“Hey, that sugar canister is new,” Darcy interrupted. “Where did that come from?”
Clem met Lily’s eyes, then rolled her own. “Want to hear about the best Secret Santa gift ever?”
Two
The party lasted longerthan Clem had expected. Her friends sat on every available surface and ate cookies as they waited for the wine buzz to go away. She enjoyed their company, of course she did. But as the evening tipped into night, Clem couldn’t help yearning for time alone on her couch watching some sort of sappy Christmas movie. She looked down at the cookie she was decorating. She had used the gingerbread woman cookie cutter only once in her orange cardamon cookies. The rest were snowflakes and stars that had been hastily adorned with silver sprinkles. But Clem took care with this cookie woman. She outlined a spaghetti strap mini dress, filling in the space with shiny green sprinkles. Carefully, she piped a wreath of curls around the cookie’s head. She piped a cheeky smile under two candy eyes, and stood to look at her handiwork.
“She’s cute,” Jules commented.
“She’s my perfect woman,” Clem laughed. Her laugh faded and she frowned at the cookie.
“Everything okay?”
“What? Oh, yeah.” Clem waved it away. For a second it seemed like the cookie had been glowing, but that was impossible. It was likely just a sign that she was tired and readyfor her time to chill on the couch. To be honest, her focus was already shifting to what she would have delivered for dinner. She caught Lily’s eye, sending a silent message. Lily, bless her, caught on immediately.
“Oh, man.” She stood and stretched. “I think it’s time for me to get rolling.”
“Don’t forget to take your plate of cookies,” Clem said before anyone could demure and suggest staying longer. She didn’t want to make them feel rushed or unwelcome, but she was ready for the party to end.
It took another half hour for everyone to gather their things. When Clem closed the door behind her friends, she rested her forehead against the doorframe and drew a deep breath.
Finally, some time for herself.
Three
“I thought they’d never leave.”
The voice in her empty apartment made Clem jump. Hand to her heart, she whirled to face the intruder. Standing in the kitchen, surrounded by the chaos left by the party, was a woman.
Clem blinked in shock. Her head swam, and she closed her eyes. She must be far more drunk than she had realized. Silently, she counted to ten, then opened her eyes again. Surely the woman would be gone at that point.
One.
Two.
Thr —
“Um, are you okay?”
Clem squinted one eye open. “You’re still here.”
The woman spread her arms. “Where else would I be?”
Now both eyes were wide open. “I have no idea, but not standing in my tiny kitchen. My tiny, messy kitchen,” Clem amended as she took in the scene. Flour and sugar dusted the countertop. Eggshells had somehow not made their way into the trash, and instead littered the sink. Three wine bottles, each at a different level of consumption, stood open wherever the last person to pour had set them down. One of them sat in a puddleof red wine that Clem knew would stain. She should be tackling the chaos, putting her space back into order. Instead she was talking to some apparition of her tipsy mind.
Said apparition looked around with a smile. “I rather like your kitchen. It’s homey.”
“Homey. Right.”
The woman was entirely at odds with the mess surrounding her. She was taller than Clem, though that wasn’t exactly challenging. But Clem guessed she never had to stretch to reach the highest shelf or the items stored on top of the refrigerator. Her hair was honey blonde and curly in a way that Clem had experienced, but somehow on this stranger it looked alluring, whereas Clem always felt unkempt when her hair did that. The woman had warm, chocolate eyes, and her golden skin glowed with a luminescence that bordered on shimmer. She was wearing — Clem narrowed her eyes.
“Is that a sparkly green teddy?”
The woman looked down, bemused. “I suppose it is. That was what you ordered, right?”
“I what? Ordered? I didn’t order anything.” The scent of orange and cardamom and vanilla surrounded Clem and clouded her mind. She shook her head to clear it. “And none of this is important. What are you doing in my apartment?” She reiterated as she slashed a hand through the air. “How did you get here?”
The woman shrugged. “You made me.” She wrinkled her nose, then corrected herself. “Well, you summoned me.”
