Page 3 of The Ghost of Ellwood

“I thought you weren’t mad about the cheating.”

“That was before I found out who you were fucking.” I shook my head and stepped away from him. “After you eat, you can pack a bag and go to his place for the night. I have work to do. You know, so I can keep filling his pockets, as well as yours, too, it now seems.” I started to walk away before turning and grabbing the bottle of wine. “Taking this with me. You can see yourself out.”

I stormed out of the room before I could lose my temper even more.

If I was being honest with myself, though, I wasn’t so much upset about James fucking Shane as I was about possibly losing Shane as my agent. He was damn good at his job and had saved my ass on more than one occasion.Thatbetrayal was what hurt most.

Back in my office, I slammed the door and filled my glass to the brim. Some of the wine sloshed over the side as I took a drink. The windows let in light and sights of the city. I hated the view. Too many buildings. Too many people. I pulled the blinds closed before slumping in my desk chair and glaring at my laptop and the work-in-progress taunting me on the screen.

James was right. My work was mediocre.

When did writing become such a chore? I used to love it. It was my happy place.

And now it made me want to rip my hair out and chuck the damn laptop out the window.

I was lost, and I wasn’t sure how to find my way home.

***

James moved out days after our argument. I came home from running errands to find all of his things gone and an envelope on the kitchen counter that had his house key tucked inside along with a note.

Ben,

Here’s my copy of the key. Maybe the next man you give it to will have more luck than I did.

-James

I searched for the heartache Ishouldhave been feeling, but it was absent. Every life was like a novel, and James was just one of the chapters in mine. Maybe there’d be a moment in the future when I looked back at his chapter, re-read the pages and remembered the good times with him, but for now, I had no trouble flipping to the next section.

There was one thing I needed to verify, though. I found Shane’s number in my phone and called him.

“Shane Walsh,” he answered on the second ring.

“We need to talk.”

“Oh. It’s you.”

“Yeah. It’s me.” I went to the fridge and grabbed a beer, popping the cap before taking a swig. “So, James moved out and I know he’s with you. I don’t care about that. You can have him. What Idocare about, though, is our business relationship.”

“You firing me?”

“No.” Sort of funny that I didn’t mind splitting with my ex-boyfriend, but I had no desire to break up with the agent who took him. Then again, I’d been with Shane way longer. He helped my career sky rocket, and I owed him a lot. “If you can’t handle working for me, I get it, and I’ll find another agent. But if we can remain civil and keep our personal lives out of it, I’d like to keep you.”

“Oh.” Shane sounded surprised. “Gotta admit, Ben, I wasn’t expecting you to be so nonchalant about it. If you still want me, I’m here. But you need to get your head in the game. Finish your book. I’ll be here when you need me.”

“Thanks.”

I disconnected the call and jogged up the stairs to my office. Once at my laptop, I responded to several emails and opened my social media page to interact with readers. They all asked when the next book would release, and if it would be more like myold stuffornew stuff.It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out they had no interest in the latter.

Before shutting everything down, something came over me. I opened a new tab and typedhouses for saleinto the search engine.

Numerous results appeared. Most of them I had no interest in. They were in crowded parts of town, were too big, too small, or otherwise unappealing. I extended the search to include available homes farther away, outside of the city.

Scrolling through them, none of them spoke to me.

But then one did. My heart beat a little faster and a nervous energy traveled through me, shooting from my chest to my gut.

Charming Victorian Home for Sale!