Love & Ghosts: Crescent City Ghost Tours

by Pulkinen, Carrie

  She sighed and dropped her head back on the sofa. “I know. But it was a lot easier for me to think it was. What do I do now?”

  “Do you love him?”

  “Yes. God, yes. More than anything, but I’m scared to death. I’ll always be worried about him.”

  Trish shrugged. “That’s normal. If he were a cop or a firefighter, you’d be worried about him. But you’d get over it, wouldn’t you? Or would you dump him the first time he was in danger?”

  “I suppose I’d get used to it.”

  “So, this is the same thing. Don’t you think it’s worth the risk?”

  Trish was right. So were Jessica and Natasha. They were all right. She was throwing away her one chance at happiness because she was afraid of ghosts. Jessica didn’t go crazy; she wasn’t careful. Sean took every precaution he could. She’d seen him work; she knew it was true. So why was she still acting scared? She came to New Orleans for a fresh start and to add some excitement to her life. Sean had been both those things, and she’d dumped him.

  “I’m an idiot.”

  “You have your moments.”

  “I need to apologize. I have to get him back.” She peeled herself off the sofa and grabbed her phone. When the screen lit up, the date stared her in the face. “Crap.”

  “What?”

  “Today’s Saturday. He’s running that bachelor auction. He’ll be busy all day.” She dropped her phone in her purse and flopped onto the couch. “I’ll have to call him tonight.”

  Trish sat up straight. “Or you could go there and surprise him.”

  “He’ll be too busy to talk.”

  “Look, you go on and on about all the romantic things he does for you. Now’s your chance to do something romantic in return.”

  She crossed her arms. “I don’t see how showing up at a fundraiser he’s supervising is romantic. He’ll probably be annoyed.”

  Trish grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. “Just imagine it. He’s up there on the stage, calling out the next bachelor when he looks into the audience. And there, standing in the aisle is the woman of his dreams who only two days ago broke his heart to pieces.”

  “Trish…”

  “But now, here she is. Looking up at him with bright blue eyes. He drops the microphone and jumps off the stage. He runs toward you smiling, arms outstretched, and sweeps you into a passionate embrace. Before you ever get the chance to speak, his lips meet yours, sealing your future with a kiss.”

  Emily laughed. “Okay. I think you’ve been reading too many romance novels.”

  She shrugged and stuck her nose in the air. “It could happen.”

  “I suppose I could go up there. Maybe talk to him at intermission. Do they have intermission at auctions?”

  Trish grinned. “Let’s go find out.”

  * * *

  Sean stood backstage in the Saenger Theatre and went over his list of bachelors again. Of the twenty men signed up for the auction, only two hadn’t shown up yet. Eric was one of them. Sean grumbled under his breath and dialed his number. No answer. The kid better not flake out on him. The auction started in twenty minutes.

  He dropped his clipboard on a table and ran a hand through his hair. This event happening so soon after his break up with Emily had been a blessing. He’d been so busy preparing for it, he only had time to miss her every other minute of the day. An image of her beautiful face flashed in his mind, and his heart gave a squeeze.

  At least her sister was satisfied with the outcome. She’d finally found her voice—too little, too late—and thanked him for saving Emily from the demon. Though he hadn’t done a single thing to save her. She was the one who’d rescued him. After she lied and put him in danger in the first place.

  That’s right. She lied, and he was angry with her for putting his life on the line. He needed to remember that, because being mad was so much easier than missing her. Still, he couldn’t help but wonder how it would have played out if he’d paid more attention to Jessica’s spirit. Maybe he could have found a way to help her communicate. If she’d have been able to tell him what help she needed from the beginning…

  But he couldn’t dwell on the what-ifs. He had an auction to run and a life to live. With or without Emily in it.

  Sydney rounded the corner and fixed a steely gaze on him. She’d been acting funny all afternoon, but she got that way sometimes, especially when one of her visions was bothering her. And he wanted nothing to do with her glimpses of the future. Been there. Done that. And there was nothing he could do to change the outcome.

