Page 36 of A Merry Little Christmas
Maisie nodded a little cagily.
‘I expect you’re on the phone to him all the time when you’re not at school.’ She beamed at me. ‘Ah, I remember it well! Me and Eric Dodsworth. He was my first real love. Obviously, I didn’t have a mobile in those days when I was Maisie’s age. But there was always the landline. We’d talk about absolutely nothing for hours on end. Well, unless Dad caught me, of course.’
I laughed and Maisie said, ‘We don’t have a landline now. And the phone hardly works in the house. It’s such a rubbish signal.’
‘Shame. So do you have to stand outside to talk to Fergie in the freezing cold?’
‘Yup.’
‘Oh, dear. So much for romance,’ said Maddy.
Maisie, who’d been looking a little embarrassed listening to Maddy go on about boyfriends, smiled with relief when Ellie came in. She popped the rest of the Stollen into her mouth and munched swiftly.
‘It smells so good in here.’ Ellie smiled at her step-daughter. ‘Right, Maisie, shall we go? You don’t want to be late for school.’
Maisie shrugged. ‘Lessons are winding down for Christmas now. I probably won’t learn anything much.’
‘Good one,’ laughed Maddy.
‘The Christmas term was always my favourite when I was little,’ I said dreamily. ‘So many exciting things happening.’
‘Exactly.’ Ellie grinned. ‘So whether you learn anything or not, it’s school for you, young lady.’ She turned to me. ‘Katja, can you man the counter while I’m away?’
‘Of course.’
‘Glad you’re feeling better today, Maddy.’
‘You were ill yesterday?’ I looked at Maddy innocently, knowing full well that she was because we’d already decided the chutney was to blame!
‘Er, yes. A bit of stomach trouble.’ She grimaced at me as Ellie headed out into the café with Maisie shrugging on her coat.
‘Ellie definitely doesn’tlookas if she’s been struck down with chutney food poisoning,’ Maddy whispered, looking puzzled. ‘Has she mentioned anything like that to you?’
I shook my head. ‘She seems flushed with health and fleeing around as she always does.’
‘Maybe she’s got a cast-iron constitution. With kids around, I guess you become immune to stuff.’
‘I suppose so.’ I looked at her doubtfully.
She shrugged. ‘Who knows? All Idoknow is that I’m not feeling like I’m going to throw up today which is bloody marvellous!’
I nodded in agreement and went out to the café. Ellie was hunting for her bag and I spotted it on a shelf behind the counter and held it up. ‘It’s here.’
‘Great. Right, let’s get going, Maisie.’
‘Your chutney seemed to go down well the other day,’ I said quickly.
She turned at the door and smiled. ‘It did, didn’t it? I was so unbelievably chuffed that you all liked it.’ She screwed her nose up. ‘It’s not to everyone’s taste, but each to their own, I suppose.’
I looked at her in surprise. ‘You don’t like chutney?’
She made a face. ‘Ugh, no. Can’t stand the stuff myself. Neither can Zak or Maisie.’ She grinned. ‘We’re a family of chutney-haters. Aren’t we, Maisie?’
‘Oh, right.’ I stared at her, processing this, as I followed them to the door.
So that was why she hadn’t gone down with what we’d all had.
Ellie hadn’t even eaten any of the stuff!
