Finding Abigail (3 page)

But that never happened.

At first, she’d thought it was the ten-year age difference. In reality, that was a problem for most. And, yes, she’d loved him since she was six. It had started as a crush of a six-year-old girl who’d fallen off her bike. Instead of going to her parents, who’d have just ignored her and kept fighting, she’d stayed on the curb, waiting for the pain to go away. 

Then a dreamboat by the name of Tyler Cooper had sat down next to her without saying anything. He’d been sixteen and an older man in her little eyes. He’d cleaned out her wound and put a Band-Aid on it. He’d, apparently, witnessed her fall from grace and had run home to get what he might need to help her. He’d kissed her knee and told her she was brave.

That had been the last time he’d noticed her beyond the casual hello or help with work.

The last time she’d felt his lips anywhere near her.

No, Mr. One-Night-is-Enough kept finding women from out of town to….well, yeah. Abby didn’t even rate a placement on his long line of potential…dates. Nope, she was just Abby. 

Nothing to him.

Well, dammit, that didn’t mean she was
nothing
to herself.

She laughed because the double negatives hurt her head. No, she was smarter than the girls in those movies. She’d long since given up thinking he would drop everything one day and suddenly want her. No, Abby hadn’t put all of her hopes in thinking he’d love her. 

Abby wasn’t moving away from Holiday to run from Tyler Cooper. She was moving because there wasn’t anything left for her here. She had her friends and her job. That was it. Unless there was a sudden influx of eligible bachelors, the town had run dry of men who might eventually want her.

And, by run dry, she meant there hadn’t been any at all. 

It was tough to think like that, even in a town as small as hers, but there wasn’t
any
man who might want to marry her. There wasn’t even a man who wanted to casually date her. She was tired of living alone—of being alone.

It wasn’t as if she hadn’t tried. No, she’d finally gotten over her fear of rejection and asked out not one, not two, but five men in town and had been turned down every time. Each one had seemed a little more pitying than the last.

To others, five rejections wouldn’t have been that bad, but no one was asking her out either. And yes, she didn’t need a man to complete her life, but she didn’t want to live in a place where pity was the only thing she received. Even in her friends’ eyes, like Jordan Cross, her witchy best friend, pity held a firm grip. Abby knew Jordan tried to hide it, but it was there all the same.

Jeez, she needed to stop feeling sorry for herself. She wasn’t running away. Okay, maybe she was, but whatever. She told herself she was moving on and changing her life. There was a difference. 

If her house didn’t sell, she wasn’t moving very far. She’d stupidly bought the thing two years ago when she’d graduated college because the price had been right and she had been ready to start her new life. She’d gotten lucky with scholarships and had saved every penny she had, plus the meager inheritance her grandmother had left her, to put a down payment on her little home with enough land to build on when she married.

Abby shouldn’t have thought that far ahead because this was Holiday where the prices were down on homes because no one ever moved in. People didn’t want to move to a place in the middle of nowhere where the jobs were set in stone through family and necessity, not development. No one wanted to buy her house because everyone was happy where they were.

The sound of the doorbell startled her out of her misery, and she quickly went to the door, checking herself for crumbs from the cookie she’d eaten earlier in the day. Yeah, that was a great way to stay healthy, in a
not
sort of way.

“I can’t believe you’re moving,” Jordan said as she walked into the room before Abby even had a chance to welcome her in. “I mean, I just moved back, and we’re friends, and you’re moving.” Jordan stopped and winced. “Well, didn’t that just sound selfish and ridiculous? But, seriously, you can’t move; Holiday is your home.”

Abby smiled at her friend’s spirit. There was no holding back for Jordan anymore, not since her friend had finally come to terms with being a witch.

“I need a change, Jor; you know this.”

“Can’t you just do what you have to here? Why do you have to move to
Denver
of all places?” Jordan spat out the word like the big city wasn’t good enough for them. Ironic since Jordan herself had spent the past eleven years or so in New York City of all places. Talk about a life change.

“You know I can’t, Jordan.”

Jordan rolled her eyes then sat down on the couch among the bags of yarn. Her friend wrapped a string round her finger, her gaze on the motion rather than facing Abby. “Yes, you can. Just because those guys are freaking idiots doesn’t mean you can’t have what you want.”

Abby shook her head and gave a wry smile. “You know that’s not true. I need to distance myself from plain-old Abby, and grow up.”

“You
are
grown, Abby, dear. You’re amazing. I don’t know why you don’t see that.”

“But, that’s just it. I
do
see that. I know I’m amazing and that people should get over the past and see that I’m an adult who likes to dance and not just knit. They need to get over the fact that my parents always fought and don’t even know who I am anymore. They need to know that I’m not the goody-goody they think I am. But that’s not going to happen in a town where everyone knows the exact brand of tampons I use and when I need to buy them.”

Jordan curled a lip and shook her head. “That’s just sick. You know, that was one part of small-town living I didn’t miss.”

“Yeah, just wait until they make a connection to when you
stop
buying them. Because believe me, they’re watching to see when you and Matt make a mini Cooper.” She laughed at her own joke, even as Jordan’s eyes widened.

“You’re kidding, right? We just got married.”

Abby smiled. “Oh, honey, they even have gossip over whether the baby will be a witch or not. There’s a poll over whether you and Matt waited until your vows to start, shall we say, procreating like bunnies. Same with Rina and Justin, and it’ll last until they get married. Then the baby monitoring will start all over again for the new couple.” She’d heard of the engagement, and though she’d been happy, it still made her ache just that little bit.

Jordan covered her face with her hands. “You’re not serious.”

