Chapter 14
Lavender frowned at the spread she and Zoe had just put the finishing touches to.
‘It looks… wrong.’
‘Because there’s no meat?’ Zoe asked.
‘Yeah! It’s not a buffet without sausage rolls and pork pies… and those little satay chicken things and drumsticks… and ham sandwiches and cheese and pineapple on sticks… and it’s nearly Christmas too, and I’m craving my pigs in blankets.’
‘You can have pigs in blankets next week. And if you can’t wait that long, you can go home and have some. Come on, Lavender. It’s a party for Shabana who’s a strict vegetarian; you can hardly put meat out that she can’t eat.’
Lavender pouted like a toddler. ‘She always says she doesn’t care if people eat meat around her.’
‘Yes, that’s true, but I think having meat on a spread that’s in her honour might be a tad out of order. Look on the bright side – at least she’s not vegan. You can have egg and cheese sandwiches.’
‘Yippee…’
Zoe grinned. ‘Come on… come and help me get the wine out of my car.’
‘I’m surprised you didn’t get non-alcoholic, seeing as she can’t drink either.’
‘I did,’ Zoe said and laughed at Lavender’s groan. ‘As well as a nice bottle of full-blooded Chablis for you because you’re being picked up afterwards so you can drink yourself daft.’
‘You’re such a wind-up,’ Lavender grumbled as she followed Zoe out to the car.
Emilia was just getting out of hers as they went outside.
‘Home visit?’ Zoe asked.
Emilia nodded. ‘Hopefully the last of the year. Unless I get called out on an emergency. Let’s not manifest that, shall we?’
‘Are you staying for Shabana’s leaving do?’
‘I’ll pop my head in if I can,’ Emilia said, and Zoe glanced at Lavender to catch the faintest look of disappointment. ‘I hope you’re not offended if I don’t stay for long… I’ve got some bits and pieces to catch up on.’
‘It’s not us who will be offended or not,’ Lavender said. ‘It’s Shabana’s do.’
‘I’ve already spoken to Shabana and explained, and she understands,’ Emilia said briskly. She glanced at the box of wine as Zoe opened her boot. Zoe half expected her to show some kind of disapproval, but she said nothing. Instead, she strode to the surgery and went inside.
‘I thought she might kick off then about the booze,’ Lavender said.
‘So did I.’
‘You’re always saying she’s a nice person deep down, and she just has this very practical way about her, but I find it hard to believe. You must see something nobody else does.’
‘I’ve known her for years, don’t forget.
I agree, she’s not the easiest person to get along with, and she’s certainly not naturally warm, but she does care.
If anything, she cares too much – that’s why she’s so serious when it comes to her patients and the way the surgery is run. You can’t fault that.’
‘If you say so,’ Lavender said, though she looked unconvinced. She pulled out one of the bottles and inspected the label. ‘You picked this?’
‘Alex helped me.’
‘Not bad. All right. I’ll allow you to marry him.’
Zoe burst out laughing. ‘Thanks. He’ll be thrilled when I let him know we’ve had your blessing!’
As they walked back to the surgery with the box of wine and some crackers Zoe had picked up from the village shop on the way through, Lavender continued, but her tone definitely had an edge of mischief to it.
‘When are you going to get married? You can’t tell me you haven’t thought about it because I’ve never seen a soppier couple than you two. ’
‘We’re not that bad! Besides, next year is Ottilie’s big year – she can do the marrying. I don’t want to steal her thunder.’
‘That’s the worst excuse I’ve ever heard. So we can’t have more than one wedding in a year? Come on – I’m desperate for a few good parties!’
‘We’re about to have a party.’
‘Oh you know what I mean! A proper booze-up where someone does something unmentionable that the whole village won’t stop talking about for years to come.’
‘Sorry to disappoint you, but even if Alex and me were to get married, you wouldn’t find any of that going on at our wedding reception. I’m not sure you’ll get it at Ottilie’s either.’
‘Far too sensible, the pair of you. Imagine how cute Louisa will look as a bridesmaid. Billie too, for that matter.’
‘Don’t tell her you said she’d look cute – she wouldn’t thank you. Louisa, yes, she would look adorable. It’ll happen in its own sweet time.’ Zoe held open the door for Lavender. ‘How’s the panto going? Have you had your final rehearsal yet?’
‘There’s still a dress run to go. Magnus keeps losing it when we mess up – that’s pure entertainment in itself.
And of course nobody’s taking it seriously enough for him because it’s just a daft village thing, so he keeps losing his mind about that too.
He’s threatened to sack Fliss at least half a dozen times, and you can imagine how funny she finds that.
As if you could threaten Fliss with anything – I’ve never met anyone so unbothered in my life. ’
‘I’m looking forward to seeing it. We all are.’
‘You’re still doing the tickets?’
