Her smile shined brighter than the fairy lights. “Snow time like the present.”
Twelve
Sebastian
After a little wrestle with Celia’s Mini, I managed to extract myself. I held out my arm to her and she took it.
“You’re right,” she said. “No way we’re going to get caught. You don’t look like you’re from around here.”
I wasn’t sure if I should be offended. Where did I look like I came from? Mars?
“Said the elfin princess who can’t stop Christmas punning.”
“But my hair is covered,” she said, reaching around her hat to check that nothing had escaped.
“People aren’t going to be on the lookout for spies from the next village,” I said. “They’re going to be focused on having a good time and making money.”
This time, it was her turn to give me a cynical eye roll.
We wandered up the road. There weren’t as many stalls as Snowsly had, and rather than them being set up on the smallish green, one of the roads toward the top of the hill had been closed off and lined with huts.
Celia was definitely jumpier than usual, and I couldn’t tell if it was just excitement or if she was really nervous about being caught snooping.
“Shall we get our sea legs by getting a cup of hot chocolate?” I nodded toward the cart set up at the top of the road.
“You think they’ll add a dash of brandy if I ask them nicely?”
We wandered over to the stall, greeted the Santa-hatted hot chocolate seller, and placed our order.
He placed two cardboard cups on a barrel upended by the side of the cart. “You come far?” he asked.
“We’re on a mini-moon,” Celia blurted. “Like a honeymoon but smaller. We’re newlyweds. We’ve come from Oxford. Or just outside. A village called Wheatley.”
The seller gave Celia a look that was somewhere between sympathy and suspicion. I pressed a kiss to the top of her head in an effort to calm her.
“You live here?” I asked the vendor before Celia had given the poor guy a rundown of our entire, invented, life story.
“Moreton,” he replied. “Help yourself to mini marshmallows.”
Celia scooped a spoonful into my cup and then into her own. “Thank you,” Celia called over her shoulder. Then to me, under her breath, “Do you think he suspected anything? The kiss on my head was inspired.” She grinned up at me, and I had to hold back from pulling her into my arms and kissing her properly. Maybe later.
“I’m not sure you need to offer quite so much information. Lying isn’t top of my skill set, but if people aren’t asking questions, there’s no need to provide answers.”
“You’re right. I’m a maniac.” She sighed before taking a sip of her hot chocolate. “At least my punning seems to be under control. Sometimes it takes on a life of its own.”
“Long may the hiatus last.” I lifted my arm and she grinned, hooking hers underneath. I was unexpectedly enjoying the feeling that we were together here, alone, pretending to be a couple.
“This hot chocolate has nothing on Howard’s,” she said as we headed toward the start of the market.
I didn’t point out that what we were drinking was also ninety-nine percent less likely to be a contributor to a cardiac arrest.
The first stall we came to sold wooden toys and advent calendars.
Celia frowned. “I don’t recognize these stalls being shops in Snowsville. But then Snowsville doesn’t have that many shops . . .”
I guided us over to look at the wooden toys. Some painted, some just oiled or waxed. Many of them were Christmas decorations.
“Oh that cuckoo clock is absolutely darling,” Celia said. I followed her gaze up to a brightly colored wooden house on the wall.
“It’s actually a Christmas-themed German Black Forest weather house,” the woman behind the counter, also wearing a Santa hat, said. “Mrs. Claus comes out when it’s dry and Santa comes out when it’s humid.” The tiny A-framed house had a door either side of a candy-cane pole. One side had Santa in the doorway, the other had Mrs. Claus. Out on the decking stood an array of animals that seemed to be sniffing at something under a Christmas tree. It was certainly very festive. And therefore a Celia magnet.
“Oh I see the thermometer now,” Celia said. “It’s so sweet. And it has the Christmas tree and the reindeer and everything.” Celia was almost bouncing with excitement beside me.
“Are you local?” I asked.
The storekeeper shook her head. “Reading. I’m making the rounds of the Christmas markets. Only here tonight and then onto Bath for eight nights, then I’m done for the season.”
Celia was still mesmerized by the weather house. “Is it very expensive?”
“A hundred and twenty-five, but I could sell it to you for a hundred and fifteen.”
Celia deflated next to me. “It’s so beautiful,” she said, disappointment punctuating her words. “Maybe next year.”
I led Celia away from the stall. “Have you made a pledge not to buy any more Christmas decorations?” I asked. “I imagine your place is quite a grotto. Maybe you should open it up to the public next year and charge an entry fee.”
She tugged on my arm and forced her mouth into a smile. “It’s not completely overrun, but you know how I enjoy the season. I just can’t justify a purchase like that. Even for something so unusual.”
She couldn’t afford it. I might hate Christmas, but I hated seeing Celia disappointed more. I wanted to march us both back over there to buy it for her. What was happening to me?
“Well, if you change your mind, she’s in Bath the day after tomorrow.”
“She is? I didn’t hear her say that. So it’s not just local shops that have stalls. Is that a disadvantage or an advantage?”
“It’s something Snowsly could experiment with. Maybe pick a few, select vendors from outside the village.”
Celia’s eyes widened and she reached and pressed a finger on my lips. “You’re going to give us away.”
I laughed, tugging her hand down. “If you’re so worried . . .” I cupped her face in my hands, smoothing my thumb over her cheek. “Maybe I should kiss you again.”
I could feel her blush under my fingers.
“Oh, I’m very worried. Terrified.”
I chuckled then pressed a kiss onto her lips. She was just as warm as I remembered, just as soft as she had been the first time. Desire stirred in my stomach. As I went to step back, she grabbed the front of my coat, pulling me toward her, and slid her tongue between my lips. I groaned as I deepened our kiss, not thinking about anything but how she felt, how she tasted, and how my desire started to slink down my limbs, warming my entire body.
“That was very convincing,” she whispered breathily as our lips parted.
I kissed her again on the top of her head and offered her my arm, in no rush to get back to Snowsly anytime soon.
We wandered through the row of Christmas stalls, including one place selling nothing but gloves. Celia tried and failed to make me purchase a pair. At the end of the run, Celia stood on tiptoes and whispered into my ear. “I’ve had an idea. We should get elf costumes. Really good ones.”