A Christmas Wish and a Cranberry Kiss at the Cosy Kettle: A heartwarming, feel good romance

by Liz Eeles

  ‘How can it not be? I’ve just told you that I love you.’

  ‘But you don’t. Not really. Not as anything more than a friend.’

  ‘I do. I’m in love with you, Zac.’

  ‘No, you’re not. You’re feeling vulnerable and sad and reading more into our relationship because you’re upset about Logan. I know you, Becca. And I don’t want to ruin our friendship for something that will never last. I couldn’t bear it.’

  He turns abruptly, walks over to the trestle table and starts piling up plates, with his back to me. I can see the tension across his shoulders. His muscles are taut beneath the snow-white cotton of his shirt, and I feel as if my heart is about to burst.

  I walk over and place my hand on his back, between his shoulder blades. His shoulders slump and he says, without turning round, ‘You know I’m right, Becca. I don’t want to make a total tit of myself because you’ll feel differently in the morning when you’re not so upset.’

  ‘No, I won’t feel differently. I’m not upset about Logan because it was my decision not to go to the club with him.’

  Zac turns, confusion marked across his face. ‘Why? Securing a date with Logan was on your wish list, and you got there. Your wish came true.’

  ‘It did, but I knew in my heart of hearts a while ago that Logan isn’t the man for me. And Jasmine said as much this evening.’

  ‘What did Jasmine say exactly?’

  ‘She said Logan wasn’t kind enough for me and then she talked you up, big-time. I thought it was because you two were going out.’

  ‘She was trying to push you my way without actually breaking her promise to me.’

  ‘What promise?’

  ‘I swore her to silence about how I felt about you, and she could see how excited you were about your date with Logan. She didn’t want to burst your bubble and mess up our friendship for nothing. She’s a good sort, your sister, and she cares a lot about you.’

  ‘Yeah, I know. And her life isn’t as charmed as I thought it was. I got that wrong. I’ve got a lot wrong, actually. Do you want to know the main reason why I turned Logan down?’

  ‘His remarkably tiny brain?’

  ‘That, but also because when he properly kissed me all I could think was that I’d rather be kissing you instead.’

  Pain ricochets across Zac’s face. ‘Don’t make fun of me, Becca.’

  I grab Zac’s hands and hold on tight. ‘You know me better than anyone, Zac. Do you really think I’m making fun of you?’

  Zac stares deep into my eyes as my breath catches in my throat. This wonderful, gorgeous man has been in front of me all the time and I was so busy trying to be someone that I’m not, I didn’t see it. ‘Well, do you?’ I ask.

  Zac steps forward without a word and places his hands on either side of my face. He stares at my mouth as he bends his head and then he’s kissing me. Oh boy, Logan, you have a lot to learn. Little shocks of love and lust ripple through me and I close my eyes.

  Zac suddenly breaks off and gazes at me, his breathing shallow. ‘Would you rather be kissing Logan Fairweather right now? I need you to be honest with me and with yourself, Becca.’

  In answer, I put my arms around Zac’s neck, pull myself tight against his body and kiss him back. Tears prickle my eyes and one rolls down my cheek.

  ‘Crikey, Beccs.’ Zac pulls away but keeps one arm around my waist as he wipes a finger across my cheek. ‘Am I making you cry?’

  ‘Mmm.’ I swallow, hardly able to speak. ‘But in a good way.’

  ‘I thought crying was for wimps,’ he says, softly kissing my cheeks where tears have tracked across my skin.

  ‘That was one of the many things I was wrong about,’ I gulp.

  ‘I absolutely love it when I can say I told you so.’

  ‘Ah, you’re such a know-all.’

  Zac suddenly looks serious. ‘But what if you’re right about us just being friends? What if this doesn’t work out and it ends our friendship? I couldn’t bear not having you in my life.’

  ‘And what if I’m totally wrong and you and I are meant to be together? All I know is that seeing you with someone else would break my heart. It did break my heart when I thought you were with Jasmine. I am honestly and truly in love with you, Zac, and what if it’s best to let things happen the way they’re meant to, rather than trying so hard to push our lives in a different direction? What if this is my wish coming true the way it should?’

