Love, Like Ghosts: A Bay City Paranormal Investigations Story

by Ally Blue

  He just hoped Greg would chalk up the sensation to heat of the moment and not expect it to be that good every time.

  Unless I’m this out of control every time we have sex.

  He let his conscious mind dance out of reach of the uncomfortable thought and sink back into the pure pleasure of the here and now—the hot living grip of Greg’s ass on his cock, the sweet sound of Greg’s cries, the smell of their sweat-slick skin, the way their bodies slid together when they moved. He didn’t want to think right now, only feel. It had been far too long since he’d had sex, and it had never been this good before. He wanted to enjoy every single second.

  Adrian had no idea how much time had passed when Greg’s moans changed pitch and his legs began to shake. “Oh, oh God, oh God, ohGodohGod…”

  Opening his eyes, Adrian nipped at the back of Greg’s neck. He angled his hips to hit Greg’s gland, jerking Greg’s cock as hard and fast as he could. Come on. Come on. Let me see you come. Let me feel your ass grab my cock and squeeze it hard. Part of him wanted more than anything to actually say it, but he’d just couldn’t. It felt dirty enough to think such things inside his head. He could never bring himself to voice them out loud.

  As if reading Adrian’s mind, Greg came with a great full-body shudder, sobbing Adrian’s name. Semen spilled in a warm, slippery flood over Adrian’s hand and pattered onto the futon. The feel of Greg’s insides undulating around his cock sent Adrian tumbling over the brink. He came with his prick buried deep in Greg’s ass and one hand still cupping Greg’s privates. His lips shaped a silent litany of yesyesyesyesyes against the hot, flushed skin of Greg’s back while his hips pumped out too many months’ worth of pent-up need.

  When his strength gave out, Adrian cinched his arms around Greg’s waist and took him down to the futon with him as he collapsed. They lay spooned together, panting, in a silence that didn’t feel at all uncomfortable.

  Neither moved until Adrian’s cock softened enough to slip from Greg’s hole. Greg snickered. “Feels weird.”

  “Mm.” Rolling onto his back, Adrian removed the condom, twirled it enough to keep the semen from spilling, then placed it carefully on the floor beside the futon before resuming his former position on his side. He snaked his arm around Greg and pulled him close. “This feels nice, though.”

  “Very.” Greg squirmed onto his other side, facing Adrian. He wrapped his arms around Adrian’s neck and threw a leg over his hips. A lazy, satisfied grin curved Greg’s lips. “Man, that was fantastic. Totally worth waiting for.”

  Adrian smiled, his cheeks heating. “Thank you. I agree, by the way. Sex has never been anywhere near that good for me before.”

  “Yeah? Cool.” Greg raked a hand through Adrian’s hair. “You did all the work, though. All I did was lie there and beg like a slut.”

  Laughing, Adrian shook his head. “Stop that. You were amazing.”

  Greg snorted, eyes sparkling. “Liar.”

  Adrian cupped Greg’s chin in his hand. “Didn’t I just promise I’d never lie to you?”

  “You did.” Greg studied Adrian’s face. “How many guys have you been with? Sexually, I mean.”

  Damn. Here it comes. They hadn’t discussed their sexual histories, aside from each proclaiming themselves to be disease free and agreeing to use protection anyway. In Adrian’s admittedly limited experience, most guys loved to brag about their prowess between the sheets and expected their partners to be just as experienced as themselves. Adrian knew he didn’t measure up, and he’d dreaded what might happen if Greg preferred a man with lots of notches on his bedpost.

  Adrian sighed. “One.”

  Greg’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline. “One?”

  “Yes.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yes.” Adrian gnawed his bottom lip. “Is that a problem?”

  Greg gaped at him for a moment, then burst out laughing. “No, it’s not a problem,” he gasped when he got himself under control. “I just can’t believe someone as good at sex as you are has only had one partner. You must’ve done nothing but fuck.”

  “Not really, no.” Adrian hunched his shoulders, feeling his face turn bright red as Greg’s grin widened. “Can we please not talk about that anymore?”

  “Okay, sure.” Scooting closer, Greg planted a gentle kiss on Adrian’s lips. “It’s so cute how you’re embarrassed by your natural talent.”

