Katey Lovell - Joe and Clara’s Christmas Countdown

‘He did, too,’ Joe said with a laugh. ‘I bet if he’d fallen over he’d have never been able to get back up again. That coat could double up as one of those sumo-suits they have for corporate away-day bonding sessions.’

‘I wish he had fallen over, and that the photographer had captured it for good measure. And that it had made the front page of the paper. Am I a bad person for saying that?’

‘Nah. Anyone would think the same, given the circumstances.’

‘It’s not even about Dean, really,’ she admitted. ‘The whole situation made me doubt my judgement. I thought I knew him inside and out, but it turned out I never really knew him at all. That’s one hell of an eye-opener.’

‘Not all men are like him.’

‘That’s what Deirdre says, but with his actions, and what happened with my dad …’ Her voice trailed off. ‘I’ve been asked out a few times since me and Dean split up, but I’m not ready to put my heart on the line again.’

‘Not all men are like him,’ Joe repeated. ‘And if you let me take you out somewhere, I’ll prove it.’

He could have sworn her eyes brightened, but when she spoke there was a hesitance in her voice. ‘Are you asking me on a date?’

‘No!’ Joe replied, a fraction too quickly. He forced himself to swallow down his embarrassment. ‘I don’t really do dates. I meant as friends. If we’re going to be working together, we might as well get to know each other.’

‘I can’t decide whether that’s really gentlemanly or if I’m a bit insulted.’

‘Well, I was trying to be gentlemanly …’

‘In that case, I’ll go out with you,’ she said, glancing up through her long, dark lashes. ‘On one condition.’

‘Go on …’

‘I can tell you’re not a fan of Christmas from the way you’ve acted tonight.’ Joe went to talk, but Clara raised mitten-clad hands to stop him. ‘You joined in, but the joy wasn’t shining out of you. Christmas is the most magical time of the year to me. So, I’m going to make a suggestion. You can take me out and show me that not all men are grade-A losers, if you’ll let me share exactly why I love the festive season so much with you.’

Joe sighed. Clara had piqued his curiosity. ‘What are you suggesting?’

‘We’ll be seeing a lot of each other anyway, what with you helping out at the youth club every other night, so, as a thank you for volunteering I’d like to give you some festive gifts.’

‘Presents? I don’t think anyone in their right mind would argue with presents.’

‘On the nights you’re at the club I’ll bring you something to remind you why Christmas is so amazing. And on the nights you’re not volunteering, you can pick me up and take me out.’

Joe raised an eyebrow. ‘That escalated quickly. So we’ve gone from one date to multiple dates?’ He wasn’t sure how he felt about that, but he was aware of his heart beating faster than normal, and the sensation wasn’t entirely unpleasant.

Clara waggled what Joe thought was probably a finger, although it was hard to tell through the silhouette of her pink and blue striped mittens. ‘Not dates, remember? But a chance for you to prove there are still some chivalrous men out there that aren’t either married or gay.’

‘Challenge accepted.’

‘But there’s one more condition.’

‘Name it.’

‘Wherever you take me on these non-dates has to be Christmassy. I don’t care where, but it’s December. I want to feel festive.’

Joe wasn’t sure he was ready to embrace eggnog and carol singing and all the memories that were tangled up with the run-up to Christmas. The tree-decorating and lantern parade had been more than enough festivity for him. But because he already liked Clara he found himself saying, ‘Okay. You’ve got a deal.’

‘Fantastic,’ Clara replied. ‘I’ve got high expectations.’ She smiled before adding, ‘I’ll have your first gift ready for you tomorrow, if one night with the kids hasn’t put you off helping out.’

‘Not at all. I’ll be there with bells on.’

‘See, you’re already getting into the festive mood,’ she laughed as she started walking away. ‘Until tomorrow,’ she called.

‘Until tomorrow,’ Joe echoed, pulling down his beanie to cover the chilly tips of his ears.

As he headed back towards the now-glitzy lights twinkling above the square, Joe was pleasantly surprised there was a new-found spring in his step.

Clara couldn’t wait for Joe to arrive at The Club on the Corner that day so she could give him the first of his gifts. She’d been slogging away all afternoon, sorting out the seemingly endless amount of paperwork that was required to keep a youth club up and running in the twenty-first century, and was ready for some festive frivolity. Admittedly, she’d already managed to distract herself by attaching two new strands of thick golden tinsel to the edge of her desk. She’d seen them in the market that morning and hadn’t been able to resist. It was Christmas, after all.

‘Afternoon,’ Deirdre called cheerily, as she popped her head around the office door. ‘How are the accounts going, busy bee?’

‘Ah, you know. Not the most positive reading.’ Clara pulled a face. No matter how hard she looked at the numbers on the spreadsheets, there was no way she could make them add up. ‘Then again, it’s no worse than normal. We’ll keep ticking over. We always do.’

‘That we will.’ There was a pause, and Clara had a suspicion she knew where Deirdre’s conversation was about to head. She had that look in her eye that suggested she was ready to start digging. ‘So,’ she began, ‘what’s going on with you and Joe?’

‘Nothing,’ Clara replied. ‘I don’t know what you mean.’

It was a half-truth, but Clara pushed away the guilt rising in her chest by assuring herself that Deirdre was only concerned with romance, and there was none of that between her and Joe. A hint of harmless flirting and a countdown to Christmas, but no full-blown love affair like her boss was craving.

Deirdre peered over the upper rim of her glasses like a TV detective scrutinising the evidence.

‘Nothing?’ she frowned. ‘Are you sure?’

‘Absolutely.’

‘Because the way he came charging after you at the lantern parade … well, it didn’t seem like nothing to me. In fact, I’d go as far as to say it looked like the act of someone trying to get into your good books,’ she pressed, with a suggestive jiggle of her eyebrows. The implied meaning was clear. Deirdre’s voice might be saying ‘good books’, but her eyebrows were saying ‘bed’.

‘You said it yourself, Joe’s a nice guy. He could tell I was shaken after seeing Dean and wanted to make sure I was okay. That’s all there is to it.’

The mention of Dean was all it took to set Deirdre off. Dean-bashing had become one of her favourite hobbies over the past few months.

‘Didn’t he look ridiculous in that massive coat?’ Deirdre said. ‘And what the hell was that dancing all about? What a cock.’

‘Deirdre!’ Clara exclaimed. ‘That’s harsh.’

‘Not harsh enough. I speak as I find.’

Deirdre gingerly lowered herself onto the sofa that backed against the far wall of the office. Her face strained with the effort.

‘Oooof, that’s better,’ she said, sticking her right leg straight out in front of her. ‘My knee’s been giving me gip all day.’

‘You’re doing too much,’ Clara chided. ‘The aches and pains are your body telling you to take things more easily.’

‘Stop giving me orders. You’re not a nurse.’

‘No, I’m not,’ Clara replied, biting her tongue, ‘but I’ve been working with you long enough to know when you’re overdoing it.’