For better or much, much worse…

Esme and Jamie have finally got their perfect wedding day planned. Beautiful snowy landscape – check. Amazing venue – check. Stunning dress – check.

But when an avalanche seals off their gorgeous mountain hometown from the outside world, their dream day starts to look more like a nightmare. Especially when Jamie’s ex, Tansy, turns up on their doorstep with five-year-old Parker, who just happens to be the son Jamie never knew he had.

Esme’s magical powers can solve a lot of problems, but it looks like their big day is doomed! Is Esme and Jamie’s wedding simply not meant to be, or can they still make it down the aisle, against all the odds?

Praise for KERRY BARRETT

‘It was just lovely! I loved the plot, I loved the spells and the magic, I loved the characters and I loved the writing. Kerry Barrett is a talented writer’ – Girls Love to Read on Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

**

‘Thoroughly enjoyed Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered…couldn't put it down.’ – A M Poynter*

**

'I was absorbed from the first page' – Pass The Gin on Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

**

‘This was a joy to read, clever, witty and fun. I would thoroughly recommend it and am looking forward to seeing what happens next??!!’ – Mrs Ami Norman on Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered*

**

‘For lovers of witches, strong female characters who you really root for, good writing, and great storytelling this is a must.’ – Caz on I Put a Spell on You *

**

‘A little romance, a little danger and a whole lot of fun make this an unparalleled reading experience.’ – cayocosta72 on I Put a Spell on You*

*Amazon reader reviews

Also available by Kerry Barrett

Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered

I Put a Spell on You

Baby It’s Cold Outside

Kerry Barrett

Copyright

HQ

An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd.

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

First published in Great Britain by HQ in 2014

Copyright © Kerry Barrett 2014

Kerry Barrett asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

E-book Edition © October 2014 ISBN: 9781474007801

Version date: 2018-10-30

KERRY BARRETT

was a bookworm from a very early age, devouring Enid Blyton and Noel Streatfeild, before moving on to Sweet Valley High and 1980s bonkbusters. She did a degree in English Literature, then trained as a journalist, writing about everything from pub grub to EastEnders. Her first novel, Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered, took six years to finish and was mostly written in longhand on her commute to work, giving her a very good reason to buy beautiful notebooks. Kerry lives in London with her husband and two sons, and Noel Streatfeild’s Ballet Shoes is still her favourite novel.

A big thank you to my uncles Brendan and Sid, who provided me with amazingly useful information on the Falklands war, military helicopters, hypothermia, US birth certificates and mixed-race marriages.

Tim Maguire, from Humanism Scotland, was very helpful in explaining the process of being a celebrant. Thanks also to Lindsay Colbeck and Lynne’s friend Graham, who gave me an insight into how funeral homes operate, and to my Facebook friends who shared their wedding memories.

Lots of thanks, as always, to my friends and family for all their support; to Lucy, Victoria and Helen from HQ Digital; and a massive, squidgy, cuddly thank you to all my readers. You all rock.

Contents

Cover

Blurb

Praise

Book List

Title Page

Copyright

Author Bio

Acknowledgement

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Excerpt

Endpages

About the Publisher

Friday

Chapter 1

I was happy. Really happy. So happy my cheeks hurt from smiling. I found Jamie’s hand under the table and squeezed his fingers. He turned to me and grinned.

‘We’re getting married,’ he said.

‘I know!’

‘Finally,’ my cousin Harmony – who was always called Harry – said with an arch of her perfectly shaped eyebrow. I scowled at her across the empty dinner plates, but I wasn’t going to let her spoil my mood, not tonight.

We’d just arrived in Claddach, the tiny Highland town where we’d grown up, and we were enjoying a welcome family dinner. My mum was there, my sharp-tongued cousin Harry and her wife Louise, and Harry’s mum, Suky – my mum’s twin sister. It was brilliant.

In exactly one week and one day from now, Jamie and I would be married. Harry was right, it had taken us a long time to get here, but now we had arrived. And everything was going to be perfect.

‘Can I just say,’ I said looking round the table. ‘That I am so excited and relieved to finally be here. I know this week – and of course Saturday itself – is going to be the best week of my – of our – lives.’

Mum, who was sitting on the other side of me to Jamie, squeezed my arm.

‘It’s going to be wonderful,’ she said.

A commotion at the back door made us all look round, and our great friends Eva and Allan fell into the kitchen, stamping snow from their boots.

‘It’s coming down very heavily out there,’ Eva said in her brisk Yorkshire accent. ‘It’s bloody freezing.’

She spotted me and swooped, gathering me into her considerable chest and hugging me so tightly I couldn’t speak.

‘There’s nothing of you, love,’ she said. ‘Have you been doing that five:three diet?’

I wriggled out of her hug and grinned. Eva always told me and Harry – and now Louise too – we were too thin.

‘I’ve got a dress to fit into,’ I said. ‘A beautiful, wonderful dress.’ I looked at Allan. ‘How’s everything at the café?’

‘It’s grand,’ Allan said, pulling up a chair. We all shuffled round, and almost imperceptibly the table seemed to grow, just enough, so we all fitted. I glanced at Mum and she winked at me.

Allan produced a fat, green cardboard file.

‘We’re all set,’ he said. Jamie and I were getting married at the café that was owned by Mum, Suky and Eva. It had a gallery upstairs, called The Room Upstairs, which was run by artist Allan, and where they held functions. Its big windows gave it an amazing view over the loch, and it was the ideal venue for our wedding.

Allan opened the folder.

‘Hang on,’ I said. I waggled my fingers over the table, which was covered in dirty plates, and watched in satisfaction as they all rose into the air in a shower of pink sparks and stacked themselves neatly in the dishwasher.

‘Ah witchcraft,’ said Jamie happily, leaning back in his chair and taking a sip of wine. ‘It makes life so much easier.’

He was right. I came from a family of witches – me, Mum, Suky and Harry all had the gift. We could clear a dirty kitchen with a flick of the wrist, produce bottles of wine on a whim, and help people with all sorts of problems. Mum, Suky and Eva – who was also a witch – enchanted the cakes and biscuits they sold at the café. Sometimes the help they gave was asked for, sometimes it wasn’t, but it always worked. Harry had built a whole career out of her talents, with a website for witches called Inharmony.com and a luxury spa in Edinburgh where she offered up spells on demand for extortionate prices. Me, I was a lawyer and for years I’d shied away from my witchcraft. Now, though, I embraced it – mostly. Jamie, who was a doctor like both his parents, loved that I could tidy our tiny house in seconds or find a taxi in the pouring rain.

Now though, my mind was on wedding stuff, not spells.

I spread the contents of Allan’s folder all over the table.

‘So we’re going to divide the room and have the ceremony in the smaller end and dinner at the other,’ I said. ‘And after dinner everyone can go downstairs to the cafe to give us time to move the tables and chairs to one side for the dancing.’

‘We’ve got a DJ,’ Jamie said. ‘But we’re hoping some people might play as well.’

Claddach was a haven for all sorts of creative types – a bit like St Ives in Cornwall, or Totnes in Devon. There were writers, poets, artists, potters, jewellery makers and lots of musicians. Allan’s gallery served as a hub for them all and he often ran writers’ groups, readings, concerts and classes alongside his exhibitions. Someone was bound to bring a guitar, or a violin, or even a drum kit, to our wedding.

‘There’s nothing really left to do,’ I said. ‘Not until that photography exhibition closes and we can get into the gallery to decorate.’

‘Wednesday is the last day,’ Allan said. ‘It’s all yours after that.’

I grinned, excited by the idea of decorating my wedding room.

‘What colours have you chosen?’ Suky asked.

‘Light blue, silver and white,’ I said. ‘I wanted it to have a frosty feel.’

Jamie and I had both grown up in Claddach, which was nestled in a valley in the Cairngorms. We loved winter and had deliberately chosen to have our wedding at this time of year to make the most of the snow that was almost guaranteed. We’d not been disappointed. It had started to snow as we got ready to leave Edinburgh, where we lived, and by the time we arrived in Claddach the town was already wrapped in a cosy blanket of the white stuff. I was delighted. It was like I’d ordered the weather specially and even though my mum, aunt and cousin were brilliant witches, that was one thing that was definitely out of their remit.

‘And the dresses for Chloe and Harry are this silvery blue?’ Suky found a fabric swatch in among the documents on the table and held it up.

‘Yes, and Jamie and Frankie’s ties are the same colour,’ I said. ‘Remember Frankie?’

Mum and Suky nodded. They had known Jamie’s best friend – gorgeous, funny, unreliable Frankie – since we were at school, though they hadn’t seen him for years.

‘The dresses are gorgeous,’ I winked at Harry who hadn’t wanted to be a bridesmaid in the first place. ‘Bias cut, a bit slinky – more like evening gowns really. Chloe wanted to cover her tummy so hers is a bit more draped than Harry’s.’

Chloe was my best friend from school. She lived just outside Claddach with her husband, Rob, and their three kids. Her smallest child, Euan, had just turned two and she was still a bit self-conscious about what she called her “mum tum”.

‘Did you manage to sort out who’s sitting where,’ Mum asked. We’d had many discussions on the phone about how to arrange the tables. ‘I did,’ I said, pleased with myself. ‘Do you have the table plans, Allan?’

