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Ed watched Addie and wondered if he wanted her to give Will another chance.
He d thought he did but now he wasn t so sure.
She was a gem on the phone as a telemarketer, making notes against the person s
name, finding a variety of topics to talk about and by the end of the call was usually on
first name terms. Almost everyone asked for a brochure. Ed began to think it would be
rather pleasant to go on a coach trip to Skegness, and drop in for a game of Bingo before
trying that cozy little pub just off the& What the hell was he thinking?
Brilliant sales pitch, he said.
We have one seat left on our trip to Prague next February. We have five hen
parties signed up. Would you like to give me your credit card number?
Put me down for a seat, Ed said.
Sold. Perhaps I should have told you their average age is sixty-two.
He groaned. So what do you do with your list now?
Pass it to Graham. Once the brochures have been sent out, he follows up.
And gets the credit?
Addie shrugged. This is teamwork. We all get the credit. She smiled. Though
some get more credit than others.
Addie. The Harlot shimmied over, a string of fluffy white tinsel wrapped around
her neck like a feather boa. Delia said we can do the Christmas decorations this
lunchtime. You can reach higher than the rest of us.
Been reading my CV? Addie said.
Do you want me to help? Ed asked.
Ooh, no, you re far too& too& Charlotte stumbled to a halt.
Busy, Will snapped, coming up behind her.
We only do it in the lunch hour, Charlotte said.
So long as everyone doesn t decide now Christmas has arrived, they can halve the
amount of work they re supposed to be doing. Will s glare sent the Harlot into a fast
retreat. Ed, a word.
* * * * *
At midday, the guys from the garage dragged in three large boxes of Christmas
decorations. When Will and Ed went off in Will s car, Delia and Graham nipped out to
buy a real tree for the reception. Since they said they d be gone an hour and the store
was only a mile away, Addie guessed they d be making a detour. Beth put a Christmas
CD in her computer and cranked up the volume so they wouldn t hear the phones. It
was Christmas.
This time last year Addie had been working in one of the travel agencies and the
shop s token acknowledgement of the approaching festive season had been a two-foot,
talking Santa that burst into life when anyone walked by. But the batteries were on the
blink, and the drunken, almost sleazy nature of the exhortation to have a merry
Christmas made Addie shudder every time she heard it.
Addie looked round at the chaos. Beth and Daisy were dancing. Joe had lined up
mince pies on his desk in some sort of taste challenge and there were fairy lights all
over the floor. The head office clearly did Christmas in a spiritual, understated way.
Daisy danced over to Addie with a Santa hat.
It s compulsory, Daisy said.
Addie grabbed a set of antlers. I ll be Rudolph.
Everyone was roped in to decorate. Bottles of wine emerged from bottom drawers.
Garlands were fastened across the room, tinsel of every color and variety wrapped
round each computer, polystyrene snowmen placed on every work surface and sprigs
of plastic mistletoe strategically positioned at crossing points. The biggest clump hung
in a space between Charlotte and Beth, giving them an equal opportunity to pounce.
Addie had never seen so many fairy lights in one room. The National Grid had
probably hiccupped when Beth switched them on. They ran around the windows,
partitions, doors and along skirting boards. Anything that didn t move had been
adorned, even the wastepaper baskets. In the space of forty minutes the office had been
transformed into a tacky Santa s grotto.
Genghis and Graham came back with the real tree and Addie was ordered to
reception to decorate it.
Only silver and blue. Start at the top. Don t put a silver bauble next to a blue one.
Space them evenly. Don t break them. Genghis snapped orders like a whip.
Even after Addie had put the decorations on, Genghis wanted several repositioned
and although Addie had been horrified at the gaudy excesses of the main room, she was
equally depressed by the lack of heart in Genghis artistic creation. Graham appeared
clutching four glasses of wine and plonked them on the reception desk.
That looks great, Delia, he said. You re so talented.
With a sucking ability like that, you should look for a job with Dyson, Addie
muttered.
Lights on, Addie, Genghis said.
Addie crawled round the back, trying not to entangle her antlers and flicked the
switch.
Genghis swore. Damn. One set s not working.
There were three plugs in a gang socket and after a couple of moments, Addie
managed to identify the broken set. When she got up Genghis and Graham had drunk
their wine, Julie was sipping a glass and the other had disappeared. Had she imagined
the fourth?
Sort it out, Addie, Genghis said. Take that set off and find another one.
Addie looked at the tree. All the baubles had been hung after the lights, so taking a
set off would be awkward. She retreated to the back to unravel the cord from the
bottom and a man-eating spider dropped onto her hand. Addie screamed and sprang
up into the tree, spearing it with her antlers. As the tree began to topple, she tried to
catch it, but found herself falling with it. A torrent of water from the tree-holder
cascaded everywhere.
Shit, someone yelled.
As Addie and the tree crashed to the floor, she found her face inches from Will s.
He lay on his back with the tree in his arms and Addie on top of the tree, baubles
bouncing all around them. There was a prickly fir branch between them, so it appeared
as if he d grown a luxurious green moustache. She had an urge to giggle.
What the hell are you doing? Will shouted.
The urge disappeared. I m sorry.
Ed helped her up and adjusted her antlers. He was laughing. Will threw the tree
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