I’m not sure, he says, reading my thoughts. Either way, you didn’t have a choice in the matter. You had to leave me. If you stayed a second longer in that house, you both would have died. For good.
I raise my brow, keeping the light focused on his green flannel shirt. Even dead, he’s still wearing plaid. For good, for good, or like how you died for good?
I’m still dead, short stuff, he says, folding his arms.
Then why are you so…real? So here?
Ask Jacob.
I give him a sharp look. Jacob? Why?
He’s the one who brought me here. This is as far as I can go. With him, anyway…
This makes no sense.
I don’t make the rules.
I’m starting to think no one makes the rules. Not even Jacob.
Feels like it, doesn’t it?
“Perry,” Dex says again. “Please. Talk to me. What are you doing? I can hear you out there. That is you, isn’t it?”
“I’m here,” I say absently. “I’m fine.”
You better go to him, Maximus says, stepping away from the door. Poor guy will have a literal meltdown.
I frown at him, not liking his choice of words, considering he’s seen many of Dex’s meltdowns over the years. And so then what? I’m just supposed to keep you a secret?
Do what you like, he says. But I reckon it’s best he figures this out on his own. Come back another time and we’ll see what happens.
But what then? You’re just going to be here in the meantime? In this house?
This is my home now, he says matter-of-factly.
Forever?
Unless someone brings me out.
Meaning me?
He gives me a sad smile. Wish things were that simple.
Then he brushes past me, that cinnamon smell wafting over me, and disappears into the dark. I shine my flashlight, but all I see is dust dancing in the air.
There’s no sign of him at all.
Holy. Fuck.
“Perry?” Dex is practically pleading now.
I give my head a shake, trying to make sense of things, and then go to the door. I put my hand on the knob.
It turns. I thought as much.
Dex yanks the door open from the other side and then rushes into the hall, pulling me into his arms, holding me tight. “Jesus H. Macy, what the fuck just happened?”
You have no idea.
He pulls away, peering at me frantically, trying not to get the light in my eyes. “Are you okay? I heard you talking to someone. Who were you talking to?”
I swallow. “You must have been hearing things.”
I feel bad for lying, and I’m not sure why I am. I guess I’m trusting the advice of a dead friend, thinking he might know better than I do. I mean, he’s dead, so he probably knows a lot of things.
“You look like you were crying.” His hand goes to my cheek as he frowns. “Did something happen?”
I manage a small smile. “I’m fine.”
“That scared the shit out of me,” he says, breathing hard. “You sure you’re okay?”
I nod, pressing my lips together.
He looks behind him at the room, then shines the light down the hallway, fear in his eyes. “You know what? You’re going to think I’ve totally lost my balls, but how about we wrap this up for tonight?”
Part of me sighs in relief, because getting out of this house has been a subconscious priority since we stepped in here.
Another part of me doesn’t want to leave. Now that I know Max is here, I want to stay, see if I can find him again. But if Dex can’t see or hear him, then it feels kind of pointless. I’ve been in this position before, where I’ve seen the ghosts and Dex hasn’t, and I hated it.
“We can come back another night,” I say to Dex.
He blinks at me in surprise, then smiles. “Absolutely, baby. This is just the start.”
We quickly walk down the hall, noting that the blood has retreated under the bathroom door. It feels different now to me, knowing that there’s someone in this house that I care about. A ghost that I don’t fear. A ghost that I miss deeply.
I mean it’s Maximus! Fucking hell, I mourned that man and everything he sacrificed for us, and now he’s here. He’s back. He’s really back. Not quite alive, and not quite in the flesh but…
I press my fingers to my mouth. Even though I can’t believe that ginger bastard kissed me, there something thrilling about it. Not that I particularly enjoyed it, or that it was appropriate, but the fact he was actually able to.
I felt him.
And it felt just like he used to.
I just don’t know what the fuck it means. What did Jacob have to do with all this? How come he couldn’t bring Maximus back further than this house? And why is this all connected to Atlas, Harry, and his mother? I don’t believe in coincidences on a good day, but this is a little extreme.
Good thing I’m going to see my father and sister tomorrow for my birthday.
I think I need a few words with the Jacob next door.
Six
I wake up to Dex’s head between my legs.
“What are you doing?” I groan, my voice groggy with sleep. I manage to lift my head an inch to see him moving under the covers, feeling his mouth trail down along my inner thigh. Once again I’m ever so grateful for a regular bikini wax.
“What does it look like I’m doing,” he murmurs against my skin, one hand curling over the edge of the bedspread and pulling it back so I have full view.
And what a view. Even though I’m still half-asleep, my eyes focus lazily on his dark hair as he makes his way to where I’m already wet. He pauses and glances up at me through his lashes, his eyes simmering, a teasing smirk on his lips. “Do you want me to stop, birthday girl?” he murmurs. His fingers hook around the lacy hem of my underwear.
“No,” I say, my stomach tingling with anticipation. I prop myself up on my elbows and watch as he drags my panties down over my thighs until they dangle from my right foot.
He gives me a quick smile. “Good.”
Then he dips his head, his wet tongue making contact with my most sensitive parts, the pressure hard.
“Fuck,” I can’t help but say, the word turning into a moan. My head goes back, my hips automatically rising to meet his mouth.
I can feel him smiling against me, loving when I’m verbal and loud, which I often am. He’s taking his time this morning. His tongue is flat, lapping me up in slow rhythmic strokes that melt into me, making me feel boneless, like I’m sinking through the mattress.
I try to watch him as he works me, meeting his eyes as he glances up, his gaze burning. Him and his fucking eye contact, always making things as intense as they can possibly be, and I’m always the first to look away. I know he wants to see into my soul, see me at my most vulnerable, watch me as I come to pieces around him.
But my head falls back onto the pillow as his tongue grows stiff against me, the hard pressure increasing around my clit before dipping inside of me.
I reach down and grab his thick hair, holding on, my thighs squeezing the side of his face as he brings his fingers into the mix, one of them slipping inside me as his tongue does circles around and around.
While his other hand grips my ass, he brings my hips off the bed to get in deeper, the muscles in his arm rippling.