  Zac sighs. ‘Do you ever stop talking?’

  ‘Not really. I can’t help it. When I get nervous I—’

  I would say more, lots more, but it’s hard to talk when your best friend, the man you’re hopelessly in love with, pulls you against him, and kisses you until the lights of The Cosy Kettle fade away and you feel perfect peace.

  Epilogue

  One year later

  Zac lounges back on Mum and Dad’s sofa and stretches out his long legs. ‘That was the best Christmas dinner I’ve ever had, Pauline. Though make sure you never tell my mum that.’

  ‘We’ll be sampling the delights of your mother’s cooking tomorrow.’ I kick off my Doc Martens, throw myself onto the sofa beside him and link my fingers through his.

  ‘Don’t remind me. Tough turkey, roast potatoes like bullets and gravy you can cut with a knife.’

  ‘Your mum’s lovely. Don’t be mean about her cooking.’

  ‘She says it herself and she’ll just be delighted to see us, especially you, seeing as she thinks the sun shines out of your…’

  He stops, glances at my mum and grins. Then he leans towards me and kisses my nose. And, even though it’s been a year since we first shared a kiss in The Cosy Kettle, the feel of his lips against my skin makes my toes tingle.

  ‘I’m sure your mother’s cooking is fine,’ says Mum, but she looks pleased as she hands Zac a Tupperware box crammed full of mince pies and slices of Christmas cake. ‘A little something to keep you going when you two get home,’ she tells him with a wink.

  If Zac’s mum is fond of me, my mum absolutely adores Zac and shows it in the best way she knows how – by trying to feed him up all the time. He reckons he’s put on half a stone since we discovered we were in love, but if he has it doesn’t show when he’s wandering naked around the cottage.

  ‘And are you definitely sure that you like your painting?’ asks Mum, biting her lip. She nods at the canvas propped up beside us: her painting of me and Zac walking along a Honeyford street. Golden-yellow buildings edge the picture and white clouds are bubbling over splashes of green hills in the distance.

  ‘It’s brilliant, Mum. We love it. Almost as much as Dad loves his painting.’

  Dad lifts his head from the Radio Times he’s studying and clears his throat. ‘It’s not bad, I suppose.’

  ‘Which is why you’ve hung it in pride of place,’ I laugh, stealing another glance at the large canvas of Dad that’s hanging over the fireplace. There’s so much tinsel festooning it, it’s hard to see the actual painting but I can make out Dad’s jawline and the curves of his mouth. It’s one of several paintings done by Mum over the last few months. She’s loving her art course and even Dad has come round to his wife disappearing for hours with an easel under one arm and a box of paints in the other hand.

  ‘She seems happier now she’s immersed in this painting lark,’ he admitted in the kitchen a couple of weeks ago. ‘But I could still do with a decent cooked meal every now and again.’ At least his domestic skills have increased. I noticed that Mum had him peeling the carrots for lunch today when we arrived.

  The front door suddenly slams and Jasmine bowls in. She’s in jeans and her hair is hanging loose.

  ‘Hey, fam,’ she calls, dropping a bag overflowing with presents onto the floor. ‘Happy Christmas Eve! The prodigal daughter has arrived.’ She grins at me and I smile back. Jasmine has lost a little of her golden-girl sheen within the family recently, and she’s all the better for it – less prickly and uptight.

  ‘What time did
you say your interview was again?’ asks Mum.

  ‘Blimey, let me get my coat off first. It’s at ten o’clock a week on Tuesday.’

  ‘That’s a good time,’ chips in Dad. ‘Before the interviewers get tired. They’ll remember you.’

  ‘Then let’s hope it’s for all the right reasons,’ says Jasmine. She survived the first round of redundancies at her company last January, but lost her job in the second round a few weeks ago. I know Mum and Dad are worried about her but she’s a survivor and she’ll be fine.

  ‘How are things going at The Cosy Teapot then?’ asks Jasmine, flopping into a chair and swinging her legs over the arm. ‘Seeing as you are the queen of Honeyford activities these days.’