‘Oh god, not table plans,’ Harry said, rather unfairly in my opinion. I’d been nothing but supportive when she and Louise tied the knot last year. She drained her wine glass and looked at her wife.

‘Shall we go for a walk before the snow gets too bad?’ she said. Lou, who loved nothing more than being outside, whatever the weather and whatever the activity on offer, nodded eagerly.

‘Erm, before you go,’ Mum said, looking nervous. ‘I’ve got some news.’

My heart plummeted into my slippers. Just a couple of years ago, Suky – Mum’s twin sister – had been treated for breast cancer. She was doing well now, but that fear – the fear of the cancer returning or someone else I loved suffering – had never gone away.

Now I looked at Mum in horror, seeing my own fear reflected on Harry’s face.

‘Oh it’s nothing bad,’ Mum said shrilly. ‘It’s good in fact. Very good.’

She gave a funny self-conscious laugh.

‘I’ve met someone. A man.’

There was a pause, then Harry clapped her hands in delight.

‘Auntie Tess, you old dog,’ she said. ‘Who is he?’

Mum visibly relaxed and beamed at Harry.

‘He’s called Douglas,’ she said, blushing. I’d never seen my mum blush before. ‘He’s lovely.’

I couldn’t speak. Mum had split up with my dad before I was born. She’d never, as far as I knew, had a relationship since.

‘Douglas?’ I muttered. ‘Who is this Douglas? Can we meet him?’

Mum glanced at Suky.

‘He’s from the village,’ she said. ‘He runs his own business.’

‘What kind of business?’ I snapped. Jamie put a warning hand on my arm.

‘A family business,’ Suky said soothingly. ‘I’ve met him. He’s very nice. And he’s coming up for a drink now, isn’t he Tess?’

Mum nodded.

‘He’s on his way,’ she said. ‘He just texted me.’

‘Oh brilliant,’ I said, knowing I was being very childish. ‘So you just dump this on us, then before we’ve even had time to take it all in, he arrives?’

Mum looked a bit sheepish.

‘I did mean to tell you earlier,’ she said. ‘Sorry.’

I shrugged.

‘Bit late for that,’ I said. Jamie kicked me under the table.

‘He sounds great,’ he said in a very pointed fashion. ‘I’m looking forward to meeting him, Tess.’

I kicked him back. Harder. And then the doorbell rang.

Mum blushed again and hurried off to answer it. I heard muffled voices and then she appeared back in the kitchen followed by a tall man with olive skin. He was in his sixties I guessed – a similar age to my mum – and was wearing a thick waterproof jacket, jeans, a woolly hat and snow boots. He smiled at us all a bit nervously, and pulled the hat from his head, revealing closely cropped dark hair with a sprinkling of grey.

‘Hello,’ he said. ‘I’m Doug.’

‘This is my daughter Esme,’ Mum said. I smiled at Douglas though inside I was scowling and nodded “hello”. ‘And her fiancé Jamie.’

Jamie stood up and shook Douglas’s hand. Harry and Louise did the same as Mum introduced them, too.

‘Why don’t we all go into the living room,’ Mum said. ‘We can have a drink and relax.’

Eva and Allan – who apparently were already well acquainted with Douglas – said their goodbyes, leaving the wedding folder for me to look at, and headed out into the snow. The rest of us trooped into the lounge and I deliberately sat as far away from Mum and Douglas as possible.

‘Tess said you’ve got a family business,’ Harry, who was a brilliant businesswoman herself and who’d obviously abandoned her idea of going for a walk, said. ‘What do you do?’

Douglas looked slightly nervous again.

‘We run a funeral home,’ he said. ‘Me and my brother and my niece.’

I was horrified.

‘Dead people,’ I said. ‘Do you do all the embalming and stuff?’ I looked at Mum wondering how she could let him touch her with hands that spent all day touching cold, clammy dead flesh.

‘Actually no,’ Douglas said, shifting in his seat. ‘I look after the business side of things – the finances – it’s my brother Cameron who deals with the deceased and my niece Kirsty oversees all the arrangements. It works well for us.’

I wasn’t convinced.

‘So you’re an accountant for a funeral home,’ I pointed out, a bit too abruptly

Jamie nudged me.

‘You’re being very rude,’ he hissed. ‘Be nice.’

But I couldn’t. I knew I was being horrible but somehow I couldn’t help myself. Mum was mine. Unless you counted Suky – who was kind of mine too – I’d never shared Mum with anyone. Not my dad, who was lovely but had lived miles away my whole life, and not any siblings. It had just been me and her forever. And now she’d brought this man, this undertaker, into our relationship – just in time for my wedding? It was terrible.

I sat in silence, unable to think of anything to say, while Douglas charmed Harry and Lou, chatted with Jamie about rugby and made Suky and Mum laugh. He tried to ask me about the wedding but my monosyllabic answers soon put him off.

I stared out of the window at the snow, which was falling fast and watched a car crawl slowly up the hill towards our house, its lights bouncing off the snowflakes. It stopped outside our house.

‘Someone’s coming,’ I said. ‘Are we expecting anyone else?’

I looked at Mum.

‘No more men you’ve invited?’

‘Stop it,’ said Jamie under his breath. ‘Just stop it.’

Harry stood up and looked out the window.

‘It’s a woman and a wee boy,’ she said. ‘Must be going next door. That snow’s terrible – you might not get back down the hill tonight, Doug.’

She winked at Douglas and I flinched, determined not to rise to her teasing.

Then the doorbell rang. I looked at Mum who shrugged.

‘God, that poor woman must have come to the wrong house. In this weather,’ I said. ‘I’ll go and see.’

I opened the front door. A woman stood there, wrapped in a beautiful coat, with a small sleepy boy in her arms.

‘Hi,’ she said. ‘I’m looking for Jamie Brodie. Is he here?’

Chapter 2

‘Jamie Brodie,’ I repeated, stupidly. ‘Yes he’s here.’

The woman looked relieved.

‘Oh thank god,’ she said, and for the first time I noticed she had an American accent. ‘I’m beat, and so is Parker,’ she tilted her head towards the little boy, whose head lolled on her shoulder. ‘And it’s freezing.’

I suddenly realised the snow was whirling round us, and piling up on the doorstep.

‘Come in,’ I said. I wondered if she needed a doctor. ‘Jamie’s in the living room. Are you ill? Is it your little boy?’

‘Oh he’s just tired,’ she said, following me into the lounge. ‘It’s been a long day.’

Everyone looked up as we came in.

‘Jamie,’ I said. ‘You’ve got a visitor.’

Jamie stood up, his face pale.

‘Tansy,’ he said. ‘God, Tansy. What are you doing here?’

The woman gave him a half-smile.

‘Hi,’ she said. She took a step towards him, awkwardly, her little boy’s feet banging against her knees.

‘Oh here,’ Mum stood up. ‘Put your wee one down – he’s dead on his feet.’

The woman laid the little boy carefully on the couch, stroking his hair lovingly, then turned to Jamie again.

‘Hello,’ she said again.

Jamie went towards her and they kissed on the cheek, uncomfortably.

‘Esme,’ he said. ‘This is Tansy.’

‘Tansy,’ I gasped, as I realised why the name rang a bell. ‘Your ex-fiancée?’

Jamie swallowed.

‘Yes,’ he said. ‘Tansy, this is Esme.’

‘His current fiancée,’ I said, frostily. I held out my hand for her to shake. She ignored it and instead pulled me into a hug. I went limp in her embrace. My perfect evening was turning into a bloody nightmare.

‘Shit,’ she said. ‘This is quite a welcoming committee.’

She looked round at my family and they all stared back at her.

‘We’re getting married on Saturday,’ I blurted out. ‘That’s why everyone’s here.’

‘Shit,’ Tansy said again. ‘Oh shit. I knew it was soon but… this Saturday?’

Mum sprang into action.

‘Take your coat off,’ she said. ‘Sit down – you must be exhausted. Can I get you a drink?’

Tansy shrugged her gorgeous coat off and ran her fingers through her hair, which was damp from the snow. She smiled at Mum, but I got the impression she was actually close to bursting into tears.

‘I could really use a glass of wine,’ she said. ‘If there’s one going?’

‘Of course,’ Mum said. She turned away slightly and I watched as a glass of wine appeared in her hand. She handed it to Tansy, who took it without questioning how quickly it had arrived.

She took a gulp, then another.

Mum, Jamie and I were still standing up. Everyone else – Suky, Harry, Louise and Douglas, were all sitting down and we were all staring at Tansy in expectation. She realised we were all waiting for her to explain her presence and gave Jamie a weak smile.

‘Jamie,’ she said. ‘I am so sorry to just arrive like this.’ She rubbed her eyes and I realised how exhausted she looked. In spite of who she was, I felt sorry for her.

‘We’ve been to Edinburgh,’ Tansy went on, giving a little laugh that suggested she didn’t think it was funny. ‘I went to your house and your neighbour was so nice. She gave us a drink and she said you’d come up here. She gave me the address.’

‘Mrs Wilkie,’ I muttered. She was nice as neighbours went, but now I cursed her hospitality.

