Page 40 of Winter Magic on Railway Lane

It wasn’t as if she had forgiven him for the prom, nor their disastrous wedding in Las Vegas. But she would miss him.

Libby shook her head as she focused on the chocolate once more. It must definitely have been the gin, she decided.

Because the last thing she needed right now was to fall in love with Ethan all over again.

24

The last day in October dawned bright and chilly and, Ethan was glad to see, dry as well.

He spent an extremely busy day with his dad ensuring that the train was ready at the station, that all the parts were working properly and that the carriages were also ready to go. Eddie was also on hand but appeared to be struggling a bit with the workload, so Ethan made him rest before the busy evening ahead. The last few days had been manic and they all felt weary with the strain of making sure that everything was prepared.

Ethan returned to the station, just as the sun was beginning to sink down towards the horizon. It was only when he stepped out onto the platform and saw that Katy had been true to her word about giving the platform some properly sophisticated but spooky decorations that he remembered about the decorations for the train.

He sent a quick text to Dodgy Del and was relieved when his cousin replied that he was heading over with a van full of Halloween decorations. There really wasn’t a moment to lose, thought Ethan. It was now teatime and there were already a few trick or treaters about on Railway Lane.

Ethan was pacing up and down nervously when his brother came out of Platform 1, dressed in a vampire costume.

‘What’s up?’ asked Ryan.

‘You’re not here for a donation, are you?’ said Ethan. ‘Because it feels like all the blood has drained from my body anyway.’

He looked up as Bob and Eddie walked down the platform.

‘Why aren’t you all wearing costumes?’ asked Ryan.

Ethan looked down at the blue overalls that protected his clothes from the smoke and soot from the steam engine. ‘We’re wearing what we always wear,’ Ethan told him.

‘Not much of an effort,’ said Ryan, making a face. ‘Have you seen Katy? She looks amazing.’

Ethan had to concede that his brother’s girlfriend did look incredible as she headed out of Platform 1. She was dressed in a bright pink skirt suit with pink high heels and a blonde wig.

‘You look very pretty, love,’ said Eddie as they drew nearer.

‘Thanks,’ she replied. ‘I’ve gone full Barbie.’

But Ethan wasn’t in the mood for small talk as there was still no sign of Dodgy Del.

‘Where is he?’ he snapped, glancing at his watch and seeing that only another four minutes had passed since the last time that he had checked the time.

‘He said he was on his way,’ replied Ryan. But even he was looking a little concerned. ‘It is getting a bit tight time-wise though.’

‘He’s never let us down before,’ announced Bob, who appeared to be taking it all quite calmly.

‘You are joking, right?’ said Ethan, raising his eyebrows at his dad. ‘Between trying to burn down a field, crashing a tractor and almost ruining the fireplace in Ryan’s coffee shop, you mean?’

‘Well,’ said Bob, a small frown appearing on his brow. ‘I never said he was perfect, did I?’

‘He’s here at last,’ said Ryan, looking through the narrow alleyway onto Railway Lane, where an old van had just pulled up in a puff of grey smoke. They all quickly rushed to greet him.

‘Nice van,’ said Ethan, as Dodgy Del climbed out of the driver’s cab.

‘Does it always smell like that?’ asked Ryan, wrinkling his nose.

‘Yeah, but you get used to it,’ said Dodgy Del, going round to open up the back of the van. It was full of boxes. ‘There you go, Uncle Bob. You asked and I’ve delivered, as promised.’

‘Thank you, lad,’ said Bob, giving him a pat on the shoulder.

‘Don’t thank him yet,’ Ethan told his dad. ‘We need to get this lot up and around the train carriages sharpish.’