Holiday Magic

by Tl Reeve

  “I really don’t have time for this.”

  “Are you okay?”

  “Just trying to do my job, Aubrey. And you’ve been blowing up my phone all afternoon.” Nate cursed when the truck that had been beside him swerved into his lane and then back. “If you’re not in trouble or something, I have to go.”

  “Yeah, fine,” she replied angrily.

  Nate hung up without another word. Forty frustrating minutes later, he was parking in downtown Denver. Three hours later, he’d made an arrest. In those few short hours, the sky had opened up and dumped two feet of snow on the city. Luckily, he happened to know a place with a warm bed and a change of clothes.

  Jillian Evans wrapped him in a big hug when he walked into his parents’ living room. His father waved a hand up over the back of the sofa without getting up. A football game was in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. Hellos could wait.

  “Hey, Mama,” Nate said into his mom’s hair.

  “Never loved a freak snowstorm more than I do right this moment,” she replied, pulling back from the hug to look at him. “Other than exhausted, you look good, honey. Are you hungry?”

  “He’s always hungry, Jillie,” Nate’s father, Connor, said before letting out a victorious cry. “Yes, yes, that’s how you do it.”

  “Take it we won?” Nate asked.

  “Damn straight, we did.” His father turned off the television and finally rose to greet Nate. “Good to see you, son. Down here for work?”

  “Yeah, last minute thing. Probably should have called.”

  “Nonsense,” Jillian said with a grin. “Come on, get that coat off and settle in for the night. We’re supposed to get another four inches before it’s all said and done.”

  “How is work going?” his father asked.

  “Good, it’s going well.” Nate sat on the old worn couch and relaxed. It was certainly true that you couldn’t go home again to what you had as a child, but this was close. His parents had bought this house when he was in high school, and he’d spent four glorious years in it before going to college. It still smelled like his mother’s gardenia perfume, but now coated with all the scents of the coming solstice.

  Mulled wine, nutmeg, cinnamon, and clove. Apples from his mother’s pies. Fresh bread with cardamom. That bread. He grinned. Aubrey would love that bread, especially with a dollop of fresh cream.

  “Have you been out to Festival yet this year?” his mother asked.

  “Jillie, give him a chance to relax a bit before you start in on all that,” his father chided.

  “Connor, I’m not starting in on anything. I’m only asking because he’s smiling like he’s got something good, like maybe a woman, he’s thinking about.”

  Nate chuckled and shook his head. “I have been to Festival, once. But it was for work. You know I don’t usually go in for that sort of thing.”

  “What sort of thing is that, son?” Connor asked with a wink to his wife.

  “Matchmaking and finding a good mate. We’re not living in the nineteenth century. I don’t need the elders finding me a suitable wife.”

  “Of course, you don’t, but your sister says the Waldenburg Festival is great fun. A party to celebrate who you are, and the season, honey. Plus, you need a break from work. Every time I talk to you, you’re deep in some case. It would be nice if you dated a bit. Anyone. Doesn’t have to be a witch.” Jillian patted his leg and gave him a small smile of genuine concern. “They’re not all like Allison is all I’m trying to say, hon.”

  Nate hadn’t thought about Allison in ages. They’d dated for two years in college, and then when he’d joined the Denver PD, she’d started talking about starting a family. They hadn’t even talked about marriage, and there she was pointing out children’s clothes in store windows, talking about a nursery.

  After he’d been at his job for six months, she started complaining that he wasn’t home enough. Nate had wrapped up a case and come home early one day to find Allison in bed with their neighbor. He’d dated a few women in the years since then, but they always ended up with the same complaint: his job.

  “I know, Mom.” He looked around trying to figure out where Lauren was. She was supposed to be spending the holiday with their parents. “Hey, where is Lauren?” he asked, trying to change the subject.

  “In the shower trying to warm up after getting caught in the snow,” his mother replied.

  “Your mom has a point, son. Festival is a good opportunity to meet people,” his father said, apparently not so easily deterred.