  “Shut up.” Adrian gave Greg’s butt a smack. “Not everyone has a natural talent they can be proud of.” He ran an invisible hand over the palm print he’d left on Greg’s rear and wondered if he’d ever be able to openly share that part of himself with Greg. He’d certainly never shared it with anyone else. Had never believed he’d be close enough to anyone outside his family to trust them with his greatest secret.

  “Mmmm.” Greg wiggled his ass against Adrian’s corporeal hand. “Speaking of which, I’m auditioning for the lead in the school production of Sweeney Todd week after next, will you come with me?”

  Surprised, Adrian nodded. “Of course.”

  “Great. Thanks.” Greg snuggled close, tucking his head beneath Adrian’s chin. “I just need the moral support, you know? I mean, I think I’m perfect for the part, acting-wise, but I’m nervous about having to sing. I know my voice isn’t the greatest. I’ve been working with a voice coach, and I’ve been practicing a lot, but still. I’m really nervous.”

  Adrian nuzzled Greg’s hair. “I’ve heard you sing a couple of times. You sounded fine to me.” It was true. Adrian had no idea what was involved in the role Greg was trying out for, but from what little he’d heard he saw no reason to think Greg couldn’t do it. And he knew for a fact Greg was a fantastic actor.

  “Thanks.” Greg kissed Adrian’s throat. The tip of his tongue dug into the hollow at the base, then traced the pulse point. “You know what, I think we’d better get dressed and go back to the party before I have to molest you again.”

  Adrian swallowed. Already, desire had his cock filling again. “I think you’re right.”

  Lifting his head, Greg covered Adrian’s mouth with his. The kiss went deeper this time, and it was all Adrian could do to keep himself from shoving Greg’s thighs apart and gulping his cock whole.

  Greg broke the kiss an endless time later. He stood and held his hands down to Adrian. “Come on. Let’s go.”

  Adrian let Greg haul him to his feet. They dressed in silence. Adrian tossed the used condom in the trashcan in the corner, then turned the futon over so the semen stain wouldn’t show. Greg laughed, but didn’t argue. They left the little room hand in hand and returned to the party, to the inevitable ribbing of their friends.

  It took Adrian nearly an hour to notice that the random power surges he’d been living with for the past couple of weeks appeared to have vanished, and he felt far more in control of his psychokinesis than he had at any time since he first met Greg.

  The revelation made him smile. He didn’t need a scientific reason to have sex, but it sure didn’t hurt.

  Chapter Ten

  The next afternoon, Adrian took advantage of the hectic post-haunted-house clean-up at Groome Castle to slip away and visit the tower room. It had been far too long since he’d felt Lyndon’s presence in his mind. He missed it. Besides, he’d made a promise to himself—and to Lyndon—to solve the mystery of Lyndon’s disappearance and bring peace to his restless spirit. Adrian couldn’t even begin to do that unless he made an attempt to reconnect with Lyndon’s ghost.

  Rain had rolled in that morning, shrouding the tower in watery gray gloom. Adrian chuckled as he walked into the room. The place had never really looked haunted to him until now.

  Of course, it didn’t feel haunted at the moment, which could be a problem. He wouldn’t have very long before Greg figured out he wasn’t anywhere downstairs and came looking for him. Not that he minded being found, especially if it meant a kiss like the one he’d gotten at Greg’s dorm when he went to pick him up earlier.

  The thought o
f it started a hot glow deep in Adrian’s belly. He pushed the memory of Greg’s mouth and hands and warm, pliant body ruthlessly to the back of his brain. Being found by Greg might be very nice indeed, but instinct told him that if Greg found him here it would be decidedly less than nice.

  A brief surge of guilt made his stomach roll. Sneaking away like this without telling Greg where he’d been felt a lot like lying.

  But it isn’t. Not really. Do you know every single place he goes every day? Of course not. And he doesn’t have to know every place you go either. You’re just dating, you don’t own each other.

  It was a logical enough argument to settle his disquiet somewhat. In any case, he didn’t have time to think about it right then. He needed to get a move on if he wanted to contact Lyndon and leave the tower before Greg could find out he’d been up here.

