Golden (20 page)

“You kissed me. Why did you kiss me?” I asked.

“Not even you can be that stupid,” he said. “Why do you think?”

And then he did it again.

His lips were impatient and just a little cool as they moved on mine, for the day was chilly, though it was fine. But the hands that held me close were gentle, and, beneath them, I felt my body start to warm. Just like the first time, my heart spoke one word and that was all.

Home,
it said.
Home.

Not very romantic, some of you may be thinking. To which I can only reply that you are the ones who haven't been paying attention. The kiss ended and I rested my face against Harry's chest.

“You make me crazy” he murmured, his lips playing against my smooth head. “You've always made me crazy. Do you know that?”

“I do it on purpose,” I said. And felt what it sounded like when he laughed.

“What am I going to do with you?”

“You could marry me,” I said. “We could make a home in that stone cottage.”

“I could marry who?” Harry asked.

I lifted my head. In my lap I still held the kerchief. I looked down at it and said:

“These are my favorite flowers.”

“You told me that when I gave it to you. I know that,” Harry said.

“Stop interrupting.” I poked him in the stomach with one finger, and he sucked in a breath. “They're called black-eyed Susans.”

“So?” Harry asked, but I thought I could see the beginnings of a smile play around the corners of his mouth. He was quick. He'd always been so quick. Quick and stubborn, with hair the color of mud and
eyes
like the promise of spring.

“Now who's making who crazy on purpose?” I asked.

“Susan,” he said. “You want to be called Susan, am I getting this right?”

“I do,” I said. “It's a good name. A straightforward name. A no-nonsense name with backbone.”

“And it's not some nasty-tasting herb,” Harry put in.

“It's not any kind of herb at all,” I said. “So what do you think?”

“I think I love you whatever you're called, but I will call you Susan if that's what you wish.”

“And you'll never call me Parsley again, right?”

“Oh, no. No promises about that,” Harry said.

“Now wait just a minute, Harry,” I began.

He reached over and gave me a push. I wasn't quite as quick as he had been. I hadn't braced myself, but I did grab him on the way down. We tumbled into the river together. Fortunately, it was shallow.

“So,” I suddenly heard Mr. Jones call. “You've decided to live happily ever after.”

“Looks that way, doesn't it?” Harry called back. He grinned down at me, and, in spite of the fact that I was soaking wet with small, sharp stones digging into my back, I felt my heart give a great roll inside my chest.

“Her name is Susan, in case you've been wondering,” Harry said.

“Of course it is,” Mr. Jones said. “Now come inside. It's time for supper.”

“In a minute,” Harry said.

He kissed me again, of course, until I could no longer tell whether the sound in my ears was the rushing of the water or my own blood.

“Marry me,” he whispered. “Marry me soon.”

“Yes,” I whispered back. “Yes.”

He let me up then. He pulled me to my feet and kept my hand in his as we waded back to shore. Just
before we got there, he bent and picked up two stones, holding them out in the flat of his palm.

“You sneak!” I exclaimed. “I knew you were listening.”

“Pick one,” he said.

So I chose one, and Harry kept the other. And, though no one ever tells the tale of a girl named Susan and a boy named Harry, we have been living happily ever after, building the room that is our love, our home, inside our hearts from that day to this.

We build it, still, for as long as we draw breath.

CAMERON DOKEY
is the author of nearly thirty young adult novels. Her other titles in the Once Upon a Time series include
Sunlight and Shadow
,
The Storyteller's Daughter
, and
Before Midnight
. Her other Simon and Schuster endeavors include the Charmed books
Picture Perfect
and
Truth and Consequences
;
Here Be Monsters
, a book in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series; and
The Summoned
, an Angel series title. Cameron lives in Seattle, Washington.

“Once upon a time ... ” is timely again in these retold fairy tales:

THE STORVTELLER'S DAUGHTER
by Cameron Dokey

BEAUTY SLEEP
by Cameron Dokey

SNOW
by Tracy Lynn

MIDNIGHT PEARLS
by Debbie Viguié

SCARLET MOON
by Debbie Viguié

SUNLIGHT AND SHADOW
by Cameron Dokey

SPIRITED
by Nancy Holder

THE NIGHT DANCE
by Suzanne Weyn

From Simon Puhe
Published by Simon & Schuster

This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the authors imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

SIMON PULSE

An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division

1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com

Copyright © 2006 by Cameron Dokey

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

SIMON PULSE and colophon are registered trademarks of

Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Designed by Debra Sfetsios

The text of this book was set in Adobe Jenson.

First Simon Pulse edition March 2006

Library of Congress Control Number 2005928863

ISBN-13: 978-1-4169-0580-6

ISBN-10: 1-4169-0580-4

eISBN-13: 978-1-43912-073-6