Just A Little Magic

The lights on the Christmas tree twinkled and glittered, reflecting off the few gaily-wrapped packages beneath its fragrant boughs. The dying fire cast a soft glow about the formal dining room of the small cottage, throwing the holiday decorations into muted shadow. The scent of a well-seasoned roast blended with the piney smells from the fresh greens trimming the mantel.

Beth Adams watched the expensive beeswax candles on her perfectly arranged dinner table sputter and die as, one by one, they burned out.

Sort of like her plans for the evening.

Face it...just like my plans for the rest of my life.

A soft clink disturbed the silence, the bottle of champagne settling among the melting ice cubes. She reached for the bottle. No point in wasting good, chilled champagne.

Steve was a jerk. He would never have appreciated her grandmother's bone china with its gilded design, or her great-aunt Audrey's beautiful silver service--one reserved for only the most special occasions.

He wouldn't notice the expensive brand of champagne, or recognize the fact Beth had prepared for a very memorable evening.

Steve couldn't help it if he was culturally, emotionally and intellectually challenged. She'd honestly thought he was cute enough to compensate for the occasional lapse in...well, just about everything.

"How could I be so stupid?" She rested her aching head in her hands and fought tears. He wasn't worth tears. He certainly wasn't worth the effort she'd gone to tonight.

She'd never before pulled out the china, the crystal goblets, the gorgeous silverware. Never opened her heart and her home with so much expectation.

Only for special occasions...

A wedding proposal on Christmas Eve definitely came under the special occasions heading. Steve had been hinting at something big, something special, something just for Beth, all week long. Not just little hints, either.

Of course, she'd been so sure he was planning to propose. She didn't expect him to pick the perfect setting, so she'd created it herself. They'd dated for months. Tall and slim she wasn't, but her ample curves were in all the right places and her auburn hair waved and curled in shining splendor almost to her waist. The sex had been good. Not spectacular, but okay. At thirty-two, Beth figured she was willing to settle for okay.

She was not, however, willing to settle for a boyfriend who thought a satellite dish for her TV was the perfect Christmas gift.

Especially not when she'd been expecting a diamond ring.

She went hot and cold all over, remembering how stupid she'd felt, standing out there in the snow, dressed in her dark burgundy velvet gown designed specifically for seduction, asking Steve what he was doing on her roof.

"Isn't it great, honey? Merry Christmas! I got you a satellite dish for the TV. You can get the Sports Channel, Playboy TV--why, you can get almost two hundred channels with this thing!"

She'd opened her mouth, but nothing had come out. She'd opened it again, swallowed, blinked. "That's my big Christmas surprise? A satellite dish?"

"Yeah. Cool, huh?"

"No, Steve. It is definitely not cool. Take it away. I don't even watch TV. Why would I want a satellite dish?"

"Uh, to make watching TV more fun? I really miss seeing the games when I'm over here. And think of all the fun we could have with the Playboy Channel."

Suddenly, Beth realized her entire relationship was there, encapsulated within those few words. Steve didn't have a clue who she was, didn't care what she wanted. Did she really want to marry this schmuck? Create more little schmucks?

Clear as the driven snow, as fresh as an ice crystal and not nearly as painful as Beth would have imagined, it all coalesced into a single amazing thought.

This was not the man she wanted to marry. Thank goodness he hadn't actually asked her, because she would have said yes.

Not a smart move. Not smart at all. Waking up to Mr. Sports Channel every morning?

"Go home, Steve. Go home and take your satellite dish with you. Have a merry Christmas. Watch the Playboy Channel on your own TV because you certainly won't be watching mine." With her dignity intact and her head held high, Beth had quietly gone back inside the house and closed the door.