demur. She rippled out the opening chords once again and Shani straightened. Her voice
soared over everyone else’s as she sang the old carol gospel style, something I’d become familiar with in the time we’d been
rooming together. I’d heard her practicing and heard her in the shower, but it had never sounded like this. At the end of
the first chorus, the bow waved again, and she plunged into the second verse. And the third.
When the last of the verses died away, the pub was dead silent.
Then my dad began to clap, and Lissa’s parents joined in, and pandemonium broke out. Shani disappeared in a sea of laughing,
clapping people, and then the band collected itself once again and began to play a country dance.
Alasdair appeared next to Shani. “May I offer our singer a dance?”
“Not me,” Shani mumbled. “I’m done for the night. Maybe even the rest of the year.”
With a smile, he turned to Lissa. “What about you?”
“I don’t know how to do it,” she said, making a funny regretful face. “Mac taught us how to do Strip the Willow, but I don’t
think that will fit in here.”
“No, it won’t, but this is different. Come on, I’ll show you.”
“Honest, Alasdair. I’d rather not.”
“Please? Don’t leave a man to be turned down twice, Lissa.”
“I’ll dance with you.” Mouth spoke before brain engaged.
Way to set yourself up for rejection, girl.
“We’ll demonstrate, and Lissa and the others will pick it up.”
To be slotted into the role of teacher seemed to save his pride, and we took the floor with old folks and young folks alike.
I don’t know how much Lissa got out of it, but if I could have crystallized the moment and put it under glass to admire later,
I would have. Alasdair’s hands were warm and strong, and he knew the steps as well as I did. That meant we didn’t have to
think about anything but each other.
Well, in a perfect world, that’s the way it would have been. As it was, I just treasured the way he led me into and out of
the turns, the way his knitted jumper felt warm under my hands, and the fact that even though I wore heels, he was still taller.
It didn’t hurt that both Carrie and Lily looked madly jealous that I was dancing with the university man while they had to
put up with the third-form antics of Gordon and Terrell.
Dad and Lissa’s parents got up to go at close to eleven. By that time, the band was sweaty and exhausted and people had begun
to lose their footing on the floor—and not because it was slippery, either. They stopped to collect us, and while the Spencer
girls were putting on their coats and hunting up handbags and mufflers, Carrie tugged on my arm.
“You’re not going yet?”
“I have to. It’s a long walk back in the snow.”
“Gordon will take you.”
“Gordon’s been nipping more than cider. I’ll see you after the weekend, yeah?”
“I can’t believe it. Have you gone all goody-goody on me? You used to be the one who wanted to close the place down.”
I stepped away so her hand fell from my sleeve. “Not as much as you’ve gone all critical on me. I haven’t been able to do
one thing to your satisfaction all night. What is it with you?”
A hunted expression came into her eyes. “Nothing. Sorry. Are you opening presents?”
“Just one.”
She pulled a little box out of her pocket and slipped it into my hand. “Open mine first.”
“All right. Thank you. You got the parcel from the States, didn’t you?”
“Under the tree and waiting.” She gave me a hug and I left feeling a bit happier. She just had a bit of the green-eyed monster,
was all. Once she realized that our friendship wasn’t in jeopardy because I was friends with the other girls, she’d settle
down and be normal.
Alasdair climbed into the front of our Range Rover, and I staked out a seat in the back. Gillian and Shani joined us, leaving
Lissa to ride home with her folks and Carly. While Shani and Gillian
soared over everyone else’s as she sang the old carol gospel style, something I’d become familiar with in the time we’d been
rooming together. I’d heard her practicing and heard her in the shower, but it had never sounded like this. At the end of
the first chorus, the bow waved again, and she plunged into the second verse. And the third.
When the last of the verses died away, the pub was dead silent.
Then my dad began to clap, and Lissa’s parents joined in, and pandemonium broke out. Shani disappeared in a sea of laughing,
clapping people, and then the band collected itself once again and began to play a country dance.
Alasdair appeared next to Shani. “May I offer our singer a dance?”
“Not me,” Shani mumbled. “I’m done for the night. Maybe even the rest of the year.”
With a smile, he turned to Lissa. “What about you?”
“I don’t know how to do it,” she said, making a funny regretful face. “Mac taught us how to do Strip the Willow, but I don’t
think that will fit in here.”
“No, it won’t, but this is different. Come on, I’ll show you.”
“Honest, Alasdair. I’d rather not.”
“Please? Don’t leave a man to be turned down twice, Lissa.”
“I’ll dance with you.” Mouth spoke before brain engaged.
Way to set yourself up for rejection, girl.
“We’ll demonstrate, and Lissa and the others will pick it up.”
To be slotted into the role of teacher seemed to save his pride, and we took the floor with old folks and young folks alike.
I don’t know how much Lissa got out of it, but if I could have crystallized the moment and put it under glass to admire later,
I would have. Alasdair’s hands were warm and strong, and he knew the steps as well as I did. That meant we didn’t have to
think about anything but each other.
Well, in a perfect world, that’s the way it would have been. As it was, I just treasured the way he led me into and out of
the turns, the way his knitted jumper felt warm under my hands, and the fact that even though I wore heels, he was still taller.
It didn’t hurt that both Carrie and Lily looked madly jealous that I was dancing with the university man while they had to
put up with the third-form antics of Gordon and Terrell.
Dad and Lissa’s parents got up to go at close to eleven. By that time, the band was sweaty and exhausted and people had begun
to lose their footing on the floor—and not because it was slippery, either. They stopped to collect us, and while the Spencer
girls were putting on their coats and hunting up handbags and mufflers, Carrie tugged on my arm.
“You’re not going yet?”
“I have to. It’s a long walk back in the snow.”
“Gordon will take you.”
“Gordon’s been nipping more than cider. I’ll see you after the weekend, yeah?”
“I can’t believe it. Have you gone all goody-goody on me? You used to be the one who wanted to close the place down.”
I stepped away so her hand fell from my sleeve. “Not as much as you’ve gone all critical on me. I haven’t been able to do
one thing to your satisfaction all night. What is it with you?”
A hunted expression came into her eyes. “Nothing. Sorry. Are you opening presents?”
“Just one.”
She pulled a little box out of her pocket and slipped it into my hand. “Open mine first.”
“All right. Thank you. You got the parcel from the States, didn’t you?”
“Under the tree and waiting.” She gave me a hug and I left feeling a bit happier. She just had a bit of the green-eyed monster,
was all. Once she realized that our friendship wasn’t in jeopardy because I was friends with the other girls, she’d settle
down and be normal.
Alasdair climbed into the front of our Range Rover, and I staked out a seat in the back. Gillian and Shani joined us, leaving
Lissa to ride home with her folks and Carly. While Shani and Gillian
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