Psychic Series Boxset: Books 1-3

by Lisa Freed

  But that was impossible. Adrian was a living man. Possessed by the spirit of his own uncle sure, but he couldn’t disappear as a ghost could. What in the world was going on?!

  It didn’t surprise me to see how shaky my hand was as I fished my keys out of my purse, but the lightheadedness did worry me. Slumping back against the seat in my Tahoe, my eyes closed and I willed myself to relax. I could handle this.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  After several minutes, I got myself together enough to feel safe driving. Despite it being October, it was still Rehoboth, the outlets were popular, and being around lunchtime that meant the roads were humming with people in search of food or bargains. I was on the alert, my eyes glued to the road the whole way home.

  Except I kept seeing ghosts. In cars as passengers or walking on the sidewalks. Stopped at a red light a bunch went flying past me on motorcycles! The growls of the cycles rumbled in my ears long after they were out of sight. What was different about this year than any other? Was I really losing it? Or had I been oblivious every year before now?

  Even worse, there was nobody I could ask. Victor might have been helpful, but he was gone. Aunt Prudy popped in and out whenever she felt like it so I could be waiting weeks until I saw her again. And I didn’t know anyone alive that could see spirits.

  Mateo.

  The helpful Greek psychic’s name brought about warm feelings in me that were harder to shake off than my uncharacteristic reaction to the increase in ghostly activity earlier. He could also see spirits, though he didn’t like to and somehow had been able to either ignore them or close himself off entirely to them. I wondered if odd things were happening in Greece too?

  I could call him. Lotte’s advice echoed in my head. Stubbornly I shook my head. Nope. He had made it pretty plain that we weren’t going to go past friendship in our relationship. And that meant I wasn’t going to be calling and bugging him over trivial things like an influx of ghosts. For all I knew, they were always here and I had just been missing them.

  Pulling into my garage, I couldn’t resist a last look at my hair in the rearview mirror before I got out of the truck. Nor could I stop the knowing look in my eyes. There was no way I had somehow been on a different schedule and missed seeing those ghosts before.

  Things got even weirder when I walked into the house and all three of my cats were lined up waiting for me. Agnes gave me a loud meow while Maverick and Daisy sat in silence, their yellow eyes large and focused on me.

  “Hey, crew, what’s up?” I asked then walked into the kitchen to investigate their food and water situation.

  Both bowls were full, not a single sliver of the blue bottom exposed so it wasn’t that. Cats will freak if they see the bottom of their food bowl, certain they are being starved or somehow deprived. Usually, all you had to do was shake it and cover the bottom and they were good to go. Silly puddies.

  I frowned down at the furry members of my family who had silently trailed behind me. I wished cats could talk in a language I understood. Something was clearly up and here I was clueless.

  HA! That summed up my life perfectly.

  Helen, my housekeeper, had been in and I saw a pile of mail that I must have forgotten to collect out of my mailbox stacked neatly on the breakfast bar. Judging from the size of the stack, I had been forgetting for a while. The weekly local paper was to the side of the envelopes so I grabbed that and a bottle of water from the fridge and went into the living room, plopping my butt down on the soft leather couch with a sigh.

  Agnes, my gorgeous tortie, hopped up next to me and settled down. Maverick and Daisy, having also followed, remained on the floor, standing like little guards. A tiny shiver danced up my spine. Something was going to happen.

  Cracking open my water, I was thankful I had swallowed before I looked at the front page.

  Mystery solved! In bold black.

  The fifty-year-old disappearance of Joey Burke has been solved and finally, his family has peace as his body will be laid to rest alongside his parents who sadly did not live to see the day.

  I scanned the rest of the article and jumped a little when I came to the part about Angel, Joey’s devoted girlfriend, being interviewed. I’m sure Angelo was shitting bricks over the whole thing. That made me howl a little. I had run into that trio a few months back at John’s firehouse’s carnival. He had asked me to “do my thing” and sadly my thing doesn’t always go smoothly.

