The Soft Whisper of Dreams Read Online Free Page B

little boy squealed with laughter and commented on everything he could see.
    ‘Look, Mummy. Balloon! And doggies. Moo-cow! Lambs! ...’ There was an endless stream of fascinating sights, and the others laughed at his exclamations.
    ‘I wish I could get that enthusiastic about all this,’ Wes grumbled. ‘We would have been much better off having a picnic by the sea.’ He wiped his forehead with the bottom edge of his T-shirt.
    ‘We can do that later,’ Kayla said, taking his hand. ‘Now stop showing off your abs and let’s stock up on delicious jams and cakes to take with us. Come on, you know you’ll love it.’
    Wes grinned. ‘Yes, ma’am. I love it when you’re bossy.’
    He received a light punch on the arm in return, but this was followed by a kiss, so Maddie knew her friend wasn’t angry. She envied the couple their closeness and wished she could find a soul mate like that. Not bloody likely. She’d been trying for years, but usually ended up with douchebags like David. She obviously had lousy taste in men.
    The booths were many and varied, and Maddie enjoyed herself in spite of her previous reluctance to come. It was peaceful to walk among the noise and bustle of the crowd with nothing better to do than look at all the goods for sale.
    ‘Oh, for heaven’s sake!’ Wes exclaimed at one point. ‘Why would you need a personalised bowl for your dog? They can’t read anyway.’ The stand full of dog paraphernalia was covered with every weird and wonderful item that could ever possibly be needed by a canine, and more besides.
    The others laughed. ‘How do you know?’ Alex joked. ‘They may be smarter than we think.’
    ‘Sure, Dr Dolittle.’
    ‘Oh look, Maddie, a fortune-teller.’ Kayla had been scanning the nearby booths to see what else would be of interest, and the purple silk tent with gold tasselling had obviously caught her eye.
    ‘You will meet a tall, dark and handsome man, and marry him and live happily ever after ...’ Maddie intoned in a deep voice, then blushed as she realised her description could very well fit Alex. He was all of those things, and more. Fortunately he appeared to be engrossed in a conversation with Nell and didn’t hear her.
    Kayla cuffed her on the arm. ‘Don’t be silly, I’m sure she’ll be more inventive than that. Go and give it a try.’
    ‘I honestly don’t think I want to know what other disasters are going to happen to me. I’ve had quite enough of them recently,’ Maddie replied. ‘Didn’t you go once before? I seem to recall you were given all sorts of dire predictions and they all came true.’
    ‘That doesn’t count. The woman I saw really did have the second sight and she didn’t do it for money. I’m sure this one’s a fake and will only tell you the good things. She won’t want to lose customers. Come on, I’m going to have a go. It’ll be fun!’
    Wes just shook his head and looked bemused while Kayla dragged Maddie towards the purple tent.
    ‘Men don’t understand the fascination of things like this,’ Kayla said with a giggle. ‘They take everything so seriously. You’d think Wes would be more understanding since he has a gypsy ancestor.’
    ‘Oh, yes, the famous – or should that be infamous? – Jago Kerswell, your little Jago’s namesake.’
    ‘Yes. He looked just like Alex, or should that be the other way around? Now that Jago was a tall, dark and handsome man ...’ They giggled again, and joined the queue for Madame Romar.
    Kayla went first and came out with a smile. ‘There, what did I tell you? Just good things.’
    ‘What did she say?’
    ‘I’m going to have another child, a daughter this time – well she would say that, wouldn’t she – and I’m going on a journey soon, where I don’t know. Anyway, I’ll tell you the rest later, it’s your turn.’ She shooed Maddie towards the opening.
    Maddie entered the tent reluctantly, not at all certain she wanted to hear about her future. Although she knew it