Mr. Reid approached then and wrapped an arm around his wife’s waist. “We need to go back to the house now—our guests will be waiting.”
“Yes, of course.” Mrs. Reid released my hand and surprised me by hugging me. “You’re special, my dear. Thank you for sharing this with me.”
My breath hitched as I forced myself not to fall to pieces in her arms. She backed away and Mr. Reid led her from the room. I sighed, taking one glance at Kipp before I raised my hands to my face and burst into tears. Maybe my breakdown had been inevitable and possibly even long overdue.
A cold breeze swept across my shoulders. “It kills me that I can’t hug you right now.”
I dropped my hands and looked at Kipp. “It can’t kill you—you’re already dead.”
He frowned. “That’s not funny.”
“Why are you crying?” a sweet voice startled me.
I spun around to see a girl no older than thirteen, of Latino decent. Long dark curls rested against her Taylor Lautner t-shirt.
“Hi. I’m Clara and I’m a ghost. Isn’t that so cool?”
Teens—they were so unbelievable when it came to death. Every single one found it exciting and was always truly thrilled to hear they were beyond the grave. I shook my head at the insanity of such logic. “If you say so, kid.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Clara,” Kipp said.
I could have prolonged this, waited for her to find some resolve to ask the question she needed to, but I wanted to get out of here and go home. My emotions were raw, so I didn’t waste any time there. “Do you remember what made you a ghost?”
Clara’s brow furrowed and a good minute passed before said, “The last thing I can remember was water and screaming.” She paused before her mouth dropped open. “I remember now, I drowned.”
I looked at Kipp then and he studied Clara intently. He saw for the first time what I’d told him. Most ghosts didn’t remember the event that took their lives like he did. I still hadn’t quite figured out how he knew so much, but I planned to, eventually. For now, my only worry was getting out of here and into my comfy bed. “Do you remember how you drowned?” Maybe she needed to reconcile what happened to her. Maybe that’s why she couldn’t cross over and had been stuck here at the church.
She bowed her head as if being scolded by a parent. “My friend Maggie and I were playing near a dam. There were signs warning us to stay out of the water, but we went in anyway.”
“Accidents happen,” Kipp said.
Clara shrugged and glanced up, and despair held strong in her gaze. “When I swam out, a current caught me and pulled me down into the dam. The last thing I remember is hearing Maggie screaming my name.”
“But she never tried to help you?” Kipp asked.
Clara shook her head. “She was scared—I could hear it in her voice. I guess she left me and swam back to shore.” She hesitated for a long moment, then her eyes lit up with excitement. “I think that might be why I’m still here.”
“For Maggie?” I asked.
She nodded. “I’m sure of it. I think it’s because she feels bad about not trying to save me.”
Okay, maybe this wouldn’t be so hard after all. “So you think if you tell her it wasn’t her fault, then you’ll be able to cross over to heaven?”
“It’s gotta be.”
I sighed, realizing that my dream of going home remained out of reach. I glanced at Kipp. “And so it begins—again.”
“If it’s never stopped,” he replied with the arrogance that was his way. “You’re just finally accepting it.”
“What begins?” Max asked.
I looked over my shoulder to see him and Zach approaching. “Oh, just another ghost needs saving.”
“Here? In the church?” At my nod, Max’s gaze turned probing. “And do you plan on helping this ghost?”
Did I? Even if the girl wasn’t so young, which would make my guilt force me to help her, I realized that Kipp had been right. My gift had been my life since the accident and I couldn’t deny it any longer. Maybe I had even more of an investment in it all now. How could I ignore ghosts when I loved one?
I waved Clara forward. “Come on. Let’s go find Maggie and make her feel better about it all.”
She bounced up and down. “Goodie.”
“Does that mean we’ll see you at the station tomorrow morning?” Zach asked.
Every pair of eyes zeroed in on me.
Is this my life now?
The ghost staring at me with adoration in his gaze confirmed it was. “Yes, I’ll be there. Well, after Dylan Cobb hands me my ass for quitting, that is.”
Kipp grinned. “Not to worry. If anyone is to issue a punishment, I’ll order you to do it so I can watch you spank that sexy ass of yours.”
Ah, dirty talk!
Life had finally returned to normal. Well, my totally messed-up normal.
About the Author
Stacey Kennedy’s novels are lighthearted fantasy with heart-squeezing, thigh-clenching romance, and they even give you a good chuckle every now and again. But within the stories you’ll also find fast-paced action, life-threatening moments and a big bad villain who needs to be destroyed. Her urban fantasy/paranormal and erotic romance series have hit Amazon Kindle and All Romance eBooks bestseller lists.
Stacey welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email address on her
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