Fall Into Magic- A Novella

by Melissa Baldwin

  Mrs. Rothera looks at me and puts her hand on my arm. “Sometimes things aren’t what they seem.”

  There she goes again. I want to ask her what she means, but Jake knocks a second time. I go to the door to answer it.

  “Hey,” he says with a nervous smile. When he sees Mrs. Rothera, his smile fades.

  “I was just leaving. Have a good night.” She hurries out the door.

  My heart is beating so fast. I look at Jake who shoves his hands in his pockets as he rocks back and forth on his heels.

  “Thanks for letting me come over,” he says as he walks in and looks around the room. I wonder if he’s thinking about all the time we spent here together. I hope he is, and I hope the guilt starts eating away at him. I still live here and I’m reminded of it every day.

  “It’s fine,” I reply. I’m waiting for him to start talking because this was his idea.

  “Why was Mrs. Rothera here?” he asks.

  I walk past him and sit down on the couch. “She wanted to check in on me. We’ve kind of become . . . friends.” I guess that’s what you could call us . . . or something like that.

  Jake walks over and sits across from me. “There’s something strange about her.” He pauses. “When I dropped the key off to her, she kept asking me if I thought about what I was doing. I didn’t give her any information about what had happened but it was like she already knew.”

  Hah. This still doesn’t prove anything. He was giving her his key and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that we had broken up.

  “I’m sure it wasn’t too hard for her to figure out,” I say coldly. “Giving her your key when you could have left it with me. That’s kind of obvious.”

  He hangs his head. “I know. I just couldn’t face you. I didn’t know what else to do and it just seemed like the easiest thing.”

  I fold my arms defensively. “Easy? So you just wanted the easy way out after almost two years together.”

  I surprise myself with the way I just blurted that out, but I may as well get to the point.

  He frowns. “I definitely deserve that . . . which is why I’m here.” He pauses. “After seeing you and Angie the other day, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about everything that happened.”

  Hmm . . . maybe Angie was right and seeing Alexander influenced his decision.

  I purse my lips. “Okay.”

  “I freaked out,” he exclaims. “I mean, come on—we were on vacation together. I just wasn’t ready to get engaged.”

  Engaged? What the hell is he talking about?

  “All those girls talking about rings and weddings just got to me. Especially when they said that we were going to be first to get married.”

  I jump up from the couch. “What are you talking about?”

  He gives me a blank stare. “Angie, Lauren, and Shelby were sitting out on the deck planning our wedding before we were even engaged,” he exclaims.

  I don’t believe this. He broke up with me because he overheard a conversation. This has to be a joke. I consider throwing him out, but then I remember what Mrs. Rothera said about things not being what they seem.

  I rub my forehead. “So you threw away our relationship based on a conversation you overheard, is that what you’re telling me? You didn’t even think of discussing it with me. You just up and left.”

  He stares at the floor. “I guess,” he whispers. “When I got back, I felt so bad that I came here to get my stuff. I gave Mrs. Rothera the key, and I just threw myself into work. I realized pretty quickly that I made a huge mistake, but I assumed it was too late.”

  I don’t look at him as he gives me his explanation. “It wasn’t until I saw you that day at lunch that I realized I had to see you again, at least to tell you how sorry I am.”

  I can feel the tears coming but I hold them back. I finally look at him.

  “Well, you’ve seen me,” I snap. “You can leave now.”

  His face falls. “I’ll leave, but can I just ask one thing?”

  I glare at him. “What?”

  “Would you consider just taking some time to think about everything? I’m not going to ask you to give me another chance, yet. But, if there’s a chance you still love me . . .”

  I get up and walk to the door. I pull it open, waiting for him to walk out. “Good night, Jake.”

  He frowns but he doesn’t try to argue.

  “I still love you,” he says before he walks out.

  I shut the door behind him and fall to the ground. The tears that I was holding in finally make their way down my face. So much for a fresh new start. I feel like I’m back on the beach the night he left me in tears.

  Chapter Seven

  When I arrive at the house, Melanie’s car is parked out front. I haven’t seen her since she walked in on Alexander and me kissing. I already gave myself a pep talk to keep my cool and be as professional as possible. Not to mention I’m really tired. I didn’t get much sleep after seeing Jake last night and I’m really not in the mood for Melanie’s attitude.

