A Little Faith - Midlife's a Beach Series: Paranormal Woman's Fiction - Book Five - Final

CHAPTER ONE

~

“Tell me you missed me,” Serendipity said, curling around Faith’s legs in an infinity loop.

“Not happening,” Faith said. “It’s been lovely and quiet without you; some would say peaceful.”

“That’s hurtful,” Serendipity said, stopping in front and looking up at Faith. “You have to get me out of here before Nana drives me fricking nuts.”

Faith offered the kind of smile that the cat knew well. “For all those times you jumped on my head in bed to wake me up, for all those swipes of the paw and claws to get your way, for all the sarcastic remarks – suffer little kitty claws, suffer the madness as I have with you.”

“Wow, somebody sure knows how to hold a grudge,” Serendipity said, her head high and tail straight up. “Smell my retreat.” She slowly walked off, tossing a look back over her shoulder and flicking her tail every now and then.

“Ugh!” Faith grumbled, catching the whiff in the air. “And I don’t miss that either!”

“She’s a very sensitive soul,” Mr Paws said, taking time out from cleaning his eyes with his paw.

“She’s an absolute nightmare,” Faith said, walking to the kettle and flicking it on.

“Oh, good, you’re here,” Nana said, coming from the hallway.

“If you summon, so I come – most of the time,” Faith added for good measure; she didn’t want Nana to get any ideas. Give the elder an inch, and she’ll take a mile, but that didn’t work for Faith.

“We need to make arrangements to send our guests to their next destination,” Nana said. “Make mine a sugary tea; I didn’t sleep well.”

Faith perked up at the talk of the ghosts. “No, no, not yet. We don’t know this is over, and the crone – who isn’t a crone – said…”

“They can’t keep hanging around on the off chance, Faith, it isn’t fair on them,” Nana said.

“A few more days until…”

“Which will turn into a few more, and a few more, and so on.”

“It’s not like they have anywhere to be but eternity,” Faith said. “We could still have a problem, and I might need them, and you said so yourself.”

“Faith,” Nana said with a sigh. “There is no treasure; the Others in the realm duped you into doing their bidding, and I fell for it too, but we woke up and realised, and now we must put what is wrong right, right?”

“Wrong.” Faith eyed the kettle when the lever popped up to show the water had boiled. “What if we need them and they aren’t here?”

“We’ll Macgyver something. I fear I’ve kept them here too long already; I should have sent them back before,” Nana said. “We’ll kill your grandfather and use him as a crossing point to the veil.”

“I heard that, you old witch,” Marvin called from another room.

“Shouldn’t have been listening to a private conversation then,” Nana called back, winking at Faith.

“Bite me!”

“With relish,” Nana snapped back.

Serendipity raced back to Faith’s ankles. “P-lease, Faith, P-lease take me with you.”

“Somebody kill me now,” Faith grumbled.

Serendipity snorted in disgust. “Now you know how I feel,” she hissed, walking off.

~

“What are you going to do?” Amy asked, resting her arms on the bar top and leaning in.

Darcy yanked a chair from the table, flipped it onto its legs, and used her hip to nudge it into place under the table. “What do you think I’m going to do?” she said with a chuckle.

“Run, run as fast as you can, he can’t catch you, cos you’re a wicked…” Amy screwed up her face. “I can’t think of anything to rhyme that applies.”

“Wicked wo-man,” Darcy said, chuckling.

Amy slapped her palm against her forehead. “Dang it, why didn’t I think of that?”

“You have the heart of a warrior, and I have the soul of a poet,” Darcy said, grabbing another chair and tossing it in mid-air; she caught it right side up and shoved it under the table.

“Nope, that’s not it; I think I need another cup of coffee to wake my brain up. I haven’t been sleeping properly,” Amy said.

“Are you kidding me? You were snoring like a pig last night.”

“I was?” Amy’s eyes widened. “Did Faith hear me?”

“You’re still alive, aren’t you?” Darcy asked.

“That’s right,” Amy said, grinning. “Still alive to tell the tale. I really need to get a new roommate.”

“What am I, chopped liver?” Darcy asked.

