdays off and Daisy always looked forward to their chats before the shop opened.
‘I’ve made your tea,’ said Bea, popping a sugared mouse into her mouth. ‘And eaten far too many of these so, before we get down to anything else, can I suggest that you remove this from me and hide it for the remainder of the day.’ She handed Daisy the box of festive treats.
Daisy grinned. There was nothing to Bea, and she would eat sweets all day if anyone let her. She went through to the back to deposit her bag and coat and change out of her boots. The streets in the town had been cleared of snow, but it was still thick down by the canal. Ready for work, she returned to claim her cuppa gratefully. She had got up in good time, but somehow she had dithered and fussed about and, before she knew it, it had been time to leave and she’d barely managed her breakfast, let alone a drink. She knew why of course – it had been the same reason she’d been unable to sleep. But with any luck they would be rushed off their feet today and Daisy would have no time at all to think about Kit.
‘Right, I’ll make a start on the cases, shall I?’ she asked Bea. ‘I think we should put the platinum diamond collection in the centre for today, don’t you? I mean, if we can’t sell it at this time of year, when can we? And I’m going to change the cushions if that’s okay, the purple I thought, and—’ She broke off, aware that Bea was staring at her. ‘But we don’t have to, of course, I…’
Bea was grinning. ‘First things first, young lady,’ she said. ‘As always, your judgement as far as the business goes is impeccable and yes, we should absolutely do as you suggest. However, do you really think you can come in here this morning and not tell me a single thing about your days out? Heavens, I’ve hardly seen you all week. Come on, I wantdetails…’
Daisy groaned. ‘Do I have to?’ she replied, sighing. But then she frowned. ‘Anyway, isn’t that breaking the rules a bit? I mean, if I tell you what’s been going on won’t that influence your decision about the competition?’
But Bea just laughed. ‘Don’t be silly. I won’t know what piece of jewellery any of the boys is going to choose for you, will I? No, I just want to know how things have gone. You know, how well they got to know you, if you got on… that kind of thing.’