  Joey, a teenage spirit, had latched onto me and demanded my help to get his girlfriend back. It turned out his girlfriend, Angel, was now in her sixties and had shacked up with his killer, Angelo, who not only had murdered Joey but also possessed some nasty gas that could clear a room in minutes. I couldn’t get his girl back but I was able to give him some peace by having his body found and his girl fully aware that he hadn’t run out on her all those years ago. I would have loved to have Angelo and his killer gas locked up to pay for his crimes but I was lucky to get away from that duo of geriatrics with my own skin intact! They had been planning to dispose of me during our last meeting. Craziness!

  After a few more chuckles at the article, I looked up and noticed that my silent guards were gone. Agnes was snoozing next to me peacefully. I stared down at her, thinking, had this all been about me reading the article?

  Cats! I never would figure them out. I ran my hand over Agnes’s silky soft fur and spent a few minutes paging through the rest of the newspaper. Nothing else was as exciting as that, but I did learn the dates of the Seawitch Festival, the local big to-do in Rehoboth. I’d lived here for two years but had yet to go. Maybe I would make a point of it this year.

  It was probably too late to somehow incorporate some Whisker Kisses action into the event, but how fitting would it be to teach people to stop being so fearful about black cats at a Halloween celebration? No harm in asking.

  On my way to the kitchen to retrieve my purse and the phone from within, I spotted Maverick at the food dish and the bum didn’t even acknowledge me when I leaned down to scratch at his ears.

  “Was all that about the article?” I asked, not expecting an answer. Not surprisingly, I didn’t receive one either.

  My hand was groping for my phone in the mess that is my purse when it began to vibrate and the familiar song started. Which reminded me I had to watch that movie again soon. I loved me some spaghetti westerns.

  To my shock, Mateo’s name flashed on the screen when I finally located my phone and pulled it out.

  As if he could see me, I ran a hand over my now glossy hair as I answered. “Hello?”

  “Hello yourself. It’s so good to hear your voice, Teresa.”

  The way my name rolled off his tongue had my toes curling up in my sneakers. The man just had an effect on me that I couldn’t explain.

  “Mateo, it’s great to hear you too,” I almost cooed into the phone. Shaking myself all over, I tried to get a handle on myself and my silly crush.

  “So, I know this is sudden, but I’m in D.C. on business and I was wondering if you could meet me for dinner in Baltimore?”

  “When?”

  “Is tonight too soon?”

  I flicked a finger on the screen to check out the time and did some fast, mental calculating. Good thing I already had my hair done!

  “Sounds perfect.”

  “That’s wonderful!” His voice cracked slightly and he cleared his throat briefly before continuing. “The harbor waterfront at five?”

  “Yes, I can do that,” I said even while kicking off my sneakers and racking my brain for what to wear.

  “Thank you so much. And, Teresa, I’m looking forward to seeing you again.”

  The way his voice went soft on the last word had me gripping my phone and fanning myself with my other hand.

  I gulped before I was able to reply. “Me too. That is, I look forward to seeing you.”

  He laughed. “Bye, Teresa, until tonight.”

  “Bye,” I said and watched the phone disconnect. I almost floated up to my ro
om.

  Once there I quickly snapped into action. Baltimore was almost three hours away and I would be facing some major rush hour traffic. Then I came to a stop, my top halfway off and my jeans unsnapped. We hadn’t discussed restaurants or anything. After driving, would we feel like sitting around for half an hour or more waiting on a table? I sure wouldn’t.

  I grabbed my phone from my bed where I had tossed it and let my shirt drop back down.

  “Baltimore Cheesecake Factory,” I said into my phone and the number popped up. As I waited for someone to pick up on the other end, I walked into my closet to decide on something to wear.

  The phone was answered by a cheerful sounding lady who didn’t miss a beat in telling me that they didn’t accept reservations.

  Dang it!

