8. Lydia

8

LYDIA

I tried calling Hailey at least five times on the way to the gallery. Of course, when I really needed to talk to her, she wouldn't answer. If I had actually met Max two years ago, I would've definitely told Hailey about it. But what if she did know about him? It was only going to mess with my head even more.

Luckily, when I pulled up to the store, I wasn't too late. There was no one waiting outside. Grabbing my purse, I hopped out and quickly ran into Trailblaze Adventures next door, hoping Hailey would be there. It turned out only Oliver was. He looked up at me from the cash register and waved.

"Good morning. Are you only now getting to work?"

My heart started to race with impatience; I really needed to see Hailey.

"I had to take some muffins to my grandmother," I said, rushing over to the desk. "Where's your wife? She's not answering her phone."

Oliver chuckled. His light brown hair curled around his ears and his beard had gotten bushier within the past week. "That's not surprising. She took the day off and we both know that when she does that, she unplugs from everything. However, I do know she's at the grocery store stocking up on things for your girls' night tonight."

Out of all the days I needed to see her, she wasn't going to be around. How was I going to wait until tonight to talk to her?

"Is everything okay?" Oliver asked, his brown eyes furrowed with concern.

I nodded. "It's fine. I just had something I needed to ask her. If you happen to get a hold of her, please tell her to call me. If not, I'll see her at your house tonight."

It was going to be torture if I had to wait that long.

The bell on the door jingled and I backed away from the desk. "See you later," I said, moving out of the way so Oliver could greet his customer.

I hurried out and stopped at the front door of my store. Before I could open it, someone hollered my name. And just like that, I froze at the sound of his voice. I'd heard it last night in my dream.

When I looked toward my left, Ben was sprinting down the sidewalk toward me with his camera around his neck. He looked the same as in my dream, even wearing the same blue coat. The only difference was that his sandy blond hair was a tad bit longer up top.

"Ben?" I called out.

He closed the distance and chuckled. "Good. You remember me. I was so afraid you wouldn't. A lot can happen in a year." A lot could happen in a night. I peered down at his hand, and in between his fingers was one of my business cards.

In my dream, I met him last Christmas Eve and gave him that business card. He was leaving to study photography overseas. If there was any time I needed to talk to Hailey, it was now. How was any of this real? First, Max showed up, and now Ben.

Ben's expression turned hopeful. "Is there still any space for me to showcase my art in your gallery?"

There was one picture of his that I fell in love with in my dream. It was of a dew drop on a leaf with the sun shining through it. What were the odds of that being a real picture he took? It was time to find out.

"Yes, there is," I said, opening the door wide. "Do you have some of your favorites on your camera?"

He nodded happily and walked past me into the store. "I sure do. I even have your favorite still on there."

The breath hitched in my lungs, and I slowly closed the door. "Oh yeah? Which one?" I asked, walking over to set my purse on the computer desk.

Ben lifted the camera from around his neck and grinned the whole time he searched through his photos. When he showed me the one of the dew drop, my mouth fell open. It was the same one.

"That's it," I said low.

He smirked. "I know. I have a whole folder I can email you. It has all my favorites in it." In my dream, his pictures had a magical quality to them; I couldn't wait to see them. Hopefully, Violet would be feeling better soon so we could get them framed and on display.

"Do you mind if I show them to my sister? She's part owner of the gallery, too."

Ben nodded. "By all means. I'm curious to see which ones you pick."

"I am, too," I admitted happily. "From what I remember, your photos had an ethereal quality to them. I've never seen anything like it."

"I don't know how I do it." He shrugged and shook his head. "I point my camera and that's it."

I smiled. "A natural talent, then. It's a gift."

"Yes, it is," he agreed. "I firmly believe that we're all born with something special; we just have to find it within ourselves."

There was something philosophical and profound about Ben. Maybe it was the words he used or the way he said them. He had an easygoing charm.

"Violet and I should have our favorites picked out by the weekend. It would be sooner, but she's a little under the weather right now. I'm hoping she'll be back to work by tomorrow or Friday."

Ben chuckled. "That works. When would you want to get together to discuss everything?"

"How about Saturday? You can meet Violet and me at the Winter Bash." I pointed out the window. "It's going to be right in the middle of the park out there."

His face lit up. "That's this weekend? I'm glad I made it back in time."

"You've been before?"

The Winter Bash has existed since before I was born. At it, local musicians and bands sang Christmas songs as well as some of their original compositions. The local wineries and breweries also sold their beers and wine and gave out samples. When I came of age, it became one of my favorite festivals to go to.

"Oh yeah, I love it," Ben replied. "I like listening to the bands and drinking good beer. I grew up in Boone, so my parents always brought me down for the Winter Bash. It's something I do every year."

"Same. I've been going since birth."

Ben shook his head and smiled. "I'm surprised we've never met before. I bet we've crossed paths numerous times over the years."

With all the craziness going on in my life right now, I had no clue what was going on.

"Yes, it is," I agreed. "Then again, it probably wasn't the right time until now."

Ben's warm caramel-colored eyes twinkled. "I believe you're right." He peered around at the store and blew out a contented sigh. "All right, I'm going to go. I know you have work to do." He met my gaze again. "I'll email you the folder as soon as I get home."

"I can't wait."

