Sal spots a sign in a shop announcing they serve gelato and he points at it “Would you like a Gelatto?” I look at him as though he’d lost his mind. “Of course I would,” I say with a giggle.
“Yeah, what was I thinking? Any particular flavor?”
I tilt my head and gaze into his eyes which are sparkling with fun. “Surprise me.”
Sal disappears to place our order. While I’m sitting there I notice a group of people sitting at small tables. Some are dressed in Gypsy costumes, some are in everyday clothes. The sign above them says, PSYCHIC READINGS.
I get up from the bench and look in the window of the ice cream pallor–Sal is fourth in line. I glance again at the psychics and see a young girl just sitting quietly. She smiles at me and I smile back. She waves me over so I walk over to her.
We shake hands. “Hi,” she says, “my name is Yvette. Would you like your cards read?”
I hesitate for a second, but then something felt so right about her that I plunked down in the chair. “I’m Gracie. Nice to meet you. Okay, let’s do this.”
She hands me a deck of cards with funny pictures on them and tells me to shuffle them good. I follow the directions and hand them back to her. She proceeds to spread them out on the table.
“These are tarot cards,” she points out, “have you ever done this before?”
I nod with a slight smile. “Once. But, it was a long time ago at a party. I don’t think the girl was very good–she could not get a true reading on me and she didn’t know why.”
Yvette keeps placing the cards on the table. She stares at the cards for a minute or two, cocking her head from side to side, her brows knitted in a frown. She looks steadily at me. “You have been here before.”
Well, that was a lucky guess… “Yes, but it has been a few years,” I tell her. “I love St. Augustine.”
“No,” she chuckles, “your Soul has been here before, many times as a matter of fact. You keep coming back. You’re what is called an old soul.”
I look at her and wrinkle my nose. “What, like I have past lives?”
Her laugh is soft. “Yes, your cards are amazing. It takes someone really experienced to read these. Will you excuse me for a moment? I’d like to get my grandmother, she can read these and you better then I can. This is something really special. I’ll be right back.”
Yvette leaves me at her little table and I stare at the tarot cards wondering what the fuss is all about. Sal walks over to me and hands me a cup with my gelato.
“Hey, what’s going here?” he asks around a mouthful of cold delight.
“Well, I saw these psychics doing readings and I thought what the hell. Yvette went to get her grandmother to help her read my cards. She said I’m special.” I smile and raise my eyebrows up and down.
“You are special,” he replies with a wink. “Try your gelato, it’s a seasonal flavor.”
“Ohh, it’s pumpkin!” I moan in surprise. This is great! It taste’s just like pumpkin pie!”
He executes his signature bow. “I knew you would like it.”
Just then, Yvette returns with her grandmother. The old woman is a little shorter than Yvette, has wavy salt and pepper hair and looks to be seventy-five to eighty years old. Her striking emerald-green eyes are piercing. She comes to me and gently takes my hand. “I’m Amina and I’m seventy eight.”
I gasp. “How did you know what I was thinking?”
She cuts me off with a wave of her hand and laughs. “Just a little psychic joke, honey. When you’re old everyone wonders about age. That wasn’t mind reading, that’s just knowing people, but it gets them every time.”
“Whoa! That was freaky.” I look at Sal and we both laugh.
“So, my granddaughter here says you’re an old soul and you have amazing cards. She asked me for some help reading you. Is this agreeable with you?”
I nod and place my folded hands on the table.
She takes a seat and studies the cards, then asks me to pick them up, shuffle again and hand them back to her.
With a slight smile on her mouth, she stares at me and then Sal, as I do as she asked. I hand her the deck and once again my cards are spread out on the little table. She studies them again for what seemed to be a long time.
She lets out a long breath, then taps the table with her long fingers. “Okay Gracie. My granddaughter is correct. You are an old soul and you have been here many times. Something in your past lives has gone terribly wrong and you keep coming back. In one of your lives, you took your own life–you were that distraught. Also, you were once murdered. Tell me,” she says, pointing to Sal. “Is he your husband?”