  I could call around to other places but if I was driving to the waterfront, I wanted to eat there. I’m stubborn like that.

  My best option was to get there, put my name down, and text Mateo where I was.

  Like a whirlwind, I plucked out of my enormous closet a sexy black dress and some cute underthings. Then I paused. It was October and we would be out near the water in the evening when it was getting dark. When the breeze came across the harbor, things got chilly, fast. A dress might not be my smartest choice.

  Warm black leggings and a thick coat would help, as would a cover-up in the restaurant, but at that point why was I bothering to wear a dress. With a long-drawn-out sigh, I admitted that the dress would have to wait until another time. I put it back into the closet but near the front to remind me that I would wear it soon for Mateo.

  Then I got out jeans, a bright green top that I know did wonders for my eyes. I put on the cute matching bra and undies though because sometimes a girl wanted to feel sexy even if nobody else could see.

  Once suitably attired, I went into the bathroom to freshen up my makeup and almost did a doubletake. My hair really was on point! Thank you, Lotte! I said to my image with a wink.

  Then a thought struck me. Mateo always seemed to call after I had been to Lotte’s to get my hair done. Obviously, this was the universe telling me I needed to see her more often.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Flying through the house, giving kisses to little furry heads as I went, I got into my SUV and was pleased to see only fifteen minutes had elapsed between Mateo’s call and now. If my hair hadn’t already been picture perfect and my makeup mostly done, there would have been no way I could have accomplished this.

  I’ll admit I was feeling rather smug as I reversed out of my garage and backed into the road. No good ever comes from this and I was smacked back to reality when I saw Lance’s midnight black Range Rover roar down our quiet street and come to a screeching stop in his driveway.

  Being a total stalker, I paused where I was on the road and watched as a long-legged blonde emerged from the vehicle with him coming around to take her in his arms, both wearing huge smiles on their handsome faces. At least I imagined her face to be as attractive as the rest of her was. She wasn’t letting the weather dictate what she wore. Oh no, she was flaunting her tiny waist and tight butt in a skin-tight electric blue dress. Sleeveless too!

  I saw Lance’s hands cup her upper arms and pull her in for a kiss.

  Forget this! I accelerated and tore off past them keeping my eyes firmly on the road so I wouldn’t be tempted to stick my tongue out as I passed or worse yet, run them over.

  No clue what had come over me but I felt more myself by the time I reached DE One. Good thing too because traffic was sluggish and if I had still been in a mood I might have snapped. Instead, I cranked up my tunes and concentrated on not rear-ending the person in front of me.

  Despite giving myself plenty of time, it was nearing five when I finally made it into Baltimore. Pulling into the parking garage and grabbing my ticket, I felt glad I had gone with sensible sneakers over heels. I would have to really move if I wanted to make it to the harbor in time. Slowly circling upward as I hunted for an available space, my phone’s music switched off and I saw on the radio display Mateo was calling.

  I bit down on my lip in anticipation as my fingers pressed the answer button on my steering wheel.

  “Teresa?” His voice came through the truck’s speakers loud and clear and I might have moaned a little.

  I was crushing, hard.

  “Mateo?” I answered back, pleased that my voice sounded much steadier than I felt.

  “Hi, I’m here on the waterfront.”

  “Sorry, I’m still trying to find an open parking spot,” I got out just as I saw the flash of brake lights ahead of me. Yes! I flipped on my turn signal and stopped to wait for them to back out and free up a spot. “Might have one,” I muttered, watching their painfully slow process.

  “Is there a restaurant you want me to go to and put our names down at?” he inquired smoothly.

  “Cheesecake Factory,” came my rapid-fire answer.

  “Okay, I’ll be waiting for you there.”

  By the time I finally made it out of the parking garage, my phone said five fifteen and I picked up my pace. The cool breeze caused goosebumps to rise on my legs despite my jeans and I was thankful that comfort and sanity had won out over fashion. Hard to dazzle someone with your gams when they’re all bumpy!

