3 The Ghoul Next Door Read online

  “Did the ghost say anything to you?” Mindy asked.

  “Like I said, I think he was just a little confused and didn’t know why he was here.”

  Mindy nodded.

  Mr. Fine snorted. “Yeah, that’s it. Why don’t you lie to her some more? You’re not a very good friend, are you?”

  What a mean and nasty ghost. That comment was so uncalled for, but by his smug expression, I knew he didn’t care.

  “You call me if you need anything,” I said.

  I hugged Mindy tight, then Callahan kissed her on the cheek.

  Mindy folded her arms in front of her chest. “If that ghost comes back I’ll be at your front door again before you can say annoying best friend.”

  I laughed. “Don’t knock next time, just use your key and come on in.”

  ***

  Mr. Fine made the trip home with us. No big surprise there. He sat in the middle of the backseat, but it wasn’t as if he had a choice. Callahan had made it to the passenger side before Mr. Fine had a chance to call shotgun. Unfortunately, Mr. Fine didn’t remain quiet, but honestly, had I really expected him to shut his trap? None of them ever did. He started off with the coughing—I knew he was only pretending to have something stuck in his throat, because really, he was dead. How sick could he be? Then he started with the humming, which turned into whistling. The noise was getting on my very last nerve. I had precious few nerves to spare at this point. An endless stream of annoying ghosts had made me zip through every single nerve I had.

  My little farmhouse on the outskirts of town sat under a canopy of tall oak trees. It was just the right size for me with three bedrooms, two baths, and a cozy fireplace in every room. I loved opening the windows in every room and listening to the rustle of the leaves. The house was barely visible under the cover of night as we drove up the gravel drive. Nighttime had hidden the bright orange, yellow, purple and green leaves that filled every tree too. The smell of sweet apples, fallen leaves and pumpkin still hung in the air though.

  We’d barely pulled up to my front door when my new ghost friend jumped out from the backseat, as if I’d invited him in or something. “Make yourself at home,” I wanted to yell sarcastically. But I didn’t want Callahan to think I was totally nasty to the ghosts though, so I refrained.

  Mr. Fine didn’t even wait for me to open the front door. When Callahan and I entered the foyer, he was already making his way up the stairs. The hardwood floors creaked as we stepped across the threshold. Thankfully I’d remembered to leave the little lamp on the table next to the door turned on because otherwise the house was pitch black. I’d stubbed my toe one to many times before I finally decided to do something about it.

  “Hey, where do you think you’re going?” I yelled.

  Callahan froze in his tracks.

  “Oh, sorry, I wasn’t talking to you. I was talking to the ghost.” I pointed toward the stairs.

  Callahan looked, but, of course, saw nothing. I could only imagine how it was for others who didn’t see the spirits like I did. A wee bit confusing.

  “Right. The ghost.” Callahan nodded.

  I pointed at Mr. Fine and gave him a warning glare. I’d chase him up those stairs if I had to.

  “You are not hiding in my attic. That’s just weird. So knock it off.”

  What was with ghosts and attics? Callahan frowned in utter confusion.

  “Get down here and act like you’re alive right now or I will drag out my sage and cleanse your butt into the light right now. Do you understand me?” I pointed to the spot on the floor beside me.

  Callahan chuckled. “I take it we have a testy ghost with us?”

  “Unfortunately, yes, we do.”

  Mr. Fine stood midway up the stairs with a scowl across his face.

  After a couple seconds, he finally said, “I’ll come down there, but don’t think because you’re some fancy psychic that you’re going to bully me and tell me what to do all the time.”

  “Well, I think as long as you’re hanging out in my house that I have the right to tell you what to do,” I said.

  Callahan stood beside me staring straight ahead as if he didn’t know what to say or do.

  Callahan turned to me. “Larue, I don’t want you to think you have to keep secrets from me. When there are ghosts around us, just tell me. I can handle it. Give me some more credit, okay?”

