Ghostly Business Read online

  “See.” Shawn inclined his head toward the front porch. “He’s fine.”

  “He’s great,” Harper agreed through gritted teeth. “He’s just hunky-dory.”

  “I’m not comfortable with you using that term,” Zander said, faux sternness causing his forehead to crease. “I can’t hang out with someone who says things like that.”

  Under different circumstances, Harper might’ve laughed. Now, however, she was simply too exhausted to indulge her friend. “Whatever.” She turned away from the house and scanned the street behind her, pausing when she found a local teenager watching her with impassive eyes. “Rain.”

  Rain Porter was a recent transplant to Whisper Cove. Weeks before she’d been embroiled in a mystery of her own. Due to emotional issues, her brother Ezra had her seeing a therapist, which was reportedly going well. Harper hadn’t seen her in weeks.

  “Hi.” Rain appeared timid as she glanced between Harper and Zander. They’d saved her life during a tense situation. Before that, though, she’d been a thorn in their backsides and she wasn’t certain what sort of greeting she would incur.

  “It’s okay,” Harper reassured her, managing a legitimate smile. “We’re happy to see you. I wanted to check on you but ... I thought it was best that we give you some time to settle.”

  Rain nodded. All traces of the angry girl Harper had met such a short time ago were gone. “Thank you.”

  “How are things?”

  “They’re okay.” Rain shrugged and held out her hands. “I guess I’m a work in progress. You said that’s what would happen and you were right.”

  “She’s always right,” Zander offered, slinging his arm around Harper’s shoulders in a sign of solidarity. “Well, except when she argues with me. Then she’s never right.”

  The lame joke hit the right mark and Rain giggled. “You’re still funny.”

  Zander winked and nodded in agreement. “That’s how I roll.”

  Shawn took advantage of the momentary lull in conversation to ask the question that had been bothering him since they’d rushed inside the house looking for Jared. Now that they knew the detective was fine — well, at least until Harper got her hands on him later — he could start disseminating what they’d witnessed. “So ... is this place a hotel?”

  Harper slid her eyes to him, confused. “What do you mean? It’s just a house.”

  “Yeah, but ... there were people in the rooms. That Barry guy you talked to was halfway undressed and with a girl who couldn’t wait to get away from him. You said this house belonged to Patty Somebody-or-other. If that’s the case, what were those other people doing there?”

  Harper hadn’t given much thought to what happened inside of the house given her worry about Jared’s safety. Now that she had time to consider it, though ... . “Huh.” She tapped her bottom lip, thoughtful. “I didn’t think about it, but you’re right. What was Barry doing there? And did anyone recognize the woman with him? That most definitely wasn’t his wife.”

  Shawn’s eyebrows hopped. “He’s married?”

  Zander nodded. “Yes, and to the most unpleasant woman you’ve ever met. Bethany. She’s ... well, she’s the basis for every real housewife of whatever stupid town they create a show in next. She’s a horrible woman.”

  “You’re just saying that because she called the cops on us that one time she found us in the park after midnight,” Harper argued. “She told Mel we were fornicating — her word, not mine — and wanted us arrested for public indecency. Since Mel knew that wasn’t true he kind of redirected her to other matters. Zander was furious, though.”

  “That’s because she was a judgmental hag,” Zander said. “That doesn’t explain what Barry was doing in Patty’s house with another woman, though. I mean ... how did that even come about? It’s all kinds of weird.”

  “The house was kind of set up like a hotel,” Shawn pointed out. “Maybe she was making extra money renting out rooms.”

  “Oh, she was making extra money in there,” Rain intoned, drawing three sets of eyes back to her. “She wasn’t running a hotel, though. It was a brothel.”

  Harper felt as if she were trapped on some strange reality television show. “Excuse me?”

  “A brothel,” Rain repeated.

  “How do you even know what a brothel is?” Shawn queried. “That’s an old word.”

  “It might be, but I’ve seen enough television shows to know what it means. Also, that’s what all the kids in school call it.”

