“Yes, please.” Gigi took a moment to glance around at the dilapidated porch. “I see the spirits are still trying to run people off.”
“Spirits?” Grace asked. She had no doubt the place was haunted, but she didn’t know by who. If Gigi knew something she didn’t, then she wasn’t going to miss an opportunity to get informed.
“Oh, come on, Grace. Everyone knows this place is haunted. But that doesn’t bother me.” She waved an unconcerned hand. “I’ve always had a fascination with ghosts. The only real question is will they accept me?”
“That’s…” Grace nodded. “Yeah. If you’re really interested in a haunted house, I suppose that’s the best way to approach things. Let’s see what they have to say.”
She opened the door for Gigi and Vince. Grace and Owen followed them in.
Owen squeezed her hand briefly. “I’m just going to quietly take a look around while you do your thing. Okay?”
“Okay.” She smiled at him and watched as he disappeared up the stairs.
Vince hung back near the entryway of the house. There was a nervous expression on his face, and he kept looking at the front door as if he was ready to bolt at any moment. Grace ignored him and watched as Gigi moved to the sliding glass doors at the back of the house.
She unlocked and then pulled the door open, letting the sea salt-scented air filter through the house. Her honey-colored hair lifted slightly in the breeze as she stood there staring at the dramatic coastline.
Then a strange thing happened. A glowing gold outline of shimmering light seemed to coat her skin, and the walls around her seemed to shift to a brighter shade of white while the wood floors gleamed as if light was shining through the boards. The breeze turned warmer, inviting, and Grace felt the unmistakable tingle of pure white magic filling the home.
Whatever was happening, it was clear the house had fully accepted Gigi. The spirits who had been keeping everyone else away obviously welcomed her.
“This is my happy place,” Gigi said with a sigh as she turned around and smiled at Vince and Grace.
A surge of excitement went through Grace. She wasn’t one to get worked up about offers. People were often very unpredictable when searching for a home. They could fall in love with a place, promise an offer within the hour, and then change their minds ten minutes later due to something silly like the color of the home. On the other hand, she’d shown more than a handful of houses where the buyer complained about every single detail, including the neighborhood, and then made an offer the next day that was equal or at least close to the asking price. She’d learned quickly to curb her expectations.
But Gigi and the house at 5 Seaside Drive had a clear connection, and Grace knew this house not only wanted her but would scare away anyone else who came poking around. The magic was that strong.
“How soon are you looking to move?” Grace asked, just to get an idea of where Gigi was in the buying process.
“As soon as possible,” she said, lightly trailing her fingertips over the white quartz countertops. Her gaze met Vince’s, and some unspoken understanding passed between them.
Grace desperately wanted to ask more but decided to keep her questions to herself. She didn’t appreciate when other agents hounded her clients, and she wouldn’t do it to theirs. After they left, she’d have a private conversation with Vince to find out if she could expect an offer soon.
Gigi walked back over to the sitting area and started pointing out how she’d arrange her furniture and where her grandmother’s side table would go. At first Grace thought she was talking to her and Vince, but Gigi stared into the fireplace and giggled when she said, “Stop. You’re making me blush.”
Grace’s eyebrows shot up. Was she talking to the spirits?
Footsteps sounded on the stairs, and Grace glanced up to see Owen descending down to the main floor. He’d just joined her when the front door banged open and a tall man stormed in. His hair was styled with an excessive amount of gel, and he was wearing an expensive-looking suit with a red silk tie.
“Gigi! What the hell? I told you this place was off the table. Why are you here again?” He spun and glared at Vince. “And why are you taking my wife out to showings alone? I told you I didn’t want her looking at homes without me.”
“James,” Gigi admonished. “Don’t berate Vince. He’s just doing his job.”
“And he’s sneaking around behind my back to do it,” James said. “Do you two have something going on?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Gigi’s eyes were narrowed and her hands curled into fists as the golden shimmer around Gigi vanished, as did the magic sparking in the air. It was replaced with a cold chill that didn’t have anything to do with the cool breeze still wafting in from outside. The chill crawled all over Grace’s skin, making her want to run from the house and whatever was haunting it.
There was one thing that was clear—the spirits were not happy with James’s arrival.
All the hope and excitement about moving the house vanished. The very idea of James purchasing the house was ludicrous. The spirits wanted Gigi, but it was hard to see them ever accepting James.
Grace glanced over at Owen. The grim expression on his face did nothing to soothe her. She cleared her throat. “Gigi, are you all right?”
The woman glanced at her, but it was James who spoke. “Of course she’s all right. Gigi, come here. We’re going home.”
The front door suddenly slammed shut, and an impressive gust of wind blew in from the open sliding glass doors. It was so strong it actually forced James to take a few steps backward, but interestingly enough, no one else was bothered.
“I want to take a look around upstairs first,” Gigi said defiantly. “You said I should have the vacation home of my dreams. And this house is the place of my dreams.”
“And I told you anyplace but this one.” He moved toward her, his arm outstretched as if he was going to grab for her.
