Page 115 of The Ghost of Ellwood

“Theo?” I panted.

“Fuck me, Ben,” he whispered in my ear. He gripped my waist, and although I couldn’t see them, I felt him lifting his hips, meeting my thrusts. “Harder.”

I braced my hands on the mattress, both amazed and turned the fuck on. He kissed my chest and swirled a tongue around my nipple.

Feeling him but notseeinghim was crazy. I pumped into him, hissing when his teeth clamped down on my budded nipple.

“Baby, I’m close. Let me see your face.”

He reappeared just as I’d started to come and grinned at me through heavy lidded eyes.

It was the most powerful orgasm I’d ever had. I groaned and my hips jerked as my cock pulsed inside of him.

I collapsed on him afterward, my chest burning from the exertion. His cool fingers felt nice on my damp skin as he glided them along my biceps. After rolling off him, I hugged him to my chest and shut my eyes. It was probably only six or seven in the evening, but I could’ve totally gone to sleep.

I thought I heard him chuckle before his lips touched mine.

Hours later, I woke up alone.

I stepped out of bed and stretched, grunting at how sore my abs were. I put on boxers and athletic pants before leaving the room and descending the stairs. The moon shone through the windows in the foyer, and I glanced at the grandfather clock to see it was almost eleven at night.

“Theo?”

Steps sounded in the hall and he appeared in the parlor. His clothes were wrinkle free and tucked in perfectly. “Hello, sleepy head.”

“What are you doing?” I asked, before giving a jaw-cracking yawn.

“I was in the library watching a documentary about the ancient Celts,” he answered. “Fascinating history. When I was alive, I enjoyed learning about world history, but we didn’t have nearly the amount of material you have today.”

“I didn’t know you were a nerd.”

“Yes, you did.” He faded from sight and rematerialized inches from me. “And you love me for it.”

“You’re right. I do.” I rested my hand on his waist. When he dipped his head to kiss my neck, his lavender drifted around me. Finding out why he smelled that way had been a real kick to the gut, but I had learned to love it again. “You can go back to your show. I just didn’t know where you were.”

“I can come to bed,” he said.

“No, it’s okay.” I squeezed his hand before drawing back. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

Later, when I had returned to the room, I gave a sleepy smile and rolled over in bed, hugging Theo’s pillow closer. He was binging documentaries downstairs, and even though I would’ve liked to have him cuddled beside me, I understood the level of boredom he faced every night once I fell asleep.

Feeling sleep start to take hold over me, making my whole body weightless and my lids heavy, I closed my eyes and let it take me.

***

Smoke. My dreams were consumed by it.

I dreamed I was in a burning field, the flames stretching toward the night sky. Both beautiful and chaotic. The flames spread, inching ever so close to me. I turned to leave, but right as I did, more of the field caught fire. I was surrounded. The smoke filled my lungs, and I coughed.

God, it’s that night all over again.

Within the smoke and flames, I saw Lady Death. She stood motionless, yet her smile remained. Frozen and menacing.

The fire inched closer, and my body heated with it. More smoke filled my lungs.

I sat up in bed, coughing.

Confused, I looked around the room, wondering how the smoke from my dream followed me. An odd orange glow shone through the window. At first, I thought it was the sun, but darkness lingered behind it. I coughed again and rolled out of bed. My throat was dry, and I couldn’t suck in a decent breath.