Notes: Mari and Sammy – Thanks to you two, I get spoonfuls of magic every day (see what I did there?). Thank you for being such true and genuine friends (la famiglia!).

Readers and REAL McRollers – Your support is truly magical. It's appreciated every single day.

Esther – You are one of the most magical people I've ever had the good fortune to know. Thank you for your friendship and support.

Hope you enjoy!

Magic (A McRoll in the REAL World Story)

The sun glistened off the water as Catherine and Jenna sat on the back deck at the beach house.

"I'm glad we've made a habit of this," Jenna said. "Having dinner or lunch or something every month, just the two of us."

Catherine nodded, swallowing a bite of baked coconut chicken from her plate. "Me, too. I hope you don't mind doing it at the house tonight. We had some chicken we either needed to cook or freeze."

"Not at all," Jenna assured her. "It's delicious. Besides, you can't beat the view, and they generally don't let you kick your shoes off at most restaurants, and that's exactly what I wanted to do tonight." She wiggled her bare toes under the table.

Catherine grinned, lifting her fork to her mouth. "So what's been going on with you? Work's good?" She took a bite.

"Yeah. Same ol', same ol'. We had to scramble a little bit this week because we found out there's a conference most of the staff have to attend a week from Tuesday so we were calling people like crazy to reschedule."

"Ohh no."

Jenna shrugged. "Most people were pretty understanding. Everyone loves Dr. Davenport." She ate a forkful of her meal.

"That's good."

"And his wife brought in her famous red velvet chocolate chip cookies for the office staff after all the craziness. There is no limit to the number of rescheduling phone calls I would make for those."

"Ooh, sounds delicious."

"They are heavenly. And she's so sweet, always gives me a little Tupperware container for the kids."

"Aww," Catherine said and swallowed another bite.

"Jacob loves them because …"

"They're red," Catherine finished, grinning, and Jenna nodded with a smile.

"And it was good timing, we had just finished off the last of Cody's birthday cake."

"Made by Kaitlyn, I bet."

Jenna smiled. "You got it. Chocolate peanut butter, his favorite combination."

"Yum." She ate a forkful of chicken and asked, "How was the rest of his birthday? We had a blast at paintball."

"I heard," Jenna said, grinning. "It was great. Jess came over for dinner that night."

"That's right, Steve mentioned that," Catherine said. Her brow knitted as she thought a moment. "They've been going out almost a year, haven't they?"

Jenna swallowed a bite. "Pretty close, yeah. She's such a sweetheart. And so good when she comes over. Always makes a little time for all of the kids."

"Aww, that is sweet," Catherine agreed, finishing off her chicken. "You know, I think that's part of why they're so compatible, they both clearly value family and spending time with them."

Jenna nodded, putting her own fork down after eating her last bite. "She actually reminds me a little of you, come to think of it. How she genuinely likes to spend time with all of us, and so do you."

"Well, that's nice of you to say." Catherine smiled and reached over to squeeze her hand. "It helps that you're all so great to hang out with. Really."

Jenna paused, biting her lip as if debating whether to say what she was thinking. Finally she shook her head and smiled. "You probably won't believe this, but I was actually nervous the first time you and I hung out alone."

Catherine's brow creased. "Nervous? Why?"

Jenna sighed. "Well, come on … you're … you."

"I'm … what do you mean?" Catherine asked, genuinely confused.

"Well, you're this … amazing naval intelligence officer turned elite taskforce member. You've never made a bad decision guy-wise." She huffed a laugh. "As far I can tell, you've never made a bad decision, period."

Catherine sighed, shaking her head. "Come on. You're exaggerating."

"Barely. You're gorgeous, fit, always have everything under control, everything together. So … yeah," Jenna shrugged, "I was a little nervous."

Catherine tilted her head, studying her friend.

"But then you were you," Jenna continued, "and I forgot to be nervous because you were so warm and open. You made me feel like we'd been friends for years."

Catherine reached over and squeezed her hand again. "I had a great time that day," she said sincerely.

"So did I. Such a great time. It was nice doing something for me for the first time in … years. And more than that, it was nice doing something with you. I felt like you really wanted to get to know me. It wasn't just some obligation you felt because you all were spending time with my kids."

