A Stroke Of Magic Part 18

"That's not what I meant. You know, this could just mean that Beatrice becomes a part of your life after the baby is born. Don't get all worked up. It could mean anything. Or nothing."

"You know what? Let's put this discussion on hold until I meet her. Because right now, there's way too much that's up in the air." My gaze hit the drawing again and I shivered, because no matter what Chloe said, I knew it meant something.

My friend didn't push the issue. We talked a little more about Kyle, and how I'd keep trying to get a hold of him. Things got a little weird then, and I worried we might be headed into another danger area, so I switched subjects and related Grandma Verda's latest exploit.

"She's awesome. And it's a good idea. I'll help you go through the photos when she has them ready." Chloe stifled a yawn. "I'm tired. I hadn't expected to stay this long. Mostly I wanted to make sure we were still okay."

I nodded. "I'm glad you did. We've talked nearly every day for the last fifteen years...it was odd not checking in with you. Not knowing how you were doing. But I wanted to give you s.p.a.ce, like you asked for, so I didn't bug you."

After our make-up moment was over, Chloe let herself out and I readied myself for bed. The next day was my date with Ethan-something I'd looked forward to all week but now approached with more than a little nervousness. Somehow I needed to question him about the scar thing without being too obvious. I also wanted to know more about the woman he'd proposed to. Of course, that was nothing but pure nosiness.

Ambling into my bedroom, I saw the rose petal from Miranda's initial visit. I hadn't thought about it in weeks, and I was positive I'd put it away for safekeeping. But there it was, sitting on top of my jewelry box. And yep, it still looked just as fresh, just as newly plucked, as it had the first moment I saw it. Weird.

Picking it up, I stroked the petal with my finger. It didn't alter, morph, or bleed through my fingers like it had earlier. But as I held it, dizziness whirled into me. Backing up, I sat on the edge of my bed, willing the lightheadedness to stop, but it didn't, so I closed my eyes and struggled to find my balance. My stomach whooshed, my hands grew clammy, and quivers itched along my skin.

When I opened my eyes again, I was no longer sitting in my bedroom. It didn't surprise me, nor did it scare me, as somehow strangeness had become the norm. The realization of that bothered me more than the actuality of what was happening around me. This time, at least, my feet were solidly on the ground, and I stood outside a large white Victorian-style house.

The scent of spring drifted through the air. Where was I? This didn't look anything like the short vision from before. I turned around in a circle, looking for something-anything-that would clue me in on what I was supposed to be seeing, on what I was supposed to be learning. Nothing jumped out at me.

Trusting my instincts, I walked toward the house. Before I reached the porch, the front door opened. A woman and a little girl stepped out, sitting down on the front step. The child appeared to be five or six, her long hair curled around her face in ringlets. I didn't recognize the woman. Of course, they didn't see me. I was only a spectator. Nothing but a ghost, really. And they didn't have any idea I stood so close to them. There didn't seem to be anything odd happening, nothing that made me understand why I was there.

I blinked, and in the s.p.a.ce of that blink the scene changed again. Now I stood somewhere else. Still outside. Still spring. My eyes swept the area, and instead of the grand Victorian home, the house in front of me was quite small but well kept. I waited for someone to walk outside, but the door stayed firmly shut.

A lighthearted giggle floated through the air. Following the sound, I walked to the back of the house. When I reached the corner, I saw Miranda-a slightly older version of the pregnant Miranda from my earlier time warp-hanging laundry on a line. Next to her, a little girl sat in the gra.s.s, playing with a doll. The same child I'd just seen. Except her clothes weren't quite as fancy, and her hair was styled differently; instead of ringlets, it hung straight around her face. Confused, I tried to make sense of what I'd been shown, but nothing clicked.

I blinked again, and this time, at the end of that blink, I was back in my bedroom. Stunned, I dropped the rose petal and watched it float to the floor. What in heaven's name was Miranda trying to show me?

Suddenly, from somewhere deep inside, I knew the answer: Miranda hadn't had one child; she'd had two.

"Twins?" I whispered.

"You're such a smart girl." Miranda's voice shimmered into me, but when I searched the room, she was nowhere to be found.

"Are you there?" I asked. The scent of roses tickled my nose.

"I am here, in a way. What's important is that you are correct. I indeed gave birth to identical twins, but was only allowed to know one of them."

"Allowed? Who made that decision for you?" I so wished I could see her. Talking to the air felt a little like I'd lost my mind.

"Her father. He bribed the people closest to me. If I'd only had one daughter, he would have taken her."

Pain, fast and furious, dug into my heart. How could anyone do that? How had my ancestor lived with it? "Why didn't you go get her?"

Her voice lost its tinkling bell quality. Sadness reverberated in every word she spoke. "By the time I found her, it was too late. She was happy, deeply ensconced in her family, and even though it was the hardest thing I'd ever done, I decided to let her stay. But now everything has changed. It's time for the truth to come out."

"What do you mean? She's long gone." Okay, that came out badly. "Sorry...but it's not like she's still alive."

