Fate Interrupted: A Paranormal Women's Fiction Novel (Moonstone Cove Book 3)

  She had her life all planned out; fate had other ideas.

  Fate Interrupted

  How did an accomplished Southern businesswoman, wife, and mother end up living on California’s Central Coast, newly divorced, working for a stubborn winemaker and wrestling with sudden psychic powers?

  Megan Carpenter asks herself that same question nearly every day.

  She’s working her way back to the business world and starting her own event-planning business, but fate keeps throwing Megan curveballs. Her ex has an unexpected new girlfriend, her telekinetic powers keep short-circuiting, and her self-control—at least when it comes to her boss, Nico Dusi—is slipping.

  Thank goodness she has the two best friends in the world. With Katherine and Toni at her side, Megan is determined to keep her plans on track even when an unexpected theft at the winery threatens the new business she’s building.

  When Nico asks Megan, Toni, and Katherine for help finding the thief, life in Moonstone Cove gets even more mind-bending with experimental grape clones, industrial espionage, and bizarre bloodstains. Even for three psychic friends, this mystery may be more than they can handle on their own.

  Fate Interrupted is the third book in Moonstone Cove, a paranormal women’s fiction series by USA Today best seller Elizabeth Hunter, author of the Glimmer Lake series and the Elemental Legacy.

  Praise for Elizabeth Hunter

  My favorite Moonstone Cove book! Nico and Megan have wonderful chemistry and it was a pleasure to read.

  This Literary Life

  Cute As Can Be! I was looking forward to Megan’s book… It’s a romance book too, but to me it’s more focused on the women’s friendship. It was so much fun to be inside Megan’s head.

  Books at Tiffany’s

  Fate Interrupted was fun, exciting, and full of found family, real family, passion, and excitement.

  Norma’s Nook

  Nico and Megan are so funny, I love them, they’re hilarious, and they’re cute, and they’re HOT! …If you haven’t read this series, you’re missing out.

  MJ, Goodreads reviewer

  Fate Interrupted

  Moonstone Cove Book Three

  Elizabeth Hunter

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Preview: Cambio Springs

  Can’t get enough?

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Also by Elizabeth Hunter

  Fate Interrupted

  Copyright © 2021

  Elizabeth Hunter

  ISBN: 978-1-941674-65-9

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the US Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author.

  Cover: Damonza

  Content Editor: Amy Cissell, Cissell Ink

  Line Editor: Anne Victory

  Proofreader: Linda, Victory Editing

  If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it or it was not purchased for your use only, please delete it and purchase your own copy from an authorized retailer. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Recurve Press LLC

  PO Box 4034

  Visalia, California 93278

  USA

  Chapter 1

  Megan Alston-Carpenter sat across from the most stubborn man she knew, very tempted to use her telekinesis to whack him over the head with the bottle of beer on his desk. She still couldn’t use her psychic abilities for delicate operations, but thumping a dumbass? That was in her wheelhouse.

  “Are you telling me” —she forced her voice to be calm— “that there are no spare wine barrels on this winery anywhere? Not even three?”

  Nico Dusi leaned back in his chair, keeping his expression blank. “I know what you’re trying to do.”

  “What’s that? Advocate for the bride of an upcoming wedding on your property? Look out for my client? Protect the dreams and hopes of a girl—”

  “Ashley Harrington is a twenty-seven-year-old woman who runs her own business and is one of the top large-animal vets in the county, Megan.” Nico rolled his eyes. “Are you telling me her hopes and dreams are going to be crushed if she doesn’t get three wine barrels stacked just where she wants them so her eight million guests can take pictures?”

  Megan lost her patience. “It’s six hundred and thirty-two confirmed guests, Nico, and why are you being such an ass about this?” She could hear her accent getting stronger. Her fingers twitched, and the beer bottle on Nico’s desk wobbled. Just a little.

  Nico’s eyes widened. “An ass? I’m not being an ass about anything. I’ve already rearranged two work crews so this couple’s ‘special day’ at a winery isn’t ruined by the actual business of, you know, vineyards and grapevines and shit like that. This isn’t an event venue, Megan.”

  “Except that it is, Nico.” Megan leaned forward. “You poured tens of thousands of dollars into those wine caves so it could be exactly that. And then you hired me to make the events happen. So yes, this is an event venue. And those wine casks with Dusi stamped on the end of the barrels aren’t just props that the bride wants, they’re free advertising posted on the social media pages of—let me say it again for you— six hundred and thirty-two confirmed guests.” She leaned back. “So tell me what your objection to free advertising is.”

  Nico’s eyes narrowed. “Is this actually Ashley’s request? Or is her father—?”

  “Is her father what? Paying for the wedding? Yes, he is. Why does that annoy you so much?”

