Page 27 of The Best Little Christmas Shop
Chapter Seven
Weak winter sunlight filtered through the chink in my curtains where I hadn’t quite pulled them enough, highlighting a strip of floor at the end of which lay the long, gangly legs of our family’s Great Dane, Apollo. His big square head rested on the rug beside my bed as he peacefully snored, the gentle rumbling causing the large pink tongue that lolloped out of the side of hismouth to reverberate with each exhalation.
I rolled over and watched him for a while, then dropped my hand down out of the warmth of the covers and stroked his golden coat gently with my fingertips. He snuffled a little, stretched out his back legs, and pushed himself closer to the bed, then went back to snoring. We both lay there for a while until nature could no longer wait for either of us.
Getting up, I padded over to my door, and unlocked and opened it. Apollo scooted down the steps, sniffed around for a suitable spot, did what he needed to, and then charged around the back of the house to find his breakfast. I did what I needed to, threw on some clothes and – after inspecting the bread I had in my little kitchenette – binned it and followed Apollo’s example of heading to the mainhouse in search of food.
Both suitably fed and watered and having given time for the dog’s breakfast to go down, I pootled back up to my room and tidied myself up a little more, slapping some protective BB cream on my face before wrapping a cosy scarf around my neck and shrugging into my down-filled jacket and pulling up the fur-lined hood over my woolly hat. I grabbed my boots and sat on thedoorstep lacing them up as Apollo wandered out, a lead attached to his collar and trailing behind him.
Mum tapped on the kitchen window, gave me a thumbs up and waved. I returned all the gestures and descended the steps, which, since hearing about my incident the other evening, my dad had been religiously gritting every day. When I got to the bottom I picked up Apollo’s lead.
‘Come on then,boy.’
Apollo did the little excited dance he always did before going on a walk and we set off. Heading across the fields, I unclipped the catch and let the dog run free. He charged about crazily for a while, braking suddenly every now and then when the possibility of an interesting sniff distracted him. Occasionally he would run back to me, assessing that I was still there, before charging offagain.
After a little while, he returned to my side and we made our way through the crunchy, frost-hardened grass and leftover stems of the autumn. Together we plodded along, Apollo stopping occasionally when he caught the scent of something else worth investigating, before trotting along to catch up and walk beside me again.
Cutting across the edge of another field, I clipped Apollo’s leadand held it loosely over my wrist as we made our way back onto the pavement at the top of the village. In front of us stood the beautifully converted barn that was now home to Cal and George. I pushed open the gate, closed it behind me, and together we crunched over the gravelled circular driveway of the house.
I faltered a little as we approached the door, losing my nerve. But I was here now.What if Cal happened to see me and I just left? That wouldn’t be awkward at all … I knocked on the door quickly before I had too much more time to overthink. There was no answer and I hesitated for a moment, shifting my weight from foot to foot as Apollo sat beside me patiently, his bottom out to the side in a slouchy puppy sit.
‘What do you think, boy?’ I asked him in a whisper, ‘Do I knockagain or shall we just go?’
Apollo looked up at me and tilted his head.
‘Good idea. I totally agree. Come on then.’
As I made to turn away, I heard the lock on the solid wood door thrown and it was pulled open. Dressed in blue checked pyjama bottoms and a white T-shirt, Cal looked absolutely shattered, not to mention way too sexy in a rumpled, just-got-out-of-bed way, for this time on a Sundaymorning.
‘Lexi! Come in.’
I waved a hand. ‘No, it’s fine. I’m so sorry, Cal. I didn’t mean to wake you. We were out for a walk and thought I’d just pop in and see how George was feeling.’
Cal rubbed a hand over his face and gave me a sleepy smile that I responded to in more ways than I’m sure he’d planned for – and certainly more than I’d planned for.
‘Better, thanks. I’m sorry, maybe it wasn’tjust too much Christmas food. He really went down with it a little while after we left you and he’s had a pretty rough night but seems to be over the worst now, thank goodness. He’s got a little colour back and he’s managed a bit of porridge so I think once he’s caught up on his sleep, he’ll be fine. I hope he didn’t manage to pass it on to you or anyone else.’ Cal looked sheepish.
Lexi shookher head. ‘I’m fine. And what about you?’
Cal looked confused for a moment. ‘Me?’
I smiled. ‘Yes. You.’
‘I’m … OK. Thanks.’ He gave me a half-smile that did little to disguise his apparent surprise at him being asked after.
‘Right. Because you look dreadful.’ As soon as the words were out, I was aware how different they’d sounded in my head. Cal was just looking at me. And then he was laughing,really laughing in a way that couldn’t fail to make a woman smile – even if she had just made an idiot of herself. Again.
‘Thanks.’
‘That sort of came out wrong.’
‘Did it?’
‘Yes.’
‘So I don’t look dreadful?’ One eyebrow raised over still-sleepy eyes. Being auntie to a small hoard, I knew mischief when I saw it.
‘No, you do but … oh crap. OK. I’m just going to stop talking now and let youget back to bed and rest.’
