Chapter 6 #3
If Rose didn’t dump the guy after the fair, Gregory would make sure he never saw her again.
“No worries,” Sascha said to Gregory as if she’d read his mind.
He figured his expression said it all. “All right. What do you have for me?”
She put her hand out for the tickets.
“I paid you three thousand dollars for a…”
Stephanie’s jaw dropped. Rose punched him in the shoulder and scowled at him.
Gregory let out his breath and handed Sascha the tickets. “Here. Tell me something about myself that no one can possibly know.”
“You have a merger coming up, but the guy you’re dealing with will pull out of it at the last minute.”
“He wouldn’t. He has been pushing for the merger for months.”
“It’s for the best. Within a short time of the original merger's scheduled effective date, he’ll be caught up in a scandal involving fraud and embezzlement. Someone else will come forth with a much better deal. So you’ll come out ahead, and you’ll be glad for it.”
“Who?”
Sascha shook her head. “I don’t know either of the parties’ names.”
“Anything else?” Gregory didn’t believe any of this. If she knew all of that, why not know who the men involved in the merger were?
“You have a little four-leaf clover-shaped birthmark on your left cheek.”
Everyone looked at Gregory’s face as if it would suddenly show up. He felt his face heat with embarrassment. And he wasn’t embarrassed by much. How the hell did Sascha know that?
“On your ass cheek?” Stephanie finally said, breaking the silence.
Rose laughed. “I didn’t even know that.”
“You shouldn’t know it,” Gregory said, annoyed.
Sascha smiled. “What about you, Steph?”
“The name’s Stephanie, and no, I’m not wasting my money on your little scam.”
Gregory gave Sascha some of his coupons. “To give Stephanie a read.”
“I said I didn’t want a read,” Stephanie said.
Sascha had been paid, got the request, and ignored Stephanie.
“When you had breakfast this morning, you left to get your phone out of your bedroom where it was charging. Your mom’s cat drank some of your milk.
Orange knew she wasn’t allowed to be up on the table so when she heard you returning, she hastily jumped down off it. ”
Stephanie frowned at her. “You just made that up.”
Sascha wasn’t finished. “You tried on three different outfits before you came here, wanting to look your best for Gregory. And they’re still scattered on the bed until the maid picks them up and puts them away.”
“No, I didn’t.”
Sascha ran her hands over the crystal ball some more, looking into it as if that was where she was getting all her psychic power. “You stepped on Gregory’s heel twice at the fair while trying to keep up with his fast pace.”
“You saw me do that.”
Sascha raised her brows. “I’ve been here all along at the booth. You stepped on his heel once while he was crossing the parking lot and again while he was heading to the food court. I can’t see either location from where I’m set up at my booth.”
Gregory wanted to hear more, but Stephanie was right. Sascha could have seen Stephanie stepping on his heel and his annoyance. She could have taken a bathroom break while Katrina took over for her. Stephanie said she hadn’t changed her clothes three times this morning. So who was telling the truth?
“Time’s up,” Sascha said. “There are lots more patrons behind you.”
It was true. There was a long line behind them now.
When they moved out of the line, Gregory saw Damon headed toward Sascha’s booth. But Damon wasn’t looking at Sascha. He saw Lucy, turned around, and ducked out of there.
Gregory smiled, though he had to admit he kind of felt sorry for the guy. Lucy was beautiful, but he really didn’t know what her temperament was like.
“Are we done here yet?” Stephanie asked, like she was beyond finished.
“After I look at more craft booths. If you want, Gregory and I can stay here while you and Marvin leave. I’m sure Gregory’s ready to leave too, but since he’s my brother, he’s stuck with me.”
Marvin and Stephanie exchanged looks. “I’m ready to go if you are,” Stephanie said.
“Me too.” Marvin handed Rose’s purchases to Gregory. Then he said to Rose, “I’ll get in touch with you later.”
The two of them took off, and Gregory said to Rose, “I hope you’re dropping the two-timing guy after this.”
“Do you think what Lucy said was true?”
“Yeah, because Marvin didn’t deny it. I mean, I looked it up, and the accident had occurred. And then Marvin hadn’t denied the affair or that she was the ex-girlfriend. But I don’t believe in the psychic abilities.”
“What about what Sascha said about me and the car accident?”
“No. I don’t believe the women can really envision all that stuff. Everything about Stephanie could be just all made up.”
“What about the birthmark on your cheek?”
He scrubbed his face with his hand. “That part is true. Though I’ll be damned if I know how Sascha knew it.”
“An old girlfriend of yours told her?”
“That would be a real stretch, I think.”
“Yeah,” Rose said. “But there’s something about them that sure casts some spell over you guys and that you can’t deny.”