Page 19 of Hot & Bothered

After the card Peyton pulled for herself today, and Jace’s Knight of Cups, she was having a hard time not letting her giddiness get the better of her.

Every morning before her feet even hit the floor, Peyton pulled herself a tarot card. She only started doing it in the last few years, but it helped ground her in her day and gave her something to think about. Sometimes, the day didn’t turn out at all like the card predicted, but more often than not, there was some vein of truth in her day that linked back to the card.

At first, she relied heavily on her trusty book to tell her what each card meant, but after a few years, she knew the gist of each. She still used her book quite often, though.

However, she didn’t need her book today. Not for the card she pulled.

She knew it well.

The King of Cups. The ultimate card.

The King of Cups, or the King of Love, was the supreme romantic ideal. Caring, nurturing and patient. He was loving and the kind of guy who made andgreat husband and father. He gave his whole heart. He was the true definition of a lover, not a fighter.

She also had a daily affirmation app where, after she pulled her tarot card, she plugged her astrological sign and the card into the app and it provided her with an affirmation for the day.

Today’s was:I nurture and guide those who need it.

Goosebumps raced along her arms beneath her navy long-sleeve shirt.

Sure, some of this was all coincidence. But not all of it. Not a lot of it.

Everything happened for a reason. She believed that. And it wasn’t like she shuffled those cards. Jace shuffled them himself.

“So, like, amIPrince Charming? Or is Prince Charming going to come and sweep me off my feet?” he asked, flashing a big sexy grin that worked wonders at breaking the tension that slowly wound itself tight between them at the table.

She swallowed, her throat suddenly dry.

Wine. Wine would help with that. She grabbed her glass and took a big gulp. But the gulp was so big that it hurt her esophagus and back when she swallowed.

Dear god, it hurt.

After the agony subsided, she took a deep breath and met his curious gaze. “It could mean either. But in this case, I think thatyouare Prince Charming.”

“Hmm,” was all he said.

Did he want to discuss it more? It was pretty self-explanatory, wasn’t it? He was going to sweep someone (hopefully her) off her feet because he was a consummate gentleman and a sensitive dreamer.

“Shall we move on?”

He nodded.

She flipped over the fifth card.

“What does this one represent?”

“That’s your goals and aspirations.”

“It’s just a dude with a globe betweentwo sticks.”

She giggled. “It’s the Two of Wands. Hang on, let me read.” She grabbed her trusty book and flipped to the Two of Wands. “The Two of Wands represents success, plans, security, control, travel and vision. It is a card of victory. Which makes sense. Your goals and aspirations are to make it on to the E.R.T. The Two of Wands indicates that you are in a great position to achieve that.”

“Well, that’s cool.”

She nodded. “Totally. You’ve dealt a really great hand so far.”

He tapped the one closest to him. “Let’s talk about this one now. My subconscious.”

Nodding, she reached across the table and turned over the card.

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