  The place was packed, people sitting and standing in tight clumps waiting for tables. It was also rather warm and overwhelming with a heavy mixture of perfumes, colognes, and various food smells bombarding my nose. I felt my eyes begin to water and I prayed my eyeliner could withstand this assault.

  Standing on tiptoes I tried in vain to see Mateo. Being five foot four just plain sucked sometimes. I pulled out my phone to text him when the back of my arm was clutched. My first instinct was to elbow the heck out of whoever it was but I managed to restrain myself and glance over my shoulder instead.

  Mateo!

  His dark eyes sparkled with humor as his lips spread to reveal his white teeth, vivid against the dark whiskers on his face.

  “You grew a beard!” It sounded faintly accusatory and my hand smacked over my mouth in mortification.

  He merely laughed and rubbed a long-fingered, honey-brown hand along his jaw. “I was hoping it gives me a more serious look.”

  My eyes traveled upward to his unruly mop of inky black hair that looked better suited to a singer than a… I frowned, what did Mateo do?

  His smile diminished, the light leaving his eyes. “I hope that frown isn’t for me.”

  “No, well, kinda. But I like the beard.” And I did. Normally I wasn’t a big fan of facial hair, but it did work on him.

  “Good, why are we standing here talking? Come on, I have a table over there near the windows.” He took my hand and guided me through the crush of people and as we weaved through the occupied tables, I felt a sizzle run up my arm from our linked fingers.

  Looking down, I realized he was touching me and had grabbed my arm as well just a few moments ago. In Greece Mateo had rarely touched me, something I thought was because of our shared psychic abilities or just the need to keep some distance. I took this new intimacy as an amazing sign of good things to come.

  He held my chair out and gently nudged it in after I was seated, his hand resting on my shoulder the barest hint too long.

  When he took his place across from me, I suddenly felt more nervous than I had been in a long time. My fingers dived under the table to fidget in my lap away from his view. But I was unable to duck my head under the tablecloth and hide like I wanted to. What in the world had gotten into me? I had to get myself together and fast before I behaved like a colossal spaz and ruined whatever chances I had with him.

  The waiter appeared just as Mateo’s mouth opened, so thankfully, I was able to turn my attention away from his handsome face and give myself a hard, mental shake. Dan, our waiter, took our drink and appetizer order and was off.

  “About that frown?” Mateo pressed, obviously not having forgotten it or willing to let it go.

  A nervo
us laugh escaped me, overly loud to my sensitive ears, but easily lost in the constant noise of the diners in the restaurant. “I had just thought that I didn’t know what you do,” I said feeling somewhat lame.

  “I can’t really say due to the nature of it.”

  “Are you a spy?”

  Mateo busted out laughing, reaching for the water glass that Dan was placing in front of him. “A few minutes please,” he wheezed to the waiter, wiping moisture out of his eyes. When Dan had left, Mateo turned serious. “Nothing that interesting or romantic. I’m a personal assistant to a very powerful family.”

  He held up a hand before I even asked. “I can’t divulge their name or the nature of the work I do for them.” His face was serious but then he grinned. “But the business I’m here for, it should take a few weeks.” His large hands reached across the table toward my own, sandwiching one between the warmth of his. “I’ll have some free time, I was hoping I could spend it with you?” His dark eyes held mine captive and the world stilled.

  Yes! my mind screamed but an odd buzzing filled my ears. John’s voice spoke as clearly in my head as if he were next to me, “Be careful, T.”

  I felt my hand laying between Mateo’s heated palms and the urge to snap it back was great. Why was he so eager now? After being so hands off in Greece what made now different?

  It was then that I realized the heat that I took for Mateo’s was, in reality, my own, his palms were dry and cool.

  That gave me the strength to pull away, something he hadn’t been expecting judging by the quick flash of annoyance on his face.

  But it was gone so fast I might have been mistaken.

  “Teresa, I know you must be feeling all the uncertainty that I myself did in Greece.”