  Closing the door, Adrian moved to the center of the room and settled cross-legged on the floor. He took a moment to center himself, then relaxed his control over his psychokinesis. Lyndon’s welcoming energy eddied around him and flowed through his mind.

  Adrian smiled. “Lyndon? Are you here?”

  The air in front of him shimmered. He felt a pulse of power, but he knew right away it wasn’t strong enough. He forced back his disappointment. So what if Lyndon couldn’t manifest? Adrian was going to do his damnedest to communicate with him anyway. It would just take a little extra concentration.

  Shutting his eyes, he cleared his mind of all thought and let the patter of the rain ease him into a light trance. Lyndon’s warm energy pulsed in his skull. Adrian opened himself to it without trying to shape or direct it. Either Lyndon would talk to him, or he wouldn’t. Adrian had done all he could to establish a connection. The rest was up to Lyndon.

  For a while, nothing happened. Adrian waited, counting out three seconds for each inhale and three more for each exhale. His pulse beat a shade too quickly against his eardrums. He willed it to slow.

  The minutes passed, and Lyndon remained present, but silent. With time running out, Adrian allowed his conscious self to sink a bit deeper while his subconscious rose closer to the surface. It had the potential to make his psychokinesis stronger and therefore unpredictable, but he didn’t think it would be dangerous. He had no intention of letting himself fall that far from conscious control.

  Soon enough, it became clear that the whole thing was a moot point, since Adrian’s attempt to connect with Groome Castle’s resident spirit wasn’t working. The more Adrian reached out for Lyndon, the more he felt Lyndon’s presence slipping away. Frustrated and inexplicably sad, Adrian let himself emerge from his trance. He opened his eyes…

  …And cried out as a savage burst of energy slammed him flat on his back on the hard stone floor. He lay there gasping for breath and staring blindly into the middle distance as a series of images seared themselves into his brain…

  …The tower room, white and hunter green and pale gold in the early morning sun. A huge bed with the covers balled in the middle. The smell of sex, a feeling of happiness as vast as the Carolina sky…

  …Rain. Wind. Wet earth all round. So cold…

  …Cold, God, cold enough to freeze skin from bone. Powder-white covering the ground between the trees. Gray sky, low and threatening overhead. Handful of snow, molded into the perfect missile, tossed right into the center of a broad, black-wool-covered back. He turns, pale cheeks pink with cold, and the snowball in the face is worth it just for that beautiful smile and the sparkle in those blue eyes…

  …Blue flowers embroidered on a white collar…

  …White walls, narrow cot with a thin blue blanket, a wooden cross on the wall. Spare, Spartan, unlike the Castle, but it’s okay because it’s his room and that means privacy and entire glorious days alone, naked, in bed. Like now. He rolls over, smiles, opens his arms. He’s so lovely like this, his dark hair mussed with sex and sleep. One kiss, and the whole universe lights up in kaleidoscope colors…

  The vision ended as suddenly as it began, leaving Adrian blinking away a haze of tears. He’d seen the tender light in Cassius’s eyes via Lyndon’s memories of him, and he’d felt the answering swell of emotion in Lyndon’s heart. He knew what it meant, despite having never felt it himself.

  “Oh, my God,” Adrian whispered to the stained and chipped stone ceiling. “They were in love.”

  Two men. Lovers. In Chapel Hill, North Carolina in nineteen-oh-five, a time and place when such a thing would definitely have been frowned upon. It may have even still been illegal back then, Adrian wasn’t sure.

  He sat up, heart pounding. Could this explain why Lyndon vanished that night? Did he and Cassius run away together? No one talked about a boy named Cassius going missing, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. If Cassius had no family to raise the alarm, or if he told them he was leaving town—though probably not why—his disappearance might have passed more or less unnoticed.

  Of course, the existence of Lyndon Groome’s ghost made a happy ending to that scenario unlikely. Lyndon had died young and violently, and his phantom still haunted the Groome Castle tower room over a century later. That meant either he’d died right here in the tower, or something about this place had been important enough to him in life that it kept his spirit anchored here even after death. Judging by the visions Adrian had just experienced, he guessed the latter. Lyndon and Cassius must have spent enough time together in this room that it became a place of emotional importance to Lyndon. Adrian wondered if the rumor of Lyndon’s murder by thieves in the forest was true, and if Cassius had been killed along with him.

