The sliding door opened, and she whirled around, eyes wide with her questions and the sting of the alcohol.
“Preston’s inside,” Jesse assured her, closing the door. “I found him in his bed in the upstairs bathroom.”
Relief sluiced through her, and she sagged against the counter. Benny’s tail thumped against the kitchen floor, as if he was also pleased to hear the news.
Jesse strode over and held out a pink polka-dotted toiletries bag. “I didn’t know what you might need, so I found this under the sink and just threw everything from the counter that would fit inside.”
“Oh, thank you. For everything.” She accepted the bag gratefully, making a quick mental inventory of what she had left lying around the sink. Anything embarrassing? Her birth control pills. But he knew about that already. A warm flush crept up her neck as memories of that night flashed through her mind, and she took another swig of the whisky. Putting the bag down, she handed him the other glass she’d poured.
“Everything’s locked up over there, and I put a key from the hook beside the door in the bag,” he said, glancing down at the amber liquid as he swirled it around. “If you’re ready, I’d like to hear what you wanted to tell me.”
“You’re sure? I know it’s late.”
“I’m sure,” he said firmly, tipping his chin toward the living room. The dogs followed them as they made their way out of the kitchen.
She returned to her spot on the couch, and he sat down in the chair across from her. Bosco jumped up beside her, settling his heavy head on her lap, as if realizing she needed support. Benny turned a few circles and sank down onto the floor beside Jesse.
She hesitated, uncertain how to begin, and even more uncertain she was ready to share this story. Thinking about it was painful enough; talking about it would scrape her insides raw. But maybe she needed to let it out. Aside from Madison, she hadn’t told a soul. Maybe it would be cathartic…a way to release the inner demons haunting her heart, since she couldn’t seem to vanquish the ones haunting her home.
Pulling in a calming breath, she plunged ahead, not wanting to keep him up any later with her procrastination. “About a year and a half ago, my parents went to Hawaii for their anniversary. It was their dream trip.” A sad smile tugged at her lips, then fell away. “But there was a car accident, and it was…fatal. They both died.”
“Oh, Lark…I’m so sorry.”
Her eyes stung, but she had no more tears left to shed tonight. She swallowed past the lump in her throat. “Me too. I wasn’t living with them anymore, but we were really close, and it was a huge blow. Suddenly I had lost not just my only family, but the two people I loved and depended on most in the world.”
“I understand,” he said, his voice low and sympathetic. “Just losing my own father was awful. I can’t imagine losing both parents at the same time.”
“I was devastated.” She pressed her lips together, scratching the smooth fur of Bosco’s ear. “But, like I told you, I was raised to be strong, and I knew my parents wouldn’t want me to just succumb to grief and depression. So I kept on going, as best as I could.”
He nodded, taking a swallow of his drink.
“I was living with my best friend, Brittney. We met our freshman year of college, and we stayed roommates through school. Then we moved into an apartment together in the city. She wanted to be an actress, but while she was working on that, she bartended at night.” An unexpected wave of nostalgia washed over her, heavy and bittersweet. They’d had so much fun together, before everything happened. Seven years of wonderful memories, now tinged with deceit.
Clearing her throat, she continued. “I had the job at the brokerage firm, and I’d been dating a man who worked there for about a year when my parents had the accident. Nathan. He was a little older than me, and he was really there for me during the aftermath. He helped sort all the horrible details out so I could grieve. About six months later, when he proposed, I said yes.”
His brows lifted. “You were engaged?”
She nodded. “For almost a year,” she said, her voice breaking. “Sorry, this is hard for me.”
“It’s okay, Lark. Take your time.”
She exhaled, leaning forward to pick up her glass from the table. Bosco’s heavy weight shifted with her, but he stayed put, emitting a soft grunt of contentment when she settled again. “Anyway, I still lived with Brittney, but I often stayed at Nathan’s apartment. It was nicer, and closer to my work. Then, a few weeks ago…” Had it only been a few weeks? It seemed like a lifetime ago now. “I got fired. It wasn’t totally unexpected, since there was a merger and I knew some of the staff would get laid off. But the nature of the business means they keep these things very secret right up until they escort you out the door. They don’t want any employees taking client contact info or sensitive materials.
