Xanadu XOXO (Ticket to True Love)

by JB Schroeder

  She followed him. When he got comfortable against the rail, legs extended and crossed in front of him, she said, “You don’t have to stay with me.”

  He shrugged and drank from his water bottle.

  “Seriously,” she said, “I’m sure your brother is expecting you.”

  “There’s no way I’m leaving you here alone, and Jeremy would have my hide if I left his fiancée’s lovely friend stranded on the highway in the middle of nowhere. Darcy, too, for that matter.”

  “Fine. Have it your way.”

  Jonah smiled at her crossness. Kalpani was like a cornered cat. Knowing she was stuck but taking her swipes anyway, just in case you decided she was easy prey.

  Obviously solo kitty was not in the mood for conversation, so he just watched the cars zoom by, watched the grasses sway in the wind. His mind wandered and he couldn’t help thinking that if he’d really had it his way, they’d have been driving to the wedding together in the first place with the promise of celebrating a wedding on Valentine’s Day weekend in a quaint little town that was known for romance.

  He glanced sideways at her tight expression. Yeah, he’d have to remain content with making sure she got there safely.

  The AAA representative arrived, asked Kalpani some questions, and poked around under the car’s hood. When he pronounced it not fixable without parts, Kalpani swore. After a few more questions and answers, they sorted that the car would be towed all the way to True Springs to a guy named Mac who could supposedly fix anything.

  While the man was prepping her car for the tow, Kalpani approached Jonah. “Thanks for hanging here with me.”

  Jonah raised an eyebrow.

  “He said that I can ride with him up front, so you’re off the hook.”

  Jonah laughed. “Don’t be ridiculous. Ride with me.”

  She shook her head. “It’s fine, he—”

  “You’d rather ride with a complete stranger than me?” Jonah said, an edge coming into his voice.

  “No, it’s just—” She shook her head. “I don’t want to owe you anything.”

  “You don’t owe me a thing. If anything, I owe you.” She opened her mouth, but he didn’t want to hear it. “Just get your stuff out of your car.”

  She stared at him for a moment then stalked off toward her car.

  He crushed his empty water bottle and shoved it into a coat pocket. She was incomprehensible to him. She needed a ride. She knew him well enough. They were literally traveling to the same place. He swore, then went to his own car and cleared off the passenger seat, which took all of a minute.

  Leaning against his trunk with his arms crossed, he waited and watched. She leaned into the Toyota’s front seat, and when she backed out, her purse bulged. Then she yanked open her back door, and out came a suitcase and another tote. She had a brief conversation with the technician, who nodded before turning to winch up the car.

  Jonah walked to meet her and took her bags the remaining distance to stash them in his trunk alongside his own.

  When they got in, he asked, “Did you get an address for this mechanic?”

  “He said we can’t miss it. It’s just outside of True Springs.”

  Jonah nodded, waited for a break in traffic, and pulled onto the highway.

  She said, “Listen, it’s not you. I don’t like to owe anything to anyone.”

  “Whatever.” Jonah shook his head. Did he seem like the kind of person that would ask for payment or expect an eye for an eye?

  She looked out the window, then around his car. He kept his eyes on the road.

  “I didn’t expect to see one of these this weekend,” she said. He followed her gaze, and she pointed to an intricately carved sandalwood elephant that had always perched in the console. “Did Sohel give it to you?”

  “It came with the car.”

  “Sohel’s?”

  He nodded. She didn’t say a word, didn’t even move a muscle. However, he was already ticked off that she hadn’t wanted to ride with him, and the simple question made her long-ago “freeloader” comment rush back to him. “I bought the car from him when it became clear he’d never drive again.” He couldn’t help the anger in his voice.

  She raised her hands and reared back a little. “Okay.”

  They rode in silence the rest of the way.

  Kalpani entered Mac’s repair shop and froze. The last thing she’d expected to see in this kind of establishment was blinking neon hearts strung up along the ceiling.

  A tall, lanky guy in a ball cap and coveralls came out of a door wiping his hands on a cloth. Younger and cuter than she’d pictured, but Mac it was. He saw her glance at the lights and smiled.

