His lips split into a crooked smile. “My job doesn’t always suck. This aspect, this definitely sucks.”
“I’m sorry I made the joke about you knocking her up.”
“That’s okay. I’m sorry I said the reaper was hot.”
“That’s okay.”
We lapsed into an uncomfortable silence, something I couldn’t take. “So ... where do you want to eat?”
“I’m open to suggestions.”
4
Four
Galen was with Casey behind the clinic’s security doors for a long time. In fact, he was gone so long I was about to write him a note to tell him I’d gone back to the lighthouse when he re-emerged.
“I didn’t know if you were coming back,” I admitted.
“I’m sorry.” He absently ran his hand up and down my arm. “I wanted to make sure she was comfortable before I left.”
“Did she wake up?”
He nodded. “She’s very upset. Thinks I’m lying to her, and has convinced herself this is some sort of elaborate joke.”
“She doesn’t really believe that. She simply can’t accept the alternative, that all the plans she made, the dreams they had together for that baby, are gone. Instead of her and Jacob working together to raise their child, now she’s a single mother who has to bury her husband right before what’s supposed to be the happiest time of her life. Anyone would be overwhelmed by that.”
He tilted his head to the side. “That was fairly profound. I think you nailed what’s going on. Her family is on the way. The doctor gave her a sedative that’s safe for the baby. He wants to monitor her blood pressure overnight because he’s afraid she’s so upset she could go into labor. That wouldn’t be good right now because the baby isn’t in position, whatever that means.”
“It means the baby’s head hasn’t moved to the down position,” I said knowingly. “If that doesn’t happen you can have a breech birth, and those are more dangerous ... and totally painful.”
“Good to know.”
Something occurred to me. “I don’t know from personal experience or anything. I watch a lot of television.”
He snickered as he rested his hand on the small of my back. “I wasn’t worried. Come on. I believe I owe you dinner.”
“And ice cream.”
“I definitely owe you ice cream.”
WE PICKED ONE OF THE smaller restaurants, because Galen was too tired to answer questions. By now, word had spread about what had happened to Jacob and the entire island buzzed with gossip. He hated the gossip, and in this particular instance, I couldn’t blame him.
“What’s good here?” I kept my smile in place as I glanced at the menu of Rita’s Surfside Bar, even though I was worried about eating anything that came from what looked to be a rundown establishment.
As if reading my mind, Galen leaned back in his booth seat and shot me an amused look. “Don’t worry. The health inspector comes by once a month. Everything is on the up-and-up. The food here is amazing.”
I would have to take his word for it. “Why don’t they clean the place up? You know, give it a good spiff? Wouldn’t that bring in more tourists?”
“I don’t know that Rita wants more tourists. The locals hang here more than the tourists, although some tourists do manage to find their way here. In fact ... .” He trailed off, inclining his chin toward the front door.
When I swiveled, I found Griffin and Aisling walking through the door. They seemed relaxed as they chatted with one another and headed toward our section of the restaurant. They saw us at the last minute, pulled up short, and I found myself mired in an awkward situation.
“Hey,” I offered lamely.
“Hello.” Griffin nodded. “Um ... we’re just getting dinner before taking a walk on the beach. We plan to take it easy tonight and hit the touristy stuff tomorrow.”
“That sounds like a good plan.” I felt like an idiot. “Um ... would you like to join us?”
“Oh, I ... .”
“Sure,” Aisling answered for him, a bright smile washing over her face as she waited for me to get up and scoot to the other side of the booth with Galen. My newly-minted boyfriend — if he was going to use the word there was nothing holding me back — seemed fine with the idea of sharing a meal with a reaper.
“So, what can you tell us about this island?” Aisling asked, grabbing the menu I’d left behind and flipping it over. “I mean ... what is there to do here?”
“What do you like to do at home?” I asked. “You’re from Detroit, right? I’m from Michigan, too. Although ... not the city.”