Grace was about to step forward and put herself between them because everything about James was setting off her internal alarm bells, but Gigi handled it. She placed her hand out in front of her in a stop motion and said, “That’s enough.”
James froze, his mouth open in surprise. “What are you doing?”
“Standing my ground.” She narrowed her eyes at her husband. Then they flashed with that same golden shimmer for just a moment before they turned blue again. “I will tour this house. If you want me to leave, you’ll have to physically drag me out of here.”
He let out a low growl. “Gigi, don’t make me—”
“I think that’s quite enough.” This time when Grace moved, she actually did put herself between them. She turned to eye the woman’s husband. “I think I’m going to have to ask you to step off the property now, sir.”
James blinked at her then glanced back at Vince and Owen, who had both moved to form a small circle around the man. He took a deep breath, craned his head to look over Grace’s shoulder, and said, “Gigi, I’ll be outside. Don’t take all night. We have dinner plans.”
“You don’t have to wait. I’ll meet you at the restaurant in thirty minutes.”
James’s nostrils flared and his face flushed with anger, but after a moment, he turned on his heel and stalked out. As soon as the man stepped outside, the oppressive energy vanished with him.
Gigi lowered her hand. And as her bravado faded, her entire body started to shake. “Grace, Vince, I’m so sorry. I had no idea he was going to come here. I don’t even know how he knew.”
Vince cleared his throat. “Uh, sorry. I think that was me. When I returned your call earlier, I hit James’s number by mistake and left a message before calling you.”
Gigi bit her bottom lip and then nodded. “I see. Well, it’s not your fault I had no intention of telling him about seeing the house again until later tonight.” She squeezed her eyes shut, and when she opened them, she pasted on a smile and added, “If you don’t mind, I’m going to get that look at the upstairs. Then I’ll let
you nice folks get on with your evening.”
“Take your time,” Grace said. “It’s no problem, really.” She had no illusions that James and Gigi were going to buy the house, not after that interaction, but she felt for Gigi. Her connection to the house was palpable.
Gigi nodded once and then disappeared upstairs. Once she was gone, Grace moved to the back door to stare out at the churning ocean.
“Sorry about this, Grace,” Vince said from behind her.
“It’s not your fault.” She gave him a sympathetic smile. “I’ve had my share of feuding couples.”
He let out a sardonic chuckle. “I should’ve known better. I knew the husband was a hard pass, but when Gigi called…” He shrugged. “You know how unpredictable people can be.”
“I do.” She patted his arm. “It’s really too bad though, isn’t it? This house is hers in every way except for the name on the title.”
“It is.” He sighed and stuffed his hands into his pockets. “This isn’t good news for either of us.”
“Nope.”
Gigi reappeared, looking ethereal as she practically floated down the stairs. Her smile was radiant, and Grace thought she’d never seen another person so at peace. The woman was an enigma. How could she be so Zen after that scene with her husband? Grace would’ve been spitting nails for the rest of the night. That was one perk of being divorced though. She hadn’t had to consider Bill’s input when she purchased her cottage. She smiled to herself as she thought about the day she’d moved in. The feeling of having something all her own after years of compromise had been sweeter than she’d ever imagined.
“Grace, it was a pleasure to meet you,” Gigi said, extending her hand.
Grace took it with both of hers. “The feeling is mutual. Please let Vince know if you have any other questions about this place. I’d be happy to answer them.”
She smiled. “Thanks. There is one thing you can do for me.”
“Okay. Name it.”
“I really would like to know the identities of the spirits haunting this place. I think it might help convince my husband they aren’t evil. To me they feel… protective.”
Grace thought she was probably right about that. At the very least, they were protective of her. “I’ll see what I can do. I’m not experienced in communicating with spirits, so no guarantees.”
“Something tells me you’re a quick learner.” She winked at Grace and then glided over to Vince. “I have to go. James is waiting.”
Vince glanced at Grace and mouthed over Gigi’s head that he’d be in touch. Then he placed a hand on Gigi’s back and whispered something in her ear that sounded like he was asking if everything was okay with James and if she needed any help.
Good. That guy had warning signs all over him, and it pleased Grace to know that Vince was looking out for Gigi.
Owen moved to the back door to close and lock it. When he returned to Grace’s side, he said, “I don’t know if I can top the show that just rolled through here, but if you’re still up for it, I’d love to take you to dinner.”
Grace glanced at the time on her phone. It was already a quarter to eight, and suddenly she was exhausted after her long day. Not to mention she had an early appointment in the morning with a potential new buyer. “What do you say to takeout? We could go back to my house. There’s a really good deli a few blocks from here.”
His eyes sparkled as his lips curved into a slow smile. “Sounds perfect.”
Chapter Nine
“Do you want to walk down to the beach?” Grace asked Owen. They’d just returned to her house with their deli sandwiches, and the summer sun was hanging low in the sky. Her nerves were all over the place as she suggested, “There’s a picnic table down there. We could eat while watching the sunset.”
“That sounds just about perfect, Grace.”
“Give me just one minute to change and lose these shoes.” She slipped into her house and emerged a few minutes later wearing her favorite white blouse, jeans, and her flip-flops. She’d also grabbed a bottle of wine and two plastic wine glasses.