‘We got the train, and then a cab,’ Tansy explained. ‘But I didn’t realise how long it would take. Scotland’s bigger than I thought.’

I looked at Jamie, but he wasn’t listening to Tansy. Actually, he barely looked at her. Instead he stared at the little boy, who was curled up on the sofa, fast asleep, his dark curls spread out on the cushion.

‘The little boy,’ he said, in an odd voice. ‘Your little boy. How old is he?’

I took his hand, knowing where he was going.

Tansy looked at Jamie.

‘He’s five,’ she said. She closed her eyes as if she was bracing herself for what Jamie would say next.

‘And is he,’ Jamie started. His voice trembled. ‘Is he…’

Tansy nodded.

‘He’s your son,’ she whispered. ‘I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.’

Jamie sat down, quickly, on a footstool. He was so pale, I was worried he was going to pass out.

‘We’re going up to bed,’ Harry said. I looked at her in surprise – I’d almost forgotten she was there. Louise gave Jamie’s arm a squeeze as she went by and shot me a sympathetic smile.

‘I’m going to put the kettle on,’ Mum said. She went out of the room, followed by Suky and Douglas.

I felt sick. Jamie hadn’t said a word. Tansy was staring at him, holding her wine glass but not drinking.

‘Just so we’re all sure,’ I said, my voice a bit louder than it needed to be. ‘Just so we all know exactly what’s going on here. You have turned up at my mum’s house, one week before my wedding, to tell my fiancé that he has a son? Is that it? Are there any more secrets you want to reveal, or are you going to wait until the reception?’

Tansy put her wine glass down and stood up. She was wearing a grey jumper dress and boots and she was taller than me. She took a step towards Jamie, then stopped.

‘Jamie,’ she said. ‘Honey.’

I flinched at the endearment.

‘Jamie,’ she said again. ‘I know this is difficult. If you can just let me explain.’

He looked her straight in the eye.

‘Oh you’re going to explain,’ he said. I’d never heard him quite so angry. Well, maybe once, but I didn’t like thinking about that time. ‘Talk.’

Tansy sat down again while Jamie leaned against the fireplace like a disapproving Victorian father. I sat down on the sofa opposite Tansy.

‘I don’t know where to start,’ she said, picking up her wine again.

‘Well how about,’ Jamie said, ‘you start at the beginning and you carry on until the part where you arrive on my doorstep with a kid?’

His voice was very calm, but I could tell he was very close to exploding. Tansy obviously knew it too. She took a breath.

‘Things were pretty bad between us at the end, remember?’ she said. Jamie nodded, grim-faced.

‘You were talking about coming back to the UK, and I thought there was more to do in Africa…’ She looked into her almost-full wine glass, then back up at Jamie. ‘I said some horrible things to you.’

‘I can help people here, too,’ Jamie said.

Tansy nodded.

‘I know that now,’ she said. ‘I was a bit worthy back then.’

The ghost of a smile crossed Jamie’s lips.

‘You mean you were wrong,’ he said.

Tansy gave him a look that was verging on disdainful.

‘The day before you left,’ she said. ‘Remember how awful it was?’

‘Kids died all the time,’ Jamie said, turning to me. His eyes were distant as he remembered. ‘You never got used to it, but we lived with it. We got on with helping the ones we could help. But that day was rough. There was a lot of malaria about and it seemed all the kids nearby were suffering. We had a queue outside the centre, we were letting in as many patients as we could but we had kids sharing beds. It was heartbreaking…’

Tansy shifted on the sofa and stroked her little boy’s hair. Her eyes were full of tears.

‘That day, so many died,’ Jamie went on. ‘So many. And all I could hear was the women crying, wailing, for their lost children.’ He shook his head. ‘But the kids never cried. They just lay there, so weak, looking up at us. Trusting us to make them better. And we couldn’t.’ He swallowed. I was close to tears too but I didn’t want to interrupt his story.

‘I was upset,’ Tansy said. ‘Jamie and I hadn’t been intimate for weeks, months maybe. But that night, I just wanted to be close to someone. To feel…’

‘Yeah, okay,’ I said. I really didn’t need to hear the details of MY Jamie’s make-up sex with this woman. ‘I get the idea.’

Tansy turned her attention to Jamie.

‘And then, when I woke up, you were packing,’ she said. ‘And we fought again. And then you left.’

Jamie shrugged.

‘It was the right thing to do,’ he said. ‘If I’d stayed we’d have been in a never-ending cycle of making up and breaking up.’

‘You’re right,’ Tansy said. ‘You’re right. And then I got sick. Really sick. I had malaria too. First they took me to hospital in Mombasa – then, when I was strong enough, I flew home.’ She paused. ‘I don’t remember much about it.’

Jamie didn’t speak. Tansy twirled her wine glass in her hand. I willed her to drink some more so I could legitimately top up her glass – and mine – but she didn’t.

‘When I’d been home a few days the doctor told me I was pregnant,’ she said. ‘I was shocked at first, but it was knowing that I had a reason to recover that got me through.’

I thought about saying something, then Jamie gave me a warning glance and I thought better of it.

‘I was a mess, Jamie,’ Tansy said. ‘I was weak and depressed, and I didn’t know what to do. By the time I’d got it all clear in my head, Parker was born. Then there was baby stuff, and work…’

‘Work?’ Jamie prompted.

‘At the hospital in Boston,’ she said. ‘And one day a week at a mobile clinic working with pregnant women in the suburbs.’

‘You’re helping people at home,’ Jamie said.

She nodded.

‘So there was never a good time to tell you.’

‘Why now?’ I said. ‘Why are you here? Now?’

Tansy looked at her son again. Her son. I still couldn’t think of him as Jamie’s.

‘Parker got sick,’ she began. The hostility I’d been feeling towards her since she arrived finally spilled over.

‘Oh well isn’t that awful,’ I said, my voice laced with possibly unforgivable sarcasm. ‘So what is it you want from Jamie? A few pints of blood? A smattering of bone marrow? A kidney?’

Tansy flinched as I hissed at her. Then she looked at Jamie again, calmly ignoring my outburst.

‘He’s fine,’ she said. ‘It’s all under control. He’s got …’ she named an illness that I’d never heard of, but Jamie nodded.

‘Is it serious?’ I asked.

Tansy made a so-so gesture with her hand. ‘Could have been,’ she said. ‘It affects his digestion so when he first got sick he got really thin and he had no energy. It was awful. He was disappearing in front of my eyes. He’ll never be cured but we keep an eye on his diet, and there are pills he can have if it gets bad. Sometimes he has to go into hospital if he has a really bad attack but that’s not happened for a while.’

Jamie looked thoughtful.

‘It’s hereditary, right?’

‘Can be,’ Tansy said. ‘I’ve been tested and I don’t have it, so it could be you.’

Jamie shook his head, as though he couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. I didn’t blame him.

‘And of course this affects you too,’ Tansy said, looking at me again. ‘I heard you were getting married and I wanted to warn you that any kids you have could have it too.’

I stared at her. This was too much to take in.

‘I was going to email you,’ Tansy went on. ‘But Mom went mad. She said I had to do it face to face.’

‘She sounds like a very sensible woman, your mother,’ Mum said, from the doorway.

We all jumped and I wondered how long she’d been there.

‘Sorry to interrupt,’ she said. ‘The weather is terrible, Tansy. Do you have somewhere to go?’

Tansy shook her head.

‘We’re booked into a hotel in Edinburgh,’ she said. ‘I guess we’ll not get back there tonight?’

Mum chuckled.

‘Even without the snow you wouldn’t make it back to Edinburgh at this time of night. I think you and Parker will have to stay the night.’

Tansy looked as though she was going to object, then she glanced at her son, curled up peacefully next to her and smiled at Mum.

‘That’s so kind of you,’ she said, politely.

‘I’ve made up the spare room,’ Mum said. ‘I think it’s time we all went to bed, don’t you?’

Jamie and I looked at each other. He raised an eyebrow and I shrugged. We didn’t have a spare room. Apparently, though, that wasn’t a problem. Just as the table had grown to accommodate Eva and Allan, so the house had expanded to fit Tansy and Parker. I guessed that meant they were welcome in our home and the idea made my heart sink a little bit.

‘I’m exhausted,’ I said, standing up. ‘Let’s talk more tomorrow.’

‘I’ll be up in a bit,’ Jamie said, giving me a kiss.

I looked at Tansy.

‘It was nice to meet you,’ I lied. Then I fled.

Chapter 3

I scuttled up the stairs, wanting nothing more than to get into bed, pull the duvet over my head and shut out all thoughts of Tansy and Parker and inherited diseases. My mind was racing. What did Tansy’s arrival mean for Jamie? And me? What about the wedding? Our future? I needed to sleep on it and see if it all made more sense in the morning.

On the landing I paused. The door opposite me was the airing cupboard and next to that, where normally there was a blank wall, was another identical door. This had to be the mysterious spare room. Cautiously, I turned the handle and peered round the door. It was a spare room all right. It was small, with two single beds, each covered in a rainbow-striped crocheted blanket – Suky’s handiwork I assumed. She loved to crochet and had whiled away her hours of cancer treatment creating blankets like these. There was one in just about every room in the house and they were perfect for snuggling up under on cold winter nights like tonight, especially as the ramshackle house was never very warm. Tansy and Parker would be glad of those blankets, I thought.

