Sarah Bennett - Christmas at Butterfly Cove - A delightfully feel-good festive romance!

Aaron had nursed him through his first, and, to this day, worst hangover, and though shaky, he’d been able to face his parents when they returned on the Sunday evening. Aaron’s hours on hands and knees, scrubbing at the bright-green stain on the peach bathroom carpet had proven less successful. Despite Luke’s protestations, his big brother had taken the blame. And Cathy had been all too happy to let him. She’d refused to leave them alone in the house for years afterwards, making it clear she couldn’t trust Aaron to be responsible. The fact she could make a joke about it now was little short of a miracle.

Cathy placed her hand on his chest, smoothing a non-existent crease from the front of his navy T-shirt. ‘Your dad and I are here, if you need us.’

He covered her hand with his and gave it a squeeze. ‘I know, Mum. I’m fine, though. It’s water under the bridge.’ Releasing her fingers, he walked away before she could read the lie on his face. His thick, grey hoodie hung over the bottom of the banister, and he shrugged it on as he called up the stairs. ‘Pub?’

‘Pub!’ Aaron’s enthusiastic response was followed by the thunder of footsteps on the landing above. His brother jogged down the stairs, a wide grin on his face. ‘You’re not as thick as you look, are you, Spud?’

‘Wanker.’ Luke aimed a punch at his brother’s arm. Aaron clutched his arm, staggering down the hall with an exaggerated cry of pain.

Their father appeared from the living room with a folded copy of The Sunday Times in his hand. He gave them both a playful swipe with the paper. ‘Silly sods, the pair of you. Don’t be late back, all right?’

Aaron pulled his jacket down from where he’d hung it neatly on a peg. The contrast between the care he took to do everything right and Luke’s own casual disregard struck him anew. Things might be thawing, but it would be a long time before Aaron would feel completely comfortable in what should be the safest of spaces. Luke shrugged off the tinge of melancholy. ‘You coming with us, Dad?’

Brian shook his head. ‘I’ve got a date with a vegetable peeler, and then I’m going to check out the apple trees, see if I can talk your mum into making a crumble for pudding.’ There was a small cluster of fruit trees at the end of the garden, cookers, not eaters.

Luke’s mouth watered at the thought of hot crumble and custard. It was another of Aaron’s favourites and he knew then his dad’s casual comment was to try and play down how much work Cathy was putting into the planned lunch. ‘Sounds great. I’ll see if they’ve got a couple of bottles of that Cabernet Mum likes. It’ll go nicely with the beef.’

‘Good lad.’ Brian hooked his arm around Luke and drew him close for a quick hug. He did the same to Aaron, adding a kiss to his cheek. Their dad had always been demonstrative, no stiff-upper-lip backslapping or awkward handshakes, and both his sons had carried that naturalness and warmth into adulthood.

Luke had seen it in the same gentle interactions between his brother and Matty, his girlfriend’s young son. For someone who’d been adamant about not wanting children of his own, Aaron had taken to Kiki’s little ones with alacrity. It pleased Luke to see. His brother had a heart as big as a lion’s and lived to care for others. At least one of them seemed capable of forging a successful relationship with a Thorpe sister.

Two of them, if he included Daniel. Recently, and sickeningly happily, married to the eldest of the three sisters, his brother’s best friend was close enough to be considered blood. Which left Luke and Nee, and their marriage that wasn’t. Bollocks.

Feeling the heavy weight of his brother’s arm slung around his neck, Luke allowed Aaron to steer him off the street and onto the flagstone patio in front of the King’s Arms. ‘Penny for them,’ Aaron said, although he probably had a pretty good idea where his brother’s thoughts had strayed to.

Luke couldn’t get Nee out of his bloody head. Every time he closed his eyes, her pale, strained face swam into view. Too pale, too thin, like she hadn’t been taking proper care of herself. He hated how much her miserable appearance bothered him, and his voice came out harsher than he intended. ‘They’re not worth a bloody penny.’ He took a breath and softened his tone. ‘Come on, I’m parched.’

They kept the chit-chat light as they waited for Tony, the convivial landlord, to pour their pints. They’d known the red-cheeked man since they’d had to be lifted onto the bar-stools to see, excited at the idea of a glass of pop and a packet of crisps. He added the cost of two bottles of red to their tab, and promised to drop them at their table shortly. Given a choice, Luke would rather have stayed at the bar. Less chance of Aaron raising any awkward topics in front of others. Aaron ignored his suggestion, leaving him little choice other than to follow his brother to a small, round table perched in the corner beneath a collection of horse-brasses ubiquitous to every country pub he’d ever set foot in.

Hoping to head Aaron off at the pass, Luke searched for a neutral topic of conversation. ‘How’re the kids?’

A slow, easy smile spread over his brother’s face, his mega-watt grin as Kiki called it. ‘They’re brilliant. Just amazing. They surprise me every day. Matty’s settling in at school far better than we might have hoped, given all the upheaval he’s been through.’

There was no mistaking the pride in his voice at the boy’s progress and Luke grinned at him. ‘Still stargazing?’

Aaron rolled his eyes. ‘I think we’ve got the next Professor Brian Cox on our hands. Now the nights are drawing in, he’s out there with his telescope every evening the skies are clear enough. We’ve been through every programme he can find on catch-up. I’m not sure he grasps the depth of some of the science, but you should see his eyes when the images of galaxies come up.’

Luke sipped his beer. ‘Can you imagine Dad out there with him? They’d be partners-in-crime, for sure.’ A shadow crossed Aaron’s face and he could have kicked himself. He hadn’t meant anything by it. Brian Spenser loved astronomy and had passed his interest down to both his sons. ‘Sorry. I didn’t think. I understand why you’re taking things slowly in that direction.’

Aaron shifted on the bench beneath the window, throwing his arm along the back of the seat as he settled back to study him. ‘What do you think about it all?’

‘Mum? I don’t know what you said to her, but it’s definitely had an impact. You know she’s making roast beef and Yorkshire puddings for lunch? And apple crumble.’

A faint blush edged his brother’s cheekbones. ‘She didn’t need to go to so much trouble.’

Luke made a rude noise. ‘‘Course she bloody did. Don’t tell me you’re letting her off the hook already! You want to milk this, mate, for as long as you can.’

Aaron shook his head, mouth twisting in amusement. ‘You’re incorrigible.’

He preened. ‘It’s a skill, don’t be jealous.’ They burst out laughing.

His brother took a deep draft of his beer, amusement fading. ‘We’re thinking about having them down for a weekend next month. Mia and Kiki have already set their hearts on some huge family Christmas, so we’re thinking it would be a good idea to introduce them to the children beforehand.’

‘Christmas? It’s months away. Who the hell is thinking about Christmas?’ Luke sputtered.

‘It’s exactly ten weeks today,’ Aaron said in a way that told Luke he’d been subjected to more than one conversation on that point. ‘It’s the number-two topic of conversation between the ladies of Butterfly Cove.’ The way he eyed Luke, it was obvious what subject was at the top of the gossip hit parade.