  Nate sighed and nodded in agreement. He sent a text to his sister, keeping his phone hidden from his parents so he wouldn’t get another lecture on work. Then, with a grin, he said, “I actually met someone at Festival this year.” It was not a lie. He would never lie to his parents. Or, at least, not without good reason. Like avoiding being grounded. Or to make good on a promise to his sister.

  “Really? You’re seeing someone?” Jillian looked more relieved than anything else and Nate managed to hold in a groan.

  “Uh, we’re not really dating. She just started a new job and has been really busy with that and some family things. But the chemistry is there, and I plan to take her out. Especially now that this case is over,” he rambled.

  “Family things?” his dad asked.

  “Yeah, she was adopted and just got in touch with her biological brother. So they’re getting to know one another.” Nate saw the curious look on his mother’s face and added, “She’s not a witch, but she was raised by them, so she knows about Festival and celebrates solstice.”

  “That’s so nice.” Jillian grinned. “So what does she do, hon?”

  “She’s a professor—” He caught himself and laughed. “Actually, she would be the first one to point out she’s an adjunct, not a professor. She just got out of school.”

  “PhD?” Connor asked. From his tone he sounded impressed.

  “That’s right. And she has a position at Waldenburg University as an adjunct in the English department. She teaches American and British Lit. Modernist or something like that.”

  “And you met her at Festival?” Jillian asked.

  “Yeah, I did. It’s a bit of a long drawn out story, but yes.”

  “Does this woman have a name?” Connor asked in a teasing tone.

  “Aubrey.” Nate was grinning now.

  “Well, I’m so glad to hear you’re interested in someone, honey. She sounds lovely. And she might not be a witch, but she knows our traditions. That’s so important. Isn’t it, Connor?”

  “Always important to share the same values.” Connor agreed.

  “Now, how about some soup? I made butternut and it can be hot in a matter of minutes.” Jillian was walking toward the kitchen while she talked without waiting for a response.

  Nate got to his feet to follow her.

  “We’re proud of you. You came in here tonight looking exhausted and done, so I thought it might need saying.”

  “Thanks, Dad.”

  “It would be nice if you stopped by some time with a lady friend. Maybe this Aubrey,” his father added.

  Nate rolled his eyes. “Right, okay. Thanks, Dad.”

  13

  Aubrey stood in front of her full-length mirror staring at herself and wondering why she was going out in the dead of winter wearing so little. After Nate had basically hung up on her the day before, she hadn’t heard from him again until late that night when she’d received a text very clearly about her but destined for someone else.

  Nate: She won’t back off. Advice for how to handle her without being an ass would be appreciated.

  Aubrey wasn’t going to call or text him again, not after he’d made it very clear she’d been harassing him. She’d thought about responding with a smart-ass remark that she didn’t need him to handle her anymore. Instead, she’d spent the day at work determined not to feel sorry for herself. He wasn’t interested. She needed to let it go.

  “You look hot,” Summer said from w
here she leaned against Aubrey’s dresser. “I wish I had your ass.”

  “I’d give you some of it, if I could,” she replied as she looked over her shoulder at her backside. The dress Summer had picked out wasn’t what Aubrey would have picked. But she’d promised to let her friend dress her for the party they were going to, which Aubrey was sure she wouldn’t be granted entry. It was Festival, after all, and she wasn’t a witch.

  “When we get there, I want you to tell me what you think of Charlotte Reynolds,” Summer said.

  “And she’s who again?” Aubrey asked while applying mascara.

  Summer was trying on every pair of shoes Aubrey owned. “Your brother’s not-girlfriend. And her brother, Josh, is convinced Riley is screwing her every which way.”

  “Can we not talk about my brother screwing some girl. I realize he’s been my brother all of a day, but he seems like a good kid, and I don’t want to think of him being a sleazy douche.”

  Summer nodded in agreement and then quickly moved on. “He confirmed you’re a dragon, right? You did ask him about that, right?”

  “Oh my gosh, Summer. Calm it down,” Aubrey grumbled.

  Of course, she had brought it up.