Aisling’s eyes were glittery purple slits when she lowered her menu. “How do you know where we’re from?”
Uh-oh. “Oh, well ... .” I looked to Galen for help and found him laughing. “It’s not funny.”
“It’s totally funny,” he argued, lightly squeezing the back of my neck. “I ran you,” he offered, extending his hand to Griffin. “Galen Blackwood. I’m Moonstone Bay’s sheriff.”
“Ah.” Griffin shook his hand. He didn’t seem offended by Galen’s announcement. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Aisling, on the other hand, was nowhere near ready to accept Galen’s response without further information. “Why would you run us?”
I was trying to think of a believable lie when Galen answered for me.
“Because we know you saw the soul on the dock,” he answered without hesitation. “You were looking right at him. We were out there investigating his murder, which I managed to hide thanks to the bevy of kiosks on the docks before you got off the ship. It was obvious you saw him when we were leaving.
“No offense, but seeing ghosts isn’t a common gift here, and I was curious,” he continued. “That’s why I ran you. You’re a reaper, which explains a lot, but you have a rather colorful past. Exactly how many times have you been arrested?”
Instead of being offended, Aisling merely shrugged. “Enough times to know that I’m not sorry for any of them.”
“I would say she’s exaggerating because she likes to act tough, but she’s really not sorry about being arrested,” Griffin interjected. “Her father bailed her out each time, so it’s not as if she suffered.”
“He likes bailing me out.”
“If that’s what you need to tell yourself.”
I found them amusing, and that was a relief. After Galen told me she was a reaper I wasn’t sure what to expect. She seemed perfectly normal. Er, well, for the most part. For someone who sucked souls for a living.
The waitress picked that moment to gather our drink orders, and I was thankful to have something to do while my nerves settled.
“I’ll have a rum runner,” I said.
“That sounds good.” Galen’s hand was busy on my back. “Make it two.” He flicked his eyes to Aisling and Griffin. “That’s basically the drink of choice on the island. They’re really good here.”
“Oh, well ... .” Griffin shifted on his seat. “I think we’ll just go for something light tonight, like iced tea or lemonade.”
Aisling made a face. “You can have a drink.”
“It’s no fun drinking alone.”
“You won’t be alone. You have these two.”
“Yes, well, I don’t want to drink in front of you.” Griffin was clearly uncomfortable as he steadfastly avoided his wife’s pointed stare. “I’ll have some lemonade.”
Aisling had clearly perfected her eye roll over time, because she snagged the menu from him in one motion as she shifted to get the server’s attention. “He’ll have a rum runner and I’ll have an iced coconut water. Thanks.”
Griffin didn’t protest until the waitress left. “I’m not spending the whole week getting drunk while you’re miserable ... and on the wagon.”
“I don’t see where we have much choice.”
I was confused. “Are you an alcoholic?” I asked, hoping the question didn’t come off as invasive.
“I wish.” Aisling wrinkled her nose. “I’m preg
nant.”
“And she’s really happy about it,” Griffin enthused, flashing a sarcastic thumbs-up toward his wife. “Baby, if you keep announcing it like that people will think you’re not thrilled about our incoming bundle of joy.”
“Did you have to get married?” Galen asked, the question causing me to squirm. “I mean ... is that why you got married?”
Griffin’s smile slipped. “We got married because we love each other. We were engaged long before we found out she was pregnant. In fact, we didn’t find out she was pregnant until the day of the wedding.”
“My father is still screaming,” Aisling muttered.
“He’ll get over it.” Griffin didn’t look particularly worried about Aisling’s father. “By the time we get back, he’ll probably have a baby room already put together in that castle he calls a house.”
“Then he’ll be way ahead of us.”
“Yeah, well, we’ll figure it out.”
I took a moment to study them. The baby news was obviously still fresh and they were getting used to the idea. Their foundation was solid — a baby wouldn’t shake that — but expecting this turn of events and wrapping their heads around it wasn’t an easy task.
