"If we could just use your phone, that would be great" Robbie said after they had exchanged pleasantries with Sarah

"You're very welcome to, but I doubt you'll get anyone to come up here, at least not tonight. Mebbe tomorrow if it slows overnight." Dan said before his wife could answer. Robbie and Laura looked at each other. Laura's flight to New York was at 4 o'clock the next afternoon. Robbie gave her a resigned smile as the reality dawned on them both that she might not make it on time.

"Well, maybe I'll call them anyway" Robbie said, feeling that although it was a futile exercise at least it was worth a try for Laura. Dan nodded with a shrug of his shoulders and gave Robbie the phone handset. Meanwhile, Penny the dog lay down in front of the Aga and Sarah made everyone a cup of tea. It soon became apparent that Dan was right, however, and as soon as it had been established that no-one was in any danger, the call operator confirmed that there was no roadside assistance available due to the conditions.

"Too dangerous for the driver of the recovery truck, apparently" Robbie said, his lips tight with consternation as he ended the call. "I don't suppose you know if there's a pub with accommodation, or a B&B around here?" he said. Laura raised her eyebrows; she had been thinking the same.

"Actually, we have a holiday cottage, just up the track." Sarah said. She was a portly blonde woman with a sternness in her manner that had come from hard work and harder times. Farming was a toil at the best of times and the industry's relationship with the supermarkets, which often called the shots, could hold a farmer to ransom whenever they liked. As such, Sarah and Dan had inevitably turned to other income sources.

Robbie and Laura looked at each other, not quite believing their luck, first at being rescued and then at the revelation that they had somewhere to stay until the snow cleared.

"We did have a booking, but they cancelled last minute" Sarah continued

"Oh, lucky for us, because of the snow?"

"Er, aye"

"There was a food delivery for them this morning, before the snow set in and before they cancelled, it's all up there in the back porch, you may as well make use of it"

"It's almost too good to be true" Robbie said with a broad smile.

"We'll pay of course" Robbie continued, looking at Laura who nodded in agreement. She was more than a little relieved to hear about the cottage. It wasn't about finding the accommodation in such dire straits, rather it was more to do with the atmosphere in the kitchen. It had been kind of Dan to rescue them both but Laura sensed an odd tension between the burly farmer and his wife, as if there was something they were not saying.

Dan nodded towards the door and the yard where he had left the tractor "Let's get you up there now, you'll be doing us all a favour" He said looking at Sarah.

"Oh?" Said Robbie, not exactly sure what he meant

"Er nothing" Said Dan and he pulled his tractor keys out of his jacket

"He means it's better to have someone in the cottage rather than not" Sarah said to Robbie and also Laura who was also wondering what Dan's comment had meant.

"Right, yes of course" Laura said with a smile. But she sensed there was something else to the comment.

"It's not a big cottage, there's a bed sleeps two upstairs" he said, looking directly at her. Laura felt herself not exactly blush but knew there was a slight rise in colour in her cheeks. She felt some odd notion that Dan was gauging her reaction. Sarah also seemed to study her, very briefly as well as looking at Robbie, almost as if she was looking for his reaction to the sleeping arrangements.

"There's a sofa bed in the living room, if you need it" Dan said, still intently looking at both Robbie and Laura

"Right, thanks" said Robbie with a smile. Laura felt herself blush again and looked down at her feet.

"I'll tek you up there now" Dan said "snow's still coming down, it soon builds up. There's a shovel outside the door, you might want to take it inside with you once you get in there, the snow can drift right up to the door"

This startled both Robbie and Laura

"Well, hopefully it won't come to that" Robbie said

"Yeah, hopefully" Dan said and he shot a look to his wife.

A few minutes later and after dropping off Robbie and Laura at the cottage, Dan was back in the farm's kitchen. He came in and hung his coat up by the door before taking his boots off.

"Do you think I should have told them?" He said to Sarah as he pulled at cold wet laces. She was at the large table, peeling potatoes for supper

"Are you bloody tapped?" She said, her peeling action increasing in speed along with her irritation at her husband. "Of course not. Anyway, there's no guarantees, you know that. It'll either happen else not" She cut the potatoes into cubes and then started peeling a carrot. "Do you think they were together?" She said frowning as she spoke, her glare on the carrots.

"I don't know." Dan said pulling off one boot and then the other "They seemed very relaxed together but she said she had a flight booked, he mentioned a daughter in Manchester."

Sarah sighed, it was a worried and troubled sigh but one also full of irritation. "Put them boots outside, they bloody stink" She said, now onto peeling her third carrot.

"I was bloody going to!" her husband snapped back as he put his boots into the small hallway that led from the outside into the kitchen

"There's not much else we can do now." He said as he closed the hallway door and returned to the kitchen, looking at his wife "It's lucky we've got the chance as it is. Let's hope it all works out."

Sarah sighed again. She dropped the peeler on the table suddenly and her hand went to her forehead, she rubbed it, pinching the skin there before squeezing the bridge of her nose as if trying to staunch an emotion or hold back tears, a deep frown cutting a line between her eyebrows.

"Any more bad reviews and I don't think I can take it anymore. I've had enough of it Dan. Those two are the last chance we've got if we want to keep this farm together"

Her husband frowned in silent reply. She was right. This was their last chance. Their whole future was in the balance and at the mercy of two strangers.

Happy Christmas folks - and all the best to Robson fans in the US caught up in the bad weather - I hope you are all safe and warm

ML xx