It no longer felt strange to have Henry’s solid presence nearby as I slept, and after another eventful day I found myself dozing off almost instantly. However, when I woke up with a start, every bone in my body shivering, I was disheartened to see it was only two in the morning.

Teeth chattering, muscles clenched as they braced against the cold, I pulled my hat back down over my ears and debated whether I dared brave exiting the duvet to find another jumper.

‘You know how you didn’t want me freezing to death?’ Henry’s soft rumble interrupted my fretting.

‘That would be my preferred option, yes.’

‘I don’t suppose you’d be open to sharing the duvet?’

Without saying anything, I slipped off the sofa, bringing the duvet with me. Henry deftly arranged the blankets so that the bedding was evenly distributed and then settled back down on the far edge of the cushions.

The additional layers helped, but not enough. It felt as though my blood had turned to icy slush and I’d never get warm again. After a long minute, Henry rolled onto his back, shifting close enough that I could feel his heat radiating like a giant hot-water bottle. There was no risk of this man freezing to death. I couldn’t resist inching a tiny bit closer.

‘Come here, then.’

In a smooth motion that brought back vivid memories of the time we’d shared a bed all those years ago, Henry wrapped his arm around me and tucked me up against his chest.

‘Thank you,’ I murmured, relaxing into the softness of his two jumpers, the darkness creating an intimacy that made me bold. ‘I think you must be the kindest person I’ve ever met.’

‘I told you once before, I can’t sleep if I can hear your bones clacking together.’

‘Happy Christmas, Henry,’ I added a short while later.

‘Happy Christmas to you too,’ he rumbled back, giving me a gentle squeeze.

And lying there in the pitch black, my head resting on the slow, solid thud of his heart, warm, safe, utterly comfortable, I realised that I was happier than I’d been in a very long time.

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