Page 1 of Ghost of You (Haunted Souls #24)

Francesca Adams, Frankie to her friends, stood under the hot sun feeling as though she could melt into a puddle at any second.

Not only was it ninety-five degrees in Salem, Massachusetts, but the parking lot asphalt radiated heat like an oven.

This was the kind of weather where you could fry an egg on the sidewalk, if you were so inclined.

Francesa wasn’t. Even one egg could make the difference between a child going hungry or going to bed with a full belly.

One by one, a row of cars snaked down the block, the drivers pulled into the food pantry’s parking lot where Francesca and the other volunteers put boxes of donated food into people’s trunks.

With the pandemic still ongoing, guests were not allowed inside the food pantry to choose their own groceries.

Each box contained staples like cold cereal, bread, peanut butter, pasta, and jarred tomato sauce, along with toiletries.

There was also milk, fresh veggies to make salads, and fruit for dessert.

It was strawberry season in Massachusetts, so each family got delicious berries.

Lastly were bags of mini-sized candy bars.

Frankie felt that it wasn’t just their responsibility to feed people’s bodies, but their souls as well.

A little bit of chocolate went a long way.

Frankie had been working with Sea Witches food pantry for nearly ten years.

Streghe del mare , in Italian. Frankie’s Duolingo lessons were already paying dividends.

When she’d started taking Italian lessons with the online app two years ago, she’d done it for fun.

A lark. Something to keep her busy in her limited downtime.

With Francesca’s volunteer work with the food pantry, Salem Mercy Hospital, and her full-time job as a member of Salem’s City Council, there was precious little free time. Until now.

Francesca’s husband, Oliver, had planned a two week trip to Italy for her thirtieth birthday.

Oliver was a veterinarian with his practice located near downtown Salem.

His passion was animals and he also volunteered at the local no-kill shelter, helping to find furever homes for abandoned pets.

He didn’t have a lot of free time either, but had somehow managed to pull this trip off for his wife.

The trip was a second honeymoon and as much as Frankie hated to think about it, possibly a last hurrah.

Frankie was almost positive her husband had been cheating on her.

Oliver constantly accused her of being unfaithful to him, but she knew from experience that the person doing the accusing was usually the person cheating.

She was hoping the trip would bring them closer together, rather than the alternative.

They were going to spend time in Rome, visiting the Colosseum, the Sistine Chapel, and the Trevi Fountain.

All the while eating their body weight in pasta, pizza, and gelato.

Next, it was off to Sorrento and the island of Capri.

She’d finally get to visit Pompeii and stand in Mount Vesuvius’s looming shadow.

Then it was off to Florence to see Michealangelo’s David, before arriving at their last stop, Venice.

She and Oliver would take romantic gondola rides through the grand canal for three days before coming back home.

This trip would either repair their crumbling marriage or it would end in a blaze of glory.

The plane was scheduled to leave Logan Airport in Boston at seven that evening, which meant the car taking them to the airport would arrive around four, giving them enough time to fight city traffic and get through the TSA line in the international terminal.

The flight would land in Rome eight hours later, at three in the morning Boston time.

It would be 9 A.M. in the Eternal City. The plan was to sleep on the plane, drop their luggage at the hotel and spend the rest of the day walking around and eating.

The group tour they’d booked would start the next morning.

All Frankie had to do was get through the next two hours.

Pulling her mask away from her nose, she took a few breaths of air.

The worst of the pandemic seemed to be behind them, but the last thing she needed was to pop positive before the trip.

If that was the case, she wouldn’t be allowed on the plane or into Italy.

“Get your head out of the clouds, girl!” Angela, Frankie’s best friend, said, poking her in the ribs.

“We’ve got people to feed.” Angie was a little bit of a thing.

Just barely over five feet tall, her dark eyes and hair made her look far more Sicilian than Francesca with her blond hair and blue eyes.

She took after her mother’s northern Italian side of the family.

Putting her mask back in place, Frankie set a box of food in the trunk of a Toyota. “There are so many last minute things to do before we leave.”

“Cry me a river!” Angela rolled her eyes dramatically. “You started packing two weeks ago. All you need to do is grab your bags and go.”

Angie was right. She was always right. They’d been friends since middle school and had been through everything together.

Teenage angst. College admissions angst. Boyfriend angst. Husband angst. There had been a lot of angst, but there had been a lot of joy, laughter, and fun in both of their lives.

The one thing they could each count on was each other.

Frankie was hesitant to add Oliver to that list, but wouldn’t mention that fact to Angie, who’d recently gone through a hellish divorce.

Angie had thought Dominic was the love of her life, when all he’d been was a leach, not wanting to work or help support them. Dom was a video game fanatic. If gamers got paid by the hour, he would have been a top earner.

Turning her mind back to the trip, all Frankie had to do when she got home was make sure her passport and ID were in her tote bag and she’d be good to go.

The one thing nagging at her was that Angie would be alone for the two weeks Frankie would be in Italy living La Dolce Vita with her husband. “I feel so bad leaving you here alone.”

Angie shot Frankie an are-you-kidding-me look. “I’ve got other friends, silly. Plus a huge book order from Amazon is arriving today. I’ll pick up wine and all sorts of goodies at the supermarket when we’re done here and I’ll be set for a weekend of literary debauchery.”

There wasn’t anything Frankie could do about Angie being alone while she was gone. “I’ll send you pictures and grab some bottles of wine for you.”

Angie laughed. “Forget the wine! Bring me home a hot Italian man.”

“How would that work? You don’t speak a word of Italian.” Frankie had tried to get Angie into Duolingo, but it had been a no go.

Angie laughed. “Oh, we won’t be talking to each other.” She waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Getting her groove back was exactly what Angie needed. When Frankie got back from Itay, her first priority would be to set her bestie up with the perfect man. Oliver had a ton of single friends. Maybe they’d have a cookout and Angie could take her pick.

Satisfied with her plan, Frankie went back to loading boxes into trunks.

Ninety minutes stood between her and freedom.

There was a secret she’d been keeping from her husband.

One that had come as a complete surprise three days ago at a routine doctor’s appointment.

After five years of trying, Frankie was finally pregnant, which she knew would complicate things if their marriage was doomed.

Pasting on a fake smile, Frankie was determined to do her part to make sure they had the time of their lives in Italy. All she had to do now was pick the perfect time to share her surprise and hope her happy news brought she and Oliver closer together instead of breaking them apart for good.