‘Right,’ Sue said. Nick was displaying exactly the sort of enthusiasm she normally appreciated in her volunteers. The sort of dedication she normally had to cajole and threaten out of them. And yet, now she was face to face with it, she discovered it was rather intimidating. If this was what it was like when she was on ‘the rampage’ as Rory so often referred to her work around Poldore, then it was hardly any wonder that people often ran in the opposite direction whenever they saw her approaching. Oh God, what if she truly was a horrible person. What if, when the town found out about her disgrace, they all looked at each other and shrugged and said, ‘Well, she had it coming.’

‘The solar,’ she said, pouring herself a glass of wine. ‘Yes, we’ll go there next. Would you like one?’

‘I don’t drink,’ Nick told her.

‘Can’t drink and drive a sleigh,’ Sue joked weakly.

‘Exactly,’ Nick said.

7

The solar was in shadow as they entered, lit only by the moonlight, which slanted in through the grimy glass roof. Nick stood in the darkness as Sue went around switching on the selection of table lamps that she had managed to set up in the conservatory through a complicated system of extension leads. When the solar was built it never occurred to the architect that the room, designed for summer afternoons, would need electricity, and Sue had never had the spare funds to bring it in here. It was far too much of a luxury.

‘So obviously I’ll get Jim, our local electrician, to set the lighting up, make sure it’s passed all the relevant health and safety checks. I suppose we’ll set you up in this corner, take out the palms and pop in some Christmas trees – we could have whole forest of them, couldn’t we? All strewn with fairy lights, it could be wonderful, couldn’t it? Sort of magical. My lot will love it.’

Sue turned to smile at Nick, who she noticed was watching her closely.

‘So tell me, Sue,’ he said. ‘What do you want for Christmas?’

‘Oh, about thirty grand to fix the roof would be nice,’ Sue said. ‘And a job. I think I really need to get a proper job, one that pays me every month, and, while you’re at it, dinner with Blake Fletcher.’

‘I’ll see what I can do,’ Nick said. ‘Between you and me, although I’ve been an understudy for many years, this is my first time as the star of the show, if you know what mean. Our regular Santa is off on paternity leave, and I’m hoping he likes fatherhood so much that he doesn’t come back. So I’m really looking to impress the boss.’