  “Everything ready to go, tech goddess?” He flashed a grin, hoping to ease the tension charging between them as she approached.

  “Of course it is. But you and I need to talk.” She jerked her head toward a dressing room and ducked inside.

  “Hey, Sean. Sorry I’m late.” Missing bachelor number one signed in on the clipboard. “Traffic was hell.”

  “No problem. Grab a drink. We’ll be starting soon.” And Eric better get his ass here soon too. He slipped into the dressing room and let the door fall shut behind him.

  Sydney sat on the makeup counter, the ring of bright lights shining around her like a halo. She gripped the edge of the desk so hard, her knuckles turned white. “Why haven’t you made up with Emily yet?”

  He sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets. “She broke up with me, remember?”

  Her feet dangled from the ledge, and she crossed them at the ankles. “I had a vision.”

  “And that’s my cue to leave.” He turned for the door.

  “Wait, Sean. You need to hear it.”

  Gripping the knob, he rested his head against the door frame. The cool metal sent a chill running down his back. “Why, when there’s nothing I can do to change the outcome?”

  “You can change this. I know you can because you’ve already changed it once.”

  He let his hand fall by his side, and he turned around. “You think so? Because I sure as hell couldn’t do anything about Courtney. You told me two weeks before she was going to die, and she still got in that car and wrecked it.”

  Sydney fisted her hands on her lap and swung her legs. “Because she had free will. Only she had the power to stop the car crash from happening. How many times do I have to tell you that? You did everything you could.”

  “And it still wasn’t enough, so what’s the point? I don’t want to know what you saw. It doesn’t matter anyway.”

  She hopped off the counter and crossed her arms. “You know who you sound like right now?”

  He raised his eyebrows, waiting for her to continue.

  “You sound like Emily. Pretending something isn’t true doesn’t make it any less real.”

  He opened his mouth to spout off a witty comeback, but the words didn’t make it past his throat. She had a point. Wait. No, this was different. “I know your visions are real, Syd. I just don’t want to hear them.”

  “Same thing.” She let out a growl of frustration. “I’ve had two visions about your future lately. I won’t tell you what the first one was, but it was a good one. You were happy. But something changed. Last night, I had a different one.”

  “Don’t, Syd. I don’t want to—”

  “I saw you out with Paisley. On a date. Your mother was furious with you.”

  He laughed. “That’ll never happen.”

  “It will if you don’t do something to change it.”

  He put a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. “There is no way in hell I would ever go out with Paisley Monroe. Even without the sordid family history, the woman’s got a voice like a pterodactyl.”

  “I saw it, Sean.”

  He raised his arms and dropped them by his sides. “What do you want me to do, then?”

  “Make up with Emily. Believe me, you want my first vision.”

  “How do you know what I want?”

  “Because I know you. And I know you love her.”

  Wasn’t that the truth? He leaned against the w
all and ran a hand through his hair. “I do love her, but she lied. She almost got me killed.”

  “Did she apologize?”

  “No.”

  “Did she at least have good reason to lie?”

  He sighed. “A demon.”

  She crossed her arms and tapped her foot impatiently. “You’re not mad at her, so stop pretending to be.”

  “She doesn’t want me. She wants me to change who I am, and you know I can’t do that. Sure, I could sell my company. I could stop doing investigations. But I’d still see ghosts. Always have, always will.”

  “She’ll get used to it.”

  “She made it very clear that she wouldn’t.” He reached for the doorknob, but Sydney threw out her arm to block him.

  “Fight for her. Make her understand.”

  “I tried. I—” His phone buzzed in his pocket. “Hold on, that might be Eric.” He pressed the device to his ear. “Where the hell are you, man? The auction starts in five minutes.”

  “I’m so sorry. I’ve been puking all morning. I thought I’d be okay by now, but…Well, I tried to drive out there, but I ended up vomiting in my car.”

  He tried to temper the frustration in his voice. “Are you hungover?”

