Page 85 of Tessa's Trust

She chuckled. “You’re holding yourself back.” She pointed to a tarot card with an owl facing the other way. “Your priorities are all screwed up.”

“It’s okay that he’s Italian,” I said. “Besides, we’re not going anywhere. I mean, this is temporary.” Even as I said the words, they kind of hurt.

She snorted. “That’s not the point.”

“What’s the point?” I took another sip.

She turned over several more cards, revealing what looked like a moon, a princess in a green dress, and a clock. I could read tarot cards, but I would let her interpret them. Her interpretations were often much more on point than mine.

“Well?” I asked.

“What are you doing with your life?” She looked up at me, her green eyes intense.

So I told her everything. I detailed my plans for Silver Sadie’s and my new agreement with Mert Smiley. “I’m going to own two restaurants. I always knew I would, just not this quickly,” I admitted. “That doesn’t fit with Nick’s life. We all know he’ll run for office and end up in DC.” Who knew? The guy might actually wind up in the White House.

She shook her head. “No. You are creating this life, and you’re trying to fit somebody into it.”

I sat back, looking at the myriad of cards. “Well, sure.”

“Honey, that’s not how you do it,” she said softly.

I blinked, trying to understand. “What do you mean, Nana?”

She shook her head. “You find the person, the one for you, and then you build both of your lives around the two of you as a unit.”

My mouth went dry, so I took another drink of the magical brew. I’d never thought about my future like that. I knew I’d end up married with a couple of kids someday because that’s the life I wanted, but I’d thought to build my little empire first.

She smiled. “Life is about people, not work or things. You know that. Stop protecting your heart and open it.”

I could only stare at her. Nana believed in magic, soulmates, and karma, as well as a good curse every once in a while. I believed she had power, but right now, she seemed to hold more than that. She was speaking wisdom, and it hit me hard.

“Nick is as much of a force of nature as you are, Nana,” I said softly, meaning it.

She rolled her eyes. I swore it was a look I had seen very few times in my life, but she did it anyway. “Oh, please, Contessa Carmelina Albertini. You’re as strong as they come. Give it a chance. Even if one of you ends up with a broken heart, you’ll both survive and find what you should anyway. However, not taking a chance is not my girl. Right?”

I bit my lip. Sometimes, it was difficult to have things put so plainly.

“Tell me you understand,” she said.

“I do,” I murmured. “You know he’s Italian and not Irish, right?”

She chuckled. “Oh, come on. Those Basanellis have some Irish somewhere in their background. I’m sure of it.”

I wasn’t, but I also wouldn’t argue with her. “All right. Your point was made,” I said. “I’ll think about it.”

“That’s all I’m asking.” She slowly put away the cards.

I stood and refilled both of our teacups. “I need a favor.”

“Sure. Anything,” she murmured. “Would you like dessert? I have some cookies.”

“No, thanks. I’m full.” I wanted to lay off the cookies for a while. Apparently, I needed to be in some sort of ballgown for the Elks party coming up, and I would really like to knock Basanelli off his feet, whether we had a future or not. “It’s my understanding that Sadie Brando invested in properties all over but rarely recorded them.”

Nana tapped her finger against her pink lips. “I wasn’t really a business acquaintance of Sadie’s, so I don’t know much more than that. I do know that she and Lenny were doing the nasty quite a bit.”

“I heard that,” I said. “I didn’t realize it.”

“Oh, you know, older people like to be discreet about that kind of thing. I wouldn’t know anything about her businesses.”

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