to your toolkit I see?’
‘My tool – ’ I flung the branch down as I realised what he was referring to. ‘I told you none of that stuff was mine.’
I could see his teeth white in the half-light.
‘Stop grinning. Perv,’ I said, pulling open the door of the pickup as Michael’s laughter followed me in.
‘Did I just blow my chance at getting you to help me wrangle this thing into something presentable?’ he asked, pulling his own door closed behind him.
I pulled the seat belt out and plugged it in. ‘Possibly.’
‘But the children will be so disappointed.’ It was actually pretty impressive just how much feeling he forced into this statement.
‘Oh wow,’ I said, turning in my seat. ‘You’re actually sneaky enough to use your nieces and nephews?’
‘I prefer the word resourceful.’
‘I prefer a word I’m too ladylike to say.’
He laughed and turned over the engine. ‘I’m pretty sure I could probably get you to say it.’
I gave a huff. ‘If anyone could, it’d be you.’
‘That’s not a compliment, is it?’
‘Not really.’
I peeked across at him as he concentrated on the traffic, waiting to pull out into the flow. His baseball cap kept the hair out of his eyes, although it was still curling down over his collar. However, the untidy not-quite-beard had been trimmed back to a length of stubble that now lent him the air of almost groomed, rather than hobo. And the smile that he wore beat the hell out of all of it.
We drove along for a few minutes, not talking but easy in the company of just the radio on low, the station’s playlist full of festive favourites.
‘So, what were your Christmases like?’
I looked away, not wanting to remember the fraught and brittle atmosphere that would begin the day and would inevitably dissolve into either silence or screaming at some point around the Queen’s Speech.
‘Nothing like yours sadly. Although I always wished they could be. I had this image of a big family dinner with everyone laughing and smiling. It was ridiculous really as I was an only child, as my mum had been, and most of the remaining relatives either lived abroad or wanted nothing to do with us anyway. But it was a nice thought.’ I smiled over at him but his face was serious. He dropped his hand from the steering wheel and took mine within it for a moment.
‘I’m sorry you had such a rough time, Katie. I really am.’
My throat suddenly felt too tight to speak so I gave a little nod instead and squeezed his hand back, hoping the gestures conveyed at least some of what I wanted to say.
A few more minutes passed and Michael’s hand had by now returned to the wheel as he manoeuvred the pickup around a junction. Eventually he spoke again. ‘You aren’t seriously going to abandon me with this tree, are you?’ He glanced over momentarily, before switching his eyes back to the road, wipers flicking away the snow and almost beating in time to the Christmas song playing in the background. The light from the dashboard showed hints of concern on his features. ‘I know all this – today and everything else you’ve done in the house – I know it’s all way over what you normally do. I really, really do appreciate it, even if I’m not that good at saying it very well. I’ll never be able to thank you enough for bringing Pilot into my life either.’
‘Well, that’s definitely a two way street. Knowing he now has a wonderful home with someone who’s nuts about him is more reward than I could ever ask for.’
Michael pushed his bottom lip out momentarily. ‘I wouldn’t say I was nuts about him.’
‘Oh really?’ I crossed my arms.
He cleared his throat. ‘All right, I’m completely nuts about him but don’t go spreading that around. It hardly goes with my reputation.’
I blew a raspberry. ‘That’s what I think to your reputation.’
His eyebrows shot up as he laughed. A ringing over the sound system interrupted the radio. Michael peered at the GPS screen and pressed a button on the steering wheel.
‘Hi Gerry.’
‘Hi Mike. How are you?’
‘Yeah, not bad, thanks. Yourself?’
‘I’m good. You still getting that house in order for the big family Christmas?’
‘Pretty much there, actually.’ Michael smiled, including me in it momentarily, then quickly switching his eyes back to the road. ‘Finishing touches now. Got a bloody great tree in the back of the truck as we speak.’
‘Good to hear. It looked like a bomb had hit it last time I came round.’
Michael winced and I realised that he’d actually been far more bothered about the state of his house than his initial declarations had claimed. ‘Yeah. Sorry about that. You’ll have to come round and see it in its new incarnation. And meet Pilot, of course.’
‘Sounds good to me. Who’s Pilot?’
‘I sort of got another dog.’
‘About time! Puppy?’
‘No, just over eighteen months. Rescue dog. A…friend found him for me.’
‘Even better! Buy that friend a beer.’
I wrinkled my nose and Michael chuckled.
‘So what can I do for you?’
‘It’s about this dinner dance thing that Solway are hosting…’
Michael groaned.
‘I know. I know. But listen to me Mike. I know you’re not a big fan of stuff like this but this one you need to come to.’ The man’s voice was serious now and Michael picked up on it.
‘Why? What’s going on?’
‘Nothing especially. But I do know for a fact that the other guy you’re up against for this project is going and he’s kind of a schmoozer. Solway really like you but if this guy shows up and starts sweet-talking everyone…’
‘Yeah, I get it.’
‘So, you’ll come?’
‘I’ll think about it.’
‘Mikey lad, you need to do more than think about it. You need to do it. I’m going to be stuck working with this other clown if he gets the job and that is not a prospect I relish.’
‘Enough said, I’ll come. Although I don’t think I ever replied one way or the other to the invitation. Won’t it be a bit late to say yes now?’
‘No.
