Chapter 33
PAUL
Holly was quiet as we left the farmhouse together.
The first day of December was crisp and grey.
The cloudy sky meant the Christmas lights around the farm could be seen, though.
I had come to the farm earlier than I needed to in the café van so I could attend Willow’s lunch.
It was the type of thing I would have avoided before, annoyed by how corny this town could get around big events but I took the opportunity to spend more time with Holly. We hadn’t talked for a week.
I’d thought about changing that so many times.
I’d wanted to be alone with her so many times.
But I also didn’t want to do anything that might chase her away again.
I wondered if she thought about me in bed at night or when she woke up because I sure as hell thought about her.
She was on my mind whenever I had a second to myself.
The way she had felt when I touched and kissed her.
The way she had smiled at me in my bed. The way she was so shocked that we were on her side when Karl told us about her dick ex-boss.
I wished she knew I would always be on her side if she wanted me to be.
‘Let’s walk the whole thing like everyone will be doing later.’ Holly broke into my thoughts and I thanked God she couldn’t hear them. They would freak her out, I was sure. She was acting like we were just friends. I had to follow her lead there.
Even if I didn’t want to.
‘Okay, so here we go,’ Holly said as we reached the polytunnels that been covered in what looked like snow.
To the side of the tunnels were Christmas trees tied up ready for people to buy.
Sabrina had made a wooden Mistletoe Lane sign that stood outside the entrance.
Daisy had created an archway of holly and ivy and lights and when we walked through it, there was a table and chair ready for the person who would be checking and selling tickets.
‘It’s supposed to feel like a trail towards Santa’s grotto,’ Holly explained.
Inside, the tunnels had been covered in fairy lights, which twinkled with magic. Christmas music played throughout.
The first tunnel was decorated like a forest with the lights dimmed so it felt like you were walking through trees. Along with bark on the ground that created a soft path to walk along.
They had placed reindeer statues in between Christmas trees that were left bare and rustic in this tunnel.
There were also statues of woodland animals and toadstools dotted around.
And they had created a photo opportunity for visitors: a wooden bench with a Christmas tree on either side and draped it with fur rugs.
Behind the bench was a sign saying Mistletoe Lane and another pair of reindeer figurines were beside it.
I knew people in town would love to have their picture taken here.
We walked through another holly and ivy archway into the second tunnel.
The next tunnel was set up for crafts. Holly pointed to the empty stalls, saying they would be soon filled with things people could buy, and there were tables for kids to colour in Christmas scenes.
This section had a couple of Christmas trees in it too that Holly said they were going to encourage kids to hang their creations on them.
We walked through it and then passed through another of Daisy’s archways, entering a Christmas tree haven.
I let out a breath as I looked at the line of trees on each side of the tunnel, each one decorated in a unique way.
They looked like we could have been in a fancy department store.
The trees reached up high towards the fairy-light ceiling above.
Fake snow was draped in between them and the ground was soft bark. It looked amazing.
‘Did you do this?’ I asked, looking at one tree that was sparkling gold and then another that was in rich reds and traditional tartans, followed by one that sparkled with icicles and silver ornaments.
‘With Willow, yes,’ Holly said. ‘This was our sentimental tree…’ She gestured to one that was covered in the kind of ornaments you collect through the years as a family, Disney ones, felt animals and decorations that looked like they were homemade.
‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more festive space in my life,’ I said, shaking my head. ‘This must have taken you hours.’
Holly nodded. ‘It was worth it, though. I want people to gasp when they walk in.’
‘They will,’ I promised her, confident that would be the case.
‘Come on,’ she said, eagerly leading me into the next tunnel. When we’d walked through it, I stopped and smiled as I looked around. The kid in me woke up with a sharp jump.
‘You like it?’ Holly asked eagerly. She stepped forward and gestured, her arms wide.
I followed her as I took it all in. The tunnel was decorated as a snow walk leading the way to the North Pole.
Fake snow covered the floor and there was a snow machine blowing snowflakes all around us.
They floated through the air like feathers.
We hadn’t had snow in Birchbrook for a couple of years and even though I knew this wasn’t real, it did feel magical anyway.
I would have adored this if I had walked through here as a child.
I followed Holly slowly, not wanting to miss anything.
We passed penguin statues and a polar bear that Holly said they found at a Christmas warehouse. There was a sign pointing towards the North Pole. And there was another photo set-up with a snowman and snowwoman couple.
I chuckled. ‘Why do they look like my parents?’
‘Oh my God, they do! We have to have a selfie with them.’ Holly pulled out her phone and we ducked down, laughing as we stood with the snow couple.
I slung an arm around her, immediately feeling better for being able to touch her again.
It was over too soon, though. ‘I’ll send it to you,’ she promised as the scent of her perfume washed over me.
‘I can use it as this year’s Christmas card; they’ll think we’re posing with my parents,’ I said.
