Page 68 of Hope and Hot Chocolate on Mistletoe Lane

Taylor looked surprised. ‘I thought you were always ready to head to the pub,’ she said, although not harshly as she was a good person.

‘I’ll still want to do that afterwards,’ I said with a chuckle. ‘It’ll be freezing but I’m not being altruistic; we’ll make more money if we use the van. But we also get to be part of the community,’ I added. It made so much more sense to be on the scene of the ceremony.

‘I’m all for it,’ she said. ‘Might make everyone hang around for longer too and we need as much fundraising for the school this year as possible. Park the van whenever you like. I’ll be on the green from 3 p.m. to supervise it all; we kick off at 7 p.m. as usual.’ She turned to get into the taxi but glanced back at Adam and Willow and everyone else, then looked at me with a warm smile. ‘It’s good you want to be part of the community, Paul. We’ve always thought of you as being part of it all. But maybe we weren’t sure you wanted to be. It’s nice to hear that isn’t the case.’ She gave me a cheerful wave, jumped in the car and headed back into town.

I thought Taylor was right in her observations. I hadn’t always wanted to be part of it all. Maybe I wasn’t sure I deserved to be. Maybe I thought I should want something else like Holly did. But seeing her back in Birchbrook made me realise that it’s okay to want this. If Holly didn’t, that was okay too. I’d be glad she came back in my life and made me want to change. Because I already felt happier than I had done for years. Maybe I was content now. I still hoped for someone to be by my side in this life but it was a good life either way.

I headed back to the café van, trying to ignore the voice in my heart telling me that the person I wanted by my side was Holly because I didn’t want to hope for something that was impossible.

A stray snowflake danced past me like it was trying to find its way home.

And I decided that maybe hope, especially at Christmas, was something you should always let yourself feel.

44

PAUL

Friday was a hectic day, leaving me without much time to dwell on anything but getting things done. I went down into the café early to work with Mum and Dad on baking things for the tree-lighting ceremony. I also cleaned the café van inside and out and we wrote a special menu for the night including a free drink if someone bought a sweet treat, a little festive gift for the town. Mum suggested people ordered at the van and paid me, Dad would make the drinks and she would hand orders out once they were ready. We were expecting a big turnout so I wouldn’t cope with the rush by myself like I could at the winter wonderland when the customers were spread out over the different time slots.

Outside the café, delicate snowflakes drifted down, not wanting to settle on the ground thankfully but creating a pretty white backdrop to the festive day. I had a quick look at our takings as the day started to draw to a close. We’d allowed ourselves a short break before we went over to the town green and sat at a table by the window with cups of coffee and bacon sandwiches.

‘We’re up on this time last year by 20 per cent,’ I told my parents with relief. ‘So, we’ll easily make up for what we lost when we closed because of the storm if we carry on like this. If tonight goes well, we might be back to where we were before that happened.’

‘That’s great, son,’ my dad said. ‘And it’ll soon be peak Christmas so the café and your van at Birch Tree Farm will be really busy.’

‘We were thinking of having a little break in the New Year,’ Mum said then. ‘If you could cope here alone for a week, that is,’ she added. ‘We haven’t been away for years. I wasn’t sure you’d want to run things on your own but I think you’d enjoy it now.’

I nodded. ‘I’d be fine,’ I assured them, excited about running the place exactly how I wanted for a week. It would give me a glimpse into the future when it would all be mine.

‘And maybe we should talk about hiring someone for that week but also a day or two a week to give us some time off,’ Dad added. ‘We wouldn’t mind slowing down a bit.’

‘Sure,’ I said, surprised but pleased they were happy to let me take a bigger role in running our business. ‘That’s a good idea. I want to really expand things like Willow has done with her farm. I think we could bring someone in to run the van and go to more events with it maybe. And expand our menu. Bring in some modern drinks like a matcha latte and maybe some more lunch items too,’ I said, thinking about all the things I’d considered but batted away over the years, telling myself I should just coast along until I could get out of Birchbrook. No more coasting for me.

Mum smiled. ‘I love it all. Let’s talk about it over Christmas.’ She looked at the time. ‘We should get to the green.’ As we got up, she touched my arm to hold me back from my dad. ‘You really are sure about all of this? You really are happy here?’

