‘Next week?’ I murmured, drifting back off into a warm and sleepy haze.

Jude removed the phone from my limp grasp and demanded rudely, ‘What do you want?’

I could hear Ellen quacking loudly.

‘No,’ he growled, ‘she can’t go and cook anywhere — she’s staying here.’ And he clicked the phone off, shoved it back into my pocket, and started the engine again.

‘That was a bit cavalier,’ I protested, reviving slightly, ‘and I’m not staying.’

‘You can phone her back tomorrow if you want to, when you’re fit to make decisions.’

Back at the house we went straight through to the kitchen, where Merlin was delighted to see us. Under the bright lights, Jude took me by the shoulders and stared worriedly down at me.

‘I think I should sober you up with coffee, you’re not used to our wassail. Or maybe you should just go to bed?’

‘Yes, that’s exactly what Laura said we should do,’ I agreed dreamily.

‘I’m getting to like the sound of this friend of yours more and more.’ The corner of his mouth quirked up slightly.

‘Are you? She’s prettier than I am — small and blonde.’

‘She might be pretty, but you’re beautiful — and you’re just the right height.’

‘Only to a giant.’

‘Lucky you’ve got one to hand then, isn’t it?’

‘And I don’t need sobering, because I’m not drunk,’ I told him. ‘I just feel. . good. Relaxed.’ In fact, I relaxed right there and then against his broad chest and he sighed deeply and put his arms around me, leaning his cheek against my hair.

‘That’s nice,’ I said, snuggling in a bit closer. ‘Jude, when you keep saying you don’t want me to go. . are we talking permanent employment here? Or a quick fling? Only I don’t—’

He gave me a slight shake and my mouth snapped shut. ‘I’m talking marriage, you idiot! You, me — and children, too, if we’re lucky. Which we should be after tonight.’ The corner of his mouth quirked up with amusement. ‘Saint George’s wreath never fails — ask Nancy! She’s had three of them, nine months to the day after a Revels.’

This dispelled the clouds of wassail slightly and I indignantly tried to push him away. ‘You mean you and Nancy—’

‘No, you idiot, Nancy and her husband.’

‘Oh.’ I relaxed against him again and he wrapped his arms closely around me. ‘Did you mean that, about getting married?’

‘Old Nan had another word with me about that Afghan she’s knitting for us tonight — but anyway, I’m a marrying man and I fell in love with you the minute I set eyes on you. Only I didn’t want to admit it, especially when I thought you were up to no good!’

‘Well, I wasn’t.’

‘I know now, but I loved you anyway, though it might have made me a bit bad-tempered.’

‘Just a bit — but perhaps trying to pretend to myself that I wasn’t falling in love with you made me a little grumpy, too! But if we married, we’d fight all the time, wouldn’t we?’

‘Yes, I’m looking forward to it.’

‘I haven’t said yes, yet,’ I pointed out. ‘But I might, if only because I can’t bear to be parted from Lady and Merlin.’

‘You’d better,’ he muttered, kissing me, and it quickly became clear that our last scorching kiss had been little more than a preliminary warm-up.

But when I came up for air, I tried to release myself. ‘I’d better put the dinner in the oven, Jude: it’s all ready, apart from cooking the rice and—’

‘Forget it, you’re not putting anything in the oven tonight,’ he said, not letting go of me. ‘But I might, if you tempt me too much.’

‘That was very rude!’ I told him seriously and he grinned.

‘I only really want you for your cooking — and your lovely, poseable body,’ he said, running his hands over it appreciatively. Then he kissed me again and I completely lost any interest in anything else, even food.

* * *

Later — much later, cosily snuggled up against him in his four-poster bed, I said severely, ‘I can’t think what I’m doing here! Falling for you was definitely not in my life-plan.’

‘Then plan me into your schedule and write yourself a recipe with me as the main course,’ he suggested.

‘Just don’t think I’ll always play a meek Viola to your Orsino!’ I warned him.

‘You never did do that. But okay — I think our play is done.’

‘Or maybe only the first act?’ I said seriously. ‘I’m starting to see a pattern here, with the end of one thing becoming the beginning of the next, just like Richard was saying earlier. . Do you think that’s mad?’

‘No, but it might be the aftereffects of the wassail.’