  “Oh, I don’t know. Because Harrington tried to put my cousin out of business with that fucking car lot directly across the street from— You know what? I already told you all this, and I think I was pretty generous to agree to even have this wedding here. I cannot stand that woman’s father. His whole family—”

  “Careful.” Megan’s voice was quiet. “Careful with that one.”

  “What?” Nico pursed his lips. “What about his family do you know that I don’t, Atlanta?”

  Why had she taken this job? Was a paycheck really worth it? Sure, it was her biggest opportunity since moving from Atlanta to California, and sure, she really needed to rebuild her brand after leaving everything in Georgia for her pig of an ex-husband, but were either of those things enough to keep working for Nico Dusi?

  Arrogant, pigheaded Nico Dusi? She rued the day that Nico had heard his cousin—whom Megan adored—call her Atlanta. Coming from Toni, it was a friendly endearment. From Nico, it felt like a jab.

  Megan spoke carefully because she knew that in this, she and Nico were far more similar than different. “Ashley Harrington can’t control who her father is any more than our kids can control who their
parents are.”

  Nico turned his steely gaze toward a window overlooking the rolling hills covered in grapevines that blanketed the land where Dusi Heritage Winery was located.

  “It would kill me,” she continued, “if my children were judged by my ex-husband’s behavior. I have a feeling you might be able to relate.”

  Nico’s ex-wife had been public in her numerous postmarital affairs, most with notably older and richer men than her former husband. She had broken up more than one marriage in the years since she’d left Nico. Megan had half a suspicion that Nico’s ex, Marissa, and Megan’s ex-husband, Rodney, were sleeping with each other just to create drama.

  Nico huffed out an irritated breath. “Fine. I’ll get one of the guys to modify one of the racks so it’ll fit on the patio outside the caves for the reception.”

  “I’m really not trying to make extra work for you. The winery doesn’t have anything that will work already?”

  “As I’ve mentioned before, this isn’t a play vineyard. Our barrel racks are designed for large storage, not three barrels.” He rolled his eyes. “But I’m sure Henry can get one of the guys to make something that’ll work.” He waved a hand. “Like you said, it’s free advertising.”

  Megan nodded. “Okay. Thank you.”

  He raised his eyebrows. “Have I spared the hopes and dreams of the bride now? Can I get back to my beer? It’s been a long week.”

  She raised her folder. “Just be glad you get to retreat to your house on the weekends. Mine are completely booked.”

  Nico raised his beer bottle to her. “And Dusi Heritage Winery thanks you for it.”

  She rose and walked to the door. “You’re welcome.”

  “Hey, Megan?”

  She turned before she reached the door. “Yes?”

  “Please tell me that Harrington is paying through the nose to have his daughter’s wedding here.”

  She smiled sweetly. “Well, since it’s high season for weddings, we have one of the newest and most desirable venues on the coast, and his daughter just had to have it here… of course he is.”

  Nico smiled. “Music to my ears, and the accent just makes it all the more brutal.”

  Ugh. Why did he have to pick that moment to smile? No grown man with a five-o’clock shadow should have lips like Nico’s. Full, kissable lips on a face that looked as if it were carved by a Renaissance sculptor. His lips were ridiculous.

  Not kissable. Punchable.

  Mmmm. Kiss Nico.

  Shut up, Sugar.

  Megan had once taken a magazine quiz in college that gave her the stripper name Sugar Glitz Cheeks. She’d called her libido Sugar ever since, and since it had been nearly two years since Rodney had taken off, Sugar had been rearing her horny head more and more frequently.

  “If you say so.” Megan looked down, avoiding the sight of Nico smiling. “At least my accent doesn’t sound like I’m reading the phone book to my grandmother.”

  “I don’t know what that means.” He finished his beer. “But I’m going to assume it’s a compliment. What do we have going on this weekend?”

  There were two houses at the top of the hill where the winery lived—the cottage, which had been built in the sixties as a guesthouse, and the main house, which was where Nico lived. Since the cottage was a decent distance from the main house, it was often used for smaller hired events. Nico’s own house was reserved for family events only.

  “The cottage is hosting a golden wedding anniversary party that your mother referred to me, and on Sunday, it’s Dusi family Sunday dinner.”

  “Oh right.” He frowned. “Are you coming?”

  Megan shook her head. “Sunday’s my day off.”

  “Not to work, just to eat.” He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. “You know, and hang out. Maybe… play horseshoes?”

  Megan couldn’t stop the corner of her mouth from twitching. “I am not using my telekinesis to help you win at horseshoes.”

  Since she and her two best friends had gained psychic powers a little over two years ago, there was a select group of people who’d discovered their secret. The fact that her friend Toni’s cousin had been let in on that little fact was a direct result of a life-threatening situation and hadn’t exactly been Megan’s idea. Still, Nico had kept his mouth shut even if he did try to nudge her into cheating at horseshoes for him.

