She brought her attention back to Utah. He was so handsome, it hurt to look at him. “You told me about this place. You said it was the only place you could find any peace.”
“Not the only place,” he admitted in a low voice while moving to a sitting position. “I didn’t think I would see you again.”
Michelle couldn’t look away from his hazel eyes. “Yeah. I’m aware that it’s a bad idea for me to be here, but I never claimed to be smart.”
Utah smiled, a pained look reflecting in his eyes. “I think you’re plenty smart.”
Unable to hide her relief at seeing him again, Michelle offered her hand. “Ride with me? We have an audience.”
“You mean you have an audience,” Utah teased, pushing to his feet without her help.
Michelle glanced back at the multitudes of people watching her talk to herself. “I’ll never be able to show my face in Bar 83 again.”
The sound of Utah’s laughter rolled through her to settle inside her heart.
She cleared her throat and trudged her way back up the hill.
Neither of them spoke until they were inside her car, safely away from prying eyes.
Michelle started the engine, took a right, and drove past the park to the boat launch. She left the car running so the air conditioner could do its thing.
Utah reached across the seat and laid his hand over hers, sending nerves scattering through her stomach.
“They found April,” Michelle began, only to pause at the look on Utah’s face.
“I know.”
Chapter Nineteen
Utah watched Michelle’s pupils dilate in surprise as he admitted to having knowledge of April’s rescue.
“How did you know?” Michelle muttered, holding his gaze. “I just found out an hour ago.”
“Because I was the one who found her.”
Michelle’s mouth fell open. “But how?”
Memories of April’s battered body suddenly assailed him. He shook off the images and ran his thumb over Michelle’s knuckles. “I don’t know how or why it happens. I can’t see others like me, but I’m somehow able to hear cries for help from the living. And not always, obviously. But the ones that I can hear or feel somehow draw me to them.”
“So I’m not the only one who can see or touch you,” Michelle whispered, her eyes huge and seeking.
Utah ran his free hand down his face. “You are. I’ve never been able to interact with any of the people I’ve saved. They never see me or remember my presence.”
“Then how do you help them?”
Shrugging, Utah explained, “I’ve never arrived to find them conscious. It takes an extreme amount of concentration and energy for me to move them or touch them in any way.”
A small indention appeared between Michelle’s pale blue eyes. “Maybe that’s why you can hear them, because they’re close to…”
“Death,” he rumbled. “You can say it. I mean, after three years of being dead, I’ve grown accustomed to the word.”
Michelle took an unsteady breath. “How did you know where to find April?”
“I didn’t,” Utah responded. “I heard her calling for help. When I closed my eyes, her desperation pulled me to her somehow. It always happens that way.”
Michelle didn’t blink at his explanation. “The FBI has been called in on this one. They believe it was the work of the Westcoast Strangler.”
“I wondered that myself,” Utah admitted. Another thought occurred to him. “She was taken from DeFuniak Springs. Not too far from where you live. I don’t feel good about you staying alone.”
Michelle nodded. “I know. It makes me uneasy too. But I have locks on the doors and windows, and as you well know, I keep a pistol in the nightstand next to the bed. I’ll be fine. Unless…”
“Unless what?” he prompted, hoping she would say what he thought she was about to.
She quickly licked her lips. “You want to hang out at my place for a while?”
Want to? he thought, tightening his hold on her hand. He wanted nothing more than to be with her. “Of course I’ll stay with you.”
It felt so damn good to feel needed by her that Utah couldn’t bring himself to voice the obvious. If someone did manage to break into Michelle’s home, what help would he, a ghost, be?
He would make sure she kept that gun on her at all times. He might not be alive, but there was nothing wrong with his senses. And he would keep them on alert day and night to keep Michelle safe.
Michelle appeared relieved by his vow to stay with her. She sent him a grateful smile, put the car in gear, and drove toward home.
* * * *
Utah held Michelle’s hand the entire ride back to her house. He couldn’t seem to let go of her. She’d actually hunted him down and found him.
He understood returning with her wasn’t right. He also knew that his presence in her life would eventually come to an end. An ache settled inside his chest.
She pulled into the drive and got out. Utah followed suit.
“Someone’s coming,” Utah announced, turning his attention toward the front yard.
A short, beefy man suddenly rounded the house, wearing long tan shorts, a dirty T-shirt, and a smile. “Good afternoon, Miss Collins.”
Michelle greeted the man in the same friendly fashion. “Hiya, Mr Needlemyer. How are you today?”
“I’m good,” he responded, making his way toward her. “I was just finishing up some yard work when I noticed your grass could use a cut. I know you live alone and you work a lot. I’d be more than happy to cut it if you’d like?”
Utah didn’t miss the way the man looked at Michelle, his hungry gaze touching on every part of her body but her face.
Disgust settled in Utah’s gut.
Michelle turned to unlock the door as she spoke. “I have a kid coming this weekend to mow, but I appreciate the offer.”
Utah watched as the man’s gaze dropped to Michelle’s ass the moment her back was to him.
“If you’re sure?” Ol’ Needlemyer persisted.
“I’m sure,” she called back, pushing the door open and stepping inside.
