Chaste Kiss (8 page)

"Really? Well, I'm glad to hear it.” Susan dropped her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “I never said anything, but I always thought the two of you weren't right for each other."

"Maybe the witch has some sense after all,” William mumbled.

"Would you be quiet?” Isabel whispered out of the corner of her mouth. How was she supposed to carry on a conversation with him making comments like that? Susan was bound to think she'd hit the windshield hard enough to make her daft.

"Perhaps we could ask your uncle to turn down the volume? It's very distracting,” Susan said.

"Just try and ignore it.”
Or him
. She certainly was.

"Very well.” Susan sighed dramatically. “Isabel, I have to ask you. Would it bother you terribly if Chad and I started seeing each other? If it would, you just say the word and that's that, but since you don't seem to want him back, I thought perhaps..."

"Go for it, Susan. You two are perfect for each other.” Boy, were they ever. Both superficial and self-centered, neither had a caring bone in their bodies.

"Marvelous. I knew you'd be sensible about this.” Susan jumped up from her chair and whirled around the room, rambling on about the goings on in High Point.

"She seems to be absent her broom,” William muttered.

"If you don't shut-up, I'll send you to Purgatory myself."

He chuckled and moved away. Although relieved the scathing remarks had stopped, Isabel still couldn't understand why he allowed Susan to hear him. Had he just stopped caring who heard him, or was he trying to frighten her off?

She looked back at Susan, prepared to continue her useless conversation, when she found William doing more than just allowing her to hear him.

The rake blew out the flame of Susan's lighter each time she brought it to her cigarette. After about the tenth time, she gave up, mumbling something about the lighter being defective, then strolled to the bar to fix a drink. Isabel thought she could use one herself when William decided to lend Susan a hand.

The devilish look on his face as he knocked the ice cube from the tongs each time she lifted one from the crystal bucket made Isabel grin a tiny bit. She shouldn't encourage him, but he was so adorable. Like some mischievous little boy.

With a curse, Susan grabbed the ice with her hands from the counter and quickly dropped them in her glass, then lifted the bottle of club soda and started to pour. William glanced across the room at her with his brows raised and a crooked grin on his face.

Isabel shook her head vaguely. He wouldn't. Surely not.

He did.

Jiggling the bottle ever so slightly, he made it appear as if Susan had a bad case of the shakes, spilling soda all over the counter. Practically slamming the bottle down, she apologized for making a mess.

Isabel rushed to her side. “Don't worry about it. Accidents happen.” She went about sopping up the spill with a bar towel. “Why don't I pour for you?” she asked, praying William wouldn't interfere. If he did, she'd consider finding her own curse to bestow upon his not so noble brow.

Carefully, Isbel poured the club soda then firmly locked Susan's hands around the glass. Unfortunately, William decided to help again. The moment she lifted the drink to her lips, he poured it down the front of her dress.

With a shriek, Susan shoved the glass back at her. “That wasn't very funny."

Isabel grappled to catch the glass. “Me?"

Snatching the towel from the counter, Susan dabbed frantically at her dress. “If you're that upset about Chad, why didn't you just say so?"

"I'm not upset about Chad.” Isabel clenched her teeth, holding in the other things she desperately wanted to say.

With a superior sneer, Susan clasped her perfectly proportioned waist with her perfectly manicured hands. “I knew it. You're jealous. You don't want me to have Chad. Well, that's too bad. He's mine now, and I'm not giving him back."

That did it. She'd had enough. Susan only saw her when she wanted something, and this time it was her ex-boyfriend with a guarantee of no competition. So much for friendship.

"You can have him.” Isabel slammed the glass on the counter. “I wouldn't take him back if he were the last man on earth."

"Oh, don't try to pretend, you're just wasting your breath."

"Well, let's not waste anything else.” Grabbing Susan by the arm, she dragged her to the front door. “It's been fun, Susan, let's
not
do this again. Ever!” With a hefty shove, her dear old college roommate went sailing out the door.