She giggled again. ‘Stop it or I’ll tell them that!’
I smiled, pleased I’d made her laugh. ‘This is my favourite tunnel,’ I declared.
‘Just wait,’ she said, dropping me a wink. I laughed then and she looked pleased. God, why did being with Holly make me feel young again? No, that wasn’t quite right.
It made me feel alive again.
A big smile played on her lips as she led me into the final tunnel. A sign declared us to be in Santa’s grotto.
‘Oh no, these two,’ I said when I spotted Willow’s two Shetland ponies, Blossom and Jasmine.
They were in a small enclosure beside the giant red sleigh that Willow had made, which had fake presents piled in it that glittered in the glow from the fairy lights.
There was also a shed with a red door and a wreath over it that Holly told me kids could go inside and write a letter to Santa then post them in a red postbox.
‘Someone is going to be dressed as an elf so people can have photos with the ponies,’ Holly explained. ‘Willow hasn’t found a Santa yet but if we can’t, I hope people won’t miss him with all this instead.’
‘They will love it. I just hope the ponies behave; they are known to be naughty,’ I remarked, going over to pat them. They had always been cheeky but I knew the kids loved them.
‘Don’t say that!’ Holly said. She straightened a bow on the roped-off section. ‘Do you think people will enjoy it then?’
‘Of course,’ I assured her. ‘Show me the rest before everyone comes over here.’ I wanted to keep Holly to myself for a little bit longer.
‘This is the end of the tunnels then people will leave through here to go out to the rest of the wonderland,’ Holly said, pausing at the final archway.
It was a larger arch and along with the décor that matched the other archways, there was a large sprig of mistletoe hanging down here, tied with a red bow.
I paused too and looked up. Holly was stood directly underneath it. Slowly, I moved my eyes down to meet hers. She stared back at me, her eyes wide. I looked down to her pink lips, slightly parted. Did she have any idea how much I longed to kiss her right now?
‘It’s tradition,’ I said gruffly as I stepped towards her. ‘What do you think?’ I asked, hoping she wanted to kiss me too.
She exhaled loudly. ‘I guess it is tradition, and I don’t need any bad luck…’ She trailed off and bit her lip.
That did it. I leaned in, placing my fingertips gently under her chin, tilting her face up to meet mine.
I kissed her gently, savouring the feel of her lips on mine.
But she stepped close and murmured so I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her in to my chest, deepening our kiss.
She matched my eagerness, her lips pressing against mine with more passion than I’d expected.
This wasn’t just a quick mistletoe peck; this was deep and hungry.
I let out a contented noise and then I backed us up, pressing Holly into the archway.
She gasped as I touched her tongue with mine and she clung to my shoulders while I leaned in, enjoying the feel of our bodies against each other.
‘Holly! Paul! You guys in here?’ Willow suddenly called out.
We both froze. I pulled back to see Holly’s lipstick was smudged and her hair tousled as she straightened herself upright. I wiped my lips, smeared with her lipstick, and took in a breath as my body tried to calm itself down.
‘Sorry, I don’t know what happened…’ Holly said breathlessly as I reluctantly dropped my arms from around her. She moved past me, ducking quickly under the archway and out into the fresh air.
‘Hols, wait,’ I said, quickly darting after her. We couldn’t kiss like that then just pretend it hadn’t happened.
‘I need to go, Paul,’ Holly called back over her shoulder, her cheeks flushed. ‘Just forget it, okay?’ She hurried off again and I let out a puff of air.
Outside, we were on a trail that led to the ice rink.
It was marked out with stones and they had put up wooden posts and looped fairy lights in between them on either side.
There was a sign directing people to the ice rink and my café van that stood by the side of the rink.
There was a large Christmas tree and, in the distance, I could see the birch trees lit up and the farmhouse looking welcoming.
It was like something right off a Christmas card but I couldn’t take it in.
My eyes just searched for Holly. Willow had found her and they were chatting as they stood by the ice rink.
‘Everyone is getting ready for the opening,’ Willow was saying to her when I caught up with them.
The men who ran it were setting up, getting the skates ready, and I itched instantly to take a turn on the ice.
Anything to distract me from that kiss. ‘You okay, Paul? All ready to serve food and drink? You look distracted.’ Willow turned to me, frowning.
I wondered what the expression on my face looked like.
Instead of meeting her gaze though, I looked at Holly, who was studiously avoiding my eyes.
I knew she wouldn’t want to talk about our kiss and that pissed me off, I couldn’t help it.
I’d waited all week for some kind of sign from her and she gave me that and now I was just supposed to forget all about it?
‘Bloody hell, Willow, of course I am,’ I couldn’t help snap at her, and I walked off towards the café van.
I knew instantly I’d been a prick to Willow, who hadn’t deserved it.
I would apologise later but it was hard not to be grumpy when the woman I was rapidly falling for seemed to want to do anything she could to push me away. And I had no idea what to do about it.