Ghost for Sale

by Sandra Cox

  “Just don’t say it.”

  “Right.” I shifted. My pants were damp and uncomfortable. Even my underwear was wet. “Who did you know that had a crush on Anna?”

  He stared at me. “A crush on Anna? Half the male population of Ruby Falls.”

  “Well that narrows it down,” I groused.

  “I see where you’re going. You’re right, of course.” His eyes narrowed, and he tipped his head, an arrested expression on his features. “Lass, I could kiss you.”

  “Promises, promises.” I flapped my hand in a dismissive gesture.

  “If I had a bit more form to me, I’d take that as a dare and accept the challenge.”

  My breath caught in my throat. My tummy muscles loosened along with my knees. My arms rose of their own accord. His features grew more defined and his scent grew crisp. Sanity returned with a thump. I had to quit flirting with the ghost. I stood up and picked at my sticky slacks. A warm breeze plastered the material back against my skin. “Well, since I’m going to have to be up at the crack of dawn to catch Mom, I think I’ll turn in.”

  “Good idea. Maybe I’ll just surf the television.” His eyes gleamed, and he rubbed his hands together.

  Men and their toys. “Keep the sound down.”

  “Don’t push the up arrow on the little stick. On the remote,” he corrected himself.

  “Very good.” My ghost caught on quickly. As we reached the house, I didn’t even bother with the door. Sure enough, it opened. I was getting way too used to this. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Good night, Caitlin.” He picked up the remote.

  “Good night.” I trotted to my room, shucked my clothes, and crawled into bed. Before I could formulate any plans for the next day, I fell asleep.

  * * * *

  The rich aroma of coffee woke me. Its damp heat tickled my nose. “Thanks, Marce,” I mumbled without opening my eyes.

  “You are welcome.”

  I jerked upright. The sheet fell to my waist. Liam and the coffee whisked to the other side of the room, his movements so smooth, the coffee didn’t even slosh over the side.

  “You fixed coffee for me.” A warm glow tingled somewhere between my heart and my tummy.

  “I read the directions.” He averted his face as we talked.

  I’d slept in my white lacy cami. Thank goodness my thong was covered. I pulled the sheet up and tucked it around my breasts.

  He gave me a quick glance, cleared his throat, and brought the coffee cup and saucer back. No cream. I took a cautious slip. No sugar either. I bit hard on my lips to keep from screwing up my face. “Thank you.” I’d just slip into the kitchen and make it drinkable when Liam’s attention was elsewhere.

  “What if Marcy had seen that cup floating into my bedroom?” I shuddered. It didn’t bear thinking about.

  “She’s sleeping like the dead.”

  I glanced around. My room was still dark. “What time is it?”

  “Six o’clock.”

  “Six o’clock? As in six in the morning?” The cup and saucer in my hand rattled.

  “Didn’t you want to get an early start? I thought about waking you earlier, but you were sleeping so peacefully I hated to bother you.”

  “Don’t you ever sleep?”

  “I’ve been sleeping for over a hundred years,” he reminded me.

  “Good point.” I set down my coffee, the better to clutch my sheet. “Now if you’d scoot on out of here, I’ll get dressed. Thanks again for the coffee.”

  “You’re welcome.” He gave me the blinding smile that always made my breath catch before he turned and, without opening it, walked through the door.

  “Don’t think I’ll ever get used to that.” I threw back the sheet and made my way to the bathroom. Thank goodness the bedroom was an actual suite so I didn’t have to go stumbling down the hall.

  Once I’d relieved my bladder, I went into my little study in search of cream and sugar for my coffee. I pulled open the top drawer of my desk and grabbed a sugar packet and a small bottle of dry creamer, doctored my coffee, and sipped. “Ah.” I closed my eyes as the warm sweet liquid coursed down my throat.

  “Might as well get it over with.” I picked up my cup and headed for the phone. My parents would be up and getting ready for work. I dialed, then crossed my fingers. “Pick up the phone, Mom.”

  “Hello.”

  Unfortunately the voice on the other end was too deep to be my mother’s.