  ‘I have been busy with a few parties in the run-up to Christmas. Logan seems to have recommended me to lots of people. Remember him?’

  ‘He’s very hard to forget.’ Jasmine fans herself with her hand. ‘The one who got away, hey, Beccs?’

  She grins at Zac, who puts his arm around my shoulders and pulls me tight. ‘Don’t leave me, Becca,’ he implores me, with an exaggerated pout.

  ‘Never,’ I tell him, gazing into his gorgeous brown eyes that are flecked with green.

  Jasmine shifts in her seat. ‘Ugh, get a room, you two. You’ve been together for twelve months now so hasn’t the glow worn off yet? Talking of getting a room, is lovely Logan hooked up yet?’

  ‘He is. I often see him around town with a very attractive brunette on his arm, and he always smiles and waves.’

  ‘Ah, that’s a shame about the girlfriend. I might have had another go myself, though I am rather taken with the new barman at the Pheasant and Fox. Can you get me his number?’

  ‘I’m not going to be your matchmaker, Jazz. But we’re going to the pub on New Year’s Eve and loads of people will be there – Flora, the book club, loads of café customers. Why don’t you come too and you can hook up with the barman yourself?’

  ‘I might just take you up on that. Will the old bloke who wears skinny jeans be there?’

  ‘Stanley? I expect so. Why?’

  ‘I just like him. He makes me laugh. Has his granddaughter sprogged yet?’

  ‘Give the poor girl a chance. She’s only seven months pregnant but she and her boyfriend are over the moon about it. Stanley is beside himself at the thought of being a great-granddad. He’s reading every baby book he can get his hands on and he’s even got the book club reading baby manuals.’

  ‘I bet that’s gone down well with the scary lady,’ chuckles Jasmine.

  ‘Millicent? Yeah, you should have seen her face. Though she’s chuffed for Stanley, I can tell. And Flora’s happy for him, too.’

  ‘Is Flora still with that older man? The handsome one.’

  ‘Yeah, she and Daniel make a good couple. They seem really happy together.’

  ‘Though they haven’t moved yet.’

  ‘Nah, they keep saying they’re going to move out of Starlight Cottage and get their own place, but I don’t think they ever will. They’re settled there, and Caleb loves living with Luna.’

  ‘Is she the weird witchy woman with the long silver hair?’

  ‘Yeah, but she’s not weird. Not really. She’s just different from you.’

  ‘Thank goodness. I’d rather be stressy like you than different like her.’ She smiles to soften the blow and I smile back. She seems more relaxed these days but I can’t really say the same for me – and that’s OK.

  I’m more confident and assertive than I’ve ever been before, which is wonderful. But I’m never going to be laid-back and zen, however many wishes I make. That realisation has hit home over the last year. But I’ve come to terms with being an anxious person and have decided, with Zac’s wise counsel, that it’s better to embrace it and make the most of the benefits it confers – the sensitivity and empathy and kindness – rather than trying to shoehorn my personality into a whole other one that doesn’t fit.

  Anyway, Zac loves me the way I am, and I’m learning to love me the way I am too. How could I not when all my angst has brought me to where I am now – running The Cosy Kettle in beautiful Honeyford and living with a man I adore.

  If you adored spending time in cosy Honeyford with Becca, Zac and the book club, you can sign up here to be the first to know when there’s another charming romance story by Liz Eeles.

  Hear More from Liz

  If you want to be the first to know when Liz Eeles has a new book out, you can sign up here. We promise never to share your email with anyone else, and we’ll only contact you when a new book is released.

  Books by Liz Eeles

  The Cosy Kettle series

  A Christmas Wish and a Cranberry Kiss at the Cosy Kettle

  A Summer Escape and Strawberry Cake at the Cosy Kettle

  New Starts and Cherry Tarts at the Cosy Kettle

  The Salt Bay series

  Annie’s Holiday by the Sea

  Annie’s Christmas by the Sea

  Annie’s Summer by the Sea

  A Letter from Liz

  Thank you so much for reading A Christmas Wish and a Cranberry Kiss at the Cosy Kettle. As a rather ‘stressy’ person myself, I’ve loved writing about Becca’s struggle with anxiety and giving her a happy-ever-after ending with gorgeous Zac. I do hope you enjoyed her story.

