Emily had given me a look, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “Let ride it together.”
“Alright,” Lagreed, and I followed her onto the ride.
The ferris wheel creaked and groaned as it began to rise, the lights below growing smaller and more distant. We sat in silence for a while, both of us staring out at the view of the ocean, the carnival lights twinkling like stars on the ground.
“I’m glad you’re with me today. You’re better company than a view of the ocean.”
I had looked at her, caught off guard by the simplicity of her words You’re a lot of things, Emily,” I had said, my voice low,” but I never thought I’d be the one making you feel better.”
Especially not after all of the fighting about cleaning dishes. Now that we were up high, I felt like my head had actually been in the clouds this entire time. I hadn’t been a very considerate houseipate.
As the ride had reached its peak, we sat in the small car, the world spread out below us like a glittering map. It had been almost too perfect.
The ride came to an end, and we were back to wandering around the carnival. The excited faces of the other people there were all a blur to me.
Then, out of nowhere, a woman appeared at the opening of a purple tent covered in stars. She was older with a long, flowing dress and an air of mystery that immediately captured our attention.
She motioned to us, beckoning for us to step closer. She didn’t wait for us though
The woman had made her way toward us, moving with purpose. She stopped right in front of us, and I was filled with tension from head to toe. Something about this woman made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
“Would you like to have your fortunes read?” she asked, her voice low but clear.
“Sounds like fun!” said Emily. The woman nodded and walked back to her tent. Emily grabbed me by the hand, grinning from ear to ear, and pulled me by the end after the old woman.
When we stepped outside, I was hit by the overwhelming scent of frankincense. The incense lett the tent ever so slightly smoky, adding to the mystery around the old woman
“Have a seat,” said the woman, pointing at two chairs around a plain wooden table. We did as she said, and then she began to breathe in deep. She waved her hands in front of her nose as if to till her lungs with the scent of the incense.
“Your fated mates are closer than you think,” she had said, her voice soft but heavy with something ancient, something true, Although you are not ready now, you will soon feel the pull of a bond too strong to deny.”
The words had settled over me like a wave, the weight of them sinking in. My heart had skipped a beat. A fated mate. It was something I hadn’t considered for myself in a long time. When I looked at my future, I didn’t think of fate. I thought of business.
I looked at Emily, but she had been staring at the woman with wide eyes. She hadn’t known what to make of it either, but her lips had parted as if she was trying to process something she had always suspected but never had proof of.
“Fated mates?” I had said with a laugh, trying to deflect the awkwardness. “Please. It can’t be Emily. She can’t feel any mates because her wolf is dormant.”
I saw the disappointment and pain in Emily’s eyes before she had quickly hidden it behind a smile.
“Right,” she had said, the humor in her voice forced. “Of course.
The woman smiled at us. “You doubt now, but a future of certainty awaits you.”
“Thank you,” Emily said as she stood. She tipped the old woman and left without me. I followed her through the busy pathways of the carnival, but she didn’t look back
Chapter 51
I wanted to say something, but I didn’t.
