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roads,’ Hannah replied.
    ‘Yeah, a bit of snow,’ Gina said. ‘This country is ridiculous. A cloud containing a snowflake floats over and we’re shutting schools and businesses all over the place.’
    ‘It’s Christmas Day too, don’t forget,’ Hannah said. ‘I’m sure they’re coming as quickly as they can.’
    Tom finished chopping his carrots and added them to a pan of boiling water. ‘We could have roasted these,’ he said, nodding his head at them.
    ‘Boiling is quicker and easier,’ Hannah said, ‘they’ll do just fine as they are for today.’
    ‘See…’ Tom said with a sad smile, ‘that’s what I mean. You’re rushing everything now because I’ve upset your schedule.’
    ‘We never had a schedule,’ Hannah said.
    ‘We were just going to cook to the pissed up schedule,’ Gina added.
    Tom shook his head and glanced between the two sisters.
    ‘While we’re still sober we cook all the complicated stuff. But the more pissed we get as we go along, the more likely we are to sling a tin of peas into a bowl to microwave and whack some powdered gravy in a boat. By the time we’re finished we’re usually so drunk we don’t care what it tastes like anyway.’
    ‘Sounds like fun,’ Tom smiled. ‘Maybe I’ll try that approach one day. I have the vaguest feeling that Christmas Day in my house is a lot more structured.’
    Hannah got the feeling he was probably right. She wasn’t sure what it was, but perhaps it was something in his grooming, or the way he spoke. He wasn’t likely to be spending his Christmas morning down the pub like her dad used to while her mum cooked. He was more likely to be cooking dinner himself.
    ‘That’s everything on now,’ Hannah said, glancing around the kitchen as it rapidly filled with steam. ‘I reckon we should be done in half an hour.’
    ‘You can guarantee as soon as we all sit down the paramedics will arrive,’ Gina said.
    Hannah shrugged. ‘It can’t be helped. If they come, they come. We can always warm the dinner up again.’
    ‘Gorgeous,’ Jess pouted. ‘Salmonella and sprouts. Merry Christmas.’
    ‘Hardly,’ Hannah laughed. ‘If we blitz everything in the microwave it should be fine.’
    ‘Even better, nuked salmonella and concrete sprouts. Aunt Hannah, with this lunch you are really spoiling us…’
    Hannah glanced up at the clock. ‘Maybe I’ll go and take a look down the lane while the veggies are cooking. They might be driving around, having trouble finding the house or something. I can show them where we are if I see them pass along Holly Way.’
    ‘It’s their job to know where to find people, isn’t it?’ Jess said. ‘If someone’s having a heart attack, they’re hardly going to be messing about trying to find the gaff on Google Maps.’
    ‘They probably have satnav installed,’ Gina agreed.
    ‘But satnav isn’t always reliable, is it?’ Hannah said. ‘Remember when you first tried to find this place? It kept telling you to turn left no matter where you went.’
    ‘Oh yes,’ Gina laughed. ‘I ended up making my own crop circle and freaking out the farmer who lives up the hill. Maybe you’ve got a point.’
    ‘So, if you all keep an eye on the food, I’ll just go and take a quick look.’
    She left them, and returned a few minutes later wearing a heavy blue duffle coat. Jess let out a giggle.
    ‘You look like Paddington Bear in that!’
    ‘Maybe I like Paddington Bear,’ Hannah said. ‘I know it’s not full-on glamour but it does the job.’
    ‘It’s no kind of glamour,’ Jess fired back.’
    ‘It does remind me of Paddington,’ Gina said. ‘But it’s very you.’
    Hannah frowned. ‘Are you saying I look like a tubby bear who spends the day eating marmalade sandwiches?’
    Gina held out her hands in a gesture of surrender. ‘You said it, sis!’
    ‘It suits you and you don’t look a bit like a bear,’ Tom said.
    Hannah felt herself flush, and she quickly turned her back and pulled her hood