“Why do you act surprised? This is nothing new. I love this town sometimes, but not always.” Abby put on her serious face and took a deep breath. “I need to move on, Jordan.”

Jordan’s eyes filled, and she sniffed. “Damn it. I don’t want you to go.”

Abby cried right along with her. “I don’t particularly want to move away from all of you, but there’s no room for me to grow here.”

“And if you found a man here… would you stay?”

Abby frowned, not liking the reminder that she was leaving for a man, or rather, lack of a man, but that was the point, wasn’t it? 

“It would have to be more than a man. It would have to be a future. I’m not alive here, Jordan. You, Rina, and the Coopers are what keep me going. Even working at the school is too much sometimes because I know, if I stay here, I’m never going to have a baby of my own. I want a family, a future, just…everything. I don’t need a man to complete me. I need a chance. That’s the difference.”

Jordan sighed and closed her eyes. “I wish I could just magically whip up a man for you, and then you could stay.”

Abby laughed, imagining Jordan dressed all in black with a pointy hat, standing over a cauldron, adding a pinch of alphaness, a dash of darkness, a hint of sandalwood and spice.

It didn’t escape her notice she was imagining the ingredients that would make up Tyler. She needed help.

Tyler didn’t want her, and she’d be okay. She’d move on and find that future and possibility she desperately needed. Darn it, why couldn’t the sheriff love her?

Chapter 3

The package didn’t seem too dangerous. No, in fact, it looked downright boring. Then why couldn’t Tyler open the damn thing? It’d arrived as a special delivery on his doorstep that afternoon like a glaring reminder of his duties.

It’d been three days since his wings had come in, and all he’d managed to do was learn to keep them in his back so he didn’t scare the townsfolk. He could just imagine the looks on people’s faces as he strolled down Main Street with wings—
pink fucking wings
.

Though the town was a hub of holiday magical activities and paranormals, not everyone knew to what extent. Sure, they all knew Jordan was a witch. They’d known since she was a child because it was hereditary and her aunt had been one as well, though not to the extent Jordan was. According to Rina, the town had always had magical activities in and around town, but most people had ignored it. This year, everything was coming to light and the townsfolk weren’t always forgiving.

The town had gotten its first taste of something
different
and had shunned her, tormented her. The Coopers had stood by Jordan, but that hadn’t made a difference, and Jordan had left, heartbroken and just plain broken. When Jordan’s aunt had died, Jordan had come back to Holiday and had rekindled her romance with Matt.

Thank God.

Tyler hadn’t known how much Matt had needed her in his life until she came back and Matt had smiled again. In retrospect, his younger brother’s sullenness may have had something to do with the fact that Matt had also been a ghost for the previous eleven years.

It had taken several things to break the curse, or whatever it was—Matt fighting for something other than himself and saving Jordan’s life.

A secret that big might have been hidden when Matt had been the ghost, but it couldn’t be any longer. The rumors had circulated, mere whispers turning into bold questions, and Matt’s translucent proclivities had been outed. Yet, the town had just nodded and gone about their business.

Then when Justin and Rina had saved the town from Jack Frost at the children’s Christmas play, the town’s rumblings had begun again. Only the Coopers and their small group of friends knew that Justin was Santa’s executive, the man behind the scenes to help spread holiday cheer and that Rina was one of the elves from the North Pole.

However, the town had made their guesses, and most were spot on. Not that the Coopers would alleviate their curiosity entirely. No, they preferred to keep to themselves.

Tyler wasn’t any different. Brayden and, by now, the rest of his family, and most likely their close-knit friends, knew what he was. At least they knew the title, but even he didn’t know what his new position meant. The package on the counter in front of him would tell him exactly what it meant to be a cupid.

For instance, would he have to fly around wearing a diaper?

Tyler shuddered at the thought. He hadn’t tried flying yet. His back was too tender to even lift his wings fully off the floor for long periods, let alone carry his entire body off the ground. He didn’t even want to think about prancing around in a diaper.

And it would be prancing. There was no way he could stroll casually wearing that getup. Jesus, hopefully there wasn’t a uniform. Maybe he could just wear jeans and a T-shirt and do what he had to do.

Whatever the hell that was.

He continued to stare at the package and took a deep breath. He could do this. It wasn’t as if he could run away. He’d known it was coming, even if he hadn’t wanted it. He ripped off the tape and opened the box, his pulse increasing with each movement that brought him one step closer to his destiny.

He took out the card with his name on it and ripped the seal, the scent of vanilla attacking his nose. Great, now he smelled like a fucking cookie. He didn’t bother looking at what lay beneath the card; he’d find out soon enough.

Dear Tyler,

Welcome to the art of being a cupid. We know you hadn’t wanted this when it was thrust upon you, but we know you will do your job perfectly.

Now, what is your job? Well, that’s easy.

You feel that pull in your heart? That tingly sensation when you’re around two people who don’t realize they’re perfect for each other?

Well, that’s the beginning of a bond. Not everyone will have it. Not everyone will need you.

But, when you feel that, use your arrow (included) and your bow (also included, isn’t it nice how that works?) and strike the one who pulls you more.

You see, the one who pulls at you more needs the bigger push. They’re the ones with clouds in their eyes when it comes to finding their one true love.

Yes, you may think it sounds dorky—we know what you’re thinking, Tyler, dear—but it’s perfect for us.

We cupids come from a long line of love enthusiasts, and we’re here to make sure the love in the world is rich and fulfilled. Now, be careful with those arrows.

One prick, and you’ll have the overwhelming urge to search for your one true love. You wouldn’t want to do that since it could interfere with your job and may scare the person you could fall in love with.

We believe in you.

Love and every ooey-gooey feeling that comes with it,

Frank, head cupid.