  I answered with a nod. “I guess it just takes some time for me to get used to the idea that you know I talk to the dead.”

  After keeping my special talent a secret for so long, it was hard to let it be out in the open like that.

  Callahan stepped closer and wrapped his arms around my waist. “If it’s a part of your life, then I love it.”

  That was the first time he’d mentioned the ‘l’ word. Was it too soon? Okay, he hadn’t said he loved me, but was he headed in that direction? How did I feel about him? I couldn’t deny that what I was feeling might be love. Thankfully, Mr. Fine had left us alone at this special moment. Well, at least I thought he had. I hadn’t seen him since Callahan had pulled me closer. He was probably hiding out in the attic. That was so weird.

  Giving up on trying to control my new ghost guest for the night, I left him to entertain himself while Callahan and I slipped off to the bedroom. It was like sneaking your boyfriend into your room when your parents were home. It was ridiculous that I had to hide from a ghost like a teenager. Mr. Fine could sneak off to the attic if he wanted, as long as he left us alone tonight.

  Callahan started the fireplace, warming the room and casting a soft glow across the butter-colored walls. I waited for him by the bed.

  When Callahan neared, he pulled me into his arms, then glanced around. “Are we alone?”

  I wanted to say: define alone. But that wouldn’t have been the answer he wanted, so instead I said, “Yes. We’re completely alone.”

  I didn’t have the heart to explain that ghosts could pop up at any moment or even make themselves invisible.

  With those words, he pulled me against his hard body and placed his lips against mine. He gently traced the contour of my lips with his tongue until I couldn’t stand it any longer and I had to kiss him with full force. I ran my hands down his shoulders and along his arms, relishing in the feel of his hard muscles. He threaded his hands through my hair, then held my face with his powerful hands.

  Callahan lifted his lips from mine, and then stared into my eyes. “You make it hard to catch my breath.”

  Yeah, the feeling was mutual.

  I slowly unbuttoned Callahan’s shirt, taking a little time on each button. When his muscular chest was fully exposed, I pressed my lips against his hot skin. A soft moan escaped his lips. I took my time kissing and licking, but my desire for him was almost too much to handle. I felt his yearning as he pressed against me. Without wasting another second, I unfastened his belt, and then slowly lowered the zipper, releasing him from the confines of the denim. He stepped out of his jeans and set his sights on my clothing. Callahan gently pulled off my shirt, then cupped my breasts in his hands. He caressed with his fingers, sending a jolt through my body.

  My body temperature was rising by the second. He lowered his lips to mine again and our tongues mingled together with a new urgency. I could wait no longer. I had to have him. Stepping out of my pants, Callahan pulled me toward his body again. His hard muscles sent a tremble from my head to my toes. As my legs weakened, Callahan lowered me onto the bed, the down comforter soft against my skin. The candlelight flickered across his handsome face and I ran my hands across his hard chest again. He made it easy to forget all my problems. Callahan lowered himself over me. My hands moved to his tight butt as he moved against my body. In that moment, I wasn’t sure if I would have noticed if the room had been on fire. The world only consisted of the two of us at that moment—or maybe not.

  Just when things had heated up, a loud thud echoed out. It sounded as if the crash had come from the front porch. It was probably just the ghost trying t
o get my attention. But what if it was an intruder? Someone trying to break in and steal my valuables? Okay, I had no valuables other than a string of pearls my mother had given me for my sixteenth birthday, but whatever.

  “What was that?” Callahan asked.

  “I don’t know.” I sat up in bed, the air raising chills on my arms.

  Once the heat from Callahan’s body was gone, it was icy cold.

  “I’m going to check it out.”

  He sounded as if he’d had it with the crazy antics. Callahan jumped up and grabbed his pants. This was not how I’d envisioned this scene playing out.

  I grabbed my robe and padded into the hallway behind him. He was hopping into his shoes when I made it out into the hallway.

