You Can't Hurry Love

Chapter Forty-Nine

CHRISTMAS DAY

'Keep them closed,' I laugh as I ease Roland out of the car and guide him towards the front door of Angelo's, holding onto him tightly to prevent him from tripping on the icy pavement. 'You better not be peeking!'

'What are you two up to?' he replies suspiciously, and I meet Lincoln's eyes over the top of his head, sending him a cheeky wink as he locks the car and comes to join us.

'Nothing,' I smile, amazed that after so little sleep we'd actually been able to pull this all off. We'd had help of course; from Roland's son and daughter who'd got him up and ready to leave when we called for him, but more surprisingly from Ben, who'd been blind-sided when the pair of us had waltzed into the restaurant together after ditching the office party last night but had played it cool and stayed behind to aid us with setting everything up. (Boy, was that an unlikely trio if I ever saw one.)

It had only taken us about an hour and when all that was left to do was to put up the Christmas tree, Ben had taken it upon himself to leave and the silence that ensued had been electrifying. Lincoln barely spoke a word to me as we moved around but his intentions had been perfectly clear, etched across his vivid, hooded eyes and every unwritten look that had passed between us told me he wanted me and every tactile caress as he swept behind me left me craving him too, and if it hadn't been for Henry rocking up outside in a taxi just as we were throwing down the tinsel, I'm pretty sure we wouldn't have been able to stop ourselves.

It was the same look he was giving me now and I feel my fingers slip from Roland's shoulder as I stare back at him, watching the flirtatious grin form on his face.

'I'm just happy to see the two of you talking again,' Roland muses as he scratches genially at his chin, and just like that the spell was broken.

'Er, yeah, me too.'

I tear myself away from Lincoln's penetrating gaze and adjust the new jumper Roland had been bought for Christmas, making sure all the buttons were done up and that he was still warm.

'You can open them now,' I announce breathlessly, and he does so, taking a moment to absorb his surroundings, and when his eyes finally settle on the movement through the steamed-up window of the restaurant he takes a step forward.

'What's all this?'

'It's your Christmas party,' I beam, squeezing Lincoln's hand as he wraps it around mine. 'Well . . . our party. I thought it would be nice if we all spent the day together.'

'I don't understand.' He turns to me, looking dazed. 'I thought you were seeing your mum today.'

'I am, she's inside.'

I point through the window and he spots her across the room, wearing her floral pinny and playing hostess to Henry, who looked impervious to the fact that his restaurant had been taken over by a bunch of complete strangers.

'Ben's in there too, and Isaac. And your son and daughter snuck in whilst Lincoln was driving us here. But you're the guest of honour, Roland, everyone's waiting for you.'

'They are?' he asks disbelievingly and with a final smile at Lincoln, I swap his hand for Roland's, looping it through my arm and guiding him towards the door.

'Yes. Now let's get you inside, okay?' I go to urge him forward, but Lincoln clears his throat.

We pause, turning back to him in surprise.

'I er . . . I might have invited a few people as well. If that's alright with you?' He looks uncomfortable and I gawp at him, watching him screw his nose up and gaze uneasily across the road.