Page 154 of The Holiday Fakers
“Grandma was telling Daddy, and he told me it’s near Australia.”
“Do you mean New Zealand?”
She shrugs. “Maybe?”
“Uncle Brody’s got a job there, but I can’t go with him because my job’s here.”
She perks up. “In Hideaway Harbor?”
“New York.”
“Oh.” She scrunches her nose. “Can you move it?”
“I don’t think so, sweetie.”
“Have you made a wish at the spring about it?”
“Not yet.”
“Well, you should. They always work out. I made a wish the other day, and I know it’s going to come true.”
Hideaway beliefs and legends have more staying power than Santa, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy combined.Objectively, I know it’s all probably nonsense, but the intention behind it is what matters.
Martha takes my hand and presses a sprig of fir into my palm. “This came from near the spring, so it has the same magical powers. Make a wish now.”
Her face is so serious, I don’t know whether to smile or weep at how sweet a kid she is. So I close my eyes, feeling Martha fold my fingers over the foliage.
“Now think of what you want more than anything in the whole wide world.”
In my mind’s eye, the image appears instantly. It’s Brody and me together, holding hands and smiling at each other. He’s dressed as the Emberking of Draventhorne, and we’re standing in one of those sweeping, timeless landscapes the South Island of New Zealand is famous for. The picture is so vivid, it feels like I’m already there.
Thisis what I want, to be with Brody and to travel the world. Two things I’ve always dreamed of but never done.
“Now open your eyes,” Martha instructs.
I do, and the first thing I see is Brody striding across the room toward me.
When he reaches us, he leans down. “A tree’s fallen, blocking the mountain road into Hideaway. I’m going with your dad, Ethan, and Hudson to help clear it.”
“Is anyone hurt?”
“No, thank God, but it might take a few hours.” He glances at his watch. “I don’t know if we’ll be back in time for the start of the dance, so don’t wait for me at your folks’. I’ll meet you here later.”
I nod. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Decorate the tree? It’s up and secure, and we’ve placed it by the stage so there’s more height to reach it. A couple of people can easily rotate it so you can dress it all the way around.”
“Okay.”
I gaze at him, trying to read his expression. His eyebrows knit together like he’s worried. And I know it’s not just about decorating or clearing a tree.
His fingers reach out to cup my cheek. “I love you.”
I press my lips together as tears instantly sting my eyes. I can’t speak, or I’ll bawl, so I just nod.
He hesitates, then leans in and kisses me softly. “I love you,” he murmurs again, like we’re already saying goodbye.
“What about me?” Martha asks.
