Under The Kissing Bough: 15 Romantic Holiday Novellas

by Kathryn Le Veque

  “Yeah. Anybody got a screwdriver?” Reyn asked.

  The fireman handed him a Swiss Army knife with the Phillips screwdriver pulled out.

  “Wait.” Jake stopped them. “Gloves.” He went out to his cruiser and was back in moments with protective gloves. “We’ll check for prints on it, we could get lucky.”

  Reyn slipped on the latex gloves. He unscrewed the back of the device, which looked like it was made from switch plates glued around insulating foam. It was a nest of wires, and plugged into the outlet.

  “We need to cut the power.” Reyn looked at Paul Rand.

  The fisherman nodded and asked, “Breaker or at the street?”

  “Breaker should do it,” Reyn said, going on instinct. He was pretty sure this was meant to cause a fire, not blow up. Pretty sure.

  “Got it,” Paul said as he flipped breakers. “I turned off all the ones labeled plug.”

  “Good. Everyone go outside. If I’m wrong, I’ll be the only one hurt.”

  As soon as they obeyed, he pulled the little device out of the socket. Another wire ran from the device to the plug for the toaster.

  “This would have started a fire when someone used the toaster.” Reyn told the other men when he’d motioned them back inside.

  Jake whistled. “Paul, anyone got a grudge against you?”

  ####

  The witch who ran Pedal Power, the bike shop, called when she found a device as well. Reyn and Jake decided someone might be targeting the merchants in town, rather than just Paul Rand. Hours later, when Reyn walked into the Classic Cauldron, the smell of gingerbread made his mouth water. There were people at the register, in the reading section and shopping in the cookie cutter section too.

  Seconds after he took in the scene though, he sensed fire. Danger smoked his senses.

  “Hey!” Annie said, coming from behind the demonstration counter to greet him. When she reached him, she stopped, twisting her hands. She came to a decision, because, with a smile, she braced a hand on his arm and rose on tiptoe to kiss his cheek. “Ready for some gingerbread?”

  “Absolutely,” he said, scanning the room. “Annie, has anyone other than staff been in your back room?”

  She frowned. “No, why?”

  “What about the demo area?”

  “Maybe there, but not in the back. What’s this about?”

  When a customer skirted by them, and bumped him, with an “Oh, excuse me!” his sense of urgency increased.

  “No worries,” he said, moving closer to Annie to let her pass. He watched the tall woman’s back as she strolled out the door. Something about her was familiar, but he couldn’t place it. “Annie,” he whispered. “Let’s go in the back room.”

  To his relief, she just smiled and said, in a normal voice, “Of course, come on back.”

  The minute the door closed behind them, she said, “What’s wrong?”

  “My only magick is an affinity for fire. You know that, right?”

  “Yes, you mentioned it at a coven meeting last year. It’s why our fire insurance rates are so low.” She didn’t smile, but he felt warmed by her approval. She exuded an aura of comfort, a surety that things would be okay. “Thanks for that, by the way.”

  “Of course. So, I sensed something off in an office over off Main after I left here. And the proprietor of Pedal Power, the local bike shop, called Jake. There were devices, one in each business, that were meant to start a fire. There’s one here too.” He described the device found in the other stores.

  Fury lit her eyes. “Dammit. Who the hell is playing around?”

  “I don’t know but we need to stop them. Which starts with finding the device in your shop.”

  “Let’s go,” she said, about to march back out. He took her arm. Retail was a tough business in any town, and they all relied on holiday business to make it through January’s slower sales. Still…

  “Whoa, partner,” he said, trying to lighten her mood. “Don’t scare anyone. We need to clear the store, but not with a shout.”

  She nodded taking a deep breath. “You’re right. I don’t want to cause a panic. What do we say?”

  “How many of your customers are regulars?”

  She closed her eyes for a moment, then said, “All of them, I think. Maybe one or two tourists.”

  “Just say we have to do something for Yule.”

  When they came back out, almost all of the patrons who’d been in the store had checked out and left. Surprised, Annie looked at her clerk.

  “Chelsea, where’d everyone go?”

