Once Upon Stilettos

by Shanna Swendson

  “Now, would someone please explain the enchanted shoes to me?” Merlin said.

  “What enchanted shoes?” Ethan asked. “Did we miss something? What’s going on?”

  “There’s no spell on these shoes,” one of the bystanders I’d tossed my shoes to shouted.

  Ari whirled in surprise. “Yes, there was!” she blurted.

  I grabbed her wing again. “And how would you know?”

  “They were enchanted,” Owen said. “They were affected by a rather powerful, layered spell that not only altered the perceptions of people around Katie, but also gave the caster some degree of control over her and served as a way of transmitting other spells to her and others around her. I broke it, of course. I can provide the documentation, but I will say that Ari’s fingerprints were all over it.”

  The shoes were passed forward through the crowd. Owen took them and handed them to me. I put them back on, and this time they didn’t have to be enchanted to make me feel confident and powerful. I faced her and said, “You were my friend. How could you?”

  “Like I’d ever really be friends with you,” she said with a haughty sniff. “It was all an act, and you bought it.”

  “Yeah, stupid, nonmagical me. But why is it that if I’m such a weakling, you had to resort to magic and removing my abilities in order to come even close to getting in my way?”

  I realized as I said it how true it was. I had my own power, and it was maybe even more powerful than magic. I held myself taller and continued, “You may think I’m a pushover because I’m nice, but being nice means people like me, and they’re willing to trust me even when I’ve been afraid to trust them.” I couldn’t help but glance at Owen when I said that. “They’re willing to talk to me and listen to me, and they stay at my side no matter what. You have no idea how much power my friends give me.” Owen’s smile at that moment reinforced what I’d just said, and I felt a surge of strength.

  “You probably wouldn’t think much of my father. He’s a simple Texas farmer, totally unmagical, but he taught me how to read a person’s eyes to look into her heart. I don’t need to be able to see past illusion to see the truth. I’ve had that skill all along. In fact, I had you nailed as our traitor even when I’d totally lost my immunity, while you were drugging me and putting the whammy on me. Something about you didn’t add up, and in my gut I knew the truth. I just didn’t have the evidence to pin it on you. But now, thanks to you, I do.”

  I turned to Merlin. “Wouldn’t you consider much of what she’s said here a confession?”

  “She does seem to know too much for someone who wasn’t involved,” he agreed. “Security, please take Miss Ariel into custody.”

  Sam and some of his colleagues flew in and grabbed Ari. “Are you going to let them do this to me?” she shouted at Idris as they dragged her away.

  We all turned, prepared for a fight. I noticed Owen flexing his wrists. But Idris simply shrugged. “Hey, all that was her deal. I was just her date. I thought it was only a little prank. And I think I’ll be leaving now.” He put his hands in his pockets and sauntered away.

  I turned to Merlin. “You’re not going to let him get away, are you?”

  “He’s right. He’s done nothing.”

  “And he was very careful to keep his fingerprints off Ari’s work,” Owen added. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he was the one who devised that particular variant on the Cinderella spell, mostly because that kind of work is beyond her abilities, but she was certainly the one who cast it.”

  “So we’re letting him go?” I couldn’t believe this.

  “This time,” Merlin said. “We have no reason to hold him. If we did, we’d be guilty of the kind of chaotic inattention to the law that he usually practices, and we might even aid in his cause to draw others away from order. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a speech to finish.”

  He climbed back to the top of the stairs. “As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted,” he began, and the employees gave an answering murmur of laughter. “We have much to celebrate this year, but much work ahead of us. For tonight, let us enjoy ourselves. Greet your fellow workers and know that you’re not merely employees of Magic, Spells, and Illusions, Incorporated, you’re also the vanguard in the effort to maintain the ancient standards and purity of magical use. Let us all continue to find ways to use our power to serve not only our community, but also the greater good of all humankind. And by the way, we met our targets, so you will all be receiving bonuses.”

  The employees burst into applause and cheers, and I joined in, truly feeling like part of the group. I felt an arm around my shoulders and turned to see Owen smiling down at me. “Good work,” he said. “I didn’t anticipate her trying to frame you, but you handled it well.”

  “Like I said, I’ve got my own powers.”

  “You really do. And it looks like we got rid of at least one headache by exposing our spy.”

  I shook my head. “No, it means we could have an even bigger headache. Idris may be in it for the chaos, but Ari’s a lot more focused, and with her it’s personal now. Plus, she has an attention span that lasts longer than your average commercial break.”

  He frowned. “So the two of them really are working together…”

  “Fasten your seat belt,” I said with a nod.

