The Magic Touch (3 page)

She hesitated. “Oh, I see. I didn’t mean to
make you feel weird.”

“Weird isn’t exactly the word I would
use.”

“Okay, okay, I get you. Just give me five
minutes to make myself more godmotherly. You better grab the tarts
before they burn.”

And with that, she disappeared into the
bedroom.

She returned quickly, clothed in a different
outfit from the one she had been wearing yesterday. He decided not
to ask. For all he knew she had an entire wardrobe shrunk down to
fit into that tiny handbag of hers. Or maybe she just waved her
wand and anything she wanted appeared. He felt queasy thinking
about it.

Today she’d gone for an entirely different
look from yesterday’s. She wore a flowing green, ankle-length dress
with no sleeves. Leather sandals were on her feet and her curly
hair was worn loose, with the top half pulled back into a long
side-braid. A beaded leather thong was worked into the braid and
between that and the many charms dangling from her wrists and
ankles she made a gentle, jingling noise as she walked, reminding
him of that children’s rhyme “
Rings on her fingers and bells on
her toes
.” There was a thick string around her neck from which
a peace-sign pendant dangled between her breasts. He decided she
looked like someone who should be playing bongo drums in the
park.

“Are all fairy godmothers like this?” He
indicated the jewelry.

“What? Peace-lovers? Depends on the
godmother. Personally I wake up with a different mood for every day
and I dress to fit it. But we all have personalities and
preferences as varied as regular people, you know. We’ve even got
our mafia fairies.”

He snorted a laugh that died the instant his
gaze fell on the microwave clock behind her. The large blue numbers
shot an unpleasant jolt through him.

“Ten o’clock! Why didn’t you tell me it was
so late? I should have been at work hours ago.”

She shrugged. “You seemed like you needed
time to relax.”

“Relax?” he demanded over his shoulder,
scrambling into the living room. “With the department downsizing
and my boss looking for the next weak link to cut, do you think I
can afford to relax?”

He didn’t wait for an answer. Where were his
shoes? There was no time for a shave, no time to change out of the
rumpled clothing he’d slept in. There were the shoes. Triumphantly
snagging them out from under the edge of the sofa, he hastily
dragged them on before grabbing his cell phone. Snatching his car
keys from a hook on the wall, he was halfway out the front door,
having all but forgotten the woman he’d left behind in the
kitchen.

She called out to him, “You know, I was
thinking you might send Charlotte some roses today.”

That brought him back. “Whoa, hold on there.”
He fixed her with a glare. “I’m pretty sure I’ve said this before,
but just to reiterate…
stay out of my business
. And keep
away from Charlotte. I’ll make up with her in my own time and my
own way.”

She shrugged. “Suit yourself. Just don’t
leave it so long she thinks you’re going to let her go without a
fight. Anyway, have a good day. See you for lunch.”

He frowned. “I don’t think so, lady. I’ve
gotta work through my lunch break if I want to make up for the lost
time.”

She didn’t seem to hear that last part. “I
prefer Ambrielle to “lady”. Meet you in the park across from work.
I’ll bring Chinese. You know you love it.”

Shaking his head, he didn’t bother with an
answer, instead ducking out into the corridor and closing the door
behind him. He didn’t know what this day would bring him, but he
had a hunch that, between his irritable boss and the tenacious
godmother, by evening he was going to wish he’d never opened his
eyes this morning.

Despite arriving late, the morning passed
slowly for Danny, and he had time to think about Ambrielle’s
warning about Charlotte. He sensed it was too soon for a phone
call, but maybe a dozen roses delivered to his ex at work, together
with a note of apology, wouldn’t go amiss. He made the order over
the phone and promised himself he wouldn’t think about it for the
rest of the day, wouldn’t wonder if she’d call when she got the
flowers.

By the time lunchtime rolled around his
stomach was rumbling. Maybe, just maybe, he’d break for a bit to
eat after all. A glance out the office window revealed a sight he
found disturbing. The fairy, true to her word, had shown up and
taken a seat in the little park across the street, where she was
obviously waiting for him. In fact, the words, “lying in wait” came
to mind.