  After they left Prufrock’s, he took her by his apartment and showed her the books he had—even lent her one—on dragons. They’d looked at pictures of their parents and agreed that she looked just like her mom when her mom was young. Aubrey then made a fool of herself and sobbed for the better part of an hour. She still didn’t really understand why they’d given her up but kept Riley. Logically, she got it. Her mom had been very young. But nineteen wasn’t that young. Not that Aubrey could have imagined being a mom at nineteen. She still couldn’t at twenty-eight.

  “So that’s a yes?” Summer asked.

  Exasperated, Aubrey turned to face Summer. “Yes, he confirmed I’m a weird non-human fire-breathing beast.”

  “Can you do that? Breathe fire?” Summer was stepping into Aubrey’s favorite most uncomfortable stilettos. She winced, looked at them in the mirror, and then kicked them off.

  “I guess I could. With training. But currently, right this minute, no.” Aubrey screwed the wand back into her mascara and turned to face her friend. “What do you think? Festival ready?”

  “I already said you were hot. Stop begging for the compliments,” Summer said with a wink.

  Aubrey grabbed her handbag and then Summer’s arm, pulling her through the apartment. She couldn’t remember what had possessed her to agree to go back to the red barn an hour from town when all she really wanted to do was collapse into bed with a bag of candy and a book. But she’d agreed, and there was no going back on plans with Summer. The redhead would get her way.

  Aubrey found herself standing at a high table with a delicious drink in her hand, surrounded by witches. Summer had been right. Festival was a blast. It was nearly enough to make her forget about Nate. Except that the woman standing across the table from her had brought him up no less than four times in the past hour.

  Sara was her name. And Sara had a thing for Nate.

  “It totally sucks that he’s stuck in Denver,” Sara complained.

  “Nate is in Denver?” Aubrey asked.

  “That’s what I heard. Stuck in the snow. And it’s really a shame because I was looking forward to seeing him here tonight.”

  Aubrey looked around for Summer. The redhead was at the bar talking to someone she recognized from Jaina’s Diner.

  “Nate doesn’t come to Festival,” she said more to herself than to Sara.

  “Well, he was going to come tonight. I talked to him yesterday and he promised he’d come. I reminded him that he owed me a drink after our last date got canceled.”

  “They’re making Last Resorts again,” Summer said as she rejoined them with a fresh drink. She held up her bright orange and pink drink triumphantly.

  The conversation turned to said drink and the recipe, and whether or not the bartender could make Sara a Winter’s Promise. Aubrey stopped listening as the two witches argued over the effects of the drink, which was apparently some old potion in a mixed drink. She checked her phone again. Nothing from Nate. Apparently Sara was worth a call to say he was stuck in another city, but she was not. In fact, he’d probably decided not texting her was the best way to “handle” her.

  She watched Sara. The woman was curvy, and put those curves on display with confidence Aubrey wished she could steal just an ounce of for herself. Sara’s hair shone under the twinkly lights, streaks of red and bright white blonde mixed in her natural dark blonde. Nate dated this woman. Or was dating her. Aubrey’s shoulders slumped as she looked down into her drink. He’d never mentioned that either.

  “Well, well, well, looks like they’ll let anyone in,” a familiar voice said from behind her. She spun around, her mood lightening at the sight of her brother.

  “Riley, how did you get in here?”

  He wrapped her up in a big hug and then motioned to the beautiful brunette standing at his side. “You know, stole a witch.”

  “You’re such a weirdo,” the brunette muttered before offering Aubrey her hand. “Charlotte Reynolds, please call me Chuck.”

  “So, you’re Chuck,” Aubrey said with a sideways glance to Summer, who was nodding. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Personally, I don’t think a blood test is needed. You look so much like Mrs. Brandt.”

  Aubrey was suddenly very jealous of this woman in front of her. She’d known Aubrey’s parents, and she’d known Riley for years. Chuck had a connection to her family that Aubrey could never have. “I hadn’t even thought about it, but I guess you knew her.”

