Chapter 24
When Kazz woke on Boxing Day morning, she kept her eyelids closed and snuggled deeper under the covers, revelling in the warmth. Her bed was super comfy and—
Her eyes shot open as the realisation she had spent the night in Saul’s parents’ house flooded through her. She had expected it to be rather awkward, but it had been anything but.
After Leanne, Rex, Stuart, Lisa and the children had gone home, Iris had made deliciously creamy hot chocolates, plonked a bowl of nuts on a side table within easy reach, and put on one of the films she had recorded. When Kazz saw that it was It’s a Wonderful Life , she smiled at Saul, blushing as she recalled their first kiss.
Soon after the film ended, Iris and Geoff went to bed, leaving Kazz and Saul snuggling on the sofa. Saul had poured them both a whisky, then he’d turned off the lamp and opened the curtains, and they had watched the steadily falling snow until tiredness had overcome them and they’d gone to bed.
She had fallen asleep in his arms and woke up in them this morning, thinking how lucky she was. Yesterday had been almost perfect. The only way it could have been better was if her mum had been there, but Iris and Geoff had made her feel so incredibly welcome that she almost felt part of the family.
As she lay there, enjoying the lie-in, Kazz gazed through the open curtains out onto the hillside above the farm.
The world outside was white.
She tried not to disturb Saul as she extricated herself from his embrace, but it was impossible. His arms tightened around her as he opened his eyes and smiled.
‘Stay here,’ he said, nuzzling her neck.
‘It’s been snowing!’ She wriggled out of bed. ‘Can we go play in it?’ She didn’t care that she sounded like a big kid. She didn’t get to see snow like this very often, if ever. And as she pressed her nose against the glass, she marvelled at how pristine everything looked. The snow was so white that it hurt her eyes.
Abruptly, Saul sat up. ‘Bugger. What’s the time?’ He didn’t wait for an answer, scrambling out of bed instead, and feeling on the floor for his phone.
‘What’s wrong?’ Kazz asked, beginning to feel alarmed.
‘I’m late. There are animals to feed and jobs to be done.’ He grabbed a pair of overalls and gave her a kiss. ‘Sorry, I’ve got to love you and leave you; work on a farm doesn’t stop because it’s a bank holiday. I’ll try to be as quick as I can.’
‘No need to rush,’ she said as he hurried towards the door. ‘Can I do anything to help?’
‘You go have some breakfast and stay warm. We’ll play in the snow later.’ He closed the door behind him, and she heard him head towards the bathroom.
A short while later, Kazz self-consciously wandered into the kitchen, following the smell of coffee. She was dressed in an oversized jumper that reached to her thighs and a pair of thick black leggings. Iris had even given her a brand-new packet of knickers and a pair of fluffy socks. The socks had Christmas puddings on them.
‘Morning, sleepyhead,’ Iris said, on seeing her.
Kazz immediately felt guilty. Iris had probably been up for hours. ‘I didn’t mean to stay in bed this long,’ she apologised.
It was only eight fifty-five, but since Kazz had opened the bookshop, lazing around in bed in the mornings hadn’t been an option, except on Sundays. And not even then, if Saul spent the Saturday night with her, as he had to be out early to start his chores on the farm.
‘Nonsense,’ Iris said. ‘It’s your day off. You are entitled to get up late. Tea or coffee?’
‘Coffee, please. I’m assuming you’ve been up for ages.’
‘I always get up when Geoff does. The bed is too lonely without him in it.’
Kazz didn’t know where to put herself; she didn’t want to imagine Iris and Geoff in bed, thanks! On the other hand, it was rather sweet. Despite being married for God knows how many years, they were still in love.
‘Anyway,’ Iris continued, putting a mug of black coffee on the table next to a bowl of sugar and a small jug of milk that she’d taken out of the fridge. ‘I’ve always got jobs of my own to get on with – a never-ending list of them.’
Kazz said, ‘I asked Saul if I could do anything to help, but he told me to stay indoors.’
‘He was right to, it’s bitter out there. It might be pretty to look at, but it’s harsh up on the mountain.’
‘Is that where Saul and Geoff have gone?’
‘Not to the top, because we’ve brought the sheep into the fields for the winter, but it’s higher up than the farm.’
