Out of season

It looked like a bleak Christmas for all – until Becky had a bright idea

JENNA had a length of Christmas-themed fabric. She had used it previously to cover the table of her market stall, and was willing to sacrifice to help beautify Santa’s Grotto. It was patterned with al

Sarah looked down at her shopping list again, frowning. Why on earth had she been so pig-headed? Her parents had offered to do Christmas. So had John’s. But no. She’d insisted: since this was their fi

Tara stared blankly at the Christmas tree. The fir was a last-minute purchase from the garden centre. She hadn’t decided whether to decorate it. In the armchair opposite hers, where Hugh would normall

HELLO, little one!” Penny Dauntless greeted a robin-redbreast, who cocked his head as she pushed along her trolley of post on the daily round. “How often is there such a perfect mid-December morning?”

JENNA arrived at nine o’clock to open up the stall. Since Lily had been working on her dissertation until the early hours of the morning, she was having a lie-in and would arrive later. Jenna wasn’t l