In between the beds was a small chest of drawers and on top of that was a lamp that was bathing the room in a warm, orange glow. One of Allan’s prints was on the wall and the whole room looked cosy and welcoming. I frowned. I didn’t want Tansy getting too comfortable.

Hearing soft voices from down the hall, I closed the door again and went to Harry’s room. I knocked gently.

‘H,’ I whispered. ‘Are you awake?’

‘Come in,’ Harry called. I slunk round the door and grinned at her sheepishly.

‘Got time for a chat?’ I asked.

Harry, who was in bed, rolled her eyes but she leaned forward and patted the end of the duvet anyway.

‘Come on then,’ she said, like she was talking to Mum’s old grumpy cat Bella. ‘Come and sit down.’

I made myself comfy on the end of the bed, pulling Harry’s crocheted blanket over my legs and leaning back against the iron bedstead.

Harry and Lou were sitting up, looking at me expectantly. Harry was wearing cute silky pyjamas in a dark grey that suited her swarthy colouring and looked more glamorous in her nightwear than I did on a night out. Louise was wearing Harry’s old Harvard University T-shirt.

I pushed aside the papers Harry had been frowning at when I came in the room – she never stopped working. Louise had been reading a leaflet, which she’d pushed under her pillow as I entered. Now she smiled at me.

‘What’s going on?’ she asked, her pretty face concerned. ‘Is Jamie okay?’

She and Jamie were old friends from their university days and they shared an easy affection that I’d once been very jealous of. Now though, I had bigger things to worry about.

‘He’s a bit floored, I think,’ I said. Harry squeezed my hand sympathetically.

‘Not surprised,’ she said. ‘Is the wee boy definitely his?’

‘Looks like it,’ I said. ‘I don’t see why she’d lie.’

Louise looked serious.

‘You’d be amazed what people will do,’ she said. She knew what she was talking about. Her job as a DI in the Edinburgh police CID brought her into contact with all sorts of unsavoury characters.

I grimaced.

‘I know,’ I said. ‘But she seems genuine.’

‘So why is she here?’ Harry asked. ‘Is she still here?’

I nodded.

‘The snow’s too bad for her to go now,’ I said. ‘And that’s another reason I think she’s genuine. She’s staying in the spare room.’

‘Ohhhh,’ said Harry.

Lou looked bewildered.

‘What?’ she said. ‘What have I missed?’

Harry nudged her affectionately.

‘I forget you’re an outsider,’ she said. ‘We don’t have a spare room here, do we? Think about it.’

‘We’re in here,’ Louise said, counting on her fingers. ‘Ez and Jamie are next door, Tess is down the hall and Suky’s in the attic room.’

She looked from Harry to me in confusion.

‘So where’s the spare room?’

‘It’s next to the airing cupboard,’ I said. ‘It’s nice. The house has obviously made its mind up.’

‘Sometimes, if we need an extra room – and the house thinks we deserve it – one appears. Just for as long as we need it for,’ Harry said.

‘And does this happen often?’ Louise said.

‘I only remember it happening once before,’ Harry said. ‘When we had a huge family get together one Halloween. Remember Ez?’I shuddered. I remembered it well. It was back in the days when I was trying to shrug off witchcraft and anything related to it – including my family – and I’d not lasted long at the party.

‘And once, when I was little – Ez you were tiny so you probably won’t remember – a friend of Gran’s came to stay. The house didn’t make an extra room for her. I don’t know why.’

Louise shook her head.

‘Just when I think I’m getting the hang of this stuff,’ she said, smiling. Then she looked at me, her expression more serious. ‘But what about you?’ she said. ‘What do you think about all this?’

‘Don’t be nice,’ I said, looking up at the ceiling and blinking furiously. ‘Don’t be nice or I will cry.’

Harry patted my leg through the crocheted blanket.

‘Come on fatso,’ she said. ‘Tell us what’s going on in that ugly head of yours.’

It was my turn to shake my head.

‘I have no idea what to think,’ I wailed. ‘This Tansy has arrived and she’s smart and gorgeous. And Jamie’s got a child. And the little boy has some disease that Jamie might pass on. And we’re supposed to be getting married!’

‘Breathe, Esme,’ Harry said. ‘What do you mean the little boy has a disease? Is he ill? Does she want Jamie’s kidneys or something?’

‘That’s what I thought,’ I said. ‘But apparently the kid’s fine now. But it’s some inherited thing that Jamie must carry and she thought he should know.’

‘Gosh, that’s nice of her,’ Louise said. I gave her a death stare and she shut her mouth.

‘It’s not like we haven’t both got a past,’ I said.

‘Well you certainly have,’ Harry pointed out. Quite unhelpfully, I thought, though she had a point. Jamie and I had been teenage sweethearts but we’d split up and lost touch for a decade largely because of my pig-headedness. Then when we finally did meet up again, a few years ago, I’d been involved in an unhappy office romance with a married man. Yes, I know, it’s horrible and I wasn’t proud of that one. We finally got it together, only for me to ruin it all again. Though this time it wasn’t entirely my fault – I’d been under a bad spell and it had made me act – well, let’s just say… completely out of character. But we were back on track now, planning our wedding and our future together. A future that was now in question.

Harry realised she’d gone too far. She gave my leg a reassuring rub.

‘You and Jamie are rock solid, Ez,’ she said. ‘You’ll get through this.’

‘She’s right,’ Louise said. ‘It’ll be fine. Just make sure you and Jamie work together on this and it’ll all work out.’

‘Promise?’ I asked.

Harry winked at me.

‘I promise,’ she said. ‘I promise we’ll help you however we can.’

I heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

‘That’s them,’ I said, freezing. ‘I’m not going out there until I know she’s gone.’

We sat in silence, listening as the door to the new spare room opened and closed, then opened again. I heard Tansy’s footsteps padding along the hall to the bathroom, water ran and the toilet flushed, then the spare room door opened and closed again, and all was quiet.

I leaned over and kissed first Lou and then Harry.

‘Thanks for listening to me,’ I said. ‘Maybe it will all seem better in the morning.’

‘Maybe,’ said Harry, but she didn’t sound very certain.

I slid off the bed and quietly crept down the hall to my childhood bedroom – the room I was now sharing with Jamie. I opened the door and went in. Jamie was sitting on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands. He looked up when I entered.

‘Oh Esme,’ he said. ‘What are we going to do?’ His voice cracked and my heart melted. I stood in front of him and wrapped my arms around him. He rested his head against my chest and I bent and kissed the top of his blond hair.

‘It’s going to be okay,’ I said. ‘We can work this out if we stick together.’

He looked up at me with red-rimmed eyes.

‘Are we okay?’ he said. ‘Me and you?’

‘Of course we are,’ I said. ‘Of course we are.’

Jamie slumped against me, relieved and exhausted. Like he was a child, I helped him pull off his T-shirt and jeans and tucked him into bed. It could be good practice for being a step-mum I thought to myself ruefully as I stroked his hair just like Tansy had stroked Parker’s. When I was sure he was asleep, I tucked myself under the duvet, stripped off my clothes and wriggled into my pyjamas – years of living in this chilly house had made me an expert in getting dressed without exposing any skin to the cold air. I thought I wouldn’t be able to sleep a wink, but within seconds my eyelids were heavy. I just hoped everything would be okay tomorrow.

Saturday

Chapter 4

When I woke up the next morning the room was filled with a cool, grey light. I slipped quietly out of bed so as not to wake Jamie – who was finally sleeping peacefully after tossing and turning most of the night. Wrapping my dressing gown round me, I went to the window and peeked out. My bedroom was at the front of the house and the road outside was blanketed in a thick layer of snow. Our house sat high up on the hill overlooking the town, so normally I could see down into the glen and if I stuck my head out of the window – and the trees weren’t too lush – I could see the loch glinting below all the houses. Now though, I couldn’t see a thing. It was still snowing, much more gently than it had last night. The window was covered in spiders’ webs made of ice and though the trees opposite were bare, they were groaning under the weight of snow heaped on their branches. I couldn’t see down into town at all because it was kind of misty and just really snowy. I was thrilled and I hugged myself in excitement. When we’d planned our wedding for this time of year, we’d hoped for snow – Claddach was so beautiful in winter.

Thinking of the wedding made me remember everything that had happened yesterday. I wondered if Tansy was still here or if she and Parker had gone to find a hotel closer to Claddach than Edinburgh was (I allowed myself a brief smirk at Tansy’s grasp of Scottish geography, conveniently ignoring the fact that I had a very shaky knowledge of what was where in the States). I decided to go downstairs and find out.

As I got close to the kitchen though I heard laughter and Tansy’s American twang. Apparently she was still here.

She was sitting at the table, her long fingers wrapped around a mug of black coffee. Parker was sitting next to her, munching on a piece of toast, and Harry and Louise were sitting with them – both laughing uproariously at a joke I’d not heard.

‘Oh,’ I said, put out to see my cousin making friends with someone who was, to all intents and purposes, my rival.

