Page 35 of Could It Be Magic?
Nick took a deep breath. ‘I’ve been invited to the Midwinter’s Eve Ball tomorrow night at Cherry Tree Court, and I was, er, wondering if maybe you’d like to go with me? The invitation’s for me and a plus one, and I know it’s rather short notice, but I’ve been trying to pluck up the courage to text you about it ever since we did the Christmas market together.’ He rubbed the back of his head, the nerves starting to get to him again. ‘I mean, it’s perfectly fine if you’ve got other plans, and to be honest, I’d understand if you did, it being tomorrow night and everything, but I promised Annabelle I’d at least ask you so that I said I had and?—’
‘Nick.’ Thea’s voice interrupted, just as gently as it had before. He raised his gaze from where it had been firmly planted on the ground by his feet, and as he did so, he realised that Thea had put her shopping bag down and was standing right in front of him. So close, in fact, that he could smell the sweet, floral scent of the perfume he’d begun to associate with her when she’d been working alongside him at the shop. It made his senses reel.
‘Yeah?’
Thea moved a little closer, until she was properly in his space. With anyone else it would have felt intrusive but somehow having her that close to him felt deliciously right. She raised her eyes to meet his, and as she did so, a smile stole over her lips.
‘I’d love to go with you to the Midwinter’s Eve Ball,’ she murmured.
Her words took a second or two to register, but as they did, Nick felt a huge grin spreading over his face, and a warmth flooded his cheeks.
‘Really?’
‘Really.’
Thea’s face turned upwards and, as their eyes met fleetingly, it was only a split second before their lips lightly touched. The sweet, soft pressure of her mouth on his felt so right, all thoughts and doubts floated away for the few seconds that the kiss lasted. He was reminded of the almost-kiss on her doorstep and how frustrating it had been to be so close and yet so far. He slid his arms around her, and felt a warm surge of excitement when she moved even closer to him. The kiss felt years in the making, and so absolutely right that he never wanted it to end.
‘Pick me up at seven?’ she said as they eventually stepped back from each other.
‘Yeah. I mean, yes, sure, absolutely.’
‘See you tomorrow, then.’
‘I’m looking forward to it.’
Nick was so flummoxed by how quickly and easily Thea had agreed to be his plus one, and even more so by the fact that they’d ended up kissing that it wasn’t until he got back to the shop, he realised he hadn’t offered to help her put her shopping in the car.
As he approached the counter, Annabelle gave him a sly smile.
‘She said yes, then.’
Nick nodded. ‘She said yes.’
‘Don’t screw this up, little brother,’ Annabelle added. ‘And for God’s sake don’t be late. That waste of space partner of hers never went anywhere on time, and Thea doesn’t need reminding of that.’
‘I’ll keep that in mind,’ Nick said absently. Wandering off to make himself and Annabelle their customary afternoon cuppa, he wondered whether or not he should slip something stronger into his own tea, just to stop his hands from shaking.
29
‘So he just came out with it, while carrying a bag of spuds? And then you kissed him?’ Charlotte’s laughter echoed down the phone, and Thea felt herself blushing.
‘Well, to be fair, he’d put the potato sack down by that point, but yeah, just like that.’
Thea had phoned Charlotte when she’d got back, in need of some advice. She’d also checked with Lorelai that she’d be able to babysit at short notice the following evening. Lorelai had said yes, much to Thea’s relief. She was actually happy enough to leave Cora in charge of her little brother, since the ball was only a mile down the road, but she’d asked Lorelai to come over just in case. Cora had been a little put out, but since it was Thea’s first date in ages, the girl had eventually seen her mother’s point of view. And Cora and Lorelai enjoyed each other’s company; the teenager shared the same sense of humour as her grandmother and the same taste in films, too. Given that both of them also had a keen interest in Thea’s love life, she knew they’d have plenty to talk about.
Thea mooched over to the living room mirror and glanced at her reflection. Her light brown hair, the same shade as Tristan’s, was too long, and the bags under her eyes could have rivalled the shopping bags she’d just unpacked. Not to mention the fact she hadn’t shaved her legs in months. ‘I’ve got a bit of work to do to make myself presentable for a posh do at Cherry Tree Court,’ she said, half to herself, half to Charlotte, who was still on the line. ‘And God only knows what I’m going to wear. The last time I went to a black tie do was when Dylan was a toddler, and he’s eleven now!’
Charlotte’s tinkle of laughter came down the phone. ‘Well, you’re asking the wrong person for ideas! I live in jeans and T-shirts, and I can’t remember the last time I had a proper haircut, either. We can be two scruff bags together amongst the great and good of the Midwinter’s Eve Ball.’ She paused and then added, ‘Do you fancy getting ready together? I mean, I’m not queen of style, but at least we could get a second opinion.’
Thea grinned. She’d got to know Charlotte well over the time she’d been in a relationship with Tristan, and the thought of a bit of moral support before the ball was a very appealing one. ‘Sure. Do you want to come over here tomorrow, late afternoon, and we can pool our resources?’
‘Sounds good,’ Charlotte replied. ‘And I’m counting on Cora to be able to sort out our hair and makeup, if she’s willing. She always looks so great when she does her own.’ Thea heard Charlotte giving an envious sigh. ‘Oh, to have had access to YouTube beauty tutorials when I was a teenager. How things might have been different!’
‘You turned out all right,’ Thea said. She was still flummoxed by her thirteen-year-old daughter’s skills with a cosmetic brush, and quite unsure how she felt about Cora leaving the house with quite so much eyeliner on, and as for the false eyelashes… ‘But I’m sure she’d be more than happy to help us out, if bribed substantially.’
‘I’ll bring cash and a big box of Krispy Kreme donuts,’ Charlotte said confidently. ‘Good job I’m working in the archive today, so I can pop down to Cabot Circus after work and grab some supplies.’ Charlotte spent most of her time in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at University of North West Wessex, which was about an hour’s drive from the house she shared with Tristan in Taunton.
‘She’ll love you forever if you get the ones with sprinkles,’ Thea laughed. ‘And so will Dylan. You’ll be in the top auntie spot for the rest of the decade!’