For a minute or two I’m frozen by her words Suicide…murder? Unable to speak, I shake my head. Finally I stammer, “N-n-no he’s my boyfriend.”
She reaches over and takes my hand, then offers her other hand to Sal. Sal looks at her like she’s a little crazy.
She gives him a warm smile. “Humor me, please?”
Sal complies and the old woman closes her eyes and takes a deep breath.
We sit like that for a long moment. “The both of you are old souls. You have been in love with each other many times. You are soul mates. But something always tears you apart. You have found each other again, in this life, and believe me it’s no accident–you are destined to be together.
“Now, just because bad things have happened in your past lives does not mean they will happen again. You can change your future, but be aware of some forces around you that can–and will–try to pull you apart.”
Sal lets go of her hand like it’s too hot to hold. He looks at the old woman with concern. “Please forgive me, but this is a little too crazy. Gracie,” he turns to me, “I don’t think you should listen to this. It might give you more nightmares.”
The woman’s eyes focus on me. Her tone is sharp like this is something I have to get. “Have you had dreams of your past lives Gracie?”
“Well, I didn’t know that’s what they were, but I’d say yes. On and off since I first met Sal.”
The old woman give me a tiny nod. “He triggered them for you. You are probably a little psychic as well, but you’ve never developed it. So, only when you sleep, the subconscious mind comes awake and shows you.”
Sal takes my hand from Amina. “I was with her one night when she had one. It totally wrecked her. She was hyperventilating and shaking in fear. I’m begging you both, please stop talking about this.”
I turn to Sal and put my hand on his face. “I need to know this. I think it will help. I sensed those dreams were not just dreams, and I knew from the first moment our eyes met there was something familiar about you. You said the same about me. If I understand this, maybe the dreams will stop. Please let her finish.”
He looks at me, searches my face for something he must see. He leans over and kisses my forehead before he sits down again.
I look at Amina. “Please continue.”
“Very well. Listen, both of you. Souls find one another through each life, most of the time it’s the same people we know now. Some are new and come and go. Be aware of some surrounding you–they can cause you harm. Your future is not a fixed or definitive outcome–there are no endings or absolutes. We all can change things. That’s why we keep coming back. You two are in love and that emotion is one of the strongest–as are revenge and pain. Gracie, don’t be afraid of your past lives. When and if you dream again, try to remember it is a vision and cannot hurt you. Awaken your deep connection to your spirit and soul–it will guide you. The both of you are together now so stay that way. It is your destiny. You have been together for centuries and there was much heartbreak and sadness. Try not to repeat the past. Stay together always.”
I thank her for her help and Sal pays her for her time. As we get up and start to leave, Amina stops us.
“Wait! Good luck, both of you. True love is hard to find and you have found it.” She comes and gives me a hug and hands me a card with her number on it. “He will alw
ays protect you, it is in his nature”. She reaches a hand to my shoulder and with her concerned green eyes tells me to call her anytime if I have any questions.
“God Bless you both.”
Shaken, but committed, Sal and I cross back to the booth to join up with our ghost walk. They parade us up and down the streets of St. Augustine and through two cemeteries. The story of the star-crossed lovers that still haunt the sea wall touches me in a special way.
The entertaining guide, dressed in eighteenth century garb, tells story after story about ghosts woven into the history of the old city. What a terrific way to spend Halloween.
On our way back to our hotel we pass a candle shop with an open door. The scent of the candles wafts out to the sidewalk. I peek in and there is an older gentleman making thin tapers by hand. He waves at us and I wave back. Sal points in the air. “He’s listening to one of Pop’s favorites.”
“Sure is. Andrea Bocelli. This song is one of my favorites as well. A Time to Say Goodbye.”
We hang out there on the sidewalk listening for a moment. “This song is hauntingly beautiful,” I whisper, standing there with my eyes closed, feeling the music.