He pulled me back into a crushing embrace and asked, hopefully, ‘Time for a bit more Revelling?’

Read on for some delicious recipes from Trisha

Recipes Wassail

A very old punch of ale, apples and spices. It was popular throughout Christmas, especially on Twelfth Night. This will make about six small glasses: increase quantities as desired.

Ingredients:

1 pint of ale (500ml)

1/3 pint of apple juice

Juice and zest of an unwaxed lemon

1 tablespoon honey

¼ teaspoon each of ground ginger, nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon

Method:

Simmer the lemon juice and zest, apple juice and spices gently in a pan for about ten minutes, without letting it boil.

Add the ale and honey, stirring to dissolve, and heat through: again, be careful not to let it boil.

This is drunk warm and you can add a lemon slice to each glass/cup.

Ginger and Spice Christmas Tree Biscuits

These make a thin biscuit that will retain its crispness for quite a while on the tree; though if you make a double batch, you can keep some to nibble at in the biscuit tin, too!

Ingredients:

4oz (100g) butter

8oz (225g) plain flour

6oz (175g) soft brown sugar

1 small egg, beaten

1 level teaspoon of ground ginger

½ level teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cloves (optional)

Method:

Sieve the flour and spices into a bowl and then add the butter, chopped into bits. Rub it into the flour between your thumb and fingers (as you do with shortcrust pastry).

When you have a mix like fine breadcrumbs, add the sugar and most of the egg, then knead lightly into a firm dough. Add the rest of the egg if necessary.

Put the dough in a bowl, cover with cling film and place in the fridge for at least half an hour. (This makes it easier to roll out and cut.)

Heat the oven to 190ºC, 375ºF, gas mark 5. Grease a couple of baking trays.

Roll the dough out fairly thinly on a lightly floured board, then cut out shapes as desired: you can get Christmas cutters, but gingerbread men also look good on the tree. If you just want round biscuits, then roll the dough into a long cylinder shape and slice thinly.

Pierce each biscuit so it can be hung from a thread or ribbon (I use a chopstick), then place on the baking tray, well spaced. Bake for about ten minutes, until light golden brown at the edges — but keep an eye on them!

Remove and place on wire racks to cool.

I ice mine by mixing a little icing sugar and water with natural food colouring in egg cups (add water in drips, it needs to be quite thick) and then I use a small nylon paintbrush I keep just for this purpose (wash new ones before use) to blob, trickle and write on the biscuits. This is the fun bit. . Allow to go hard.

Revel Cakes

Despite the name, these are actually a lightly fruited and spiced little bread roll. Holly soaked saffron in some of the water overnight to give them a yellow colour, though this is not vital. (But if you do, you will need to warm the water again next day before using.) She also added some chopped mixed peel to the dough.

Ingredients (for about twelve small buns — it can be doubled for a larger quantity):

13oz (375g) strong white flour

1 teaspoon caster sugar

7½ fl oz warm water (soak a couple of good pinches of saffron in 5 fl oz of it overnight if using)

1 teaspoon salt

¾ oz butter

½ teaspoon mixed spice

¾ sachet of fast dried yeast

3 oz (75g) chopped mixed peel

Method:

In a bowl or jug, mix the sugar, 2½ fl oz warm water and the yeast and allow to stand for five minutes or until frothy.

Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl together with the spice. Rub in the butter, then make a well in the middle of the flour and pour in the yeast mixture and most of the rest of the warm water. Mix to a dough, using more water if needed.

Knead for ten minutes, then put the dough in a large oiled bowl, cover with cling film, and leave somewhere warm for approximately two hours, until it has at least doubled in size.

Put on a floured board and give it a quick thump or two to let out trapped air, then knead for two or three minutes. If using chopped peel, at this stage stretch the dough gently into a thick square and sprinkle the fruit into the middle. Fold the dough in over it, then knead as before for a couple of minutes.

Put it back in the bowl for ten minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 220ºC, 425ºF, gas mark 7. Grease baking trays or muffin tins.

On a floured surface, roll the dough into cylinders about six inches long and wind them round in spirals to make buns the way Holly did, then bake in muffin tins. Alternatively, form into small balls for ordinary rolls and place on a baking tray.