She grabbed her side at the pronounced twinge, but it was worth it. After slamming the door closed, she stormed back into the library.

"Front and center, Lord William.” She stood firm, her arms akimbo.

William appeared, casually leaning against the bar with a roguish grin teasing his lips and a heart-stopping twinkle in his eyes. Why did the man have to be so gorgeous?

She shook off that thought as quickly as it came. “That was not funny."

He gave a hearty chuckle. “Oh, sweet Isabel, I found it most enjoyable."

She stomped up to him, waving her finger in his face. “You are the most reprehensible man I've ever known!"

"Ah, but you love me still.” With a hand across his heart, he winked.

"Oh!” She spun around, waving her hands in the air. “Why did you let her hear you? Do you want to be discovered? Do you want this house crawling with nutty ghost hunters?"

Her anger suddenly evaporated as the reality of what might have happened occurred to her. Slowly she turned back around. “What if she'd touched you?"

"Nay, she could not. I cannot be touched unless I take on this solid form.” He crossed to stand before her. “I would not risk never seeing you again."

He was so close she could swear she felt heat emanating from him, but that was impossible. “You moved the bottle. You knocked the ice cube out of the tongs."

"'Tis an energy I use to move things when invisible. Just as I did the day that miscreant laid his hands upon you. I was in no danger."

"You mean like the energy I feel when you're near me?” Thoughts of what else he could do with that energy sent a pulsating heat throughout her body—a heat she was forced to ignore.

"Aye."

Grinning, she let out an unsteady breath and shook her head. “What am I going to do with you, my lord?"

A sensual spark ignited in his eyes as the corner of his mouth quirked up rakishly. With a slow, sexy wink he vanished.

Her heart permanently lodged in Isabel's throat. No amount of swallowing could move it. He was just teasing her, right? He couldn't possibly be thinking—no, not possible. Not when he looked the way he did, and she looked the way she did.

She puffed out a breath as she folded her arms across her chest. Men like William, gorgeous, charming men, weren't interested in ordinary girls like her. But he had insinuated that he wanted to touch her—intimately—the night before.

"I take it you and Susan aren't exactly friends anymore."

She jerked around at the sound of her uncle's voice, still flushed from head to toe because of a handsome rogue with teasing eyes and an incredible smile. “No. I'm afraid not."

"You okay with that?"

She cleared her throat, still working on getting her heart back down into her chest where it belonged. “Yeah. She and I never really hit it off anyway."

"Well, maybe this will cheer you up.” He dangled a set of keys in front of her. “Want to go for a ride?"

"Ride? My car's fixed?"

"No,” he said solemnly. “It was totaled. So, I bought you a new one."

"Uncle Jerome, you shouldn't have done that. I'm sure the insurance would have left me enough to get something."

"Doubtful, considering how old that car was. You wouldn't have hit the windshield if there had been air bags and decent seatbelts in the blasted thing."

"I know. I thought about that myself, but I couldn't afford one.” She was lucky she had enough money after her parents died to pay for college. She often wondered what they were going to do when it ran out.

Jerome sighed. “You should have come to me. You know I would've helped you."

She smiled and shook her head.

"Well, you don't need to worry about it now,” he said. “So do you want to go for a spin before lunch?"

"You're on.” She kissed him on the cheek and snatched the keys. Fresh air would clear her mind and cool her hormones.

As they reached the garage, her mouth fell open. Her new car was a pretty little convertible in bright cherry red. “It's beautiful. But I guess I won't be toting around any antiques in this thing."

"Not unless you ride with the top down, and then I doubt you'd get much in the passenger seat."

Laughing, they got into the car and headed down the drive. The spring air felt wonderful against her face. The wind whipping through her hair cleansed her mind of the frightening thoughts she had of losing William to an accidental touch, but not those other thoughts. And especially not the look in his eye right before he vanished.

Clutching the steering wheel tighter, she thrust the car into gear. Never had she ever experienced so much sexual frustration. Oh, there'd been a time or two when she'd almost given in to the urges over the years, but that something always held her back. But this time that something didn't seem to be doing squat, and she wasn't sure how to deal with it.