Sal wraps his arms around me and we look into each other’s eyes. Time seems to slow as he kisses me tenderly and whispers, “You’re hauntingly beautiful.”
* * *
Back in our room, I send Sal into the bathroom to shower, first. I plop down on a wing-back chair by the window and gaze out over the old town, now lit with gaslight reproductions that cast a soft, yellowish light.
I think about Amina’s reading and what she told us. I don’t know how much Sal believes, but to me a lot of things are making more sense.
When she spoke of the warning–be aware some who surround you can cause you harm–freaks me out along with the notion that I’ve already committed suicide and been murdered. I find it really bizarre that these things happened to me, but it does explain the sadness I feel when I have those dreams. Even the realization of past lives doesn’t feel all that strange, which in itself, is strange. I laugh in the quiet.
The bathroom door opens and Sal comes out with a towel wrapped around his waist. I’m startled out of my thoughts, but the view is pretty great here, too. “All yours, Princess.”
I look at him, unable to completely shake my thoughts clear.
“You alright, Gracie? Is something wrong?”
“Wrong? No, nothing wrong. I was just thinking about Amina and the reading. About you and me.”
“I hope you don’t have a nightmare tonight because of what that old woman said to you,” he says quietly.
I get up from the chair and face Sal. “Do you believe what she told us?”
He scratches at his head and wrinkles his nose. “Well truthfully? I guess I do to some degree, but I wouldn’t let it rule our lives. Don’t waste too much time on this Gracie, I don’t want it stressing you. This weekend is about us.”
I step into his arms and he hugs me tight. Somehow, I’m going to let him know I have never been better.
“I am having a very nice time Sal. Thanks for getting us away. I promise, I’m not going to stress about it–I kind of enjoyed it. You have to admit it was interesting information.”
Sal nods. “Yes, I think it freaked me out more then you, but then I’m not the slightly psychic one.” He kisses my forehead and gives me a light tap on my butt. “Go take a nice hot shower. It’ll relax you”
I step into the shower. The water is soothingly hot and feels good on my achy feet after a day and night sight seeing. Then it registers in my mind that tonight is the night that Sal is finally going to make love to me. My stomach jumps at the thought. Then I feel the rest of my body responding to the idea. A small smile is on my lips, I am ready. I dry myself with what must be the world’s softest and largest towel, put on some pretty panties, and a Victoria’s Secret nightshirt that buttons down the front. I blow dry my hair so I’m not dripping wet and scrunch it a bit. I opened the door and turn off the bathroom light. I step into a very dark room.
“Gracie, What’s wrong?” Sal asks from somewhere in the darkness.
“Nothing, it was so bright in the bathroom, my eyes are adjusting to the dark.”
Suddenly a pair of arms encircle me. Finding my face with his hands, he kisses me long and slow. I put my arms around his neck, then trail down his back with my fingernails until I land on his bare ass.
Oh god, Sal is naked. As I get lost in the heat and depth of his kiss, I feel his erection hard against my stomach. I reach for him and hold him firmly in my hand. Sal’s soft hiss is my reward and the kiss gets even hotter.
Sal’s hands are everywhere, then trail back to my face. He pulls away just enough to look into my eyes. The darkness isn’t so dark now and I focus on his expression. Love. Desire. Passion. My breath catches in my throat. I can’t remember a more perfect moment – ever.
“Gracie,” he whispers against my lips, “I love you. Let me love you. Do you trust me?”
I nod – words won’t describe what I’m feeling. He gives a little chuckle and we take a short stroll over to the bed. He reaches up under my night shirt and slides my panties down my legs, tapping each foot to lift them. My panties get tossed to the floor somewhere and he proceeds to unbutton my nightshirt, but I still his hands, grab it by the hem and yank it over my head. No longer shy, I’m naked and unafraid.