  “Because ... she allows married men to rent out rooms to cheat on their wives with?” Zander asked after a beat.

  Rain shook her head. “Because she allows men to pay a bunch of young girls to have sex with them in her house.”

  Harper was legitimately shocked. “No way.”

  “It’s true.”

  Zander licked his lips and exchanged a dumbfounded look with his best friend. He had trouble believing the tale and yet he desperately wanted to know more. “Tell us what you know.”

  3

  Three

  Harper rode home with Shawn and Zander so she was already dressed in fuzzy pajama pants and an oversized T-shirt when Jared slipped through the front door with a takeout bag in his hand. She obviously hadn’t heard him enter so he took a moment to study her.

  He loved her. He wasn’t sure when it happened. He simply knew that at some point she invaded his heart. Life with her would always be an adventure — it wasn’t every man who could claim a woman who could see and talk to ghosts as his soul mate, after all — and he knew things wouldn’t always be easy. He honestly wasn’t expecting the strife tonight, though.

  “I brought dinner,” he offered softly, causing her head to snap up.

  “I didn’t hear you.” Her hand flew to her heart. “You scared me.”

  “I don’t ever want that.” His answer was simple but heartfelt as he shrugged out of his coat. “We should probably get a security system. I’ll feel better if I know you’re locked in tight if I’m ever working late.”

  She tilted her head, considering. “Zander and Shawn are right across the road,” she reminded him after a beat. “I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

  “Maybe I want double security for the thing I love most.”

  She tried to hold back a sigh ... and failed. “I’m sorry about earlier.”

  “Yeah?” He arched an eyebrow, unsure how he was supposed to respond. “Why are you sorry?”

  “Because I was horrible.” She opted for honesty. “I got in the way of you doing your job and ... I’m sorry.”

  He had every intention of being stern with her when he walked through the door, but that melted by the wayside. He left the food on the counter and crossed, gathering her chin in his hands and kissing her until she was breathless.

  “Wow,” she gasped as they separated. “What was that for?”

  “I love you.”

  “I love you, too. I just thought ... I didn’t mean to be that way.” She wrapped her hands around his wrists. “I just had this horrible flashback of looking for Quinn and I don’t know what happened.”

  Jared was taken aback. Quinn Jackson, Harper’s former boyfriend, was thought to have died in a car accident years before Jared came on the scene. His body was never found, which seemingly froze Harper in place. Months before he’d turned up alive ... and evil. He tried to hurt Harper and she’d managed to put him behind her ... at least for the most part. Still, Jared knew that the years she spent searching for the ghost of a man she once cared for had almost been too much for her to bear.

  “Come here.” Jared slipped his arm around her waist and tugged her to his lap as he lowered himself into the comfortable chair at the edge of the living room space. “I’m never going to leave you,” he whispered. “You don’t have to worry about that.”

  She knew he meant well with the declaration, but it was a promise he couldn’t possibly keep. “The best you can do is promise to try and never leave me.”

  “No.” He shoo
k his head as he tightened his grip. “It’s you and me forever. You’re never going to leave me and I’m never going to leave you. We’re going to die together.”

  “Like the couple in The Notebook?”

  Jared scowled. “Don’t bring up that movie. I’m still bitter we let Zander choose the thing last movie night. I’m scarred for life.”

  The reaction was enough to make her laugh. “I really do love you.” She threw her arms around his neck and pressed herself close. “I’m really sorry, too. I just momentarily freaked out. I’ve always been a little afraid of fire.”

  That was news to Jared. “I didn’t know that. Did you have a close call or something when you were a kid?”

  “Kind of. There used to be a stable at the park on the water years ago. There’s nothing left of it now. It’s gone and they built a new one about a mile away from the old location. Anyway, I rode horses there occasionally because my mother was adamant that proper ladies rode horses because she saw it on some show or something and it caught fire one day and I ran in to help the horses.”