‘I am,’ I said with a firm nod.

‘Good,’ she replied with a smile. ‘That’s all I’ve ever wanted for you, Paul.’

‘Thanks, Mum,’ I said, giving her a quick squeeze. My parents were beloved in Birchbrook. Everyone knew and liked them, and enjoyed the café partly because of the welcome they got when they walked through the doors. Maybe I’d purposefully stopped myself from being like them, offering a sarcastic comment or scoffing at their warm humour and good nature, but I was proud to be their son and respected the hell out of how they ran this place. I’d never be easy with strangers like my dad or as good at giving advice as my mum but I was willing to help people and whenever I had done, it had felt good, so I wanted to keep that up. I knew I’d done some of this to show Holly I deserved her but as we carried things out to the café van, I knew I was now doing it because I wanted to be the best man I could be. I did deserve her, I realised now. Whether she wanted me or not, it didn’t matter.

I’d be okay from now on.

* * *

It was dark out and Birchbrook town green was so jam-packed, you couldn’t see the grass through the people. The sky had turned clear and the stars twinkled like the lights I had strung over the van. The moon provided a silvery glow and we could see the lights on the trees in the High Street. The huge Christmas tree at the edge of the green was waiting to be lit up, swaying slightly in the cool evening breeze. The school choir were standing to the side of it holding LED lanterns and singing Christmas songs and there was a queue for the van with people wanting to stay warm by having a hot drink. People were dressed in thick coats, scarves and gloves, and their cheeks and noses were pink. I knew pretty much everyone either by name or just sight, with a few exceptions being new customers who either didn’t usually come to the café or were in the area for a pre-Christmas break, including people staying at the farm. There was a warm atmosphere as the vendors from Mistletoe Lane set up out here for one night only. It was nice to see Mary and Daisy’s flower shop also had a stall selling small Christmas trees and pretty arrangements and poinsettia plants for the night. There was also a table for the winter wonderland so people could buy tickets. Taylor suggested it when she found out Willow was going to close up for the night so everyone could come here instead. Businesses helping each other.

‘Let’s close up ready for the lighting,’ Mum called from outside as she handed drinks to Sabrina and her husband. ‘It’s almost time.’

I passed her the last order and closed the hatch, following my dad out of the van. I joined the circle that had started to form in front of the tree. Behind, we could look down the High Street and I could see the lights of the café and my apartment above it, waiting for me to finish. Elliot and Lewis had also come over and we’d planned to have a beer afterwards. I stood with them and my parents and gave Willow and the farm crew a wave as they stood a few feet in front of us.

Taylor made her way to the front where there was a small stand and microphone set up for her. It would have been strange not to have her here tonight. I understood why she’d left the cruise early.

As she held up her hand, everyone quietened down instantly. The choir paused too. ‘Hello, everyone. This has always been my favourite night of the year, ever since I was a little girl, and I wasn’t planning on being here tonight but I realised I couldn’t miss it.’ She smiled at the town standing in front of her. ‘The reason I’ve always loved tonight is that it’s a time that we all get together to mark the start of the festive season but also to support our local businesses. It’s getting harder to keep small towns like ours going nowadays but I know that we all want to see Birchbrook thriving. And that means looking after our future, which is why our wonderful school choir is here raising money for a new arts and music building that will nurture generations that come after us. I’m proud to live somewhere that believes in helping each other and that’s something we should treasure. So, I’ll stop waffling now…’ Taylor turned to the team of volunteers who had been working on the event while she was away, which included Becky. She gave me a wave when she saw me and I gave her a thumbs-up sign. ‘Thank you so much for all your hard work on this event. Come on, you guys do the honours. I’m not swooping in at the last minute and stealing your thunder.’

We all laughed as Taylor stepped away and her team moved towards the button. They encouraged us to start a countdown and we all dutifully joined in as she started counting down from ten. Voices rang out with enthusiasm as all our eyes turned to the huge Christmas tree that had been at the edge of the green for years. It was a tradition I had always enjoyed since I was a boy. I had never missed a year since I’d been born, and didn’t plan on doing so ever if I could help it. It felt good luck to be here when the tree was lit up.

‘Ten…