Wrapped in each other’s arms, we fall onto the bed. Sal is on top of me, my legs dangling off the side. He trails wet, exploring kisses on every inch of my body to the waist. I can barely breath but if he stops, I’ll disappear.
Then down a thigh as he parts my legs and finds my soft core with his mouth. I clutch the bed sheet wanting to scream, my hips moved in rhythm with his tongue. When he works a finger slowly inside me, I’m lost. I moan in pleasure.
“Gracie,” his voice is husky. “You are so ready for me.”
Sal lifts my hips in his strong hands and gently pushes me back to the middle of the bed, then settles between my legs. He pauses a moment and looks deep into my eyes. He’s asking permission and I gladly give it as I touch his face. “I love you Sal and I trust you. Make love to me.”
Slowly, he slides inside me and then lays still. Gently he begins a rhythm that steadily builds as our breath gets shorter and our bodies tighten with passion. I wrap my legs around him and he puts his hands under my back and lifts my hips to get as deep as he can. I’m filled with him, with my love for him.
He brings me to the edge and I blow apart, digging my fingers into his back as I cry out his name. His release exploded deep within me.
We lie there for moments, out of breath and spent. Sal gently reaches up and brushes a strand of hair out of my face.
“Gracie, you feel so good I could lay here with you forever. Are you okay?”
I sigh. “That was amazing. You’re a tender lover.”
He smiles and kisses me again like it is his last day on earth.
“You’re mine, Princess. I want you to be mine.”
My body shudders with his whispered words. My emotions choke off every attempt to speak. I finally manage to whisper, “ Don’t ever leave me. Don’t ever lie to me. Don’t ever hurt me and I will be yours.”
Sal stops his flurry of kisses and looks me square in the face, his warm chocolate eyes slightly misty.
“I love you Gracie, with all my might and soul. I don’t think I can survive without you, now. You are my peace, you are what calms my mind and helps me sleep from all the evil and dark I have witnessed. I promise I will never lie, leave or hurt you. I need you.”
* * *
In the morning I wake to a thunderstorm rumbling about outside. Sal and I are in bed tangled around each other. I’m a little sore from yesterday’s trekking around the city and our all night lovemaking. Sal took me to the edge three more times before we collapsed and fell into a deep sleep. I start to get up slowly so I won’t disturb him, but a strong arm pulls me back into his embrace.
>
“Where you going, Princess?” he mumbles.
“Just to the bathroom,” I whisper.
“What do you want to do today?” he asks, letting me loose from his grip.
He looks almost like a little boy with his face all smushed in the pillow.
I find my nightshirt on the floor and slip it over my head since the room is cool. “Well, it sounds like November first brought in one wicked thunderstorm so I don’t know, we could stay in bed all day.” I playfully mention.
Sal lifts his head just enough to hear the storm. He shoots me half a smile and raises one of his eyebrows over a puffy eye.
“Hurry back.”
* * *
Camille James sat in her home office tapping her French manicured nails on her desk staring at her cell phone. “Come on, where are you?” she spit through clenched teeth.
Finally her cell buzzed. She read the text.
House being watched. No sign of them around and I can’t get close enough. Have to wait for a new plan.
Camille put her hand on her face, shook her head, and sent a response:
FINE! Talk with you later
Idiot. Taking a deep breath, she thought about the forensic accountant going through their personal banking records, sweat started to form on her upper lip and her stomach caved in.
“If she isn’t stopped, Gracie is going to ruin everything I have worked for!”
* * *
Curled up in Sal’s arms I look at him curiously.
“What is it, Gracie?” he asks softly.
“I was wondering what happens now. You know, when we go home. Everything’s changed. I don’t want to sleep without you but what will Antonio say? Your dad is old school Italian just like my father was. The idea of ‘shacking up’ is not going to go over well. And, I don’t want him to lose respect for me.”
Sal kisses the top of my head and I feel the vibration of his chuckle in his chest. “The only thing I really heard was you don’t want to sleep without me!”
A Soul Mate's Promise Page 14