  Jared’s heartbeat picked up a notch as he stroked the back of her hair. “How old were you?”

  “Eight. I could see ghosts then ... and knew what they were. I had all the horses out but one and I couldn’t see to unlatch the gate. Three ghosts showed up. I still don’t know who they were and I swear they helped me. They lifted the latch and directed me with their voices ... although no one believed me when I told that part of the story. Then they led me and the horse out of the stable.”

  Jared had difficulty forming words. “That wasn’t smart,” he said finally. “You could’ve been killed.”

  “I wasn’t, though.”

  “Yeah, but ... you could’ve been. Then I never would’ve met you. My life wouldn’t have been complete.”

  “Aw.” Harper pulled back far enough to study his features. “Maybe you shouldn’t have run into a burning building tonight. Have you ever considered that?”

  “Yeah. I’m sorry I frightened you. I had to be sure, though.”

  “And?” Harper was ready to put the fight behind them and focus on the present. “Did everyone make it out? The firefighters wouldn’t let us get close enough to overhear and they were pretty tightlipped.”

  Slowly, Jared shook his head as Harper’s smile slipped. “Patty Porter is dead. They found her on the third floor.”

  Harper was horrified. “Oh, no. She was kind of an eccentric, but I genuinely liked her. Did ... um ... did the fire get her?” The question was painful to ask.

  “The fire didn’t get her, at least we don’t think. Her body wasn’t burned. Part of the roof came down on top of her, though, because of the water. It was just in that section of the house. We won’t know if it was the smoke or the roof that got her until an autopsy is complete. They’re going to try to get it in tonight, but you know how that goes.”

  Harper chewed on her bottom lip as she nodded, contemplative. “I hope something else happened, like a sudden heart attack. I hope she didn’t feel fear.”

  Jared studied her strong profile. “Because you felt fear when you were trying to save the horse?”

  “It’s horrible being stuck in the smoke and not being able to see. She was older. I just ... don’t want anyone to feel fear like that before the end.”

  “I don’t want it either,” he agreed. “I’m sorry you were upset earlier. I just ... I had to stay and I couldn’t have you in there because then I would’ve been fixated on your safety to the detriment of everything else.”

  “Which would’ve ultimately put you in danger.”

  “I’m more worried about you than me.”

  “And I’m more worried about you than me, so we’re the perfect match.” She smiled at him as she danced her fingertips over his cheek. “We’re okay.”

  “We are.” He dipped in and gave her a soft kiss before patting her rear end to get her to stand. “I brought food, too, since we never did get our meal at Jason’s. He put together a pretty good food bribe for me when I stopped by.”

  “Really?” Harper was intrigued. “I thought that was diner food or something. Are you saying you got a big meal?”

  “I did. You’re going to have to work for it, though.”

  His flirty reaction made her laugh. “I don’t know how hard I’m willing to work. I’m tired.”

  “It’s surf and turf.”

  Her eyes lit. “What kind of surf?”

  “Scallops.”

  “I love scallops.”

  “You love me more, right?”

  “Than anything.”

  “Right back at you.”

  HARPER AND JARED FELL ASLEEP WRAPPED around one another and that’s how they woke up seven hours later. It wasn’t the alarm that got them, but Zander letting himself into their bedroom.

  “Jared is going to kill you,” Harper hissed when she felt Zander sliding in beside her. She risked a glance over her shoulder, but Jared hadn’t as much as shifted a finger. “You’re going to be in big trouble if he finds you here. You’re only allowed bed visits on Sundays. You know that.”

  Zander shot a cursory glance toward Jared’s sleeping form and made a disdainful face. “I’m not afraid of him. Besides, I need to talk to you. It’s an emergency.”

  Harper rolled her eyes. “How can you possibly be having an emergency? The sun is barely up.”

  “It’s an emergency from last night.”

  Harper heaved out a sigh. “Is this about the proposal?”

  “Of course it’s about the proposal. I think I’ve earned it and Shawn seems to disagree.”