“You’ll be good parents,” I announced, taking everyone — including myself — by surprise with my fortitude. “Don’t worry about that. I know this is a surprise, but you’ll settle and things will be fine.”
Galen slid me a sidelong look. “Are you suddenly a therapist?”
The question caught me off guard. “No. I ... simply feel it. When I feel things, they tend to escape through my mouth. I didn’t really think about it.”
“Don’t worry.” Aisling waved off my concern. “I don’t think before I speak either.”
“She’s not lying,” Griffin intoned.
“As for the baby, we’re ... taking some time to absorb it before making plans,” she continued. “We were both surprised.”
“It’ll be fine.” Griffin’s tone was soothing. “We’ll be better at this than you think.”
“And if we’re terrible, my father will hire someone to take care of the baby for us.” Aisling’s eyes momentarily darkened. “That is if he ever forgives us.”
“He’s not angry,” Griffin countered. “He was simply surprised … like us.”
“He tried to chase you around the church.”
“It’s good exercise for his heart.”
“He said he was going to cut your hands off,” Aisling added. “He said that’s what he should’ve done the second I brought you home.”
Griffin’s lips quirked as he caught my eye. “He really likes me. He’s just overprotective. Aisling is his only daughter and he’s spoiled her to the point she’s a monster. Thankfully she’s an adorable monster.”
“Oh, just wait.” Aisling adopted a far-off expression. “If you think I’m bad, just imagine how he’s going to spoil his first grandchild.”
“That won’t happen.”
“Puh-leez.” She made a face that told me she was officially enjoying herself. “You’re going to let him spoil the baby because it will get him off your back. You know it, and I know it.”
Griffin didn’t immediately respond, because the waitress arrived with our drinks. We placed our orders. I opted for crab legs, Galen calamari and Griffin went with fish tacos. Only Aisling didn’t know what she wanted.
“Would I like grits?” she asked Griffin with a straight face.
He immediately started shaking his head. “They taste like bad oatmeal, and I’ve seen you on the rare mornings when your father makes you eat oatmeal. You won’t like them.”
“No.” She furrowed her brow. “Can I eat seafood? I never even checked on that. I know I can’t have sushi — which is fine, because sushi is gross — and I’m supposed to stay away from any locally caught fish when we’re in Michigan, but can I have seafood?”
Panic licked Griffin’s handsome face at the question. “I don’t know. I ... um ... .” He looked to me for help.
“How am I supposed to know?” I shot back, frustrated.
“Hold on.” Galen pulled out his phone and started typing. “As long as it’s cooked, you’re fine. What do you like? The lobster tails are really good here. So are the scallops.”
Aisling didn’t look convinced. “Maybe I should just have a salad or something.”
“No.” Griffin vehemently shook his head. “You love seafood. We’ll make sure it’s cooked. You don’t need to deprive yourself. I already feel guilty you can’t drink on your own honeymoon.”
“You should feel guilty about that,” Aisling muttered. “I wanted banana daiquiris. Lots of them … with pretty little umbrellas. Now it’ll be months before I can have anything to take the edge off.”
“I’m sorry.” Griffin looked legitimately contrite. “I know this isn’t the way we thought things would happen, but we have to deal with it. I won’t drink while we’re here. I’ll be sober in solidarity with you.”
He looked so earnest my heart went out to him.
“No, I’m not punishing you that way,” Aisling countered. “Besides, I’ll be so whiny when I get big that you’ll need a drink to survive. We both know it. Don’t play the martyr now.”
“Fine. I’ll drink the whole pregnancy, if that will make you happy.”
“It will. You can drink through the pregnancy and I’ll drink through the birth.” Her shoulders slouched as she sipped her coconut water. “The horrible, horrible birth, where the kid rips my insides to the point I’m never the same again.”
