‘Ours are with Father Christmas. Uncle Mitch has written to tell him we’re here for Christmas so he can bring our sacks here.’
‘It’s taken us ages to get everything nice, Mummy.’
This last from Georgia was a little uncertain. Kay realised her face must be betraying her, but the ‘Uncle Mitch’ had hit her like a savage punch in the solar plexus. This was exactly what she’d feared, the reason she’d made it a policy not to date while the children were small, why she’d hesitated particularly with regards to Mitchell Grey. She didn’t want her girls to be made conversant with ‘uncles’. She knew friends in a similar situation to herself and no sooner had their children got used to one uncle than he disappeared and another took his place. Uncles were transient. It stood to reason, didn’t it, that if the fathers of the children weren’t prepared to stick around, uncles were going to be even less reliable? And Mitchell had already laid out the ground rules well in advance.
She had been foolish to think she could keep the two lives separate—that of having a light ‘friendship’ with Mitchell, and that of her real life with her babies. But it would have been all right, it would, if she hadn’t got sick.
She forced a bright smile to her face as she pulled Emily onto her lap, and put an arm round Georgia, who was standing at her knee. Pretend; don’t spoil their Christmas. ‘It’s absolutely beautiful, my darlings. You must have been so busy. I can’t believe it.’
Her gushing must have worked because both children’s faces became animated again, their chattering washing over her as she met Mitchell’s eyes. They were narrowed on her face, the ice-blue depths glinting as though he had read her mind.
She stared at him, knowing she ought to say something but her mind registering only the dark attractiveness at the root of his maleness. He was in a light shirt and jeans, his feet bare, and his hair looked ruffled. She had never seen it like that before. Usually it was ruthlessly sleek and impeccable, like him. This was another Mitchell; she was seeing yet one more facet of his complex persona and, if anything, although this being was more casual and laidback than any so far, it disturbed her the most. It was the most human, seemingly the most approachable, and it was an illusion.
‘Darling, how are you feeling?’ Her mother’s voice from the sofa some feet away brought Kay’s head turning. ‘We looked in on you an hour or so ago when I came down, but you were fast asleep.’
Kay forced another smile as she said, ‘A bit shaky but much better.’
‘This is my first time up too.’ Whether Leonora had guessed how she’d felt when she had watched them all from the doorway, Kay didn’t know, but her mother continued, ‘Not that you could really call it that when I was all but carried down here and then tucked up and forbidden to move. All this work has been done over the last day, apparently.’
‘The girls needed something to take their minds off missing their mother,’ Mitchell said softly, speaking to Leonora but with his eyes on Kay’s pale face.
Kay nerved herself to meet his gaze again. ‘You’ve been very kind to us, thank you,’ she said stiffly. ‘I can’t believe all the trouble we’ve put you to.’
‘No trouble.’ He had risen to his feet when Georgia had rushed to meet her, his hands thrust in his pockets and his dark face inscrutable. ‘That’s what friends are for, after all.’
Colour flooded into her pale face. He had sensed her thoughts earlier.
‘Besides which, it’s given Henry and myself the chance to act like boys again, eh, Henry?’ His voice was mocking. ‘We might even be persuaded to build a snowman if the snow falls thickly enough over Christmas.’
‘I’ve never made a snowman.’ Georgia had left Kay’s side before she could stop her, walking across and tugging on Mitchell’s jean-clad leg to get his attention. ‘There was only a teeny weeny bit of snow last year and it melted.’
‘It did? That’s a shame, munchkin.’ Mitchell put out a hand and ruffled the child’s curls. ‘I tell you what, I’ll put in an order with Father Christmas to leave enough snow for a snowman this year. How about that? Then we can make one with big coal eyes and a carrot nose.’
‘Emily can’t go out into the cold.’ Georgia looked artlessly up at her hero. ‘She’ll have to stay inside and watch.’
‘No, I won’t.’ Emily’s lower lip began to tremble. ‘I want to build a snowman too.’
Four years old and they were fighting over him already, Kay thought helplessly. What was it about Mitchell Grey and the female race? Even her mother had a glow about her that wasn’t due to the heat from the huge coal fire burning in the hearth.
‘Emily will be fine all wrapped up in a day or two,’ Mitchell said firmly, his tweak of Georgia’s nose letting the tot know he wasn’t falling for it. ‘Building a snowman is a job for everyone to do together or not at all. Okay?’
Georgia nodded adoringly and Kay groaned silently. He had her feisty little Georgia eating out of the palm of his hand. They were going to hear nothing but ‘Uncle Mitchell’ for months after this.
‘Now, there just happens to be two early Christmas presents for two little girls I know on the Christmas tree.’ Mitchell grinned at the twins. ‘See if you can find them. Not under the tree, mind. On it.’
Emily was off Kay’s lap and across to the tree only seconds after her sister, and they found the parcels without any trouble. On opening, the boxes revealed two beautifully dressed, long-haired dolls, complete with muffs and capes and other accessories, identical but for the fact one doll was dressed in silver and the other in gold.
Kay watched as the girls came dancing back to thank Mitchell without any prompting, and when he said the dolls were from both himself and Henry they immediately went to Henry and hugged him too, before settling down on the rug in front of the fire and beginning to play with their new babies.
‘They’re two lovely little girls, Kay. You’re bringing them up very well.’
Henry was sitting with her mother now and as Mitchell joined her on the sofa Kay felt herself tense. ‘Thank you.’
‘How are you feeling?’ he aske
d softly.
He was sitting close but not too close. Nevertheless every nerve in her body had twanged and now she found herself utterly unable to break the hold of his eyes. ‘I…I’m surprised how weak I feel.’ She hadn’t meant to be so honest but the nearness of him had totally thrown her.