“It’s about if you ever feel you’re just not good enough—that your Christmas will never be quite perfect enough—if you don’t think you’ll choose thoughtful gifts or that your family won’t be thrilled to see you or that the turkey will be dry . . .” He gave a broad, shining smile, filled with compassion and joy. “I just want to tell you that you are good enough. You are absolutely good enough. You are loved. And everything is going to be okay.”

He smiled beatifically again. Carmen screwed up her face.

“Isn’t he amazing?” said Emily, who was standing next to Carmen, watching him slavishly.

“Is this it?” said Carmen. “Does he have something to say that isn’t just ‘everything is going to be okay’?”

“I know,” the relentlessly cheerful voice went on, “that it doesn’t sound like much, just saying ‘everything is going to be okay.’ But you know what? Sometimes it’s enough. And I just want to tell you that you—you—are enough.”

Carmen could have had a few things to tell him about how that didn’t exactly fly after they shut all the old employment opportunities in her hometown and had thrown half the decent people of working age on the dole with no way out, and the other half, like her, had had to move away altogether, but she managed to restrain herself.

“Even if you—what’s the phrase?—‘burn the tatties,’” he said with a silly Scottish accent to show he knew it wasn’t very good.

“Well, that’s terrific,” said the presenter, looking rather pink—he was very close to her. “It’s so lovely to see you here.”

“Well—Blair! Is there a more Scottish name?” he went on. “It’s the most wonderful land of my forefathers, and I can’t wait to meet as many Scottish people as I can. I’d say I hope they’re all as pretty as you, but I wouldn’t dream of saying something like that these days, so I will say I hope they are all as pretty as Dean the cameraman.”

There was appreciative laughter among the crew.

“And I’m going to be down at the sick kids’ hospital this afternoon signing copies of Your Child’s Calm Wellness in Five Minutes a Day, so I’m looking forward to meeting people there too.”

“Thanks for giving up your time like this.”

“Are you kidding? It’s an honor. And seriously, you are all so lucky to live in the heart of such an amazing place. I feel inspired here, I really do.”

“Well, we’re happy to have you. And now back to the studio . . .”

Blair Pfenning stayed frozen in place as the cameras switched off, and Emily jumped forward and directed him to the signing table.