A Ghost of the Past

by Mary Goldberger

  “Cordial,” Ray said putting a hand on his arm and he turned to her with a grimace.

  “You two don’t have to stay here with us,” Cordial said sitting down on an empty chair. “I will call you when they say she can leave.”

  Ray went to say something until Todd put a hand around her waist and she looked up at him as he shook his head.

  “Okay,” she said resigned. “Please call us when you two are ready to leave.”

  Cordial nodded his head as he stood up to give her a kiss before giving Todd a nod.

  He sat back down in the chair to wait for as long as he needed too.

  A few hours later, Barry and Tad came in followed by Mark, Pauline and Shane. Cordial jumped up from the chair he had been sitting in when they entered.

  “Cordial, how is Shay doing?” Pauline asked as the others walked by him.

  Cordial scowled as he said, “I don’t know. They took her back to an interview room as soon as we got here.”

  “Cordial,” she said sharply catching his attention and he snapped his attention to her.

  “I am sorry, Pauline,” he said as he clenched his fists, “I am just worried about Shay.”

  “So am I,” she said with a sad smile before they sat down on the bench that Cordial avoided earlier.

  They had to wait another hour before Shane came storming out with an angry expression on his face.

  “Shane,” Pauline began, but Shane stormed right past her without stopping.

  Cordial frowned at his departing back as another voice said, “He is just upset because there is nothing to hold Shay on although we going to ask her not to leave the county.”

  Cordial and Pauline turned to see Deputy Parker standing there with an angry look on his face.

  “Tad, is Shay okay?” Pauline asked him and he turned his attention to her with a slight smile.

  “Yes, she should be out in a minute with Mark and Barry,” he replied although they could tell that he was a little distracted.

  In the office, the Sheriff and Mark were standing as Shay sat in a chair.

  “Shay,” Mark said hesitatingly, and Shay looked at him with sad eyes. He sighed as he said, “We need to talk about something, but it can wait until this is cleared up.”

  “Okay,” she said nodding her head.

  The Sheriff shook his head as he said, “Shay, go home and get some sleep. I will be by tomorrow to talk with you more.”

  Shay nodded her head again as she got up, and they led her out of the office to where the others were standing.

  “Shay,” Cordial said stepping forward and Shay walked right into him as he enclosed her in his arms.

  “Can I take her home now?” he asked looking at the Sheriff.

  He nodded his head, but said “I will be out tomorrow to talk to her more.”

  Mark said, “We will give you a lift home, Cordial.”

  “I need to call Ray and let her know,” Cordial said as he nodded his head in agreement.

  They headed to the car after Shay gave Barry her assurance that she was not leaving town at the moment. The car ride was silent as Mark headed to Cordial’s house where Ray and Todd were waiting. Cordial had called her before they left the station, and she said they would wait at the house until they got there.

  Cordial frowned when he noticed Lucille’s car in the driveway.

  “I really do not want to deal with her tonight,” he muttered, and Pauline looked back at him before Shay said, “She is attracted to you, Cordial. Probably has been for a long time.”

  They all turned to look at Shay who had not said a word the entire trip and she turned her green gaze to them.

  “Shay,” Pauline said with a frown.

  “Maybe I am reading too much into her actions,” Shay said with a sigh. “It could be she is just looking out for Cordial thinking that Charity, or I, is not good enough for him.”

  Shay slid out of the car and the others followed suit although Cordial was immediately at her side again curling an arm around her waist as they went into the house.

  “Shay, are you okay?” his dad asked as they entered.

  “Fine, Vincent,” she answered with a small smile, but Cordial was not buying it.

  “I am happy that all you stopped by to see how Shay is doing, but I am going to insist that you all leave now,” Cordial said bluntly.

  “Cordial,” Lucille began but she was cut off by her husband who said, “I understand Cordial, but can you come by the day after tomorrow?” Vincent would rather talk to him tomorrow but he figured one more day was not going hurt anything besides he thought to himself looking at Shay, Cordial, and Shay needed some time to be alone.

  Cordial nodded his head as he knew that it was time for him and his father to have that heart-to-heart.

  “I will come and stay with Shay,” Pauline suggested.

  “Thank you, Pauline,” Cordial said with a smile as Shay nodded her head.

  “Talk to you later, Shay,” Ray whispered as she gave her a hug. They all said there goodbyes and as the door shut, Cordial looked at Shay.

  She held back the tears as long as she could so she said quickly, “I am going to take a shower, Cordial” and headed up to her room. As she reached her door, she stopped then turned heading down to Cordial’s room. She needed him tonight whatever he could give her.

  She took a shower and allowed herself to cry for Jessica, and all that she suffered. Her tears were calming down as the water cooled down and she turned off the water. She stood there a few more minutes before she climbed out not bothering to dry off, but wrapping the towel around her.

  She entered the room just as Cordial opened the door.

  She stopped as he walked in and closed the door behind him.

  “Are you okay?” he asked softly staring at her as she clutched the towel to her.

  “I am f…” she began but stopped when he snapped at her, “Don’t feed me that bullshit.”

