The Summer Seekers

Her boss, Miles, was waiting for her, phone in hand.

“You were right about that reindeer.” He showed her the screen. “It’s selling so fast we can’t keep the stores stocked.”

It was typical of him to dive straight into work, and that was fine with her.

They walked together toward their table in the ballroom, talking numbers and strategy.

The room was filling up fast, and when they finally took their seats and the evening began, Alix treated herself to a sip of champagne.

She chatted to her colleagues, keeping the conversation light and neutral. When they asked about her plans for the holidays, she told them she’d be spending it with friends in Lapland.

When one of them asked about her family she brushed the question aside, deflecting as she always did. It really didn’t bother her that her parents had no wish to spend Christmas with her, but it was hard to convince people of that, so she preferred not to talk about it.

It would have been easy for her to hate Christmas, but thanks to Christy she loved it. Her friend’s generosity was something she never took for granted. Their friendship was the most important thing in the world to her.

Now that, she thought as she took another sip of champagne, was the one relationship where she allowed her emotions to be engaged. She loved Christy like a sister, and Christy loved her back. Their lives had been intertwined since childhood and they knew every little detail about one another.

She knew that Christy hated peanut butter and always slept with two pillows. She knew that she preferred baths to showers, that she never went to bed without first applying moisturizer, and that she threw her mascara away after exactly three months—she made a note in her diary. She knew that Christy would always choose to eat a raw carrot over a bowl of ice cream, and that she’d only ever been blind drunk once in her life. Vodka. Never again. She knew that Christy’s way of handling a difficult situation was to ignore it, and that the last thing she did before she went to bed at night was make a list of all the things she had to do the following day.

And Christy knew her, too. Christy was the only one who knew Alix had lost her virginity to Charlie Harris, and that sometimes she liked to sleep with a light on. There was nothing they couldn’t say to each other, and she knew nothing would ever damage their friendship. It had occurred to her more than once that what you needed most to help you navigate childhood and adolescence wasn’t good parents, but a great friend. It was the only relationship she’d ever let herself rely on.

“Wake up, Carpenter.” Miles nudged her. “We won. Get up on that stage and make a speech.”

She heard the applause, saw images of their campaign flash across the giant screens, and walked with the rest of her team to collect the award.

As she returned to her seat she felt her phone vibrate.

She sneaked a look and saw Christy’s name on the screen.

It was three in the morning in London. Christy was a big believer in the restorative powers of sleep, which was why she never had dark circles around her eyes like Alix. She would never call in the middle of the night unless it was an emergency.

“Excuse me...”

With an apologetic smile to her colleagues, Alix gracefully weaved her way through the tables and out of the hall into the foyer. She found a quiet area and sat down on a plush sofa, next to another dazzling Christmas tree.

“Christy? Is everything okay?” She asked the question even though she knew things couldn’t possibly be okay. “Hello?”

For a moment Alix wondered if her friend had ended the call, but then she heard a muffled sound.

“Are you crying?” She sat up straighter. Her friend was more emotional than she was, but she didn’t often cry. “Christy?”

“I’m okay!” Christy sniffed. “Am I disturbing you? Has the award thing finished?”

“Yes. Boring anyway.” Alix eased her feet out of her shoes and rubbed her sore heels with her fingers. “Tell me why you’re awake at this hour.”

“I need a favor.”

“Name it.”

That was what friendship was, wasn’t it? Unconditional love and support. No matter what you need, I’m here for you.

There was a pause, as if Christy was struggling to get the words out. “I need you to take Holly to Lapland.”

“We are taking Holly to Lapland.”

“I mean you—not me. I can’t go right away.”

“I—What?” Of all the things she’d anticipated being asked, that wouldn’t even have made the list. “But this is the dream trip. The perfect Christmas. You’ve been planning it for ages.”