‘Morning, Ez,’ Harry said. ‘Guess what? I was at Harvard the same time as Tansy – different departments of course, but we know some of the same people. Isn’t that amazing?’

I bristled.

‘Isn’t it?’ I said. I picked up the kettle and filled it up from the tap.

‘Your home is lovely,’ Tansy said. ‘I was just thanking Harry and Louise for making us so welcome.’

‘Did you sleep okay?’ said Louise to Tansy, but winking at me as she said it. ‘Not many people use that room.’

‘Great,’ said Tansy. ‘We were snug as bugs.’

‘I like bugs,’ said Parker. It was the first time I’d heard him speak.

‘Do you?’ said Lou. ‘What kind of bugs do you like?’

Parker grinned at her, showing perfect teeth and – I had to admit – dimples in each cheek that were pretty damn cute.

‘All of ‘em,’ he said. ‘Do you know bees are found on every continent except Antarctica?’

I blinked at him in surprise. I didn’t know much about small children but I was fairly sure they didn’t all talk like biology textbooks.

Tansy ruffled his hair.

‘We’re kind of science geeks back home,’ she said. ‘My mom and dad both teach at the university.’

‘University?’ I said faintly.

‘Harvard,’ Harry said helpfully.

‘Oh,’ I said, feeling slightly inadequate despite my law degree.

‘Parker’s very interested in the world around him,’ Tansy explained. There was a pause as Harry, Louise and I all gazed at Parker who was dropping bits of toast on the floor and watching as Bella the cat sniffed them.

‘So we’ll be out of your hair soon,’ Tansy said. ‘I’ve just been online and I managed to book us into a hotel in Inverness for tonight – that’s nearby, right? But if you’ve not got anything on today, and if it’s okay with you, I’d like Jamie to spend some time with Parker before we go.’

‘Jamie’s my dad,’ Parker told me, his little brow furrowed. ‘But he didn’t know he was my dad until yesterday.’

‘No,’ I said. ‘He didn’t.’ I gave Tansy a fierce look that she ignored.

‘I have another dad,’ Parker said.

‘You do?’

‘His name is Michael. He and Mommy do kissing like this.’

He screwed his face up and gave the back of his hand a smacker. Harry snorted with laughter. Tansy looked embarrassed.

‘Michael’s my partner,’ she said. ‘We’ve been together since Parker was two so he’s like a dad to him.’

‘Jamie’s his dad,’ I said, feeling defensive suddenly.

‘I know,’ Tansy said. ‘There’s space in Parker’s heart for both of them.’

I eyed her suspiciously. Was there space in her heart for both of them? Was that what she was telling me?

‘I’m sorry,’ Tansy said, changing the subject suddenly. ‘I really had no idea it was your wedding this week. We’d planned to stay for two weeks but I’m going to call the airline and change our flights. We’ll be out of your way as soon as possible.’

I looked at Parker who was busy explaining how bees make honey to a rapt Harry. He was so little and he’d been dragged across the Atlantic and halfway round Scotland already. It didn’t seem fair to send him home again without getting to know his dad properly. And it certainly wasn’t fair to Jamie, who’d barely have time to get his head round Parker’s existence before he went away again.

‘Don’t go,’ I said, surprising myself. ‘Stay a bit longer. Talk to Jamie. He wants to meet Parker properly. Stay for the wedding if you like.’

Tansy shook her head.

‘Esme that is so sweet but this is a big week for you guys.’ She paused. ‘We won’t go straightaway though. I guess we could stay until Monday –or Tuesday – if we can get on a flight.’

I was awe-struck at her decisiveness.

‘Okay then,’ I said. ‘It’s a deal. I’m going to tell Jamie what’s happening, and then I’ll get out of your way – I want to go and see my dress anyway. You’ve got a lot to talk about.’

Chapter 5

Feeling like a proper grown-up for once, and smug that I was handling this whole thing so maturely, I went upstairs to find Jamie. He was getting dressed and I waited for him to pull a jumper over his T-shirt, before I went to him and hugged him.

‘Tansy’s downstairs,’ I said. ‘I’m going to walk into town and see if my dress has arrived – give you some space to talk.’

Jamie kissed me.

‘Thanks for being so brilliant about all this,’ he said. ‘My head’s all over the place, but knowing you’re on my side really helps.’

I rubbed his back under his thick jumper.

‘Of course,’ I said. ‘I’m not going to let a teeny-tiny thing like an ex-fiancée and a son you didn’t know existed come between us.’

Jamie chuckled gratefully.

‘Come on then,’ he said. ‘I suppose I should go and meet Parker.’

‘He’s pretty special,’ I told him as we went downstairs. ‘Harry is smitten.’

‘Harry?’ Jamie said, incredulous at the thought of my un-maternal cousin being smitten with anyone under the age of thirty. ‘He really must be special.’

At the bottom of the stairs was Douglas, clad again in his thick jacket and hat. I stared at him in horror. With all the business with Tansy and Parker, I’d completely forgotten about my mother’s new “boyfriend”. Was he coming or going, I wondered. Had he been here all night? I shuddered at the thought.

‘Harry says you’re going into town,’ he said. ‘I’m going to come with you.’

I opened my mouth to say no, but Jamie elbowed me sharply in the ribs.

‘That’s a good idea,’ he said, smiling at Douglas. ‘The weather’s terrible – you can huddle together for warmth.’

I scowled at him, regretting how understanding I’d been about Tansy. Then I saw his scared face as he looked at the kitchen door and felt sorry for him again.

‘It’ll be fine,’ I said, squeezing his hand. ‘I’ll be home in an hour or so. I love you.’

Jamie gave me a quick kiss.

‘I love you too,’ he said. Then, without a backward glance, he disappeared through the kitchen door.

Douglas waited patiently as I put on a thin fleece, a thicker jacket, a beanie hat also made of fleece that was brilliantly warm, scarf, gloves and boots, then we stepped outside. It was freezing. It had obviously snowed all night, though it had stopped now. The sky was heavy and as white as the landscape. It was quiet and still and very beautiful.

‘Wow,’ said Douglas. ‘I’ve not seen snow like this for years.’

I took a step into the soft snow covering the garden path – it was almost up to my knees and I was thankful for my sturdy boots and thick trousers. We waddled towards the road in an undignified fashion.

‘There’s something magical about virgin snow,’ Douglas said. ‘I’ve always loved being the first person to make footprints.’

I looked at him and gave him a brief smile. I’d always loved it too, but I wasn’t going to tell him that.

Out on the street the snow was just as deep, obviously, a foot or more, with steep piles at the side of the road where the wind had blown the powder into drifts. A couple of cars had obviously driven up this far – Tansy’s taxi for one – before the snow had got too bad, but even their tracks were covered now.

Carefully we began to tramp down the hill, hugging the hedges of the houses we passed and using the branches for support.

‘I wonder if they’ll bring the snowplough up here,’ I said, mostly to myself. Douglas shrugged.

‘They should do,’ he said. ‘Bet they’re busy though.’

We trudged on in silence. I sneaked a few glances at Douglas as we walked. He was tall and thin and seemed to be taking great pleasure from our surroundings. He was breathing deeply and looking at the scenery in satisfaction. As we rounded a bend, there was a break in the trees and Claddach spread out beneath us. To our right the mountain – Ben Claddach – loomed above the road, its pine trees covered in snow and its tip wrapped in a cloud. At the bottom of the road was the town itself, barely visible because every roof was covered in snow, and the loch. Its water was normally inky black but today it was like the surface of a mirror. It was silvery grey and reflected the jagged, snowy tips of the hills close by.

It was hard work just keeping upright on the walk down the hill and I was soon out of breath, even though I was in pretty good shape. Douglas, I noticed, was barely breathing heavily. As we reached the foot of the hill I paused to loosen my scarf – the walk had left me feeling warm – and Douglas turned to look at me.

‘Oh god,’ I thought. ‘Please don’t tell me how much you love my mum.’

‘I really love your mother,’ Douglas said. I grimaced but he carried on regardless. ‘I don’t much care whether you like me or not, but I know us getting on would make Tess happy.’

I blinked in surprise. I hadn’t expected that. Douglas’s slightly fierce expression softened. ‘I also know how you’re feeling,’ he said. ‘My dad left before I was born so it was just Mum, my brother and me for a long time. Mum remarried when I was sixteen. I wasn’t exactly welcoming towards her husband.’

He grinned at me suddenly, looking much younger.

‘We get along great now,’ he said. ‘It’s only taken fifty years to iron out our differences.’

I gave him a cautious smile.

‘There’s a lot happening,’ I said. I didn’t want to say that he was the least of my worries, but that’s what I meant. ‘I’ll try.’

It was the most I could manage and I knew it wasn’t good enough, but Douglas seemed pleased. He gave me a brisk nod and we carried on into town. I loved Claddach anyway, but in the snow it was like something out of a fairytale. There was hardly traffic, so it was quiet and the thick snow muffled what little noise there was.

The single set of traffic lights on the road to the main town square changed silently from red to green and back again. The shops were open though – it would take more than a blizzard to shut Claddach – and there were people milling about. A band of riotous teenagers were ducking in and around the town hall steps where they normally all sat smoking sulkily, glaring at passers-by. They were chucking snowballs at each other and laughing uproariously. A group of women were clearing the area outside the shops, the shovels scraping on the pavement.