She glanced back as if waiting on Utah to follow her. “Have a nice day, Mr Needlemyer.”
Utah stepped inside the house, relieved when Michelle closed and locked the door behind him.
“He’s a pervert,” Utah pointed out, going to the window to watch the beefy neighbor amble his way across Michelle’s front lawn.
Michelle chuckled. “He is, but his wife is a sweetheart, and she makes the best oatmeal cookies I’ve ever tasted.”
Utah’s lips twitched. He should have known Michelle had the situation under control.
He turned to face her. “What I wouldn’t give for a cookie right about now.”
“You and me both,” Michelle quipped, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth.
Utah moved forward until he stood directly in front of her, his hand coming up to cup her cheek. “Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?”
She held his gaze, the teasing light in her eyes suddenly gone. “What are we doing?”
“I don’t know,” Utah whispered, leaning in close. “But it sure feels good.”
His lips brushed softly against hers, and the hand cupping her cheek moved around behind her head.
He gently tugged her forward, deepening the kiss.
If he remained in his current state for the next hundred years, he would spend every waking moment in Michelle’s arms. Nothing had ever felt more right.
A knock suddenly sounded, pulling Utah out of his fantasy.
Michelle broke off the kiss, an unsteady breath exhaling across Utah’s face. “Maybe they’ll leave.”
Utah took a step back with the next impatient knock. “You should get that.”
“Hold that thought,” Michelle muttered, trailing off to get the door.
“I’ve thought of little else.”
Chapter Twenty
Michelle looked through
the peephole to find her mother standing on the porch.
“Mom?” Michelle murmured, pulling the door open to allow Lani entrance. “Come in.”
Lani stepped over the threshold, her hands fidgeting in front of her. “Did I come at a bad time?”
Michelle glanced at Utah before shaking her head. “Of course not.” She’d give anything to be able to introduce him to her mother.
“What’s going on?” Michelle asked, watching her mother amble toward the kitchen.
Lani grabbed a bottled water from the fridge and returned to the living room where Michelle and Utah waited. “I’m just worried about you. Your father told me that they found Sheriff Dennison’s daughter. She’d been assaulted, beaten, and shot.”
Lani shuddered and took a seat on the sofa. Tears filled her pretty brown eyes. “The whole time he was telling me about that poor girl, all I could think of was you. I don’t know what I would do if something happened to you.”
“Oh, Mom.” Michelle hurried over and took a seat next to her mother. “Don’t cry. I’m perfectly all right. Nothing is going to happen to me.”
Lani raised her tear-filled eyes. “I want you to come stay at the house until this monster is caught. You’re not safe here by yourself.”
Michelle wanted to assure her mother that she wasn’t alone. That she had Utah to watch over her. Instead she said, “I have protection, Mom. But if it’ll make you feel any better, I’ll have an alarm system installed on the doors and windows.”
Lani reached over and took hold of Michelle’s hand. “Promise me you’ll do that.”
“I promise, Mom.”
“I’d still feel better if you stayed at the house,” Lani pressed, squeezing her daughter’s hand. “And your father isn’t going to be happy about you staying here alone. Don’t be surprised if he pays you a visit.”
Michelle cleared her throat. “Not to change the subject, but I wanted to ask you something about this White Buffalo totem you mentioned before.”
Lani wiped at her eyes, giving Michelle her undivided attention. “Are you still seeing spirits?”
“You could say that,” Michelle responded, avoiding Utah’s gaze.
She peered down at her mother’s hand resting on her own. “Is it possible for a spirit to remain here with us? I mean— I guess what I’m trying to ask is, do they all eventually cross over at some point?”
Lani tucked a finger beneath Michelle’s chin and lifted. “What are you not telling me?”
Michelle could practically feel Utah’s anxiety, knew that he probably took her words the wrong way. “The spirit I recently told you about?”
At her mother’s nod, she continued. “He came back. In fact, he’s here now.”
Lani’s eyes widened. “Here, you mean, in the room with us?”
Michelle turned her head and met Utah’s stunned gaze before turning back to her mother. “Yes. His name is Utah. He died in a fire three years ago.”
Lani slowly got to her feet, her gaze sweeping the room.
Michelle stood as well, holding out her hand for Utah. He slipped his palm against hers.
Lani faced her daughter, a look of wonderment on her face. “I can feel a difference in the temperature.”
Staring into her mother’s eyes, Michelle was struck by a sudden idea. Her fingers shook as she lifted them toward Lani. “Take my hand.”
Lani obeyed without question, accepting her daughter’s outstretched palm.
A soft intake of breath was the only sound Lani made as her gaze shifted to Utah. More tears gathered in her eyes. “I can see you…”
Michelle felt the moisture spring up in her own eyes as her mother stared back at Utah without blinking.
Lani slowly stepped forward, lifted her arm, and attempted to lay her palm against Utah’s cheek. “I can’t feel you, but I can see you.”
Michelle watched as Utah’s eyes slid shut and a warm smile touched his face.
Lani pulled back, but kept hold of her daughter’s hand. “He needs your help, Michelle.”
“My help? How?” But she knew. Michelle was more than aware of her mother’s meaning.
