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Jacob
‘So … when am I going to meet her?’ Julie said, spearing a potato, holding it close to her mouth while she waited for Jacob to answer. ‘You know, I might not have long left—that’s a joke, but even so—and I’d really love to give her a good grilling, just to make sure she’s good enough for my little boy. I thought you were going to bring her today.’
Jacob’s brow prickled with sweat. ‘Soon, Mum, I promise. We’ve both just been really busy. School broke up on Friday, and she’s been busy all weekend getting ready for the festival. She has one last stage rehearsal tomorrow morning, and that’s it.’
‘Well, why don’t we just go for broke and invite her over for Christmas Day?’
‘Mum, that might be a little sudden.’
‘Didn’t you tell me her grandmother has just died?’
‘Yes, that’s true.’
‘And wouldn’t you like to spend Christmas Day with her?’
‘Absolutely.’
‘But you feel compelled by duty to spend it with your mother?’
‘Ah—’
Julie laughed. ‘Just invite her over. We’ll all get drunk. It’ll be great.’
‘She has a dog—’
‘I love dogs.’
Jacob grinned. ‘All right. I’ll call her and ask.’
He wasn’t sure what Charlotte would say. They’d not talked much over the last couple of days. Charlotte had said she was flat out with work, and the tearoom was incredibly busy. Jacob had worked Saturday to help out Aunt Marjorie, and then gone over to the children’s home last night to help them prepare for the festival. Everyone was super busy, but Christmas was just days away, and it had started snowing again.
Magic—real magic, not the fake stuff pedalled by his stepbrother—was in the air.
Yet, he had found himself thinking about James a lot recently. His default setting had always been to forget that his brother existed, yet after what he had overheard at the theatre the other night, he had found himself offering an unusually large slice of Christmas cheer in his stepbrother’s direction. To say that he had forgiven James was too much, but the door wasn’t closed. Once … they had been family, after all.
‘Oh, I didn’t show you what arrived yesterday,’ Julie said, getting up from the table, giving her back a quick rub and then limping out into the hall. ‘A package arrived for me. Take a look at this.’
She came back, carrying a large wicker hamper, which Jacob hastened to take out of her hands before its weight could make her topple over. He set it down on the table, and then Julie opened the lid to reveal a heap of assorted jams, crackers, biscuits and chutneys.
‘It’s a farmhouse Christmas hamper,’ Julie said. ‘I have no idea who it’s from. There wasn’t a note with it. It wasn’t from you, was it?’
‘You know I won’t give you anything until Christmas Day.’
‘Then who?’
Jacob hesitated. While forgiveness wasn’t completely off his radar, for his mother, it might be another matter. Still, it couldn’t hurt … could it?
‘Ah … I have an idea,’ he said. ‘Maybe … James?’
‘Your stepbrother? Don’t be absurd.’
Jacob revealed what he’d overheard in the theatre. Julie just shook her head. ‘You have to remember what he is,’ she said.
‘It sounded genuine. I heard him crying. And he didn’t know I was there.’
‘Well, good for him if he’s turning over a new leaf. He’s still not welcome for Christmas lunch.’ She smiled. ‘But let’s not let a little windfall pass us by. Which one shall we try first? That French apricot looks pretty good.’
