Page 15 of A Midsummer Night’s Ghost (Murder By Design #8)

FIFTEEN

“It was so bad,” I told Jake with a groan. “I’m never going to recover from hearing that my childhood bedroom has been turned into a, you know.” I couldn’t even say it out loud. I actually shook out my arms and stuck my tongue out as I got out of my car in our driveway. “Argh, if I think about it I’ll start gagging.”

Jake was appropriately sympathetic. He pulled me into a hug. “Baby, I don’t even know what to say. That’s…rough. I’m sorry. I should have gotten you a hotel room. I promise I won’t ever ask you to stay there again.”

Being hugged by Jake was a balm for any horror. He was strong and comforting and smelled amazing. I sighed into his hold. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too. But when you see inside the house maybe you can forgive me for the last couple of days?” He stepped back and kissed me. “Please? I just wanted it to be a fun surprise. I didn’t know it would be a peek into your father’s personal life.”

I barely refrained from gagging again. “You know I have a long history of hating surprises.”

“This is a good one.”

I opened my mouth to protest. I wasn’t dressed for a party.

“And no, there aren’t people hiding in the house for a surprise party. I promise.”

Skeptical, but very curious I started toward the interior garage door.

He stopped me by grabbing my hand. “Come through the front door.”

Now I was just scared. “Just tell me what is going on.”

“Just go inside.” Jake reached around me and threw open the front door.

I shot him a suspicious look before stepping inside.

And stopped dead (probably shouldn’t say that) in my tracks.

“What in the world…” I stared in awe at the transformation in front of me. “Jake. How…what…”

He was smiling. It wasn’t a grin. It was a smug smirk.

In three days he had completely redone our main living and dining spaces. The dingy bright green carpet was gone and the yellow accent wall was a thing of the past. We had gleaming hardwood floors and neutral walls in a soft white that was obviously pulled from my mood board I had created online for the house.

It looked incredible. Brighter, lighter, airier.

“Wow, this is amazing.”

But I had assumed we would get to this later.

Instead, I reached down and ran my hand over the floors. “These are original?”

“Yep. They didn’t even need to be refinished. Just cleaned.”

“How did you paint all of this?” I turned in a circle and held my arms out. “I feel like I can breathe in here and our furniture looks fantastic. I think the house is happy. This is probably what it originally looked like.”

“You can add drapes and art or whatever makes sense to you.”

“I love it.” Then a thought occurred to me. “You didn’t really remediate asbestos, did you?”

“No. We can do that later as long as we don’t disturb the tiles.”

Since that was always the plan, I wasn’t going to worry about it.

“This was worth staying at Dad’s. Despite the trauma.”

He laughed. “I’m glad you like it. I know the kitchen is still a disaster, but maybe in six months. Oh, and I got the wallpaper down in the hall bathroom that you started but I just painted the walls white because I didn’t know if you had any other plans for it.”

“How did you do this all in such a short amount of time?”

“I had help.”

“Well, tell them thank you.”

Then I caught a peek of the kitchen. He hadn’t redone the kitchen, because that would be impossible in three days, but there was food everywhere. Party trays and pasta and a beverage station.

And the chicest cupcakes I had ever seen on multiple cake and cupcake stands. They each had a dusty rose on top with pearl edible beading adorning them. In the middle was a mother-of-pearl looking giant “29.”

“You can tell them yourself in an hour.”

My jaw dropped. “A birthday party?”

“But not a surprise, because I’m telling you. A housewarming birthday party combination too, so really, you can’t be mad.”

My heart swelled. “You are pretty incredible.”

“I try.”

I hugged him. “And I’m a very lucky girl. What time is everyone coming?”

“Seven. Why?”

“Because you’re about to be a very lucky guy.”

“I already am. But why don’t you just go change in case someone arrives early?”

“You’re a very practical man.”

He winced. “That doesn’t sound sexy at all.”

“It’s very sexy. It’s called competence porn. Women want a man who handles things.”

“I’ll be handling all the things after everyone goes home.”

I laughed. “Who did you invite?”

“Alyssa, my parents, your parents, my brother. Just a few people.”

“My father is coming?” It was my turn to wince a little. “And my mother? Oh God. I don’t think that’s a good idea considering the recent history between them. My mother will skewer Nancy.”

“Don’t worry. I spoke to him and he agreed it would be better if he didn’t bring Nancy.”

“He agreed to that?” I was genuinely astonished. My father did not like to be told what to do.

“Yes. He didn’t want to make things awkward.”

“There is no way being considerate was his idea.”

He shrugged. “I suggested it and he agreed.”

“How do you do that? Both of my parents love you. You must be the Burke whisperer.”

He whispered in my ear. “Is it working with you?”

I shivered. “Definitely.”

My parents were on their best behavior. So was Jake’s mother. She was sweet and chatty and gave me a big hug and a gift certificate for a spa day.