“Okay, put another way, I really need to get away from Faith before she kills me in my sleep,” Amy said.

“That’s better.”

“Maybe I can help matters of the heart along a little,” Amy said with a wicked grin as her eyes sparkled with mischief.

“Like you did with the others?” Darcy said, lifting her chin. “I heard.”

Amy tried to look innocent. “It wasn’t me, and if it was me, there is no proof.”

“Pah!” Darcy said. “Well, you don’t need to worry about trying to throw me under the mating bus. I’m only too happy to buy a ticket and take a ride. Do you know what I mean?” Talk about wicked, her smile screamed it loud and proud.

Amy wrinkled her nose and then screwed up her whole face going for the entire disgusted effect with an added shiver to boot. “With Zeke?”

“He’s cute, sexy, has muscles, and I know he’ll never cheat on me,” Darcy said, tossing her auburn hair over her shoulder. “What more could a girl want?”

“A brain, compassion, caring,” Amy said, counting them off on her fingers. She tossed a look at the window, and there was Zeke, hands against the glass, looking in – his face a cross between wonder and fear. “And he’s back licking the windows again.”

“He’s a mate; he can’t stay away,” Darcy said happily. “I think it’s mean of you to ban him from the bar.”

“When he learns how not to drool on my counter and miff me off, he can come back in,” Amy said, eyeing him. “Besides, it saves me washing the windows.”

“You’re mean.”

“I think that’s a well-established fact,” Amy said.

“Now tell me about the ghosts, the pirate ship, and who did what to whom and when?” Darcy said.

“Sure, if you don’t mention the word pirate again,” Amy said. “True gets a little antsy.”

“I do not!” True said, walking in with a pile of fresh linen to stock up behind the bar clutched to her breasts. “There are no such things as pirates.”

Darcy chuckled. “Of course, there are.”

“Yes, but not around here.”

“You never know,” Darcy said, shrugging. “It is the coastline for it, and who is to say another ghost ship won’t wash up on these shores one-day bringing pirates with them?”

True stared out the back window for a long moment as they watched her think it over. Then she tossed the linen on the bar and raised her chin. “I hate you with the vengeance of a fiery sun,” she hissed, turning on her heels and stalking back to the kitchen.

Darcy looked at Amy, and the witch shrugged back. “I did warn you,” she said, giving her an ‘I told you so’ look. “Do not mention the pirates.”

~

Drew pulled his truck into the lot in front of the bar and cut the engine. “Door-to-door service,” he said, grinning like all his Christmases had come at once.

“I should hope so after keeping me up all night - again,” Hope said, mischief dancing in her eyes. “And don’t forget the ice cream thingy is arriving today, so you and Parker – muscles on display.”

“Got it,” he said, nodding happily. “I really do not want to go into the guesthouse right now.”

“Ah, you miss me already, or just lack of sleep?” she asked.

“Fear of Nana,” he said, cocking an eyebrow at her and giving her a little side-eye. “When Parker mated Evie, first day back, Nana sat him down and gave him a two-hour lecture on how he’d better treat a woman and what not to do to miff off a witch.”

Hope screwed up her face. “Well…” She offered him a devilish grin. “Good luck with that. I don’t have that problem.”

“Maybe you could come up with me and tell Nana that I’m long enough in the fang to know how to treat a lady.”

“There’s a lady? Should I be jealous?”

“Ha-ha!” he said dryly. “Help.”

“Not a chance,” Hope said, popping open the door with a chuckle of delight. “And guess what, I’ve known Nana most of my life, so it’s gonna be a lot worse for you than it was for Parker – trust me. You’ve got at least a four-hour grilling and lecture.”

“Hope,” he whined.

Hope slammed the door. “Pull on your big boy panties and go and take your medicine,” she called back through the window before turning on her heels and walking away.

“Witch!” he called.

Hope turned with a mocking grin. “You never know; you might learn a thing or two.” She offered him a suggestive wink, and he jolted in surprise.

“Oh, God!” he exclaimed, dropping his head forward and wondering if now would be an excellent time to run for the hills.