He smiled and headed for the door, glancing back at me once more before leaving. The second he was gone, my pulse skyrocketed. I ran over to the desk to grab my phone out of my purse. I tried calling Hailey again, and when she didn't answer, I promised myself I'd smack her on the head as soon as I saw her. Of all the times I needed to confide in my best friend, it was now.

However, there was one other person I could seek out . . .

Once the computer booted up, I searched for Margaret Grant's purchase order. I was hoping to find a contact number, but there was nothing. We usually asked for that information when people made large purchases. Why I didn't do that with Margaret, I don't know—nothing the past couple of days had made sense to me.

I searched for Violet's number and hit send. It rang a couple of times, but then she picked up, her voice strong and not so sickly.

"Morning, sis."

"Hey, you sound like you're feeling much better."

She yawned. "I am. I think I'll be okay with coming in tomorrow. Have you missed me?"

I snorted. "It's been a lot quieter without you here."

"Gee . . . thanks. I feel the love."

Everything that had happened with Max and Ben flashed through my mind. I was curious to see if she knew anything about them.

"Question," I said, waiting for her to reply.

"What's up?"

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Here we go .

"Did I ever mention a guy named Ben to you? He's a photographer I met on Christmas Eve last year."

The line went silent and I squeezed my eyes shut, wondering what she was going to say. In all honesty, it didn't matter how she responded . . . my world had been shifted somehow. The only person who might have answers was Margaret; she was the only constant in my dreams.

"Violet? You still there?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm here. I think I remember you telling me about that guy. Is he the one you met on the trail, and you loved his pictures?"

My heart stopped. "Yes!"

"Oh, and he's the one who was leaving for the year," she added. "You wanted to put his photos in our gallery."

"Yes," I said again. "He's back and sending a folder of his pictures to us. I'll email it all over once I get them."

"Awesome. I'm excited. It'll give me something to do today."

Well . . . she knew about Ben. It made me wonder if she knew anything about Max.

"I have another question for you," I stated.

Violet giggled. "Okay."

"Have I ever mentioned a guy named Max to you? I met him two years ago at Nana's retirement home."

"I do," she said. "I was hoping something would come of it when you said you met someone, but I don't think you ever saw him again."

"Until today," I added in.

She squealed. "What? I need the details."

"I ran into him this morning while visiting Nana. He wants to have dinner."

Violet shrieked again. "That's great, sis. I can't believe you ran into both in the same day. What are the odds of that?"

Exactly. What were the odds? Something strange was going on and I needed to find out what it was. In the back of my mind, I kept thinking of magic, but magic wasn't real. Or was it?

"Yeah, it's a little weird how I saw them both today. I guess the universe is trying to tell me something."

Violet laughed. "Yeah, it came to its senses and said it's time you found your happily ever after. I have to say it couldn't have happened to a more deserving person. I can't wait to meet these guys. Who one do you think you'll like more?"

Ben and Max both seemed great, but I knew little about them.

"I'm not sure," I answered honestly. "Max and I are hanging out on Friday at the Cocoa and Cookie Craze Festival and then you and I will meet Ben at the Winter Bash on Saturday. Guess we'll see what happens."

"Can't wait. I might have to make an appearance on Friday to meet this Max guy."

"Go for it," I said, seeing that night play out in my head. Violet would show up trying to be discreet, but it'll be obvious she's there to spy. She was not a subtle person. "Okay, one of the main reasons why I called you," I continued, "is because I'm looking for Margaret's phone number. I tried looking in the computer and it's not there. Do you know if it's written down somewhere?"

"If it is, I didn't write it. If it's not in the computer, I don't know where it would be. I'm shocked you didn't ask for it when she bought the paintings."

"I know," I admitted. "I don't know why I didn't."

"Is everything okay?" Violet asked. "Why do you need to call her?"

That was a good question. Why did I? The kind of questions I wanted to ask her would land me in the psychiatric ward at the hospital. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to call her. She would think I was crazy, just like my sister and everyone else would if I tried to tell them I went to sleep two nights in a row and woke up having altered the future. But what strikes me as odd was that Margaret said she volunteered at my grandmother's retirement home two years ago. She was there, not only in my dreams but in real life. How she looked at me with a twinkle in her eyes when she told me made me feel as if there was another meaning behind her words. It was almost sly, but in a good way.

"I just want to see how she likes the paintings," I replied. "I'm sure I'll see her around town. It's not hard to miss her bright yellow Beetle."

We said our goodbyes and hung up the phone. I didn't know what to do. I ran my hands over my face and closed my eyes as I took in a deep, slow breath.

"I need answers," I whispered, still keeping my eyes closed. "I don't know what's going on. I feel like I'm going crazy."

"You're not," a voice spoke out.

My eyes flew open and my heart jumped out of my chest. Standing before me was Margaret, grinning from ear to ear and dressed in her red sweater with the glittery mistletoe.

I slammed a hand over my heart and gasped. "You scared me. How did you get over here so fast?"

I glanced over at the door and then back to her. There was no way she could've gotten in and over to me within two seconds. Plus, I didn't hear the bell ding with the door.

Margaret snorted and clasped her hands in front of her. "Oh, Lydia, we have much to discuss, but I promise you're not going crazy. Are you ready for the truth?"

Was I? Either way, I was about to find out.