Jacob turned toward them in interest but didn’t interrupt.
Ethan shrugged. “I don’t know.”
Lux turned to Nick. “Is there something you can do to push this along?”
He shook his head. “I don’t control time.”
Lux’s eyes brightened. “Are you sure about that? Last year…” she trailed off into incoherent mumbling as she scrambled in her ever-present messenger bag and came up with a yellow legal pad and a pencil with an overly large eraser. She wrote numbers that became equations.
Nick looked at the two brothers-in-law. “You guys good?”
Jacob nodded, softening. “Best I’ve ever been.”
Ethan schooled his smile. That was as close as Jacob was going to get to thanking Nick. He really needed to ask for that story.
Ethan considered the evening. It wasn’t great. Pearl stole the show and proclaimed herself in town to stay until Collin graduated high school. He’d fielded more than one question about the two of them getting back together. No. Never. Nuh-uh.
And Pearl left with Johnny Storm, a man who graduated three years before them and had married and divorced the same woman twice. He owned the cell phone store in town.
But, even with all that happening, he’d made a date with Valerie. A date. Even though she’d tried to pull back and call it an appointment or something else, he’d liked the idea of a date. And it was just like he’d pictured with Collin and a tree and probably board games or something. Only it was at her place instead of his, which was more than okay because it meant he didn’t have to mop the floor tonight when he got home.
“I’m good,” he assured Nick.
Lux grabbed Nick’s sleeve. “Time is definitely a factor in your gift.” She said excitedly. “If you could control it more precisely, we might be able to create a rainbow bridge or even a wormhole.”
“Whoa!” Ethan and Jacob moved away from Nick at the same time.
He rolled his eyes. “I’m not going to combust into a wormhole, guys.”
They glanced at Lux, who widened her eyes, silently saying she thought it was possible. “Let’s head north. I have so many experienments to run on you.”
Nick dropped his chin to his chest.
They poofed out without so much as a Merry Christmas or a Ho Ho Ho.
“You know. I almost feel bad for him,” said Jacob.
Ethan shook his head. “This is one Christmas for the books.”
Jacob clapped him on the shoulder. “And it ain't over yet.”
CHAPTERNINE
Valerie’s whole day was spent anticipating Ethan and Collin’s visit. She looked at the clock every twenty-three minutes, which was a weird interval, but that’s how things went. The new lights were on the tree–multicolored to make Collin happy. It didn’t matter that she’d had to remove most of the ornaments and then put them back on again. She'd do just about anything when it came to helping his Christmas be happy and magical. Besides, feeding Collin’s Christmas spirit infused her with it too.
She made a batch of doggie biscuits for Charlotte’s shop to help her stay busy so she didn’t go crazy with the excitement coursing through her. Sheesh! You’d think it was Christmas Eve already, and she was eager for Santa’s visit.
The dogs weren’t at all interested in the dough or the mixer. They hung around on their beds after their morning visit to the trees. Worried for them, she googled how long beagles sleep each day and decided they were on the long side of average.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket as she mixed the chicken flavoring into the batter. Half expecting it to be Ethan, telling her they couldn’t make it, her response time was slow. Allowing herself to enjoy expecting someone to come over was a luxury she hadn’t experienced in quite some time. Yes, she interacted with people regularly, worked with the financial advisors over her trust, and kept in contact with her aunt and uncle, but when it came to personal friends, and maybe more, she’d shied away.
That’s not how her parents would want her to live. They made friends everywhere they went. Her mother, in particular, would reply to fans on a personal level that made them feel like they were best friends. She had such a way with people.
Valerie squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the familiar sense of loss to overwhelm her at the reminder of their passing–but it didn’t come. Instead, she felt a warmth in her chest and pride in the legacy Mom left behind.
She opened her eyes and glanced down at the phone that was still ringing.
It wasn’t Ethan’s number that appeared on the screen; it was her uncle’s. “Shoot.” Housesitting and dogsitting meant she had to answer no matter the reason for the call, but she’d hoped to buy herself some more time before she had to give him an answer about the concert. She should do it.Should: what a difficult word to live with.
