“That won’t work. The only way to kill a vampire is direct sunlight, a stake through the chest or beheading. You should pick one of those routes.”
“You’re being a little too serious.”
“Yes, well … .”
He was quiet for a long time, and when I shifted to look at him I found him staring at the door. “What?”
He inclined his chin. “I was just thinking how you were going to be too busy to fill that open position again.”
“I am? Why?” I followed his gaze, my stomach immediately flipping when I saw the figure standing in front of the double doors that led to the hallway.
Braden, a broad smile on his face, had a picnic basket in one hand and a blanket in the other. His grin widened as my cheeks flooded hot, and I had no doubt I was a ridiculous shade of red.
“I thought maybe you might have time for lunch,” he offered, shaking the picnic basket.
The gesture was unbelievably sweet. “I can’t.” I hated myself for having to say the words. “Oliver has gone above and beyond to cover shifts this week while I’ve been doing other things. I can’t abandon him again.”
“I wasn’t really thinking of it as abandonment,” Braden argued. “The aquarium is closed. I thought we might go up a floor, have a quick bite, and then you can go back to being the most diligent worker in all the land.”
Oliver chuckled, genuinely amused. “That’s a fabulous idea.”
I shot him a look. “You’re not helping,” I hissed. “I’m trying to be a good boss. I can’t stick you with the work yet again.”
“You’re not sticking me with it. I’m volunteering.”
“Because he’s holding you hostage with the cutest picnic basket I’ve ever seen. He was supposed to be doing something manly to help with our problem, not … this. You’re only trying to help because he’s too adorable to shoot down.”
“That and the fact that I don’t eat,” he acknowledged. “I’m fine. We’re not even expected to have a transfer in the next hour. I’m going to play solitaire online, so there’s no reason for you to stick around. I hate it when people watch over my shoulder when I’m playing.”
I recognized that he was giving me an opening for a romantic afternoon away from everything that had been seemingly plaguing me for days. I should take it. I wanted to take it. But I felt guilty.
“Are you sure?” I gave him one more out.
He bobbed his head. “I’m sure.”
“He’s sure,” Braden prodded. “Come on.”
I got to my feet, Oliver’s steady gaze burning holes in my back as I moved closer to him. “I just want you to know, the gesture is appreciated but I feel a little weird about this. I thought you were doing something else and I wouldn’t see you until later. Maybe you should call next time.”
Braden was amused. “What? Don’t you like surprises?”
“Surprises are fine. What I hate is the fact that Oliver is watching us … and laughing.”
“Oliver is playing solitaire,” Braden corrected. “He doesn’t care.”
“Oliver definitely doesn’t care,” the vampire agreed, referring to himself in the third person. “Go. Be young. Have a good time. I’ll hold down the fort until you get back.”
I didn’t have to be told again. Instead, I took the blanket from Braden and followed him up the steps. When we got to the main floor of the aquarium, I found he’d arranged the lights so they only showed around a central location in the middle of the floor. Everything else was dim … except for the aquarium openings.
“I see you’ve been futzing around up here.”
“I never futz … mostly because I don’t know what the word means.”
“Yeah, well … let me lay out the blanket.” I picked a spot in front of the biggest fish tank on the premises, avoiding the creepy-crawlies closer to the front of the space. It wasn’t that I was afraid of them as much as I preferred the tranquility of the water.
Braden waited until I’d spread the blanket to place the picnic basket in the center and then he promptly sat. Even though it felt a bit strange to be eating lunch on the floor of the aquarium in the middle of the day, I opted to make an effort to push the issues that had been plaguing me to the side and focus on fun for a change. “What did you buy?” I sat close enough that our knees touched, and he grinned as he dug into the basket.
“Well, I decided to take a chance,” he said. “You seem like a relatively easy girl to please when it comes to food, so I got chicken salad and potato salad from my favorite deli. Oh, I also got cheesecake.”
“I love cheesecake.”
He grinned. “ Me, too.” He opened the basket. “Shall we?”
I nodded. “Yeah. Definitely. Oh, and if I forget to tell you by the end of our lunch, this was the best time ever.”
He raised an eyebrow, surprised. “How do you know that?”
“I can just tell.” And, because it was true, I could relax in the knowledge that we were going to have a great afternoon. “Now, give me the chicken salad. I’ll do pretty much anything I possibly can to keep from having to pick a replacement for Renee and that includes shirking my responsibilities with mayonnaise-covered poultry.”
“The faster you do that, the faster you’ll be able to take off in the afternoon without feeling guilty about leaving Oliver with all the work. If there’s a newbie on the premises, it will be easy, because everyone knows the new guy gets the crap shifts.”
“Ah. Is that how it works in the Grimlock family?”
“No.” His grin was beyond charming. “In the Grimlock family, my father picks a favorite kid every day and spoils him or her for the duration. That makes the others jealous, but they know they’ll be the favorite again in a few days so they’re ultimately fine with it.”
“That sounds like a terrible way to raise children.”
“Yeah. It’s kind of fun being the favorite, though.”
Twenty-Three
Getting to know Braden was easier than I thought. He seemed the type to close off when difficult questions were asked, and yet, for the most part, he willingly answered whatever I threw at him.