  “I don’t think it’s that he disagrees. I think it’s that you’re driving him nuts and he feels unnecessary pressure. Why can’t you just relax and let him propose on his own timetable?”

  “Because I want it now.”

  “I hate to break it to you, but you can’t always get what you want. Sometimes you have to sit back and let things happen in the right time. That’s what I did.”

  “Yes, but you’re engaged now and I don’t want to be the only one who isn’t engaged.”

  “Oh, geez.” Harper squeezed her eyes shut. “I can’t believe you woke me up for this.”

  “I can’t believe it either,” Jared groused, shifting as he opened his eyes and glared at Zander. “I believe we’ve talked about this.”

  “It was an emergency,” Zander barked. “How come you guys don’t feel my pain?”

  “Because you’re always serving as a source of pain for us,” Jared muttered, his eyes drifting to Harper. “Good morning, Heart.” He pressed a kiss to the corner of her mouth. “Did you sleep okay?”

  She nodded. “Yeah. I slept hard.”

  “Me, too. We should’ve had another hour of sleep.” His glare returned as he focused on Zander. “The least you can do if you’re going to be here is cook us breakfast.”

  “I saw all the empty takeout containers on the living room floor,” Zander replied. “You’re not hungry. You ate like pigs without me last night. We got pizza and you got surf and turf.”

  Jared furrowed his brow. “How do you know what we ate?”

  “Because I can smell the A-1 on your breath.”

  Harper pressed her lips together to keep from laughing as Jared made a growling sound. She was determined to keep the morning from getting away from them so she decided to change the subject. “Did you hear Patty is dead?”

  “No way.” Zander lifted his head. “Did she die in the fire?”

  “They’re not sure yet. The roof on the third floor caved in. It’s either that or smoke probably.”

  “That’s too bad. Maybe one of the people there to use her brothel set the fire or something.”

  Jared stilled. “I’m sorry, but did you say ... brothel?”

  Zander nodded. “Apparently Patty was running one in her house.”

  “But ... .” Bewildered, Jared turned to Harper. “You didn’t mention the house was a brothel.” The statement came out mor
e accusatory than he intended, but he couldn’t swallow his disbelief.

  “That’s because I didn’t know.” Harper ran her hand through her hair, which was snarled thanks to the games they played after dinner. “Rain told us.”

  “Rain?” Jared’s confusion deepened. “How would she know?”

  “She said all the kids have been talking about it. Supposedly Patty was recruiting girls fresh out of high school ... or at least putting out feelers to see if any of them were interested.”

  “You know, so they were legal but still looked like fresh meat,” Zander volunteered.

  “Thank you, Zander.” Jared flicked the other man’s arm before rolling to his back to contemplate the new information. “Do you believe what Rain told you?”

  Harper shrugged, unsure. “I don’t know. I mean ... what would her motivation be to lie?”

  “She’s lied before.”

  “Yes, but ... .” Harper trailed off. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to talk about what happened. Rain, who was going through a trauma after being sexually assaulted, accused Jared of making a pass at her. He’d held strong and still protected her, but Harper knew it was still a sore subject.

  “I don’t hold any ill will told her,” Jared reassured her quickly. “She was a troubled girl who had something horrific happen to her. I don’t blame her for what happened. In the end, everything worked out and she’s getting the help she needs.”

  “I know. It’s just ... I feel really bad.” Harper was rueful. “On one hand I want to believe her because I feel it’s the right thing to do. On the other, I can’t help but remember the things she said about you. I knew they weren’t true even as she was saying them, but I was still angry.”

  “I don’t think we can hold what happened against her,” Jared countered. “She’s trying really hard. She’s in therapy. If she says that Patty was running a brothel ... I guess ... well ... .” He had trouble wrapping his head around it.

  “If you ask me, it makes sense,” Zander interjected, drawing two sets of eyes to him. “We always wondered how Patty managed to maintain that huge house. Do you know that it’s a historic landmark?”