  “No. I wouldn’t do that to you. It’s a virus or something.” He let out a hacking cough.

  “All right. No problem. Get some rest.” He pressed end and shoved the phone in his pocket.

  Sydney chewed her lip and glanced at her watch. “I need to go cue the music. Think about what I said, okay?”

  “I will.” But right now, he had a more immediate problem. They’d promised twenty bachelors, and he only had nineteen.

  Chapter Nineteen

  “Wow. This place is packed.” Emily scanned the auditorium for two empty seats together, but couldn’t find any.

  Trish giggled. “Who knew so many women were desperate enough to pay for dates?”

  “It’s for charity, so I think that makes it okay.” She spotted Madeline standing behind the registration table. “There’s Sean’s mom. Let’s go talk to her.”

  They wove their way through the crowd and made it to the table as bachelor number one entered the stage.

  Madeline fanned herself with an auction paddle. “I hope you’re here because you’ve come to your senses and realized my son is the best thing that’s ever happened to you.”

  “That’s exactly why I’m here.”

  “Good, because that boy has done nothing but mope since you broke up with him.” She dropped the paddle on the table and crossed her arms. “What were you thinking?”

  “I wasn’t. But I’m here to make amends. When will this be over?”

  “Oh, don’t wait till it’s over, honey. Go on backstage. He’ll be thrilled to see you.”

  A roar of applause filled the auditorium as the bachelor left the stage.

  Madeline nodded her approval. “Two grand. Not bad.”

  “Bachelor number two is Eric Landry,” the auctioneer announced. “Oh, hold on. Maybe not.”

  Sean walked onto the stage and whispered something in the woman’s ear. She grinned and adjusted her microphone. “Well, folks, we’ve got a special treat for you. Eric called in sick, so his replacement is Mr. Sean LeBlanc himself.”

  Emily’s stomach dropped to her knees as a murmur fell across the audience. Well, what did she expect? She’d dumped him. He had every right to date whomever he chose. Still, the thought of him going ahead with the auction had never occurred to her.

  “Uh-oh.” Trish put a hand on her shoulder. “What are you going to do?”

  Madeline rushed around the table. “I’ll put a stop to this.”

  “No, wait.” This was her fault. All of it was, and it was her mistake to fix. Trish wanted her to give him romance. A grand gesture. Now was her chance. “I’ll bid for him.”

  The auctioneer started the bidding at three hundred dollars. “We’ve got three hundred from Miss Paisley Monroe in the front row. Can I get four hundred?”

  Another paddle went up in the air. “Four hundred from Miss Erin Smith. Can I get five?”

  The two women went back and forth until the price reached a thousand dollars. “One thousand going once.”

  Madeline tossed Emily a paddle. “You better win him.”

  Emily threw her arm into the air, waving the paddle like a madwoman. She was stuck behind a standing-room-only crowd. Would the auctioneer see her in time?

  “Looks like we have another bidder in the back. I can’t see your face, dear, are you bidding fifteen hundred?”

  “Yes!” She waved the paddle around again.

  “You’ve got some competition, Ms. Monroe. Can I get two thousand from you?”

  Sean stood on the stage, his hand shielding his eyes from the lights, but Emily doubted he could see her. The auctioneer couldn’t even see her. Paisley agreed to the two thousand, and Sean grimaced. Hopefully Paisley would tap out soon. Emily only had a few thousand in savings she could spare.

  “We’re up to three thousand,” the announcer said. “Is the mystery woman in the back still in?”

  She raised her paddle one last time. If Paisley went for four, Emily was out. She didn’t have five grand to spare.

  Paisley bid four thousand, and Sean ground his teeth. The muscles in his jaw flexed like they always did when he was frustrated. Emily’s heart sank. He’d be taking Paisley Monroe out on a date. An image of her pressing her hot pink lips to Sean’s face flashed in her mind, making her ears burn.

  Madeline clutched her elbow. “Bid ten thousand and shut that tramp down.”

  “I don’t have ten thousand dollars.”