Against his better judgment, he decided to
join her.

It was a windy day out, and the state flag
flying from a pole at the heart of the park snapped smartly on the
breeze. Around Danny’s feet, bits of paper litter tumbled freely
across the green lawn, propelled by the swirling winds. The grass
was still damp from this morning’s light drizzle but now the gray
clouds broke. A warm beam of sunshine slanted down from above and
seemed to center like a halo over the petite, curly-haired figure
waiting patiently on a bench halfway across the park. As he
approached, Danny half suspected her of planning the break in the
weather just for the benefit of their little picnic. Then he shook
his head. Maybe he
was
losing it.

She had changed her clothes again - did the
woman have an endless wardrobe? The hippy clothing had been
replaced by a short white skirt and a fitted blouse, paired with
black tights. She had brought Brutus along and the little dog
pranced around her feet in a purple sweater the fairy must’ve
conjured for him.

Danny ignored the traitorous little dog. “I
told you not to come,” he said by way of welcome, as he sank down
onto the stone seat beside Ambrielle.

She thrust a carton of chow mein into his
hands. Chinese, just as she had promised.

“You knew I wouldn’t listen,” she answered,
unfazed by his cold welcome. “Besides, you needed to come out. It’s
no good being locked away in a stuffy office on a day like this.
You know you hate it.”

“A day like this? It’s been cold and rainy
all morning.” He indicated her purple-striped umbrella leaning
against the arm of the bench.

She waved a hand. “Just a light drizzle. I
have a feeling it’s going to clear off and be a lovely day.”

Mouth already stuffed with warm noodles, he
didn’t bother with an answer. What good would it do him?

She didn’t join in his meal, seeming to have
other matters on her mind. “Did you tell him yet?”

Between mouthfuls, he found room to ask,
“Tell who what?”

She sighed patiently. “Your boss. Did you
give your notice yet?”

He nearly spat out his chow mein. “Notice?
Who said anything about giving notice?”

“I did last night. Remember? We had a
discussion about turning your life around and we decided it would
be best if you found better work. This job is no good for you.”

“
We
discussed?
We
decided? As I
remember it, you did a lot of talking and I listened. This is my
life, you know. You don’t get to make these decisions for me.”

She raised a brow. “Alright, then. What have
you decided to do about your situation?”

“I wasn’t aware I had a situation. I’m fine
with the way things are. The world is still turning and will be
tomorrow, I hope. All I have to do is persuade Charlotte to get
over our little misunderstanding and my life is back where I want
it. End of story. I’m afraid I don’t see where you fit into any of
that.”

She shook her head, tucking a strand of loose
hair behind one ear. The wind whipped it out again and she let it
be. “I told you I hate to repeat myself. Don’t make me explain
what’s wrong with your life all over again. Denial isn’t going to
get you anywhere.”

“I am not in denial. I’m realistic about my
life and you’re not, that’s all. Not everybody gets to live in a
fantasy world, where they have the perfect life, the dream
job…”

“And where they get their old girlfriend
back?”

He returned his attention to the food. You
let me worry about that,” he said. “I’ve got the thing with
Charlotte covered.”

“I’m sure you do. No doubt in that
peanut-sized brain of yours, you’ve even got a plan for how you’re
going to work it all out, your way.”

“As a matter of fact, I do.”

“My plan is better.” She sighed in an
it’s-your-funeral way.

“Not interested.” Before further debate could
ensue, he cut her off with, “You haven’t tried your fried rice yet.
What’s the matter, don’t fairies ever eat?”

She shrugged narrow shoulders. “If we want.
It’s not a necessity for us like it is for you guys. Food and drink
are something we take for the enjoyment, not for the need of it.
Why? Would it make you more comfortable if I joined you?”

“Much more comfortable,” he said, covering up
the unease her words stirred within him. This whole situation was
too unreal. It was bad enough to be sitting on a park bench
chatting with his godmother—his freaking
fairy
godmother.
How was a guy supposed to handle that?

