The Christmas Cottage

Christmas Magic

Regina spent the night tossing and turning, her sleep plagued by weird dreams whose substance was always quickly forgotten while the feelings they invoked lingered. After only a few hours of sleep, she awoke with the sun. She looked over to find Daniel on his side, his back still toward her. Though he was asleep, she could still feel the anger radiating off him. She slipped from the bed and changed, grabbing the hotel's pen and pad as well as her purse before leaving the room in order to write her speech.

The hotel was quiet as most guests were not yet awake. A few were working out in the gym or grabbing an early breakfast but she could count them on one hand. She continued on until she ended up in the quiet lounge, a fire roaring in the bedecked hearth. A Christmas tree was set up in one corner, its lights twinkling to welcome Christmas.

She had almost forgotten it was Christmas as she certainly didn't feel very merry or bright.

"You're up early," a soft voice, startling her. She turned around to find Robin sitting in a rocking chair, a phone clutched in his hand. Regina wondered if he was writing his speech on it.

Regina held up her own pad. "Still need to write my speech."

He nodded, though he looked like he was a thousand miles away. When he spoke, there was a hint of bitterness in his tone. "I'm sure you and Daniel were very busy last night."

"You could say that," she muttered, thinking of their argument. She sighed as she sat down. "What about you? You still writing your speech?"

He shook his head, not meeting her eyes. "I got an email from the organization I worked for. They're asking if I'm willing to do one last mission for them."

"Oh," she replied, surprised. "Where? And for how long?"

"India, for about six months," he replied.

That surprised her and she blinked a few times. "Six months? What about the nonprofit?"

He tucked his phone away. "It's still just an idea. I can always start once I get back."

She frowned. "Well, I guess I could always get everything rolling while waiting for you."

"Regina," he replied with a sigh. "I think it's probably best if we don't work together."

Feeling as if she were punched, she struggled to catch her breath. "What? Why?"

He ran his hand through his hair. "Being with you the past few days has made me happier than I've been since losing Marian."

"Being with you has made me happy too," she said, reaching out to take his hand.

Robin pulled it back. "It also awakened some feelings I thought were long gone but I guess were just suppressed. And though we've tried to ignore them, we have had a few close calls. If we work together, I worry that we will do something that will hurt both of us and Daniel."

She swallowed, knowing he had a point. And while she had some serious doubts about her relationship with Daniel, she knew she was in no state to make any decision about it just yet. Regina believed she owed it to him and her to try to work through some of their issues. After all, she had loved him once upon a time. Maybe it would return once she dealt with the other stressors in her life.

And if that were the case, then Robin was right. It wouldn't be fair to any of them if they were always flirting with temptation around each other.