“I’m looking forward to it. You know, I’ve lived in New Orleans all my life…aside from the recent years…and I’ve never been on a walking tour.” He stepped around a performer who’d painted his entire body gold and followed Sean toward the St. Louis Cathedral.
Built in 1794, the massive church boasted three steeples, with an enormous clock adorning the center one. A crowd huddled near the steps, forming a semicircle around a man in his early twenties with brown hair and a trench coat.
Sean stopped behind the crowd and nodded at the man. “It can be hard to think like a tourist in your home city. We tend to take what we see every day for granted.”
“No kidding.” Blake had moved away with good riddance on his mind, but he never fathomed how much he’d miss this place until he left. “I’ve been thinking like a tourist for the past six months, since I moved back.”
Sean waved, and the man on the steps strode toward them. “Your ideas are genius. I really think this is going to work out.”
He couldn’t fight his smile. That was exactly what he wanted to hear. “Is the rest of your team on board?”
“I had a meeting with them this afternoon. They’re in.”
“Sweet.” When he’d first had the idea of setting up the museum and adding a tour to go with the artifacts, he’d asked around in the community. He hit the jackpot when he discovered the most reputable company belonged to his childhood friend.
He’d pitched the idea to Sean, and they’d been discussing the details for the past month. If the tour tonight proved as good as the rumors, Blake would be ready to sign on the dotted line. The Big Apple may have sent him running with his tail between his legs, but the Big Easy was his home turf, and if he could make this venture work, he’d be set.
If it didn’t work, his savings would run out eventually, and he’d have to get a “real job.” Sitting in an office all day long would kill him, and after his career-ending mistake at the NYC Museum of History, starting his own exhibit was the only way he could continue using his college degree…and his ability…to earn a living.
“This is Eric.” Sean clapped the man on the shoulder, and Blake shook his hand.
“I can’t wait to investigate the museum. With all those artifacts, the activity must be off the chain.” Eric’s eyes gleamed with excitement.
“It hasn’t been too bad yet.” Nothing out of the ordinary for the most haunted city in America, anyway. Occasional knocks and sounds of footsteps were part of the charm of the nineteenth-century buildings in the French Quarter. As long as he didn’t bring anything sinister into his home, he could handle sharing his space with a ghost or two.
Eric pulled his phone from his pocket and glanced at the screen. “Syd’s ready. Enjoy the tour. I’m looking forward to working with you.” He nodded at Blake and jogged into the crowd.
“We’ve got two tours running tonight.” Sean guided him into the group. “Identical routes, but Syd will run in reverse, so they never hit a stop at the same time.”
Blake nodded. “Sounds logical. Keep the groups smaller. More intimate.”
“Sydney’s a rock star. You’re going to love her.” Sean gestured toward the woman leading the second tour, and Blake’s heart tumbled into his stomach.
“Is that Sydney Park?”
“Yeah. You know her?”
Talk about a blast from the past. Blake drifted forward to get a better look, his throat thickening as the memories came flooding back. “Knew her. I haven’t seen her since college.”
With her torn jeans, black leather jacket, and Converse shoes, her style hadn’t changed a bit. Her hair was shorter, cropped above her ear on the left side and hanging down to her chin on the right, but the shiny black color still reminded him of a raven’s feathers glinting in the moonlight. She had flawless light brown skin, a delicate nose, and a light coat of makeup accenting her dark brown eyes. A tourist said something humorous, and as Sydney’s mulberry lips curved into a smile, Blake’s heart sprinted like a racehorse out of the gates.
As she climbed to the top of the steps, she raised a hand and addressed the crowd with the same strong, confident voice that had drawn him to her all those years ago. “We’re going to divide you into two groups. Eric will take half of you…” She gestured to Eric like a gameshow model. “And I’ll take the rest. Any questions before we get started?”
A man in his sixties wearing an I got Bourbon faced on Shit Street t-shirt raked his gaze down her body and narrowed his eyes. “Yeah. What are you?”
She gave him a tight-lipped smile. “I’m a tour guide.” Holding her arm straight in front of her, she descended the steps, making a path through the crowd.
The man stumbled as he turned, his speech slurred. “No, I mean where are you from?” He pointed, wiggling his finger at her face, and Blake instinctively stepped toward them.
Sydney dropped her arms to her sides and faced the man. “I’m from New Orleans. Born and raised.” She cocked her head, her annoyance clear in her expression, but her confident posture said she had plenty of experience dealing with people like this.
The man took a gulp of his yard-sized beer. “Naw. What nationality are you? Where are your parents from?”
Eric moved in closer, as if ready to defuse the situation. Blake started forward again, but Sean stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. “She’s got this.”
Sydney crossed her arms and looked the man hard in the eyes. “I’m American, and both my parents were born here in Louisiana. Any other questions?”
The man’s mouth opened and closed a few times, his shocked expression making it clear he was used to having the upper hand. Blake chuckled. No man ever had the upper hand with Sydney Park.
“You’re in that group.” She pointed, and the man sank back into the crowd.
Eric laughed and lowered his voice as he followed Sydney to the back of the swarm…toward Blake. “Wouldn’t it have been easier to tell him your dad is Korean?”
