Lottie said. ‘If you have time once Christmas is over, maybe we could run a trial course for February half-term or Easter?’
‘That’s what I’d wondered.’ He nodded, feeling an unaccustomed spark of enthusiasm. ‘If you think it’s a possibility, I’ll definitely work up a plan and send it to her.’
‘We need to do all we can to bring in more visitors in the quiet months so I can’t see her being anything other than delighted.’
The girls ran back into the room and immediately started their interrogation of Jay.
‘Do you know any jokes?’ Myra said.
Jay racked his brains. ‘How does Good King Wenceslas like his pizza?’ he said.
The twins exchanged glances. ‘We don’t know,’ they trilled in unison.
‘Deep and crisp and even!’ Jay declared, with a big grin.
Jodie wrinkled her nose. ‘That’s silly.’
‘I like pineapples on my pizza,’ Myra stated.
Steph, who had been listening at the doorway, walked in. ‘I think you just died there, Jay.’
Myra’s face fell. ‘Jay isn’t going to die, is he?’
‘No. No. It’s only a figure of speech,’ Steph said.
‘What’s a figure of speech?’
‘A silly saying. It means nothing.’ Steph clapped her hands. ‘Look shall we actually eat some pizza? I ought to warn you though, the toppings are somewhat … unusual.’
‘Sounds intriguing,’ Jay said.
‘That’s one way of putting it,’ Steph said with a grin. ‘Would you mind laying the table, please? Mats, glasses and festive serviettes on the dresser. I’ll bring in the cutlery.’
While Steph extracted the pizzas from the oven, Lottie helped Jay set the table. Gales of laughter came from the kitchen and Lottie poked her head around the door.
‘You can’t look at these,’ the girls squealed. ‘They have top secret toppings.’
Dissolving into fits of giggles, they made Lottie and Jay wait at the table.
‘Why do I have a feeling that this is going to be like no pizza I’ve ever tried before …’ Jay said, as Lottie unfolded a serviette.
‘Well, you were warned,’ Lottie replied, still a little surprised he’d agreed to stay so readily although Steph had hardly given him much option.
Steph and the girls walked out, carrying plates covered in slices of pizza. Myra’s almost tipped over onto the carpet but they made it safely to the table. Jodie ran back into the kitchen and came back with a jar of Nutella and a spoon.
‘Um. What a feast!’ Lottie said when the plates had been put in the middle of the table and the girls were in their seats. ‘Pineapple, ham, mushroom – and what are those?’ Lottie peered at some of the slices, which were dotted with what looked like albino rabbit droppings, with the mysterious addition of bits of silver foil. The other slices were topped with chocolate gloop and pink bits, on top of the usual cheese.
‘These are white chocolate snowballs!’ Myra said proudly, dumping a slice onto Jay’s plate without him asking.
‘We tried to pick all the foil off,’ said Jodie.
‘But watch your teeth,’ Steph warned.
Jay poked at the slice with a fork. ‘I wondered what the shiny bits were …’
‘Try one, Auntie Lottie!’ Myra thrust the plate under Lottie’s nose. She took a slice. ‘Oh, yummy.’
‘And you can add more Nutella if you want to,’ Jodie said, spreading chocolate gloop from a jar onto her pizza.
‘Are the pink bits pink marshmallows?’ Lottie said.
‘No, silly. It’s pepperami!’ The twins fell about laughing. Myra literally slid off her chair, which made her laugh even more.
‘Please, can we eat these pizzas?’ Steph sounded frustrated.
Lottie nibbled the end of a slice. ‘Mm. Chocolate and spicy sausage. How delicious.’
‘It’s Mexican and Cumbrian fusion, is it?’ Jay said.
‘Exactly,’ said Steph with a grin. ‘Tuck in.’
After the pizzas, the girls quietened down a bit and sat on the sofa reading on their tablets. Lottie kissed them goodbye then she and Jay went to the door.
‘Enjoy the rest of your evening,’ Steph said. ‘Thanks again for all your help with the tree. Sorry about the cuisine.’
‘It was eclectic,’ Jay said.
Lottie laughed. ‘I’d call it experimental.’
‘No problem,’ Jay said.
‘Well, that wasn’t quite what I had in mind about having dinner in the pub,’ Lottie said as they walked back towards his van. ‘Thanks for staying. I’m sure the girls thought it was fun and Steph enjoyed the adult company.’
‘Adult?’ Jay laughed. ‘Not going by my jokes.’
Lottie laughed. ‘They still loved having someone new to torment.’
‘I enjoyed it too,’ Jay said. ‘Is there still time for us to go for a drink?’ he asked, surprising himself at how much he wanted the answer to be ‘yes’.
Lottie