“I know it.”
Behind her, the dress fabric rustled, letting her know that Breck was working away while she chatted it up on her cell. “Listen, Mom, I gotta run. I’m working tonight.” Half lie? She wassupposedto be working.
“They have you fielding calls 24/7 now?”
“No. It’s the other job I was telling you about.”
“Oh, the magician’s assistant. That’s so interesting. I watched the last episode—you were wonderful.”
“Thanks. I didn’t do much.” She tried to brush off the praise.
Like most mothers, Susan Hall wasn’t to be dissuaded. “You’re going to tell us all about it over bread pudding.”
Harmony’s mouth watered at the thought of the cinnamon-and-cream treat. “I’ve kind of been rethinking things …”Like my bank account and getting out of my lease and leaving Breck.Amazing. Hot. Sweet. Talented. Breck.
“You can’t back out now. I’m setting a place for you for Christmas Eve dinner. A mother’s got to have hope.”
She chuckled. “Love you.”
“You too, honey.”
She ended the call and tucked her phone away. Breck had to have heard at least part of the conversation. Did their kisses change things for her? Did she want it to? Kissing someone thoroughly should answer questions, not create them.
“You ready to try the transformation again?” he asked—politely ignoring what he’d overheard.
“That was my mom. She’s excited to have me home for Christmas.” She twisted her fingers. If he asked her to stay, would she?
“I’ll bet. Moms are fantastic that way.”
She nodded. When he didn’t say anything else, she practically jumped into the dress. For the rest of the night, they flirted and practiced. Each time they touched or laughed together, she wondered if this meant more to her than it did to him. Maybe he kissed a lot of girls in his line of work. Maybe, to him, a kiss was just a kiss.
But it had been so much more for her. And she wanted it to mean more to him.
She didn’t want to carry another relationship on her shoulders. She wanted a partner. If Breck couldn’t be that, then she’d have to let him go. The trouble was, she couldn’t know for certain without giving him a shot. And giving him a shot meant she had to risk a broken heart. She’d done that once and come out worse than she’d gone in. The possibility of it happening again left her trembling inside.
Chapter Eleven
December 20
Breck
Breck was anxious to get the street show over with. He’d done several card tricks and rings stuck together tricks where he magically released them and then put them back together, all while Harmony waited patiently in the snowman getup. She stood to the side, looking like a piece of the stage. There was a talent in holding still that was generally overlooked by everyone except for elementary school teachers and magicians.
He’d gotten her in the dress and she’d done herself up, then covered up with the snowman suit. He hadn’t seen her as a princess and was dying to get a glimpse of her. He’d told her he’d picked the dress specifically for this trick, but really, he’d picked it forherand built the illusion around it. It’d been the right thing to do; she loved it. And if it meant kisses like the ones they’d shared that first night of practice, he’d buy her a hundred more gowns. She deserved to know how wonderful she was, inside and out.
“I need an assistant for my next trick—a winter princess full of Christmas magic should do just fine.” He scanned the crowd and then frowned. “Is she not here?”
People looked around, worry that his performance was about to fall apart beginning to show in their concerned eyes.
“Well, then, I guess I’ll have to bring her to life myself.” He patted his pockets. “Does anyone have a snowman?”
Kids pointed behind him. “There. Right there.”
He turned around and scratched his head. “How long has that been there?” he asked.
Giggles came from the short row in the front.
He laced his fingers together and stretched his fingers. “Now, to turn a snowman into a winter princess, we need … think, man.” He rapped his knuckles against his head. “… sparkles, a puff of Christmas air, and mistletoe.”
