‘Cool! Magic! Can we go see?’
Annie had been about to distract him, but Dimitrios spoke first. ‘Sure, buddy. It’s on the way home.’
Home. Her heart shifted gear; she did her best to tame it into submission.
Hours later, a weary Max was carried through the doors of their house by his father. Annie was too alive to feel weary. The day had been one of the best of her life. A spontaneous suggestion to show Max some sights had led to a picnic lunch by the water, and an afternoon spent at the Gardens by the Bay, the skywalk and then finally a pleasurable hour watching talented magicians wow their crowd.
‘He’s exhausted,’ she murmured as they approached the door. Dimitrios ruefully caught her eye over Max’s head.
‘Perhaps I pushed it too far today.’
‘No,’ she denied. She’d never forget the sight of Max and his dad playing soccer together—such a simple act, but one that had spoken of love and togetherness, something she hoped to see repeated often. ‘It was perfect.’
Their eyes held and her heart sparked once more, rioting in her chest.
‘I must admit, I had an ulterior motive in keeping you out so late.’
Annie frowned. ‘You did? What?’
‘What’s an ulterior motive?’ Max mumbled sleepily.
Dimitrios pushed the doors open and stood back to allow Annie to enter ahead of him. She did so and then froze...the decorations almost too enormous and over-the-top to process.
‘Oh, my goodness. What have you done?’
She whirled around to find Dimitrios watching her carefully.
‘Do you like it?’
His question was casual but his voice was deep.
Her expression was lightly mocking. ‘No, I hate it.’ She pushed lightly at his arm. ‘It’s incredible.’
He put an arm around her, drawing her close to his side. Magic and mistletoe were so thick in the air, she had to work to remind herself that this was all just pretend. All of it except how much they both loved Max, who was rubbing his bleary eyes and no doubt trying to understand why his father’s house now resembled a department store. It had been completely decked out with Christmas finery—all while they’d been out for the day.
‘Why?’
‘You wanted a Christmas tree.’
‘A Christmas tree!’ she exclaimed with disbelief, lifting a finger. ‘As in one. Somewhere. Something small to sit around on Christmas morning and put Max’s presents beneath. This is...’ She searched for the right word, her eyes saucer-like. ‘Spectacular.’
‘You deserve spectacular,’ he murmured, kissing the tip of her nose, sparking a kaleidoscope of butterflies deep in her tummy. It’s not real. Somehow, despite all the mistletoe and magic, she had to remember that.
CHAPTER EIGHT
‘I DIDN’T KNOW there were butterflies in space.’
‘Hey, who’s telling this story?’ Lewis pressed a finger to Annie’s nose, his wink crinkling one side of his face.
‘You.’
‘Right, so let me tell it.’
‘Keep going.’
‘Yes, ma’am. A whole army of butterflies lifted way off the surface of the planet, their wings all silvery and shimmering, so that even in the darkness of space they shone like tiny little stars. Princess Annie put her hand out, like this...’ He reached forward and arranged Annie’s hand so it was at a funny angle. She giggled. ‘And they came to sit on her arm, and her fingertips, and her hair. They were nice butterflies, not the kind that bite you—’
‘Butterflies don’t bite.’