  “Hi, Dad.”

  “What’s wrong? Has there been an accident, a break-in? Are you in the hospital?”

  “Of course not, I just wanted to see if I could borrow the car.”

  “Do you realize what time it is?”

  “I didn’t get you up, did I? It is Monday, isn’t it?” Yup, we’d had lunch together yesterday.

  “No, of course you didn’t. We’re getting ready for work. But what are you doing up?”

  “I wanted to catch you before you left. Are you and Mom carpooling today?” I flopped down on the edge of the bed and studied my toenails. I needed to make an appointment for a manicure and pedicure.

  “Why do you ask?”

  Dad was in reporter mode, never answer a question when you can ask one.

  “I already told you. I’d like to borrow one of the cars.”

  “Why?” he asked as I mouthed the words.

  “I just had an urge to take a little day trip.”

  “Where?” he asked. Again, I’d known he would.

  “Is it a problem?”

  “No, I’d just like to know where you’re going.”

  “Just out driving around, enjoying the beautiful spring weather.”

  “Caitlin, what are you up to? You don’t honestly expect me to believe you’d get up at six in the morning to drive around and enjoy the weather?” His voice sharpened.

  “Never mind. It was just a thought. I don’t need to go anywhere.”

  “I didn’t say no. I just asked where you were going. Of course you can use the car.”

  I figuratively wiped the sweat from my brow. I wasn’t sure trying to reunite Anna with her lost love was worth the grand inquisition.

  Heat tingled in my face. Shame on me. What was a few minutes of interrogation compared to over a hundred years of darkness? “Thanks, Dad. Bye.”

  “Be careful.”

  I clicked off, trotted to the bathroom, and took a hasty shower. It took me a while longer to figure out what to wear. I ended up in a pair of tan Capris, a fitted turquoise crop top with a turquoise flowered shirt over it, and matching sandals. Then I hurried into the closet and grabbed my floppy hat.

  As I headed for the kitchen, the doorbell rang. “Who in the world?” I put my eye to the security hole and then flung the door open. “Dad!”

  Keys dangled from his outstretched fingers. “I knew you’d have to take a taxi to our house or walk. Here you go.”

  A wave of love washed over me. I grabbed him and hugged him. “You’re the best.”

  “Love you, baby.” He hugged me back. “Got to go or I’ll be late for work.” He turned and with lithe grace jogged to the driveway where Mom sat waiting in the car. I waved at her and shut the door.

  “That was nice of your parents.” Liam materialized beside me.

  “I wish you wouldn’t do that.” I put a hand over my thumping heart.

  “Sorry. Are we ready then? By the way, you look lovely, lass.”

  “Why thank you. Just let me grab a cup of coffee and leave a note for Marcy.” I snatched a pink to-go cup out of the cabinet and fixed my coffee.

  “Ah,” he said as he watched me. “Cream and sugar. I’ll remember next time.”

  “It was very thoughtful of you to fix me a cup. I appreciate it.” I smiled at him.

  “You have a beautiful smile.” The glow factor surrounding him ratcheted up a notch.

  For a moment, I basked in it before I gave myself a m
ental shake and got down to business. I left a note for Marcy and scooted out the door to the car. Liam floated beside me.

  “What is that?” Liam asked over my shoulder as I programmed the GPS.

  “An electronic map. See, it tells us our route and how long it will take to get there. Just under two hours,” I said with satisfaction as I pointed the route out on the screen.

  “An electronic map,” he breathed in awe. “Who would have thought of such a thing?”

  “A geek.” I backed out of the driveway.

  “A geek?”

  “A really smart person that’s good with electronics.”

  “Geek,” he repeated and nodded. “Are you a geek?”

  I glanced at him in surprise, not quite certain I liked the question. I turned my attention back to the road. “Why do you ask?”

  “Because you are an intelligent young woman.”

  “Well, I’m not that good with electronics,” I evaded.

  He studied me for a moment. “You don’t like being considered intelligent.”

  “It’s not cool.” Uncomfortable with the conversation, I squirmed a bit in my seat.