  “Oh, come on.” Nico spread his muscular arms wide. “You used it to, like, stop a murderer from blowing up my wine caves. You can’t use it to help a friend win a bet or two?”

  She opened the door with a slight frown creasing her forehead. “You really don’t see the difference between those two situations?”

  “I mean… a little.” He walked halfway to the door, hooking his thumbs in his well-worn denim jeans. “Kind of? It’s for a good cause.”

  “You should still be thanking me for saving the wine caves. Goodbye, Nico.” She walked out and let the door swing shut behind her.

  As she rounded the corner of the main office, she nearly walked into Henry, Nico’s winemaker and Toni’s boyfriend. “Oh hey! Sorry about that.”

  “No worries. Did you talk to Nico about the wine-barrel thing?”

  She looked up. Megan barely came up to Henry’s shoulder, so she was talking to his chest. “He’s going to ask you to modify a barrel rack so Ashley can get her picture spot.”

  “Perfect. I have a great idea on how we can make it so you can decorate the rack too. Maybe put a banner or paint the front with that black chalkboard paint to personalize it.”

  “Oh, good thinking!” She patted his shoulder. “You’re good at this. You sure you want to keep making wine?”

  The top of his cheeks turned a little rosy. “Oh, I’ve just had a few ideas over the years. You know, in case I ever get married. I’d want to have the reception at a winery, you know? So… yeah. Just have some ideas.”

  Megan wanted to pinch his cheeks, which was a weird impulse to have for a man in his midthirties who was expecting his first child with one of her best friends in the world. She let Henry continue to his boss’s office, then pulled out her phone and called Toni.

  Toni answered the phone with the clamor of heavy machinery, air compressors, and shouting men in the background. “Wine Friday?”

  “Aren’t you something like eight months pregnant?” Megan went to her tiny office at the back of the warehouse, grabbed her purse, and headed for her car. The meeting with Nico was the last thing she’d had to do at the winery. “You can’t have wine.”

  “I’ll just sniff your glasses,” Toni said. “Call Katherine. I’m sure she doesn’t have anything going on. She and Baxter are hermits.”

  “True.” And it was likely that Toni was right. “Let me check with my oldest and Katherine. If Trina’s busy and Katherine’s free, I’ll come down, pick you up, and we can chill at the beach for a little while. Adam and Cami are at Rodney’s this weekend.”

  “And Trina didn’t want to join?”

  “Ha. I’ll call you.”

  Toni was well aware that Megan’s nineteen-year-old daughter, having recently graduated from high school and under no further legal obligation to visit her father, would have nothing to do with him at all unless her younger brother and sister begged her.

  Her oldest had stayed on the coast after high school to take a gap year and do an internship at the local marine-research institute, but Megan suspected it was more to help her younger siblings through their parents’ divorce.

  Still, if you had to pick a place to spend a gap year, Trina’s new hometown wasn’t a bad place to be.

  Moonstone Cove was a tiny city in Central California, a spot nestled in the curve of the rocky coast that crawled into the sunbaked hills of Central California where grapes dominated the landscape, producing some of the best wines in the state. There was a state college at Moonstone Cove where Katherine and her husband Baxter both taught and an oceanic research institute at the tip of North Beach. There were golf courses and a
thriving agricultural community, and many of the members liked having very fancy parties.

  And Megan was there to plan them.

  She quickly called her daughter. “Hey, honey! What do you have going on tonight?”

  “Hey, Mama. I’m probably just gonna stay in; I’m pretty whipped. We were cleaning the boat today.”

  “How fun and glamorous the yachting life must be.”

  “Research vessels are the most glamorous ever,” Trina said. “Especially the barnacles.”

  Megan smiled. “I was going to head over to Katherine’s with Toni. You good for dinner?”

  “I already grabbed a burrito on the way home. I’m gonna eat and fall asleep in about five minutes.”

  “Sounds like a full night. Love you, baby girl.”

  “Love you too.”

  She’d thought about returning to Atlanta as her oldest would be doing for college in the fall, but Megan had decided that running back to Georgia felt too much like letting Rodney win. Plus Adam and Cami had taken to life in California like ducks to water. They’d quickly made friends and settled into a smaller school. Cami was learning to surf, and Adam was happy to be playing on the high school’s basketball team, which he’d never been competitive enough to make back at their mammoth school in Atlanta.

  Despite his easygoing demeanor, Adam was the one she worried about most. He was seventeen and would be graduating soon but seemed to have no idea what he wanted to do despite having amazing grades and good extracurricular activities. Trina had been headed toward studying biology since middle school, and at fifteen, Cami was shaping up to be Megan’s dreamy and artistic child. She was already looking at art schools in Northern California.