by Mandy Baggot
‘God, Dad, no, stop!’ Brooke said putting her hands over her ears.
‘We’ll find you something real good,’ Maddie said, linking her arm through his. ‘I’m thinking stripes and maybe red ’cause it’s almost Christmas.’
‘Red stripes?’ Brooke exclaimed in horror. ‘Are you kidding me? He wants a second date, Maddie!’ She took his arm, pulling him a little away from her sister. ‘I’m thinking grey pants with a blue shirt and maybe braces … braces are really in right now.’
Chase smiled at his daughters. Right now, with them both animated and involved in lively debate, he couldn’t care less if they dressed him as Borat.
Sixty-Four
Larkspur Gardens
‘I can still feel her here, you know,’ Hannah stated through a mouthful of Christmas muffin.
Isla nodded. She knew exactly what Hannah meant. They had spent so many wonderful times as small children in this place with Edith. Simple things like weeding the flowerbeds in spring, picking up different kinds of leaves in the autumn to form collages that Edith would stick on her kitchen tiles, and picnics on the grass in summer, spraying each other with water from the frog fountain. It was spurting this evening, not blocked with ice, and the Christmas lights all around were just starting to illuminate as the night arrived.
‘I know,’ Isla said. ‘But it’s a happy feeling, isn’t it? Like we know she’s at peace.’
‘She would totally love these Christmas muffins,’ Hannah said, wiping her face with the back of her hand.
It was now or never if she was going to share this with her sister. And she wanted to. Because she usually shared everything. Except everything was ordinarily nothing spectacular in her ordered world.
‘I brought Chase here.’ Isla held her breath. The words were out.
‘You did?’ Hannah queried.
Isla nodded, unable to direct her gaze at the frog. ‘And we sat on this bench.’
‘Uh-huh,’ Hannah said, as if somehow knowing there was more.
‘We kissed,’ Isla said. She shut her eyes and all the feelings came rushing back including how out of control she’d felt earlier today in Enfield. Chase’s mouth against hers, the way she had pressed herself to him … ‘And I kissed him again today and … he’s taking me out on a date tonight.’
The last words had taken all her energy and she looked to Hannah, waiting for the shock, surprise and perhaps a little anger at being kept in the dark. Instead what she got was a smile as wide as the plans for the super-hotel taking over her sister’s face.
‘I knew it!’ Hannah exclaimed. ‘I knew there was no way that a: he could resist your red hair and that pantsuit and b: how you could seriously not be hot under the pantsuit over someone as smoking as him!’
‘Well,’ Isla began. ‘I don’t know what to say about either of those things.’ But in truth she hoped this wasn’t just based on hot hair or flaming pantsuits. Or did that really matter? It was a nice development, this passion around the planning, but anything more than a pre-Christmas flirtation wasn’t on either of their agendas.
‘God!’ Hannah exclaimed. ‘What’s he like? Does he kiss as amazing as those lips look? Is he all about the tongue?’
‘Hannah!’
‘Sorry, it’s just … wow, I mean, wow, Isla, he’s so … right for you.’
‘Right for me?’ Isla queried. How could her sister claim that someone she had barely known five minutes be ‘right for her’?
‘Yeah, I mean he’s gorgeous, as previously discussed, he’s clever and he’s funny and he wears seriously nice suits and yeah, he has kids, which could be a complication, but they’re great. Maddie is cute and Brooke, well, she reminds me a little of me.’
Isla smiled. ‘Yes, it’s funny you say that. I thought the same thing.’
‘Oh you did, did you?’ Hannah said, stuffing the last bit of muffin into her mouth. ‘I don’t know how I feel about that.’
‘So,’ Isla said. ‘Do you think I should go on the date tonight?’
‘Is that really a question? Of course you have to go on the date,’ Hannah said. ‘Why wouldn’t you?’
‘A hundred reasons.’ Isla sighed. ‘He’s my boss. He lives in America.’ She swallowed. ‘He’s my boss.’
‘I hate to diss your maths skills but that isn’t a hundred reasons,’ Hannah replied. ‘And so what to the boss thing and the U.S. thing? As always you’re looking at the big, giant picture and missing the fun you would be having if you weren’t worrying your pantsuit off over everything.’
