A Love Story

This week, I’m on pre-vacation. Yes, I made that up, but I’m going with it anyway. Last Friday, I turned in developmental edits on Monster Haven #4, Golem in My Glovebox. Tomorrow, I’m leaving for Disney World. This week has been all about getting the house back in order after Hell Week (a name given to any week which ends in a deadline) and getting ready to go—to Disney World, in case you missed that part.

This post is one last writerly thing I’m doing, but I’m not even going to talk about my books (Monster Haven books #1-3 available now wherever e-books are sold!) because for the next couple of weeks, I’m not even looking at my sales ranks (except once or twice a day or so), and I’m not answering any mail (unless it’s from readers or somebody from my publisher or if it’s really funny or maybe a friend needs me or my daughter needs my recipe for fried chicken strips).

I often feel a little weird because my books (which I’m not talking about) have a little romance in them, but they aren’t romances. I hang out with a lot of romance writers, though. Seriously. Take a look at the list on the right. I’m very often the odd girl out, like I'm missing a vital skill set. But we’re going to do something a little different today. I’m going to tell you a love story. A Disney love story. A fairy tale.

Once upon a time… 

A girl who was prettier and thinner than she knew at the time, and younger than she appreciated back then, got a job working for The Mouse (specifically, the Disney Catalog), got pregnant, and got married, all three in the space of about six months. Yes. In that order. A year later, a new boy started working there, too, and the girl and the boy were instant friends. They loved all the same things, you see. He made her laugh all the time. They tried to stump each other with difficult Disney trivia questions. They sang Dr. Demento and Tom Lehrer songs. They argued over which Enterprise captain was superior. (Kirk.)

Totally harmless, mind you. They were friends, nothing more.

Eventually, the girl had to move away when her husband joined the military. A second child arrived. She moved again, this time out of the country.

The boy waited a very long time for her to come back.

Of course, she did come back, many years later. She was getting a divorce. The boy, who was now a man, grew excited, but quickly became resigned. The girl, who was now a woman, had found someone new while waiting for her divorce. The two visited for awhile, and he listened to her stories before they parted ways.

Totally harmless, mind you. They were friends, nothing more.

She ran off to get married again and work for The Mouse once more (specifically, Walt Disney World). A few years later, she was back, having never remarried—a little bitter, a little tired, and having lost her belief in the magical forever promised by Disney.

As always, the girl who was now a much older woman and the boy who was now a much older man, went out together to catch up on all that had happened since they last saw each other.

Totally harmless, mind you. They were friends, nothing more.

Until he reached out and held her hand. In that one magical moment, everything changed. Everything

finally made sense to her. The thing she’d been searching for had been waiting for her all along. Less than six months later, they were married. He had a ring designed for her in the shape of The Mouse, so she would always know the magical forever promised by Disney was real.

They spent their honeymoon at Disneyland. They still play Disney trivia (mostly, she wins because she knows everything, and he should just accept that), they still sing Dr. Demento and Tom Lehrer songs, and he still won’t admit that it takes a Picard and a Riker to encompass all the qualities of a Kirk.

Tomorrow, they’re leaving for Walt Disney World, nine years after he first held her hand.

 …And they’re living happily ever after. 

Have a wonderful couple of weeks, folks. I know I will!

Rachel's head is packed with an outrageous amount of useless Disney trivia. She is terrified of thunder, but not of lightning, and sometimes recites the Disneyland dedication speech during storms to keep herself calm. She finds it appalling that nobody from Disney has called yet with her castle move-in date.

Originally from Northern California, she has a tendency to move every few years, resulting in a total of seven different states and a six-year stint in England. Currently, she's planning her next grand adventure. Rachel has one heroic husband, two genius kids, a crazy-catlady starter kit, and an imaginary dog named Waffles.

She doesn't have time for a real dog.


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