  “Fortunately, she’ll be in custody for a while.”

  “Let’s hope so, or we’re in trouble. You don’t want to give her a chance to pull his strings.”

  Merlin waved his hand for attention once more. “I believe we have one additional portion of our celebration to carry out. This season we’ve attempted to pull together as a company by doing kind things for each other. Tonight, we’ll all learn the identities of our benefactors. Each of you was instructed to bring a gift tonight to present in person. Please take your gifts from beneath the tree and reveal your identities to your friends.”

  “I guess I’ll be coming up short tonight,” I muttered as everyone swarmed to the tree. “Not that I’d want anything she gave me.” I shuddered, trying to imagine what it might have been.

  I let the crowd around the tree die down, in part because I was enjoying watching others surprise their co-workers. The delighted hugs and handshakes warmed my heart. There might have been a few hitches—most of them involving me—but it looked like it had worked overall. There was a family feel to this gathering that certainly hadn’t been there at my old job working for Mimi.

  While Owen gave his gift to his pal, I took the book from under the tree and waited on the sidelines. Merlin came up to stand next to me. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” I said. “I was so afraid.”

  “Your employment with me is not contingent on your magical abilities, or lack of abilities, as the case may be.” His eyes twinkled. “In fact, you made a rather accurate summation of your true skills for the position. You must have great discernment if you were able to carry out your duties even without your magical immunity in place.”

  “It would have gone a lot easier if I’d trusted someone sooner.”

  “You’ve learned some valuable lessons from this experience. Don’t forget them.”

  Jake, almost unrecognizable with his hair combed, approached Merlin shyly with an elaborately decorated package. “Um, sir? I have something for you.”

  They moved away, and I watched others open fantastic magical gifts that soared, sparkled, and sang. It was enough to make me want to hide my book behind my back and play dumb, but then that would have negated that little lesson I’d learned about trust. Owen was my friend and had never failed to be gracious about anything. I could trust him to see the spirit of my gift.

  Finally, I found the nerve to approach him. He was still a bit pink from having to carry on a nonbusiness conversation with his secret Santa, someone he didn’t know, but he looked happy. “This has gone really well,” he said.

  “Yeah, if you don’t count all my dirty little secrets being aired in front of the whole company.”

 
“You weren’t the only one dragged through the mud tonight,” he reminded me. I remembered what Ari had said about it taking an enchantment for him to notice someone and winced on his behalf, even if it was kind of true.

  “Well, anyway, I have something for you, which I’m sure you’ve already guessed by now.” I handed him the book. “Merry Christmas from your secret Santa. You did know, didn’t you?”

  “Well,” he hedged, not quite looking me in the eye.

  “Owen, I thought we were going to be honest with each other.”

  “Okay, then, yes, I knew. Who else was going to go to that much effort? But you did a good job covering your tracks.” He then looked me in the eye, turning pink, but keeping eye contact steady. “And I was glad it was you. I can have magical things anytime I want. But I almost never get the kinds of things you did for me. Thank you.”

  I felt myself turning almost as red as he was. “Aren’t you going to open it?” I asked.

  He tapped the wrapping paper with his index finger and made it disappear. Then he grinned. “This is great, thanks! You do pay attention, don’t you?”

  “Well, I may not have ESP with a twenty-four-hour Owen channel, but I do what I can.”

  “Thank you. I know I’m going to love this.”

  I noticed that he didn’t hug me or otherwise touch me. Now that the game was over, it appeared that we were going to go back to being just friends. It was a disappointment, but I wouldn’t want to lose his friendship now that I knew how much it meant to me. “And thank you for everything,” I said. “You got me through this. Without your help, this wouldn’t have worked out at all.”

  “That’s what friends are for, right?”

  I forced a smile even though I wanted to cry. “Right.”

  He put the book down on a nearby table. “Actually, I haven’t been entirely honest with you.” He turned a shade of pink I’d never seen before, then it faded to white, leaving his cheeks rosy. He seemed to search for words, then finally blurted out, “It wasn’t just the shoes, you know.”

  “What?”

  “Ari was wrong. It didn’t take the shoes for me to find you interesting. That twenty-four-hour Katie channel has been tuned to that frequency pretty much since the moment I first saw you.”

  I was so shocked I forgot to breathe. “Oh,” I managed to gasp. “But I thought—all this time—you didn’t even—Why didn’t you say something? Or do something?”

  “You mean other than walk you to work every morning, ask you to dinner, talk to you more than I talk to anyone? And you kept talking about being friends.”