  “What are you going to do?” I asked.

  “I’m going to check it out. You stay here, okay?”

  My hero. It was nice to have a strong man around once in a while to check out the spooky noises. I got tired of having to do it myself all the time. But what was the noise? Had the same thing started all over again? I thought the black magic had gone for good. Stupid me.

  Chapter Four

  Once he’d closed the front door, I peeked out and watched him. Callahan stood on the porch and peered around looking for the source of the noise. After a few seconds, he moved down the front steps and made his way around the house. I didn’t want to let him out of my sight in case he needed my help, so I slipped back into the bedroom and looked out the window for a better view.

  I spotted Callahan as he moved steadily along the side of the house, but he wasn’t the only thing I saw. In front of him was a dark shadow. Just like the one I’d seen before. Why was it back? I thought all of that was behind us now. My heart thumped. Did Callahan see this thing too? Was he following it? The shadow floated around the side of the house and Callahan trailed along behind it. I still couldn’t tell if he knew it was there.

  Letting the curtain fall back, I dashed from that window and made my way to the back of the house. I had to warn Callahan. Again I moved from window to window looking out for Callahan. The moon lit up the sky so that I could see his movements, otherwise I wouldn’t have known where he’d gone. But for a brief moment he wasn’t in my sight. I’d run out of windows to look out of until he reached the kitchen. What if he met up with the shadow at that moment when I couldn’t see him? No, I didn’t even want to think of it.

  When I made it to the kitchen, I spotted Callahan again. I let out a temporary breath of relief. I moved to the door with every intention of warning him about the dark shadow. He inched his way along the side of the house, but the shadow had disappeared. Had it been my imagination? No. I knew what I saw and this was exactly like the thing that had shown up before.

  I hurried to the front of the house just as Callahan was coming through the front door. I almost slid into the foyer with my bunny slippers. If I was going to be sexy around Callahan I needed to ditch the animal shoes. I looked at him expectantly.

  “I didn’t find anything,” he said, placing the flashlight back onto the small table by the door.

  So he hadn’t seen the black shadow. Should I mention it to him? I just wanted to stop talking about witchcraft, ghosts, and the supernatural for one day. Couldn’t we be normal for just a few hours? Who was I kidding? Of course we couldn’t.

  “Did you see a shadow figure out there?”

  He met my gaze. “Just now?”

  “Yeah, I thought I saw someone out there.”

  He peeked out the window again, then looked back to me. “As far as I could tell there was nothing out there.”

  “It looked as if you were following it. But I guess you didn’t see it after all.”

  He shook his head. “No, I didn’t see or hear anything. I thought maybe it was an animal that had wandered up onto the porch.”

  I gave a half-hearted smile. “That was probably it. There are a lot of raccoons and stray cats around here.”

  “That’s probably it,” he said.

  The noise might have been an animal, but that shadow wasn’t. I was sure of that. How would I go back to normal now? Okay, I wasn’t quite sure what normal was for me anymore, but I wanted a chance to find out. All I would think about for the rest of the night was the shadow outside.

  Callahan made sure the door was locked, then grabbed my hand. “Come on. Let’s go back to bed.”

  My heart rate increased. Okay, yeah, maybe it wouldn’t be so hard to forget about the shadow after all. When he looked at me with that hunger in his eyes I could forget about everything and just live in the moment. I felt the desire coming off him in waves and I wanted nothing more than to be close to him.

  When I walked down the foyer toward the bedroom, Mr. Fine was leaning against the wall in the corner of the room with a smug smirk spread across his face.

  I released Callahan’s hand. “Give me just a second, okay?”

  I held up my index finger indicating I needed a little time before making my way back to the bed. Not that I wasn’t in a hurry to get there, because I definitely was looking forward to it. Callahan touched my cheek, then smiled and walked away toward the bedroom.

  When he was out of view, I said, “Were you responsible for the noise?”

