Page 98 of The Curse of Redwood

It was two days until Halloween, and I had spent every day and night with Zeke. The only time we were apart was when I rushed home to shower and to replenish my food and drink supplies.

That Thursday morning, I hopped out of the shower and threw on some fresh clothes before packing more beef jerky and protein bars into my backpack and taking off out the door. My phone rang right as I got into my car.

“Hey, Ben,” I answered, after seeing his name on my screen. “What’s up?”

“Come to my house for a proper meal,” he said, then cut me off as I started to say something, “Don’t argue. I know you’ve been living off chocolate bars and chips for like a week. Aren’t you the one who’s always nagging me to eat healthy? You even dragged me out of the house and forced me into a café because you thought I was alienating myself too much.”

“I haven’t been alienating myself. Just been preoccupied. But you’re right.” I glanced at the clock on the dashboard, seeing it was almost eight o’clock. “Okay. Yeah. I can come over for a while. It will be nice to see you. Theo’s cooking, right?”

Ben laughed. “Yes.”

“’Kay. I’ll be there in a few.”

I backed out of my driveway and drove to Ben’s house. Less than two minutes later, I parked and walked toward the porch. The trees in his yard had bright orange leaves, a contrast to the gloomy overcast sky. Some leaves crunched under my feet as I cut through the grass and jogged up the steps.

The door opened, and Theo greeted me. “Good morning, Carter.”

“Hey, ghost boy.” I walked into the house and patted him on the back. “Where’s your other half?”

“In his office,” Theo answered, walking with me into the kitchen. “He received a phone call and rushed away before I could ask who it was.”

The table was set with two plates filled with eggs, bacon, and sausage. A basket of biscuits sat in the center, along with jars of honey and jam. My mouth watered at the sight. Yep, it had been too long since I’d eaten real food. Sometimes, I grabbed a burger from a fast food place on my way to Redwood, but very little beat a homecooked meal.

“Sorry,” Ben said, breathing heavily as he entered the kitchen. “That was my publisher. They’re interested in the Lady Death story and asked me to send the manuscript over.”

“Congrats! So, you decided to publish it after all?”

“I eventually said to hell with it.” Ben took the seat across from me. “Although personal in many aspects, the story is very much fictional. There’s a century old mystery the character solves, all while trying to keep himself alive. Readers will enjoy the thrill. Or, at least, I hope they will.”

“I’m proud of you, darling,” Theo said, sitting in the chair beside him.

Ben leaned over with a smile and kissed Theo lightly on the mouth. “You’ll forever be my muse. I love you with all my heart.”

“And I love you. Always.”

“Okay enough, you two,” I said, before picking up a sausage link and tearing into it. “You’ll ruin my breakfast with all that mushy talk.”

“How are things with Ezekiel?” Theo asked, moving his dark eyes to me.

“Amazing.” I couldn’t stop the smile from tugging at my lips. “Human men won’t ever do it for me again. Once you go ghost, you never go back.”

Ben snorted into his coffee, spilling some on the table.

Theo sighed and handed him a napkin. “So messy.”

I laughed, noting so many similarities between their relationship and the one I had with Zeke. For the rest of breakfast, we caught up on each other’s lives. Ben was taking a small break from writing for a change. He recognized he had been falling into a rut and needed to step back and refresh his mind before diving into another big project.

“You should invite Taylor for dinner again sometime soon,” Theo said, taking Ben’s plate and carrying it to the sink.

“You only want him to come over so he’ll fanboy over you,” Ben said, narrowing his eyes. He went up behind Theo and wrapped the smaller man in his arms before dropping a kiss to his shoulder. “I do believe you’re spoiled.”

“And who made me this way, I wonder?”

Ben’s arms tightened around his lover. “I would do it again a million lifetimes over. You deserve the world.” His face fell. “I only wish you were able to actuallyseethe world instead of being trapped here.”

“I do not need the world, Ben.” Theo turned in his arms and took hold of Ben’s face. “All I need is you.”

Seeing them was like looking into my future. Even if no one ever moved into Redwood and I was allowed to keep sneaking over there to see Zeke, I’d grow old while he stayed exactly as he was; beautiful and frozen in time.