For a split second I had him. I saw it in his eyes. Then he narrowed them. "Oh, you're something else, you know that? And for that, I jolly well will, as you say in that funny little country of yours. I'll ask her." He did. He rang her. Obviously I'd spoken to her first, but still, it was lovely of him. And then she came over for Christmas.

When she arrived at JFK Airport with Peter, whilst Tommy and I stood waiting for them, she looked tiny. Minute. Peter, to be fair, was huge, six foot three, but still, my eyes filled as she came towards us in her old black coat, at a trot. Suddenly I was ducking under the barrier and racing to meet her.

We held each other tight. “So pleased, darling. So pleased at your news," she whispered in my ear.

"You also run at airports?" Tommy had mused a few minutes later, as he'd loaded a trolley with their baggage, Peter helping him. "I must remember that. Some kind of family tradition?"

"It's that famous English reserve," Peter told him, throwing his bag on top. “The moment it's dropped, they're insane. Only the women, though. But it's a worry. Can be scary."

"Oh, thanks for telling me. Any more tips?"

"Hundreds. You're going to need all the help you can get. It's as well we've got a day at the ice hockey on Wednesday."

“That bad, eh? Reckon we're going to need another? The New York Rangers are playing in Boston on the twenty-eighth."

"I'd say it's pretty much mandatory."

"Consider it done, Pete. And don't forget, it's all in the name of family harmony. All in the name of keeping the future Mr and Mrs Rochester firmly on the right tracks."

And with Mum and me protesting and laughing, we all sailed out of the airport together, pushing a loaded trolley across a road filled with yellow taxis, into bright, horizontal, December sunshine. As the light momentarily dazzled my eyes, I knew I could live happily by that light, paint with it, love by it, and generally do wonders with it.

A Message from Catherine

People often ask me if I always had a burning desire to be an author, and the honest answer is no, in fact it almost happened by accident.

I was working as a copy-writer in an ad agency and tired of writing blurb for soap powder, began writing a novel under the desk. I had no thought of publication, was just doing it to relieve the boredom, but I must say it was a bit of a shock when my boss walked in one day and said we're not sure you're entirely committed and gave me the sack!

Actually I think that galvanized me and I was determined to finish it. I did, but it took a while: I was working freelance, and then pregnant with my first child so it wasn't at the forefront of my mind.