Jill strolled down the street breathing in the fragrant
autumn air. Her long, blond hair danced in the light breeze and she pulled it
aside to stare up. The sky is never as blue as it is in October. She had heard
it had something to do with the distance of the earth from the sun during
this time of the year. She didn’t care why; she simply soaked up the sight of
brilliant red and golden leaves backed by the clear, dark blue sky.
Vampires, ghosts, super heroes, and fairy princesses swept
down the street, announcing the end of afternoon classes. Children eager to
start the Halloween tradition of begging for treats, raced home to an early
dinner. Jill smiled at the billowing capes and fancy dresses that were such a
contrast to her trim, dark red and black pantsuit. She wouldn’t be dressing up
in costume tonight. She hadn’t had a date in over a year. Still, nothing could
dim the joy she felt this perfect day.
A noise in a nearby alleyway caught her attention. “Stop,
please stop! Let it go,” a small voice pleaded. Jill hurried the five steps to
the corner and looked in as she heard an evil laugh. “Please, please,” begged
the small boy dressed as a little leprechaun.
Two older boys laughed at him, the shorter of them pulling on the cute
leprechaun’s pot of gold. Jill cleared her throat loudly while grabbing the
shorter bully by the back of his neck. The larger boy looked up at her. His
eyes widened and he fled the alley leaving his friend in Jill’s grip. “I think you should drop the child’s pot
right now.” She squeezed her red tipped
fingernails into his neck a tad harder and he dropped the pot while struggling
to see his assailant. Pushing him away
by the scruff of his neck, she stepped toward the young boy. “Are you all right?” The bully stumbled then turned to accost the
woman who had pushed him. She glared at him. His eyes doubled in size and
he fled.
Jill picked up the filled pot topped with gold foil covered
chocolates. “My this is heavy. Do you need help carrying it home?”
“No! My father wants me to learn to carry it myself. I’m a big boy. I am a leprechaun.”
“Yes, you look just like one!”
“I am one! I can
grant you a wish for what you did! I can! Tell me what you want”
Jill smiled wryly. “Maybe I should let you do that. Do you
think you could find me a man?”
“Sure! I’m a leprechaun.
I can get you anything! What kind of guy do you like?”
Jill shrugged. “Hmmm. Tall, dark, and handsome with a voice
deep and thick like honey. Eyes as blue
as mine are green. Not too fat not too lean. Not too sweet, not too mean. Oh,
and no ties so he can give me his all.” She laughed lightly.
“I can do it, I can!”
An hour later, Jill dropped onions into her shopping cart at the
local market.
“I’m sorry. I was wondering if you could tell me where they
keep the spices? I’m new here and can’t seem to find a thing.” The deep,
honey-thick voice behind Jill startled her. She turned to face a pair of
captivating blue eyes looking down at her.
“Yes, I can take you there.”
A beautiful smile lightened the already handsome face. “And, do
they have Cornish hen here? “
“They do, but I picked up the last two.” Jill watched the
man’s face fall a bit. “However, I can share.
My name is Jill.”
Pleasant laughter erupted in the man. “I’m Jack. Nice to
meet you, Jill. Tell you what. I will cook these for us tonight if you would
like. My cooking skills are pretty sharp.”
Resisting this temptation was not easy and Jill’s temptation
resisting skills were not well honed. “At your place? Do you have someone you
were going to cook for?”
“Sadly, no. I moved here last week. Haven’t met anyone here.
“
Jill turned her cart in the direction of the spice aisle.
“No job, either? Surely you have friends from work?’
“Nope! Besides, I don’t work. I don’t need to. I am the last
heir to a family trust, which will keep me for a lifetime. I do write, though.”
Temptation was blossoming into a full-blown bouquet. “Sure, I’ll let you cook the hens for us, at
my house.”
Later, after the costumed children ceased knocking on the
door, after the last of the butchered meat was stowed in the freezer, and
the last of the lights turned down; Jill relaxed in her favorite
chair. Maybe the child was a
leprechaun. Tall, handsome, blue eyes, and a gorgeous smile was exactly what she
ordered. She smiled. “And he had been not too fat and not too lean,” Jill thought as
she picked the last of Jack from between her teeth.
