‘Cheers,’ he said, tapping his drink against mine. ‘And welcome home. For however long you’re going to be here.’

‘Cheers,’ I said, my eyes resting on the tree. ‘And don’t you drink too much of this, not after what happened last time.’

Ned didn’t respond and when I looked at him, I saw his cheeks were as rosy as mine had been earlier.

‘I don’t want to have to listen to you singing again,’ I hastily added. ‘That would completely ruin what’s been a wonderful day.’

Chapter 14

I didn’t know whether it was the surfeit of champagne, a reaction to the day’s events, the date or a combination of all three, but by the time the bottle was empty, I was feeling tipsy, tired and even more emotional than I had been earlier. Ned and I lay side by side on the rug with Bandit draped over us, a most welcome insulating layer, and watched as the sky slipped from dusky to dark and the stars began to shine.

It wasn’t the first time I’d laid in that spot, but with Ned it felt completely different. Or perhaps that was the fizz befuddling my brain. My head swam with thoughts of Dad and I wished, for what must have been the millionth time, that the outcome of his last visit to see me had been different.

‘I suppose we should be getting back,’ Ned eventually said.

‘Mmm,’ I agreed. ‘You’re probably right.’

I had no idea how long we’d been laying there and sat up slowly, making sure I kept still until the world stopped spinning. Between us we packed the things back into the truck and then took one last look at the tree.

‘Don’t worry,’ Ned reassured me. ‘I’ll keep an eye on it.’

‘I know you will,’ I huskily said.

The sight of it, silhouetted against the star-filled night sky, caused another burst of emotion to bloom.

‘I just wish Dad was here to see it,’ I whispered, my breath streaming out and away in the chill crisp air.

Ned didn’t say anything.

‘I’ll never forgive myself for what happened to him, you know,’ I carried on, my usually guarded thoughts weakened by the impact of the champagne. ‘If I could just turn back the clock…’

My throat felt tight as I bit back the avalanche of words backing up in my brain. I wasn’t drunk enough to forget that if I said them, I’d never be able to take them back. However, that didn’t stop a strangled sob escaping my lips.

‘Hey,’ said Ned, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me close. ‘You can’t blame yourself, Liza.’ I shook my head, his kindness further weakening my defences. ‘None of what happened that night was your fault. It was just…’