Charmed (Contemporary Romance)

by Ines Saint

  Charmed

  Inés Saint

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  Text copyright © 2012 by Inés Saint

  Previously published by F+W Media

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

  Published by AmazonEncore, Seattle

  www.apub.com

  Amazon, the Amazon logo, and AmazonEncore are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc., or its affiliates.

  eISBN: 9781503966161

  This title was previously published by F+W Media; this version has been reproduced from F+W Media archive files.

  This one’s for my best friends, old and new: Adamaris, Amarillys, Araceli, Gricel, and Leslie. Thank you for everything.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Author’s Note

  Preview: Strangers in the Night

  Chapter One

  Jamie heard a burst of laughter coming from the other side of the tall iron gates. She stopped short, looked at her watch, and realized her appointment wasn’t for another fifteen minutes. The people on the other side sounded close enough to be in the courtyard, so she decided to wait outside.

  Leaning against the enormous beech tree guarding the school’s entrance, she closed her eyes as a gentle summer breeze swirled around her, and mentally reviewed everything her brother had told her about the school.

  It sounded perfect. And the fact that Justin had put his silly old rivalry with the school’s headmaster aside to recommend the school, spoke volumes.

  Of course, he’d also told her that Dr. Nicholas Grey, the headmaster, had completely lost his looks. Something about patchy bald spots, a double chin, and man boobs, if she remembered correctly.

  She opened her eyes and looked up at the muted green leaves dangling above her. As she shielded her eyes from the rays slipping in through the branches, one particular leaf caught her artist’s eye. It was beautiful and intricate in its detail, and a familiar flutter of excitement made its way through Jamie. The leaf would make a perfect model for a gold or silver charm.

  But it was out of reach. She stared at the perfect little leaf, and her thoughts traveled down a well-known road, imagining exactly what the little charm would look like finished. A wax mold would be best, and she could already see herself sculpting its unique curvature, and carving those intricate lines into it …

  And the model she needed was right there.

  Taking a good look around, she noticed there was a full-size black pickup parked close enough to the tree. She bit down on her lip, hard, and looked back. The brick wall surrounding the school was quite high — it would definitely cover her. Maybe she’d make a go of it after her appointment, if no one was in the courtyard when she walked out.

  But a prominent bronze plated sign reading Grey Private Elementary School caught her eye and, feeling a rush of disappointment, she decided she would most definitely not climb the tree. She was in front of the school she wanted her children to attend, for Pete’s sake, and only minutes away from an interview with the headmaster.

  On the other side of the gate, several pairs of feet shuffled away and voices grew distant. Jamie pushed herself off the tree. Today had been the first time in a long while she’d had an idea that truly moved her. The name Seasons now came to mind for a new collection, along with a host of other ideas for charms that tied the seasons to moments in life.

  Lately, she’d been getting back to the spirited, determined person she’d once been, and these ideas were another step in the right direction. She peeked into the courtyard through the gap between the gate and the brick wall, and saw it was completely empty. How she craved her old self …

  A moment later, her heart pounding, she slipped out of her heels, and climbed up onto the pickup’s rear bumper before stepping up to the rim. She’d be quick, and no one would ever find out.

  When she reached out to grab the leaf she found it was farther away than she had anticipated, but there was a nearby branch she could easily climb onto, and from there it would be a piece of cake. It would take less than ten seconds. Encouraged, she took another quick glance behind her before climbing up onto the branch, and finally grabbing hold of the stem.

  “What on earth is she doing?” an alarmed female voice hollered. Jamie snapped her head toward the gate and was horrified to see that by standing on the branch, she’d made her upper body visible to those on the other side of the gate.

  Two people at the far side of the courtyard were gawking at her.

  Heat rushed to her head, and she quickly lost her balance. She was about to regain it when she slipped. Blindly stretching an arm out, she was able to grab a weak branch with one hand, while instinctively switching to a higher, stronger branch with the other. Like a monkey.

  Mortified, she wondered if she had time to let go, run to her car, and take off. A quick look down told her she wasn’t up that high, but there were hundreds of teensy, jagged rocks at the base of the tree just waiting to stab her tender bare feet if she let go.

  The gate squeaked open, and she knew there was no getting out of this. She had to let go and brave both the sharp rocks and the person coming out. Closing her eyes, she winced and let go.

  But her feet never hit the menacing rocks below. It took her a moment to realize she was in someone’s arms and that she’d instinctively put her arms around the person’s neck. Looking up, her eyes met a pair of heavy-lashed, jade green eyes that looked back at her with concern and confusion. It was Nick Grey.

  Jamie quickly extricated her body from his arms, and carefully sidestepped the sharp stones at the base of the tree. Too embarrassed and uncomfortable to think clearly, she said, “Um, thank you, but that was unnecessary. I had the situation under control and you could’ve gotten hurt.”