  “I’ll pay for it; you just bid.”

  The auctioneer peered into the crowd. “Five thousand from the mystery woman?”

  Emily didn’t raise her paddle. “You don’t have to do that for me. This is my fault. I can live with him going on one date with her.”

  “Going once.”

  “Well, I can’t.” Madeline tried to lift Emily’s arm. “Besides, I’m not doing it for you. I’m doing it for my future grandchildren.”

  “Going twice.”

  Emily stared the woman hard in the eyes. She seemed as serious as she could be. She gave her a nod, and Emily shoved through the crowd, waving the paddle in the air.

  “Ten thousand dollars,” she shouted at the top of her lungs. She elbowed her way through the throng of people and stumbled into the aisle. “I bid ten thousand dollars.”

  She caught Sean’s gaze, but he didn’t smile. His face remained expressionless as the auctioneer waited for Paisley to make a move. Paisley bickered with an older man, most likely her father, but he shook his head. She crossed her arms over her chest and stuck her bottom lip out. She was done.

  “Sold to the mystery bidder.” The auctioneer rapped her gavel on the podium, and everyone in the audience stared at Emily.

  She forced a smile and ducked her head, her heart racing at the sudden onslaught of attention. As she lifted her gaze to meet Sean’s, the corner of his mouth twitched. He hopped off the stage and made his way past the front row and up the aisle toward her.

  Time seemed to stand still as the image of Trish’s fantasy prediction flashed through her mind. He was moving toward her, but his arms weren’t outstretched, and he certainly wasn’t smiling. Had she made her grand gesture for nothing? Had she wasted Madeline’s money only to be rejected in front of hundreds of people?

  He stopped two feet in front of her, his gaze heavy, brows knit. She fought the urge to throw herself into his arms and reminded herself to breathe. Why didn’t he say something? Her lip trembled, and tears stung her eyes, but she held them back. She hadn’t thought this through. Now she had to beg for forgiveness in front of the entire community.

  “Sean, I’m sorry. I was wrong and stupid, and I miss you. I shouldn’t have broken up with you. I just…Will you please give me another chance?”

  He shook his head. Oh, god, he was rejecting her. He
r legs turned to noodles, and her stomach churned.

  “Emily, I can’t change who I am.”

  “I don’t want you to. I love you. Every part. Just the way you are.”

  Still no smile. She’d never seen him so serious. “And the box?”

  “It’s gone. Natasha took it this morning. And I talked to Jessica. Well, she talked some sense into me, anyway. I was wrong, Sean. I don’t want you to change.”

  He only stared at her.

  “I understand if you don’t want to take me back. I put your life in danger. You deserve better—”

  He took her face in his hands and pressed his lips to hers. Fire shot through her veins as he stepped closer, closing the space between them until his firm chest pressed against hers. She wrapped her arms around his waist and let the rest of the world slip away. The audience was silent, but they could have been screaming for all she cared. She wouldn’t have heard them over the fireworks exploding in her mind. Sean was in her arms, and that was all that mattered.

  He linked his fingers behind her neck and pressed his forehead to hers. “Of course I want you back.”

  “Are you sure?”

  A warm tear rolled down her cheek, and he wiped it away with his thumb. “This is true love. You think this happens every day?”

  She threw her arms around his neck. “I love you, Sean.”

  “I love you too.”

  “Well, ladies,” the announcer interrupted their reunion, “I can’t guarantee a ten-thousand-dollar bid will end this way for you, but it’s worth a shot, isn’t it? Let’s get the next bachelor out here and see if we can find his true love.”

  The crowd focused their attention on the stage, and Sean took her by the hand, leading her up the aisle. Sydney gave them a thumbs up from the sound booth, and Trish waved from behind the registration table. The crowd parted for them as they headed toward the exit door.

  Sean stopped and pulled her into his arms. “I can’t believe you paid ten thousand dollars for a date with me.”

  “Well, technically your mom paid for it. I just waved the paddle.”