‘I don’t see why my pantsuits need to be brought into this.’
‘Go on the date, Isla. Have some fun. Kiss the face off the gorgeous Chase.’
‘And you’ll be all right tonight?’ Isla asked.
‘I’ll be all right even if you don’t come home tonight. I can sleep on the sofa or …’
‘No,’ Isla said. ‘No, there won’t be any need for that.’
‘Why not?’ Hannah asked. ‘You’ve kissed him twice. Surely you’re going to be moving on to taking items of clothing off next?’
Isla’s cheeks began to heat up. Just thinking about Chase shirtless, let alone trouserless, made her stomach coil with excitement, longing and nervous fear.
‘Wear your best knickers,’ Hannah stated. ‘Not the boy shorts. The black lacy ones you hand wash.’
‘I now feel violated,’ Isla said. ‘How do you know what I hand wash?’
‘There are no secrets between sisters, right?’
Apart from the large one she was keeping about Breekers’ plans for Notting Hill. Isla settled for nodding her head. ‘So … how are things with Raj?’
‘Well,’ Hannah said. ‘I’ve come to the conclusion that he’s a slow-burner.’ She crumpled up the paper bag in her hand. ‘At first I thought he might be like an advent candle, but I’m now thinking he might be more of one of those big Jo Malone ones that take weeks to burn a couple of inches.’
‘He did buy you some lovely flowers,’ Isla pointed out.
‘But he didn’t snog my face off either.’ Hannah tutted. ‘Beaten to my Notting Hill kiss by my sister.’
‘Well I am that much older,’ Isla said. ‘And it really isn’t a competition.’
‘I know.’ She sighed. ‘And I get the feeling he does like me he just … needs to be sure and there’s nothing wrong with that,’ Hannah admitted.
‘Gosh, Hannah Winters, that isn’t some sort of patience I detect, is it?’
‘Don’t tell anyone.’
From her handbag Isla’s phone dinged loudly signifying a new text message.
‘Ooo,’ Hannah exclaimed. ‘A message from the sexy New Yorker?’
Isla couldn’t help a smile but then immediately she wondered if it was perhaps Chase thinking better of his invitation or, worse still, he was cancelling because something was wrong with one of the children. She rushed to get the phone from her bag.
‘What does he say?’ Hannah asked. ‘Are there lots of love heart emojis?’
Isla swallowed as she read the text. It wasn’t from Chase. It was from Aaron.
No answer from the caterers so I went to their premises. No easy way to say this. They’re gone. The place is more deserted than the England football team’s trophy cabinet.
Sixty-Five
Beaumont Square, Notting Hill
The Breekers’ Christmas party was done for. In all the years Isla had been in charge of organising it, it had never failed to impress. Now, unless she could find a decent caterer who wasn’t booked solid on the run up to Christmas she was either going to have to cancel or make canapés herself. What was she going to say to everyone? She was Miss Super-Organised. It was almost all her worst fears come true.
But, for the time being, as she had done with the super-hotel project, the impending disaster was shallow-grave buried for her own temporary sanity as well as for Hannah. She had decided to focus on something she could manage. When Isla had shown her sister the white feather Christmas tree s
he had made a noise like a squealing firework and declared it the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. Right now, in their close-to-Christmas-grotto living room, Hannah was busy reaching out and positioning all the branches with the utmost care and deciding which ornament belonged where. Isla was looking in the mirror above the fireplace wondering whether she needed to upgrade her current moisturiser as this one wasn’t making her quite as youthful as it claimed.
‘Have I said how gorgeous this is?’ Hannah asked, popping a diamante teardrop on one of the slender arms of the tree.
‘Yes, you did,’ Isla replied.
‘Well it really is,’ Hannah repeated. ‘And I’m sorry about being a pain in the arse when I kept asking about the tree. I know you’ve been busy and you’ve probably got mammoth amounts of work going on with the CEO, not to mention the Christmas party.’
Oh God. She really didn’t want the Christmas party mentioned. Any more comments and the earth would start to fall away and the spectre of the problem would start filtering into everything. She nodded quickly and changed the subject. ‘Well, Christmas isn’t Christmas without a tree, is it?’