  Chelsea smirked. “Mr. Gold stood up and said that he, for one, was going to vamoose so you two could have privacy. He said the new winter king and queen needed to get…” She paused for dramatic effect, “jiggy with it.”

  Reyn snorted out a laugh. The situation was serious, but that? Priceless.

  “Oh, my God, where did he get that?” Annie was blushing furiously.

  Chelsea’s eyes twinkled, “No idea.”

  “We do need to close,” Annie said. “Reyn and I have to do a Yule thing. I know you need to go on home,” she said, forestalling the young woman’s offer to stay. “Reyn will help me get the night deposit to the bank drop.”

  Chelsea grinned. “Don’t have to tell me twice, I’ve got homework to finish.”

  The girl pulled off her apron and headed out. Annie walked to the book section, where a patron was perusing the shelves. “Mrs. Holmgren, are you finding what you need?”

  “Just browsing this time,” the young woman said. “Seeing what’s new.”

  “I’m so glad. Hey, I hate to do this, but you know that I got chosen winter queen?”

  Renata Holmgren nodded briskly. “Best selection ever, if you ask me. Do you need me to mind the shop?”

  “Oh, I wouldn’t impose that on you. I just need to close a little early. I hate to hurry you out, but here…” Annie fished in her apron pocket, pulling out a crisp card. “Bring this when you come in again, and have a coffee and a cookie on me, okay?”

  “That’s lovely,” the woman said. “You don’t have to, but thank you, I’ll enjoy it.”

  “Good!” One by one, Annie ushered her customers out. She locked the door in five minutes. “Okay, what do we look for?”

  Reyn had checked the back room while she ushered people out, but hadn’t found anything. After twenty minutes of searching, they found the device hidden in a plug in the bookshelves. The little device would have caught the books on fire, and the wooden shelves as well. With that as tinder, the whole block of shops, connected as they were, could have been damaged or destroyed.

  Reyn called Tim to pick up the device and take it to Jake.

  “I need a drink,” Annie said, after closing everything up. “Do you?”

  “I could use one. My truck’s out front. We can go straight to The Judges Chambers.”

  Annie looked down at the black jeans and top she was wearing. The top was suitably festive, given the season. “I should change,” she said.

  Reyn took her hand. “I think you look great. C’mon,” he coaxed. “Let’s go on a date.”

  To his delight, she took off her Classic Cauldron apron, picked up her purse and smiled.

  That smile was a punch in the gut.

  “Let’s go,” she said. They set the alarm and walked into the cold night.

  ####

  Anger rushed in. They’d found all the little devices too soon. No fire to soothe the need for flame today. Nothing had burned.

  Eventually, a smile blossomed. This was a better game. How many of her Yule presents could be delivered before they missed one and fire roared? How to stop Reyn Shapleigh? He had the fire sense to have caught on so quickly. He’d been the first one to the barn fire all those years ago. Oh, how the Raglands’ barn had burned. The memory of it was sensual and delicious.

  But Reyn. He had to be stopped.

  Tapping the screwdriver was a nervous tic, but the metronome-like beat steadied the mind, ordered t
he thoughts. There was a pattern to the devices, if not the fire. That was the mistake.

  A pattern.

  Better to be unpredictable. Better to remove Reyn.

  A YULE TO REMEMBER

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Reyn decided that dinner with Annie at The Judges Chambers, the town’s nicest restaurant, was the best date he’d ever been on. The food was excellent, but the company was outstanding.

  He didn’t remember half of what they’d talked about, but they hadn’t lacked for conversational topics. In fact, two hours flew by before he realized it. He’d been viscerally aware of Annie the whole time.

  Every time he’d touched her––helping her in and out of the truck, pulling out her chair––he’d gotten that zip of lust in his belly.

  “Would you like to come up?” she asked as he parked in the back of her building where the stairs led to her apartment.

  He looked at her and smiled. “I’d like that a lot.”

  They climbed the stairs in silence. When she unlocked the door the cats ran to greet them.

