Page 21 of The Magical Tea Shop

No, silly, he was probably just concerned she’d spill coffee all over his white shirt. He wasn’t wearing a too-wide tie like Joel. No, Jaxon had no tie on at all. His bright white shirt was open at the neck and showed off tanned skin at his throat. She was suddenly fascinated by his Adam’s apple. He swallowed.

Ivy blinked to clear her head, and found her voice. “Thanks for the rescue. Sorry about banging into you like that.”

“My pleasure.”

Jaxon’s voice was a rumble deep inside her. It rippled down to her toes. She loved Jaxon’s voice. It surrounded her with a sense of safety.

Joel cleared his throat, and Ivy glanced over. He was glaring at Jaxon like he wanted to squeeze that tanned throat.

Oh dear. Not again.

“So, what brought you to the play tonight?” Joel’s tone was accusing.

“Just wanted to see my hard work in action.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“The sets. I designed them.”

Ivy gave a little bounce on her toes. “Really? They’re inspired. I love the way they spin for different scenes. Are there just the two sides?”

“Four. You’ll see the other two in the second half.”

“Can’t wait. And the windows with the shades rolling up at inconvenient moments is splendid. Was that your idea?”

“It was. I read through the play several times before I started on the design.”

Joel yanked on her arm. “We should get back to our seats.”

Ivy hesitated. She wanted to hear more about the set design. It was so clever. “Joel, stop,” she said, wrenching herself free of his grip before she could help it.

“It’s okay,” said Jaxon, at Joel’s flash of irritation. “I won’t spoil the surprise of the second half. Really, you’ll love it.”

“Oh, okay.” She gave a little wave to Jaxon as Joel guided her away.

It took some of the fun out of the second half. She didn’t know why Joel was so possessive. Roman had been the same way. And, in both cases, it was just one date.

They didn’t own her.

Men.

Jaxon, however, had been normal. A friend.

Ugh, a friend. That was what she wanted from Joel and Roman. Just to be friends. With Jaxon, she wanted more. Her mind wandered from the show going on in front of her. She wanted to find what her parents had. She had thought, hoped, that maybe she could find that with Jaxon. If magic could be real.

Her plan had gone completely awry, but did it have to? Shecouldtry again. Should she make more cookies? And guarantee that only Jaxon ate them?

The set began revolving and with each inch transformed more and more into a foggy London street, with gas lights and murky corners. Ivy shivered, lost in a world of make-believe. When the set spun again for the final act, becoming a full-sized Victorian carriage in motion and jostling the passengers, Ivy clapped her hands in delight.

The end of the play had her laughing, and the kiss between Sherlock and Irene Adler had the crowd cheering, but Ivy was aware of Joel inching closer. Ivy inched away without trying to be obvious. She twisted the program in her hands. She’d enjoyed this date immensely, but was suddenly wary of it becoming awkward. She knew she had a penchant for overthinking, and that was on her.

At Joel’s hand on her knee, she froze. When he squeezed and inched higher, she shot up and accidentally started a standing ovation. The crowd, applauding wildly, followed suit.

The actors on stage grinned, joined hands, and took a second bow.

As they exited and the applause died down, Joel said, “Let’s go out front and greet the cast.”

“Can we do that?”

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