Wanted: Ghost-Busting Bride

  What had just happened? All traces of the unusual lights had disappeared, and the breeze was no longer cold.

  Kailyn shook her head then crouched over the fallen figure, checking Helena’s breathing and pulse. She seemed okay—just unconscious. Chewing her lip, Kailyn racked her brain for any plausible explanation.

  Unable to move the basketball-sized rock with her foot, she couldn’t imagine how Helena had picked it up.

  Stumped, she looked down at the now-stirring Helena. Maybe the pale woman had seen something.

  Helena slowly glanced around. “How did I get here?”

  “I don’t know.” Kailyn sat back on her heels. “Why did you try to conk me with a boulder?”

  “I what?” Helena choked as she struggled to sit up. “I would never hurt anyone.”

  Either the quivering woman was a tremendous actress or something weird had happened. Her eyes weren’t dilated, and she didn’t appear to be drunk or drugged.

  Deliberately, Kailyn pointed to the rock a few inches from Helena’s feet. “As I stepped through the hole in the wall, you lunged at me with this in your hands.”

  Shaking, Helena touched the stone. “I probably couldn’t pick that thing up, much less toss it at you. I don’t even remember coming to the abbey.”

  “How odd. What’s the last thing you do remember?”

  “Seeing the Earl kiss your forehead and pull you close.” Helena’s voice held a tinge of anger, but it wasn’t the same guttural tone she’d uttered during the attack. “I was jealous of the fact you used magic to defeat me at cards, but I’m not stupid enough to think harming you would win me the Earl’s attentions.”

  Kailyn yanked at a clump of gold threads on her skirt. Markham and Martin should have requested a degree in science-fiction from their applicants for their stinking job.

  Chapter 8

  So the little minx wanted to throw him off balance. Kailyn had run off to the ruins then fled back to the castle. At least the luncheon hadn’t been a total disaster. She had listened to her relatives’ plea for cooperation. While their arguments may have shaken her up a bit, he doubted Kailyn was convinced about Lady Anne’s power.

  Returning to the castle, Spencer took the stairs two at a time. Her clinging act at the picnic should open the way for a few stolen kisses in the dungeon. After all, she’d started the contact. A delightful next step in their battle of wills.

  The moment he opened his bedroom door, however, the sight of Ginnette in sheer lingerie lounging on his bed scattered his pleasant thoughts. He really didn’t want to deal with his conniving neighbor right now.

  “Guests aren’t allowed in the family quarters.”

  Ginnette arched her back, presenting her curves in a pose meant to seduce. “Your attention to Miss Baker is excessive. I, too, received a rose. Do not ignore my claim.”

  Most men would see Ginnette’s tall, graceful form as sexy. Not him. He’d been on the receiving end of Kailyn’s clumsy flirtation and found it infinitely more fun to win the squeamish enchantress than the bold seductress. Stalking over to the blue dress Ginnette had dropped onto the floor, he grabbed it and tossed the garment to her.

  “Get out.”

  Ginnette slithered across the bed, rose to her knees and brushed her breasts against his chest. “I would be the perfect countess. I’ll satisfy your every whim.”

  The sickeningly sweet scent of heavy perfume threatened to suffocate him. Stepping to the bellpull, he viciously yanked it.

  “If you don’t want my butler to see you naked, I suggest you get dressed.”

  “How dare you ignore my claim?” Ginnette’s face twisted with so much rage the air around her glowed red before she fell limp onto his bed.

  A minute later, Chadwick and Mrs. Chadwick knocked on his door. “You rang, my lord?”

  Spencer swung the door open and pointed to the prone form. “Take Ginnette back to her room and find out how she gained entrance to my chamber.”

  “Certainly, my lord.”

  Mrs. Chadwick bustled in while her husband simply shook his head and muttered, “I’ve never seen Lady Ginnette behave so offensively.”

  “Make sure someone discretely watches her at all times,” Spencer instructed firmly. “I suspect she will continue to cause problems.”

  Kailyn tossed her dusty costume on the floor and flopped onto the bed. How did she make any sense of ghost tales, curses and a life-threatening attack by a possessed maniac? Her head hurt from trying to apply science to this spook-house.

