Moonlight Murder: An Inept Witches Mystery (26 page)

“
I don
’
t see you that way.
”

“
Which is probably why I love you. But I also feel like that.
”

“
I can
’
t help that.
”
His words were soft and comforting, so she laid her face against his chest and took her turn to breathe him in. It was so right, and it made her want to turn and vomit.

“
I love you, Ingrid Pickford. Even though I wanted to throttle you these last few days, I have missed you so much it made my bones ache.
”

She put her nose right into the curve of his neck. It was wonderful, and she needed it. So bad. But she just
…

“
I love you, Gabriel Tate.
”
She pushed him away and said,
“
I
’
m not ready for you though. So, I guess it
’
s up to you to give me the space to work through this or leave me dumped.
”

“
But will you?
”
he asked as Jenkins and Kevin returned to the bookstore. She turned back to him, halfway between Emily waiting at the side of the Camaro she had gone to get and Gabe waiting in the book store.

“
Will I what? Work through things?
”

He nodded.

“
Are you asking if I
’
m worth waiting for?
”

“
No,
”
he said, except that he had.

But she had a flash of the hurt of the last few days, and perhaps a flash of the hurt from her first marriage, and she said,
“
I guess that
’
s really up to you to decide.
”

She spun, walking through the flashing lights, and the light of the moon, and realized she
’
d just been tied up, threatened with death, and haunted, and yet nothing had been more terrifying than admitting to Gabe both that she loved him and that she was broken enough to need some time.

“
Well that looked dramatic and emotional,
”
Em said.

Ingrid turned and grinned. She didn
’
t even try to hide that she
’
d been crying.

“
I know what will make you feel better. Getting rid of the ghost in the Camaro, grabbing a bottle of wine, booking a dream vacation, and then
…
sleeping like you just avoided murder charges.
”

“
I can
’
t sleep in my bed without Gabe, so I burned it,
”
Ingrid confessed.
“
Just drive for now. Anywhere.
”

Emily gave Ingrid an irritated glance, and she laughed and led the way to the Camarao before heading onto the roadway that led out of town.

“
It
’
s true,
”
Ingrid wailed.
“
I miss him.
”

“
But you didn
’
t take him back because of Harrison.
”

“
I am not disposable.
”

“
The most understanding of men would have wanted to kill you this last week.
”

Ingrid laughed. Their gazes met and horrified, shocked, I-can
’
t-believe-we-got-away-with that laughter filled the Camaro. Which was when the ghost ran two ghostly fingers down the very top of Ingrid
’
s chest.

“
Gah,
”
Ingrid shouted, slapping her hands over her boobs. Emily had been driving aimlessly, and they ended up at a lookout point parked next to a couple of other cars.
“
Your evil, disembodied uncle was trying to feel me up.
”

Emily opened her side of the car and said,
“
So I was thinking about the ghost problem.
”

“
Are you referring to your ex trying to help Tia murder us or your foul uncle?
”

“
That
’
s the problem of which I speak, yes,
”
Emily answered mildly.

“
I would kill both of them,
”
Ingrid shouted,
“
if they weren
’
t already dead.
”

“
So you know then?
”

Ingrid and Emily spun around, having temporarily forgotten about Mary, the Gallery Guy
’
s daughter, sitting in the back seat of the Camaro.
“
Your car is totally haunted, and also, that dude is a lech. He
’
s only got boxers on. So gross.
”

“
Ew,
”
Ingrid and Emily said in unison, staring at the Camaro.

“
You can see him?
”
Emily asked.

Mary nodded.

The three stood and admired the sexy, creepy car.

It had been a sexy car the first time she
’
d seen it, but Ingrid was over the Camaro. She wanted something brand new. Where no one had died on, in, or near her vehicle.

“
I want something mustard yellow, brand new, and not that Camaro.
”

“
If you can see him,
”
Emily asked,
“
does that mean you know how to get rid of the ghost? Because we have one or two to get rid of.
”

“
Oh, I can see him, but I don
’
t know how to get rid of ghosts. You
’
d be surprised how many ghosts are around this island,
”
Mary said.
“
But since Ingrid is rolling in money, I
’
d say dump the Camaro on the side of the road.
”

“
That evil dead uncle dove of yours tried to feel me up. And flipped up my skirt, and I am not happy right now. I am not happy at all.
”

Ingrid
’
s gaze focused on the Camaro and it burst into flame.

Mary jumped back.

