Epilogue
Kazz stirred sleepily, waking not to the sound of sleigh bells or Christmas carols, but to the irate bleating of a sheep who wanted his breakfast. Saul was already awake and he kissed her on the nose before slipping out of bed.
‘I’ll go feed Donald,’ he said. ‘You have a lie-in.’
‘Don’t go,’ she murmured, reaching for him, but Saul was too quick for her.
She was far too excited to go back to sleep, though. It was Christmas Day and she had presents to give – and receive.
As she shoved her feet into her pink slippers, she shouted down the stairs, ‘Don’t forget to give him the peelings.’
Last night, she had prepared all the vegetables for Christmas lunch, and she had saved the peelings for Donald as a treat. Iris had merely shaken her head despairingly when Kazz had bagged them up to bring back to the cottage with her. Kazz and Saul were joining Iris and Geoff for lunch, but this year it was Kazz who was doing the cooking – after all, she may have a new career as a bookshop owner, but she liked to keep her hand in, and Saul certainly appreciated her doing all the cooking, especially since he was hopeless in the kitchen. He was pretty good at doing the laundry, though, so she left that chore to him, along with the vacuuming and dusting.
They shared Donald’s care, Kazz having grown quite fond of the cheeky animal. She had often caught herself talking to him as she pottered in her little vegetable patch, although she was careful to make sure he stayed out of it. She’d learnt from experience that he could decimate a row of peas in minutes, and she’d had to manhandle him out of it by grabbing hold of his fleecy backside and hauling him out. Since then, Kazz had insisted he wear a collar, similar to Tam’s.
As she made the coffee, she found herself wondering where this year had gone. She couldn’t believe that the bookshop was already a year old. Time had flown by so fast, and she wouldn’t change a single thing. Coming to Tanglewood had been the best decision she had ever made.
The aroma of rich coffee filled the air, to mingle with the smell of cinnamon and vanilla from the baking she had done yesterday, and she gave a contented sigh, then yelped as a pair of arms encircled her waist.
‘You shouldn’t creep up on people,’ she admonished, squirming around to give Saul a kiss. ‘Merry Christmas, darling. I love you.’
‘I love you more,’ he said, his mouth on hers. He pulled away gently and stared out of the window. ‘Look.’
It was snowing. Fat flakes were falling from a leaden sky and drifting lazily down to earth.
‘Do you think it will stick?’ Kazz hoped it would – snow on Christmas morning would be as perfect as icing on a fruit cake. And wonderfully magical.
‘Probably not,’ Saul said, pecking her on the nose and reaching for a mug. ‘I need coffee and breakfast before I start my chores.’
‘Haven’t you forgotten something?’ she teased.
‘I don’t think so.’
‘What about opening our presents?’
He blinked at her. ‘What makes you think I’ve got you a present?’
‘I’ve seen it under the tree.’ Laughing, she dragged him into the living room and headed for the Christmas tree.
Presents were piled underneath, and there was one in particular that she had her eye on. It was small and square, and had been hidden underneath the others. It was the only one without a tag.
Saul bent down and rummaged through the pile. ‘Here you go.’ He pulled out a large flattish parcel and handed it to her.
Intrigued, Kazz tore it open, and squealed in delight. It was a painting of her bookshop, and she simply loved it. ‘Can I put it above the fireplace?’ she asked.
‘You can put it where you like. This is your home as much as mine.’
Kazz still had trouble believing it, even though she had been living in the converted barn for nearly a year. She was always careful to run any changes past Saul before she made them, such as redecorating the main bedroom, for instance – her taste and Ashley’s were worlds apart – and Saul always told her the same thing.
Saul loved his present from her (tickets to the Wales–England rugby match in Cardiff), and once they had opened the rest of their gifts, Kazz began to gather up the discarded wrapping paper.
‘You’ve forgotten one,’ Saul said, and she straightened up to find him holding the small box. The one that looked as though it could contain an item of jewellery – such as a ring.
Her heart thudding, she took it from him and sat down on the rug to open it.
Saul was grinning widely, his excitement palpable, and Kazz felt her own building. Oh, my God, this was it.
She tore off the wrapping paper.
It didn’t look like the kind of box an expensive ring would come in…
Nervously, she opened it, and saw that she was right. It wasn’t the kind of box a diamond ring would be in, because the content wasn’t a ring at all. It was a dog tag, with the word ‘DONALD’ on it, and a phone number.
Her disappointment was so acute that she wanted to cry.
‘I thought you could put it on Donald’s collar, since he’s always escaping,’ Saul was saying, and Kazz bit her lip to stop her chin from wobbling.
‘Thank you,’ she mumbled.
‘Why don’t you put it on him now?’ he suggested.
Kazz reluctantly removed the tag from the box and tried to summon a smile.
He stood up and held out his hand. She took it and allowed him to haul her to her feet and lead her outside to the paddock.
Donald was contentedly munching on the vegetable peelings, but was happy to saunter over in case the humans had something more tempting.
Kazz opened the gate and slipped inside, Saul behind her.
‘I’ll hold him while you put the tag on his collar,’ he said.
She held out her hand and Donald butted it gently. ‘Merry Christmas, Donald. Look what Saul has bought you. People will know who to call the next time you get out.’ Kazz thought the tag was a waste of time, because Donald was instantly recognisable and everyone knew who he belonged to anyway.
She was just feeling for the buckle through the sheep’s thick fleece when her fingers encountered something unexpected, and she bent down for a closer look.
‘That’s odd, there’s a piece of fabric attached to his collar.’ Kazz undid the buckle and held up the collar. ‘See?’ The fabric was actually a navy velvet pouch, and she frowned in confusion. ‘What’s that doing there?’
‘No idea.’
‘There’s something inside.’ She undid the cord and tipped the contents into the palm of her hand.
It was a diamond ring.
Kazz blinked, then her heart began to race. Excitement surged through her and she gasped as Saul dropped to one knee.
His eyes full of adoration, he said, ‘I love you with all my heart and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?’
Of course she said yes. What else could she do when he had made her the happiest woman in the world?
As her soul brimmed with joy, she thought how lucky she was to have found him – how lucky they were to have found each other. And all because of Grandad’s legacy.
As Saul slipped the beautiful ring on her finger, Kazz said a silent thank you to the man whose love of books had enabled her to find the love of her life.
Since that awful day in London when she had lost her job and her home, her days had become much, much better, and she couldn’t wait to find out just how good the days, months and years ahead could really get.