  She’d had enough drama for today. Helena had managed quite easily to stand and walk back to the party. If the vindictive blonde wanted to fess up to the incident that was fine, but it wasn’t Kailyn’s responsibility to notify her hostess about the weird happenings. It would only make her look like a jealous tattle-tale.

  At a knock on the door, she slid into her robe before she peeked out to find Allison Lloyd in the hallway.

  “You left so abruptly at lunch, I wanted to make sure you weren’t ill.”

  Kailyn cringed. “All the weird incidents Markham blames on Lady Anne drove me insane. I had to get out of there.”

  Her friend bounced through the door and sank cross-legged onto the tiny bed. “Tell me everything you’ve seen.”

  “Don’t tell me you believe in ghosts, too?” Kailyn closed the door and leaned heavily against it. Allison read physics journals, for heaven’s sake. How could she be infected with this ghostly nonsense?

  Allison beamed. “Of course I do. Last summer the university funded a ghost-hunting project. My team didn’t find any spirits in the old inn down the road. However, my friend’s team identified two spectral entities within Ryne Castle.”

  Kailyn’s jaw dropped. “Are you telling me you’ve studied scientific tests for locating ghosts?”

  The question didn’t even faze Allison. She simply nodded. “We record the energy signatures, the temperature and the sounds ghosts generate. One group even digitally photographed a ghost and they just published their results.”

  Kailyn circled the room and stopped by the window. “Real scientific tests, not the type you see on TV?”

  “As valid as any lab work I’ve done during traditional physics classes.”

  “Could you get me a copy of the method and the findings from that study?”

  “Absolutely.” Allison whipped out a pen and notepad. “But first, tell me every detail of your encounters with Lady Anne.”

  For the next fifteen minutes, Allison grilled Kailyn about every freaky occurrence—from the possessed computer to the boulder-throwing Helena. Then the fool woman giggled. “You’re so lucky.”

  “Jinxed might be more like it.” Kailyn paced over to the desk. “Even if all of your ghost-hunting techniques prove Lady Anne exists, I’m not marrying Markham.”

  “I wouldn’t bank on that.” Allison laughed and rose from the bed. “Lady Anne won’t release a good match for the Earl without a fight.”

  Kailyn closed the door behind her crazy friend then marched over to the armoire.

  Everyone around here is loony. It had to be the castle.

  When guests stepped inside the ancient structure, they lost all reason and jumped whole hog into a fairy tale. The history of the castle, shrouded in the gobbledegook of legend, turned normal women into fools and an architect into a seductive scoundrel.

  Flirting hadn’t chased Markham away. Worse, having his arm around her waist had felt good. Way too good for her safety.

  Maybe wearing one of her attitude tee shirts might keep her out of relationship trouble. She snatched it from her suitcase. When she’d packed for the flight, she had imagined wearing the irreverent but comfortable shirt to lounge in while she watched TV at the hotel.

  She gazed at the message. THE ANSWER IS NO! WHAT WAS THE QUESTION? That should block Markham’s advances.

  Dressed in jeans and comfortable sneakers, Kailyn grabbed her flashlight. After a day like this, she’d give anything to once again believe ghos
ts didn’t exist. She hated to think a ghost had made the thumping sound she heard last night. A quick investigation of the ground around the tower ought to fool Spencer into thinking she hadn’t given up her no-ghost theory.

  Outside, she stopped on the grassy surface below her window and bent down to study the ground. No loose stones, tree limbs, fruit or even a stray stick that could be thrown lay there.

  Another dead end.

  “Kailyn, are you ready to explore?”

  Her heart jumped to her throat as she whirled toward Markham’s voice. He stepped from behind the oak door at the base of the tower.

  Thoughts of kissing his sexy mouth flitted through her mind. Gripping her flashlight tighter, she sidled toward the door. Surely a dark and dusty dungeon would quell her lust.

  Markham’s chuckle stopped her in her tracks. She peered over her shoulder at him. “What?”

  “Do I have to maintain my distance?”