‘This is me,’ said Douglas. We were outside the funeral parlour. It had been here for years but I’d never paid much attention to it before. It had a large window of smoked glass, with floor-length vertical blinds. There was a discreet floral display in the window, being arranged by a woman about my own age. She had brown hair pulled back into a neat bun, and she was wearing a smart black suit and sensible court shoes.

‘That’s Kirsty, my niece,’ Douglas said. ‘Would you like to come in and meet her? I think you’ll get on.’

I looked at Kirsty, bustling through to the back of the shop in her bank manager outfit and thought I doubted that.

‘I’d love to,’ I said. I gestured vaguely behind myself. ‘But I have to go and do… stuff. Bye.’

I felt Douglas’s eyes on my back as I trudged through the snow across the square, towards Leona’s wedding dress shop. Snow started falling again, lightly, and I pulled my scarf round my neck once more. Leona’s shop was up a wee side street and for a moment I thought she wasn’t open. The snow outside the door was fresh and untouched. I stopped, biting my lip in concern, and then Leona came out from a narrow passageway, carrying two shovels and wearing an enormous furry hat.

‘Esme,’ she said with a wide grin as she saw me. She leaned the shovels up against the wall and gave me an awkward hug because both of us were wrapped in so many layers that it was like we were wearing fat suits.

‘I’ve just been clearing the car park,’ she said. ‘I’ve got a very special delivery coming this afternoon…’ she gave me a violent nudge, ‘… I don’t want the van not to make it.’

‘It’s dreadful isn’t it?’ I said, looking round at the thick snow. ‘But it’s going to look gorgeous in our photos.’

Leona sighed with happiness. ‘Let’s have a cup of tea,’ she said. ‘And you can tell me all about your plans.’

It seemed that despite providing dresses for every Claddach bride for the last twenty-five years, Leona never got bored of weddings. I peeled off my layers and we sat snugly in the shop, drinking tea as I filled Leona in on every tiny detail of the wedding from the favours to the ribbons round the chairs.

While I talked, Leona, who was a stylish woman in her fifties with a weakness for gossip and biscuits, went through her emails on her small, pink laptop.

‘Ah ha,’ she said, turning it round so I could see the screen. ‘This is the customs check – your dress has arrived at Aberdeen. It’s being loaded on to the van now and I should get it this afternoon.’

I felt a rush of excitement. This was really happening.

‘I hope the snow doesn’t hold things up,’ I said, getting up and walking to the window. It was snowing heavily again. Thick flakes dropping softly from the leaden sky.

‘Ach, it’ll be fine,’ Leona said. ‘They’ll have the snowploughs out. I’ve gritted the car park and I know the Housewives’ Guild were galvanising people to start shovelling in the town square. The snow is no match for Millicent Fry.’

I grinned. Millicent was one of Claddach’s characters. She and I hadn’t always seen eye to eye and I’d badly misjudged her when we’d first met. But now I recognised her for what she was – a force of nature who organised, cajoled, and bustled everyone and everything into willing submission. Leona was right. The snow didn’t stand a chance.

‘So I was thinking,’ Leona said. ‘Obviously I’m shut tomorrow as it’s Sunday, but as it’s you – how about we meet here in the afternoon and you can try on your dress?’

I squealed in delight and gave Leona a hug. Then I looked at my watch. It was nearly lunchtime, surely Jamie and Tansy had talked enough for one day? I wanted to get home and snuggle up with my lovely fiancé to go through any last-minute plans.

Chapter 6

I said my goodbyes to Leona, layered up again, and trudged back out into the snow. I decided to go up to the main road straightaway, instead of through the square as it would be clearer – I thought – and easier to walk on. It meant a slightly longer walk, as first I had to leave town in the opposite direction to our house. Claddach nestled in between the main road on one side and the banks of the loch on the other. In one direction the main road led to the A9 and civilisation, and in the other it sloped up past our house and on up into the mountains. There were two roads in and out of the town itself – one on the side of Claddach closest to our house and one at the other side of town. Both of them came out on to the main road. Doug and I had walked into town the quicker way, using the ‘top’ road. But now I couldn’t face stomping through the snow in town and as Leona’s shop was closer to the main road the other way, that’s where I headed.

The road had been ploughed, though it was already covered in snow again, and like I’d hoped, it was slightly easier to walk on. I could look down on town from here and it was so beautiful – like an Alpine village with all the snowy roofs – that I pulled my phone out to take a photo of the town to show Jamie – and that’s when it happened. I heard it before I saw it, and looking back I felt it before I heard it. A deep rumble, that vibrated in my chest like the bass thump at a nightclub. I turned to look behind me, along the road. I could see a man and a woman – dressed similarly to me – tramping along, walking in the road as I was because the pavements hadn’t been cleared. And one car, a big 4x4, driving towards the town. I saw those things, and then suddenly I couldn’t see them any more. There was a roar, like rushing water, but louder and deeper, and the very ground beneath my feet shook. I shrieked as everything went white and snow flew all around me. I covered my ears and shielded my eyes and half ran, half staggered back the way I’d come. I’d barely gone two lurching steps though, when – disorientated and unable to see – I slipped and fell. It was like being in the middle of a blizzard. There was snow flying all around me, piling up over my legs. I tried to stand, but I couldn’t. All I could hear was my breathing and the roaring, crunching of the snow. I’d never realised something so soft could be so loud. Terrified, and completely confused about what was happening, I started to cry. And then, as suddenly as it had started, the roaring stopped. The snow began to settle around me and the air cleared.

I wiped my face with my gloved fingers, and looked round me. The scenery had changed completely. It was like the mountain had slid down on top of the road, but that was impossible, surely? My heart was thumping. Dazed, I staggered to my feet and looked back at the town, trying to get my bearings. Yes, the houses were to my left and the loch looked as it always looked. The mountain still stood to my right, but a huge swathe of snow had slid off it down on to the road, as though a giant hand had pushed it downwards. Where five minutes ago there had been the road and the two cars and the walkers, now there was a huge bank of snow. An avalanche, I guessed, though I’d only ever seen one in films before now.

‘Oh shit,’ I said, as I realised what had happened. ‘Oh shit, shit, shit, shit.’

Frantically I felt in my pocket for my phone but it wasn’t there. I’d been holding it in my hand when the avalanche started and now it was gone. I had to get help. I tried to get to my feet, but I fell forwards on to my knees.

‘Oof,’ I said. I was soaking wet, freezing cold and absolutely scared out of my wits. But I kept trying to stand, heart pounding and tears pouring down my cheeks. I was so shaky and battered that I couldn’t stay upright, I just kept slipping over. But I knew I had to try to stand up – the last thing I wanted was to stay slumped in the snow. After what seemed like forever but probably wasn’t long, I heard voices, and to my utter relief a hand reached out and pulled me upright.

‘It’s okay, sweetheart,’ my rescuer said. ‘It’s okay now.’

I was half sobbing, half laughing as I looked at him. He was part of the Mountain Rescue Team, wearing a thick fluorescent orange jacket and a hard hat.

‘She’s okay,’ he shouted to his colleagues, who were spilling out of a truck with big caterpillar tracks on its wheels, further along the road away from the snow slip, towards Mum’s house. ‘There’s an ambulance on its way. They can check you out.’ He draped a blanket round my shoulders and I gripped it in gratitude.

‘I’m fine,’ I said, shivering violently. ‘I’m not hurt. I’m just a bit battered and a bit cold.’ The other mountain rescuers reached us – about five or six in all – and they all stood silently to one side and looked at where the mountain had slid down on to the road.

‘It’s not stable,’ one of them said. ‘We need to clear the area and seal it off until we can assess what’s happening up there.’

They started talking about sending up the helicopter and suddenly my mind cleared and I remembered what I’d seen just before the avalanche.

‘There are people in there,’ I said. No one heard me. I stumbled over to the group, waving my arms under the blanket.

‘There are people,’ I yelled. ‘Under there. Two walkers and a car with passengers in it. We need to get them out.’

‘Woah,’ said my rescuer, who had the name Willie on his jacket. He was a bit older than most of the team and seemed to be in charge.

‘Slow down. We need more equipment, and until we get the dogs up here we can’t possibly know where the people are under that lot.’ He nodded at the huge mound of snow then looked straight at me. ‘I think this is going to be a recovery operation now,’ he said in a gentle tone. ‘Not rescue.’

‘No,’ I said hoarsely. ‘No. I know where they are.’

The mountain rescuers all looked at me blankly.

‘I’ve got a photographic memory,’ I lied desperately. ‘If you can get me up there, I can tell you where they are.’

‘That whole side of the mountain could come down,’ Willie shook his head. ‘It’s too dangerous.’

‘I know exactly where they are,’ I said. ‘Honestly. Give me five minutes – that’s all I need.’

I didn’t have a photographic memory of course; that really was a lie. What I did have was a gift all witches shared – an ability to tune into others’ thoughts. I wasn’t very good at it, but I knew I had to try.

‘Five minutes,’ he said. ‘Then we’re pulling out.’

