John lifted his chin slightly. “Oooh. You guys are a thing.”
“No. We … I …” Breck hated that he couldn’t find the right words to explain that he liked her and he thought she might like him but she was closed off. “She’s not available right now.”
John pounded him on the back before making his way to the coat rack. “That’s what a woman says when she’d not interested inyou. I guarantee, if the right guy came along, she’d be all over him.” He clipped his keys off the hook by the door. “Don’t wait up.”
Breck held his ground until the door slammed shut before he deflated. John probably knew what he was talking about. While Breck spent high school playing with cards, John was wooing the captain of the cheer squad. He was eons ahead of Breck when it came to understanding women.
“Stick to magic,” he muttered to himself. If he wasn’t the right guy for Harmony, there was nothing he could do about it, no matter how much his heart told him otherwise. Even now, as he uploaded the video, he felt a whisper that there was something for him and Harmony, something more than a few magic tricks and a paycheck.
The problem was that if she didn’t see it too, then he would be left standing alone under the mistletoe come Christmas Eve when she left town.
Chapter Eight
December 12
Harmony
Twelve days until Christmas Eve, the streets were filled with mothers dragging their children from store to store and children dragging their mothers to see Santa. The difference between the two was easy to see. Children going to see Santa were dressed up, their hair curled or combed, their mittens coordinating with their caps. Children out for a quick shopping trip were in mismatched outerwear and had faces smeared with hot chocolate bought as a bribe to keep them quiet about what was in the store bags draped over Mom’s arm.
Harmony had happy memories of her childhood Christmases spent giggling over surprises and eating too much homemade taffy. Her heart ached to go back to that little girl who trusted and loved with everything inside of her—and without fear.
Fear wasn’t a companion she’d invited into her life. It had been thrust there by the actions of her ex-husband. As unfair as that was, now she lived with the little elf who popped up in the strangest places. Like between her and a certain magician.
Breck was … unexpected. He had a childlike happiness about him when he performed, but there was also this feeling that he was all man. The kind of man her father would respect and her mother would feed until he had a hard time getting up from his chair. She could see them all around the table, playing a game of Christmas Monopoly that lasted most of the afternoon, snacking on spiced nuts, and waiting for the turkey to brown. The image was so clear and hopeful that it caused her chest to seize like the fear elf had taken up residence in her rib cage.
She stopped mid-step and got rear-ended by a couple holding hands that must have been too wrapped up in one another to notice her abrupt halt. “Sorry,” she mumbled.
“Oh, no, we’re so sorry,” said the man.
Boyfriend? Newlywed? There was no way to tell with his gloves covering his hands. The way he pulled the woman closer to his side and nuzzled her ear as they left had her thinking boyfriend. Did husbands ever do that to their wives? For her, the transition to wife had meant a shield of frost settling between her and Sam.
She pressed both hands over her chest and sucked in air in an effort to relieve the weight that had settled there. What she needed was to step back and gain some perspective, because all she could do was project Sam’s sins onto the situation with Breck, and that wasn’t healthy. At least Sam hadn’t driven her completely mad. Recognizing that her feelings were crazy meant she wasn’t actually crazy, right?
She needed an outside opinion. Dialing her friend, she pressed her glove to her lips and blew out in an effort to thaw them. It wasn’t snowing yet, but the weatherman said they were in for a good storm later tonight.
“Hey,” Jenny answered. “How’s magic practice?”
“It’s not. I mean, it’s not yet.” Harmony willed her feet to move in the direction of Breck’s apartment where they’d be practicing tonight, but they wouldn’t go. Darn that icy elf! “I can’t go over there.”
“Why not, honey?” Jenny’s voice wassoothing a wild animalsoft.
“It’s just … he makes me feel all jittery.”
“Like you’re afraid of him?”
“No. Yes. No. Not afraid for my safety.”
“But afraid for your heart?” she said softly.
“Maybe,” Harmony squeaked. She pressed her gloved hand to her forehead. “Why am I so broken?”
“Because you have a right to be.”
“I don’t want this.” She threw her hand out to the side and hit a chubby guy in a puffy coat.Sorry! she mouthed. He ignored her and walked on. “I don’t want to be the loner who can’t let a man get close to her—even if all he wants is friendship.”
“Is that all Breck wants?”
She bit her lip. “I think so. I mean, if he wanted more, I kind of squished it.”