"Take it easy. This isn't a race, you know,” her uncle said.

She smiled, forcing herself to relax and let the hum of the motor soothe her, seeing as it was her only alternative. Wasting a glorious spring day when the mountains were beginning to come to life with spring, would be a sin. If only William could be next to her now. He would get an absolute kick out of riding in a convertible.

She wondered if he'd ever been in a car. Surely when the bed was moved he ventured out of hiding. On second thought, that wouldn't have been much fun. The back of a moving van was probably all he'd ever seen.

Wherever the bed went, he went.

An idea popped into her head. Did the entire bed have to go, or only part of it?

The thought lingered as their trip around town and back turned out to be more than a joy ride. Stopping on Main Street, they peered through the windows of an empty storefront and took down the name of the realtor. It had a great deal of promise. There was a second floor and a large awning in front with two large side windows flanking the front door. Perfect for displaying furniture and design themes.

They continued their tour of downtown and drove past the others Isabel had found advertised earlier in the week, yet none intrigued her as much as the one they'd stumbled upon. She also noticed the closest thing to an antique shop was a consignment store on Third Street. And as for a local decorator, the only one was more than an hour's drive away in the next town.

"I hope this is a good sign and not a sign that a shop like mine wouldn't make it,” Isabel said.

"We'll do a little digging on the history of businesses in town. Maybe we'll find that there hasn't ever been one."

She nodded in agreement and they headed for home.

Constance had lunch ready for them when they walked into the kitchen. They talked more about the vacant store they'd seen, and her uncle said he would make the necessary arrangements to see inside the place.

After their meal, both Jerome and Constance insisted Isabel go rest, and practically shoved her out of the kitchen. She had a sneaking suspicion they wanted to be alone, and oddly enough, neither of them seemed to be aware of the other's intentions.

Not wanting to interfere with the natural course of events between her uncle and Constance, she climbed the stairs, taking a steadying breath with every step. She had to be calm and cool. The thought of seeing William again had her heart pounding and her palms sweating. An overwhelming need to touch him itched at her fingertips, but that wasn't an option. She had to get a grip on her wayward thoughts, and keep her hands to herself.

The moment Isabel opened the door, she felt his presence, but didn't see him as the sun was high, and the room was brightly lit. Deciding to let him appear if he wished, she went about preparing herself for an afternoon nap.

As she pulled off her shoes and yanked her neatly tucked blouse from her waistband to get comfortable, William slowly materialized lounging on the bed. He looked awfully rakish with a devilish gleam in his eyes. If she didn't know better, she could've sworn he was about to seduce her.

With a mental shake of her head, she went over and climbed onto the bed beside him. “I was wondering if you were going to join me."

He propped up on his elbow, matching her pose. “I was wondering when you were going to ask."

It felt odd sharing a bed with such a handsome man knowing nothing would ever come of it. Her heart sank lower. If only they could touch, but what then? Would she spend her life living and sleeping with a ghost? Even if they could touch, could they make love?

Good grief. What was she thinking? They were friends, and that was all they ever could be. She had to stop thinking of him as a man and remember he was a ghost and her friend. A friend she didn't want to live without.

"I'm sorry I lost my temper earlier. I was afraid I'd lose you,” she admitted softly.

"'Tis all right, sweeting. There will ne'er be ill feelings between us. Did you enjoy your outing?"

"Yes. Very much. I wish you could have gone with me. Have you ever been in a car?"

"Nay. Not as a passenger, but I have always wanted to.” He sighed heavily. “Alas, I cannot."

"You mean because of your short leash."

With a chuckle, he nodded his head. His smile always warmed her heart and other intimate regions of her anatomy.

Looking for a safe topic to get her mind off her body—and his—she asked, “William, do you think you're tied to the entire bed or just part of it?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I was wondering if we found a part of the bed we could carry around, you could go wherever you wanted.” She couldn't contain the hint of excitement in her voice.

"'Tis an interesting idea, but what part?"