Not like Paige, thought Nick. Paige had always known she was pretty, and she’d always known how in love with her he was. He’d confused attitude for confidence and Paige had attitude in bucketloads. Bella, on the other hand, had an unassuming confidence. She knew who and what she was, and that confidence made her sexy. She made her way back over to them as the choir arrived on the green. In the silence that descended Nick heard the grass crunch underfoot where it was beginning to frost.

The small community choir that had sung at the grotto unveiling at Bluebell Park came in long flowing cloaks, holding their hymn sheets. One held a candle-lit lantern on a long crook. It was like something out of Dickens. Though he hadn’t actually read any since school.

‘It’s starting,’ Bella said, and Freddie gazed up at her, smiling and content.

Nick’s heart felt fit to burst. He’d been dreading this Christmas. Worried because it would be just the two of them. Troubled that Freddie would be sad and wouldn’t want to participate, but he was seeing a change in his son too. He’d actually come in for a cuddle this morning. Snuggled into bed and chatting about the games they were to play during their tournament. There was no getting away from the fact that this year would be painful, but there was no reason it couldn’t be filled with happy memories too. Ones that would outweigh the sadness.

Further down the lane Nick spotted the Coles and their son Amias. The boy was enjoying the scene just as every other child was. It was almost inconceivable that he could have acted the way he did. Nick still didn’t know why Amias had done it. Freddie had said nothing, and he didn’t want to ask Bella in case it put her in a difficult position. He thought again about what the policeman said about apologising and asking him to drop the charges, but he hadn’t been able to bring himself to do it. Sometimes he felt like he’d rather die than apologise to that supercilious idiot, but he wasn’t about to leave his son to someone else’s care while he went to prison. He couldn’t think about that now though. If the police didn’t come and tell him it was all fine in the next few days, he’d have to swallow his pride but until then he’d ignore it and enjoy himself.

Bella must have seen him looking over as she forgot the parade and said, ‘Nick, listen I have to tell you—’

He could feel her breath on his ear, sending shivers over his skin. It overloaded his senses. The noise flared as the parade started and the choir began to sing. ‘Tell me later, okay?’