"It wasn't," Catherine said, shaking her head emphatically. "I really did want to be friends with you." She smiled. "And still do."

Jenna returned her smile. "I know. I love having you as my friend. My family."

Catherine nodded. "That's right. Family."

A half hour later, they were relaxing comfortably on the deck, their wine glasses empty, when Cammie alerted in the yard. The excited dog bounded toward the back door as Steve came through it.

"Hey," he said, smiling at Catherine and Jenna as he greeted Cammie. "What have you two been getting up to?"

Jenna grinned. "Eating up all your food and talking about how amazing Catherine is." She gave him a knowing look. "I know that's not news to you."

He smiled. "It's not." He took a seat next to Catherine, looking at her with eyes full of affection. "I'm the lucky one who gets to experience it firsthand every day."

Catherine shook her head as if to dismiss the compliment, but her small smile revealed she wasn't unaffected by their words.

"Of course Jacob was crazy about her from day one. And she had his class under her spell instantly," Jenna said, grinning at her friend though she spoke to Steve. "Last year and this year. And can you believe I was nervous the first time we hung out? But that lasted all of about five seconds because … it's Catherine. She puts people at ease just by being her. It's like … magic."

"Oh, come on," Catherine protested. "Now you really are exaggerating. I'm just … being myself."

"Exactly," Jenna said seriously. "And yourself is amazing."

Catherine squeezed her forearm. "Well, I think you're amazing. An amazing mom, an amazing office manager, and an amazing friend."

Jenna flushed at that. She quirked an eyebrow. "I know what you're doing there, trying to turn the spotlight away."

Catherine shrugged innocently. "I didn't say anything that isn't true."

"See?" Jenna asked, glancing at Steve. "Magic."

He smiled, his eyes drifting to Catherine.

Jenna glanced at her watch. "Well, I should get going," she said, standing. "Thank you again, dinner was fantastic."

Catherine and Steve stood as well.

"I'll walk you out," Catherine said.

"Okay," Jenna said, heading for the door. She gave a quick wave. "Bye, Steve."

"See you later, Jenna," he returned.

While Catherine walked Jenna to the front door and said her farewells, Steve grabbed their empty dishes and brought them into the kitchen. Cammie followed him inside, and Catherine entered the kitchen a moment later.

"Thanks," she said, joining him at the sink.

He smiled at her. "She's right, you know. About you being magic."

Catherine sighed, leaning a hip against the counter. "Come on. You, too?"

He grinned, turning toward her. "Face it, Rollins, you're you. And you don't know how to be anything else. Which is pretty great news for those of us around you."

"Steve …" she began, trying to play off his words.

"Catherine," he cut in, his expression sobering. "I'm serious."

She straightened, meeting his eyes.

"You make people feel comfortable around you," he said. "Because you genuinely want to get to know them, to help them. People respond to that. I know I did."

She pressed her lips together and swallowed, holding his gaze but unable to reply.

"You care," he continued. "More than anyone else I've ever known. You care, and that shows. That's your magic, Cath."

She paused and, opting to deflect, shook her head with a small smile. "You don't believe in magic."

"I believe in you," he said, his eyes never leaving her. "I always have."

Her breath caught at the earnestness in his words and gaze.

Smiling finally, she reached out and took his hand. "Well, that goes both ways. I've always believed in you, too."

He exhaled slowly with a soft smile and squeezed her hand. "See? Magic," he said, purposely repeating Jenna's words. "You believe in others. You believe in me. I've always known that. Felt that. And it's meant more to me than … than anything."

She put a gentle hand to his face. "Steve …"

"Take the compliment, Catherine," he said, covering her hand and curling his fingers around hers. "You're amazing. And I'm not the only one who sees it. I'm just the lucky one who gets to be closest."

She blinked back tears and nodded, smiling to cover how deeply touched she felt. "Okay, then. If you insist."

"I do," he said sincerely. "It's the truth."

"Thank you," she said quietly.

He shook his head, brushing her hair back and cradling her head. "Thank you. That's the point, Cath. Thank you for being you."

With a grateful smile, she leaned forward and sealed his words with a heartfelt kiss.

Hope you enjoyed!

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