  “Yeah, Mrs. B was the best. Way better than my crazy mother,” Chuck said with a laugh. Aubrey tried to smile again, but the ups and downs of the evening were starting to wear on her.

  Riley slung an arm around Chuck’s shoulders. “Small world, huh?”

  “Tiny,” Chuck replied.

  “So are you here with that detective of yours? He was so mad at me,” Riley said, his eyes darting around as if looking for someone. He looked down at Chuck and added, “Fuming.”

  “Oh yeah? Which one?” Chuck asked with a devious grin.

  “Nate Evans,” Riley replied.

  Chuck’s eyes widened and she reexamined Aubrey. “Evans, huh? Oh, he’s hot. That man. . .the nice quiet one. Hmm, you know he’s got to be freaky.”

  “Didn’t know you had a thing for the nice detective,” Riley teased.

  “Oh, I’ve got a thing for the not-nice one too, but he at least is a walking warning label.”

  “Ryan Davis,” Aubrey said knowingly.

  “See? She gets it. Davis is the bad-boy who you know will be a good time but will be gone before the sweat dries, whereas Evans is the guy who makes you pancakes in the morning.”

  “You’ve really thought about this,” Riley said with a surprised look on his face.

  “Have you met the detectives of Gaius Aeden?” Chuck looked to Aubrey. “So am I right? Pancakes? Or maybe waffles?”

  Aubrey was so glad that Sara had turned away to talk to another group of witches. She was embarrassed enough to know that while she thought something had been developing between her and Nate, Sara had been in the wings, waiting for their date. You two never even discussed dating. Stop making a big deal out of what you wished had been real.

  “I don’t know. We’re not together. He was just assigned to watch me for a while. There had been some confusion. Some people thought I was a healer.”

  Chuck didn’t look convinced.

  “Really, nothing happened. I mean, nothing that meant anything,” Aubrey stammered.

  “That right there, that means something totally happened,” Chuck said to Riley.

  “To answer your question, no, I’m not here with Nate. I came with Summer,” Aubrey said, trying to avoid further discussion of whether or not something happened between her and Nate. She wasn’t sure what had happened. A mistake, apparently. He had s
aid something about it being wrong.

  “Well, I just wanted to say hi. I came with Chuck so she can tell her parents she’s attended. We’re now going to sneak off into the night,” Riley said, his arm still wrapped around Chuck’s waist.

  “That sounds ominous,” Aubrey replied. She caught Summer wiggling her eyes and looking at Riley’s hand on Chuck’s hip. She glared at her friend and turned her full attention on her brother and his. . .friend?

  “Rye, we could show your sister our favorite place to escape to in the woods, if she wants to get the full experience of the season,” Chuck said.

  “Favorite place?” Aubrey asked.

  “We wouldn’t be gone long. Do you want to sneak off with us?” Riley asked. Aubrey looked over to Summer, who shrugged.

  “Yeah, that sounds fun.” Aubrey grabbed her drink, ready for adventure.

  “Great, let’s go.” Chuck grabbed her hand and led her through the barn to a side door. Riley followed along behind them. Once outside, Chuck gestured toward a path that disappeared into the trees. “There’s a little natural pool not far from here. Great place to go for a swim.”

  “Uh, are there hot springs around here?” Aubrey asked, looking at the snow piled on the ground.

  Riley shook his head. “Nope.”

  “I’m not really one for cold showers, let alone cold dips.”

  “Don’t worry, Riley’s got us covered. He can heat it for us,” Chuck said before taking a big gulp of her drink.

  Aubrey nodded as if that was very obvious and not at all freaking amazing. Her brother would warm a body of water so they could comfortably swim in it. Of course, he would. And maybe someday, she could do the same. My life is out of control. She looked at Riley and he was watching her.

  “You ready?” he asked softly.

  Aubrey nodded again. She needed this. She needed to remember what it felt like to be with family and feel part of something. She still hadn’t talk to her parents about finding Riley. Walt probably knew, although she hadn’t talked to him about it. She assumed Nate had told him. But she hadn’t talk to Nate, and so she didn’t know.