The Magic of Love Series

by Margaret Locke

  With those unwanted thoughts of other men, she broke off the kiss and stepped away. Ben looked at her in shock, as if he, too, was caught unaware by what had just happened. Alice gaped at them.

  “It was the mistletoe,” Cat offered lamely, pointing up and giving Alice a wan smile. She touched her lips with her fingers as if disbelieving the feeling that still lingered there. She’d made him kiss her, and he had a girlfriend. “I’m sorry, Ben.”

  He looked her full in the face. After a few seconds, he said, “I’m not.”

  Cat’s mouth dropped open. “But Mei...”

  She didn’t know what else to say. She was surprised at how badly she wanted to kiss him again, wanted to get close to those chocolate eyes, wanted to wrap herself around him and not let go.

  Ben opened his mouth as if to say something, just as William’s voice rang out. “Hot chocolate’s here!”

  He closed the door behind him, the pot of hot chocolate in hand. The kids cheered. William nodded over toward Ben and Cat, who still stood under the mistletoe, then set the carafe on the table. Turning, he walked over to them.

  “See? That didn’t take long. Did I miss anything?”

  Chapter 23

  “Yessth!” piped up Alice.

  Cat eyed her nervously.

  “I got to sthee Sthanta, and he told me I wassth on the nice lissth. My mommy will be proud!”

  They all laughed, but Ben and Cat continued to cast furtive glances at each other, even as William settled his arm around Cat’s shoulders. Ben’s eyes narrowed at that.

  Her mind whirled with a million thoughts, a million emotions. How dare he act jealous when he already had a girlfriend? She sucked in a deep breath. She’d kissed a man involved with someone else. Not only that, she’d initiated it. She’d never been the cheating kind; the thought of being the Other Woman had always made her want to retch. She’d sworn she’d never do that to someone. She knew the pain it caused all too well.

  She frowned, looking up at William. They’d only been on two dates. They were hardly exclusive, but she was technically involved with someone else, too. How could she? How could he? She clutched her arms across her stomach, disgust at her own actions warring with the heady recollections of that magnificent kiss.

  “Come on, Alice,” Ben said to his niece after a moment, a sad expression flitting across his face. “I promised you dinner, and then I’ve got to get you home.”

  “Ooh! Can we go to McDonaldssth?”

  “Um, how about we get pizza instead?”

  “Ooh! Pizztha! Pizztha!” she chanted excitedly, jumping up and down.

  “It’s been ... a pleasure,” Ben said, his eyes dropping to Cat’s lips. “A real pleasure,” he repeated.

  Surely, her face betrayed everything. William looked at her curiously. “Yes, it was nice to see you again, Ben,” she blurted out.

  “Cat? Can you get more cookies from the back?” Eliza called, as Ben led Alice out the door.

  It was all Cat could do to keep her eyes from following him. “Sure thing, Eliza.”

  William rubbed her shoulder with his fingers before removing his arm. “I have to go,” he said. “I’ve got to head to the airport. But I’ll call you soon.”

  He dropped a quick kiss on her lips. “Thanks for the great date. And at least you got to make use of the mistletoe,” he said, pointing up.

  Cat choked on her laugh. “Yeah,” she answered. If you only knew.

  Ben Cooper’s face danced before her eyes as she watched William walk out the door. As she went to retrieve the treats, she was stunned to realize how intensely she wished Ben would walk back in.

  Late that evening, Cat and Eliza were sipping celebratory wine while cleaning up the remnants of St. Nick’s successful visit.

  “What do you want for Christmas?” Cat asked her friend.

  “What?”

  “What do you want for Christmas this year? Sorry I’m asking so late, but I’ve been so caught up in everything that’s been going on with my mom and, well, you know, that I haven’t thought about gifts for anyone yet. I need to get on that.” Yes, I need to focus on Christmas, and not on Ben Cooper. Or anything about Ben Cooper. Not his eyes. Not his mouth. Not the fact that he cheated on his girlfriend. With me.

  Cat knew some would argue it wasn’t really cheating, a kiss under the mistletoe done at a child’s request. But that hadn’t been just any kiss. It was unlike anything she’d ever experienced, and one glance at Ben’s face had told her he felt the same.