  “That’s Weasley.” She pointed to the ginger. “That’s Picasso.” She pointed to the calico. “Picasso’s a girl, but her pattern’s so abstract, the name stuck.”

  Reyn crouched down, running a hand down each cat’s back, attention both felines enjoyed immensely, judging by the purrs. Would Annie purr too, if he put his hands on her? He wanted to find out.

  “Would you like a beer, wine, whiskey?”

  “I think a shot of whiskey would go down great,” he said, standing again. “But I’ll have what you’re having.”

  She went to a tall antique cabinet just outside the kitchen and opened the double doors. Inside was a cornucopia of alcohol.

  “I keep a lot for cooking, especially at the holidays,” she said, setting up two highball glasses. “Rocks or straight?”

  “Straight for me.”

  She poured, then handed him his. “To fire safety.”

  They clinked glasses and she said, “Thank you for dinner. I can’t remember the last time I laughed that much.”

  “I feel the same way.” She looked surprised, but he was happy to be with her. She intrigued him. He liked her place, too, he decided, as she showed him around. It was restful. She had nice art and the room was done in warm colors, everything seemed calm.

  “So that’s it. Not much to it,” she said when they returned to the living room. They’d left their glasses in the sink, and he wasn’t sure what to do with his hands.

  “Annie,” he said, putting on his jacket. “I’ll see you tomorrow, right? This Yule stuff starts full steam in the morning.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I know, right? It’s only for a week though. Besides,” she said, smiling. “Beryl’s going to help me get my winter market booth set up.”

  “I’m glad you’ll have help.” He hesitated for a moment, then moved in to do something he’d never done, not with any woman. He cupped her cheek, and looked into her eyes. Really looked. He liked what he saw. “Thank you for going out with me. I’m glad you and your store are safe. Will you go out with me again?”

  “I’m glad too,” she stammered. “About the store. And thank you.” Her cheek warmed under his hand and he realized she was blushing. “I’d love to go out with you again.”

  He kissed her. Her lips were soft, and her eyes were calm and steady. She was like a storm anchor, strong and capable, even in the worst weather.

  She slid her hand over the nape of his neck, and the warmth of that caress shot straight through him, just as it had at the Yule Ball. When she rested her other hand on his chest, it was as hot as a brand, but he didn’t care, because he’d wrapped Annie Boylston in his arms and was kissing her for all he was worth.

  She tangled her legs with his. He cupped her backside, pulling her closer. She pulled his shirt out of his pants and ran her hands up his back. He got impossibly more aroused at the caress.

  “Reyn,” she said, between kisses, as she backed him onto the couch. “I want to––”

  Whatever she was going to say was lost in the shrill of the emergency code on his phone.

  “Shit. We’ve got a fire.”

  “Yes, we do,” she said on a breathless laugh, “but that’s for another day. Here,” she said, running to the kitchen to grab a cold Coke from the fridge. “To counteract the whiskey, if you need it.”

  “Thanks.” He kissed her hard and quick, then hustled out the door.

  ####

  It was fun to watch them scramble. All the silly little firefighters of Haven Harbor racing to put out the fire in the Happy Harbor Downtown Daycare. Picturing all the stuffed animals screaming was almost as much fun as watching the firemen––and lookee, lookee, some fire women too!––fight the fire.

  It was such a rush to hear the crackle of the flames, the hiss of the fire demon as it fought its nemesis, water. It was disappointing when the water won, but the roof was gone, and the walls blackened.

  It was perfect.

  The crack of the rifle was lost in the roar of the flames so no one even ducked until the glass windows started shattering.

  ####

  “There were two people who didn’t kiss under the mistletoe,” Beryl said when she arrived at the shop the next morning, bright and early. “I think that’s why the fires. Bad luck if you don’t kiss.”

  “I thought it was just the marriage thing. That you’d be unlucky in love if you refused to kiss,” Annie said, packing items for the winter market into bins.

  Beryl nodded. “Usually, but this isn’t a usual year, is it?” Her tone was dark and gloomy.