Kazz sipped her coffee and thought about Saul. He was far more complex than she had realised when she first met him all those weeks ago, and over this past day or so she had seen a different side to him again. Lothario or not, he was hard-working, thoughtful and adored his family. He was also practical and good with his hands (she steered away from just how good he was), yet he enjoyed reading and loved nothing more than to lose himself in a book.
The more she got to know him, the harder she was falling for him.
Kazz sighed ruefully. Falling? She had already fallen.
Despite her best intentions, she had fallen in love with Saul Green. She might have known that once she let him into her bed, she would invariably let him into her heart.
And it felt fantastic!
Kazz became aware that Saul’s mum was studying her, and she squirmed in her seat.
Iris pulled out a chair and sat down, clasping her hands on the table in front of her. ‘Do you mind if I’m frank with you?’
‘Not at all,’ Kazz replied, wondering what she was about to say.
‘You’re the first girl he’s brought home to meet us, but before I read anything into that, I wanted to check it’s not just because you’re a friend of Leanne’s.’
Gosh, how was she supposed to answer that? ‘I think he might have felt sorry for me, being on my own at Christmas,’ she said.
‘It’s not that. You could have gone to Stevie and Nick’s, but Saul wanted you to have dinner with us. And we’re delighted you did. It’s been lovely having you.’
‘Thanks. I’ve enjoyed it, too.’ She wasn’t enjoying this part quite as much, though. What was Iris getting at? Was she warning her off her son, or welcoming her into the family?
Iris rubbed her hands together, the knuckles turning white. ‘I wanted to ask if it’s serious between the pair of you. And before you answer, let me say I will be delighted if it is.’ Her face turned pink and she dropped her gaze.
Kazz felt flushed too, and it had nothing to do with the heat belting out of the Aga. ‘We’ve not known each other long,’ she hedged.
‘But you do like him?’ Iris persisted, looking up.
‘I do.’
‘Good.’ Saul’s mum blew out her cheeks. ‘I was beginning to worry. You see, he can’t keep a girlfriend for love nor money. He’s always out on a date with this one or that one, but they never seem to come to anything. Leanne says he’s nothing more than a tomcat, picking them up and dropping them just as quick, but I can’t see it myself. I reckon he gets dumped as much as he dumps – if you know what I mean. He can get girls easily enough, he just can’t hang on to them.’ Iris paused, her eyes bright. ‘I’m hoping he’ll hang on to you. Geoff and I both are.’
Kazz was dumbstruck. Iris clearly didn’t have a clue about Saul’s reputation and Kazz didn’t intend to be the one to enlighten her. And neither did she want to discuss how she felt about Saul with his mother! Still, it was nice to be given the seal of approval. She had heard so many tales of mothers-in-law from hell. Take Tia, for instance… Although her friend had finally seemed to have reached an understanding with Lady Tonbridge. It was nice to know Kazz would be accepted by Iris and Geoff, if it ever came to it.
And perhaps it might, because if she was the only woman he had taken to meet his parents, then he must feel something for her.
Mustn’t he?
‘Is that what I think it is?’ Kazz demanded later that morning. She was staring incredulously at the wooden contraption that Saul was holding.
‘We’re going sledging,’ he announced grandly.
The sledge looked like it had been made out of old pallets. A slatted seat was attached to a pair of carved runners. Saul held a rope that was secured to the front. The sledge didn’t look particularly safe, or fast – although it was probably a good thing if it was slower than a slug crossing a road.
‘There’s only one sledge,’ she pointed out.
‘We only need one.’
‘I’m not going to go down the Cresta Run on my own, even if you are waiting to catch me at the bottom,’ she warned.
‘You won’t be going down on your own. We’ll be going down together.’
‘On the same sledge? We both won’t fit on.’
‘We will. You sit in front, and I’ll sit at the back and steer.’
‘You can steer this thing?’ She stared doubtfully at the rope.
Saul followed her gaze. ‘That’s not for steering,’ he said. ‘That’s for dragging it up the hill.’
‘Which hill?’
Saul pointed to the slope above the farm. He was grinning like an idiot.
‘We’re going up there ?’
‘Not too far, only a hundred metres or so.’
‘That’s far enough.’ A lot could happen in a hundred metres. They could fall off, for a start.
‘It’s just about right,’ he said. ‘The slope is steep enough to build up a good head of steam, but it levels off so the sledge can slow down before it goes into the fence.’
