I’m eating because I mustn’t die. It’s very important that I don’t. I’m her whole world and she’s seen too many dead people.’
No one said anything. Lee stared at the floor, feeling mortified. She hadn’t anticipated Jasper going solo.
Sam shut the book firmly. ‘. . . Well, that’s it then. Not only do I know for certain that you are a good boy, Jasper; now I know that you are the best boy. The best boy in all of Amsterdam.’
‘Really?’ Jasper gasped, his dark eyes shining.
‘I’ve seen them all and there’s no doubt in my mind – you are the best.’ He looked at Jasper closely. ‘Tell me, if you were an animal, which would you be?’
Jasper looked up at Lee, confused. She forced a smile and nodded encouragingly.
‘A bear.’
‘A bear? And why do you say that?’
‘Because I like honey and I like sleeping and mama says I’m cuddly but also brave.’
Sam’s gaze met hers again briefly, his eyes loaded with questions. ‘Yes, I can see that about you.’ He reached inside the cover of the book and pulled out a slip of paper, Lee and Jasper watching on as he quickly began to draw. It was more an elegant assortment of penstrokes than a consciously worked image and yet it captured the very essence of a slumbering bear, a tiny kitten curled up between its paws.
‘This is for you,’ Sam said, holding out the sheet. ‘For being a brave, kind and gentle boy. Your mama must be very proud of you.’
Jasper took it with wide eyes.
‘What do you say?’ Lee prompted him, seeing how he was shocked into silence.
‘Thank you, Sinter,’ Jasper whispered, his gaze travelling over the plush white beard, eyebrows, mitre . . .
Sam rose from the chair. ‘Well, I must get going. There are still plenty of other boys and girls to see this evening, but it has been a pleasure meeting you, Jasper.’
‘Jazz, you run along upstairs now and start getting ready for bed,’ Lee said. ‘I’ll see Sinterklaas out.’
Jasper stared at him for another moment. ‘Goodbye, Sinter.’
‘Goodbye, Jasper.’
Jasper ran from the room – the hot chocolate completely forgotten – and sprinted up the stairs, his drawing rustling loudly in his hand, as together Sam and Lee walked down to the ground floor.
‘It was very kind of you to visit us this evening, Sinter,’ Lee said loudly, for her son’s benefit.
They got to the hallway. ‘Oh my God, you were amazing,’ she whispered excitedly. ‘He just loved that!’
‘He’s a great little boy,’ Sam said, seeing how her hands were pressed together in front of her mouth, her eyes shining.
They stared at each other, reminding themselves of one another from their fleeting encounter in the hospital toilet, and a small silence bloomed as she felt the atmosphere shift between them, one reason for coming here being replaced by another.
‘If you get changed in here,’ she whispered, opening the door to the spare bedroom. ‘I’ll just get him into bed and then we can have that glass of wine.’
A small smile came onto his lips. ‘Okay, great.’
‘I’ll just—’ She went over to the front door and opened it. ‘Goodbye, Sinter!’ she said loudly, before closing the door again with a slam. She winked at him as she passed. ‘I won’t be long. Give me five minutes.’
She shut Jasper’s bedroom door softly and jogged down the stairs to the kitchen; she needed a box of matches for the scented candle she’d bought for the guest room.
‘Oh!’ she said, drawing up short as she saw Sam standing by the island on his phone, the bottle of red she had left out and two large glasses in front of him. ‘You’re in here.’
He looked up with a surprised grin. ‘Yes. Where else would I be?’
She shrugged – she had expected him to stay downstairs – but she was happy to see him looking like himself again; it was deeply disconcerting being attracted to a white-bearded old man. He was wearing jeans and an ivory chunky ribbed sweater, his skin still a little pink from where he’d had to peel off the beard and eyebrow glue again.
‘Pinot Noir?’
‘Great,’ she said. She was used to other people hosting in her kitchen.
He poured and held out a glass for her. Lee took it, feeling the charge between them surge now they were alone again. It had been instantaneous on Friday and she felt it again now, a powerful attraction neither one of them was trying to hide. ‘To good deeds,’ he said.