high streets, but in the loft their names lived on.
‘And this,’ Finn rushed on.
He sounded as excited as a child diving into their Christmas stocking.
‘This must be the nativity set Harold’s father made.’
We set that carefully to one side along with the fragile angel which, according to a quick online search, must have been at her best in the 1930s.
‘There’s far too much here to put up, isn’t there?’ I said, looking again at the lengths of tinsel, bright glass baubles, garlands and lights.
Most of the lights weren’t wired up to current standards so they were easy to set aside, but as for the rest, it was going to take forever to choose.
‘Why don’t you pick a theme or decade?’ Finn suggested, kneeling next to me. ‘That’ll narrow it down a bit. Or even a colour. There’s enough here to fill the house, just using red decorations alone.’
He was right; I needed a plan. I wondered which things Harold favoured. Probably those pieces he remembered from childhood which, I guessed, most likely narrowed it down to the thirties and forties. There were plenty of glass baubles and even some small crêpe crackers which I reckoned originated from then. Another online search would help.
‘That’s a good idea,’ I said, ‘I just wish I had more time to get stuck into it.’
Nell had finally shuffled into the room. She hadn’t been sure about the tree, but now it was in place and not moving, she’d made her peace with it. She laid her head on my lap and I bent to kiss the top of it.
‘Oh, I meant to say,’ said Finn, reaching to fuss her too. ‘If you don’t want to help with my session tomorrow, you don’t have to.’
‘I wasn’t angling to bunk off,’ I told him. ‘I can finish decorating next week.’
‘Well, it’s entirely up to you,’ he said, ‘but I’ve got some extra help lined up now, so if you change your mind I won’t struggle.’
‘Are you just saying that because you know I can’t hammer a nail in straight?’ I pouted, giving him a nudge and making him almost topple over.
‘No,’ he grinned, ‘and it was almost straight…’
‘If you looked at it with your head bent at a right angle,’ I giggled, nudging him even harder.
He took hold of my hand and we fell together while Nell skittered about.
‘I wasn’t going to mention that,’ he laughed.
‘You’re only saying that because I’ve got you in compromising position,’ I said, as I sat astride him and pinned his arms either side of his head.
‘No, I’m not,’ he said, looking deep into my eyes. ‘I really have got someone else to help.’
‘Who?’
‘Zak.’
‘Zak!’
He took advantage of my surprise to flip me on to my back so he was then on top.
‘Yep,’ he grinned. ‘He said my session fitted his skillset and that it would be a good opportunity for us to bond. Brothers in arms and all that. He reckons if we keep putting up a united front then Dad will have to get off my case.’
Considering what a chip off the old block Zak had been when I arrived in the square, he really had gone all out to stick to the new side of the leaf he had turned over. I might have had my doubts at first, but there was no evidence to suggest that his efforts weren’t in earnest and I was as thrilled about that as Finn clearly was.
‘In that case,’ I said, ‘I think I will leave you to it.’
‘You can spend the whole day decorating the house,’ he said, lowering his lips to mine as I wrapped my legs around his waist. ‘Assuming you aren’t too tired to get up in the morning.’
‘Why would I be too tired to do that?’ I asked, kissing him back.
‘Because you’re in for a very late night,’ he smiled, punctuating each word with another kiss.
Chapter 28
The following morning, I was every bit as tired as Finn had said I would be, but it wasn’t the bone-weary sort of tiredness which descends after a day of digging, rather an exhaustion that you were thrilled to feel, one that left you with a very big smile on your face.
‘Right,’ I said to Nell, as she took advantage of my lethargy and jumped up on to the bed. ‘What shall we do first?’
Finn’s side of the bed was already cold. Before we fell asleep, he had told me he would head back to the studio before it was light, not only