‘What if it doesn’t slow down enough and it does go into the fence?’
‘We’ll have jumped clear before then. But don’t worry, that’s never happened.’
‘There’s always a first time,’ she muttered, not relishing the thought of flinging herself off a moving object to land in wet snow. ‘How do you steer this thing?’
‘Come on, I’ll show you.’ Saul took her mittened hand and began to tow her, and the sledge, up the snow-covered hill.
Kazz had borrowed a thick puffer jacket from Iris (her coat having been deemed unsuitable for traipsing around in the snow on a Welsh hillside), and she was sweating when she reached what Saul alarmingly referred to as the ‘jump-off point’. Kazz had no intention of jumping off anywhere.
She was seriously considering telling him to go ahead and that she would walk down and meet him at the bottom, when Saul lined up the sledge so it faced down the hill and straddled it with both legs, holding it in place. She noticed he kept a firm grip on the rope.
‘You get on first and I’ll get on behind you,’ he said. ‘Don’t worry, I won’t let you fall off.’
She wasn’t worried he would let her. She was worried that falling off would be an inevitability, no matter what he did.
Gingerly, she clambered onto the death-trap (sorry, sledge ) and lowered her bottom slowly onto the seat. The wood was cold, and she winced. Now that she had stopped walking, she was starting to chill.
She felt Saul get into position behind her and his arms came around her waist to grip her tight. But despite his solid, strong presence at her back, Kazz wasn’t convinced this could end in anything other than tragedy.
‘Ready?’ he asked.
Her ‘No!’ turned into a shriek as he pushed off and the sledge began to move.
This isn’t so bad , she thought as it slid slowly down the hill, but even as the thought went through her mind, the horrid contraption began to pick up speed and within seconds it was hurtling down the slope faster than a boy racer on a dual carriageway.
The speed of the wind in her face nearly tore the bobble hat from her head, and the sledge’s runners sent flurries of snow into the air to wet her cheeks and land in her open, screaming, terrified mouth.
‘Argh!’ she yelled as the fence rapidly grew nearer and nearer, and—
Without warning, Saul threw his body to the side, taking Kazz with him, and the sledge kinked to the left.
She thought they were going to come off, but instead the sledge began to slow.
But it didn’t slow enough. The fence was still rushing towards them and she simply knew they were going to hit it.
Kazz closed her eyes and prayed. Please, please, please…
They’d stopped. The sledge had come to a halt about ten metres short of the fence.
‘Whoop! Whoop!’ Saul yelled.
In disbelief, Kazz sat there. They hadn’t crashed headlong into the fence. They were alive and unhurt.
‘I want to go again,’ she announced, and she scooted around to kiss Saul soundly on the lips.
When she finally released him, he said, ‘I told you it would be fun, didn’t I?’
After a couple more goes, they returned to the house, cold but happy. Then his mum insisted on Saul and Kazz staying for lunch – which consisted of bubble and squeak, and leftover turkey, with a huge slice of Christmas cake for afters – before they eventually made their way back to the village and Kazz’s flat.
After a hot bath (it had been a bit of a squeeze with both of them in the tub, not to mention the watery mess on the floor) they wrapped themselves in fluffy towels, and Kazz curled up on the sofa, tucking her feet underneath her. She’d had such a lovely day, and although it was still early, she was ready to cuddle with Saul in front of the TV and vegetate until bedtime.
‘It’s been a great Christmas,’ Saul said, sitting next to her. His hair was damp and he smelled of soap.
He lifted his arm up and she shuffled across to snuggle into his side, putting her head on his shoulder and letting out a contented sigh.
‘It has,’ she agreed. ‘I’ve had a lovely time. Thank you so much for inviting me.’
‘You’re welcome.’ He kissed the top of her head.
‘I don’t think I’ll be long out of bed tonight,’ she said, and he sniggered.
‘That’s good. Being in bed with you is my favourite pastime.’
‘I’ll have to get some sleep,’ she warned. ‘I’m going to Cardiff with your sister tomorrow.’
‘I don’t envy you. I’d prefer to muck out the sheep shed than go anywhere near a shop on the first day of the sales.’
‘It’s lucky you aren’t coming with us, then, isn’t it?’ She laughed and snuggled deeper into his side. ‘I’m sure me and Leanne will have a lovely day.’