Owen clutched the bag of food and then took her free hand in his as he let her guide him toward the path that led to the beach.
“If we’re lucky we might even glimpse the seals while they’re having their own dinner,” she said.
“Really? Do they show up often?”
“Yeah. More often than not. It’s one of the reasons I decided to get a house on this side of town.” She glanced over at him, giving him a relaxed smile. “There’s just something about watching the sea life that fills me with peace. It’s like the natural order of things or something.”
“And here I thought it was so you could be as far away from your ex as possible.” He gave her a teasing smile and squeezed her hand.
She laughed. “That, too. What about you? Did you move to Premonition Pointe to get away from someone?”
He shrugged one shoulder. “I don’t know. Maybe?”
“Maybe?” She shook her head. “I call foul. You know all about my messy divorce. Meanwhile, I know next to nothing about your past. It’s only fair that you elaborate. Any failed marriages or long-term relationships I should know about?”
“No marriages,” he said immediately. “But I did live with someone for a few years. It didn’t work out.”
“That was vague.” She descended down a path of wooden stairs that would take them right to the beach. Once her feet hit the sand, she said, “Care to share?”
Owen chuckled. “Not really. But the short version is she wanted to get married and I didn’t. So we broke up.”
Grace took a seat at the picnic table and immediately poured them both a glass of wine. “Commitment issues?” she asked out of pure curiosity. After her divorce, she was done with marriage altogether.
He picked up his wine glass and watched the liquid as he swirled it around. “Not necessarily. I was committed to that relationship. I guess I just didn’t see us as forever. She did and told me she’d never have moved in with me if she didn’t think we were moving toward something more permanent. Looking back, I probably should’ve seen that, but I was happy just cohabitating. When it was clear she wasn’t, I left.”
“Did you love her?” Grace propped her chin on her hand as she watched him.
He raised one eyebrow. “You really want to know this?”
“Only if you want to tell me. I was married for over twenty years and never really did the dating thing much. Bill and I got together my freshman year in college. So I find the dating dynamics of adults fascinating.”
“I think I thought I loved her. Or at least that I wanted to.” He pulled the sandwiches out of the bag and handed the one marked Turkey to her. “She was fun, accomplished, and sexy.”
“She sounds wonderful. What was the problem?”
“To be honest, I don’t really know. When she started talking about marriage, I couldn’t see myself in that life. And then it all imploded.” He unwrapped his roast beef sandwich and held it up, but he didn’t take a bite. Instead, he looked her in the eye and asked, “What does that say about me? Maybe I am a commitment-phobe.”
Grace took a bite of her sandwich as she thought about what he’d said. After she washed the bite down with a gulp of wine, she asked, “Do you miss her? Or regret the decision?”
“No. Not really. I think I just miss the companionship.” He gazed out at the ocean and pointed to the left near an outcropping of rocks near the shore. “Look. Seals.”
Grace squinted until she spotted their heads bobbing in the water. “This is my favorite part of the day.”
“I can see why.”
After tearing her gaze away from the water, she said, “Based on what you’ve told me, I don’t think you’re a commitment-phobe at all. I think you knew that forever wasn’t in the cards with her and you were honest about that. I’d say that makes you a decent guy. As long as you didn’t make her promises you knew you couldn’t or wouldn’t keep, then I think this is just
a case of a relationship that ran its course. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s not like you cheated on her and upended her entire life.”
Grace winced when she heard the words come out of her mouth. They sounded so bitter. She didn’t want to talk about Bill while she was on a date with this man who was not only incredibly sexy, but smart and attentive, too. He didn’t deserve to have her dump her baggage on him. “Sorry.” She forced a chuckle. “I got a little heated.”
“It must’ve been rough losing your husband and your career all in one blow,” he said, reaching for her hand and lacing his fingers between hers.
“My entire life blew up.” She gave him a small smile. “But you know what?”
“What?”
“I’m not sorry it happened. After I left and only had myself to worry about, I realized I have spent my entire life taking care of someone else’s needs. He owned the business, right? So I was the support for literally everything. And I went into that willingly because I thought we were partners. It turns out he thought differently. So never again. If I ever do decide to share my life with someone again, things will be different. My career will never be about lifting someone else up again. As far as household duties, those will be shared or else we just won’t ever live together.”
Owen let out a bark of laughter. “You make it sound like you were living in a fifties sitcom.”
Grace wanted to cry because it wasn’t far from the truth. Sure, she was a modern witch and had always insisted on being an equal partner when it came to the decision-making, but there was no denying their entire marriage had revolved around Bill’s brokerage firm. Grace had done as much or more than him to make it a success, and she’d been tossed aside and treated as if she’d just been office support. Pathetic. “Not exactly, but in some respects it’s probably closer than I care to admit.” She downed her wine and turned to him. “Make no mistake, Owen. I’m outspoken and strong-willed. I made my own choices when it came to that marriage. Unfortunately, I bet on a person who wasn’t one thousand percent in it with me. I won’t make that mistake again.”
Witching For Grace: Premonition Pointe, Book 1 Page 7