Page 5 of Mend My Soul (Shattered Hearts of Carolina Ghost Psychic Mystery Romance #2)

Chapter Five

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ANSON

The next morning, I wrap a plush spa towel around my waist. Stepping out of the steamy bathroom, I grab another one from the towel rack, using it to rub the wetness from my short brown hair and wipe the drips from the St. Rita medal I wear around my neck.

The glass paneled doors to the Juliet balcony are wide open.

Rae Lee is leaning on the railing, enjoying the street view as much as I’m enjoying mine.

Her long white robe is cinched at her waist. Bent over, it accentuates her heart-shaped bottom.

She’s crossed her legs, and the soles of her feet peek from underneath the terry cloth.

She turns, popping the last morsel of a flaky croissant room service delivered before I showered into her mouth.

Her back to the city, she stretches her arms over the railing.

Her eyes rove over the water droplets, dripping from my neck down my bare chest. I can’t tell if the mm-ing sound is a compliment to the chef or approval of the hours I put in at the gym.

“Like what you see?” I tease.

“All of it. The hotel. The sights below.” Her lips twist, using double entendre as her gaze falls beneath my navel.

I shoot her a wide grin, grabbing my clothes from the suitcase and sitting on the edge of the bed.

Rae Lee walks back into the suite, stopping at the room service cart to heat up my coffee from the carafe. My cup in one hand and fresh-squeezed orange juice in the other, she approaches me.

I take the refill, lift the cup to clink with her glass, and salute her.

After taking a sip, she places her juice on the nightstand.

Then she lifts the bottom of her plush robe and crawls onto the bed.

I do the same on my side and shimmy back to the headboard, stretching out.

Rae Lee snuggles into my chest and our bare legs intertwine.

“Thank you for bringing me here. I feel so spoiled.” She places her palm over my heart.

“Everyone should be spoiled every so often.” I kiss her temple. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you, Raleigh.”

I want Rae Lee to forget life’s little troubles. I want to create lasting memories with her while we’re here.

Regrettably, I can’t protect my girlfriend from being a ghost magnet.

That’s why I wasn’t sure bringing her to a city with a rich history was a good idea.

Between the Civil War, Reconstruction, and The Great Fire, Charleston’s seen its fair share of untimely deaths.

Discounting malevolent spirits, there’s gotta be a lot of people reaching out from beyond the grave, trying to find peace or make amends.

We spend another half hour touching and talking. As much as I’d love to lie in bed all day making love to Rae Lee, we can do that at home. Eventually, we get dressed and make our way downstairs.

I stop to speak with the concierge as we exit the hotel, ensuring our dinner reservation stands.

“Is there anything we shouldn’t miss?” I ask the lady manning the desk.

“There’s always a haunted tour?” She offers me a pamphlet.

Beside me, Rae Lee adjusts the spaghetti strap of her sundress. She bites her lip, giving an almost imperceptible shake of her head.

“Yeah, we’re good. Thanks, though.”

Outside on the street, her anxiety doesn’t diminish.

“What happened?” I nudge, reminding her she can talk to me without fear of judgment.

“The former hotel manager was there. I think Bernard died on duty because he had his name tag and uniform on. He had plenty of advice for the woman at the concierge desk staff about how to improve her performance, so it was ‘spot-on’. Funny enough, Bernard didn’t think we’d enjoy the ghost tour, either. ”

“Let me guess, when Bernard noticed you, he wanted us to say put so he could monopolize your time?”

“Yes. He thought I’d be a good conduit to bark orders at everyone. I couldn’t wait to get out of there.”

“I’m sorry. I wish this were a real vacation for you.”

“Anson, you could put me on a cruise ship in the middle of the ocean, and someone’s dead relative, who decided to tag along, would stand there snapping their fingers and trying to get my attention.

They all want my help with their unfinished business.

What kills me is how loud the hotel manager was with his recriminations, and his criticisms were so…

insignificant? It makes failing Agent Reed cut deeper. ”

I step in front of Rae Lee, grabbing her by the arms.

“You didn’t fail Moira. You’ve explained to me before that spirits and residual energy are unpredictable.

Maybe the victim only shows themselves at a certain time of day, and we were at the boat launch at the wrong time.

Maybe they weren’t there at all, and Moira didn’t have you looking in the correct location.

You can’t blame yourself when the lead investigator is already grasping at straws. ”

I pause, regretting the way I treated my girlfriend when we met.

I discounted her experiences because they were different from mine.

I might’ve apologized to Rae Lee. Yet the consequences of my hostility, and my underestimation of her, add to the lingering self-doubt she has.

I’ll do anything to make my bad behavior up to her because I wish I’d never discounted someone who I’ve grown to respect.

A woman I’ll love for the rest of my life… and perhaps beyond.

Rae Lee isn’t a grifter out to make a fat buck off somebody who is grieving.

She isn’t performing a magic act as part of a circus sideshow.

My girlfriend receives a nominal fee for her services, which she donates because it makes her happy.

However, right now whatever ISB is paying her doesn’t seem like enough.

I feel horrible that I’ve put her in a position where she feels guilty.