Miranda's voice was firm. "My family, my daughters, need to recognize each other, to help each other. I can't rest until the circle is complete. I need your help for that to happen. I need you to close the circle."

"But how? Do you know where her descendants are today?"

Breath touched my ear. "All in good time, Alice. But the answer exists inside of you, around you. If you search, you'll find it."

I knew without asking that she'd left. What I didn't know was why this vision, this knowledge, was so important. Did it have anything to do with my soul mate search? Or was it just another piece of a puzzle that was too huge to see all at once?

It seemed the only one with all the answers was Miranda. But she'd already said her piece, so once again, I had a whole bunch of questions with no clear answers. Awesome.

Chapter Twelve.

The sudden jangle of my telephone interrupted my early-Sat.u.r.day-afternoon preparations for the date with Ethan. Worried it was him calling to cancel, I flipped the phone over to catch a look at the caller ID. It read: Chloe Nichols. To say I was relieved is a ma.s.sive understatement. Besides which, I'd finally talked to Kyle that morning, and we'd set up a date. Or, to my way of thinking, a meeting, because no way could I consider it anything else. But I hadn't yet told Chloe.

"Hey, Chloe. What's up?" I asked, cradling the phone between my ear and shoulder, all set to give her the news she'd been waiting for.

"Oh my G.o.d, Alice! We've been doing this wrong."

I removed the lid from my eyeliner and leaned close to the mirror. "What are you talking about?"

"Last night. Your magic. You were still thinking about Elizabeth, and her worries about Nate, and that led you to draw a picture of their future."

"Uh-huh." Finished with one eye, only half listening because I was still thinking about Kyle, I moved the kohl brown pencil to my other eye.

"I have goose b.u.mps. This is so cool."

"What is? You're confusing me."

"It's precognition! Maybe your magic isn't so much about wishes coming true as it is about telling the future."

Her words. .h.i.t me hard. My hand stumbled, and instead of the larger-than-life eyes I'd been going for, I had a thick brown line edging down my cheek. "Sec," I mumbled, wiping the mess off of my face. Well, I tried to, anyway.

Could she be right? I mean, the magic had certainly been much more forceful with the wedding drawing than with anything else that had happened, including the accidental wishes. "If that's the case, then why haven't I been able to draw a clear picture of my soul mate?"

"I think it's because you can't see your own future, only the futures of those around you. It lines up with what you said, that this time you thought it was your magic and not Elizabeth's."

Ignoring the bruiselike smudge on my cheek, I collapsed onto my bed and considered my friend's words. Was my gift somehow different from my grandmother's? From my sister's? Theirs had to do with wishes, and from what my grandmother had said, it had always been that way. But...

"So now I'm a fortune-teller or something? And what about the wishes that have come true?"

"Who knows? You're pregnant with a magical baby. Maybe your wishes coming true are only because of her. Like, an excess of power in your system."

I choked out a laugh. "Very funny. You make it sound like hormones."

"Maybe it is like that. The wish stuff didn't happen right away; you were what-four months or so along before it started?" She sighed, clearly unsure. "Okay, I don't know. But it's a possibility, and right now, until you talk to Miranda again, it's a good guess. If it's true, I think I know how to use it to our advantage."

"Go on," I said.

"Instead of trying to draw your soul mate or your future, instead of trying to wish for anything to happen, try to draw Ethan's future. Or Kyle's." She hesitated. "Or mine."

I exhaled. "I'm pretty sure it needs to be more exact than that. Like, a specific thing in their futures." And then another thought occurred: "And maybe there has to be a reason for me to even be able to use the magic in that way."

"What do you mean?" Chloe asked.

I didn't know, exactly. But a thread of knowledge teased at me, pulled hard. It was right there, only I couldn't quite grab it. "Elizabeth was upset...so somehow that set the magic off? Like an inciting incident, maybe?" I sighed in exasperation. "It's not coming out right. But I don't think it's as easy as sitting down with a pencil and saying, wishing, whatever, 'Show me so-and-so's future.'"

"Maybe not. But it doesn't hurt to try," Chloe pushed.

"Try what, exactly?"

"To rule out either Kyle or Ethan. Pick one and try to draw his wedding day."

I hesitated. I hadn't told Chloe about the very high possibility that Ethan didn't have a scar, and I didn't think I was going to. At least, not now. Not until I knew for sure. Because that would only make her focus even harder on Kyle, would make our relationship even more strained. Especially now that I'd done what she wanted and set up a meeting with him. "I can't now. Ethan will be here soon. But...I need to tell you something."

Chloe wouldn't be dissuaded from her earlier point. "But later? You'll try later? This could be it, Alice. The key we've been missing."

"Yeah. Of course I'll try later," I promised.

"And. Um. Can you also try to draw my wedding day? Or even just a picture of the guy I end up with?" Her voice was soft and tentative, but a giant vat of want lurked beneath.

"Sure, Chloe. If that's what you really want. But it hasn't worked so well for me," I reminded her.

