Suddenly everything between them had changed, and they walked hand in hand, neither one wanting to break physical contact. Bathed in contentment, they took in the sights and sounds together, mingling with tourists from all over the world. They stopped to watch the street performers and Caledonia smiled at them all, charmed. When Calvin dropped a dollar into an open guitar case she asked him why.
“That’s how they make their money,” he explained, constantly amused by her inexperience.
“How much do you pay them?”
“You’re not really paying them … It’s more like you’re showing your appreciation for what they do.”
“Isn’t that the same thing?” she asked.
He chuckled, and had to admit that she had a point. They stopped and watched a juggler toss flaming batons into the air alongside a magician producing doves from a top hat. Caledonia gasped with amazement, her eyes bright. There wasn’t a cynical bone in her body, and the performers played to her, singling her out of the crowd to pick a card or assist in their performance. Calvin thought she was more fun to watch than they were.
He kept his arms around her as much as possible, loving the way it felt to be able to touch her whenever he wanted to. He spoke under his breath, “You do realize that it’s not really magic, right?”
She rolled her lovely eyes at him. “I’m not stupid. I’ve read books about magic tricks. I’ve just never seen it done.”
He whispered in her ear, “You’re the only one who can do real magic.”
Their eyes met again, followed by their lips, and they ended up spending most of the day kissing. They sampled the food stands, feeding their leftovers to some remarkably docile seagulls that landed at their feet.
She tried to pay, but he wouldn’t let her. “It’s okay,” she said. “I got my money back this morning.”
“Your aunt finally wised up?” he asked.
“No. I just … I have the situation under control now.”
He raised his brows at her, his eyes asking the question, but hers clouded over and she turned away. Caledonia was unwilling to discuss her newfound power, and he let it go, keeping his mouth shut and taking her hand quietly.
Their perfect day was over much too fast, and they climbed back on the bike just as the fog started to roll in. It engulfed the city in a cool, damp cloak, following them across the bridge while the sun set over the dancing sea. She turned back to see a grey blanket creeping across the mouth of the bay, swallowing everything in its path.
She nestled against Calvin, her lips curling into a smile on the back of his neck. They were about halfway home when he pulled to the side of the roadway, stopping to climb off. He took his helmet off, set it aside and reached over to remove hers.
“Why are we stopping he–”
He took her face between his hands and kissed her, sweet and slow. It started out warm and comforting, like wood smoke and butterscotch candy, slowly building to a bright burning red that made her stomach quiver. The roar of traffic rushing by was drowned out by the sound of her heart pounding in her ears.
When they finally broke apart she was dizzy.
“I wasn’t going to make it all the way home,” he explained. He embraced her once more, handing her back her helmet.
Then they were back on the road, and Caledonia clung to him tightly, happy in a way she’d never imagined she could be. She thought about the art museum and the painting that her mother had loved so much. There was something else her mother had told her about her parents’ date at the museum–something that made her heart skip a beat when she thought about it.
It was on that exact spot, standing in front of that same painting so many years ago, that her parents had shared their first kiss.