‘Yes, with a special seat to watch from when I’ve done.’
‘Alex and Billie are coming too?’
‘I’m not sure about Billie yet. We were going to ask Corrine to babysit, but she and Victor have already got tickets to come and see the show. It depends who else can help out. We don’t really want to leave her out if we can help it, though she says she’s not bothered either way.’
‘I don’t think Ott is going. She might be able to have Louisa for an hour.’
‘But Flo is in the cast?’
‘Not anymore – she fell out with Magnus and told him she wouldn’t do it if her life depended on it. And seeing as Ottilie isn’t daft enough to pick sides with Magnus and Geoff over Flo, that means she and Heath aren’t going to watch either.’
‘How have you heard all this…? Never mind, I forgot who I was talking to for a moment.’
When they got to the kitchen, Simon was in there. He dashed to take the box from Lavender.
‘I’m not that weak,’ she grumbled.
‘No, but where would my chivalry be if I didn’t offer my assistance?’ he replied as he put it down on the worktop and then turned to the table. ‘You’ve outdone yourselves here, ladies; it looks great. Must have taken ages.’
‘It wasn’t that bad,’ Zoe said. ‘And we had a slow afternoon, which helped.’
He smiled. ‘All the babies are taking Christmas off, eh?’
‘I wish! But I had a nice quiet clinic, so that helped.’
The door to the kitchen opened, and Ottilie came in. Lavender squealed and threw her arms around her.
‘Steady!’ Ottilie said, laughing, as she hugged her back. ‘You only saw me a week ago!’
‘I know, but it’s Christmas and you’re here!’
‘It’s weird to be having another leaving do for another pregnancy and for it not to be mine,’ Ottilie said.
Lavender let go, and she went to hug Zoe, but there was something calmer and more pressing in her greeting. ‘How are you doing? You’re OK?’
Zoe could read between the lines. Ottilie wanted to know how she felt about all this, all of it centred around an event that might never happen to her.
‘I’m great,’ she said. ‘Looking forward to Christmas… What’s this about Flo falling out with Magnus and pulling out of the panto?’
‘That…’ Ottilie threw a knowing glance at Lavender, as if it wasn’t obvious where the gossip had come from.
‘You know what she’s like, and Magnus can be a stubborn thing too.
He wanted something a certain way, she didn’t agree, the next thing you know she’s at our house making a voodoo doll of him and swearing off his shop for good.
Nothing new there either – she says every week she’s going to find somewhere else to get her bits, though God knows where she thinks that will be. ’
‘So you’re not going to see the panto?’
‘It’s more than my life’s worth, isn’t it?
Flo would never forgive me. If I’m honest’ – she glanced from Lavender to Simon – ‘and please don’t hate me, but I’m not really into pantos.
So I know you’ve both got a vested interest in it, but I’m still slightly glad I don’t have to go now.
I’d much rather be at home in the warm with Anthony and Heath and something on the telly. ’
‘I said you wouldn’t be going,’ Lavender put in. ‘I just told Zoe that. Billie needs someone to babysit Louisa so she can go. I said you’d probably be able to do it.’
Ottilie was trying to hold back a frown – Zoe could tell. ‘Don’t worry about it,’ she said. ‘I wasn’t going to ask – you’ve got your hands full with Anthony; you don’t need two babies to look after.’
‘I could if it wouldn’t be for long,’ Ottilie said. ‘The panto is only about an hour and a half, isn’t it? That wouldn’t be too bad, if you didn’t mind picking her up again straight afterwards.’
‘Let me ask Billie; I’m not even sure she really wants to go. I wonder if she might be glad to have Louisa as an excuse to give it a miss, but I’ll tell her you offered anyway. Thanks, Ott.’
At that moment, Shabana came in, a smile spreading across her face as she saw the table full of food and colleagues gathered. She was followed by Emilia, who had a small gift in her arms.
‘This looks amazing!’ Shabana said, her eyes misting. ‘I wasn’t expecting…’
‘Oh, don’t be daft!’ Lavender now turned one of her bracing hugs onto an unsuspecting Shabana. ‘We weren’t going to let you go without a fuss!’
‘I know, but I haven’t worked here for all that long and—’
‘Long enough,’ Emilia said.
‘Seconded!’ Simon agreed. ‘The minute you walked through the door, you were one of the team.’
‘You’ve been brilliant while Ottilie has been on her maternity leave,’ Lavender said.
Zoe nodded. ‘And now it’s your turn. It’s only right we make a fuss of you for an occasion that’s such a big moment for you.’
Shabana dried her eyes. ‘I don’t know what to say. Thank you.’
‘Sit down,’ Lavender ordered. ‘Food and drink first, speech after and then presents.’
Ottilie laughed. ‘I’d do as she says. I’ve heard that tone before – she means business.’