"Right, but I'm not you. So yes, please, see what you come up with." Her tone went up a notch in excitement. "Your turn now. What was it you wanted to say?"

"Oh." Swallowing, I made myself continue. "I got hold of Kyle this morning. We're meeting for lunch on Monday."

The responding quiet seemed louder than any scream I'd ever heard. Finally Chloe said, "Okay. That's good. It needs to happen. You'll let me know how it goes?"

"Of course I will. But are you really feeling things for him again? Seriously?"

Another pause. "I don't know. There's something there, but it might just be leftover stuff from our past."

"Be careful, okay? There are other guys out there, you know. Guys who are interested in you."

She snorted, her good humor returned. "Yeah? Like whom?"

"Scot, for one." Oh, G.o.d. How had that slipped out? My brother was going to kill me.

"Scot? As in your brother Scot?"

"Uh-huh."

"Are you trying to set us up? Because if so, just stop. He's a nice guy, and I'm sure he'll make some woman incredibly happy someday. But not me. He's family to me, Alice."

Deciding to leave it at that, because come on, I already knew she felt that way, I faked a laugh. "Can't blame me for trying to make you an official member of the Raymond family."

She laughed too, and then we hung up.

I continued to get ready, but my conversation with Chloe refused to leave my brain. Maybe if I had time before Ethan showed, I'd see if her thoughts about the magic were correct. The thing was, what I hadn't admitted to her, what I'd barely admitted to myself, was that it felt right. So why, then, did I want to do anything but draw Ethan's future?

Ha. I knew why. I was too afraid it wouldn't be me in it.

When Ethan arrived at my door, a ball of nervous energy had me pausing before opening up. He wore jeans that were just snug enough to show every luscious detail of his muscular thighs, a dark green long-sleeved jersey-type shirt, and a smile that made my belly quiver. A blast of rain-soaked wind followed him inside.

"Whew. It feels more like October out there than June," I said, slamming the door shut behind him and then wrapping my arms around myself to warm up.

Sliding his umbrella closed, he tipped it against the wall. "It's actually quite chilly." His lips lifted into a semi-sheepish grin. "I planned the most perfect day today, taking every last detail into consideration-except, it appears, slashing cold rain."

Laughter bubbled up in me, but I swallowed it back down. "And what was on your perfect sunny day plan?"

He chuckled. "I'm not telling. I'll save it for another day."

Wow. He was already planning another day. With me. The tease of a shiver touched my skin. "Oh, come on. Just one hint?"

"Absolutely not. But I've come up with another plan, also a secret until we get there. While not nearly as romantic as the original, it should do well enough to pa.s.s the time." Uncertainty sparked into his eyes. "I hope you won't be too disappointed."

I laughed. "I'm sure it will be wonderful. Just let me grab my jacket and I'll be ready."

Ten minutes later, I sat next to Ethan as he drove toward our mystery destination. I'd thought so much about this date, I should have been prepared. Unfortunately, my mind refused to focus. Instead, it meandered between my conversation with Chloe and her new magic hypothesis to my latest time warp. The whole Miranda-birthed-twins twist still boggled my mind. I mean, somewhere out there were relatives I hadn't known I had. Sure, it wasn't the same as finding out you had a long-lost sibling, because we were talking about cousins many, many times removed, but it still fascinated me.

"What are you so quiet about over there?" Ethan asked. Strangely, the sound of his voice soothed my jumbled nerves.

"My crazy family."

"Aren't all families crazy?" he asked.

I pivoted so I could see him better. Once again, my eyes found that cute cleft in his chin. "Not like mine." A crack of thunder reverberated overhead, and lightning flashed through the windows. "We could've stayed at my place, where it's dry. Watched a DVD, ordered in Chinese or pizza or something. I should have thought of it."

"But then I'd have had to rely on my wicked sense of humor, magnetic personality, and charming repartee to impress you. I'm not sure I could've pulled it off."

A laugh I'd held back emerged. "Somehow, I don't think it would have been a problem. You've already impressed me."

"Well, then, maybe we can do the DVD and Chinese later. After I woo you with my brilliant date-planning techniques," he teased. "Today, I'm all yours."

All mine? For not the first time, I wondered what it would be like to have Ethan in my bed, his hands on me, mine on him, our limbs entwined. An image of the two of us doing just that struck, and a hot rush of desire mixed with longing swarmed over me. I pressed my legs tightly together and forced myself to breathe evenly. My reaction was startling. This was not the time for fantasies-not when Ethan sat so close.

It was hard to let the image go. Pushing it away the best I could, I asked, "So, no hints on where we're going?" Not that I really cared, but I hoped it was something laid-back, somewhere we could actually talk to each other.

"Nope. But you're free to guess. I'll tell you if you're correct."

"Hmm." My mind browsed through the various possibilities. "A movie theater?" He shook his head. "One of Chicago's fine museums?" Another shake. "Okay, then. I give up."

"We're almost there. I just hope you're not a poor loser. Because what we're going to do is something at which I'm exceptional."