  I was so mad I had to take my frustration out on someone. My words might have seemed hostile, but I couldn’t help it. It was late and I had been interrupted. Yeah, I was a tad cranky. Hey, if ghosts could be crappy then so could I.

  Mr. Fine shook his head innocently. “It wasn’t me. I thought when you brought me here tonight that you’d entertain me. You know, we can chat and share stories.”

  I stared at him blankly. “What gave you that crazy idea?”

  “Well, I could have talked to myself in your crazy friend’s attic.”

  “Who are you calling crazy? You’re the one who likes to hang out in attics. Last time I checked, my friend doesn’t hang out in attics.”

  “Touché,” he said, flicking off more ashes from his cigarette.

  “And will you please stop doing that?”

  “What? They really don’t get on the floor or anything. They’re invisible.”

  “I know, but it still freaks me out.”

  “Listen, at least I don’t hang out in closets and jump out at people.”

  “Yeah, that’s real comforting, thanks.”

  He shrugged. “What can I say, I’m a nice guy. I do what I can to please people.” He smiled.

  “If you pleased people you wouldn’t be hanging out at my house right now.”

  He snorted.

  “Just remember that I’ve got my eye on you. No funny business during your stay at my home.”

  He held his hands up in surrender. “Do I look like I’d try any funny business?”

  Before I had a chance to respond, he disappeared. Typical jerk ghost behavior. He knew I wouldn’t give the most flattering answer. I had better not hear another word or noise out of him for the rest of the night. I had to find a way to get rid of him in the morning. If he’d only share his reason for being there, then I could help him cross over into the light.

  As I made my way down the hall, thoughts of the shadow ran through my mind. It had been dark, human-shaped and wearing a cape. Well, maybe it was a little skinner than a human with slightly longer arms, but it was hard to tell in the dark. Whatever the shape, it was enough to make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and a chill run up my spine.

  What kind of creature had been lurking outside my house? Karyn had said the shadow I’d seen before was just Becky Schultz playing tricks on me with a magic spell. Was someone else still playing a trick on me? Or was this sighting something else? With any luck, I wouldn’t have to think about it ever again and this thing would never appear again.

  Chapter Five

  The next morning after kissing Callahan goodbye, I made my way through the living room toward the kitchen. Mr. Fine sat on my sofa with his feet propped up on the coffee table. A cigarette dangled from his li
ps.

  “What’s with all the toss pillows?” he asked with disdain. “A little excessive, don’t you think?”

  “What’s with all the cigarettes?” I smirked. “A little excessive don't you think?”

  He blew out a ring of smoke that circled his head like a halo. He was no angel though.

  “I don’t allow smoking in my house. I have an allergy,” I warned.

  He blew out another ring of smoke, but didn’t offer a response. It looked exactly like a ghostly mist floating toward the ceiling.

  I let out an exasperated breath. Ghosts. You couldn’t live with them and, well, you couldn’t live with them.

  “Any time you want to tell me why you are hanging around would be great,” I said over my shoulder as I continued on toward the kitchen. I wasn’t going to let him ruin my corn-flakes.

  I’d just sat down with my bowl and milk when a knock sounded at the door. I wasn’t expecting anyone, so the sound caught me off guard. Maybe it was Mindy. All those fitness classes were making her way too chipper in the mornings. She’d started one of those pole fitness studios. Who knew the little old ladies of Magnolia would be so good at working the pole. Anyway, I’d rather attend yet another pole fitness class than deal with another ghost—I prayed she didn’t have another ghost problem. I didn’t want or need another one hanging around my kitchen.

  I left my new ghost friend sitting at the kitchen table and made my way back through the living room and to the front door. When I peeked out the side curtain, no one was in sight, just the crisp blue sky and the swaying branches of the trees. Not this again. I unlocked the door and eased it open. I never knew when something might lunge out at me, so I wasn’t taking any chances.