  “Well, it was pretty clear to me you did not have the situation under control. And I’m fine.”

  Her eyes were now level with his chest. No man boobs were poking through. She glanced up and took in his full head of thick, dark brown hair, peppered with just a bit of gray. No bald spots. Anywhere. Damn Justin.

  He then smiled at her, his eyes crinkling in the corners, and a blaze of heat shot through her chest and melted away toward her arms and legs. What was wrong with her?

  “Do you mind telling me who you are?” he asked.

  “Um, no, of course not. My name is Jamie Sullivan, and I have a parent interview with you at one o’clock.”

  “Are you sure?” Their eyes met again for an awkward beat.

  “Yes, I made the appointment with Claire Burns last week.” Jamie was sure of it, but Nick looked doubtful. The fact that she’d been caught acting like a chimp probably had him questioning her mental capacity, and she couldn’t blame him. Instead of taking a step toward becoming the spirited Jamie she used to be, she’d taken three steps back to
a place where she felt vulnerable.

  “All right, then. Do you mind if I ask you what you were doing in the tree?”

  Nodding and taking a deep breath, Jamie welcomed the chance to explain. She would not allow herself to take those three steps back. “I needed that leaf, right there,” she began, pointing to the leaf she’d been trying to reach. “I’m a goldsmith, and I design and craft limited edition gold and silver charms. I wanted that specific leaf because it’s so beautiful and intricate in its detail … I knew it would be an ideal model for a new charm.”

  Nick looked down at the quirky heart charm on her necklace before bringing his eyes back up to hers, and Jamie tried hard not to swallow. His eyes were true jade, not a flicker of gold or brown specks in them. He smiled and she knew at once he understood. It seemed as if he was about to say something when his elderly secretary came up behind him. Claire seemed surprised to see Jamie.

  “Today’s Thursday, isn’t it?” Claire asked Nick.

  “Today’s Friday.”

  “I’m sorry. I was looking at the wrong date this morning. Well, then.” She winked at Jamie and continued as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. “Nick, this is Jamie Sullivan, she has an interview with you today at one o’ clock. Her twin boys are applying for kindergarten. Is that right, Mrs. Sullivan? Kindergarten?”

  “That’s right.” Jamie nodded. “Twin boys, kindergarten. But we can reschedule if it’s more convenient.”

  Nick motioned the thought away. “No, of course not. You’re already here and now’s fine.”

  Jamie walked toward the end of the roots of the tree, found her heels, and slipped them on.

  “That leaf, right there?” Nick turned and pointed to her leaf.

  Jamie nodded. He put his foot on the tire of the pickup, hauled himself up, and picked the leaf before climbing back down to give it to her.

  “Oh, thank you.” She didn’t want him to see how touched she was by the small gesture, so she concentrated on the leaf. “See how sharp the blade is and how deep its veins are? I know it’s hard to see, but it really is perfect.” Few people noticed or cared about little details like that. Nick at least bothered to take a closer look, but she could tell he was biting back a grin, so she carefully tucked the leaf into a pocket in her handbag.

  As Nick and Claire went through his correct schedule, Jamie walked beside them and concentrated on her surroundings to take her mind off her discomfort.

  Zeroing in on the huge auditorium that had once been a barn, she managed a smile. It was bright red, and it was the only original property on the land besides the main building. She loved that they had kept the barn and turned it into something useful.

  Beyond the green-trimmed, white clapboard buildings, there was a grassy plain and a pond just large enough for ice hockey during the winter season.

  The school was full of that New England charm she so loved. Her kids would be happy there. Unless, of course, their mother’s little stunt had lowered their chances of being accepted. She decided to follow Nick’s lead throughout the interview and try to find ways to show him that she, her kids, and the school, were compatible.

  Minutes later, Jamie was sitting in Nick’s office, waiting for him to retrieve her file. She turned to watch Nick and Claire in the front office. What on earth had possessed Justin to tell her that Nick had lost his looks? He was wearing dark gray slacks and a light blue dress shirt, open at the collar, sleeves rolled up. His forearms were tight with nice, lean muscles.

  Jamie swallowed hard and shot her head back around as if the motion could knock her thoughts away. This wasn’t like her.

  Looking for a distraction, she glanced over at Nick’s desk and saw a few pictures of a young girl with smiling eyes and shoulder-length blonde hair. Emma, she guessed, before she noticed Nick heading her way.

  • • •

  Nick opened the door to his office and paused when Jamie looked up at him. He couldn’t get rid of the feeling they knew each other from somewhere and that he might offend her by not acknowledging it.

  Also, he was wondering how he could get the interview off to a proper start. As disciplined and focused as he was, he’d have a hard time concentrating today. How often did a beautiful woman literally fall into a man’s arms?

