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I pressed my lips together. My parents didn’t reallydoChristmas, and it had been a good many years since the festive season for me had been more than a day or two work-free paired with lots of wine. “Ah... I don’t know, actually,” I answered elusively.
Mary’s gaze slid sideways as she reached out and touched Stephen’s arm. “We did one magical thing on our last trip, didn’t we honey?”
Stephen, a balding warlock with beautiful blue eyes smiled at me. “Oh yes.”
I waited for them to reveal all. When they didn’t, I laughed. “Well, are you going to tell me?”
Stephen gave Mary a pointed look.
She turned back to me, her gaze bright. “We went to the North Pole.”
I shuddered at the very idea of all that snow. “Oh! Was it freezing?”
Mary’s laugh was like a tinkling bell all around me. “Oh no.”
“We met Santa,” actually, Stephen said matter-of-factly. “Though he prefers to go by Nicky.”
I laughed again and took another sip of my martini. But when I looked back at Stephen, it was obvious he wasn’t joking. “Um... you’re serious?”
“Absolutely,” Mary answered. “We have his co-ordinates. He told us to send a friend or two that we trusted. If you don’t have any plans maybe you could go visit with him for Christmas? It’s a beautiful place, full of beauty and magic.”
I set my martini down and stared at them wide-eyed. “You’re serious, aren’t you? What’s he like?” Was Santa really a thousand years old, with a belly as round as a bowl full of jelly?
Mary grinned at me. “You’d like him. But we’re not going to tell you anything else. It has to be a surprise. Will you consider it?”
I leaned back in my chair.Would I consider visiting Santa on Christmas?“But isn’t he busy?” I asked.
Stephen chuckled loudly. “Well, yes, he would be at the moment. But once Christmas morning arrives it’s all done and dusted. He said he has months of nothing to do afterwards and he’d enjoy some company.”
I shook my head. “I still can’t believe Santa really exists.”
“Oh, he’s real all right,” Mary said. “So, please, think about it hon. He doesn’t extend an invitation to many people, but we really clicked. He hadn’t met a witch or warlock before us.”
It sounded ridiculous. They had to be pulling my leg. But I knew Mary and Stephen like the back of my hand, they’d practically been my surrogate parents most of my life.
“Well...”
“Hang on... I think I brought it with me.” Mary grabbed her bag off the white linen tablecloth and began digging through it.
I glanced at Stephen. “Is that one of our magical, bottomless bags?”
He laughed. “It sure is. She’ll be lucky to find that card before Christmas day.”
“Ha!” Mary exclaimed triumphantly, brandishing the business card in her hand. “I keep my bag organized. You should know that.” She thrust the white business card at me. “Here.”
I took it and stared down at the intricate gold print. It simply read:Nicholas.I looked back at Mary, puzzled. “What do I do with this?”
“Nicky said that all you have to do is hold it in your hand and wish to be with him. He said that technically it should work for humans too, but with us already possessing magic, it should be an easy trip.”
I set the card down on the table, a strange tremble of heat passing over my fingers. Then I picked it back up, not wanting to leave it behind accidentally. “I really don’t know if I believe you two or not.”
Mary smiled at me, but this time there was a serious set to her lips. “The rest of the world doesn’t believe in magic, Jaydy.You do. He’s as real as we are.”
I sighed. “That’s true.”
“Don’t lose it,” Mary warned. “We only have one.”
I slipped the card into my clutch purse. “But I don’t know if I’m going to use it or not.”