Flicking her gaze back in Utah’s direction, Lani murmured, “He was drawn to you for a reason, my daughter. Partly, I’m certain because of the gift you were born with. But you are not the reason he has remained behind to begin with.”
“How do I figure out what that reason is?” Utah questioned.
Lani’s eyes grew large once again. “I can hear you.”
Michelle tilted her head up to gauge Utah’s reaction. He stared back at her with a look of wonder on his face.
“Tell me about your death,” Lani demanded, a determination in her voice that Michelle had witnessed on many occasions.
Utah took a deep breath and recited the events leading up to his death three years ago, ending with, “The only time the screams stop is when I’m able to save a life, or when I’m with Michelle.”
Lani turned her attention back to her daughter. “I will bring you some books to read over. I will also speak with Ned Riverwind and hopefully get some guidance as to what needs doing from here.”
Michelle’s stomach clenched. “What needs doing?”
“He cannot remain here,” Lani whispered, her sad gaze flicking to Utah and then back to her daughter. “It is unnatural. No good can come of it.”
With her heart pounding in protest of her mother’s words, Michelle asked, “How can you know that for sure?”
“It is not the way of it, my child. Look deep inside yourself, and you will know I speak the truth.”
Michelle released her mother’s hand, subconsciously moving closer to Utah. “When will you talk with Ned Riverwind?”
“I will go by his place on the way home. I must hurry. If I’m not back before dark, your father will have all of Walton County out searching for me.”
Following Lani to the door, Michelle pointed out, “He wouldn’t have to worry if you’d simply invest in a cell phone.”
Lani opened the door and stepped out onto the porch. “I never have cared for modern-day technology, and I’m not about to start now.”
Stopping at the screen door on the porch, Lani turned back. “I’ll bring those books by tomorrow and let you know what Riverwind has to say.”
“I love you, Mom. Please be careful on the way home and call me the minute you get there.”
Her mother nodded. “I love you too, sweetheart.”
Michelle waited for her mother to get in her car and back out of the drive before closing and locking the door behind her.
She turned to face an unreadable Utah. “I’m sorry about what she —”
“No,” he interrupted, surprising Michelle. “She’s right. No matter how much I might want to stay here, I can’t. Eventually, I’ll have to go. Whether by choice or fate. I’m not alive, Michelle. No matter how much I wish otherwise.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Utah watched the play of emotions on Michelle’s face before she blanked her expression. “Be that as it may, you’re here for the time being, and we need to figure out why.”
“How was it possible for your mother to see me?”
Michelle shook her head. “I don’t know. I had this thought that if she could somehow touch you, maybe she could interact with you.”
“So, you held both of our hands,” Utah pointed out. “I just can’t believe it actually worked.”
He stood completely still as Michelle moved closer to him.
She brought her hands up to his face, stood on tiptoes, and softly kissed his lips.
Utah’s body reacted instantly. “Michelle…”
“Okay. If you don’t want—”
The rest of her words were cut off by his lips slanting over hers. She thought he didn’t want her? She couldn’t be more wrong.
Another knock sounded at the door, and Utah inwardly groaned. He wanted nothing more than to take Michelle to bed and love her through the night.
She pull
ed back. “Hold that thought.”
Hurrying to the door, Michelle looked through the peephole once more before glancing back at Utah. “It’s Carly and Logan.”
Utah had no idea who Carly and Logan were, but he assumed by Michelle’s reaction they were friends.
She unlocked the door and pulled it open. “Hey, you two. What are you doing here?”
“May we come in?” a masculine voice rumbled from the porch.
Michelle stepped back and threw her arm wide. “Sorry. Yes, of course.”
Utah watched as a pretty brunette holding a black cat stepped inside, followed by a tall, fierce-looking man and an even bigger man bringing up the rear.
The cat immediately hissed, springing from the brunette’s arms to run in Utah’s direction.
Peanut bolted from the room to hide in the spare bedroom, apparently afraid of the cat.
Utah stared in shock at the feline as it slowly circled him, a strange sound coming from its throat.
He looked up in time to see the fierce-looking man and the giant behind him both staring intently at him.
Oblivious to it all, Michelle wrapped the brunette in a hug. “Hi, Carly. Where’s the baby?”
“My mom’s watching him. How have you been?”
“I’m great, thanks. Have a seat.”
Michelle nodded toward the two men. “You too, Logan. Hi, Ben. I haven’t seen you in forever.”
“Hi, beautiful Cherokee.” Ben stepped forward and hugged Michelle hard enough her feet came off the ground.
Utah wanted to rip the man’s arms away from her.
Logan moved to sit next to Carly, but his gaze continued to stray in Utah’s direction.
“You can see me,” Utah stated, keeping his gaze on the one known as Logan.
The guy sent him a small, quick nod before turning his attention back to Michelle.
Michelle’s head swiveled in Utah’s direction, a questioning look in her eyes.
“They can see me,” Utah murmured in awe, nodding toward the occupants on the couch.
Michelle appeared nervous as if unsure of what to do or say.
Fully Engulfed: BBW Paranormal Romance (Scruples Book 3) Page 9