“Who is your favorite sibling?”
He arched an eyebrow as he finished off his potato salad. “I don’t know that I have a favorite sibling. I spend time with all of them.”
I didn’t believe that for a second and waited, arms folded over my chest.
He sighed, the sound long and drawn out. “Redmond,” he said finally.
“Why?”
“When I was a kid, he was the big brother to end all big brothers. I wanted to be like him. Then, when Aisling and Aidan came along, the three of us older ones had to entertain ourselves quite a bit. As much as my parents were used to dealing with chaos, twins were another story.”
That actually made a lot of sense. “Why Redmond instead of Cillian?”
“I love Cillian,” he stressed.
“I know. You love all of them.”
“Cillian is the family bookworm. On winter days when we were stuck in the house, Redmond found mischief and Cillian disappeared in a book. We often had to track him down and force him to participate in games.
“He’s the easiest to get along with, don’t get me wrong,” he continued. “I simply have more in common with Redmond.”
It was a completely honest answer and it made me realize he was trying hard to be an open book for me because he thought that’s what I needed. I appreciated the effort. “And Aisling is your least favorite, right?”
“Aisling is ... .” He trailed off, his brow wrinkling. “She’s my sister,” he said finally. “We all went out of our way to protect her when we were kids. She had a mouth like you wouldn’t believe.”
“I’ve met her.”
He snickered. “When she started dating we made a game of it. Dad liked to pace when she was out, and my mother would talk him down. This was right before she died, of course. Most guys thought Aisling was hot, but they were afraid to ask her out becaus
e they thought Dad would hurt them ... and if he didn’t we would.”
“So, you enjoyed terrorizing your sister,” I prodded. “I think that’s normal in most homes. I was an only child, but I always wanted siblings. I felt alone after my parents died. You guys had each other after your mother died.”
“Yeah. We’ve always had each other.” He snagged my hand and flipped it over so he could study the lines crisscrossing my palm. “Mom was the one who told my father to chill out when Aisling was on a date. She thought his reactions were funny and was the only one who could talk him down from a ledge. When she died, my father needed something to focus on. Smothering Aisling became that thing.”
“Is that why she moved out earlier than the rest of you?”
“Partially. Aisling needed air after my mother died. She was determined to stay out of the family business and wanted out from under my father’s watchful eye.”
“I didn’t realize she wasn’t always a reaper.”
“She did other things before joining the fold.” Braden’s face lit with mirth at some memory I wasn’t given access to. “She lost her job, though, and had no choice but to come back to the family business if she wanted to pay her bills. The odd thing is, she’s a decent reaper ... except for her penchant for talking to the souls. She needs to stop that.”
“You guys seem like you get along okay,” I noted. “I keep hearing stories about how you like to crush one another with horrible words and fight until only one of you is left standing, but I haven’t seen that.”
“You’ve only seen my sister in a vulnerable state,” he continued. “When you met her, she was nine months pregnant and got stuck trying to climb a fence.”
Now it was my turn to smile at the memory. “Your father was hilarious when he came to retrieve her. Actually, all you guys were hilarious.”
“Aisling has never enjoyed being vulnerable. The pregnancy was difficult for her. Now that she has Lily she feels even more vulnerable because Lily can’t even cry out a warning if something attacks. I mean, what would’ve happened if Aisling had the baby before my mother came back from the dead? Would she have used the baby to force Aisling to give up her life? That’s what I keep circling back to. I think that’s exactly what she would’ve done.”
I felt inexplicably bad for him. “That’s not what happened,” I reminded him. “She’s gone. She can’t hurt you again. Your sister is fine. The baby is fine. Your family will be fine.”
He lifted his eyes until they met mine. “That’s what I keep telling myself. Over and over, I kept telling myself that we’ve come out the other side. It’s not always easy to remember.”
“I guess not. Still, you seem to be doing okay.”
His eyes gleamed. “I believe you said I was awesome last night.”
“I’m pretty sure those words never exited my mouth.”
“Your memory is crap because I blew your mind. It will come back once the shock recedes.”
I playfully swatted at his arm, but he caught me around the waist before I could make contact and rolled both of us to the blanket and kissed me. It was a sweet and adorable moment, and I sank into it because I didn’t care how schmaltzy it probably looked. It felt right. That’s all that mattered. I’d given up fighting my attraction to him.
When I opened my eyes again, all I saw was his face ... so I smiled. Then the hair on the back of my neck stood on end and a chill washed over me. I gripped Braden’s arms tightly and pulled my head back to scan the aquarium over his shoulder. Sure enough, the ghosts were back.
“Fire and brimstone,” I muttered, pushing Braden away so I could get a better look at the twenty ethereal bodies surrounding us.
“Holy ... !” Braden lost all his color as he scanned the room. “I take it these are the ghosts you’ve been talking about.”
“Yeah.” I rubbed my sweaty palms over my knees as I faced off with Lauren. She seemed to be the leader of the group, although that was most likely my perception because she had the only face I recognized. “Hey, guys. As usual, you have the worst timing ever.” I was going for levity but my words came out tight and shrill.