“
I am disinclined to continue to let people push me around,
”
Ingrid said, calmly.
“
I am disinclined to continue to let ghosts see my underwear.
”

“
Or lack thereof,
”
Emily pointed out.

“
I feel,
”
Ingrid said,
“
that your uncle should be disinclined to remain with his beloved Camaro. What is he doing now?
”

The last words were directed to Mary, who looked at the car and back at Ingrid,
“
Um, he
’
s running around, shaking his fist at you.
”

“
But he
’
s not gone?
”

Mary shook her head and took another step back. Perhaps it was the look in Ingrid
’
s eye. Certainly it was the anger, because she looked back at the Camaro, it lifted from the ground as if someone had booted it and sailed over the cliff and into the ocean below.

“
Well,
”
Emily said with disgust.
“
Our bags and our new phones were in there. And we don
’
t have a ride.
”

Ingrid looked at the other two and began laughing again. It was, perhaps, too high-pitched, but it also felt so very good.

“
What happened to the ghost?
”

“
The Camaro dragged him along. It was like he had a leash attaching him to the car.
”

“
I
’
d say that
’
ll teach him, but he
’
ll only be able to feel up fish from now until he decides to move on.
”

“
My dad took my phone,
”
Mary said.

The three of them looked at each other and then Emily crossed to the last car, and knocked on the window.

It rolled slowly down. The people inside looked out with wide, somewhat terrified gazes on the other three.

“
Can we borrow your phone? I need to call my aunt for a ride because my friend had a temper tantrum and threw our whole car in the ocean.
”

The acne-covered teen at the steering wheel swallowed, Adam
’
s apple bobbing and said,
“
We, we saw that.
”

“
So?
”

He handed over his phone, hand shaking, and Emily made the call that they
’
d hear about for at least a year.

“
Mary, would you like a job?
”
Ingrid asked.
“
We
’
re going to Paris or Prague or the Canary Islands, and we need someone to put the bookstore together before Aunt Hazel hexes us.
”

“
Can I drink all the coffee I want?
”

“
Yes,
”
Ingrid said instantly. Sure, the girl was something of an odd-dove. And sure, her dad was super creepy. And sure, she was hiring this girl with the hopes that someone who could see Dickhead could help them get rid of him, which probably meant they
’
d pay for work they never got. But just about any price was worth getting rid of Dickhead while not having to burn down the bookstore.

When Hazel pulled up, the three of them were sitting on the side of the road gossiping.

“
We have a new friend,
”
Ingrid said.
“
She likes us so far.
”

“
It
’
ll take time for you to drive her completely mad.
”

“
Hey,
”
Ingrid said.
“
We
’
re all mad here.
”

“
Too true, my friend. Too true. I need wine.
”

Bewitched Murder

Now Available for Pre-Order

Amanda A. Allen is the author of These Lying Eyes, Song of Sorrow, Compelled by Love, Bewildered by Love, Inconvenient Murder, and Moonlight Murder. She is part of the author groups behind Kendawyn Paranormal Regency and The Paradisi Chronicles.

Amanda A. Allen has been telling herself stories since she was a small child. Some of these stories are now in book form. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her three children, two dogs, and mounds of novels. She can be found at:

amandaaallen.com

Auburn Seal began writing professionally when she found herself standing in the ruins of her previous career as a domestic engineer. Rising from the ashes of a life she hated, she has found solace and a rebirth in writing genre fiction. The primary difficulty she faces now is that genres are like potato chips and she can't settle on only one. Paranormal elements are found in nearly all of her novels and come in all flavors.

Ghosts add intrigue to her historical mysteries in The Vanishing Series.

Vampires spice up the new adult romance in The Immortals (a book born out of Auburn's obsession with Damon Salvatore).

See a more sentimental side of vamps in Kendawyn Paranormal Regency romances, a world that she co-created with Amanda A. Allen and Pamela Welsh.

Witches brew the solution to murder in the cozy witch mystery, Inconvenient Murder, that Auburn co-authored with Amanda A. Allen in yet another collaboration.

The pesky rules of science fiction prevented an overt use of paranormal elements in her upcoming novel First Watch, so Auburn added sex, violence, and bad language to fill the void left by absent ghosts, a sensory trifecta for the literary pallet.

First Watch is one title in a multi-author project Paradisi Chronicles, a post-apocalyptic exodus from Earth and settlement on a distant planet in a far off star system set to launch in September of this year.