  “No, but I’m not going to let such a fun event in my life go by without celebrating it,” Annie said, stubbornly clinging to the positive. “I’ve never been winter queen or even in the court, and I’ve never ridden on a float, or gotten to meet everyone in town, even by proxy.” She straightened up. “I’m determined to enjoy it. To play full out, so to speak.”

  Beryl smiled. “You’re right, you’re right,” she said. “We need to keep our chins up, and live life to the fullest. It’s fun to be the queen.” Beryl wiggled her eyebrows in a comic fashion and had Annie laughing. “So, what can I help you with?”

  “I need to get these tubs I packed for winter market stacked in the van. The booth in Courthouse Square isn’t far, but I packed things for transport.”

  “Good choice,” Beryl approved. “When you’re in the booth, wear your queen’s robe,” she advised. “People will come to pledge support, and they’ll look at your wares too.”

  Annie frowned. “I don’t want to take advantage of my position.”

  “Girl, we’re asking you to do a lot of stuff here at your busiest season. No one thinks twice about you showing up in your cloak, and helping your business too, for all you’re doing in return.”

  “Okay, if you’re sure.”

  “I’m sure.”

  “When Jesse and Micah get here, they’ll take the bins to the booth. The Merchants Association email said Chief Strongbow had arranged extra security.”

  “Good man, Jake Strongbow. Shame about that hussy of an ex-wife,” Beryl said matter-of-factly. “Then again, he’s single now.”

  Annie laughed. “You going to make a play?”

  “That’s too cougar-ish, even for me,” Beryl said, grinning back. “But don’t think I don’t look. He might be a few younger than me, but he’s prime real estate.”

  “He is attractive,” Annie agreed. “But women in my family don’t marry if they have kitchen magick,” she said, voicing the observation she’d had for years. Aunt Sarah hadn’t married. Aunt Lianna, for whom her sister was named, hadn’t married. And great-aunt Strongbow, a distant familial relation to the Chief, hadn’t married either.

  “Nonsense. You’re not a lesbian are you?”

  Annie choked on the sip of water she’d just taken, and Beryl had to thump her on the back.

  “Guess that answers that.” Beryl guffawed. “As if you and you
r winter king hadn’t made your orientation real clear. Listen, Annie, I’ve been around that coven hall since I could walk. I’ve heard all the gossip that flies around and then some. Your Aunt Sarah didn’t like men much, given her daddy. And that other one––” Beryl waved an expressive hand. “The tall gorgeous one who died a few years ago?”

  “Aunt Lianna.”

  “Her, yes. She liked women. A lot. Of course that was long before it was okay to be out in the open about preferring your own sex for sex.”

  Annie was in shock. It never occurred to her that her ancestors hadn’t married because they hadn’t wanted to. Which was stupid, she immediately realized. She was about to say that when the two young men who worked in the shop popped through the back door.

  “Hey Miz Annie, you ready for us?”

  “I am indeed.” Unaccountably, her heart felt light. How had she not figured it out that her female kitchen witch ancestors hadn’t wanted to get married?

  “Ask these two, Annie,” Beryl said, nudging her. “Use ‘em for practice.”

  “Oh, yes. Jesse, Micah, will you support the town and protect Haven Harbor if needed?” she asked, touching each boy on the arm.

  “Sure.”

  “Any time, anywhere,” Micah said. “After that thing at the Witches Walk?” Like most people, he rubbed at his chest. “You bet.”

  “Great, thanks. Really,” Annie said, a little breathless. She’d never had any trouble talking to people. She loved people. But asking them for something? That was harder, even if it wasn’t exactly for herself.

  “There now, popped your cherry on the pledge deal,” Beryl said with a cackle of laughter. “So let’s get your booth set up.”

  “Beryl!” Annie exclaimed, embarrassed. The boys blushed but laughed.

  The boys loaded the tubs, and when Annie’s other, adult clerk arrived, Annie and Beryl drove to the town square. The boys, who decided to jog, met them to unload.

  “Thanks, guys. I know you’re on your lunch hour, so here.” She handed them each ten dollars. “Get lunch on me.”

  “Wow, thanks, Miz A.”

  “Thanks. C’mon, Jesse, let’s hit Mike’s Deli.”