‘This is the best shindig we’ve ever been to. Lovely atmosphere. Lovely food. Good booze.’ He raised his now empty glass and looked at it in confusion, clearly unaware of how it had become empty.
‘I’m very glad you’re enjoying it, Arnold. Merry Christmas.’
‘Merry Christmas to you too, Nelly the elephant.’ He lurched forward to give her a kiss on the cheek but the vision of his black teeth and purple lips lunging towards her were too terrifying for words.
‘Oh, baby Jesus,’ she cried, dodging sideways and shooting to standing. Luckily, Harry was close by.
‘Nell, I’ve been looking for you. You owe me a dance, best hostess in the world.’
She’d never been so happy to see the handsome American and not because she’d kind of fancied him before the Tom epiphany. Taking her hand, he led her to the dance floor. She glanced around but couldn’t see Tom, Cat or Kieran anywhere. Tom was so tall she normally spotted him in an instant. He must have left without saying goodbye and as she imagined Kieran and Cat leaving in a row, her heart sank within her chest.
‘So, I can’t believe tomorrow’s our last night together and I’ll be heading back to the States.’
He held her in a strong embrace as they slid to and fro, but it felt alien. ‘You must be looking forward to going home.’
‘I am. But there is one thing I’ll miss.’
‘Oh, and what’s that? Don’t tell me it’s our fine British weather?’
He gave a loud barking laugh that drew the attention of the people near them. ‘No, it’s not. It’s the prettiest, most brilliant hostess a guy could hope for.’ Before Nell knew what was happening, he had spun her out, twirled her back in and dipped her in a first-class ballroom dancing move. His head moved closer, smile wide, perfect teeth in full view. Big red flashing sirens were going off in her head. No, no, no, no, no! She pulled away, shell-shocked and unsure what to say. She didn’t want him to kiss her. She wanted Tom to kiss her.
From the corner of her eye she saw Tom staring at her in disbelief. He hadn’t left. He hadn’t gone without saying goodbye. But now he did, stalking off without saying a word.
‘What’s wrong?’ Harry asked, pulling her up.
‘Harry, I’m sorry.’ Nell pulled herself free and left him on the dance floor to chase after Tom, but by the time she made it to the front door he’d gone.
In the street in front of Holly Lodge, the chill wind wrapped around her, penetrating the thin material of her dress and she felt icy cold through to her bones. Even the blood running through her veins was like a frost on her skin. Just the other side of the road the sea washed onto the pebbled beach, hitting the rocks and pulling them under. The tears that fell stung her face, burning her cheeks with embarrassment that Harry had done that, and frustration that Tom hadn’t given her the chance to tell him how she felt. Everything was a mess. Tonight had been a horrible mixture of the business finally making headway while the rest of her life fell apart. Why? Why did life always have to be like that? If her feet hadn’t hurt so much, she would have stamped them in a temper.
‘Want to tell me what all that was about?’ The American accent told her immediately who it was.
‘Harry, listen.’
Urgh, this was awkward. Why did Harry have to tell her how he felt tonight? Of all the nights he’d stayed, why now? And how to reject him kindly? She hadn’t turned yet, worried that he was right behind her and if she did, they might be so close that he tried to kiss her. Ironically, after wanting to picture herself with Tom and being unable to, she could see every moment of this scene playing out. Nell gave herself a mental shake knowing she was making up romantic scenarios again. Well, she wasn’t doing that anymore. All the times she’d imagined him whisking her off to New York, leaving all the problems behind, but now she knew Tom had feelings for her, or at least had before tonight, her heart wasn’t excited at the prospect. She braced herself for a difficult conversation and turned to face Harry. ‘You’re such a nice guy, Harry, and I’m sorry if I’ve led you on—’
‘Wait. Wow. No—’
‘No?’
‘No.’ He held up his hands like this was the last thing he expected her to say and a burning embarrassment crept up her spine. ‘Did you think that I – I mean we – us—’ Harry waved his hand between the two of them.
‘Well – umm …’
Oh, dear. Yes, she had thought that. She’d thought that and a whole lot more besides including soapy bath scenes and other intimate scenarios during the quieter moments in the day. She wondered if he could read the thoughts in her mind because he was staring at her in mounting concern and she was sure her skin was going to burn off she was so hot. Even her ears were hot and she thought that only happened to dogs.
‘Nell, I’m sorry but …’ He scratched the back of his neck his cheeks turning pink in the lamplight. As well as humiliating herself, she’d embarrassed him too.
In all her life, Nell had never actually been slapped, but this was how she imagined it to feel and her cheeks stung as their burning heat met with the cold Christmas air. After staring at Harry’s horrified face, she realised the pain was nothing more than a shocking level of embarrassment. ‘So, you didn’t mean that—’
‘No!’ He said it so quickly it was almost insulting.
‘Oh.’
Thankful that he wasn’t going to kiss her, but still cringing
