Jack nodded vigorously and turned to Beth. ‘Will you help my dad pick it out because he might not know which one to get and I’m busy here?’ He indicated the gingerbread men that Marcie had been turning out onto the baking trays in front of him.
‘Of course I will. We’ll pick the one with the best top so that the fairy’s nice and secure.’ She stopped guiltily. ‘Have you got a fairy?’
‘You will have, as soon as we’re finished with these.’ Marcie winked at Beth. ‘Will you people stop getting in the way here, when we’ve got things to do?’
It was seven o’clock before Jack climbed into his father’s car, clutching the fairy that Beth had helped him make from an old-fashioned peg, some cardboard and a large helping of tinsel and glitter spray. Matt and James had taken it in turns to fuss over securing the two remaining Christmas trees into Beth’s car, and Marcie had produced a tin full of newly decorated gingerbread men.
Matt insisted that they drive to Beth’s cottage first, and carried her tree around the side of the house, propping it up next to the back door. Then they drove together to his house, and Matt hauled the second tree out of her car, pulling the seats back up into position and, much to Jack’s delight, slinging the tree over one shoulder before he carried it into the house.
‘Come in.’ It was not quite an order, but his tone was not without urgency. Beth looked at her watch.
‘Don’t you need to get Jack to bed soon?’
‘Not for a while. And you don’t suppose he’ll go to bed before this lot’s sorted, do you? Come in and have something to drink.’ He indicated the tin in Jack’s hands. ‘I believe there’s a gingerbread man with your name on it, too.’
‘Okay. Just for ten minutes.’ Beth didn’t want the day to end yet. The look on Jack’s face as he’d made his own Christmas decorations. The look on Matt’s as he’d watched him.
Beth made the coffee, while Matt busied himself with the tree and the lights. By the time he had finished, Jack was already unpacking the box of decorations that Marcie had given them, sorting each one carefully according to size and colour.
‘What do you think?’ Matt stood back to assess his handiwork.
‘That’s fine.’ Beth had abandoned her coffee, in favour of hanging onto Jack’s arm to stop him from rushing over to the tree and starting to decorate it straight away.
‘Maybe up a bit at that side? Do you think the tree’s quite straight?’
‘I think it’s fine, and if you don’t let Jack at it soon he’s going to explode.’ Beth directed Jack’s attention to the ornaments that Matt had bought that afternoon. ‘Why don’t you put those on first, as they’re all gold? Then it’ll be easy to distribute all these different-coloured ones evenly.’
Jack nodded, choosing a small, sparkly globe and hanging it on one of the lower branches of the tree. Matt bent and retrieved the ornament, and hung it close to the top. ‘You want the bigger ones at the bottom and the small ones near the top, don’t you?’
Beth broke in. ‘Actually, I think it looks better where it was.’ She jumped to her feet, catching up two boxes of ornaments. ‘Here, you take these…’ she gave one box to Matt ‘…and Jack’s in charge of these.’ Matt wasn’t going to end up with a perfect, beautifully dressed tree like this. He’d get something much better.
‘Hmm. Yes, sorry, mate, Beth’s absolutely right you know. Looks far better where you put it.’ Matt retrieved the bauble from the top of the tree and put it back where Jack had hung it. ‘Just let me know if you want me to lift you up to reach any of those top branches.’
Beth returned to the sofa and picked up her coffee mug. Just a few minutes to relax and then she’d be on her way.
Half an hour later, the tree was almost finished. Jack had enlisted Beth’s help to hang some of his least favourite baubles around the back, where they wouldn’t be seen, and Matt had taken over her place on the sofa, watching them.
‘What do you say you and Beth put the fairy at the top together?’ Matt carefully lifted up the fairy from her resting place on the coffee table and brought her over to Jack.
‘Oh, no, you should do it. You have to make a wish.’ Beth backed away from the tree.
‘I’m all wished out.’ Matt lifted Jack up effortlessly and sat him on his shoulders. ‘Won’t you help him? You must have something to wish for.’
Something immediately sprang to mind. Staying here, in the soft glow of the firelight, magic in the air and Matt at her side. Waiting while he put Jack to bed, looking forward to being alone with him, rather than just alone this Christmas. But her place was back home, in the quiet of her cottage. Not here.
‘I’ve got something. I’m going to wish that…’
‘No!’ Beth and Matt both silenced Jack in unison. ‘If you tell anyone what your wish is, it won’t come true,’ Beth explained.
‘Okay, then. But it’s something to do with…’ Jack fell silent as Beth pointed a stern finger at him.
‘You can’t even hint. You have to keep it to yourself.’
‘Are we ready, then? Jack, it’s a fairy, not a model plane. If you wave it around like that, you’ll get glitter all over Beth.’ Matt rolled his eyes, holding out a hand to steady Beth as she climbed the stepladder to help Jack.
Carefully she guided Jack’s hand and fixed the fairy to the top of the tree. ‘There! Now, we’ll all close our eyes and make a wish.’
Jack squeezed his eyes shut, wishing hard. Beth’s eyes met Matt’s and was caught in his liquid gaze. ‘Close your eyes.’ She whispered the words so quietly that she almost mouthed them at him. He had to have a wish. She wouldn’t be able to bear it if he didn’t.