  “Yes, of course,” she stammered.

  “That’s not what your shirt says.” He immediately closed the gap between them.

  “Maybe you asked the wrong question.” She stepped sideways, but not fast enough to escape the arm that snaked out and pulled her into a hug.

  When he grinned down at her, she tried one more attempt to disgust him with girly behavior. Reaching up with a forefinger, she caressed his dimple. “How cute.”

  With a quick twist of his head, he nipped at her finger then kissed the tip he’d bitten.

  Before her backfired flirtation landed her in more hot water, she scooted out of his arms. Then struggling for a topic to dampen her raging hormones, blurted out, “I hope your girlfriend clobbered you for dumping her because a hologram didn’t hand her a white rose.”

  Markham snagged her hand. “Sorry, no—we parted as friends. Your relatives made more of the situation than really existed.”

  “Okay, enlighten me.” Pulling free, she crossed her arms and tapped her foot.

  The unrepentant rascal twisted a strand of her hair around his finger. “I had social obligations. It was convenient to take Mari Wentworth, my chief financial officer, to events. Gossip linked us romantically even though it was strictly a business arrangement.”

  She glared at him. For some reason the issue of a broken engagement bothered her. “Were you or were you not engaged to her?”

  “Our friends assumed we would marry, although I never proposed or gave her a ring. We were, and still are, friends. John Martin said the problem with our relationship was a total lack of sparks. I’m beginning to learn what he meant.” He tucked the curl he’d been playing with behind her ear.

  A million of those pesky sparks were shooting from his fingertip down her neck. Kailyn held her breath, but the sensation didn’t stop. She couldn’t just stand here like a lovesick goon. “Why didn’t John knock some sense into your head about this insane way to find a wife?” she finally managed.

  “Oh, he tried, but I have no choice. It’s the only way to save Ryne.” Markham’s finger was now tracing the collar of her tee shirt.

  She swallowed and took a deep breath. “Everyone has a choice. You could ignore your family tales.”

  “I do believe Lady Anne has made a splendid choice.”

  How humiliating to be a ghost’s choice, not the man’s. With a flick of her wrist, she swung the flashlight in front of her like a shield. She needed to move before she agreed to marry the charming flirt. Bolting toward the doorway, she called over her shoulder, “Let’s explore the dungeon.”

  “Wait while I light this.” He stooped to pick up a kerosene lantern.

  Distance. She needed lots of it to be safe. Her trusty flashlight provided the perfect show of independence. She snapped it on.

  When the beam illuminated the pitch-black walls, she hesitated. Thick dust covered the steps, the sills for the arrow slits and the floor. Only Markham’s footprints on the worn stairs could be discerned. “I guess with a castle this size you don’t use the dungeon for storage.”

  “It’s been at least fifteen years since I ventured down there among the spiders.” Stopping behind her, he draped his arm across her shoulder. “Are you sure you’re ready to explore the dungeon? We might encounter Lady Anne again.”

  “Don’t tell me you’ve rigged another vision.” There was no use feeding his ego. She shrugged off his arm, ending the hum of excitement his touch caused.

  “You won’t find any special-effects equipment down there.”

  It really didn’t matter that she wasn’t going to find any evidence to support her theory. She wanted Markham to stew a bit. Maybe then he’d understand that two days wasn’t enough time to get to know someone for as permanent a commitment as marriage. Besides, she wouldn’t agree to marry anyone until he loved her for herself and not because of a ghostly decree. “I’m going to check every inch of the dungeon before I believe you.” She strode down the stairs ahead of him.

  “Blunder around all you want, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He chuckled all the way down the steps.

  His taunt forced her to pretend to search for possible locations of holographic equipment. The most likely spot was the window slit, but the beam of her flashlight revealed no machine had rested on the edges of the sill. The inch-thick dust must have been more than a decade old. She sighed and kept going.

  Markham lifted the lantern above his head and placed his other hand on her back. “Exactly what is it you expect to find? Maybe I can point you in the right direction.”

  “Oh, I just want to peer into each cell. I wouldn’t want you to think I wasn’t thorough in my search for your electronic devices.” She turned to face him. “You lead the way.”

