Page 70 of The Secret Christmas Bookshop
‘You wentpaddling?’ May sounded horrified. ‘Are you mad?’
‘Very likely,’ Harry admitted. ‘We survived though. Fancy a nightcap?’
‘Perfect.’ May smiled. ‘If you’re sure it’s OK for me to—’
‘We’d love you to,’ Sophie said, at the same time as Harry said, ‘Of course.’
The dogs and Felix followed them into Harry’s study, and Sophie wondered if his goat was a permanent indoor resident now.
There was a sideboard over by the chess set, and Harry poured brandy into three glasses. May hurried to the far corner of the room, where the bookshelves reached up to the ceiling, and Sophie heard a loud click. The light in the room softened, as if she’d turned off a lamp hidden amongst the shelves.
‘Have the bookshelves got inbuilt lighting?’ she asked, as May pulled Harry’s desk chair over to join the armchairs by the fire.
‘What? Oh no,’ May said with a laugh. ‘Nothing that fancy. I borrowed one of Harry’s books –The Last Remainsby Elly Griffiths – and wanted to make sure I’d put it back.’
‘Not everyone’s happy lending out their books so freely,’ Sophie said. She got the sense that May looked after Harry in a lot of small, almost invisible ways. She didn’t want to feel envious, because Harry had assured her they were just friends, but somehow she couldn’t quite get rid of that little green goblin.
‘Here we go.’ Harry handed out three generous glasses of brandy, then dropped into one of the chairs.
‘Thank you.’ Sophie stretched her leg out and nudged Felix’s fluffy bum. The goat bleated, but stayed focused on the flames. ‘That’s a strange-looking dog,’ she said.
‘Oh, he’s completely given up,’ May said with a grin. ‘Harry’s not the Dark Demon Lord of Mistingham – Felix is.’
‘It’s cold outside,’ Harry grumbled. ‘He doesn’t understand why he’s not treated the same as Darkness and Terror, so I decided he didn’t have to be. He comes outside with us, does his business when they do.’
‘I have never met anyone so defensively besotted about a pet goat.’
‘He’ll be taking Felix to bed with him next,’ May said.
‘That isnotthe plan.’ Harry’s gaze was fixed on the fire, and Sophie shivered. It was on the tip of her tongue to ask him what, exactly, the plan was. ‘Anyway,’ he went on, ‘why are you two ganging up on me?’
‘Because it’s fun,’ May said.
‘It’s like poking a bear who’s getting softer by the minute,’ Sophie added with a grin.
‘Getting softer?’ Harry sounded outraged. ‘Not a chance.’
Sophie pointed at Felix and raised her eyebrow.
Harry lifted his glass to his mouth, but she saw him smile behind it, and her stomach flipped.
‘Right.’ May drained her drink. ‘I’m pooped after a long shift of remote technical support, telling people to turn their devices off and then on again, so I’m heading to bed. Sophie, it was great to see you.’
‘You too.’
‘Night both.’ She took her empty glass and stepped into the hall, closing the door quietly behind her.
Sophie could feel her cheeks warming, drowsiness creeping over her after the cold night air, the shock of the icy water earlier followed by the ferocious warmth of the fire.
‘I should show you to your room,’ Harry said quietly.
‘What?’ She sat up straighter. ‘No, I’m fine. I …’ She noticed how everything about him was softer in the fireside glow; his skin and hair tinged with gold, his posture in the armchair relaxed. The only thing that was sharp was his gaze, his intense focus leaving her no room to hide.
‘We should probably go to bed,’ he said, his voice impossibly lower.
‘We should.’ Sophie swallowed.
‘The best spare room is opposite mine.’ He finished his drink and stood up, not taking his eyes off her. ‘It’s got an en suite, and there should be fresh towels.’