  She said, “I forgot it was Valentine’s Day.”

  “Those? They stay there all year long.”

  Her surprise must have shown on her face.

  “New to True Springs?” he asked.

  “Yes, I’m attending a wedding here this weekend.”

  “Well, then you’ll get a double dose, likely.”

  “Of what?”

  “All the town has to offer.” Mac looked out the window, and his glance seemed speculative. Or maybe sympathetic? Mac was probably wondering how a woman who had a handsome guy—patiently leaning against the hood of her car—forgot it was Valentine’s Day.

  Jonah hadn’t offered to come in with her, but she’d made it clear she didn’t want any help, hadn’t she?

  “You need something for your vehicle?” Mac asked.

  “That car is fine,” Kalpani said. “My car should be arriving shortly on a tow truck.”

  “You’re the one they called about, then.” He slid behind the desk and put a pen and a printed sheet—carbon paper, of all things—on the counter. “Leave me your info, and I’ll update you as soon as I know what’s wrong with it.”

  Kalpani did, thanked him, and pushed out the door.

  Jonah stood, but didn’t look her in the eye.

  Well, she’d been wondering how to not get drawn in by him this weekend. Seemed that problem was taking care of itself.

  12

  When they arrived in True Springs, Jonah pulled up in front of the Sweetwater Inn, where many of the guests were staying and where the rehearsal dinner would be. He got out and lifted Kalpani’s bags from the trunk.

  “Thanks for the ride,” she said with a lame smile.

  “No problem. You want help with these?” God forbid he just carried them to the door—she’d probably unsheathe the cat claws again.

  She was already extending the handle on the rolling case and quickly plunked the tote on top of it. “I’m okay. Thanks.”

  He nodded and tore his eyes away from her retreating form. Seemed she was always running from him.

  Jonah eyed the giant statue of an embracing couple above a big, round fountain across the intersection. He swore. What a crap way to start what could have been a romantic weekend.

  Jonah made his way to the outskirts of town to Valeska’s Inn, a funky bed and breakfast that sounded more his style. Apparently, the owner served homemade sopapillas—fried Mexican pastries—in the morning, and according to the online reviews, they were to die for. He had suspected he’d want a little breathing room from family and festivities. After the tense ride with Kalpani, he was doubly glad for some space.

  There was plenty of time to shower and change and talk some with the owner Maribel and her man, a jazz musician named Jory. Eventually he said, “So your place seems to be one of the only places around not dripping with hearts and magic.”

  “Maribel marches to the beat of her own drum, man,” Jory said, and his eyes crinkled up in a smile at the dark-haired beauty. It was clear they were crazy about each other.

  “What’s with this legend?” Jonah had seen a sign on the way into town, and there’d been a little story brochure in his room.

  Maribel and Jory exchanged glances. She shrugged, but the corner of one lip turned up. “Both of us are transplants, so it’s hard to say, but we think th
ere’s something to it.”

  Jonah’s brothers seemed to prove the theory, too, but surely it didn’t work for every Tom, Dick, and Jane.

  Killing time, Jonah poked around the first floor. Valeska’s Inn was a stately mansion with intricate moldings and old-world craftsmanship converted to bright, uncluttered, adobe-themed living. The juxtaposition appealed to him, and he was already considering how to incorporate the idea in his art.

  Equilibrium restored, Jonah made his way to town. The Sweetwater Inn’s small parking lot was full, but he found a spot a couple blocks further. He ambled along Main Street, eyeing the unique shops and eateries. Each venue played on the true love theme to varying degrees, and though it was overkill, Jonah did appreciate the creativity.

  Since he was on foot, he crossed to the town fountain with the life-sized couple atop it. Artistically speaking, the fountain wasn’t anything that amazing—but it evoked feeling, he’d give it that. The man spun the woman around, just like Jonah had spun Kalpani when she’d told him her offer on the shop had been accepted—except this couple was lip-locked. Jonah read the plaque. When they reunited after WWII, Miles Hoffman’s bus ticket had fallen into the natural spring fountain at the very moment he and Adele had kissed. Ever since, the town’s water was thought to be touched by magic—and drinking it would find a person’s true love.