Blake tensed as she approached; with her attention focused on her coworker, she hadn’t noticed him yet.
“My mom is Irish and Haitian. Should I have to explain that too? Why would I make his ignorance any easier for him?”
“Good point.” Eric raised his hand. “Y’all on this side, follow me.” He led his group to the opposite end of the church.
“I told you she’s a rock star,” Sean said.
“Feisty as ever.” Blake fought his smile. Even after all these years, the woman still made his blood hum.
She shouldn’t have. Not after the way she left him. But he couldn’t deny the glowing embers reigniting in his core. He could either fan the flames or stomp them out before she burned him to ash again. Which would it be this time?
Standing on her toes, she mouthed the numbers as she did a quick headcount. When she reached Sean, she grinned, but as her gaze locked with Blake’s, she faltered. Her eyes widened, her mouth falling slack for a moment before she snapped it shut, swallowed hard, and continued her count.
Her reaction lit another spark inside his chest, stoking the coals that should have burned out long ago.
“Okay.” She tapped the screen of her iPad and turned it around to show the audience a square QR code. Her gaze flicked between Blake and Sean a few times before she continued, “I’m going to walk around and let y’all scan this with your phones. It will sync with the presentation so you can see the photo and video evidence of the hauntings up close as we tour.”
She shuffled through the crowd, stopping in front of each person with a phone before turning around and ignoring Blake as she moved toward the steps.
“Hey, Syd,” Sean said. “Blake’s never done the tour. Bring the code over here for him to scan.”
“Right.” Her eyes tightened, and her smile seemed forced as she glided toward him.
“Hi, Sydney. It’s good to see you.” He scanned the code, and the Crescent City Ghost Tours logo illuminated his screen.
“Hi, Blake. It’s been a while.” S
he looked at him, and her eyes softened, her lips parting slightly.
He could almost taste the strawberry lip balm she used to wear, and he was filled with the sudden urge to find out if she still used it. He swallowed the phantom flavor from his mouth. His emotional coals didn’t need stoking. They were already ablaze.
She looked at Sean. “You didn’t mention Blake was the friend you were teaming up with.”
He tilted his head. “I told you at lunch today.”
“Oh, right.” She blinked. “It must have slipped my mind. Well…” Her gaze landed on Blake, and he tensed. “Enjoy the tour.”
She trotted to the front of the group and began her speech as if he were just another visitor joining the outing…like what they’d shared had never happened.
“Slipped her mind, my ass,” Blake muttered as he followed the group into Pirate’s Alley.
Of all the times for Sydney to tune Sean out, it had to happen at lunch today. If she’d even been halfway listening to the conversation, she would have heard Blake’s name mentioned and been prepared…or at least aware she would have to face him tonight.
Nothing could have prepared her for those piercing blue eyes or the way his gaze bore into her, slicing her open and latching onto her heart. And now she had to work with the man…
She turned the corner onto Dauphine Street and led her group to the Sultan’s Palace. On autopilot, she told the story of the alleged massacre, the blood running out the door and onto the street, and the Sultan being buried alive. The presentation revealed the spirit evidence they’d captured on an investigation, and while she told the tour group the story of the Sultan was merely a legend and the ghosts occupying the building had nothing to do with the horrifying tale, they always preferred the gruesome lore to the reality of the haunting.
And now the reality of her past was back to haunt her…
Two tours a night, five nights a week, fifty-one weeks a year for the past six years. To say she was used to people watching her was an understatement. But something about the look in Blake’s eyes every time she accidentally caught his gaze made her throat close up and her palms sweat.
He kept his light brown hair sheared short on the sides and long on top in a messy wave. He had a strong jaw and sharp cheekbones, but those full, kissable lips softened his features, making him look like he stepped right off the page of a men’s cologne ad.
She delivered her speech at three more stops on the tour, and the patrons oohed and ahhed at the video evidence as usual. But Blake kept his eyes trained on her, barely glancing at his screen.
The heaviness of his gaze weighed on her conscience. How could he stand to look at her after she’d treated him so badly?
In her defense, he was going to treat her just as badly—she’d seen it in a vision. She’d simply ended the relationship before he got the chance to hurt her.
The real question was: how could he still stir butterflies in her stomach after all this time?
It didn’t matter. He’d planned to stand her up on what was—at the time—one of the most important nights of her life: her induction into the Krewe of Horae, for goodness’ sake. Only a select few were allowed to join the all-female Mardi Gras group each year. It was a huge deal, and any man who would treat a woman with that kind of disregard wasn’t worth wasting her time on.
Besides, eight years had passed since they broke up. He’d moved to New York and started a new life, and she’d moved on. They were adults now, not college kids. They could be professional.
As the tour concluded, she thanked the guests and accepted the tips they offered. Blake stood with Sean on the sidewalk a few feet away, and they shook hands, the excitement in their eyes indicating the deal had been sealed.
The flutter in her stomach rose up to meet her sinking heart as she swallowed the dryness from her mouth. Hopefully she wouldn’t have to work too closely with Blake. Sydney was in charge of tech, so as long as ghosts weren’t involved on Blake’s side of the company, he wouldn’t need her for much. No paranormal evidence to present meant no tech on the new tour. Hopefully.
