Page 11 of It's Now or Never

‘Let me see.’ He lifted my hand higher, peering closer at a random spot on my palm. ‘Four, I’d say. Possibly more.’

‘WHAT?!’ I nearly snorted my wine out at that revelation. ‘Four? Good grief. Absolutely no way. Two possibly, at the most, but there’s no way I can imagine having four children. I’m not even sure I’m that maternal.’ I snatched my hand away, laughing.

‘Ah well, I find a lot of people don’t want to hear the truth. It is a cross I have to bear with this special gift I have.’

‘Is that so? Okay, tell me about my job then. Sounds like I don’t need to worry about my personal life, that’s all sorted, but I could do with some guidance on my career.’

‘Let me see?’ He picked up my hand again and ran his finger around the outline of my palm and then up and down and around the length of my fingers. By this stage I wasn’t really bothered by anything he might have to say, I was more concerned about the magic his touch was tracing on my hand. That a touch so light could have such a startling effect on my whole being I found astonishing.

‘A change is on the cards,’ he said, adopting the croaky voice of an elderly woman soothsayer. ‘You mark my words, young lady.’ I laughed, shaking my head at him indulgently but he kept hold tight of my hand. ‘Really,’ he said, his voice back to normal now; warm, caressive, enticing. At that moment he could have told me anything and I would have believed him. ‘I can see a lotin your future, but I’m afraid I can’t really divulge any more. Not now. It will all become apparent with time.’

He dropped my hand like a hot potato.

‘Oh.’ I wanted to grab his hand straight back again and tell him not to stop. I’d been enjoying the sensations much more than I should have done.

‘Sorry, but I don’t want to put ideas into your head, you have to follow your own path without being influenced by anything I might tell you, but your fate is here, all laid out in your hand.’

‘Right, well that’s good to know,’ I said, feeling flustered. ‘Nothing I need to worry about then.’ Heat flushed my neck and face. His attentions were far too distracting. I looked at my hand wondering if I’d missed something obvious there, all these years. I smiled and shook my head. ‘Just one word of advice, Alex, don’t give up the day job. I really can’t see you ever making a career out of being a palmist.’

‘Er, I hope you’re not casting doubt upon my inherent abilities. People come for miles to have one of my special readings. Well, I’m sure they would if they knew what a special talent I have. I’ll tell you what… do you have a pen… some paper?’

‘No.’ I raised my hands to the sky. ‘I didn’t think to pack any for the wedding. Silly me!’

Undeterred by my sarcasm, Alex beckoned the young waiter over. ‘Excuse me! Do you have a piece of paper and pen I could borrow, please? And an envelope too, if possible?’

I looked at him bemused, wondering what on earth he was up to.

When the waiter had delivered the requested items, Alex started writing something down, craning his arm around the paper so that I couldn’t see.

‘What are you doing?’

‘Oh ye of little faith. I’m just writing down one or two predictionsfor you. You’ll be able to look at these a year down the line and think, “oh yes, that funny guy I met at the wedding, he did know what he was talking about after all.”’

‘Can’t I just read them now?’

‘Nope. What’s your surname?’ he asked. When he finished scribbling down whatever it was he was writing, he folded the paper in half before inserting it into the envelope. He then wrote on the outside.

For Jen Faraday – Not to be opened, in any circumstances, until one year from today’s date.

Then he proceeded to sign and date the envelope with a dramatic flourish.

‘But that’s a whole year away!’ I protested. ‘You do realise I’m going to go straight home after this and the first thing I’m going to do is rip open the envelope and read what you’ve said.’

‘No, you’re not,’ he said, removing the envelope from my hand. ‘Can’t you read what it says? Not to be opened until this date next year. And to save you from any temptation I’m going to give this to the waiter and ask him to put it behind the bar with strict instructions not to hand it to you until the designated date.’

‘Really? You’re mad, do you know that? Absolutely mad. I’ll have completely forgotten all about it by then. Memory like a sieve, me.’

‘Well, if that’s the case then no harm done. But, if you do happen to remember, and you’re curious as to what’s in here,’ he waved the envelope in the air, ‘then you can always come and have a look. In one year’s time, that is.’

I laughed. Who knew where I might be then. Alex’s predictions were probably as good a guess as my best surmising, although I highly doubted I’d be married with four children!

‘Well, thank you. You never know – if I’m in need of a bit of spiritual guidance in a year’s time, I’ll know where to come.’ Although I suspected the barman would probably bin the note just as soon as the crazy, giggling and clearly drunk couple had left the building.

Alex was looking at me intently, a lazy seductive smile on his lips.

‘Look, Jen. I don’t want this party to end.’ He reached across for my hand, but this time there was a very different intent in the action. ‘Why don’t you come back to mine for some coffee.’ He pulled out his phone and tapped at the screen. ‘Oh look, I’ve just had a text from the band.’

‘What?’

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