  This is the final novel in my Cosy Kettle series and I feel sad to be moving on from Flora’s bookshop and café, and the beautiful Cotswolds. But my next novel is set in an equally awesome part of the UK, and I’m excited to be writing a whole new story with a host of brand new characters. You can find out when that book will be published by signing up at the following link. Your email address will never be shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

  Sign up here!

  You can also keep up to date with my latest writing news via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and my website. I spend rather a lot of time on social media! My links are below, and I hope you’ll stop by.

  Before I go, can I ask a favour? If you did enjoy A Christmas Wish and a Cranberry Kiss at the Cosy Kettle, I’d be grateful if you could spend a few minutes posting a review. Your opinion might encourage new readers to spend time in Honeyford with Becca, Flora – whose story is told in my second Cosy Kettle book, A Summer Escape and Strawberry Cake at the Cosy Kettle – and Stanley’s granddaughter, Callie, who features in the first book, New Starts and Cherry Tarts at the Cosy Kettle. Many thanks in advance.

  Liz x

  www.lizeeles.com

  A Summer Escape and Strawberry Cake at the Cosy Kettle

  The Cosy Kettle café is the perfect place to escape this summer, for fans of Cathy Bramley, Jenny Colgan and Debbie Johnson. Guests can tuck in to fruit puddings and strawberry-studded ice cream, but for Flora, the warm summer breeze is blowing in big changes…

  When Flora finds out about her husband’s secret fling, she escapes to the one place she feels safe: her beloved café, The Cosy Kettle, in the charming village of Honeyford. Serving up cream teas to her café regulars is the perfect way to soothe her broken heart, and although she’s never lived in the area, the little community welcome her with open arms.

  She’s soon lodging with local eccentric Luna in her remote and beautiful Starlight Cottage, snuggled between rolling green hills. Luna’s handsome son Daniel lost his wife several years ago, and as Flora gets to know him, sharing walks through the blossom-scented woods, they both slowly begin to heal… and she realises that behind Daniel’s quiet exterior, there’s a passionate nature that makes her forget all about her ex-husband.

  As she settles into her new life, hosting a baking competition for the village’s summer celebration seems like a great idea… but with Daniel’s mysterious silences leading Flora to believe he’s hiding secrets, she can’t help but wonder if she can really trust him. And when the race to bake the perfect Victoria sponge stirs up old rivalries between locals, Flora starts to feel like she’s bitten off more than she can chew.

  After her new start,
will Flora ever truly belong in Honeyford? And, this summer, can she risk opening up her heart again?

  Get it here!

  New Starts and Cherry Tarts at the Cosy Kettle

  Fans of Cathy Bramley, Debbie Johnson and Jenny Colgan will fall in love with The Cosy Kettle café, where slices of lemon meringue pie are served in the sun-dappled garden – and where Callie’s new beginning collides with an old flame…

  After yet another failed romance, twenty-six-year-old Callie Fulbright is giving up on love. She’s determined to throw all her efforts into her very own, brand-new café: The Cosy Kettle. Serving hot tea, cherry tarts and a welcoming smile to the friendly locals proves to be the perfect distraction, and Callie feels a flush of pride at the fledgling business she’s built.

  But her new-found confidence is soon put to the test when her gorgeous ex reappears in the quaint little village. She’ll never forget the heartache Noah caused her years ago, but when they bump into each other on the cobbled streets of Honeyford she can’t help but feel a flutter in her chest…

  As Callie and Noah share laughter and memories, she starts to wonder if this could be her second chance at happiness. But when Callie discovers that someone is mysteriously trying to ruin the café’s reputation… she has an awful suspicion that Noah knows who’s involved.

  Was she wrong to ever trust him again? And can she find out who’s behind the lies and rumours, before it’s too late for The Cosy Kettle?