  And then there was William. Kind, generous, unknowing William. Guilt and desire raged within her. Nope. Not going there. Christmas. I’m focusing on Christmas. And Eliza.

  Eliza sat back on her heels, taking a break from scrubbing candy cane droppings out of the carpet. “I don’t know. Let me think about it.”

  “Okay,” Cat said as she picked up paper cups from around the room.

  “Are you going to Ohio?”

  “I don’t think so. I’d love to see my family, but I was just there, and with Mom feeling so much better and us being so busy here, I’m thinking I’ll go in January like I usually do.”

  “Don’t you mind not being with your family on Christmas?”

  “Not if I have you.” Cat dropped the bag of cups into the large trashcan she’d pulled to the middle of the room. Pausing, she looked at Eliza. “You’ll be here, won’t you?”

  Eliza gave a derisive snort. “Where else would I be?”

  Cat jerked as if stung.

  “Not that I don’t want to be with you, Cat. I didn’t mean it like that. You know how much I love you. I just wish that I had a family like other people. I’ll be here because I have nowhere else to go. I haven’t for years. An only child of only children parents, with no surviving family. Aren’t I the lucky one?”

  “Well, I’m lucky to have a friend like you. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” Cat walked over and bent down, enfolding her friend in a giant hug, releasing her only after several moments.

  Eliza sat back again. Grabbing her glass, she took a big gulp of wine. Staring at the floor, she asked in a quiet voice, “Would you be willing to find out?”

  “What?”

  “Would you be willing to find out what you’d do without me?”

  “What are you talking about, Eliza?”

  “There’s somewhere I want to go. If you’ll help me.”

  Cat sat down next to her friend.

  “I know what I want for Christmas, Cat,” Eliza said. “Or rather, I know who.”

  Cat held her breath. She knew what was coming.

  “I know it didn’t work when you wanted to bring your dad back. So I know I can’t bring Greg back. But it has worked for you to find love, or at least possible love interests, right? Maybe you can make that work for me.” She looked at Cat earnestly.

  “Eliza ...”

  “Just listen. Please. I know it might not work. I’m good with that. But I’m asking. For Christmas, I’m asking you to write a story in which I finally get my duke. A Regency duke.”

  Cat pressed her lips together. “You want me to write a romance for you in which you are with a real Regency duke? In England? Like, two hundred years ago?” She paused to sip her wine. “I mean, you’ve been talking about a duke for a while, but I thought you were kidding. Or at least aiming for one in this century.”

  “Yes,” Eliza said in a solemn tone. “That is what I want.”

  Cat sat, nonplussed. “I think you’ve had too much wine, Lizzie.”

  “There isn’t anything here for me anymore,” Eliza cried. “I love you, and I enjoy the store, but I have no one else. No family. No husband. I’m twenty-nine years old, and my life is passing me by.” She threw her arms up in the air. “I’m getting nowhere in finishing my doctorate degree, and I think I’m stalling because I don’t know what to do when I’m done. I don’t really want to teach. I don’t want to have to write papers and go to conferences and all that. I definitely don’t want to have to
start paying back those grad school loans. What I do want is to immerse myself in nineteenth-century English culture, rather than have to make a career out of it. I want to live it.”

  “Eliza, even if time travel were possible, how do you know you’d truly like living two centuries ago? It’s not all a Jane Austen novel, you know. You’d lose so many freedoms that you take for granted now. Like voting. And dressing in shorts. And pizza.”

  Eliza patted her belly. “It would do me good to give up pizza.”

  Cat snorted.

  “And I know all that, Cat,” Eliza continued. “But I don’t just want to be in Regency England—I want to have a grand love story in Regency England. Seeing you with Grayson and William ... Well, I’ve been really jealous. And it’s made me realize what I want. I want a husband. I want kids. And I don’t seem to be finding that here.”

  “You think it’d be like a romance novel.”

  “I think it could be, if you wrote it,” Eliza said, nodding.

  Cat swallowed. “I’m humbled by your faith in me, but I don’t know anything about Regency England. How could I write an accurate story?”

