Jules reached out and took her hands in his. They were big hands, strong from years of hard work. He rubbed his thumbs over her palms. “She didn’t say, or if she did I couldn’t understand her. But I do know I’ve never seen her so worked up over something.” He gave her fingers a squeeze and released them. “All I know is she wanted you to have that there wolf.”
He shook his head. “Maybe I’m just an old man with an active imagination, but my grandson is coming to help me load him up and bring him to your place as soon as I close shop. I already called him.”
Sabrina wanted to jump up and do a fist-pump. The wolf was hers. But another part of her was worried this was another part of whatever madness had entered her life over the past few weeks. Although that concern was tempered by Jules’ dream about her granny. If Granny was in the dream then it was a positive, powerful one and it behooved her to pay attention to it.
If Granny Esmeralda thought the wolf belonged to her then Sabrina wasn’t about to argue, but there was no way she could take the wolf for free. She’d never feel as though he really belonged to her. “I have to give you something for him, Jules.”
The old man shook his head. “I told Esme you’d say that.” He chuckled at her concerned expression. “Oh, I know the difference between dreams and reality, missy.” He pushed out of his chair and extended his hand to help her up. “But I like to believe I’m able to talk to my old friend from time to time.”
“And what did she say?” Sabrina liked the idea of him being able to talk to her granny too. Didn’t matter if it was real or not as long as it made them both feel better.
“She said to charge you three hundred dollars. Any more would be too much. Any less and you’d feel as though you were fleecing an old man.”
Sabrina snorted. “Old man, my foot. You’ll outlive us all.”
Jules’ booming laughter echoed around the dim room. “That’s the plan, missy.”
She glanced over her shoulder and met the dark-eyed stare of the wolf. She really wanted to see him better, to clean off the layer of dust that covered him. “Three hundred?”
Jules nodded and led the way back toward the shop. “And Marcel and I will deliver him in about an hour.”
There really was no decision to be made. Sabrina hurried back to the front of the store, went behind the counter and grabbed her purse. Thanks to the extra sales today she had more than enough in her wallet to pay cash.
Transaction completed, she reluctantly left the shop. If it were anyone else but Jules, she wouldn’t have been able to leave her wolf behind.
As she dragged herself and her belongings up the stairs to her apartment, she found herself wondering what other animals had been on the carousel with the wolf. What a wonder it would have been to see the carousel brand new, to maybe even have the opportunity to ride it.
Maybe she’d do some research online. After all, she knew the name of the carnival that had owned the ride. Maybe there were pictures of it out there somewhere.
She unlocked her door and let herself in, happy to be home. She stowed her gear in the closet and kicked off her shoes. Her imagination was already at work, conjuring up the image of the carousel. It would have been magnificent with intricate scrollwork painted in white, red and gold. Unlike some traditional carousels with horses, this one would have exotic animals, all ferocious and proud.
Sabrina stripped off her top and bra on the way to the bathroom. She set the water running before she pulled off her skirt and underwear. Taking care, she removed the beads and the amulet her friends had given her and set them safely on the vanity.
A handful of bath salts perfumed the air around her as she stepped into the tub. She grabbed her sponge and started washing. There was no time to waste. Jules and his grandson would be here in less than an hour with her wolf.
He’d need a name. She’d figure that out once she’d gotten a better look at him. Her mind was filled with images of the carousel ride. A frown creased her brow as a strange thought struck her. She tossed aside her sponge, pulled the plug in the tub and climbed out, reaching for a towel.
She’d started several paintings a few months back and set them aside not knowing how she wanted to finish them. Wrapping the towel around her, she hurried to the front closet where she stored her unfinished work and shoved things aside until she found what she was looking for. There were two canvases, each three feet by two feet. One was of a fairground filled with light, teeming with people and activity. The other one made her shiver. It was a circular carnival ride, but she hadn’t known how to finish it. She’d pictured it with tiny cars or circular cups, something children could sit in and enjoy. But she knew now what it was meant to be—a carousel.
“What the hell is going on?” She propped both paintings up in front of the bookshelves in the living room and studied them. Why had she started working on these in the first place? Had she read about a carnival somewhere? Had someone mentioned something?
Jessica. That’s it. Jessica had mentioned something about old-time traveling carnivals months ago, asking her if she’d ever been to one. Obviously, the conversation had inspired the paintings.
A wave of relief washed over Sabrina. This had nothing to do with the old carnival signs and the carousel animal in Jules’ shop. It was nothing more than coincidence.
Sabrina glanced at the clock and swore under her breath. Jules and Marcel would be here soon and she didn’t want to meet them at the front door wearing nothing more than a towel.
With one final glance over her shoulder at the unfinished paintings, she hurried to her bedroom to dress. Since she was home for the evening and comfort was the goal, she opted for a tank top the color of ripe blueberries and a pair of faded jeans. She thought about braiding her hair but decided to just leave it hanging free.
She took a quick detour back to the bathroom and fastened the amulet Tilly had given her around her neck. Then she took Jessica’s strand of beads and stones and wrapped them around her wrist. Satisfied, she clicked off the bathroom light.
Once Jules and his grandson had come and gone she’d fix some dinner since she hadn’t taken the time to stop and pick something up on the way home and didn’t feel like calling for takeout. Then she planned to spend the rest of the evening enjoying her wolf. He might even serve as inspiration for her to finish the two paintings.
Excited once again, she went to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of sweet tea. She’d only had one sip and was still contemplating what to eat when a knock came on the front door. Her wolf was here.
Chapter Five
“Where do you want it?” Marcel asked, but Sabrina had eyes only for her wolf. “Sabrina?” Jules’ grandson prompted, and she forced her gaze away from the magnificent creature that now belonged to her.
“Over there.” The corner of the living room next to her bookshelf was about the only place he would fit. “Let me move the chair.” She hurried forward and dragged the chair to one side and watched with satisfaction as Marcel and Jules carried her new purchase inside.
It was all she could do to keep from jumping up and down and clapping her hands like a kid at Christmas. “Perfect.”
Jules removed a snow-white handkerchief from his back pocket and mopped his forehead. “Wasn’t sure I’d be able to get him up the stairs. He’s heavier than he looks.” He stuffed the handkerchief back into his pocket and then stroked a hand over the flank of the wolf. “No, sir, they don’t make ’em like this anymore. Hand carved from a chunk of wood, not made out of plastic or some other fake material.”
Marcel stood by the door, waiting not quite patiently. “Come on, Grandpa. I got a date tonight.”
Jules grinned. “Never let it be said I stood in the way of true love.” He stopped in front of her long enough to drop a kiss on her cheek. “Drop by on the weekend. I’m expecting a new shipment Friday night from an estate sale I sent Marcel to last week. We’ll see just what kind of an eye the boy has.”
The
