by Holly Martin
‘I’ve always wanted to go to New Zealand,’ Eden said, softly, picturing the mountains, the waterfalls and lakes, the Bay of Islands she had heard so much about, the glow-worms, the volcanoes, the wildlife, the colourful geothermal pools that she had seen on a documentary just the other night, the hot springs, the glaciers and even a trip to Hobbiton after falling in love with it in Lord of the Rings.
‘We could do that, we could go. Once the kids go back to school in January, it would be quieter for you, we could go then. It would be warmer in January too as that’s summer in New Zealand. We could spend a week or ten days on the North Island and do the same in the South,’ Dougie said, excitedly. ‘I’ve always wanted to go there too.’
She found herself smiling at the thought of touring this beautiful country with Dougie at her side. But then the smile fell off her face.
‘I don’t know why we’re even having this conversation. The money isn’t mine and when the bank realise their mistake, they’ll be taking it back.’
She turned and walked in the direction of the bank and Dougie fell in at her side again. She pushed the door open on the bank and was relieved to see it was empty of customers. She walked up to the counter with Dougie at her side and recognised Cathy, one of her mum’s friends. Her whole face lit up at seeing Dougie. Eden smirked as Cathy subtly fiddled with her hair – despite being old enough to be his mum, Dougie still made her giddy.
‘Dougie, how lovely to see you again,’ Cathy said. ‘What can I do for you?’
Dougie deferred to Eden and Cathy seemed to notice her for the first time. ‘Oh hello, Eden dear, how’s your mum doing?’
‘She’s fine, definitely enjoying her retirement. Cathy, I had some money put into my account this morning and I think it was a mistake. I wonder if you could check to see where the money came from?’
‘I can have a look, dear. Do you want to give me your bank card?’
Eden handed it over and Cathy set about bringing up her details. Her eyes widened. ‘Oh, I see what you mean, that’s a very nice little sum isn’t it, how lovely.’
‘Yes but I don’t think it’s mine,’ Eden said, trying to keep the exasperation out of her voice.
‘Well it’s a counter credit, it was paid in via a banker’s draft, which is a special bank cheque. There are no other details than that.’ Cathy shrugged helplessly, passing Eden’s card back over the counter.
‘You must be able to trace where the money came from. Someone, somewhere, is missing a million pounds and when they find out, which I’m guessing will be soon, they will want it back. I’d rather that happens before I book my all-expenses-paid trip to New Zealand.’
Cathy shook her head. ‘Of course there could be a mistake, but with that amount of money, I doubt it. A banker’s draft would have to be checked thoroughly before the payee is written on it as the amount and payee are printed on the cheque on a printer. And for it to be paid into your account the cashier would have to check the name on the banker’s draft matched the name on your account number before processing the credit.’
‘Look, this has to be a mistake,’ Eden said, urgently. ‘Maybe it should have gone to a different Eden Lancaster.’
She knew she was clutching at straws but she couldn’t accept that her wish had come true.
‘It’s possible I suppose, but I imagine there aren’t that many Eden Lancasters in the world and whoever paid it into your account must have known your account number.’
‘OK, but there must be a way we can trace this money. Then we can get in contact with the person and give it back to them.’
Cathy looked doubtful and then she looked at Dougie for a second as if Eden was mad. ‘Well we could trace it, but it’s a bit tricky you see as the banker’s draft doesn’t even have any details of the person who issued the cheque. It’s a cheque that comes directly from the bank. We would have to get in contact with the bank and branch where the banker’s draft was issued and it’s not that easy to find those kind of details. And then we would have to ask them to provide details of who issued the banker’s draft and which account the money came from. I can start an enquiry for you.’
Eden nodded. Finally she was going to get some answers. ‘Yes, how long will that take?’
‘Well with the Christmas holidays coming up, I think you’re probably looking at four to six weeks.’
‘Six weeks! Are you kidding?’
‘It’s not a straightforward request, it will take time for someone to look into it for you,’ Cathy said.
‘OK, fine, start an enquiry.’
Cathy leaned over the counter, conspiratorially. ‘My advice dear, just start enjoying the money.’
‘And what happens if I have to pay it back?’
‘What happens if you don’t?’
This was ridiculous. ‘Can you please look into this for me and let me know as soon as you’ve found anything?’
Cathy nodded and Eden walked out back onto the street. She rounded on Dougie as soon as the door closed behind them. ‘This is crazy, how can they not know where the money came from?’
‘I know where the money came from.’
‘Where?’
‘Mistletoe Cove.’
‘Urgh, you’re impossible.’ She started walking back towards the shop.
‘Don’t you think it’s a bit too coincidental that just over twenty-four hours after you wished for a million pounds that you end up with a million pounds in your account? As Cathy said, it’s very unlikely to be a mistake. There really can’t be any other explanation for it.’
‘So fairies wrote the banker’s draft?’ Eden said.
‘Well I’m not exactly sure how these things work but yes, I guess so.’
‘I didn’t know fairies had bank accounts.’
‘Of course they do, that gold sparkly fairy dust isn’t cheap, you know.’