  “You don’t have to do all the details—just something similar to what you wrote about William, only make it a duke for me.” Her eyes beseeched her friend. “Please? Try it? I penned something myself after the Amaryllis debacle, but it didn’t work. It’s gotta be you.”

  Cat stared at her friend for a long time. She didn’t think it would work, creating a love story for someone other than herself. In another time period, to boot. It was an absolutely nutso idea—but what if it did work? Then I’d be on my own.

  Shame crept over her. It was selfish to want to keep Eliza for herself. And it wasn’t fair, either, to want to hold on to her friend because she’d been afraid to move on in life and take on new challenges.

  She took another sip of her wine. “Okay.”

  “You’ll do it?” Eliza said, her voice wavering.

  “Yes, I’ll do it. I can’t promise it’ll work.”

  “I know. Oh, thank you, Cat! Thank you for trying.”

  “How do I get you back there? I mean, it’s mind-boggling enough that I’ve created people, to begin with—God, I can’t believe how easily I say that now. But to throw time travel into the mix?”

  Eliza studied her wine glass. “Let’s throw a party,” she said suddenly. “A Regency ball.”

  “What?” Cat nearly choked on her wine. “Here? Now?”

  “Yes!” exclaimed Eliza, clapping her hands in excitement.

  “We’ll throw a Regency ball for New Year’s Eve, and you can have my hero show up in the middle of it.”

  “But Eliza, New Year’s Eve is just two weeks away, and we’ve got to get through the Christmas season.”

  “I know. But it doesn’t need to be huge or fancy. A small group would be fine, maybe twenty or thirty people.”

  “How are we going to get that many people here on New Year’s Eve?”

  “Free champagne?” Eliza suggested.

  “We can’t afford that.”

  “I can. At least for one night. It’d be worth it to me if this works. Besides, as they say, ‘You can’t take it with you.’”

  “That’s for people who die, not for people who think they’re traveling to a different century.”

  “Whatever. I’ll still spring for it. Well, not Dom Pérignon or anything, but maybe those eight dollar bottles we see at Kroger.”

  Cat took another sip of her wine. “I guess Jill might come, but I don’t know about Shannon and Scott. It’s hard to find a babysitter on New Year’s.”

  “We’ll advertise it on Facebook,” Eliza said. “On our page. That will bring people.”

  “Uh, isn’t that what leads to those parties with, like, thousands of people you don’t know?”

  “Oh, yeah. Well, let’s start with the people we know, and the people who’ve ‘liked’ our page, which is only a few, considering I just made it. We’ll limit it to forty people total, and they have to RSVP.”

  “All right.” Cat tucked her hair behind her ears. “I can’t believe we’re attempting this. What do you want me to write as far as your duke?”

  “Uh-uh, I’m not writing it. You need to write it.”

  “But it’s your guy. You’ve got to at least tell me what you’re looking for.”

  “Fair enough,” Eliza conceded. “But it’s up to you to write how he gets here and what happens next. You can prompt me if I need to do something, but I don’t want to know until after you’ve written it, because I don’t want to mess anything up.”

  “No problem. Just give me some general ideas.”

  “I want him to be tall. And handsome.”

  “And dark? Like Hugh Jackman?”

  Eliza wrinkled her nose at her friend’s ribbing. “Yes, dark is good. Jackman is good. And...”

  As Eliza spoke, Cat grabbed a notepad and jotted down notes, refilling her own wine glass several times as she did so. She frowned when the bottle ran dry. How had that happened? Eliza didn’t notice, focused as she was on telling Cat all about Regency England, and dukes and viscounts and breeches, and something called a pelisse.

  When Eliza had finished, Cat stood up and tried to toss the notepad on the register desk. She missed by about two feet. Giggling, she tottered over to the table and poured herself another glass from a different bottle.

  “How much have you had, Cat?”

  “Not enough, dear friend. Not enough. By the way, did I tell you I kissed Ben tonight?”

  Eliza’s jaw dropped. “You what? Where? When?”

  Cat giggled again and took another big swig of wine. “I. Kissed. Ben. Cooper. On the lips. Tonight.”