‘I guess that’s one thing that’s going to be difficult with me and Raj,’ Hannah said.
‘What?’
‘That he doesn’t celebrate Christmas.’ Hannah sighed. ‘It is my favourite time of the year.’
Isla turned away from the mirror then and looked at her sister. ‘Well, we’re not exactly big church-goers, are we? And I always thought your favourite parts of Christmas were the decorating and the eating.’
‘How very dare you!’ Hannah exclaimed. ‘I also enjoy watching re-runs of Dirty Dancing and Annie and getting up early for the Next sale.’ She grinned. ‘It’s surprising how far a wheelchair can get you up the queue if you groan like your injured legs are actually going to drop off.’
‘Well Iqbal and Geeta don’t celebrate Christmas and they still decorate,’ Isla pointed out. ‘And you can always get Raj a present just because it’s nice, not because it’s religious.’
The doorbell rang before Hannah could answer and instead she let out: ‘Wooo, your escort is here.’
Her date. She needed to concentrate on that. On grabbing a little bit of down time with someone who made her insides fizz like Christmas party prosecco.
‘Are you excited?’ Hannah asked her.
She was. Despite everything, she really was. She just wished there wasn’t a whole mound of disaster loitering in the background. She should push the party woes a little deeper, maybe a good six feet … inside a sealed box.
‘What’s wrong?’ Hannah asked, turning away from her new best friend, the Christmas tree.
‘Nothing,’ Isla answered, smoothing her hands down the front of a midnight blue dress she had worn the night of the Breekers’ James Bond themed Christmas party. At the time she had hoped it had looked a little like Jane Seymour’s Solitaire. Now she just hoped there were no weak seams or missing buttons on the detail she hadn’t seen.
‘Relax,’ Hannah said, wheeling herself towards her sister. ‘You’re going to have a great time. Where’s he taking you?’
She gasped. Hands shooting towards her mouth. ‘I don’t know. I don’t know anything,’ she said. ‘I didn’t even ask if he meant dinner or what I should wear.’ She had a sudden thought. ‘What if he’s taking me … bowling or something.’ She looked at her dress. ‘Americans love bowling.’ There was no way she could bowl in this dress. Loose seams or not there was very little in the way of give.
‘Stop panicking,’ Hannah ordered. ‘And go and answer the door before he thinks you’ve changed your mind.’
‘Yes,’ Isla said. ‘Yes, I should do that.’ She took a breath and rushed from the room.
Chase blew out a breath that formed a white rush in front of him as he stood at the top of the concrete ramp outside Isla and Hannah’s home. There was a cranberry-coloured circular wreath on the front of the door that hadn’t been there on his last visit. There was also light coming from inside the house and the sound of voices. God, he was nervous. When was the last time he had dated? There had been no one since his break-up with Leanna. He hadn’t even thought about it. He hadn’t had the time and he hadn’t wanted to. This connection with Isla was just so … different. Unexpected but undeniably something he wanted to pursue.
Slipping his hands into the pockets of the new pants his children had made him buy he shifted his feet. Brooke seemed to have a good eye for fashion and everything she had picked up he had liked too, and it all suited him. As well as the grey pants, he was wearing a dark teal shirt, tucked in, with a brown belt Maddie had chosen. It wasn’t his usual style but he felt good and the girls had got a lot of pleasure out of adorning him. They had worked together like Team Sister, picking things up, holding them up to him then putting them back on the rack if they had sniffed and shaken their heads too much.
The door opened and his adrenalin shifted into another gear, as if he hadn’t been expecting it to happen. There Isla was, looking absolutely incredible.
‘Hey,’ he breathed, almost too tight to say the one word. He needed to temper his enthusiasm just a little bit. ‘I mean, hi …’ That was no better. ‘Good evening.’
‘Hello,’ Isla greeted.
‘You look amazing,’ Chase said, swallowing.
‘I like your shirt,’ Isla remarked. ‘Is it new?’
‘Yeah,’ he replied. ‘Brooke kinda said I’d be “lame” if I didn’t buy it so I did the Dad thing and … gave in.’