  His finger tapped the tip of her nose. “You don’t give up easily, do you? Even when it’s obvious you’ll lose the bet.”

  “Nothing is obvious. You could have spread dust over everything as a cover-up.”

  “Where would I find this much dust?”

  “Construction. Your castle renovations create plenty of it.”

  Markham threw up his hand in mock defeat. “You found me out. I confess. I’ve replastered some of the west wing. I’m sure Chadwick threw all the debris down here.” The laughter in his voice warmed her like a caress, despite her irritation with him. “Let’s get on with your search.”

  She shouldn’t have agreed to the stupid bet. It gave Markham way too many opportunities to tempt her. But as he walked ahead of her holding the lantern high, she couldn’t keep her gaze off his tight, worn jeans. She didn’t really care that the tiny rooms contained nothing but more dust, strange noises and cobwebs. Her senses focused on the man lighting her way.

  Finally Markham took a large iron key out of his pocket and unlocked the door underneath the stairs. The hinges creaked when he shoved it open. Peering around his shoulder, Kailyn whooped with joy.

  This room held promise. A dusty tarp hid something in the far corner. She rushed over, pulled the black canvas off and groaned. Nothing but stinking chimney sweep brushes, brooms and coal buckets stacked next to an ancient trunk.

  A cold gust of air suddenly whipped the soot into a dust devil. Markham’s lantern flickered and died. At the same time, her flashlight flew from her hand and landed with a sickening thud on the stone floor.

  As the beam cut out, she froze, waiting. What did Markham plan for the supposed Lady Anne to do next?

  “Don’t move. I’ll find you. I’m a few feet behind you on your left.”

  Markham’s calm voice comforted her.

  Swinging her hand in a wide arc, her fingertips brushed the top of the old chest. “I’m by the trunk.”

  A cold, feathery pressure skidded across the ring finger of her right hand. With a squeak, she jerked her hand away and smacked Markham’s solid chest.

  “Don’t let Lady Anne’s theatrics bother you. She wouldn’t harm you.”

  “Yeah, right. Like I’m going to believe that after the curses on my family and the attacking chair.” And what was she su
pposed to think about Helena’s action? Had Lady Anne tried to conk her over the head with a boulder, or had the ghost saved her brain from being smashed in? Now was definitely not the time to bring it up. Maybe later in more spacious quarters.

  Markham’s arms tightened around her. “Five hundred years ago, the laws of England were different. An eye-for-an-eye justice was the norm. Lady Anne’s curses weren’t unusual or even cruel. She simply righted the wrongs to her family. Lady Anne is giving you the opportunity to end the curses, Kailyn.”

  She rested her head on his chest and allowed the steady beat of his heart to chase the ghost tales from her mind. She needed time to sort through all the claims and information. And her feelings for him. Time to understand the pull of desire she felt whenever he touched her. She felt things she didn’t welcome, couldn’t welcome, not now, not so soon. And yet, she longed for his love. A love she could return in a way she wouldn’t admit even to herself.

  “Why does every strange event in this castle connect to the ghost?”

  “Because the castle is haunted.” He brushed his lips across her temple. “Lucky thing the second sign doesn’t require light.”

  “Forget the ghostly sign. How do we get out of here in the dark?” She needed to escape before the spicy scent of his aftershave made her succumb to her growing desire.

  A tinkle of feminine laughter and a flash of green light confirmed that something was aiding and abetting the rogue. She stiffened. Nothing about this trip to the dungeon had worked out as she’d expected. She shivered, and from far more than the chill in the drafty dungeon or the possible presence of a ghost.

  “Care to explain the green light and the laughter?”

  His chuckle rumbled through her like a jackhammer, melting her bones and turning her resistance to mush. His finger gently found and tilted her chin upward and his mouth claimed hers so quickly she had no time to think of resistance. At least that’s what she told herself as she melted into his hot, hungry kiss.

  He tasted like adventure—excitement laced with danger. A seductive heat welled up inside her. Maybe it was worth the risk to explore this tempting man.