“This is lovely, thank you so much.”

“Let me know your schedule so we can book our appointment together.” She smiled at me. “Then lunch?”

So we were doing facials at the same time and bonding. I could live with that. It was a small price to pay for glowing skin, and truthfully, I needed to spend more time with her outside of Jake so we could establish our own relationship dynamic. “That sounds amazing. I’m excited.”

My parents mostly avoided each other and my mother kept her snarky comments to one.

When my father was wishing me a happy birthday, he said, “The light of my life for twenty-nine years. When you were born I took one look at those dimples and rosy cheeks and realized I was staring down at a mini-me.”

I didn’t have dimples. And no girl or woman wants to be told she looks like her father. But I knew he just meant that he’d looked at me and thought I was precious so that was heartwarming.

My mother, flicking her tongue over the icing of a cupcake like a cat, said, “At least she didn’t get your honkin’ nose.”

I braced myself for a retort from Dad but he just laughed and tweaked my nose. “That is a very good thing.”

Ryan, however, was not on his best behavior.

He had shown up in the middle of the guests arriving, adding to the chaos.

Typical Ryan, he kept doing things like sitting on people’s laps or pretending to take a bite off of their plate. I ignored him, but it was still distracting.

His vibe felt wrong and I didn’t like it at all.

Especially since he didn’t even bother to say happy birthday to me.

I was getting obsessed with the idea that Ryan wasn’t even Ryan. Which wasn’t logical, but heck, was any of this logical?

Otherwise, I was enjoying myself. I got to show off Jake’s refinished floors and freshly painted walls, and catch up with some of my favorite people.

“Where’s your new husband?” my mother asked Alyssa.

“Oh, he’s working.”

“Well, congratulations.”

My mother didn’t even smirk when she said that. I was impressed.

“Thank you.”

“If you want a background check run on him, I’m happy to help.”

There it was.

“Well, he’s a sheriff, so I think I can pass on that.”

“That doesn’t mean anything.” My mother sipped out of a Diet Coke can with a straw. “What’s his family like? Who are his people?”

“Um…I haven’t met his family yet. They live in Pennsylvania.”

“Interesting. How old is he?”

“Thirty-nine.”

“Divorced? Kids?”

“No and no.”

“Never married? I wonder why that is? Gambling debt? Selfish? A man child?”

“Maybe he just never found the right woman,” I said, trying to save Alyssa.

“I guess it was love at first sight then. If you believe in that sort of thing.”

It was clear she did not.

Alyssa sighed in relief when Mom excused herself to get another cupcake.

“I always feel like your mom is interrogating me like I’m on the witness stand. This is why I never wanted to sleepover at your house in high school.”

“I understand. I almost wanted to be the hangout house, you know that, but it was never going to happen.” Even watching her now, I could see she was eyeing our ancient stove with pure disdain.

“No way. Your mom was scary and your house was so clean I was afraid to touch anything.”

“Your parents were chill. Plus, your house had all the good snacks too.”

“Yeah, no kidding,” Alyssa said, squeezing her hips. “Thanks for the chips and cookies, Mom and Dad.”

Alyssa’s parents had a theory that you shouldn’t say no to kids at all.

That setting a positive example would allow their kids' internal compass to guide them in the right direction. It had been semi-successful, depending on how you gauged success.

“You’re not afraid of anything and I’m a worrier, so whose method worked better?” I asked wryly.

“How do you see yourself as a parent?”

That made me immediately anxious. “Well. Not as a mom who sees ghosts, that’s for sure,” I said, keeping my voice low so no one else would hear.

Alyssa laughed. “Yes. You should probably work on that.”

Speaking of ghosts…

Ryan was sitting at the kitchen table having a major discussion with my grandmother and my mother had noticed. Grandma was telling Ryan, “They say life is a journey.”

“Mine wasn’t a journey so much as a quick bus ride,” Ryan said.

“Your mother is talking to air,” my mother said to my dad. “Aren’t you at all concerned?”

He didn’t appear to be concerned. “She’s old. What do you expect?”

“It’s a whole conversation.”

“I can hear both of you, you know,” Grandma said. “I’m talking to a ghost, so mind your beeswax. I’m not losing my mind or my hearing.”

My mother gave my dad a told-you-so look.

The truth was, Grandma was losing her hearing. Not totally, but enough that Jake and I could watch TV after she went to bed at high volumes and it didn’t bother her. She definitely was not losing her mind.

“She really is,” I said. “I’ve seen the ghost too.”

“Christ,” my mother said. “You are definitely a Burke, Bailey, through and through.”

“What kind of ghost?” my father asked. “It’s not my father, is it? That would give me the willies.”

“No, it’s not Grandpa.”

“He did show up one night,” Grandma said. “At the foot of my bed. I thought he was coming to take me to the other side, so I told him to get the hell away from me.”

