Read Online The Ghoul Next Door by Victoria Laurie - Free Book Online
Authors: Victoria Laurie
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zap in the ether, Bethany disappeared, and behind me I heard, “What the hell?”
“Mike?” Kendra asked. “What’s wrong?”
I turned and saw that Kendra was holding up the microphone toward me and her cameraman was eyeing his camera with alarm. “There was a power surge and then the camera died,” he said, turning the camera over in his hands. “And the battery’s dead even though I just got through charging it.”
I realized then that they’d caught my whole encounter with Bethany on film, and feeling a bit overexposed, I began to edge away from them. Kendra was quick to step forward, and after tucking her microphone under her arm, she said, “What the heck was that?”
I sighed. I was furiously trying to recall what I might have said aloud in front of her, but the truth was that I’d gone into a little bit of a trance and the memory of what I’d actually said was fuzzy. “I gotta go,” I told her.
“Wait!”
But I suddenly wanted no part of her interview and turned away to start running again. I heard her call my name several times and beg me to come back, but that only made me run faster. The last thing I wanted was to become some sort of spectacle on the nightly news.
I didn’t stop running until I was home again, and as I came through the door, I heard the water running in the shower.
I smiled and felt the tension in my shoulders ease. Slipping out of my sweaty clothes, I headed into the bathroom and slid into the shower. Heath had his head under the spray and I moved in to wrap my arms around him from behind. He jumped a little but then put his hands on mine. “Well, hey, there,” he purred.
“Hey, sexy,” I whispered. “Feel like getting soapy?”
“Sure. But we should be quick because my girlfriend’s going to be home any minute.”
I laughed and swatted his butt. His oh so amazing derriere. Heath turned, exposing a few other oh so amazing things, and there wasn’t much room for conversation after that. We stepped out of the shower long after the hot water had turned lukewarm and got dressed. Okay, so maybe we went for round two in the bedroom first, but
eventually
we managed to get ourselves together. “Wanna grab lunch?” I asked as I was dabbing on some mascara.
Heath looked at his phone. “Sorry, Em,” he said. “I have an appointment—” He stopped speaking abruptly, like he seemed to catch himself, and I realized why he’d gone suddenly mute.
“It’s okay,” I said. “Gilley told me you were doing readings again.”
Heath scowled. “That guy can’t keep anything to himself.”
I laughed. “I love that it’s taken you this long to figure that out.”
My sweetie stepped forward to wrap me in his arms and nuzzle my neck. “You’re not mad, are you?”
“Why would I be mad?”
He shrugged. “I know you got really burned out on them, but I miss doing readings. It’s fun.”
“It can be,” I agreed. “But it can also be crazy draining.”
“So can chasing spooks.”
I sighed and looked at the two of us in the mirror. Heath was so exotically beautiful, with his jet-black hair, high cheekbones, deep-set eyes, and square jaw. He’d acquired a thin streak of white hair at one temple and it made him even more striking. “I think I might start up again,” I confessed.
He cocked his head. “Reading for clients?”
I nodded. “We could really use the money.”
His arms wrapped tighter around my waist. “Let me take that on,” he said. “I can make enough over the hiatus to cover us.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “Oh, it’s all on you, huh?”
He went back to nuzzling my neck. “I just don’t want you to do something that’s hard on you,” he said sweetly. “I don’t mind it, so let me do it.”
But I’m not the type to let someone else do all the work. I’m a fifty-fifty sort of gal. “I can take a few clients,” I told him. “And if we both work at it, we’ll have double the money and we can spend some time in Santa Fe in the fall
“Mike?” Kendra asked. “What’s wrong?”
I turned and saw that Kendra was holding up the microphone toward me and her cameraman was eyeing his camera with alarm. “There was a power surge and then the camera died,” he said, turning the camera over in his hands. “And the battery’s dead even though I just got through charging it.”
I realized then that they’d caught my whole encounter with Bethany on film, and feeling a bit overexposed, I began to edge away from them. Kendra was quick to step forward, and after tucking her microphone under her arm, she said, “What the heck was that?”
I sighed. I was furiously trying to recall what I might have said aloud in front of her, but the truth was that I’d gone into a little bit of a trance and the memory of what I’d actually said was fuzzy. “I gotta go,” I told her.
“Wait!”
But I suddenly wanted no part of her interview and turned away to start running again. I heard her call my name several times and beg me to come back, but that only made me run faster. The last thing I wanted was to become some sort of spectacle on the nightly news.
I didn’t stop running until I was home again, and as I came through the door, I heard the water running in the shower.
I smiled and felt the tension in my shoulders ease. Slipping out of my sweaty clothes, I headed into the bathroom and slid into the shower. Heath had his head under the spray and I moved in to wrap my arms around him from behind. He jumped a little but then put his hands on mine. “Well, hey, there,” he purred.
“Hey, sexy,” I whispered. “Feel like getting soapy?”
“Sure. But we should be quick because my girlfriend’s going to be home any minute.”
I laughed and swatted his butt. His oh so amazing derriere. Heath turned, exposing a few other oh so amazing things, and there wasn’t much room for conversation after that. We stepped out of the shower long after the hot water had turned lukewarm and got dressed. Okay, so maybe we went for round two in the bedroom first, but
eventually
we managed to get ourselves together. “Wanna grab lunch?” I asked as I was dabbing on some mascara.
Heath looked at his phone. “Sorry, Em,” he said. “I have an appointment—” He stopped speaking abruptly, like he seemed to catch himself, and I realized why he’d gone suddenly mute.
“It’s okay,” I said. “Gilley told me you were doing readings again.”
Heath scowled. “That guy can’t keep anything to himself.”
I laughed. “I love that it’s taken you this long to figure that out.”
My sweetie stepped forward to wrap me in his arms and nuzzle my neck. “You’re not mad, are you?”
“Why would I be mad?”
He shrugged. “I know you got really burned out on them, but I miss doing readings. It’s fun.”
“It can be,” I agreed. “But it can also be crazy draining.”
“So can chasing spooks.”
I sighed and looked at the two of us in the mirror. Heath was so exotically beautiful, with his jet-black hair, high cheekbones, deep-set eyes, and square jaw. He’d acquired a thin streak of white hair at one temple and it made him even more striking. “I think I might start up again,” I confessed.
He cocked his head. “Reading for clients?”
I nodded. “We could really use the money.”
His arms wrapped tighter around my waist. “Let me take that on,” he said. “I can make enough over the hiatus to cover us.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “Oh, it’s all on you, huh?”
He went back to nuzzling my neck. “I just don’t want you to do something that’s hard on you,” he said sweetly. “I don’t mind it, so let me do it.”
But I’m not the type to let someone else do all the work. I’m a fifty-fifty sort of gal. “I can take a few clients,” I told him. “And if we both work at it, we’ll have double the money and we can spend some time in Santa Fe in the fall
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