head, his eyes on the road. “It’s a surprise.”
I sighed. “You’re lucky I like surprises.”
He glanced my way and smiled. “You’re lucky I like you.”
I laughed, watching out the window as the storefronts and restaurants blurred by us, knowing I didn’t want to be anywhere but in that car with Chase. I glanced over at him, noting the way his shirt gripped his arms so perfectly. “Did you play football growing up?”
“Yeah, how’d you know?”
I shrugged. “You’re just built like a wide receiver.”
He laughed. “I was a wide receiver.”
“Did you not want to play football in college?”
He opened him mouth to respond then closed it. “Just wasn’t in the cards.”
I got the strange feeling he was purposely being evasive, almost like he wanted to tell me but then thought better of it. “Did you have a lot of girlfriends?”
“This feels like an interrogation.”
I squeezed his hand. “I just want to know you better.”
“I had a few,” he offered.
“No one serious?”
He shrugged. “How about you? No one waiting back home for you?”
I shook my head.
“Thank God. I would’ve had to kick someone’s ass.”
I laughed.
He eventually pulled into a parking lot.
I looked out the window at the small white house with beaded curtains hanging in the front window. My eyes lit up when I spotted the sign out front. I turned to Chase.
He grinned. “Check this off your list.”
“This is awesome.”
“Stay there,” he said as he cut the engine and reached in the back for his ball cap. He put it on and hopped out of the car, making his way to my side. That brief moment gave me time to appreciate him in his dark jeans, light blue shirt, and ball cap pulled down low. He opened my door and took my hand, helping me out. He linked our fingers and we walked to the door. “Now if she says anything about getting rid of me, we’re leaving.”
I smiled, loving that he’d planned this for me.
We entered the front room and were greeted to soft tranquil music. A sofa was pushed against the far wall. There was a coffee table in front of the sofa with what looked like a crystal ball in the center. And another chair was in the corner.
“Welcome.” An older woman sashayed into the room in a long colorful robe with rings on every finger. “You’re here to have your fortunes told,” she said with a thick Cajun accent.
“She’s good,” Chase whispered to me.
“Yes, I’m So—”
“Don’t say anything, dear. Allow Madame Rose to tell you what you need to know. Come.” She took my hand. “Let’s read your fortune.” She sat down on the sofa, pulling me down with her so our knees touched. She held my hand in her lap.
Chase sat across the room in the chair, stifling a smile.
“Madame Rose is sensing a milestone for you.”
“Today’s my birthday,” I explained.
“Ah, yes. That’s what I’m seeing. And you have some uncertainty surrounding the night.”
I swallowed the lump that shot to my throat. Things had been heating up between Chase and me, and I had no idea where the night would lead us. “I—”
“You don’t know what he has planned for you and you’re curious,” she said.
I glanced to Chase and nodded. “Very.”
“I’m seeing big surprises in your future,” she said. Then, something changed. Her mouth suddenly turned down in the corners and her features darkened. “But some of these surprises will come at a hefty price.”
“Oh,” I said, not quite sure what to make of her prediction.
“There are secrets. Lots of secrets being withheld from you…from various people in your life.”
“Who?” I asked.
“Friends. A girl…and a boy. And…” Her head twisted toward Chase. “Him.”
Chase pointed to himself. “Me?”
She nodded, her eyes narrowing on him. “Don’t hurt the girl. She’s got a tough exterior but a fragile heart.”
His eyes widened, as if he was a small child being reprimanded for something he didn’t do.
Madame Rose’s attention moved back to me. “I also see happy things in your future, dear. A long life with a man who loves you and two children who are the apples of your eye.”
I smiled, hoping that indeed was the truth and not just something she said at the end of a reading to send people away happy. “Do you see anything else I should know about?”
“Stay true to who you are and all roads will lead you in the right direction.”
I pondered her words, even after we were in the car and pulling out of the parking lot.
“You’re quiet,” Chase said.
“That was