“Most of it seems to be in your hair and on your face.”

“I don’t mind.”

“I know.” There were days when she wondered if Holly was really her child. At the same age, she’d loved wearing dresses and staying clean. Holly was never happier than when she was climbing a tree or digging in the dirt for worms.

“How many sleeps until Christmas?” Paintbrush still in hand, Holly bounced in her chair, scattering blobs of color across the surface of the table. “Can we go to Lapland today?”

“Not today. Seven sleeps until we travel. Fourteen sleeps until Christmas.” Christy reached for a cloth and wiped up the mess. Outside, rain lashed at the window. Their little garden, so pretty in the summer months, had turned into a droopy mess. “Don’t wave the brush, honey.”

She checked the forecast on her phone, her spirits plummeting when she saw the amount of rain in her future. It was impossible not to anticipate the next disaster the cottage would throw at her. Yet another leak. More damp.

“I want to go to Lapland. I want to see the snow and lights.”

Christy wanted that, too. Christmas here should have been romantic and gorgeously festive, but no matter how many decorations she added to the tree, or how many fairy lights she hung, it didn’t change the fact that all she wanted to do with the cottage right now was escape from it. Lapland would give them a Christmas to remember, which was why she’d delved into precious savings to pay for it.

“Snow will be fun.”

Christy was excited about more than snow. She was finally going to meet her mystery aunt. Her only living relative. Robyn and her husband owned an upmarket retreat for intrepid travelers. The Snow Spa. How cool was that?

The thought made her smile. Very cool, literally.

And visiting her rebel aunt could probably be described as intrepid.

Part of her felt disloyal, as if she was betraying her mother’s memory by reaching out to Robyn. But that was ridiculous. She was an adult. Her mother was gone. This was Christy’s decision.

What exactly had her aunt done to cause such a major falling-out? Christy didn’t know, but she felt a pang of empathy. Living up to her mother’s impossibly high standards wasn’t easy, as she knew only too well.

You’re pregnant, Christy? You’ve only known the man for a matter of weeks! How could you be so careless? This is the worst mistake you have ever made.

Of course her mother had come around eventually once she’d met her granddaughter, but that faint cloud of disappointment had always hovered.

“Six o’clock. Time for your bath.” She gently removed the brush from her daughter’s grip. Holly was the best thing that had happened to her, not the worst. Unplanned did not mean unwanted. And she couldn’t, wouldn’t, think of her as a mistake.

“Will Santa be there? Can we see him?”

“I hope so. We’re going to try.” She wasn’t exactly sure whether that type of commercial experience was available near her aunt’s home. Was Santa interested in the Snow Spa? Did he indulge in the occasional cold plunge? Sauna? Either way, she knew Holly would have a wonderful time. She’d taken a look at the website for her aunt’s business, and the forest cabins looked idyllic. “Santa has a busy job.”