“I told you, Harriet, I wanted him to know. I was ready to tell him. I will deal with the fallout.”
She nodded. “I heard you. And I think now is a good time for me to tell you I have read your cards.”
Rowan raised a hand. “Stop. I don’t want to know. I told you not to snoop into my future.”
When Harriet read tarot cards, her readings provided vague guidance that could be interpreted in various ways. Rowan always thought the readings were like a mirror, reflecting back what you wanted to see. Harrietcouldsee the present. If she held an object, she could tell you exactly where the owner of that object was or other things about the current state of the object or the owner. But seeing into thefuturewas an entirely different and nebulous discipline. While Harriet sometimes experienced premonitions about things that came to pass, a person couldn’t count on her visions to be exactly true. More like in the realm of truth. Sort of like buying a ticket to Paris, France, and ending up in Paris, Illinois.
“So you don’t want to know about a potential future between you and the human?”
“No. Let it unravel naturally.”
“You admit, then, that there is something to unravel? You see or perhaps desire a future with this man.” She touched her tongue to her top lip.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. Yes, okay, I have feelings for him. Actually, so does my dragon. Sometimes when I see him, I feel her move inside me as if I’m about to shift. I’ve never had that before.”
Harriet’s grin grew even broader and she squealed softly. “Dragon knows best.”
Rowan rolled her eyes. “My inner dragon is impulsive and wild. All heart and very little head.”
“All heart is the only way to live, darling.”
Inhaling deeply, Rowan watched Nick sleep. “He smells so good.”
Harriet raised one eyebrow. “He smells like blood and the valerian root in my elixir.”
“No he doesn’t. He smells like sandalwood and spices. Christmas spices. Cloves and nutmeg.” She breathed in again.
The older woman laughed. “That’s all you, darling. You have it bad.”
Rowan rolled her eyes, then gave in to Harriet’s evil scheme. “Okay,” she said through her teeth as if her friend had twisted her arm. “What did the cards say?”
Harriet’s face lit up. “You’re going to be very happy together…”
Rowan did a little dance.
“…after a period of trial where one of you may die.”
“Harriet!”
“You know how this works, darling. Death could mean psychological or emotional change. The death card doesn’t mean physical death. Well, sometimes it does, but rarely.”
“By the Mountain!” Rowan held her head.
Harriet clasped her hands. “I saw many years of happiness—that’s the important thing—in at least one possible outcome.”
All Rowan could do was close her eyes and take a few deep breaths. It was her own fault for asking. Only temporary insanity could explain why she’d gone against her own rules and asked what Harriet had seen in the cards. Dumb. Stupid. She tried to scrub her brain of the information.
“Did the cards tell you how we could avoid this near-death experience?”
“Oh no, it’s coming.” Harriet tapped her bottom lip. “Also, that reminds me… It’s probably nothing to worry about, but a magical entity has been testing the boundaries of thedispareacharm I have on your person. Someone is looking for you.”
“Seriously? When did this start?”
“The past few days.”
“Oh, Harriet, why would someone be trying to find me?”
The old woman shrugged. “I assumed it had something to do with the reason your brothers were looking for you. What did Tobias say?”
