‘I’M REALLY EXCITED, DAD. OUR first Christmas in twenty years, what an occasion.’ Shelly pushed a drawing pin through a red foiled decoration and into the beam. As she turned to come down the stepladder, she spotted the taxi pulling up outside. ‘They’re here! Quick, let’s put the steps away. Can you turn the tree lights on?’

‘’Ere, why don’t we make an occasion of it, like yer mum did? Glass of sherry, “Silent Night”, mince pies, you know. Throw the switch . . . nothing works . . . ha-ha!’

Shelly laughed. ‘You’re right, we will. I’m so excited!’ She shoved the steps under the stairs and answered the front door.

‘Harry! Elias and Petros! I’m so happy to see you. Come in, come in.’ Shelly kissed everyone and whispered, ‘I love you,’ into Harry’s ear as she took his coat. The men huddled around the wood burner, rubbing their hands together.

‘Hi, I’m DJ. Pleased to meet you guys.’ He shook hands with everyone. ‘You’re just in time for the tree lights tradition.’

Harry grinned. ‘How does that go?’

DJ said, ‘First we have some toasts.’

‘We ate on the plane,’ Elias scowled.

‘No, he doesn’t mean a cheese and ham toastie, you’re not in Greece now, bro.’ Petros said. ‘He means they say a few important words.’

‘That’s right. First we turn the lights on the tree, then all go to the pub and get drunk.’ DJ poured out a tray of sherry and said, ‘Alexa, Christmas mix.’ Then, to the sound of ‘Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree’, he handed everyone a drink.

They all cried, ‘Happy Christmas!’ and chinked glasses. Harry, Elias, and Petros faced each other, tapped the bottom of their glasses on the table, and knocked back the expensive sherry in one.

DJ’s eyes widened.

‘Only the English would have raki glasses this posh!’ Elias exclaimed, and they all laughed.

Shelly and DJ exchanged a glance. Shelly’s eyebrows twitched, and she made the slightest nod at the sherry bottle.

DJ refilled their glasses. ‘Sorry we don’t have any raki. I must warn you, this stuff will give you the mother and father of all headaches. That’s why everyone sips it.’

‘Thanks, mate,’ Elias said. ‘I’d have brought you some proper raki if I’d known.’

Gordon stood and stuck his chest out. ‘As head of this family, it’s for me to make the first toast. Please raise your glasses to absent friends, especially my wife, Maggie.’ He cleared his throat. ‘This is the first Christmas we’ve celebrated since she was killed on Christmas Eve, twenty-one years ago.’

There was a second of emotionally charged silence while Shelly slipped her arm around her father.

‘To absent friends,’ everyone cried and took a sip of sherry.