  The sound of high-pitched laughter from outside startled him out of his thoughts. He glanced at his watch and was surprised to see he’d been up here less than fifteen minutes. It felt like much longer.

  Rising to his feet, he shuffled across the floor on legs that felt weak and rubbery. His throat still ached with the threat of tears. What a terrible thing, to find the kind of love so many people only dream of, only to have it all torn away. No wonder Lyndon radiated such heartbreaking sadness.

  At the door, Adrian paused a moment to get hold of his rattled emotions. If Greg saw him looking like this, there would be awkward questions, and Adrian didn’t want that. He smoothed his rumpled shirt, raked his fingers through his hair and blinked rapidly until the lingering moisture dried from his eyes. As soon as his cheeks cooled and he felt in control of himself once more, Adrian descended the steps.

  A quick glance around showed the back hallway to be empty. Relieved, he hurried into the main hall. A steady stream of students moved in and out of the tremendous space, hauling the wooden frameworks outside to load onto the flatbed truck Marisa’s boyfriend had brought. Spotting Chelsea across the room struggling to lift one of the frames by herself, Adrian hurried over.

  “Hi, Chelsea.” He lifted the trailing side of the bulky structure. “Need some help with that?”

  “Oh my God, yes!” She beamed at him. “You’re a lifesaver, thank you.”

  “No problem.”

  They fell silent as they made their way through the foyer and outside. The rain soaked through Adrian’s clothes in seconds. As soon as they’d swung the frame onto the truck, Adrian retreated to the meager shelter of the doorway, shivering. “Damn. I wish I’d thought to wear my raincoat today.”

  Chelsea grinned. “Want to borrow mine?”

  He suppressed a shudder at the mental image of himself in Chelsea’s green-and-white polka-dotted jacket with the tiny bows decorating the sleeves and the rounded collar. “No thanks.”

  She laughed. “Fine, let male pride give you pneumonia.”

  “You don’t get pneumonia from getting wet. You get it from bacteria or viruses.”

  “Yeah, whatever.” She patted his dripping head. “I’m gonna go grab some coffee. You want some?”

  “No, thanks. I was just looking for Greg, actually.” Adrian frowned, realizing for the first time that he hadn’t seen Greg since well before he’d headed upstairs to the
tower room. “Have you seen him?”

  “He was out on the back porch a little while ago, I think.”

  “Oh, okay.” Adrian gave Chelsea a warm smile. “In that case, I think I’ll come with you and get a cup of coffee myself, since it’s on the way.”

  “Cool.” Chelsea looped her arm through his. They went back inside, heading for the large kitchen where the group had set up coffee and snacks to keep themselves fed and caffeinated while breaking down their haunted house and putting Groome Castle back to its normal state. “I think it’s so awesome that y’all are together now.”

  “So do I.” Adrian glanced at her as he led her into the narrow hallway branching off the foyer. “How did you know we’d…um, gotten together?”

  “Please, everybody knew the second you two walked out of the Love Room last night.”

  Adrian groaned, his face going red in spite of his attempts to keep his blush at bay. “Oh, hell.”

  She gave his arm a squeeze. “Don’t worry, I seriously doubt anybody thought anything of it other than ‘it’s about damn time.’ Well, except Erin, but c’mon, she already knew she didn’t have a chance with you.”

  Sighing, Adrian pushed open the kitchen door. “I swear, I’ll never get used to other people discussing my love life. It’s weird.”

  “Well, then, let’s discuss mine.” Chelsea let go of Adrian’s arm and made a beeline for the big metal urn on the counter. She took two Styrofoam cups from the stack, handed one to Adrian and began filling the other. “I asked Theo out, and he said yes.”

  “Seriously? That’s great!” Adrian gave her a one-armed hug before filling his own cup. “You doing anything special?”

  “Depends on what you call special, I guess. We’re gonna go to T.J.’s for dinner tomorrow, then go see Doombunny at Cat’s Cradle.” She stirred three sugars and two packs of creamer into her coffee, lifted the cup and took a sip. “We both love that band. It’s fate, I tell you.”