My dad guffawed. He turned to my mom. “What would you do if my ghost came to the foot of your bed?”

“I’d tell you to lay down at my feet like the dog that you are.” The words were harsh, but to my surprise, she was smiling.

He laughed even harder. “That’s my girl,” he said, putting his hand on her back.

She didn’t pull away. I had no idea what that was or what it meant.

Jake glanced over at me. I lifted my shoulders and shook my head slightly.

I was just happy that Grandma didn’t mention Ryan by name as the ghost she was hanging out with.

Mrs. Marner, who preferred to get her digs in with a smile and a backhanded compliment, found my mother too direct. She intervened now and changed the subject. “Are you ready for the play? That’s so sweet of you to direct it for the seniors.”

“I’m nervous,” I admitted. “I just want all the participants to have fun. I inherited this play and I don’t actually know what I’m doing.”

“You did theater in high school,” my mother said. “I’m sure you’re doing a wonderful job.”

“Will you be there?” I asked her.

She nodded.

I turned to Dad. “And you’ll be there.” I didn’t pose it as a question. If I had to publicly shame him to be involved in his mother’s life, I would.

To my shock, he said, “Absolutely. Wouldn’t miss it.”

No blustering. No excuses. Now that was a birthday gift.

Two hours later everyone was gone and I smiled at Jake. “Thank you. That was a wonderful birthday, even if it was a surprise.”

“It wasn’t a surprise. I gave you a whole hour of warning.”

“That was a loophole. I don’t normally associate you with those. You’re getting tricky. I’ll have to keep my eye on you.”

“You can watch me load the dishwasher.”

That made me laugh. “I’ll take the trash out. I love having an attached garage. I can do trash disposal in my socks.”

I bundled up the bag from the large kitchen can and tied off the strings. I went into the garage and jumped when I saw Ryan sitting on the hood of my car.

“Hey,” I said. “What are you doing?”

“I just needed a minute. That was a lot of people.”

It was nine people. Not a lot by any stretch of the imagination. “Far cry from your rager days back in college.”

“Don’t say rager. That’s just embarrassing.” He smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes.

“What’s going on with you?” I tossed the trash into the bin. “You don’t seem like yourself.”

“I’m not myself. I’m dead.”

Well, that was putting it baldly.

The way he was sitting he looked like a calendar shot for working men. He had his boots on the fender, his forearms on his thighs. He had always been good looking and fit and girls had thrown themselves at him. But he’d also always been emotionally unavailable, joked at inappropriate times, and moody as hell.

None of that had changed.

Here he was being morose on my birthday and I felt bad about it.

This was why we had a toxic friendship.

He never really considered my feelings.

“Can you explain to me what you’re really doing here,” I said. “Big picture. What’s the goal?”

“I don’t know the goal. I screwed up and did something I wasn’t supposed to and now I’m back to the beginning, I guess you could say. Like a game board. You pull the wrong card and they send you straight back to start.”

I had known that but it still sounded ominous. “What did you do?”

“I looked at some paperwork that was classified.”

That told me nothing. “What did you see?”

“I can’t tell you.”

I sighed. This was going nowhere.

“Is this about James? Because I’m starting to think he took his own life.” I dug my phone out of my back pocket and scrolled through social media. “Look. Joy, his ex-wife, who I thought might be the kind to get angry and poison his drink, was in Hocking Hills the day he was killed. That’s three hours away, so she couldn’t have killed him.”

I tried to show him the pictures of Joy sitting in an Adirondack chair on the deck of a cabin but Ryan barely glanced at them.

“Ryan. You’re freaking me out.”

He climbed down off of the car hood and reached out like he was going to hug me before he realized he couldn’t. “Happy Birthday, Red. I’ll catch you on the flip side.”

That gave me pause. “Are you disappearing forever on me on my birthday? Because that would really annoy me.”

“Nope. I’m just giving you and Marner a break from me.”

“Look me in the eye and promise,” I demanded.

That got a reaction finally. His head finally snapped up. “What? Don’t be weird.”

His reaction made me feel better. He sounded more like himself. “You don’t be weird.”

“Weirdo.”

“Jerk.”

“Go back to your boyfriend.”

“Go back to your paperwork.”

He started laughing. “Glad to see some things never change.”

Then he was gone.

I didn’t think I was ever going to get used to that.

The garage door opened. “Did you fall in the garbage bin?” Jake asked, sticking his head out.

“No. I’m short, but not that short.”

“You’re definitely bin size. Are you vaping?”

“No.” I had quit but now that he mentioned it, the urge came creeping back in. “I’m going to stay strong, I swear.”

“I’m not judging.”

“I know. But I need to process my emotions.”

“What emotion are you feeling right now?”

I smiled at him. “Grateful. That’s what I’m feeling.”

I was. Life was a little chaotic, but nothing too crazy, by recent standards anyway.

It was all good.