A Gifted Christmas: Part Two
Read Part One here.
The suite had everything. A small Christmas tree was carefully positioned by the side of an electric fire; the staff had even provided a choice of decorations. It was like a little retreat from the world.
My room was warm and cosy, with burgundy curtains hiding what would be a perfect view of the mountains when it was day. I even had my own individual kettle, with a selection of teas, coffees and hot chocolates. Beside the bed was a small shelf with some old books; I ran my fingers lightly over the leather spines.
And that bed looked so comfortable.
After unpacking, I wandered into the main room and nestled onto the sofa with one of the books. It wasn’t long before the door to the double bedroom – Mum and Dad’s room – opened.
“Lorraine texted me; they’ve just arrived and are in their suite. You’d better go and freshen up – it’s almost five to six!”
I tried not to grimace. “We don’t have to dress up, do we?” I had brought a couple of dresses for Christmas dinner and New Year’s Eve, and I didn’t want to put them on just yet.
“No, just put on a nice jumper or something.”
I deliberately took my time washing my face, brushing my hair, and getting changed. The jumper was red with black sequins sewn onto it; it was one of my favourites and wearing it made me feel a bit braver.
I just couldn't forget the way Terri had spoken to me two years ago, or her expression when she said she and her siblings would always be worth more than me.
“See this? My Gift’s better than my dad’s and my sister’s. So you’d better show me some respect from now on.”
My heart almost stopped.
Maisy had the exact same sneer on her face as Terri when speaking to Alexa.
“Louisa, are you ready?”
“Just coming!”
The hotel dining room was decorated with wreaths on the walls, each one with a large red and gold bow. I paused to stare at the centrepieces on the tables: candles surrounded by greenery and slices of dried citrus fruit.
“Do we just choose where to sit?” I asked.
“No, a table’s been reserved for us.” Mum pointed towards a large table with nine chairs, five of which were already occupied.
Aunt Lorraine smiled awkwardly as we approached. “Laura, hi. Glad you made it.” She gave Mum a gentle hug.
That wasn’t right. Christmas was usually the only time of year our families got to see each other. OK, I wasn’t complaining about that, but Mum and Aunt Lorraine were sisters.
They were usually much more enthusiastic than this.
I was too busy thinking about this that I almost missed Victor shaking hands with Dad.
“Louisa. It’s good to see you again.” Now it was my turn to get hugged by my aunt. I closed my eyes for a moment. I’d missed her a bit, even though her kids were a bunch of brats.
Speaking of the brats, Terri, Sally and Cedric got up and…they were hugging me too.
“Hi, Louisa,” Sally said. “It’s great to see you.”
“You too.”
Terri gave me a sceptical look, which was fine. It’s not as if she was happy to see me either. But our parents were watching, so we had no choice but to play nice and embrace each other.
“Is Ed coming down too?” Dad asked.
“Yes, he’ll be driving down tomorrow,” replied Victor. “He’s just got one last bit of studying to do before he joins us.”
When we were all sitting down, I carefully picked up one of the menus and started browsing. “Are we going for the set menus, or…”
“No, you get to choose,” Mum reassured me.
I tried not to look at any of my cousins. I was glad we were spending Christmas at a hotel; we wouldn’t have to spend any more time with each other than we had to.
“Hey.” Sally nudged me lightly with her elbow. “It really is good to see you.”
“Thanks,” I mumbled.