  “What does the weather have to do with anything?”

  “What?” Then I understood. The chortle started deep in my tummy and erupted.

  “What did I say?” He turned down the volume to hear my response.

  “It’s not the weather. Cool is an expression. An informal way of saying you’re calm under pressure, graceful, look good, and you don’t worry about studying,” I finished comprehensively.

  “Not worrying about your studies sounds irresponsible.”

  Unfortunately, he had a point. “You get my drift.”

  “Drift?”

  “No. No more idioms for today.”

  “I know idioms,” Liam said with dignity.

  “I just bet you do, Ace.”

  “Ace?”

  “Never mind. Tell me about Ruby Falls.”

  “It is—or was—a pretty little town. Cherry trees lined the streets and bloomed in the spring with a smell so sweet you’d think you were in heaven. And when the wind blew, white petals lined the sidewalk like flakes of snow.” He settled back in the seat and smiled. “Our store was a two-story wood building on Main Street. It had a big glass window with O’Reilly’s General Store painted across it in bold gold letters.”

  “It sounds like a lovely store. Where did you live?” I rolled down the window. The wind blew through the interior and whipped my hair around. One hand on the wheel, I captured the loose strands with the other, and stuffed it in the back of my shirt. “I should have brought a scrunchie,” I mumbled under my breath.

  “What’s a scrunchie?”

  “Saw that one coming. It’s like a cloth-covered rubber band for hair.”

  “Scrunchie,” he repeated. He was like a sponge, continually soaking up information about the twenty-first century. “As I mentioned, we lived above the store.”

  “That was convenient.”

  “Yes, it was.”

  We continued to chat. The sky lightened and traffic picked up. Fifteen minutes before we were due to reach Ruby Falls, I pit stopped at a local coffee chain for an iced latte, then buzzed on down the road. The cold caffeine surged through my system. As I approached Ruby Falls, I slowed. The population sign claimed twenty-five thousand residents.

  Dread, thick and heavy as a wet fog, closed around me. What waited for us? An opportunity to send Anna and Liam into the light or a malignant spirit that would destroy us?

  Liam shifted in the seat and stared around him. “Everything has changed.”

  Restaurants and small boutiques lined the streets, then fell away as we hit the historical district. I inched along behind a pickup truck. The town looked pretty and clean. As we passed the Golden Arches, my stomach growled. I turned on my blinker to take a right onto Main Street.

  “Stop!” Liam yelled.

  I slammed on the brakes and slid forward in the seat until the seatbelt grabbed and threw me back. Tires squealed and the car behind me laid on its horn. “What?” My heart did a wild ka-thump.

  Liam pointed. “William’s house.” He leaned out the window to get a better look. “At least it hasn’t changed.”

  “Jeez, you scared me.”

  “Sorry.” His voice sounded distracted, his attention elsewhere.

  I wheeled to the curb and put the car in park, then shifted so I could see past the ghost to the house. “He built a lovely home for your Anna. It’s just like you described it, right down to the white picket fence and pink and red roses.” I swallowed past a lump in my throat as I looked at the little house that represented the hopes and dreams of a couple in love, and a young woman who died before she could be carried across the threshold. “Did you want to go in?”

  “Let’s go to the store first.”

  He took one last look out the window as I pulled away.

  Two blocks later, we were out of the historical district.

  “That used to be the post office.” He pointed at a savings and loan. “And that was the livery stable.” He gestured toward a consignment shop with a green and pink awning.

  “Lots of changes.” I stopped at a red light. Two young women, with little ones in tow, hurried across the street. As the light turned green, I eased the car into the three hundred block of Main. Three-fifteen, three-seventeen… I counted the house numbers, then pulled in at three-twenty-five. “Here we are, Liam.”

  “It’s not a general store anymore.” He stared in shock at the old-fashioned two-story brick building. An elegant black sign with silver lettering read Gant’s Hotel, 325 Main Street.

  “I’m sorry, Liam.” I so badly wanted to take his hand and give it a reassuring squeeze. “I can’t begin to imagine what you’re going through. This must be hard for you.”

