Page 18 of The Law of Attraction
His eyes moved over her face in surprise, like he was reassessing what he saw there. “I would not have guessed you were this religious.”
“I’m not. You don’t have to believe in religion. You can put your faith in anything you want, so long as it gives you hope and makes the world a little more wondrous.”
“There’s more than enough wonder in science.” His gaze dropped to her mouth for a second before skating away. “I don’t need more than that.”
“Everyone needs more wonder in their lives.”
“You can really just believe in stuff? Just like that? Things you know aren’t real.”
Was she crazy or was that a hint of envy she detected in his expression?
“Millions of children believe in Santa,” she said. “His image is everywhere you look for two months out of the year, and every Christmas Eve presents appear under the tree from him. So is he real or not?”
“He’s not real. Obviously.”
“But he is. He might just be a story, but stories have power. He inspires people and brings joy and hope and excitement into children’s lives, and that’s very real.”
“You’re saying you believe in Santa Claus?” He was smiling at her now.
“I’m saying he’s a force that exerts influence on objects in the universe, so whether or not he’s a literal living person who delivers the toys himself is beside the point.”
“No, it’s not. The aim of science is to accurately describe the world around us, so determining whether he’s an actual living organism or simply a folktale that’s been co-opted by capitalism as a mascot for the marketing juggernaut of the Christmas season is precisely the point.”
She pursed her lips at him. “You’re a real buzzkill, you know that?”
His smile turned wry. “So I’ve been told.”
“Santa Claus is real if you believe he’s real,” she said stubbornly.
“So you do believe in Santa Claus?” There was that warm amusement in his voice again.
“Maybe I do, a little, because it makes me happy to believe he could exist, along with fairies and Bigfoot and narwhals.”
“Narwhals are real.”
“Shut up.”
“I’m serious. Did you not know that?”
Her eyes widened. “I thought they were made up like unicorns.”
He shook his head, huffing an amused breath. “They’re very real.”
“I literally thought they were from a Lewis Carroll poem.”
“You’re thinking of the Jabberwock.”
She smiled, impressed he knew which poem she was talking about. “And the frumious Bandersnatch.”
“Isn’t that the guy who played Dr. Strange?” Adam deadpanned, looking pleased when Olivia laughed. “But see?” He jostled her shoulder with his. “Narwhals exist in the world and you didn’t even know. There’s still plenty of wonder in science. Leave the make-believe for fiction.”
“Make-believe is fun. You should try it sometime.” She didn’t mean it to sound dirty. Honestly she didn’t. But somehow it came out dirty-sounding anyway.
He shook his head at her again, smiling in a way that seemed to shimmer in the air between them. “You’re nuts, Woerner.”
The disembodied voice over the PA called out their boarding group, and their portion of the crowd surged forward like a herd of starving cattle. Adam rested his hand in the small of her back to fend off any rude, pushy folks who might try to shove her out of the way. Olivia wanted to feel resentful, but somehow she couldn’t muster the will to mind.
When she finally showed the gate agent her boarding pass and took her first step onto the jetway, she felt a powerful sense of relief.