“Still, I was really upset, and I hadn’t even been given a moment to speak to Nathan before they made me leave. I kept calling him, but I got his voicemail. Like I said, his apartment was close, and Brittney slept days because of her late nights. So I went over to his place.”
“Oh, no”
“Yeah. I let myself in, and I heard something, so I immediately went quiet. It was lunchtime on a Friday, so I’d fully expected the apartment to be empty. At first I was scared, but then I recognized the sounds. Nathan was having sex with someone, no question. Someone other than his fiancé.” Her stomach clenched, filling with poison, and she knocked back a swig of whisky, nearly coughing at the harsh burn. “I almost turned and ran, but then I realized I had to catch him in the act. He had a way of talking his way out of things. So I stormed over and flung open the bedroom door.”
“Was it…?”
“Brittney. Yes. My best friend and my fiancé, in bed together. It was…surreal, for lack of a better term. The image is seared into my brain. But I’m glad I saw it, because if I’d found out some other way, I never would have believed it.”
He swore under his breath, shaking his head. Tendons rose along his arms in taut cords as his fists clenched. “What happened then?”
“There were gasps and curses and a few attempts to get me to ‘just listen’, but that’s when I did run out the door. They were, you know, not dressed, so I outran them easily. I made it to my apartment to grab a few things, and Preston, and then I went to another friend’s place. I haven’t spoken one word to either of them since, and I blocked their numbers. So I don’t even know how long it was going on for. Not that it matters. Even once is not something I’m going to get over, considering those two had become the people I loved and trusted the most in the world.” She shrugged, attempting a wry smile. “Apparently I’m a great judge of character.”
“No. Don’t put this on yourself, even as a joke. You did nothing wrong.”
“Well, I trusted the wrong people.”
“They’re the ones at fault here,” he said firmly, his tone edged in steel. “What they did was horrible, and your former fiancé is lucky I don’t know where he lives.”
That brought a real grin to her face. “Believe me, I’d put my money on you in a fight. But it’s done, and I’m really trying to move on. It’s just…well, that kind of betrayal takes a toll.”
“I get it. I’m sorry that happened, Lark.”
“It’s better that I found out before the wedding, I guess. Anyway, I’d gotten the news about inheriting this house right before that, so after about a week of crashing at my friend Madison’s apartment, I decided to come here and regroup.”
He locked eyes with her, holding her gaze. “I’m glad you came here.” The simple words carried the weight of sincere emotions. Pausing, he scrubbed at his jaw. “Even though I know things haven’t exactly been smooth going for you here, either.”
Her chest tightened. After all this, he was still glad she had come into his life. “Well, bright side…you’ve renewed my faith in humanity. I’m grateful for everything you’ve done for me since I’ve been here, Jesse.”
“I care about you. And I’m glad you felt comfortable enough to tell me what happened.”
Another round of tears threatened, and she bent her head over the dog on her lap as she blinked them back. She sagged, the adrenaline that had been keeping her going suddenly draining from her system like water from a broken pipe. The few sips of whisky she’d taken swirled in its place, coursing sluggishly through her veins.
“Hey,” he said softly, breaking the silence. “You must be wrecked. We should try to get some sleep.” He stood up, crossing to her and extending his hand.
She nodded, readily accepting his help as she forced her wobbly legs to hold her upright. The stress of the past few hours was rapidly taking its toll. She retrieved her bag from the kitchen as he turned off the lights, then followed him up the stairs. With every step, a fresh wave of exhaustion seeped into her bones, turning her feet to lead. By the time they’d made it to the top, she was afraid she might collapse onto the dark wood of the hallway floor.