  I laughed. “That’s because I thought that’s what you wanted. I didn’t want to scare you.”

  He pulled me to him and held me against him. I could feel the laughter rumbling in his chest. “We’re so clueless, I think we deserve each other,” he murmured in my ear.

  I was glad he was holding onto me because I felt so dizzy I was afraid my knees would buckle under me. “It’s funny, but I seemed to interpret all those clues that you liked me as clues that you didn’t like me, or maybe that you liked me, but only liked me. I was trying so hard just to be your friend, and you made it more and more difficult by being perfect.” I looked up at him. “And what does someone like you want with someone like me, anyway? You’re like a superwizard and I’m Miss Ordinary.”

  “Katie, shut up.” He said it kindly with a fond smile on his lips. “Don’t talk yourself out of this.”

  I groaned and leaned my head against his chest. “See what I mean? You take in homeless cats and keep old ladies in their homes, and you’re brilliant and powerful and did I mention gorgeous, and here I am—”

  He proceeded then to shut me up very thoroughly. It turned out that first perfect kiss was no fluke caused by a pair of enchanted shoes. The second was even better, and this time it was for real.

  SHANNA SWENDSON has written category romance novels (as Samantha Carter), radio scripts, marketing brochures, annual reports, newsletter articles, and too many news releases to count. She has been a finalist for awards given by organizations ranging from Romantic Times magazine to the Dallas Press Club. She lives in Texas, but loves to play Southern belle in New York as often as possible. She is the author of Enchanted, Inc. Visit her website at www.shannaswendson.com.

  ALSO BY SHANNA SWENDSON

  Enchanted, Inc.

  Praise for Enchanted, Inc.

  “With its clever premise and utterly engaging heroine, Shanna Swendson has penned a real treat! Enchanted, Inc. is loads of fun!”

  —JULIE KENNER, author of Carpe Demon

  “A totally captivating, hilarious and clever look on the magical kingdom of Manhattan, where kissing frogs has never been this fun.”

  —MELISSA DE LA CRUZ,

  author of The Au Pairs and The Fashionista Files

  “Light and breezy, but not without substance…a bit of the sense of a screwball comedy, only updated for these times that we live in…with a hint of Sex and the City and maybe a dash of Bridget Jones.”

  —CHARLES DELINT, Fantasy & Science Fiction

  “Lively…a pure and innocent fantasy…a cotton candy read.”

  —Publishers Weekly

  “This is a witty, unique approach to the familiar story of a young woman working in modern Manhattan, and the laughs are plentiful.”

  —Romantic Times

  “Swendson offers a quirky twist on supernatural powers, suggesting that not having any can actually be an asset. This appealing novel offers a charming cast of characters and a clever premise, and readers will hope that Katie’s skills will be needed in New York City again soon.”

  —Booklist

  “A totally fresh approach to chick lit that’s magical and fun.”

  —freshfiction.com

  “From the moment that you pick up Enchanted, Inc., you know that you will have fun…. A marvelous world populated with the most interesting people.”

  —aromancereview.com

  “Ms. Swendson does a marvelous job of bridging our world with the world of fantasy, in such a way, as to be completely plausible…. This book, if you’ll pardon the pun, enchanted me from the first page.”

  —romancejunkies.com

  “Light humor, a bit of magic, a dash of danger and adventure, and an engaging heroine add up to a recipe for a really enjoyable novel.”

  —BooksForABuck.com

  “Lots of likeable characters (and potential romantic interests) that leave you wanting more.”

  —Locus magazine

  “[Katie is] like the Harry Potter of adulthood. Author Shanna Swendson pens a delightful, whimsical tale about an unlikely heroine who saves the day against all odds—and oddities. Enchanted, Inc. offers a wonderful escape from the ordinary.”

  —Dark Realms

  Once Upon Stilettos is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  A Ballantine Books Trade Paperback Original

  Copyright © 2006 by Shanna Swendson

  All rights reserved.

  Published in the United States by Ballantine Books, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.

  BALLANTINE and colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Swendson, Shanna.

  Once upon stilettos : a novel / Shanna Swendson.

  p. cm.

  eISBN-13: 978-0-345-49338-5

  eISBN-10: 0-345-49338-9

  1. Young women—Fiction. 2. New York (N.Y.)—Fiction. 3. Women—Employment—Fiction. [1. Magic—Fiction.] I. Title.

  PS3619.W445O53 2006

  813'.6—dc22

  2006040721

  www.ballantinebooks.com

  v1.0

  hanna Swendson, Once Upon Stilettos