Page 19 of The Christmas Catch
It was a fair point.
And then it started to snow again. First, pretty snowflakes that swirled around them. If you squinted, it was almost like being in a snow globe. But then, the snowflakes multiplied, the wind whipped up, and soon they were both spitting out ice and shivering.
Ali made the move first, and Morgan followed. By the time they got to the services, Morgan had a layer of snow on top of her head, and her eyelids shivered.
Now she didn’t just look like Ali’s first love. She looked like her first love, but frosted.
“I’m not sure why snow is so romanticised. Ice doesn’t get the same appreciation, does it?”
“Unless you’re making a cocktail.”
“I can only dream of a Negroni right now.” Morgan stamped her feet as they walked into the cafe area. She clocked the stares from other people. “Do I look that bad?”
Ali laughed, leaning in to swipe the snow from Morgan’s hair. “You look like you’ve been in a snowstorm. And let’s face it, the heating is barely on in here. It won’t melt any time soon.” She stared into her eyes. Still deep and blue.
Morgan shivered.
“Thanks for making me look less like a snowman. It might have worked better if we still had the cabaret here, but Mrs Claus has long since departed.”
They walked over to the cafe, and this time, Ali got the coffees. She added two vegetable soups and hunks of bread and butter to the order, and brought the tray back.
Morgan looked like she might cry with gratitude. “You’re a lifesaver. I’ve only had breakfast today.”
“And a gingerbread.” Ali checked her watch. “Plus, it’s still only 3pm. We’ve been in survival mode, and we’ve made it this far. Well done us. But we’ll only keep it up with some food inside us.”
“Agreed.”
Ali ate the soup in silence, welcoming the warmth it provided. By the time they finished, Morgan had lost her frosting.
When she was done, she pushed away her bowl. “I’ve had an idea.” She peered out of the window. The snow still fell, but not as fast. She stood up. “Stay here. I’ll be back.”
“Hang on,” Ali began.
But Morgan was already out the door.
Where the hell had she disappeared to?
CHAPTER7
Morgan blew some snow from her face and waved her hand as she walked up the side path where the Christmas trees sign pointed. She emerged into a small courtyard that seemed almost otherworldly. From here, shielded from the noise of the motorway by greenery and twinkling lights, it was a winter wonderland. She stamped her feet to make sure her blood continued to move and looked around for a staff member. Seconds later, a man in a lumberjack jacket appeared, replete with cream fleece collar. He also had a thick black hat on and thermal gloves. Envy fizzed through Morgan as she curled her own frozen fingers at her side.
“Hello, how can I help you?” The man walked over and smiled at Morgan. He wore a name badge that said ‘Dave’. A solid name. Morgan hoped she could appeal to Dave’s sense of community and Christmas spirit.
“Hi Dave,” Morgan began. Always throw in a name when you can. First rule of negotiation is the personal touch. “I was just wondering.” Morgan pointed at his nearby sign. “When you say you’ll deliver, how local is local?”
Dave tilted his head. Up close, his eyebrows were so thick, Morgan half expected a family of birds to be nesting there.
“Depends how polite you are. I’ve delivered to Edinburgh if I have enough trade. But normally it’s more local. Where do you need the tree to go?”
“Manchester?” Morgan winced. She knew it was ridiculous as soon as it came out of her mouth.
Dave threw back his head and howled. “I think they might have Christmas trees a little closer to Manchester that you could buy.”
Morgan took a step closer to him. She could see she had his interest. Either that, or he thought she was completely mad. Possibly both.
“The thing is, Dave, we’re in a bit of a quandary.”
“We?” Dave looked over her shoulder as if expecting someone to materialise any moment.