Together we trudged our way up the sloping snow. He took the blanket from my shoulders then slung a belt round my waist and clipped on a rope, which was attached to their truck.

‘If it falls,’ he said. ‘We’ll find you.’

I was shaking like a leaf but I couldn’t forget the people I’d seen engulfed by the snow. In front of me was the pile of ice created by the avalanche. It was about as high as a house at its tallest part. It loomed up ahead of me like the prow of a ship. I gulped.

‘We’ll go up with you,’ said one of the other rescuers. He was younger, with reddish hair and freckles all over his face. I knew him.

‘Bobby McGill,’ I said, remembering him as a troublemaker from primary school.

He grinned at me, showing dimples.

‘Esmerelda,’ he said. I winced at my childhood nickname but couldn’t help returning his infectious grin, despite my fear.

‘This is Penny,’ he said, gesturing to the woman next to him. ‘She’s coming up too.’

Penny handed me a hard hat.

‘Your boots should be okay,’ she said in an accent I couldn’t place exactly but thought might be from New Zealand. ‘I’ll go first, you follow and Bobby will come last.’

I put the hat on my head, on top of my fleecy beanie, like Penny had done.

‘Ready,’ she said.

I nodded.

‘Ready.’

Slowly we part walked, part climbed up the side of the glacier-like ice. Some bits were steep enough that we had to use our hands to hang on, others sloped more gently. It was mostly soft and difficult to walk on, but some bits were more solid. It was hard work and my legs felt like jelly, but we carried on and eventually we stood, breathless, on top of the heap of snow.

I could see the town down below and sent up silent thanks that somehow the snow hadn’t reached the houses beneath us. It seemed to have run out of oomph before it reached the slope down to Claddach and now the mountain rescuers were busy building up a stack of thick bags, which I assumed would act as a barricade if more snow fell.

‘Over to you,’ Bobby said. ‘Can you get your bearings? Where do you think they are?’

I had absolutely no idea.

Chapter 7

I stared round at the blank landscape. The familiar scenery had changed so massively that I had no chance of getting my bearings. But of course I had a secret weapon.

I turned away from Bobby and Penny, opened the witchy part of my mind and concentrated hard. At first I could hear nothing and I felt a lurch of fear. I knew I wasn’t as good as Harry was at listening in on others’ thoughts but I just hoped the adrenaline would help me.

I blocked out the background noise, took a wobbly step towards the middle of the ice and closed my eyes. At first I couldn’t hear anything, just the general cacophony of lots of people, wondering if the snow would hold, if I was mad, what they were having for their tea. I tried harder to focus on the people I’d seen and shut my eyes.

‘Cold,’ I heard a voice whisper. ‘So cold.’

I knelt down on the snow and put my hand on the crunchy surface.

‘Cold,’ I heard again. Louder this time.

‘Over here,’ I yelled. ‘They’re over here.’

Penny and Bobby were at my side in two strides.

‘Right here?’ Bobby asked.

I patted the snow.

‘I think the man was here,’ I said. ‘One of the walkers.’

Bobby crouched down, pulled a tool from his belt and began carefully digging into the snow, using his hands as well.

‘What about the other walker?’ Penny said.

‘Hold on,’ I said. I pretended to be thinking but I was actually listening really hard.

‘Robert,’ I heard a faint voice say. ‘Where’s Robert?’

I scrambled to my feet and crouched down again close to the edge of the massive pile of snow.

‘Here,’ I said.

Penny looked doubtful.

‘Really?’ she said.

I nodded firmly but she shook her head.

‘Surely if she’d been that close to the edge she could have got herself clear?’

‘Maybe she panicked.’ I shrugged. ‘Whatever happened, I know she’s here.’

A shout from Bobby made us look up.

‘I’ve got him,’ he yelled. ‘Some help here would be good.’

The other mountain rescuers began swarming up the snowy hill, all thoughts of clearing the area forgotten, as Bobby dug some more.

Penny watched for a moment, then looked at me with narrowed eyes.

‘Okay,’ she said. ‘Here?’

I nodded and she started digging too, clearing the snow away with her hands.

I walked towards the middle of the snow again, looking out towards town. I could see an ambulance driving slowly up the hill and I was glad.

Behind me, the male walker was pulled out of the snow. He was completely covered, his frosty eyebrows making him look like a yeti. He was shivering, but he seemed fine. One of the rescue team helped him down the slope to the waiting paramedics.

His companion wasn’t so lucky. She’d not been buried nearly so deep, but she’d obviously broken her leg and as soon as Penny and another rescuer pulled her out, she fainted. Within seconds they’d hoisted a stretcher up to her and Penny began strapping her on. It was a very slick operation; I was really impressed.

There were lots of people below me now. I could see paramedics, police, more mountain rescue teams, and above us a helicopter hovered like a fat dragonfly. I was pleased they were all there but the only person I really needed was Harry. I knew it would be harder to find whoever had been travelling in that car and I wanted her help.

‘Esme,’ a shout made me jump. It was Harry. Of course it was Harry. She had a knack of showing up whenever I needed her. She was below me, on the ground, waving madly and talking to Willie. He’d been reluctant to let me up, but Harry had obviously worked her own brand of Jedi mind trick on him, because he was already wrapping another belt round her waist and plonking a helmet on her head.

Harry began scaling the sloping side of the mound, more nimbly than I had. Soon she was by my side.

‘There’s someone in a car under the snow,’ I gasped at her. ‘I’ve found two walkers but I need your help for this.’

Harry nodded, taking it all in immediately and not looking fazed in the slightest.

‘Okay,’ she said. ‘We can do this.’

She turned away from me, then thought for a moment, turned back and gave me a quick hug.

‘I’m glad you’re all right,’ she mumbled.

I gripped her hand.

‘It’s harder, isn’t it?’ I said. ‘If they’re inside.’

Harry nodded.

‘Nothing we can’t handle,’ she said through chattering teeth, taking my other hand so we faced each other. I was aware of Penny watching me intently, but no one else paid us any attention. They were mostly watching Willie, who was on his radio. From the way he was looking up, I guessed he was talking to the helicopter. Everyone looked very grim-faced.

‘Don’t worry about them,’ Harry said. ‘Concentrate.’

Together, we reached out with our minds. I was so much stronger with Harry by my side, but it still took a while for us to find a small energy – a tiny pulse that meant someone was alive under the snow. There was no voice this time, just a faint beating heart.

Harry felt it at the same time. She pulled me over the icy surface to where the pulse was stronger.

‘Unconscious?’ I said.

‘I guess so,’ Harry agreed.

‘I think it’s just one person,’ I said.

But Harry frowned.

‘I’m not sure,’ she said. ‘There’s something else.’ She was concentrating hard.

‘There’s definitely someone here, though,’ I said. ‘Let’s get them digging.’

I waved to Penny.

‘Here!’ I called. ‘The car is here. There was just one passenger, I think.’

‘And a dog,’ Harry said in a rush. ‘It’s a dog,’ she said to me.

The mountain rescuers flocked round and started digging, using shovels this time. Harry and I stood still, our arms around each other, watching.

It felt like time slowed down as the team dug, but eventually one of the men shouted.

‘We’ve got the car! It’s upside down.’

The rescuers huddled round, obviously working out the best way to get the driver out.

Down below us was a hubbub of activity. I could see people in their yellow jackets going from house to house along the road closest to the avalanche, knocking on doors and hustling groups of people down the street towards the town square. I felt a flicker of fear. What was happening? Why were they evacuating?

‘Harry?’ I started. She turned to me, her brown eyes large in her white, scared face.

‘Harry!’ another voice called. We both looked down at the ground. Louise stood there, wearing a fluorescent vest and waving madly.

‘She came down with me to help out,’ Harry said, a flash of pride in her eyes. ‘She’ll have been organising everyone.’

‘You need to come down,’ Lou called. ‘It’s not stable.’

Harry and I exchanged a glance.

‘We’ll be down in a minute,’ Harry shouted. She looked over to where the team were clambering into the hole they’d dug in the snow in an attempt to free the driver.

‘Now!’ Louise shouted. I caught the fear in her voice.

‘Harry,’ I said again. ‘I think we should go down.’

Below, Willie was talking into his radio. Bobby stood up from where he was crouching near the hole, and came over to us.

‘We’re all going down,’ he said. ‘Except a couple of people.’

‘What about the driver?’ I asked.

‘And the dog,’ Harry said. I gave her a look and she shrugged.

‘Go down,’ Bobby said firmly. ‘The chopper says the snow is shifting. That lot could all come down. You need to go.’

My legs started shaking violently.

‘Come on H,’ I said, tugging her hand. ‘Let’s go.’

We joined most of the rescue team as they trooped down the steep side of the heap of snow. There were ropes to hold on to now, but I still lost my footing a couple of times. I was exhausted, emotional and shaking like a leaf.

As we reached the bottom, Louise rushed over.

‘Oh thank god,’ she said, throwing her arms round Harry’s neck. ‘Well done you two. They’ve got him.’ She pointed up at the slope where Bobby and Penny were reaching into the hole and pulling out a motionless body, with the help of a couple of colleagues. It was a man, his face covered in blood.