The one thing I know more than how much I love her is if Rae Lee didn’t care so much about getting people the closure they deserve, she would shake off any perceived failure and spend the weekend pretending we drove from Brighton to Charleston without stopping.

Rae Lee plays with the rolled cuff of my lightweight button-up sleeve, fighting tears. So, I say exactly what I hope will help her achieve her own sense of peace.

“Would swinging by the site on the way home set your mind at ease?”

“Putting aside that you’re assistant coaching Grant’s baseball game, and we need to be there on time in order to cheer him on, I still don’t think so.

” She sniffles. “I mean, what if you’re right, and the victim is only there in the morning or late at night?

Without Agent Reed giving me more to go on—and she didn’t reveal to me if the person she’s searching for is a man or woman, or anything else about them—we could be passing through when I’d still turn up with nothing. ”

I see her point. I was cautious about what I told her about the Tatton case.

But we met at the little girl’s home, and Pearl’s mother was there.

Rae Lee has zero information connecting Xavier Martin to the location.

Flying entirely blind has her doubting the purpose for her abilities.

Rae Lee wasn’t put on this earth so a disgruntled former boss can yell at hotel employees about bad job performance.

“How about this? I’ll call Agent Reed on Monday. We’ll work out whatever details she’s comfortable with you knowing that won’t also cause concern that you’ve developed bias. Sound good?”

“Yes.” Rae Lee agrees.

“Great. Now, let’s see the sights.”

We weave along the cobblestone streets from King Street to the French Quarter, jutting toward Waterfront park.

Whenever an item in a window piques Rae Lee’s interest, she pops in and out of a boutique.

We pass museums and head toward the pier and Rainbow Row, circling back around after lunch to everything we missed.

Late in the afternoon, we return to the hotel to change for the evening. On the desk, where the strawberries were last night, there’s sweet and savory petit fours underneath the cloche, and a bottle of champagne chilling in an ice bucket.

“There’s an hour before our reservation. Let’s save these for dessert.” Rae Lee suggests.

Popping the cork on the champagne is premature, so “why not?” I agree.

“Be careful,” she tells me. “I might get used to this pampering.”

I wink.

Rae Lee grabs her clothes to go into the bathroom to get changed.

Layla, who works at Paisley’s Boutique, convinced her to splurge on a new dress for the trip.

The white-and-black pinstripe fabric is tailored to her waist. It has a tall collar and a plunging neckline.

She looks both casual and glamorous, pairing it with black heels.

By some miracle, she’s also twisted her short hair into a French knot.

For the number of times I heard a plink on the bathroom floor, and Rae Lee’s pained swearing, like someone was shooting a nail gun at her scalp, I’m surmising bobby pins.

Around her neck, dangling between her breasts and creating the illusion her perfect handful is ample cleavage,—god, it’s fucking sexy as hell—is the vibrant orange sunstone necklace she prefers to wear from her collection.

“You’re stunning,” I tell her, slipping on my black sport coat.

Rae Lee saunters over, adjusting my lapels.

“You don’t clean up so bad yourself, detective.” She slides her palm behind my neck and pulls my lips toward hers.

Our tongues meet, and it’s all I can do to not ruin her lipstick, peel the dress off of her, and say “fuck it” if we miss our reservation. But tonight is no ordinary night.

I clear my throat, trying to get a handle on the emerging problem in my pants. My dick’s got a mind of its own, and it is about to ruin the plotting and scheming I did to get us here and convince Rae Lee we were celebrating our first anniversary.

Seated at the intimate restaurant, tucked into the historic block, the server pours red wine into our long-stemmed glasses.

I order prime rib and Rae Lee decides on yellowfin tuna.

It’s the second time today she’s ordered seafood, and the second time she’s lifted her fork when she notices me eyeing her meal.

“You should have gotten the fish.” She dabs a napkin at the corner of her mouth.

“Why, when I could have the best of both worlds?” I smirk, stabbing a satisfying bite of tuna from her plate.

When we finish the meal, I sign the receipt and grab her hand, guiding her to the exit.

Outside, a private carriage awaits. Rae Lee asks the driver if she can pet the horse’s muzzle.

I stand with my hands in my pockets, watching my girlfriend baby-talk to the gentle animal. The carriage driver’s in no hurry.

A few minutes later, she finishes and says, “All set. Let’s go.”

“Okay, get in.” I motion to the carriage, here to take us back to the hotel.

“Anson! You shouldn’t have done this!” she squeals.

“I wanted you to have a night to remember.”

“It’s been a vacation to remember. Promise me no more surprises after this.”

“We’re headed home tomorrow, so this’ll be the last one.” I shrug.

“Can we take this by the Pineapple fountain at the Waterfront Park?”

“Wherever you want to go.” I prepaid the fare and planned to stop somewhere along the way.

The driver stops the carriage close to the fountain and asks, “Want to get out, miss? See it in the moonlight?”

“I think we do,” I answer for Rae Lee.

We weave between the other tourists for a better look. A kid tosses a coin in and runs off. The wind blows. While she’s distracted, brushing that lock of hair off her forehead, I step behind her.