“And on that happy note.” Galen squeezed my knee under the table as he shifted to get comfortable. “Do you guys mind if I ask a few questions about reaping?”
“I don’t mind, but I don’t know that much about it, to be honest,” Griffin replied. “Depending on how sorry Aisling is feeling for herself, she might be able to clear up a few things.”
“I’m not feeling sorry for myself.” Aisling screwed up her face as she made a visible effort to return to the conversation. “What do you want to know?”
“Well, for starters, how does it work? I mean ... do ghosts occur when you miss a soul?”
“My grandmother is a ghost,” I explained. “She kind of likes it. She hangs around my lighthouse and argues with her ex-husband while spying on Galen and me.”
“She’s a ghost by choice?” Aisling asked, confused. “What’s the deal with your reaper? He’s not supposed to allow that. Souls get crazy if they’re left to their own devices for too long. They can turn murderous and sit around watching the Kardashians all day rotting their brains. It isn’t pretty.”
I smirked. “My grandmother seems fine. She said she purposely stayed.”
“Her grandmother was a witch,” Galen volunteered. “My understanding is that makes a difference.”
“I’ve heard it does, but I’ve never seen that up close and personal,” Aisling said. “Witches aren’t a big thing in Detroit, at least not that I’ve heard of. We’ve seen a few, but not enough to test any theories.”
“I wasn’t really thinking about May when I asked the question,” Galen admitted. “I was thinking about Jacob. Shouldn’t his soul have been absorbed shortly after he died?”
“Jacob is the soul I saw on the dock?” Aisling asked.
“Yeah.”
“I would think he would be absorbed right away. How many reapers do you have?”
“To my knowledge, one. Adam Grimport. Have you ever heard of him?”
Aisling shook her head. “No, but I don’t pay much attention to other reapers. I can barely stand the ones in my own family.”
“She’s exaggerating,” Griffin supplied. “She’s completely co-dependent on her brothers and father. She pays way too much attention to them.”
“Ignore him.” Aisling waved her hand in Griffin’s face to shut him up. “There could be any number of reasons your reaper was late. If he’s the only one, maybe someone else was dying at the same time. Seriously, though, I can
’t believe you only have one reaper.”
“It’s a small island,” Galen pointed out. “We have, like, one death a week, sometimes only one a month. Our reaper doesn’t have much to do.”
“That sounds like the perfect gig.”
“Maybe we should move here,” Griffin suggested. “That might keep you from tripping over a life-threatening situation for a full three weeks.”
“I doubt it. I find trouble wherever it is.”
“You do.” He slung an arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her temple. It was an effort to soothe Aisling, who seemed happy for the contact. The pregnancy news was definitely new, and they were thrown for a loop, but they were dealing. Soon they would have everything under control.
At least I hoped that was true.
“Tell me about your wedding,” I suggested, opting for a happier topic. “Was it beautiful? Tell me about your dress.”
“Well, two days before the soul of my dead mother showed up to help me kill her body, and then my father found out I was pregnant three minutes before the ceremony, so I can safely say that the wedding was extremely loud,” Aisling started, causing me to gape and Griffin to chuckle. “What part do you want to hear about first?”
“The part where your mother’s soul came back,” Galen answered.
“The part where your father found out you were pregnant,” I countered. “Did he yell?”
“Oh, you have no idea. Griffin is lucky to be alive.”
5
Five
Galen was thoughtful as he walked me to my doorstep later that evening. He’d been polite throughout dinner, asking the appropriate questions and laughing at some of Aisling’s hilarious stories about her family. He’d been distracted, though.
“Are you okay?”
“What?” His eyes drifted to me. “Did you say something?”
“I asked if you’re okay.”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
That was the question. “I don’t know. You seem distracted. In fact, if you weren’t my ride I think there’s every chance you would’ve drifted away from the table during dinner and never come back. Do you not like Aisling and Griffin?”
Freaky Deaky Tiki Page 4