  I quietly walk into the house, which is completely ridiculous because there is no way I can avoid her.

  “Good morning, Summer,” she calls warmly. I stop in my tracks. That’s Melanie’s voice but she sounds different, almost happy. I follow her voice into the living room.

  She’s sitting on the couch surrounded by stacks of papers. She looks up when I walk in. “How are you?” she says cheerfully. Admittedly, I don’t know what to say.

  “Hi. I’m fine,” I say slowly. She’s humming softly to herself. I feel really stupid just lingering in the doorway. “Um—the electrician should be here soon to switch out the lighting fixtures in the kitchen. Can you let me know when they arrive? I’ll be in the office.”

  She nods. “Okay.”

  I walk toward Alexander’s office. Maybe the little talk Alexander had with her did some good. Regardless, I’ll take it. I don’t have the energy to put forth a ton of effort with her today. I sit down at the desk and pull out my planner. I’m trying to work but I can’t concentrate. And it’s not just because of what happened with Jake last night. Melanie’s behavior has completely thrown me off guard.

  “Are you ready for the party?” I look up to see her standing in the doorway. I hate to be so negative but I don’t trust this woman.

  “We’re getting there,” I reply. I scroll through my emails in order to make it look like I’m busy (which I’m not). My efforts fail because she comes in and sits down across the desk from me. I look up from my screen to see her staring at me. I hate feeling like I’m being watched.

  “Did you need something?” I ask her politely as I lean back in the chair.

  She gives me a smug smile. “No. I just wanted to tell you not to worry about me walking in the other night.” I shift around uncomfortably in my seat. I guess it’s good that she’s putting it out there so it’s not the elephant in the room.

  “Oh. Well, thanks.” That sounded really stupid, but I don’t know what else to say. Mostly because I’m not worried about what she thinks other than I prefer to not have to work in a hostile environment. She’s still looking at me, and I’m growing more and more uncomfortable.

  “Melanie, I don’t want things to be awkward between us. I know you’ve worked with Alexander a long time.”

  “Yes, I have,” she interrupts. “And that’s why I’m telling you not to worry about it. This isn’t the first time this has happened.”

  Okay. What is that supposed to mean?

  “This isn’t the first time what has happened?” I ask. I can feel my blood pressure creeping up.

  She gives a fake laugh. “Come on. Let’s be honest, Alexander has a lot going for him. Do you really think you’re the first woman to come around here and mesmerize him?”

  I raise my eyebrows. This girl has issues, either she’s trying to antagonize me or she’s trying to make herself feel better. Either way, I need to keep my cool.

  “I don’t think I mesmerize him,” I
say flatly. “We enjoy each other’s company and we have a lot in common.” I try to focus my attention back on my computer screen. I can see out of the corner of my eye that her smile has faded to a glare.

  “Think what you want, but as soon as you finish this job, you will be gone—just like the rest of them.”

  Hmmm . . . the rest of them? I know what she’s trying to do and I’m not going to let her get to me.

  “I’m going to do what I was hired to do. And if I make a new friend in the process that’s great.”

  She rolls her eyes. “Anyway, I’ll let you get back to work.” She practically dances out of the office.

  I clench my fists. Don’t let her get you upset, I think to myself. I know she’s trying to convince herself that there’s nothing between Alexander and me. And maybe there isn’t other than a physical attraction. Either way, this is my career.

  I somehow make it through the rest of the day without any more run-ins with Melanie. Luckily, I’m busy with the electrician and doing different tasks around the house. And she’s busy with whatever it is that she does for Alexander all day. It’s not until right before I leave that she speaks to me again.

  “Alexander gave me a list of a few things to do for the party, including inviting some of his friends. He said I needed to contact your friend Angie.”

  I smile. This is actually a good thing. I would love to see her try to interact with Angie.

  “Yep. Angie is the one planning this party. I don’t really have anything to do with it.”

  She glances at her phone. “Angie may be doing the planning, but being that the party is here, I will be handling things for Alexander of course.”

  I want to remind her that as his assistant she works for him just like me, that she’s not his girlfriend or his wife. And I really want to tell her that the way she falls all over him is pathetic. However, I bite my tongue (I seem to be doing this a lot).

  I scroll through my phone and forward her Angie’s contact information. “I just sent you her info. Give her a call.”

