Happily Ever Christmas

~Twenty-Seven~

The blonde in the slinky red dress glided across the floor of the side parlor us adults were in. She came right up to Steve and caught him by surprise, I can only imagine, as she touched his arm and went up on tiptoe to kiss his cheek with those wet, red lips.

My eyebrows stitched together and I rather angrily knocked back my glass of champagne.

"Who is that?" I asked Mazie, who was standing close by.

"Hmm? Oh, that's Candace." Mazie said, and she definitely sounded mildly disdainful; it was the first time I had heard Mazie have a negative tilt on anything. "She been after the position of Mrs. Nick Light for as long as the mountains have had snow on them. Luckily she has not yet been successful in claiming the pivotal key that she needs; the one to Nick Light's heart!"

I worried my bottom lip between my teeth as I watched Candace chatting with Steve. He was being friendly and casual with her, as he was with everyone, but I couldn't deny the way it made my tummy tighten; to watch him smile at another woman like he usually smiled at me.

*~*~*~*

I squirmed a little in my restrictive outfit. I wasn't exactly used to wearing a corset or a hoop skirt, to say the least. It really wasn't as bad as I expected as long as I didn't breathe too deeply or rapidly, but it still wasn't an experience I would ever want to try again after tonight.

I was standing off to the sidelines of the dance floor, sipping another flute of pink champagne as I watched Steve dancing with my daughter.

It was one of the most heartwarming things I had ever seen, the way he was slowly moving her around while she stood on his feet. I remembered when my father had danced me around like that; it had meant the world to me.

Peter had never even danced with Olivia like that, not that I could recall.

Bradley had already been taken up to bed by Mazie, something I appreciated deeply, and Olivia was soon to be on her way, as well.

Suddenly I felt a presence beside me.

"He sure is something, isn't he?"

I glanced over to eye the beautiful, icy blonde in her siren-red dress. She had a pair of long gloves like mine, but they were black. She had a pearl bracelet around one wrist and she held her champagne flute more elegantly than I did.

Her lips quirked and her eyes slid over to me. Her gaze was cold, but her eyes were actually quite dark brown, not blue as I had first thought. The hair was probably a lie then.

"Nick." She said, as if I hadn't grasped her reference. "He is simply scrumptious, isn't he? I see how you look at him. But I gotta say, honey, he's a little out of your league, don't you think?"

I turned to face her fully, unable not to feel offended by this. "How so?" I said warily, not exactly wanting to hear the answer. I wasn't thrilled that she felt the need to talk to me at all, frankly.

"Well," and her dark eyes dropped over me while her lips quirked as though she was amused by what she saw, "he's a powerful magical being, imbibed with divine Elements, and you're just...a mortal."

*~*~*~*

Finally it was time for Olivia to go to bed, and though she went reluctantly, she let me herd her upstairs where I tucked her in and checked on Bradley before heading back downstairs to continue my night.

The ball was winding down now.

It had been a full night of revelry, from feasting to dancing to beautiful and rousing live musical put on by the elves, lots of drinking, of course, and smoking in the back rooms where they were playing cards and other, less familiar party games. I had seen one particularly snockered elf lad swinging from the antler chandeliers before the night was done.

But most of them had stumbled their way into their beds, or had simply passed out where they were; at the long table or by the fire.

I stepped into the side parlor where I had last seen Steve to find him still in deep discussion with Mazie and a few other people; a couple other elves and the stupid woman in red.

I frowned and slowly approached them.

Steve glanced up at me and smiled, lifting his arm to beckon me to come stand at his side.

I took the invitation happily, slipping beneath his arm and snuggling up to his side. I wrapped my arm around him and leaned against him. Perhaps I wouldn't have been so cozy and possessive of him if Candace wasn't standing right there, staring at us.

And let me tell ya, she did not look happy about the obvious chemistry between Steve and I, which in turn made me vindictively pleased.

Candace reminded me of every mean girl at my high school and maybe it was petty, but I felt like I was finally having my moment; my moment to shine, dammit.

I realized then that maybe I was a bit more drunk than I had initially thought and I made a point to switch to water.

"I'm sorry, darling." Steve was saying to me. "Something's just come up that I have to handle."

"What? You have to leave?!" I said, aghast.

"I just have to step out for a few moments. Please, wait for me?"

"Sir. The situation really can't wait." Mazie told him quietly in his ear, but I still heard her.

He nodded grimly, then turned back to me to kiss my hand. "I'll try to hurry back as fast as I can."

I watched him walk away, feeling deflated and also curious as to what it was that was so urgent.

I could practically feel Candace creeping up behind me with her bag of insecurities. "He hasn't told you, has he? What he really does as Time Master?"

I turned to frown at her. "And what is it that he really does, exactly?" I asked her, point blank.

"Well, it's hardly my place to say." And she gave me a smug, infuriating little smile before she sashayed away.

I growled to myself in frustration as I turned around to stare at the door that Steve had disappeared through. I bit my lip, conflicted, then I impulsively followed after him.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Only 6 days left til Christmas and only 19 chapters left in "Happily Ever Christmas"!

I will continue to post 3 chapters a day up til then!

Whether you celebrate the holidays like a maniac or you're a first-class Grinch, I hope that you stay warm,  healthy, and safe! Don't forget to treat yourself sometimes, and to be kind to each other!

I think we all know how much we need more kindness in the world.

HRH