  He stepped forward and grabbed her by the arms pulling her into his body his silver eyes staring down into her wide green ones, “I want you to be honest with me.”

  He watched as tears rolled down her face as she whispered, “I felt so damn useless as she took her life. I could have stopped her, I know I could have, but I let her talk until it was too late.”

  She looked up at him, “By coming here, I only caused her more hurt and pain. She lived with it as soon as she married her husband, but I added to it.”

  “Shay,” Cordial said on a groan, “Jessica had these problems before you arrived here. I don’t know everything that she told you and I hope that you will tell me when you are ready, but I think you being here only brought it to the surface instead of it festering and letting it destroy her more.”

  “She was dying, Cordial,” Shay revealed as she leaned her head against his chest.

  “What?” he said in shock.

  She tilted her head back to look into his eyes, “She told me she was dying of stomach cancer and her husband did not know about it. There is going to be an autopsy on her from what the Sheriff was telling me so if she was telling me the truth which I don’t doubt then they will find it.”

  He closed his eyes at the news and he said softly, “Poor Jessica.”

  Shay wrapped her arms around his waist as she snuggled her head on his chest. Then she said, “Would it be wrong if I asked you to make love to me tonight?”

  His breath caught in his chest at her words, “Shay…”

  “I know there are things we need to talk about and sort out, but for tonight can we just be a man and woman enjoying a normal relationship?” she said.

  “Please,” she whispered so softly that he had to lower his head down to hear her.

  “Oh, baby,” he said as he lifted her up into his arms. “Don’t beg me for anything, but I want to make sure that you will not regret it in the morning.”

  He walked until he had her pressed up against the wall so he could lift her face up and look into her eyes.

&n
bsp; “It would kill me if you regretted what we do tonight,” he said honestly.

  Shay smiled as she ran her hands through his hair, “Cordial, I love you. I have tried my hardest not to so that my heart won’t be broken when you realize that I can never replace Charity in your life.”

  Cordial opened his mouth to say that she did not need to replace Charity, but she placed a finger over his lips forestalling his words. She smiled at him, “I decided a while back that I was going to live for this time and deal with the broken heart later. After what happened about the hair thing, I was pissed and I thought for second, only a second, of leaving, but then I would miss you. I would miss out on knowing how it feels to make love with the man I love so I won’t regret this decision in the morning.”

  He ran his hands lightly down her slides as he stared into her green eyes and he whispered, “I will make sure that you will never regret it” as he pulled her away from the wall to walk over to the bed.

  He laid her down gently and Shay looked up at him with her eyes gleaming with apprehension. Cordial smiled at her as he leaned over her and kissed her gently before whispering, “Just so you know, I love you too.”

  Chapter 33

  Shay stretched as she slowly woke up and everything came back to her from the night before, and her eyes snapped open. Cordial was no longer beside her in the bed and she sighed as she remembered what happened.

  Flashback:

  “Just so you know, I love you too,” Cordial said after he kissed her gently.

  Shay’s eyes widened as she looked up into his silver ones, “Cordial, I did not…”

  He cut her off kissing her again before stepping back and walking away from her.

  “What?” she said sitting up clutching the towel as he came back to her with a pair of panties and t-shirt for her.

  “So that is why we are only going to sleep tonight,” he said handing her the clothes.

  She frowned at him in confusion and he said, “I want you so don’t even think that I don’t, but when we finally make love, and we will, I want you to only be thinking about me.” He leaned down and kissed her sweetly before he leaned back and whispered, “Also for us being a man and a woman, I have always seen you as a woman and you were NEVER a replacement for Charity no matter what you or anyone else thought.”

  He kissed her again then said roughly, “Go change” pulling her to her feet and pushing her to the bathroom again.

  She looked back at him and he smiled at her winking, and she could not help, but laugh as she went to go change.

  End of Flashback

  She slid out of the bed and headed for the bathroom. Five minutes later with her bladder emptied and her face washed, she got into a pair of shorts and tank top leaving her feet bare she headed out of the room. She headed downstairs noticing that the living room was emptied and headed for the kitchen.

  Cordial was in front of the stove scrambling eggs as she entered.

  “Good morning,” she said shyly, and he glanced over at her.

  His eyes looked her over before he winked at her saying, “Good morning, gorgeous.”

  She laughed and blushed at the same time that Cordial blinked before his silver eyes narrowed as passion filled them. He sat down the spatula before walking over to Shay and pulling her into his arms kissing her passionately that Shay gasped at the intensity.

  He pulled back breathing hard and Shay was gasping as if she had been running, and then she took a deep breathe before she said, “Well, I definitely would like to wake up to that every morning.”

  He chuckled as he kissed her again before he went back to the stove to save the eggs.

  They sat down to breakfast and Cordial looked at her as he picked up his fork, “So tell me about your time at the orphanage.”

  Shay looked up at him in surprise, “Do you really want to know? What about your work?”

  “Yes, I do,” he said answering her first question, and the taking a forkful of eggs, he said with a gleam in his eyes, “I am on vacation right now for a few days so we are going to use them wisely. Talk to me.”