“What do we do?” Braden asked, looking around. “I mean ... how do we get rid of them? Should I try absorbing them with my scepter?”
“Aisling already tried that. It didn’t work.”
“Maybe she did it wrong.”
“Is there more than one way to press the button?”
“Ugh. You sound like her.” Braden dragged a hand through his dark hair and shook his head. “We can’t stay exposed like this. If they attack, we’re easy targets.”
He wasn’t wrong and still ... . “If they wanted to attack, they could’ve done it already. They’re not here for that.”
“How can you be sure?”
I extended a finger toward Lauren, who made a mournful sound through her rigid mouth and raised her hands toward me.
“Don’t even think about it.” Braden moved to swipe at her, but his hand merely passed through her ethereal body. “Oh, geez. I don’t like this at all.” In a protective move I should’ve seen coming, he pitched forward and made sure Lauren couldn’t move any closer to me without going through him.
“She’s not going to hurt me,” I said gently. “I misunderstood at the spa. I thought they were trying to attack.”
“Aisling said the ghost that went for her was attacking.”
Actually, the more I thought about it, that was true. The teenaged ghost was clearly perplexed when he went after her. “Maybe they’re like people.” I licked my lips as I thought through multiple possibilities. “Maybe he was frustrated and made a mistake. Maybe he was a ghost for a very long time and lost his cool … or maybe only for a short time and he panicked.”
“And you don’t see him?” Braden scanned every face. “He’s not back, is he?”
I shook my head. “No. He’s not back. I’m pretty sure I destroyed him.”
“So, why not do the same with these guys?” He looked hopeful. “Destroy them and we can get out of here.”
“I won’t.”
“Why?”
“They need help. Unless they’re aggressive, I won’t go after them. They’re not hurting anybody.”
“They’re hurting my ego. I’m scared spitless,” he admitted. “I don’t like this ... and I especially don’t like that.” He cringed when Lauren reached through him in an effort to get to me. “Stop that!” he hissed, fury on full display. “I don’t like that at all.”
“You have to let it go,” I admonished, frustration bubbling up. “She’s trying to tell me something.”
“What?”
All I could do was raise my hand and touch my fingertips to hers. Technically, there was no contact, but I put as much effort as possible into the touch all the same. Nothing happened. “I don’t know. I only know that they need help. We’re the only ones who can give it to them.”
BRADEN INSISTED ON SPENDING THE afternoon protecting me. Even though he couldn’t fight the ghosts — and they didn’t make a move in my direction — he was a muttering mess as he spent the entire afternoon pacing the gate room and talking to himself.
The ghosts disappeared not long after they appeared, making me wonder if they had limited energy and burned themselves out quickly when visiting. That was pure conjecture on my part, but I couldn’t push the idea out of my head.
I took the last two jobs myself and sent Oliver home early. He’d been doing the work of three people for the past few days and that wasn’t fair. He flashed a smile when I suggested he surprise Brett with a special meal. I could tell he wanted to tease me, but given Braden’s bad mood, he wisely waved and went on his merry way.
After finishing up, I stopped at my apartment long enough to pack an overnight bag and then joined Braden in his BMW for the drive back to Grimlock Manor. While I thought it might be more beneficial if he stayed with me for the evening, he was so keyed up about the possibility of ghosts watching us that I readily agreed to return wi
th him.
Honestly it was for the best ... at least for now.
In typical fashion, the house was buzzing when we arrived. Braden immediately directed me toward his father’s office, keeping a firm grip on my hand as we cut through the house.
“You’ve been gone all day,” Redmond immediately started complaining. “I had to pick up two of your charges this afternoon, something you ordered me to do instead of asking.”
“I bet he’s not your favorite right now,” I muttered under my breath, earning the first real smile Braden had managed in hours.
“Pretty much,” he agreed, visibly forcing himself to unknot his nerves. “I’m sorry. I’ll make it up to you and buy a round of drinks at the bar later in the week.”
Redmond was petulant. “I don’t think that’ll be enough to make it up to me.”
“Then sit there and pout,” Braden snapped, causing several sets of eyebrows to hike.
“What happened with you guys?” Cormack asked from behind his desk. He had Lily asleep in his arms, and the second the conversation turned serious the baby started fretting. I found that interesting, especially since she’d been quiet up until that point.
“Well, I saw the ghosts,” Braden replied. “They came out of nowhere and boxed us in.”
“You’re clearly all right,” Cormack noted, shifting his granddaughter and giving her an odd look. “So are you, little girl. Why are you crying? I just fed and changed you.”
“Maybe she’s annoyed that Braden stuck me with two of his charges,” Redmond suggested. “She knows that Braden is a big poopy-head and he’s annoying her.”
“Oh, stuff it,” Braden complained, moving behind the desk and extending his arms. “I’ll take her.”
Cormack studied Braden for a long beat and then acquiesced. I could read his line of thinking from across the room. His son was agitated and the baby was likely to calm him. The problem was, the second the baby landed in Braden’s arms, she started fussing.
“What’s this?” Braden looked momentarily panicked. “She’s not going back to that crying constantly thing from a few days ago, is she?”
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