  Jonah noticed the spout and laughed.

  A short, slightly plump, white-haired lady leaned out the door of the General Store across the street. In a surprisingly loud voice, she yelled, “It’s not a laughing matter. You’ll see.”

  Boy, she must have some seriously powerful hearing aids. “Sorry!” He waved.

  This was nuts. There was no way the water was some true-love tonic. His brothers weren’t suckers. That couple, Maribel and Jory, seemed like reasonable people. It was more likely the legend—the belief, the option—simply opened a person’s mind to the possibility of love.

  He snorted. Well, Kalpani’s mind was made up about him. If she didn’t want to ride in a car with him for even forty-five minutes and believed he was the kind of guy who wouldn’t help someone without asking for something in return? It was highly unlikely a little sip of True Springs’s legendary water was going to change that.

  But this stay wasn’t about him and Kalpani. It was about Jeremy and Darcy, and he couldn’t put off the rehearsal dinner any longer.

  The manager of the Sweetwater Inn, Maddie Kate, a curly blond, introduced herself. She seemed to be trying not to laugh.

  “What?” Jonah asked.

  “So, you met Mabel.”

  “Is that the bullhorn’s name?”

  She laughed. “She takes our legend very seriously.”

  “No kidding.”

  Maddie Kate pointed out the big room where the rehearsal dinner was being held and the bar at the far end, which Jonah headed directly for. He spotted Kalpani across the room talking animatedly with someone. Far more at ease than she’d been with him today. Figured.

  As it turned out, there was no rehearsing planned. The gathering was just a chance for Darcy and Jeremy’s families and friends to get to know each other. While Jonah socialized, he kept a close eye on his mom, but so far, she seemed to be having a blast.

  Kalpani frowned when she saw him, but Jonah approached her anyway.

  So she had the wrong idea about him? So what. He was sick and tired of trying to prove anything to anyone, and he was determined to enjoy this weekend. There was already a messy mix of emotions, given that his dad wasn’t here to see the second of his sons tie the knot, but it was important that they all celebrate something positive together. Smoothing things over with Kalpani would make that easier.

  He enjoyed her company—had from the first moment they’d met. He’d just try to refrain from putting any pressure on that—from wishing that it could be more, from wishing she saw him differently. If something shifted and she was willing to give him a chance, he was all in. Otherwise, friendly was a decent happy medium.

  “All settled in?” he asked.

  She nodded, and her posture relaxed when she saw that he wasn’t holding a grudge. “Freshened up, too.”

  “You look great. Although you always do.” She looked stunning, in fact. Her shining black hair was perfectly styled and her makeup showcased her dark eyes. She wore a white top with a chunky beaded necklace and swishy black pants that, at first glance, he’d thought were a long skirt. “And taller.” She had traded sneakers for heels—now she topped out at his collarbone.

  “Definitely taller. A virtual giant.” Her mouth twitched into a smile. “Thank you. You look nice, too.”

  He inclined his head. “There’s a first for everything.” She smiled, knowing he was joking. He wore khakis and a plaid button-down. She hadn’t seen him in more than a t-shirt and jeans—lately covered in grime, too—since Sohel’s long-ago birthday party.

  “Speaking of firsts,” he said, and raised his bottle of beer, “to new beginnings.”

  She raised her glass—some pink Valentine’s Day concoction from the menu he’d seen on the bar—and repeated the sentiment. Then she said, “A lot of us here do have new beginnings, don’t we?”

  “We do.” He thought about telling her how great the salon was starting to look and then thought better of it. He still didn’t know if her contractor or one of his subs had left him that simple breakfast or if Kalpani herself had. Regardless, he wasn’t supposed to have seen the inside of the salon lately.

  He would have been happy to stand here beside her the whole night. But he forced himself to say, “I’m going to make the rounds.”

  “Enjoy,” she said.

  They would be friends for his brother’s sake, but damn, if Jonah didn’t want so much more from Kalpani.

  “Honey? You with us?”