  Eliza frowned in consternation. “I assumed the lips part, silly. When was this? Where was I? And why were you kissing him?” Cat related the whole story, sipping her wine as she spoke. She didn’t mention the intense guilt she still felt, didn’t bring up Mei.

  “I can’t believe I missed all of that.” Eliza shook her head. “Maybe that’s when I ducked into the restroom.” She grinned at her friend. “My goodness, is there any man lately who isn’t interested in you?”

  Cat paused. “Nope!” She wobbled over to the desk to set down her glass. “I’m irresistible.”

  “Must be nice,” muttered Eliza. “So, what now?”

  Cat stuck her finger up in the air and waved it back and forth. “No, no, no, we’re not thinking about that right now. We’re planning your duke. He shall be ... the Duke of Earl. No, the Duke of Gloucester-Birmingham-shireton!”

  “Okay, girlfriend. You’ve clearly had enough. Time for bed. We can plan in the morning. Or maybe the afternoon, considering the hangover I’m sure you’re going to have.”

  Cat gave an exaggerated pout. “Aw. But I have such great plans. The Duke of Earl will arrive on a sleigh pulled by reindeer. And he will swoop in and stick you in his stocking and whisk you off to the North Pole.”

  “That’s Santa, honey. And I’m not interested in living with a bunch of elves. Come on, upstairs. I haven’t seen you this sloshed in a long time.” Hopping up, she walked over and took Cat by the elbow.

  Laughing drunkenly, Cat acquiesced and followed Eliza to the stairs. “I know, but Grayson ... William ... Ben ... It’s all too much. I need to drink more!”

  “That’s not the answer.”

  “But then I don’t have to choose between being Cindercata and—wait, Caterella. No, I mean Cinderella—and being regular old Cat.”

  Eliza stopped halfway up the stairs. “What are you talking about?”

  “William is clearly the Prince. If I marry him, I’m Cinderella. I own the glass slipper, and it’s a pen,” Cat said, speaking slowly as if stating the obvious.

  “You’re getting married already, are you?” Eliza teased, helping her friend further up the stairs.

  “We will if I write it so, right?” Cat retorted. “Because I can write anything. The pen is mightier than the, than the ...�
�� She broke off. “Than the what, Lizzie?”

  “Than the sword, but I’m pretty sure you’re not planning on any duels anytime soon, are you?”

  “Maybe. Ben has a nice sword.”

  “WHAT?”

  “Ben has a nice sword. He waves it nicely. And he has such a nice mouth.”

  Eliza gaped at Cat. “You’re telling me you touched Ben’s sword?”

  Cat gawked at her for a minute in confusion. “No, not that sword! Pervert. The one he used to slay the computer dragon. He’s my white knight, you know.”

  “Wait. Now Ben is your knight? I thought it was William?”

  “No, Eliza,” Cat said with exaggerated patience, as they stumbled into the living room. “William is my Prince. Ben is my knight.”

  “Uh, all right. So which are you going to choose?”

  Cat sighed heavily. “I don’t know. I don’t know that I have the choice. Ben’s with Mei.” At the thought of Mei, she winced. “But William’s perfect, like he was made for me. Literally! William literally was made for me. I made him.” Her eyes widened and she half-laughed, half-hiccupped.

  Eliza helped her to her room, pushing her carefully onto the bed. Cat squirmed in an effort to get comfortable.

  Eliza pulled a folded quilt up and over her friend. “I know who’s right for you, Miss Catherine. You just have to see it for yourself.”

  Cat nodded sleepily, too tired to respond. Princes, knights, and Snow Whites swam before her eyes.

  Had the clock struck midnight yet?

  Chapter 24

  “Oh, God. I can’t believe I drank so much. Why did I drink so much?” Cat nursed her coffee, wincing at the cacophony of sounds around her. “And why is it so loud in here?”

  Eliza snickered. “It’s loud in here because we’re in a coffee shop and all these last-minute Christmas shoppers need their caffeine. You’re the one who opened the second bottle of wine and basically finished it yourself. It wasn’t my idea.”