Page 26 of Tis The Season for Secrets
“C’mon, let’s get out of the cold and find somewhere to sit down.” He held out his hand; she ran hers through her hair, her unfocused gaze telling him she was deciding whether to trust him or bolt. She glanced at the dimly lit alley next to them, but there was nowhere to go.
“Juliet?” he asked, trying to get her to focus.
“I don’t understand,” she mumbled, and he knew he had to get her somewhere warm. He caught her before she hit the hard cobblestones and pulled her into his arms.
“I’ve got you, don’t worry,” he said softly.
He’d have to wait a few hours before he could bring her back to her apartment; travelling by bell soon after a shock wasn’t recommended. He turned down Cane Lane and walked until he reached the red brick townhouse marked 59. This certainly wasn’t how he’d imagined bringing her to his place for the first time.
Then again, nothing in the past few weeks had gone to plan.
Juliet snuggled her knees close to her chest as a cold breeze nipped at her toes.Thank God, it was just a crazy dreamwas her first thought. With a lazy stretch, she reached for her bedside lamp. Instead, she knocked over an old red alarm clock that didn’t belong to her.
Juliet leapt out of a strange bed, stumbling over a blanket on the floor as she went to the frosted window.This is not the view from my bedroom.There were no skyscrapers or beaming lights; instead she found fairy lights decorating the rooftops. Rubbing her eyes, she hoped the foreign view would change, but groaned when it didn’t. No, this was definitely not the view from her apartment, this was not her room, and she wasn’t home.
Her gaze darted up and down the street until she spotted that same giant Christmas tree standing above the village from her dream. Her stomach dropped; the dream was quickly becoming a nightmare. Her hand flew to her bare neck.The necklace! The bell is gone.Her dress had been replaced with a T-shirt and a pair of sweatpants that weren’t hers.
“You’re awake! I was beginning to worry.” Will tapped lightly on the door as he entered.
Juliet backed up to the window. “Where am I?” She hated how shaky she sounded.
“We arrived last night, and the alcohol you consumed before bell travel caused you to pass out. This is my house. I know you’re scared. The constant darkness can take a while to get used to, and you probably have a thousand questions, but I couldn’t bring you back to your apartment because it would worsen the effects, and Margot can’t find out about the bell or Yule,” Will explained, staying by the door to give her the space she desperately needed. He looked far more relaxed in his grey sweats and white t-shirt than when she’d last seen him in his penguin suit.
Margot is probably wondering where the hell I am. How am I ever going to explain this?Still, her best friend was the least of her concerns.
“Travel by bell? Right, okay. Well, I’m sober now, so I want to go home,” she said firmly, thinking he had to be insane. There was no way she was in the North Pole, or whatever the hell Yule was. “I want my clothes, my phone and my necklace, and I want to go home.”
“I’m sorry for taking the bell from you. I was afraid you’d use it once you woke up and hurt yourself. It’s not my intention to keep you here. You absolutely can go home, but I need to explain some things first.” Will laid some breakfast on the bed. Blueberry pancakes – her favourite. Her stomach rumbled, but her nerves had ruined her appetite.
“Whose clothes are these?” she asked, pulling at the T-shirt. “Did you change me?”
Scratching the back of his head, he suddenly found the pale green carpet fascinating. “My older sister’s. She stays here occasionally when I’m out of town, so she won’t mind. Pleasedon’t misunderstand, I took no pleasure from changing you, but your clothes were damp from the cold… and when you came to from passing out you threw up.”
Juliet dug the palms of her hands into her eyes, mortified. At least she didn’t have any memory of it.
“There are some new clothes on the chair. I doubt you want to put on a ruined evening gown,” he said, frustratingly calm. But the kindness in his eyes tempted her to forget how angry and confused she was by all that had happened.
She glanced at the woolly navy sweater and sweatpants with leg warmers draped over the pink armchair in the corner. Judging by the bold floral print on the walls and the dressing table well stocked with makeup, thishadbeen his sister’s room. And he’d left her a pair of winter boots by the door, making her think he was being honest about not keeping her here.He wouldn’t give me shoes if he didn’t intend for me to go outside.
“I don’t know if they’ll fit, but it’ll take some time before you acclimatise to the weather,” he said, following her gaze.
Juliet ran her hands through her hair, wishing he’d stop acting so normal. “They don’t need to fit, because I don’t plan on going back out there unless it’s to go home,” she snapped, turning back to the window. It was rather beautiful. Frighteningly festive– magical, even.What if this is real? What if I’m really in the North Pole?Her head was beginning to throb.
“This isn’t how I wanted you to find out about Yule, but you can trust me and trust that you’re safe here. I didn’t know the bell in the chest would work—” He cut himself off with a grimace as he stepped deeper into the room.
Juliet forgot how to breathe.He knows about the chest.
“How the hell could you know about that? I didn’t even know about it!” She crossed the room to stand before him, demanding answers.
“Because I sent it to you,” he snapped, clearlynotas calm about the situation as he’d wanted her to think. He took a deep breath, pulling at his neck. “Well, I helped get it to you anyway. You should have read the letters first. I didn’t expect you to wear the bell as soon as you found it!”
“Why would I ever think that a magical bell necklace would transport me to a supposedly uninhabitable part of the world?! Where is the next letter going to take me to – Oz? How can you expect me to believe this is all real? You could’ve drugged me at the gala. I barely know you, and there are plenty of places in the world that could be festively decorated and covered in snow this time of year!”
“Oz is from a fairytale. You don’t have to worry about evil witches and munchkins here. But you’re right, you don’t have to believe anything I say. You’ll learn the truth in time.” Will shrugged, apparently sticking to his magical village story. “No, I didn’t drug you. If you remember, you were the one who left the gala alone,youwished to go home, and here you are. I was only responsible for having the chest delivered to you and making sure you didn’t do anything stupid with its contents.” He clenched his jaw, seemingly not impressed by her accusations. “And since you’re here, clearly I failed at that last part.”
“Home? This isn’t my home.” Juliet pointed to the window. “I look like I landed inside a snow globe. Love the mountains – are you going to tell me the Grinch lives there?”
“No Grinch, but there’s a lumberjack called Ted who doesn’t come to town much during the season.” Will half-smiled, and she wished it didn’t melt her insides.If he weren’t so damn attractive, I’d consider this kidnapping… even if she did believe him, for some reason, when he said she’d been the one to take them here. She couldn’t believe she was contemplating the idea that magic was real.