  Kalpani blinked. Rita was talking to her, something about her hair. The wedding party was crammed into a small room off the back of the chapel—because the front door entered right up to the main congregation area and pews, without even a vestibule. It was a small, adorable, open little church with lovely stained-glass windows. Kalpani thought it gorgeous in its simplicity and all the more intimate for it.

  “Yes.” She smiled and reached up to tuck a lock of Rita’s hair back behind her ear. The woman couldn’t stay still—a whole can of hairspray wouldn’t have mattered. “There. Perfect.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Of course.” She liked Rita Walker a lot. Talk about salt of the earth. But she felt heat rise in her cheeks, because she’d been standing here completely lost in thoughts about the woman’s youngest son.

  Jonah stood a mere six feet away, looking absolutely magazine-worthy in his tux. He’d gotten his hair cut recently—she approved; his stylist had done a good job—and, of course, today he’d shaved. He looked handsome, hip, relaxed, and oh-so-kissable.

  As he had every time she’d seen him—which was constantly this weekend.

  Even at seven a.m. this morning on her coffee run to Valentine’s Cafe. No kidding, the cafe was at the corner of Main Street and Lover’s Lane, and everything was done up in shades of rose and cream—even the servers. In addition to some divine sweet treats and sandwiches, they sold bottled spring water supposedly imbued with magical true-love properties. Kalpani had just had the thought that she’d somehow walked into a silly young girl’s imagination, when she bumped into guess who? Prince Jonah. Her heart did a weird little flip.

  Even when she’d expected total girl time, doing wedding-party hair for Darcy, Rita, and Sadie, Jonah had been in and out with snacks for them and then taking pictures with his fancy camera. Every single time, her body had reacted with a thrill of excitement before she could tamp it down.

  It had started last night at the intimate no-rehearsal-rehearsal dinner. She’d been pleased to see that Jonah had gotten over her idiocy about riding with him. She’d known there were no strings to his offer and it made complete sense, she just…well, she’d been too much looking forward t
o seeing him, and then ridiculously thrilled to see calm, steady-mannered, I-won’t-abandon-you Jonah come to the rescue. Of course, her reaction made her prickly. She’d been determined to avoid him, as she didn’t want to like him, and he would only be a complication she didn’t need. Except she couldn’t seem to get that through her otherwise logical head.

  When he wasn’t present? Her eyes and ears reached out with yearning like she was conducting some kind of search party of the heart.

  There was a flutter of action in the room and, dang it, Kalpani realized she’d spaced out again.

  Rita grabbed the arm of one of her brothers-in-law and shot a look of pure happiness at Jeremy, then headed out the door, behind the last row of pews and into the chapel’s center aisle. Kalpani peeked out, and, of course, all the guests had turned to watch with shiny eyes and wobbly smiles. She felt her throat tighten up. Rita’s husband, Jeremy’s father, should have been on her arm, here to see his son married.

  “We’re up.” Jake smiled at Sadie.

  Kalpani and Jonah were next.

  She drew a shaky breath through her tight throat at the thought of taking his strong arm, walking hip to hip, and stealing a little support from his steadiness to get through this emotional rollercoaster. Sadness, joy, and for her—an extra-heady tangle of emotions surrounding Jonah.

  Kalpani watched Jake and Sadie take those first steps. Sadie was stunning in the dark plum halter-style dress. Both she and Kalpani had similar skin tones, plus the toned back and arms for it—Sadie from waitressing, Kalpani from styling hair and yoga. Right now, however, Kalpani didn’t give a thought to her own appearance.

  She gripped the pretty white and green bouquet so hard that it shook.

  “No big deal,” Jonah said softly into her ear. Goosebumps ripped from her exposed shoulder down her arm. Little did he know, she wasn’t worried about the crowd. She’d reacted because it was time to touch Jonah, to stand with Jonah, to play his partner in front of an audience.

  Because Jeremy hadn’t wanted to choose between his brothers, Jake and Sadie would stand behind him, and Kalpani and Jonah would stand alongside Darcy. So instead of being aligned same sex, they were coupled off for everyone to see. For Kalpani, it was both thrilling and terrifying—and so silly. She’d been in numerous weddings and never been nervous. Today, however, her heart was racing, and her nerves were on high alert.