Jackie nodded and showed him her phone. “Esme sent me a picture of Cinderella and Prince Charming. Do you think she’s trying to tell us something?”
“She might want us to find our happily ever after moment.”
His serious expression made Jackie’s heart race. “Or it could be to make sure we’re home by midnight or your truck will turn into a pumpkin.”
His lips twitched. “And that definitely isn’t an option in this weather. Are you ready to open the doors to the masses?”
Jackie took one last look around The Fairy Forest. Pastor John and Shelley were standing behind the ice cream cart, the DJ was playing a Christmas Carol, and Daniella and a team of volunteers were waiting to welcome everyone into the biggest Christmas gala Sapphire Bay had ever seen.
With an excited grin, she nodded. “I hope the gala’s as successful as I think it’ll be.”
“So do I.” Aidan held her hand as they walked down Candy Cane Lane. With a flourish, he opened the doors and greeted the first guests.
Jackie took a deep breath and smiled at Allan and Mabel Terry.
They’d done everything they could to support The Christmas Wish Program and The Horseshoe Adventure Camp. Now it was down to good planning and lots of generous donors to see how much money they could raise.
* * *
Aidan stoodbeneath a canopy of fairy lights, watching as the auction in The Fairy Forest unfolded before him. He couldn’t believe the generosity flowing from the community. Everyone was excited, whether they were bidding for a basket of fresh vegetables from Mr. Jessop’s garden or a stunning Christmas star, hand-carved by a local teenager.
Natalie Armstrong’s vibrant painting of the rocky shoreline had sold for an astonishing twenty-five thousand dollars. Aidan had received a lot of enquiries from international buyers about the painting, but no one expected it to sell for that amount of money. A simple photograph by a local artist had sold for four thousand dollars, and a travel voucher for an all-expenses-paid vacation to Bali went for three times its actual value. The guests who’d bought tickets for the gala were willing to spend a lot of money to support The Christmas Wish Program and the camp BioTech was building.
“Sold to the pretty lady in row three!” Allan Terry declared, his voice booming through the room. He lifted his gavel and knocked it against the wooden block with a satisfying thud. The audience erupted into applause, and Aidan couldn’t help but join in, clapping enthusiastically.
As the volunteers hurriedly brought the next item onto the stage, Aidan scanned the crowd for Jackie. She was standing beside the dessert tables, arranging a tray of pastries for the last course of the night.
“Next up, we have a lovely basket of hand-knitted baby clothes, generously donated by our very own Jackie West!” Allan announced, holding up the intricate creations for everyone to see.
Aidan knew each piece was made with love and care, and so did the audience if the bidding was anything to go by.
“One hundred dollars!” a woman shouted, raising her paddle high.
“Two hundred!” yelled another, much to Aidan’s surprise.
“Three hundred!” came the next bid.
He looked across at Jackie. She’d stopped adding more desserts to the table and was standing with a stunned expression on her face. When their eyes connected, he smiled.
Jackie grinned at him before returning her attention to Allan.
With a decisive thud, the gavel hit the block of wood.
“Sold!” Allan said happily. “For Three hundred fifty dollars to our new mom, Kelly.”
It was at times like this that he wondered if he was crazy to want to move to Miami or even stay in Manhattan. There was something about this small town, about the close-knit community, and the sense of belonging that he’d never experienced before. And there was something about Jackie that made him reluctant to leave her behind.
A light tap on his shoulder made him turn around. Josh and Sandy Wilson stood behind him with a little girl in a wheelchair.
“We thought we’d say hello before the auction ends,” Josh said. “And thank you again for all you’re doing for Grace.”
The little girl looked up at Aidan and smiled. “That’s me. Thanks for helping to find a new leg for me.”
He kneeled beside the wheelchair and smiled. “That’s okay. Did your mom and dad show you the pictures I sent them?”
Grace’s pigtails bobbed as she nodded. “I liked the pink leg the best.”
“I thought you might. Your mom told me pink’s your favorite color.”