Despite the situation, Eden couldn’t help but smile.
‘We have gas, electricity, water bills; the fairies have fairy dust bills, which must be paid for by direct debit. The gold glittery fairy dust is obviously the most expensive. It makes sense to me that the banker’s draft was taken from one of the fairies’ accounts.’
‘You’re such an idiot,’ Eden said, losing her anger a little over this whole ridiculous situation. She couldn’t escape the thought that Dougie had given it to her, despite his refusal to admit it. He was too adamant about her spending it and why would he want her to spend it unless there was no chance of her having to pay it back? No one could believe in the power of wishes that strongly. But if it really wasn’t him, then Dougie was right, it was way too coincidental. She didn’t want to admit to herself that her wishes were coming true because she couldn’t bear the thought that he was only in love with her because of her wish. But if she had got this money because of her wish, or because Dougie had given it to her, then maybe she should do what Bella and Freya had suggested about her first wish and just enjoy it.
‘Look, why don’t we book a holiday to New Zealand early next year?’ Dougie said. ‘And before you get all upset about the money not being yours and therefore you can’t spend it, I am so confident that this money has come about because of your wishes in Mistletoe Cove that if I’m wrong, and you have to pay it back, I will give you any money we spend in New Zealand so you can pay back the million pounds in full and not be out of pocket. But I firmly believe that this money is a gift, so you should enjoy it, even if you only enjoy a tiny part of it for now. I’ll even pay for my own ticket so you’d only be dipping into this million to pay for you.’
Could she really do that? Drop everything and go on holiday for a few weeks, spend a few thousand pounds on going on a trip of a lifetime, to somewhere she’d always wanted to go to?
‘Life is for living, for wringing out every last drop of joy, not simply existing. I know you’re happy in your job, you’re happy here, but there’s a whole world out there to enjoy. You work hard in your job; you deserve a break.’
God, she wante
d to. Dougie was so brave, giving up his job to start his own gaming company, selling his home in America so he could move back to Hope Island. She wanted some of that bravery too. And with a million pounds in her account maybe it was time to throw caution to the wind and book a holiday. If she’d won the lottery she wouldn’t think twice about doing something like that. Why couldn’t she enjoy this money? If Dougie was prepared to cover her if she had to pay it back, there was no risk.
‘We need to be back by the end of January for Bella’s wedding,’ Eden said.
Dougie grinned, sensing her wavering. ‘I promise, we’ll be back in plenty of time for the wedding.’
‘And I’ll pay for you, if that million pounds really is mine, then I can definitely afford it.’
‘If that’s a condition of you going, then fine, you can pay.’ He inclined his head towards the travel agent’s, obviously knowing that if she didn’t go in there now, she’d change her mind.
A delicious thrill ran through her at the thought that she was really going to do it. Was this insane?
Dougie held out his hand for her and she found herself nodding. She linked her hand with his and he led her into the travel agent’s. He pushed the door open and before it had even closed behind her, Dougie was talking to the shop assistant.
‘We’d like to book a holiday to New Zealand please.’
Chapter Twenty-One
What the hell had she just done? January 2nd they were flying out to New Zealand, spending three weeks exploring the two islands, and she couldn’t stop smiling about it. She had never been so ridiculously frivolous and impulsive before and she was loving this feeling.
It was Dougie that made her feel this way. She felt happier and more carefree than she had in a long time and maybe, just maybe, she was starting to believe in magic again. Not the magic of Mistletoe Cove but the magic of having her dreams come true. The magic of being in love, of having that love reciprocated. She had waited so long for Dougie and now she was with him, it felt like anything was possible.
She still wasn’t entirely happy about her wishes from Mistletoe Cove coming true, if they were. It meant that Dougie only loved her because she wished for it, that his feelings for her weren’t real, and that possibility broke her heart.
She looked up at him as he sipped from the celebratory hot chocolate he’d bought for them both. It had so much whipped cream on the top that it looked like a 99 ice cream. He lowered his cup and she smirked to see he had cream on his nose.
She reached up to wipe it off and he looked down at her with such affection that she couldn’t believe that his feelings for her weren’t real. As she wiped a tiny drop of cream from the corner of his mouth, he kissed her fingers.
She couldn’t deny the way he felt about her. It was evident in the way that he made love to her, spoke to her and looked at her, and she had to believe this was real and not just because she had wished for it.
‘What else are you going to spend the money on?’ Dougie asked, taking her hand as they walked.
She smiled at him and shook her head. She had already told him in the travel agent’s that she wasn’t going to buy anything else until she knew for sure the money was hers. If that million pounds didn’t belong to her then the trip to New Zealand had taken a very tiny percentage of that, so she didn’t feel too bad at the moment. If she had to pay it back, she could afford it. She had been so good at saving her money over the years; it was time to enjoy some of it. Didn’t mean she was going to go crazy though. Not yet anyway.
Dougie saw her expression and laughed. ‘I know, I know, you’re not going to spend any more just yet, which is far too sensible for my liking, but at least you can start to plan what you’ll use the money for when the bank confirms the money came from the fairies.’