‘He’s alive,’ Willie said, coming up behind us and shepherding us towards the trucks.

‘We got him just in time.’ He opened the door and helped Harry climb in. ‘That whole mountain’s going to fall.’

Louise followed Harry into the truck. I took a step towards them, but my legs wouldn’t work. Above me, I heard the same deep rumbling I’d heard before the avalanche. Terrified, I tried to scramble into the truck – and then everything went black.

Chapter 8

I woke up on a camp bed covered in a scratchy blanket. Disorientated, I sat up, and looked round me. I was in a corner of the town hall. There were people everywhere, sitting around chatting, drinking tea from a table manned by the ever-dependable Millicent Fry. A general buzz of conversation filled the air.

‘You’re awake,’ Jamie sat down on the bed and folded me into his arms. I sank against him.

‘You’re here,’ I said, so pleased to see him that I started to cry.

‘Oh sweetheart,’ Jamie said, brushing my hair back from my face and kissing me. ‘It’s okay now. Harry told me what you did – you saved all those people.’

It all came back to me in a rush; the avalanche, the mountain rescue team, the man with the blood all over his face…

‘Did the driver get out,’ I said, sniffing.

Jamie nodded.

‘He’s hit his head quite badly, but he’s okay,’ he said. ‘And the walkers are both fine too. And the dog. They would all have died if you hadn’t been there.’

I tried to smile, but I couldn’t stop crying. Jamie pulled me closer and handed me a tissue.

‘The rest of the mountain came down,’ he said. ‘Just after you fainted.’

‘I fainted?’ I’d never done that before.

‘You’ve hurt your wrist,’ Jamie said.

I pulled my arm out of the blanket and looked at my wrist which was bandaged.

‘It’s just a sprain, don’t worry. You can ditch the bandage before Saturday. You hit your head too,’ Jamie said, stroking the back of my hair. I winced as he touched a tender spot on my head.

‘Tansy patched you up.’

I wiped my nose and looked at Jamie.

‘Tansy’s here?’

‘Louise rang to tell us what had happened,’ he explained. ‘You can’t keep Tansy away from a crisis – she’s been telling everyone what to do.’

He pointed to the opposite side of the room where Tansy was talking to a paramedic while she efficiently bandaged a woman’s wrist.

‘Were more people hurt?’ I asked.

Jamie stroked my arm.

‘They evacuated all the houses but some people panicked when the second avalanche happened. It’s just cuts and bruises really – running on snow isn’t the best idea. A couple of broken arms and one guy broke his leg.’

‘But no one died?’

‘Thanks to you.’

‘Where’s Harry?’ I said, suddenly realising I couldn’t see her. ‘Is she okay?’

‘She’s at the café with your mum and Suky,’ Jamie said. ‘They’ve been dishing out drinks and cakes.’

I wondered if that had been all they were dishing out or if they were serving up a few enchantments along with their sweet treats.

‘I’m going to ring your mum now,’ Jamie said, digging his phone out of his pocket. ‘I’ll tell her you’re okay. Then we should think about getting home. Dad’s here somewhere. He brought the Range Rover so he can take us all home.’

‘Your dad’s here?’ I said in surprise. ‘Has he met Tansy? Does he know about Parker?’

Jamie looked down at his knees.

‘Not yet,’ he said. ‘He’s met Tansy before, when Mum and Dad came over to Kenya so I couldn’t really pretend she was anyone else. But I asked Tansy not to say anything about Parker. I need to tell them myself. Luckily they’ve been so busy there’s not been time for small talk.’

‘You’ll have to tell him soon,’ I pointed out. ‘Today. Now.’

‘I know.’

He kissed me gently on the lips.

‘I love you,’ he said. ‘Never get caught in an avalanche again.’

I felt a bit lost sitting there, watching Tansy bandaging people and laughing with the paramedics and mountain rescuers who were milling around. She looked more like a local than I did. I spotted Jamie’s dad – Dr Brodie senior – and waved to him. He blew me a kiss but didn’t come over. He was busy talking to a heavily pregnant woman who was pale and sipping from a cup of water. I smiled to myself. Jamie might say that Tansy couldn’t walk away from an emergency but he was just the same – and so was his dad.

‘How are you feeling?’ Penny pulled up a plastic chair and sat down to next to me. She’d shed her outer layers and looked younger and fresh-faced in a thin fleece over her waterproof trousers. Her long blonde hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail and she looked like a surf chick who had got lost.

‘I’m fine,’ I said feeling a bit sheepish. ‘I fainted.’

Penny looked at me, her green eyes holding a hint of mischief.

‘You don’t have a photographic memory do you?’

I shook my head, then winced because it hurt.

‘So what, are you psychic or something?’ she said, grinning.

‘Something like that,’ I said. I wasn’t going to give her all the details, no matter how nice she was being.

Penny smiled again.

‘It’s pretty cool,’ she said. ‘Well done. We’d never have got them out in time without you.’

‘What’s the deal with the mountain?’ I asked her, swinging my legs round to the side of the bed – I wanted to get up. ‘Is it safe?’

Penny gestured to the people who were gathering their belongings and starting to drift

‘We’ve shored it up with some heavy-duty netting,’ Penny said. ‘We’re confident it’s safe for now.’

I shuddered.

‘So everyone’s going home,’ I said. ‘Everything’s back to normal?’

‘Except for the road, of course,’ Penny said. ‘That amount of snow means it’ll be blocked for days. A week, maybe.’

I stared at her as the enormity of what she was saying began to sink in. The road – the main road – the only road in and out of Claddach – was blocked. We weren’t able to leave – that meant Tansy was here for at least a few more days than she’d planned to be. And, worse than that, no one could get to us. My wedding dress, Harry’s bridesmaid dress, our catering supplies, Chloe, Frankie, my lovely dad, the registrar – oh god, the registrar – were all outside Claddach with no way of getting in. It looked very much like the wedding wasn’t going to happen.

I cried all the way home in Jamie’s dad’s car. Tansy sat in the front with my future father-in-law, telling him about the work she did in Boston. He seemed impressed and asked her all sorts of questions as he negotiated the Range Rover up the hill through the snow. The plough had been out but it was still hard going.

I stared out of the window, hot tears falling down my frozen cheeks, and listened to Tansy charming the pants off my future father-in-law.

It seemed crazy that just twenty-four hours ago, Jamie and I had left Edinburgh full of excitement about heading up to Claddach. It had been snowing there too. A light covering resting on the pavements as we walked to the station. The castle glowed against the leaden sky, looming over us as our train pulled out of Waverley.

‘Goodbye Edinburgh,’ I’d called when we crossed the rail bridge. ‘Next time I see you, I’ll be Mrs Brodie!’

Thinking about that now, I let out a sob. Jamie looked over and squeezed my hand.

‘It’ll be okay,’ he said. ‘We’ll sort it out.’

I gave him a quick smile, but there was no warmth in it. The weather, the avalanche, the road, the ex-fiancée, the newly discovered son – it was all too much for me.

We got home before Mum and Harry. I was shivering violently and Jamie hugged me close as we peeled off our outer clothes.

‘I’m going to make everyone a cup of tea,’ he said quietly. ‘Then I guess I’ll go and tell Dad that he’s got a grandson.’

For the first time, I realised Parker wasn’t there. Shows what kind of rubbish step-mum I’ll be, I thought in misery.

‘Where is he?’ I asked, wiping away my tears. I didn’t want Tansy to see I’d been crying.

‘With Eva,’ Jamie said. I followed him into the kitchen while Tansy and Dr Brodie went into the lounge, still chatting about Tansy’s hospital in Boston.

‘I bet Eva’s loving that,’ I said. Eva and Allan’s only son had been killed in an accident when he was a teenager. After he’d died, they’d left their native Yorkshire and come to live in Claddach. Eva – who was a witch too – joined Mum and Suky in the café, while Allan’s art career boomed. But their hearts always ached for the son they’d lost and their home became a sanctuary for a series of foster children, runaways and troubled teenagers. Eva would enjoy caring for little Parker, with his love of science and his funny way of talking.

Jamie poured water into the kettle.

‘She was thrilled when I asked her,’ he said. ‘Parker was drawing pictures of his house back in Boston when we left him.’

I caught a hint of pride in his voice.

‘He’s great isn’t he?’ I said, my voice wavering a bit.

Jamie smiled.

‘He’s something else,’ he said. ‘He’s so clever and funny, and it’s so sweet how he looks out for Tansy.’

The kettle boiled and he poured the hot water into the teapot.

‘This whole thing has knocked me sideways,’ he said. ‘I’m not sure what to make of it all.’

He wrapped his arms round me and I rested my head against his chest.

‘All I know,’ he carried on, ‘is that I love you and I want to marry you. Parker being in my life doesn’t change anything for me.’

He pulled back and looked at me.

‘Does it change anything for you?’

‘Nothing,’ I said, feeling happier than I had for hours. An image of the huge pile of ice and snow blocking the road flashed into my head and I shoved it away. It would be fine, I thought, as long as Jamie and I stuck together.

I picked up a mug of tea and gave Jamie a kiss.

‘Right then,’ I said. ‘Let’s go and introduce Parker to his grandpa.’

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