Wedding at Moonglow Bay by Lori Wilde

Author:Lori Wilde
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2023-03-21T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

They say a person needs just three things to be truly happy in this world: someone to love, something to do, and something to hope for.

—Tom Bodett

Inside, they found the wizened woman wearing a lavender mantilla wedding veil, layers of gauzy black and purple fabric, rings on every finger, and numerous jangling bracelets. A lifetime of coastal living was etched in every road-map line on her face, her tanned feet were bare, and her toenails painted midnight black.

The room smelled of soured washrags and patchouli, just as it had the first time they’d visited.

The psychic looked a bit like Yoda if the Star Wars character had been purple instead of green and told fortunes on a boardwalk in Moonglow Cove. She possessed that same kind of mysterious wisdom. On a small card table in front of her sat a crystal ball, a deck of tarot cards, a melted black candle in a dish with dragon heads on it, and a dispenser of hand sanitizer.

“Come in, come in.” She waved languidly, her bracelets clinging together in a melodious sound. “Madame D’Veaux sees all, knows all.”

“Except the importance of sunscreen,” Piper whispered behind her hand to Samantha.

Samantha widened her eyes at Piper, sending her a signal to knock off the snide comments, and lightly tapped the tip of her sandal against her friend’s ankle.

“Sit,” Madame D’Veaux commanded, nodding at the two metal folding chairs positioned in front of the table.

Samantha eased into the chair directly in front of the woman and rubbed the leather strap of her purse with her thumb. Okay, yes, she was nervous.

Madame D’Veaux held out her hand. “Fifty dollars, cash, card, or Venmo accepted.”

Piper held up her palms. “I’m not here for a reading, just moral support.”

Madame D’Veaux scowled. “Then you must leave. Your sister’s reading is not fodder for your entertainment.”

A chill went up Samantha’s back. How had Madame D’Veaux guessed they were sisters of a sort? She and Piper didn’t resemble each other in any way.

“I’m not leaving.” Piper folded her arms, brought her right ankle to her left thigh, and tipped back in the chair.

“Then no reading.” The shriveled woman scooped up the tarot cards. “Negativity disturbs the spirits.”

“I’m the negative influence?” Piper raised her eyebrows.

Madame D’Veaux pinned Piper with an unblinking stare. “There is a darkness in you the spirits don’t like.”

Piper? Darkness? Her friend was the bubbliest person Samantha knew.

“Yeah,” Piper said. “It’s called a healthy skepticism. C’mon, Sammie, let’s get out of here.”

Samantha knew her friend was just trying to help, but Piper’s combative stance ruffled her own feathers. “Please, could you just wait outside?”

“Seriously? You’re still going to do this?”

“Don’t judge me. I’m in a tailspin.”

“And you just loaded the gun for this faker. Now she doesn’t even have to do a cold reading. Mark my words, she’ll tell you to embrace the chaos or some such nonsense.” Piper shook her head, arms still folded tightly across her chest, her scowl deepening.

In that moment, Piper looked so much like Nick—or

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