Page 117 of Under the Mistletoe with You

Kit:????

Haf:wait are you doing an innuendo

Oh god.Trust Ambrose to have borderline psychic powers.Luckily no one has said anything for a good four hours, so it’s probably safe for him to drop a greeting and leave.

Christopher:Morning!Merry Christmas everyone.Love you all.

Ambrose:did you shag him

Ambrose:did you?????

Christopher:Why are you awake?It’s 6am.

Ambrose:thats a yes then

Ambrose:lads lads lads lads

Ambrose:and the answer is that i’m always perceiving you x

Christopher:Horrifying.

Christopher:I have to go make Christmas dinner for about twenty-five people.

Christopher:Speak to you all later.Have a nice day.

Ambrose:WAIT WHAT ABOUT THE SHAGGIN

As he’s finishing in the shower, Nash jumps in too, passing him with a quick peck on the cheek.It happens so fast that Christopher isn’t even sure it was real.

By the time they make it downstairs to the bakery, it’s getting worryingly close to seven.

‘It feels late to be starting the loaves,’ Christopher says, partly to himself.If they hadn’t been fooling around

last night, maybe he could have got them done.Or woken up earlier.A thick wad of guilt pools in his stomach.What if he fucks this up?

‘Do you have to get up really early?’Nash says, already busying himself with chopping vegetables for the starter soup.

‘Yes.Usually four to get the dough proving.’

‘Gross.I hate it when I have a call-time that early, because it always happens on the days after I finish late.’Nash yawns.‘So, you’re just here all day then?’

‘It’s not just me.Tegan serves the customers.’

Nash gives him a look.‘So it’s just you.’

‘I’m not sure what you’re implying.’

‘Oh nothing,’ Nash says airily.‘Just that you’re a bit of a control freak.’

Before Christopher can reply and insist that actually he’s not a control freak, he just really likes things to be done in his own specific way, there’s a knock on the window in the café.

He walks through the bakery kitchen to find Tegan herself at the door, dressed head to toe in black.The giant hat on her head is fluffy and has cat ears sticking out the top of it, but boy does it look warm.The men are barely awake, and yet somehow Tegan has had the wherewithal to draw on the sharpest eyeliner he’s ever seen, presumably before caffeine.Oh, to be young again.

‘Morning,’ he says, which turns into a question as she walks past him, stomping the snow off her enormous platform boots.‘We’re not open today you know?’

This is met with a blank stare.

‘And it’s Christmas?’