Eden laughed. ‘If the bank contact me to say the money came from Fairies Incorporated, I will eat my own hat.’
‘Fairy Gifts Limited more likely, so you’re probably safe on the hat-eating side of things.’
‘Good to know. And no, no more plans just yet. I’m going to give Clare some money so when I close Pots and Paints for three weeks she can go on a little holiday too. I was going to pay for her to go to Disney World with her family but I think I’ll save that for later in the year when I know the money is definitely mine. Other than that, no more plans. I don’t want to get my hopes up for all these wonderful things I could do with the money and then not be able to carry them out. Six weeks isn’t too long to wait.’
‘Well I guess it’s down to me to make your dreams come true in the meantime.’
‘You already did when you told me you loved me.’
‘Ah no, you need to have bigger dreams than just me,’ Dougie waved away her words. ‘As my mum would always say, aim higher.’
She pulled him to a stop. ‘Don’t say that. You are all I’ve ever wanted.’ She rested her hand on his heart. ‘This was all I’ve ever wanted and you’ve given me that. Don’t put yourself down because by doing that you’re actually belittling my dreams and you wouldn’t want to do that, would you?’
He smirked slightly. ‘No, I wouldn’t.’
‘Good.’
‘Doesn’t mean I’m going to stop trying to make your dreams come true though. What else was on this list of yours?’
God, that list seemed so silly now, when all she’d wanted was Dougie and for him to genuinely love her.
‘I just want you, forever.’
‘You want to get married?’
She shook her head. ‘I know the prospect of marriage scares you so we don’t ever have to do that if you don’t want to. We can stay exactly as we are.’
‘But your dream is to get married.’
‘My dream was always you.’ He just didn’t seem to get that.
He stared at her for a moment. ‘Let’s work on the rest of that list first before you decide if you want to be with me for the rest of your life. I have a plan for tonight actually, and if this isn’t on your list, then it should be.’
She sighed. It was going to take a while to convince Dougie that he was enough for her, but she had a while. She loved him so she would be patient.
‘I have some work to do so I’ll see you tonight at home,’ he said, bending his head and kissing her in a way that suggested they were going to be doing a lot more than kissing again that night.
He pulled back and then placed a kiss on her forehead before he turned and walked back towards her house.
She watched him go. She was having a hard time keeping up with all of Dougie’s plans but as she was still reeling with excitement over the last plan he’d put into place she couldn’t really mind.
She turned and made her way back to the café to tell Clare that she was giving her three weeks off in January. She was sure that would be a bit of welcome news.
Dougie let himself back into Eden’s house, just as his phone started to ring. He dug it out of his pocket and smiled when he saw that it was his dad, Brian, calling.
He dumped his bags and quickly answered the phone. ‘Hey Dad, how’s it going?’
‘Good son, how’s life on Hope Island?’
‘It’s great to be back.’
‘I do miss the place.’
‘You should come back and visit some time,’ Dougie said as he flicked the Christmas tree lights on and watched them dance over the branches.
‘Oh I will, and now that you’re there I have even more reason to do so. Things are a bit busy at work at the moment but I’ll definitely try to get over for the spring. How are you settling in to your new home?’
‘I’m not in there yet, the carpets are being fitted after Christmas and then I can set about getting all of my furniture delivered. I’m staying with Eden for a couple of weeks until I can get that sorted.’
‘How’s it going with Eden? I know she was a big reason for you moving back to Hope Island. Are you two…?’ Brian trailed off.
Dougie smiled. He had never really discussed his feelings for Eden with his
dad, never really discussed them with anybody, but Brian knew. His dad had seen how close they were growing up and how much Dougie would talk about her every time he came back from Hope Island. It wouldn’t have been hard for him to work out.
‘Good, Dad, really good. We’re actually seeing each other and, well, I think this is forever for me.’
There was silence for a moment and Dougie waited for some comment about forever being a long time or how marriage was a terrible idea. His dad had been dating a lovely lady called Gaby for the last six months and he was happier than Dougie had seen him in years. But that didn’t mean that he had changed his mind about marriage or that he was looking for any kind of long-term relationship. Brian had been bitter and angry about relationships for too many years to count.
‘Oh Dougie, I couldn’t be happier for you.’
Dougie felt his eyebrows shoot up. ‘You are?’
‘Of course I am. You love her, don’t you?’
‘Yes I do. She means the world to me.’
‘Love is something special and wonderful. If you love her then never let her go.’
Dougie sat down on the sofa and pushed his hair off his face. ‘She wants to get married.’
‘Already? What am I saying; that girl’s been in love with you for almost her entire life.’
Dougie smiled that his dad knew that.
‘I don’t think marriage is on the cards just yet, but I know she wants it eventually.’
‘And you don’t?’
Dougie sighed. ‘I want forever with her. But I didn’t exactly have the greatest role models when it came to a wonderful marriage. Getting married ruined yours and mum’s relationship.’
There was another silence from his dad, then Dougie heard him sit down, probably in his favourite battered old leather recliner judging by the tell-tale squeak. ‘Is that what you think?’