  I leave for the day before I say anything that could get me fired. I’m just going to ignore her comment about Alexander and the other women. Or at least I’m going to try to.

  ~*~*~

  I’m really trying to ignore everything Melanie said but it’s proving to be really hard. She’s totally succeeding in getting under my skin, which is exactly what she wanted. Over the next week, whenever Alexander is around so is Melanie. It could be just me but I notice that he’s very careful around her. It’s almost as if he’s trying to spare her feelings so he’s been keeping his distance.

  We are one week out from the party and I’m busy hanging garland on the banister when Alexander joins me on the stairs.

  “Everything looks great,” he says. “Are you excited for the party?”

  I nod. “Yeah. How about you?”

  He nods. I can tell he’s about to say something else.

  “Summer . . .” He hesitates. “I owe you an apology.”

  I give him a curious look. “For what?”

  He scratches his neck. “Because I’ve been so out of it lately. I don’t want you to get the wrong idea.”

  I lay the garland down and sit down on the step below him.

  “The wrong idea? What do you mean?”

  I don’t like the sound of this. Maybe Melanie got to him after all.

  “I don’t want you to think that me being distracted has anything to do with you. Things at work haven’t been great.”

  I give him a sympathetic look. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

  He takes a deep breath. “I did want to ask you something, though. I was wondering if you were going to the party with anyone?”

  I smile. “Going with anyone—as in a date? No. I just figured Angie would put me to work when I got here.”

  He laughs. “Probably.”

  I bite my lip, waiting for him to say something else. I’m not sure if he’s going to ask me to be his date or not. Or maybe he’s checking to see if I’m going with someone else.

  “I was going to ask if you want to go together, but I just realized that sounds pretty stupid considering it’s at my house and we were both going to be here anyway.”

  I start to giggle. “I’m sorry for laughing,” I say. He starts laughing, too. “But, to answer your question, I would love to go to your party with you. We can just meet here,” I say, trying to keep a straight face.

  He doesn’t say anything. Instead, he leans down and kisses me. And it’s just like I remembered. It’s a good thing I’m sitting down because my legs feel weak. When we pull away, I look around to see if Melanie is watching from anywhere. I think it’s finally time to address the situation with her.

  “I actually wanted to talk to you about something,” I say as I look around again. “In private, if possible.”

  He gives me a concerned look but follows me up the stairs into one of the guest rooms. He sits down on the bench at the end of the bed.

  “What’s wrong?” he asks immediately.

  I sigh. “I just wanted to talk to you about Melanie.”

  His smile quickly fades. “I told you I spoke to her. Everything is fine.”

  I sigh. “Actually, I don’t think it is.”

  Not a second later, there is a knock on the door, which is ajar. Sure enough, it’s Melanie. I roll my eyes.

  “I’m so sorry to interrupt,” she says innocently. “Edward has been calling you nonstop. He just called my phone looking for you.”

  Alexander groans. “Of course he is. Summer, can we continue this later?”

  “Yes, definitely.”

  He leaves to go call Edward back (I have no idea who Edward is). I automatically think of Edward Cullen from Twilight when I hear that name.

  Melanie is lingering in the doorway. I walk toward the door when she stands in front of me.

  “Is everything all right?”

  I give her a fake smile. “Everything is great. Just making plans for the party.”

  She glares at me as I nonchalantly walk past her. I go back to hanging the garland, and she silently walks past me down the stairs. I think it’s safe to assume that we’ve officially drawn a line in the sand, and if there is any possibility of a future with Alexander, I need to address this with him.

  Chapter Eight

  I officially hate my costume. I told Angie that I didn’t care which villain I was so she took the Cruella de Vil costume. I’m dressed as the Evil Queen from Snow White and I’m sweating like a pig. Although this costume could look good on some people, I’m not one of those people. So much for looking cute and sexy on the first holiday I’m single. I guess, technically, I’m Alexander’s date for the evening, but I’m still very single.

  Unfortunately, I still haven’t had a chance to talk to him about Melanie. Every time I saw him this week Melanie was right there (shocker). Speaking of this, the house looks amazing. I’m almost finished decorating the entire downstairs with the exception of a guest room and bathroom, and Angie and I spent the whole day yesterday setting up for the party.