He paused by the open door to the master bedroom, gesturing farther down the hall. “There are two guest rooms, so you can choose whichever. Both should be made up.”
The dogs filed into his room, and she watched as Bosco jumped onto the end of the bed. The sheets were thrown back on Jesse’s side, presumably from his rush to respond to her screams. The windows stood open, letting in the cool breeze rolling in from the woods, and farther off, the Atlantic.
To her embarrassment, he picked up the longing on her face. “You can stay in here, with us, if you’d feel safer.”
She was too tired to even pretend to demur. She gave him a grateful look. “I think I would.” God, the mixed messages she’d been giving him this week. It was a wonder the man still spoke to her. “If you really don’t mind,” she added.
“I think I’ll sleep better with you in here too.”
Her heart fluttered, but she was pretty sure he wasn’t referring to the possibility of sex. He just meant he’d be more likely to hear her if she had another sleepwalking incident. Of course, she’d snuck out of this bedroom before without waking him. But she wasn’t about to bring that up.
She returned to his room after using the hall bathroom, her feet still slightly damp from a quick wash in the tub. He was already in bed, lying on his back and checking his phone. She padded around to the other side and climbed in slowly, as if not making sudden moves might make the situation less awkward.
“Move, Bosco,” he instructed the dog. Bosco raised his head, a questioning look on his face, but he stayed put. Jesse huffed out a sigh, rolling his eyes. “Just push him out of the way.”
“It’s fine. He was here first.” She had to bend her knees to fit into the available space, so she settled onto her side, facing Jesse.
He clicked off the light on the bedside table and the room slipped into darkness. “Night, Lark.”
“Goodnight.” His arm was close to her hand, and she reached down and touched her fingers to his as she drew in a breath. “I’m sorry I’ve built my walls so high,” she said softly. “It’s just…the wounds are still so fresh.”
“I get it.” He twined their fingers together, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. “You’ll heal.”
Deep inside her, something shifted, like a cramped muscle finally beginning to loosen. Clasping his hand, she closed her eyes as sleep reached up to claim her.
18
She stirred as he came back into the bedroom after his shower, and he stilled. He didn’t want to wake her. But her eyelids fluttered open, a cloud of confusion creasing her brows before she remembered where she was. Pushing herself up against the headboard, she glanced over at him, a shy smile playing over her lips.
Christ, she was beautiful. Her expression was dreamy, her features slightly puffy from sleep and tears, and the combination revealed the vulnerable side of her she tried so hard to hide. Her tousled hair framed her face, and his rumpled T-shirt fell in soft folds over her breasts. “Hi,” she murmured, tugging the covers up around her waist.
As they’d slept, their bodies had gravitated toward each other, and waking up with her spooned against him had been torture. He’d had to summon every ounce of willpower not to nuzzle her neck, kissing the tender skin along the curve up to her ear. Not to slip his hand under the cotton of her shirt—his shirt—and cup her breast. His palms remembered every rise and valley of her body, and it took superhuman control to keep his arm where it was, draped protectively over her waist, separated from her warm flesh by a layer of fabric. But he had no idea where they stood now. He wasn’t sure where she wanted to go from here, and he wasn’t sure where he wanted to go, either. Still, that knowledge wasn’t enough to temper the desire ignited by the curl of her back against his chest, the press of her bottom into his hips. Exquisite, unrelenting agony.
“Hey,” he replied, fighting to pull his thoughts away from the sight of her in his bed. And what they had done in that bed only six nights ago. “I was hoping I wouldn’t wake you.”
Her gaze ran over his bare torso, falling to the towel wrapped around his waist. Color rose in her cheeks, and she glanced away, toward the window. “It’s fine. What time is it?”
He ignored the pulse of heat in his groin. “Almost seven. Listen, if you need more rest, you should just stay and go back to sleep.”
“Oh, thanks, but I should probably get home. I have to work the lunch shift.”
“Are you going to be okay, after so little sleep?”