  He formally introduced himself and got down to business. “The purpose of this interview is simply to get a conversation going,” he explained. “I’ll ask you a series of informal questions about you and your children, and you can interrupt at any time with questions of your own. Hopefully we’ll get to know each other a bit, and we can determine if our school is a good fit for you and your children.”

  Nick looked down at her file. Michael Scott and Timothy James Sullivan. He looked at their pictures. “They’re not identical. That’s a definite plus for the teacher.”

  “Right. They both have dark brown hair, but Michael is taller and has brown eyes, while Timmy has blue eyes.” Jaime pointed to each picture, and it was obvious she was avoiding looking at him directly.

  “Well, tell me more about them.” Mothers were never at a loss of words when asked about their children. It always broke the ice.

  True to form, Jamie perked up as soon as she began speaking about her boys, their interests, and their quirks. Her whole face lit up, and Nick listened to her while taking the opportunity to study her features and see if he could place her.

  She had full lips, the kind many women tried to buy with collagen injections. She looked like she was pouting until she smiled. And then she had one of those smiles that went all the way up to her eyes.

  Bright eyes. They looked as if they were usually either on the verge of laughing or deep in thought. It was a curious contrast. She was interesting.

  A moment later, he wondered why he’d think that when he wasn’t fully listening to her. The realization that he wasn’t paying a parent due attention jolted him back to the conversation.

  “So, Michael wants to be a rocket engineer. Pretty ambitious, I don’t think I’ve heard that one from a five year old. What does Timothy want to be when he grows up?”

  “Well,” she hesitated. “Timmy wants to be Santa Claus.”

  “Santa Claus?”

  “Yes. Santa Claus,” she repeated. “He’s very serious about it. See, Michael’s a lot like his father, and he tends to think in practical terms, whereas Timmy is more like me — he lives in his imagination a lot. But he’s just as smart as Michael.”

  “So, you wanted to be Santa Claus when you grew up?” Nick couldn’t help asking.

  Jamie bit her bottom lip and Nick nearly squirmed. What was wrong with him? The woman was just talking about how her son was like her husband. On a whim he looked at her left hand. No ring.

  No ring meant she was a single mom, which meant he definitely had to get the conversation back on track … in a moment.

  “No, I wanted to be an ice princess,” Jamie explained. “But the point is, I was serious about it, it was real to me, and fueling my imagination turned out to be a good thing. I learned to draw, and I even made a silver snowflake wand out of metal scraps at a very young age.”

  “And what powers did your snowflake wand have? I’m assuming it had powers.” Nick was enjoying the conversation a little too much, but he told himself he was only getting to know a parent.

  “It could make snow, and it could freeze the lake so I could figure skate whenever I wanted to … ”

  “Then it sounds like being an ice princess was a worthwhile ambition. If you could have permanently frozen the pond behind the school so I could play ice hockey all year long, you would’ve been my favorite hero.”

  She smiled for the first time since he’d seen her outside. “Not a hero, a princess.”

  “But you had superpowers.”

  “The wand had superpowers and … are we seriousl
y having this conversation?”

  It was Nick’s turn to smile. “Right.” He dutifully forced himself to look down at her file. The more he looked at Jamie Sullivan, the more he was sure he’d seen her before. Yet he didn’t think she was someone he’d have easily forgotten.

  Sullivan. The name didn’t ring a bell at all. He looked down at the application she’d filled out. Child’s Father: Scott Sullivan, deceased. He went back and read the last word again, staring at the paper in his hands, the tragedy of leaving behind a young wife and two little boys momentarily enveloping him.

  Looking up, he saw Jamie was absorbed reading a newspaper clipping about one of his college hockey games. He took in her olive-toned skin and long, dark hair, and tried hard to remember where he knew her from.

  “Dr. Grey?” Jamie turned to him.

  “Nick,” he reminded her.

  “Nick.” She nodded and visibly drew in a breath. “You’ve been quiet for a while now, and I’ll admit I’m worried about the questionable first impression I made outside. I’m sure if you ask me a few more questions about my children and we get a real conversation going, you’ll see we’re a good fit for your school.” She leveled an amiable yet determined look his way, and he realized he’d been silent too long.

  “I’m sorry, Mrs. Sullivan. I hate to admit I didn’t notice I was quiet for so long.” He paused and considered his next words. “To be honest, I’ve been distracted by this thought that I know you from somewhere.” He searched her face to see if she acknowledged she knew him.

  “Oh,” was all she said.

  “Am I right? Do we know each other from somewhere?”

  “I just moved to Autumn Falls. I bought the small, blue-and-white cottage on the corner of Willow and Meadow. Maybe you’ve seen me around.”

  Nick thought about that, surprised to learn they were both from Autumn Falls, a small town fifteen minutes north. He passed the house she mentioned every day, but he hadn’t even been aware anybody lived there. “No, I haven’t seen you around.”