It's that time of year again when the weather turns frightful and the company is (hopefully) delightful. Lights appear on houses and tree, and joy is everywhere. Usually.
At my house, however, it's a mad dash to get things done for the holiday. Schools want you to do all sorts of extras to help them help your kids celebrate in addition to all the White Elephant parties, Christmas Parties, and family get-togethers. I get to the point where I don't care what day we celebrate on as long as it's mellow. Hard to find that kind of peace with kids or family visiting. But with eggnog scones and sparkling apple cider, it's usually a happy time for the Muir family.
Not so much for Lily Sinclair, the heroine of Christmas ICE Magic in the Happy Holidays from the Crescent Moon Lodge Anthology. For her, life is dark, bleak, and full of sorrow since the death of her twin brother two years earlier. She doesn't feel like anywhere is home and she's just looking for one last moment of peace before she hits oblivion. Fortunately for her, her brother has a little trick up his sleeve.
EXCERPT of Christmas ICE Magic
“Oh, God, Linus,
I’ve missed you so much.” She pressed her nose against his chest and tried to
stop the sobs shaking her body. She only succeeded in crying harder.
“Hey, now, Lil,
don’t cry. I’ve been here the whole time.” Linus squeezed her gently. “You
still felt the connection, right?”
Lily pushed back
a little and looked up at him. “No. What connection? You died. You were gone
and my heart was empty. I was all alone. How could you do that to your younger
sister?”
Linus chuckled.
“I’m only older by ten minutes.”
“Still.” She
thumped him in the arm with her fist. “You’re not supposed to leave your little
sister by herself.”
“Yeah, well, I’m
sorry about that.” He gave her a sad smile. “I didn’t know it was part of the
plan or I would’ve given you a heads-up.”
Lily’s lower lip
trembled. “I didn’t get to say goodbye, you big knucklehead. I was in
Australia.” She shook her head and tears splashed her cheeks. “I shouldn’t have
gone.”
“Bullshit.”
Linus pushed her down on a nearby crystal. “You’d wanted to see what Christmas
was like in the tropics and you got the opportunity.” He dropped beside her. “No
one could’ve known what would happen. You can’t live your life defensively.
That’s not living.”
Lily huffed a
laugh, swiping at her tears. “Says the dead guy.”
He grinned. “I
should know, shouldn’t I?”
“Heh. Yeah.” She
rubbed her nose on her sleeve.
“Here’s the
thing. I’ve been with you every step of the way, keeping an eye on you, and
you’re starting to freak me out a little, Lil.” He took her hand and met her
gaze, his usually dancing eyes serious. “You’re pushing too hard and it’s going
to end up killing you.”
Lily pursed her
lips and looked away. How could she tell her dead brother she didn’t want to
live anymore? “There’s nothing really left for me…here.”
“Bullshit
again.” Linus shook his head and gave her a dry look. “You have Fleur, Penny,
and Elle back at the Lodge. You have Mom and Pop, who worry about all the risks
you take now. All those people love you and don’t want to lose you. Hell, you
have four hundred and twenty Facebook friends, right? I bet they’d notice if
you were gone.”
Lily didn’t
laugh. “They don’t understand. No one does. The magic is gone. You’re gone.”
“Jeez, there are
days you’re dumber than a bag of hammers.”
“What?” She
blinked up at him as he stood over her with his arms crossed on his chest.
“Lily, I still
have a connection to you. You feel it every time you get the thrill of hang
gliding or standing at the edge of Niagara Falls. That’s the magic you and I
share, even now.”
“But it fades
and leaves me more empty than before.”
Linus crouched
before her and took her hands. “That’s because you’re trying to hold on to the
past too tightly. The past is empty, there’s nothing there. You have to make
new memories and experience the magic of the present. What did the old tortoise
say?” Linus scrunched up his nose, narrowed his eyes, and made his voice sound
old. “Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That’s
why it’s called the present.” He grabbed her shoulders. “Take the gift and
unwrap the magic, Lily. It’s there for you, you just have to reach for it.”
The tears scalded
her cheeks in burning trails. “But it’s not the same without you, Linus. My
heart is empty now that you’re gone.”
“Then you’re
going to have to fill it with something better, right? Take the gift, Lily.
It’s Christmas, after all.” He gave her one more squeeze and stood up again.
“All joking aside, it’s not time for you to give up. You have so much more you
need to do and so many others who need your adventurous spirit, got me? So,
instead of getting busy dying, you need to get busy living.” Linus glanced past
her shoulder, a cheeky grin quirked his lips. “There’s more magic in the world
than you know and you have to take a chance. You have to hang in there long
enough to discover it.” He met her gaze again. “Promise me you’ll take the
chance, Lil.”
She shook her
head. “I can’t do it alone.”
“Yes, you can.”
He glanced past her again and nodded as if in greeting. “But it looks like you
won’t have to. Now promise me.”
“But—”
“Promise.” Linus
crossed his arms over his chest.
“I promise.”
“Good. I’m going
to hold you to that, you know.” A warm smile filled his features. “I love you,
Lil. Remember you promised. I think I know someone who can help you keep it.”
“What? Who?”
Lily looked over her shoulder, but she didn’t see anything beyond a bright,
flickering light. When she turned back, Linus had retreated and jogged away
from her through the crystals. “Linus, wait!”
She jumped up to
follow him, but he only increased his pace, a loving smile on his face.
“Get busy living,
Lil. And go play in the snow. It’s Christmas!”
So let's get busy living and play in the snow. There are four holiday stories in the Happy Holidays from the Crescent Moon Lodge anthology and each one should bring a smile to your face. You can find a copy of it on:
Amazon
Smashwords
In the meantime, I'm offering a $10 Amazon gift card to one lucky commenter who answers this question: Where is home for you during the holidays? For me, it's anywhere with my immediate family, my husband and kids. Please leave a valid email address or Twitter handle so I can contact you if you win. The givaway is open from 12:01 am Pacific time on Dec 13 2013 until 11:59 pm Pacific time on Dec. 15 2013, and is open internationally. You must be 18 years or older to win and please void where prohibited.
Thanks for stopping by, good luck on the hop, and happy reading! :)