She lifted a shoulder. “I should be. As long as I have coffee.”
“That was my thinking too. There’s plenty downstairs. Feel free to hang around and get your fill.” He ran a hand through his damp hair, taking a moment to figure out the best way to approach the issue he’d been thinking about in the shower. “Listen, Lark…the woods thing has now happened twice, and there’s no reason to believe it’s going to stop until we figure everything out. You should consider staying here again tonight.”
Her forehead creased. “I don’t want to inconvenience you,” she said, shaking her head.
“It’s going to inconvenience me a hell of a lot more if I have to set up a tent by the river.”
Surprise and amusement played across her face. “You wouldn’t,” she said with a giggle.
“Try me.”
“But…I’m invading your space.”
He took a step toward the bed, holding her gaze. “I don’t mind waking up next to you. Although it was a definite test of my self-control.” The last sentence tumbled out without permission, but hey, it was the truth. He may as well be honest.
“It was?” She caught her bottom lip in her teeth, her eyes darkening as her gaze lingered over his bare chest again. “I actually missed out on that part. The…uh…waking up next to you.” She touched the bed beside her. “What time do you have to be at work?”
His body was already responding to the suggestive look on her face; the seductive tone of her voice fueled the fire. “I may be a little late this morning,” he said, standing over her.
She reached out, tracing her finger across the ridge of abdominal muscles above his towel. “Maybe you had car trouble?”
He made a groaning noise of assent. “I noticed you’re wearing my shirt.”
His stomach quivered as her fingers continued their path. “I meant to return it to you. But I like wearing it. It reminds me of you,” she added huskily.
“Consider it yours.” He touched her breast beneath the fabric. “Right now, though, I’d prefer it on the floor.”
She obediently raised her arms over her head, and he gathered the hem from her waist and slowly lifted it up, her hair spilling back out as he removed it and tossed it to the floor. “Better?” she asked.
“Much.”
“Your turn.” Her hands returned to the towel, and she tugged it until it puddled on the floor, joining his shirt.
* * *
Despite only getting about four hours of sleep, she couldn’t keep the smile off her face as she straightened her
house before work. She actually caught herself dancing as she put the dishes away. She’d taken a shower and seen only her own face in the mirror—slightly pale, but familiar features made of flesh and blood. She’d fed Preston and played with him, and her good mood must have been contagious, because he’d jumped enthusiastically as she dangled a feathered toy from a wand above his head.
Now she had about an hour before she had to leave for work, and she had to devote some time to figuring out what to do about the car situation. She needed to get it back to its owner soon, and she’d done some trades at work to ensure she had both Saturday and Sunday off. Hopefully, Madison would let her crash one more night on the couch so she could break up the round-trip drive. But then there was the problem of what she was going to drive back. After she called Madison, she’d have to call some car rental places and find out what her options were.
She was still on the phone with Madison, wandering around the kitchen as they spoke, when she heard the bone-chilling noises coming from upstairs. Lark froze, gripping the phone as goosebumps prickled her skin. Oh, God. Wrenching sobs echoed through the room, drifting down through the ceiling.
“Lark?”
She jumped at the sound of Madison’s voice coming through the line, her breath rushing out in an audible gasp. “What?” she yelped into the phone. Reining herself in, she quickly apologized, searching her brain for an excuse to end the conversation immediately. “Sorry, Madison…I…um, Preston’s throwing up.” She crept through the kitchen, toward the back staircase, as she added, “I have to run. Talk soon?” Her thumb hit the red end-call icon before the second syllable of Madison’s “Okay” response made it through.
She paused on the landing, listening to the haunting sounds of grief and despair. The adrenaline flooding her veins told her to run away, the primal instinct blaring like an air raid siren. But she knew she had to force herself forward—avoidance would not help her solve this. Gripping the bannister, she climbed the stairs, her legs trembling, her heart thudding a wild staccato rhythm.
Ghost Moon (Haunting Romance) Page 14