Isla smiled. ‘It’s very nice.’
‘Haven’t you two gone already?’
Chase waved a hand at Hannah who had appeared behind Isla in the hall. ‘Hi, Hannah.’
‘Hi,’ she replied quickly. ‘So, where are you taking my sister tonight?’
‘Han!’ Isla exclaimed, cheeks already halfway on their way to a blush.
‘You want to know for … security reasons?’ Chase inquired. ‘I thought we had established I was not a paedophile or creepy in any way that very first time we met.’
‘Very amusing,’ Hannah answered. ‘No … Isla is worried you’re going to take her bowling. And, I think, seeing as she looks like a star of London Fashion Week tonight, taking her up an alley isn’t really going to cut it.’
‘Hannah! Please, can you just ignore my sister,’ Isla begged. ‘I like bowling. If we are going bowling then bowling is just fine with me.’
Chase smiled and nodded. ‘I thought we’d go bowling then to a diner where we can eat hot dogs, buffalo wings and biscuits with gravy. Plus, you already told me you have a soft spot for grits.’
He looked at each of the women in turn, neither of them making any comment.
‘I’m kidding,’ he replied. ‘No bowling and no American food.’
‘Good,’ Hannah answered. ‘Now, get out of here and let me finish decorating my fabulous feathered friend.’
Chase had no idea what she was talking about.
‘It’s our Christmas tree,’ Isla elaborated. ‘Okay, so you’re all right for everything?’
‘Yes, shove off,’ Hannah ordered.
‘I will have her home by midnight, I promise,’ Chase said as Isla stepped out and joined him.
‘You bloody well won’t,’ Hannah retorted.
Chase smiled at Isla, getting a little lost in her eyes. ‘Shall we?’ He indicated the waiting car and offered her his arm.
‘Yes,’ she answered.
Sixty-Six
London Eye, Westminster Bridge Road
‘Honestly, you need to excuse Hannah, bowling would have been fine … and fun,’ Isla said as the car stopped at traffic lights. ‘I might have needed to change my dress but—’
‘Miss Winters, bowling was never a possibility,’ Chase said. He couldn’t keep his eyes off her. Like before, on their trip to the Electric Cinema, she had pointed out all the tourist landmarks. Plus she had told him stories about other off-the-guidebook places he suddenly craved to know everything
about. Apparently there was a pub in Soho that still resembled an old-fashioned drinking den and a club called The Nightjar in Blackfriars that was dark and mysterious with live jazz and swing music going on until three in the morning. Now he literally ached to go there.
‘It wasn’t?’ she asked, turning to him.
‘No,’ he answered. ‘Because as well as taking my girls out this afternoon I also planned our evening together.’
‘You did?’
He nodded. ‘And I emailed Breekers New York.’ He sucked in a breath. ‘Isla, I wanna get this out there and then I think we should leave work behind for tonight.’
He saw an almost fearful expression cross her face in anticipation of what he was about to say.
‘Okay,’ was all she answered.
‘I emailed the board and I told them my opinion, taking into account everything I’ve experienced, heard and thought about while I’ve been here.’ He took a breath. ‘I explained what Verity and John told us, what Ffion presented and what Richard showed me over email earlier … I concluded to the board that I didn’t think Notting Hill was the right location for the super-hotel after all. I told them I thought the parcel of land in Enfield was a better fit.’
Isla’s stomach danced. It actually danced like Aljaž Škorjanec doing a jive at the Blackpool Tower ballroom. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. What she had said to him about her home, all the places she adored, had made a real difference.
‘Isla, I can’t promise they are gonna go with my suggestion this time,’ Chase spoke. ‘I was the one so invested in Notting Hill after all. I just …’
‘But you tried,’ Isla said softly. ‘You went out on a limb and I am so, so grateful for that.’
‘I think I really needed the reality check you gave me,’ he admitted. ‘I was blinkered by wanting to create the kind of stir I thought the project needed, but I hadn’t taken into account anything but the end-game.’ He sighed. ‘I skipped over community feeling, pretended it didn’t exist at all, I guess, and that was wrong.’