  Shay looked at him for a moment then sighing in defeat, she began to eat and tell him about her time in the orphanage.

  They had finished breakfast and were drinking their second cups of coffee when Shay stopped talking.

  Cordial looked at her as he sat his cup down, “Your childhood left something to be desired.”

  Shay shrugged her shoulders as she got up to clear the table, “There were over thirty children in the orphanage and not enough time for every single one of the children. As for me, after we learned that I had been sick when I was born, it explained some things about why I was never adopted.”

  Cordial sighed as he reached out and grabbed her hand pulling her into his lap.

  “I am sorry,” Cordial whispered kissing each cheek before kissing her lips.

  “For what?” she asked softly as he pulled away only to lean back in for another kiss.

  “That your childhood was crappy,” he said honestly, and Shay smiled.

  “It could have been worst. I had a few close calls, but it made me stronger than I would have been otherwise.”

  “And more cautious,” Cordial stated, “You do not trust easily.’

  Shay looked at him with bright green eyes, “When you never had much to look forward to, you tend to be open for almost anything which tends to leave you open for more hurt. If the orphanage taught me anything is that trust is something earned not just given so easily.”

  She leaned forward and kissed him, “I trust you although you have the ability to break my heart into a million pieces.” With that said she climbed off his lap and finished clearing the table.

  “Since you made breakfast, I have to do the dishes,” she stated as she began filling the sink and he laughed. He stood up to get another cup of coffee before he leaned against the refrigerator.

  “So what do you want to do today?” he asked and Shay threw him a surprised look.

  She frowned as she said, “The Sheriff said he was coming over today to finish talking with me.”

  He noticed the frown as he suggested, “How about I go to the store and rent some movies, and order a pizza later since we never got to actually eat the last one we ordered.”

  Shay nodded her head, “Sounds good although are you sure you won’t be bored?”

  “Doubt it,” Cordial stated as he finished his coffee and handed her the cup, “I will be spending the day with you.”

  Shay laughed at that and she finished the dishes as Cordial went into the living room.

  “Any suggestions of what kind of movies you would like to see?” he asked as she came into the room. He was putting his wallet in his back pocket and he had his keys in his hand, and then he grabbed his cell.

  “You can choose but no horror,” she said shivering, “I am really not in to horror.”

  His eyes were silver with laughter as he said with a smirk, “But horror gets the heart pumping and the blood rising.” Shay narrowed her green gaze at him and he laughed.

  “All right, I will stay away from the horror, this time,” he said coming over to her and pulling her tightly against him as he whispered, “I like the idea of you snuggling up against me because the movie will make you jump.”

  Shay gasped as she looked up at him, “Pervert.”

  He laughed again kissing her senseless before walking to the front door.

  “Cordial O’Ryan,” Shay growled and he turned back to see her eyes were clouded with lust.

  Cordial winked at her as he said, “See you in a little bit. If the Sheriff arrives before I get back, give my cell a ring.”

  She nodded her head as he blew her a kiss and walked out the door.

  Shay shook her head to clear it from the lust that he had created with just one kiss. She closed her eyes to steady herself, but an image of Cordial flashed before her eyes in his stone-washed jeans and t-shirt that clung to his lean frame emphasizing the muscles that he h
ad, and she felt herself imagining him naked which caused her to imagine other things.

  “Get your head out of the gutter, Shay Montgomery,” she muttered to herself as she began to make herself busy straightening the house. She decided since they were staying in and he had suggested ordering pizza that she would make the dessert although her mind was thinking of something else entirely as she scanned the cupboards.

  Then she smiled as a thought hit her and she began to take out what she needed to make a chocolate cheesecake. “Damn,” she said when she realized she was missing one ingredient and she ran up to her room to get her cell.

  She dialed Cordial’s number as she walked back down to the kitchen.

  “Hello,” she heard him answer and in the background she heard what sounded like Lucille.

  “Cordial,” she said hesitatingly.

  “Shay,” she heard him say tensely, “Is the Sheriff there?”

  “No, I was just wondering if you could stop off at the store and pick up some semi-sweet chocolate chips,” she asked biting her lip.

  Cordial who had been tensed when he had ran into Lucille in the movie renter’s store, frowned as he asked, “Shay, what are you making?”

  He heard her mutter, “I wanted it to be a surprise, but I am making a chocolate cheesecake and we have the other ingredients including the packages of cream cheese.”

  He smiled as he knew she rolled her eyes at that, “I like cream cheese.”

  “Five packages,” she asked laughing.

  “There was a special,” he said with a shrug of his shoulders although he knew she could not see him.

  She laughed again and he smiled for he loved her laugh.

  “So is that all you need?” he asked scanning the shelf before picking up one last movie.

  “I think that is all unless you would like for me to make a salad with the pizza you are going to order,” she asked.

  “No,” he stated as he nodded his head at Lucille and headed to the counter. “Make the cheesecake but that is all you do for the day other than relax.”

  “Too late,” she said quietly.

  “Shay,” he warned as he sat the DVDs down on the counter.