He watched her pick through the takeout bag
at her feet. She had pretty, delicate little feet inside black
lace-up sandals. Tiny silver charms dangled around her toes and
ankles and jingled when she moved. It had been a long time since
he’d found any woman other than Charlotte attractive, but…

Yeah, this was a dangerous direction his
thoughts were taking. He was suddenly eager to escape.

“Hey, listen, I have to get moving.” He made
a pretense of glancing at his watch.

She started to protest, “But you’ve only been
here a few minutes. We’ve barely talked.”

“Uh-huh, but I’ve got a mountain of work to
catch up on.”

“Work.” She narrowed her eyes. “You know, I’m
not going to give up on this. Your days working in that office are
over.”

“Right,” he said vaguely, discarding his chow
mein carton and sliding out of his seat. “Listen, I’ll catch you
later. Or not.” He hesitated. “You really don’t have to hang
around, godmother.”

“Call me Ambrielle.”

“Sure, Ambrielle. I appreciate all you’re
trying to do for me, but I really think you’d be better off going
back to…” He wanted to say Fairyland but didn’t know if she’d take
that as a flippant remark. Where exactly did fairy godmothers live,
anyway?

She rescued him. “Sorry to squash your hopes,
Danny, but I’ll be right here when you get back.”

“Right here? As in
right here?
” How
could he work when every time he passed the office window he was
gonna have to glance down and see her sitting and waiting, like
some kind of vulture?

She smiled. “Maybe. Now you’d better rush
off. Showing up late might cause trouble with the boss and that
kind of thing could cost a man in your precarious position his
job.”

He didn’t like her choice of words, or the
scheming glint in her eyes as she said it. But what could he do? He
turned his back on her, although it felt a little like turning his
back on a wolf in a lamb’s skin, and returned to work.

The rest of the workday was like something
out of a twisted dream, the kind of dream where you can’t decide
whether you’re supposed to be laughing or afraid. Danny had no
sooner returned from his lunch break and sat down to work when the
phone where he took his service calls died. A brief examination of
the cord revealed it had been pulled from the wall connection.
Neither Harry, in the cubicle to his left, nor Diana, on his right,
had seen anyone tampering with the cord.

“These things happen,” Mr. Dolhouser, the
office manager, said with a shake of his head when Danny reported
the problem. Despite his boss’s words, Danny sensed the man somehow
blamed him for the malfunctioning phone.

Danny collected his things and moved to an
empty cubicle with a working phone at the far end of the office.
But if he thought his troubles were over, he was wrong. Immediately
after moving into his new workspace he discovered the hardcopy
files he needed from his old desk were missing.

“Hey, Diana?” He ducked his head into her
cubicle. “Any chance you’ve seen my data files? I swear they were
on my desk a minute ago, but it seems like they’ve walked off.”

The young woman wrinkled her freckled nose
and shrugged.

A bald head appeared over the wall of the
cubicle behind her, followed by a pair of watery eyes peering down
on them.

“How about you, Howard?” Danny asked the
clumsy eavesdropper.

Silent and socially awkward, Howard had a
knack for noticing things no one else picked up on. “I saw a
folder,” he admitted, glancing around nervously. “I saw it on your
desk but then it floated away.” His eyes rolled ominously.

A guffaw broke out from a passing coworker.
“Sounds like you’ve got on the wrong side of a spook, Danny.”

Danny tried to laugh along. “Alright,
everybody. I’m getting back to work, but whenever you get tired of
this little joke, would whoever moved the file please put it back
on my desk?”

It went on like that all afternoon. Most of
it was harmless little pranks. Things disappearing from his cubicle
or the clock radio at his elbow turning itself on at blaring
volume. All of it was disruptive but Danny fought to ignore it
because he was developing an unpleasant suspicion about who was
responsible and was determined not to give her the satisfaction of
victory. She thought she could drive him away with her magic
tricks, did she? Thought she could make his work life so miserable
he’d want to quit?

He could almost feel her now, breathing over
his shoulder, watching his fingers tapping at the keyboard as she
planned her next attack.