A Spring Affair by Milly Johnson

Author:Milly Johnson
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, azw3
ISBN: 9781847398666
Publisher: Simon and Schuster

‘I’ve got a surprise for Christmas dinner this year,’ said Phil, five minutes after waving off Des and Celia with an outward smile and an inward, ‘Thank Christ.’

‘Christmas? But that’s half a year away yet!’

‘It’ll be on us before we know it. I want to get plans in place.’

‘Well, if you’re already thinking about it, how about going out for the big meal this year? Apparently the Queens Hotel do a fantastic one. And they’ve started taking bookings, I see, in the Chronicle.’

‘Er, even better than that, I thought…a traditional family Christmas!’ said Phil, making it sound like she’d just won the star prize on a gameshow.

Lou looked at him blankly.

‘At home,’ he went on, and stood there expectantly as if he was waiting for her to shout, ‘Whoopee!’ and start leaping around with joy.

Lou let out a long breath. It wasn’t hard to see where this one was going.

‘I thought we could have the kids around at Christmas. I know that would be nice for you, Lou–kids and Christmas and all that.’

Manipulating git, thought Lou, but listened on.

‘And obviously Des and Ceel.’

‘Obviously,’ said Lou. She knew what was coming next. Phil wasn’t as opaque as he thought he was.

‘And your mother. We can’t leave her out.’

‘No. Absolutely.’

‘And…Fat Jack and Maureen. I noticed you got on like a house on fire with her last time. Chatting away together for ages, you were.’

He made a move to hug her and no doubt then would have gone on to paint a jolly picture of a house full of dear friends and family engaging in Christmas merriment and gleeful children sitting opening gifts under a glittering Christmas tree. There would be a gentle snowstorm outside and Perry Como scoffing mince pies at the door complete with a group of carol singers and chestnuts roasting on the open fire. Lou could have quite happily roasted Phil’s nuts on an open fire.

She put up a hand to stop his affectionate advance.

‘So let me get this straight. Instead of a six-course meal made by someone else in a lovely hotel, with no washing-up to do afterwards, I get to slave away making a dinner for nine with no one to help me cook it or clean up?’

‘We’ll all muck in.’

‘No one ever helps me, Phil. Celia has never got up off her backside to rinse a cup in all the time I’ve known her and Des only comes in the kitchen to push his luck.’

‘He’s harmless…’

‘He’s a creep!’

‘I promise, I’ll help you. It’s important to me, Lou. This new joint venture with Fat Jack is my…our future. It’ll be up and running in a few months.’

‘What about what’s important to me? What’s in it for me, Phil?’ asked Lou stiffly.

Phil stared at her open-mouthed. He was having a little trouble today equating the mild-mannered Lou with this lippy cow who was making his life so much hard work.

‘What’s in it for you?’ he barked. ‘Why are you suddenly so “me, me, me”, Lou?’

‘Maybe I’ve suddenly remembered there is a “me” worth considering.

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