  “Just a bit of a surprise, that’s all.” His lips twisted, somewhere between a smile and a grimace.

  “Shall we go in?”

  “Yes.” He studied the building. “I thought this had been my resting place for the past hundred or so years. But how can it be?”

  “If the ghost stories I’ve read are to be believed, it’s possible. Didn’t you say you could see shadowy figures as if you were on one side of a veil and people on the other?”

  He nodded.

  “Well then, let’s go find out if you’d taken up residency here.”

  “And how do we do that?” As we studied the building, a couple walked out hand in hand, smiling.

  My nails clicked as I tapped them against the steering wheel.

  Liam noticed. “You do that a lot.”

  “Oh, sorry.” I snapped my fingers. “I’ve got an idea. Come on.”

  “Where?”

  “Inside.” For once, I beat him to the door.

  “What are you doing?” He floated beside me, his face alight with curiosity.

  “You’ll see.” I patted my hair and put my best smile in place.

  At the front desk, a tiny woman with gray hair curled around her elfin face asked, “May I help you?”

  “Oh, yes.” I held out my hand. My fingers engulfed hers. I dropped her hand, afraid I’d crush her fragile bones. “My name is Caitlin King. I’m an independent reporter. I’m doing a piece on hauntings in Virginia.” I lowered my voice in a conspiratorial manner, and leaned in, my palms on the front desk. “I hear Gant’s is haunted.”

  “Where’d you say you were from, dear?”

  “Oh, sorry. I didn’t, did I? I’m from Faire. It’s a couple of hours drive from here.”

  “I’m surprised you’ve heard of us. The locals are familiar with our hotel’s hauntings, but I didn’t realize anyone outside of town knew our legends. I guess our guests have shared their stories.”

  She might be old, but she wasn’t slow. “I’ve been doing a little digging, just enough to whet my curiosity, so I thought I’d come in person.”

 
; She gave an approving nod. “Enterprising, I like that.”

  “Can you help me?”

  “I’d be glad to. I like initiative in a young woman. I’ve got plenty of it myself.”

  “I bet you do.” My insides relaxed and warmed. I liked this lady.

  She looked around. “It’s pretty quiet. Let’s go in the back. Would you like a cup of coffee?”

  “Yes, thank you. That would be great.”

  She lifted the side bar. I walked behind the counter and followed her into a comfortable room. A coffeemaker and a dorm-sized refrigerator sat on an old scratched hutch. A blue couch and a blue diamond-patterned secretary’s chair with casters faced each other.

  “Cream and sugar?” She pulled two cups out of the hutch and filled one.

  “Yes, please.”

  She liberally doctored my coffee with powdered creamer and sugar before she passed it to me. “Why don’t you sit on the couch, dear? It’s very comfortable.”

  I sat down, careful not to spill my coffee, then took a cautious sip. The brew was rich and fragrant. But, counting the latte, it was my third cup. By the time I finished it, I’d be bouncing off walls.

  Liam floated around the room, eyeing everything. He studied a painting of pink peonies in a crystal bowl before he moved to a small landscape.

  The woman sat on the office chair and placed it where she could see anyone who came into the lobby. “So what do you know about our hauntings?”

  This could get tricky. I took another sip of coffee to give myself time to think. “Well, I’ve heard Ruby Fall’s ghosts are a pair of star-crossed lovers from the Civil War era.” A couple of them, anyway.

  “My, dear, you’re exactly right.” She beamed at me.

  Bingo. My senses sharpened.

  Liam flitted to the chair where she sat and bent over her, his features sharp and defined, waiting. Her cup rattled against her saucer as she set it down and rubbed her arms. “My, it’s chilly in here. Almost like the room upstairs.”

  “The room upstairs? What do you mean?” My pulse accelerated. I took a couple of deep breaths and forced myself to show a calm demeanor. She was chilly when Liam was near her. The room upstairs was chilly. Excitement skittered through my system. That room had to be where Liam had spent his last hundred plus years. Odd, that I seldom was chilly around him. Quite the opposite.