She said goodbye to the last tourist and turned toward the men, squaring her shoulders and lifting her chin. If Blake didn’t mention their breakup, she wouldn’t either. There was no need to delve into the past when the present was the only time they could control. Keep it professional, Syd.
“That was an impressive tour.” His smile weakened her knees, so she locked them. “Sean says you designed the accompanying presentation from scratch.”
She sucked in the breath he stole from her lungs. “It makes the tour more interactive. The customers love it.” Her voice was steady, strong, masking the way her insides trembled.
“I bet.” He caught her gaze and held it, but he wasn’t looking at her. Something about his expression, his body language…his aura in general…made it seem like he was looking inside her.
It was part of his charisma, the way he always made her feel like she was the most important person in the room. Blake had a magnetic personality, but his charm wouldn’t work on her this time. They were coworkers now. Technically, if he and Sean were partners, that made Blake her boss. She knew better than to date the boss.
If she could convince her body to stop reacting like it was a sweet tooth and he was the last piece of candy on earth, she’d be okay.
Sean cleared his throat. “I want to schedule a lunch meeting with the whole team tomorrow to iron out the details. Then we need to plan a time to investigate the museum. The building itself has a residual haunting, but it will take some time to figure out if any new spirits have come in with the artifacts being collected.”
Blake glanced at Sean before looking at Sydney again. “Sounds good.”
“And you two will need to spend some time together working out the new tour and the interactive displays for the museum,” Sean said. “Is that going to be an issue?” He arched a brow, his gaze flicking between them.
Sydney fought to keep her expression neutral. That was way more time than she cared to spend with Blake, but if she brought Eric or Jason along as a buffer, she could handle it. She forced a smile and tore her gaze away from Blake’s deep blue eyes. “Why would it be an issue?”
“I’m looking forward to it,” Blake said, his eyes still on her.
Is he, now? I’m sure as hell not. “Oh, but lunch tomorrow doesn’t work for me. My krewe is meeting to discuss our masquerade, so you’ll have to do it without me. Mardi Gras is a busy time of year.” She pressed her lips together, mentally smacking herself upside the head. Why did she have to bring that up?
Blake’s brow lifted. “The Krewe of Horae?”
She nodded, holding her breath. Please let it go. She did not want to revisit that near-disaster right now.
His lips twitched. “I remember when you first joined. You were so excited for your induction. It’s been what? Eight years now?”
Oh, lord. He went there. She clenched her teeth. “Something like that.”
“We’ll do it in the afternoon then.” Sean fished his buzzing phone from his pocket. “Three o’clock? I need you there, Syd. You’ll be taking over my duties for a while when the baby comes.”
She let out her breath in a slow hiss. There was no way out of this. “I’ll be there.”
“Good.” Sean froze, staring at his screen. “Oh, God.”
“What is it?” she asked.
He blinked. “Emily’s water broke.” His jaw went slack, his gaze darting from the phone to Sydney to Blake.
Sydney grinned. “You’re having a baby.”
“We’re having a baby.” He stood there, unmoving.
She laughed and gave him a shove. “Go get your wife and take her to the hospital.”
“Right. Umm…”
“I’ll handle the meeting tomorrow. Go meet your baby.”
He nodded. “Thanks, Syd. Blake, I’ll be in touch.” He turned and jogged up the sidewalk.
“That’s exciting.” Blake caught her gaze a
gain and shoved his hands in his pockets. “Sometimes I wonder what my life would be like now if I’d never gone to New York.”
That was her cue to leave. “It is what it is. You can’t change the past, so there’s no use dwelling on it.” And he did go to New York. Even if he hadn’t planned on standing her up, he had planned to move across the country. Her heart would have been broken either way.
His gaze danced around her face, pausing on her lips a moment too long. “If I could see the future…if I’d known how it would turn out…”
“If ifs and buts were candy and nuts…”
“I wouldn’t have gone.”
“But you did.” She shrugged. Blake didn’t know about her ability. Everyone thought they wanted to see the future, but would he really have done things differently? Doubtful. Whatever reason he’d had for standing her up must have been more important than their relationship. Anyway, he wouldn’t have missed grad school for her. She wouldn’t have let him.
Pain happened, whether she could see it coming or not, and if she could give up her ability and never see the future again, she’d do it in a heartbeat. But ifs weren’t worth the breath they were uttered on.
She crossed her arms, doing her best to ignore the regret softening his eyes. “Where are we meeting tomorrow?”
“At the museum.” He hesitated. “What’s your number? I’ll text you the address.”
She recited the digits as he punched them into his phone. Hers buzzed in her pocket, and she pulled it out to glance at the screen. “Got it. I’ll let the guys know.” She took two steps backward, hoping to break the magnetic hold he had on her.
He didn’t move. “I’m looking forward to working with you.”
She forced a smile, nodded, and turned away.
Chapter Three
It looked like Blake was getting a second chance with Sydney, but did he want to risk it again? Judging from the spring in his step as he strode down Dumaine Street toward his home, at least part of him did.
Love & Omens Page 2