Chapter 28
“Whore!”
Marina’s eyes whipped open and she screamed, scrambling backward on the bed.
“Marjorie!” River snapped, blinking awake, her heart pounding at Marina’s scream. “That’s enough!”
The ghost floated backward, her wild white hair drifting around her head, the black holes where her eyes should be staring daggers at Marina. She faded into the shadows, her hair the last thing to disappear.
“What the actual fuck?” Marina’s eyes were wide, her face pale. One hand was pressed to her chest, the other held the blanket to her chin like a shield. “River, what the fuck was that?”
River ran her hand through her hair and tried to calm her rapidly beating heart. “Sorry about that. Marjorie was here when I moved in, and that’s her favorite way of waking me up in the morning. I thought she’d stay away, since I have company.”
Marina’s head turned slowly toward her, like she was reluctant to look away from where their ghostly alarm clock had gone.
She blinked, and then slowly started shaking her head.
“Nope.” She lurched out of bed, got tangled in the blanket and fell to her knees, then struggled with it until she was loose.
“Nope. No. No. No. Ghosts don’t exist. I don’t know what the fuck that was.
Maybe you have some crazy lady in the attic who messes with you.
I don’t know. But…” She pulled on her sweater and slacks and shoved her bra and panties in her pockets. “Nope.”
“Marina, she’s harmless, I promise.” River tried to reach for her, but Marina was too fast. “And she’s gone. She doesn’t really come out at all during the day.”
Marina looked at her sharply. “Do you even hear yourself?” She took the stairs almost too fast and stepped into her boots in front of the door.
“Wait.” River hopped on one leg, trying to pull her jeans on and not go head first down the stairs. “Let me take you to breakfast, at least.”
Marina’s phone buzzed, and she looked around the living room before glancing at her screen. “Fuck. I have to go in to work after I go see my mom.” She pulled her coat tight around her. “I’ll call for a Lyft and wait outside.”
Before River could argue that it was too cold to wait outdoors, she was gone. River sighed and rubbed at her eyes. So much for a nice, slow wake-up and some morning sex. “Thanks a lot, Marjorie.”
The curtains moved in response, snapping with undisguised irritation.
River grabbed a sweatshirt off the sofa and slipped on some shoes. Marina was standing on the sidewalk, doing something on her phone. “Hey.” River put her hand on Marina’s back and kissed her cheek. “I’m really sorry about that. Please don’t go like this.”
Marina looked up at her, and the beautiful openness of the night before was gone. Those walls were back in place, and even though she smiled, it was missing that part of her River had gotten to see last night.
“I’m sorry, but I really do have to get to work.” She cupped River’s cheek. “Last night was incredible. Thank you for letting me stay with you.”
River’s cheek burned under Marina’s touch even as her breath puffed in the cold air. “Thank you for letting me have you.” She grinned, hoping the ache she felt inside didn’t show.
The Lyft pulled up and Marina’s hand fell away. “I’ll call you later.”
River nodded and waved, and then Marina was gone. She shoved her hands in her pockets and waited until the car had turned the corner, then, shoulders slumped, she turned to go back in. The stranger ghost was blocking the path.
River moved toward her slowly. “I know who you are.”
The young ghost wavered, her hands reaching out. River let the ghost’s hands rest on her palms, and she shivered as the ghost’s memories played out like a scene in a movie in her mind.
The laughter. The swings, her stomach rising and dropping as she went higher and higher. The way Marina’s laughter made her feel warm and happy. The leap and the sudden, definite knowledge that it was all wrong.
And then a world with no color. A body with no shape. A feeling of being hopelessly, utterly lost and alone. Watching and never being seen.
River slipped her hands away, tears making the ghost blurry. “I’m so sorry. Marina has never accepted that it was an accident. She’s always blamed herself.”
The ghost nodded, her expression one of infinite sadness.
“Do you want me to talk to her for you?”
The ghost nodded, and the relief in her eyes was obvious.
“I’ll try. But thanks to Marjorie, I don’t know if Marina will ever come here again. Can you meet us somewhere else?”
The ghost nodded again, and the sun crested the trees. She moved back into the shadows and was gone.
River sighed and got out of the cold. Shamus let his irritation at being denied his usual place in bed be known in loud yowls, only settling down when she’d sat and given him cuddles.
Marina’s vanilla scent filled the house, and as she thought about the night before, she sighed with pleasure.
Damn. That had been beyond fucking hot. She hadn’t expected Marina’s simple submission at all.
She’d expected a little more aggression, a little bit of pushback.
But instead, she’d been putty in River’s hands, and she’d taken what River wanted to give with such gorgeous abandon it had made River dizzy with lust and the desire to take her until she begged River to stop.
But she hadn’t needed to say it with words.
River had read her body, felt her energy entwine with her own, matching it in a yin and yang kind of balance that was beyond rare.
When she’d fallen asleep in River’s arms, River knew she’d do damn near whatever it took to keep her safe, to protect her, to be whatever it was Marina needed.
And now, here she was, alone as the sun rose. That didn’t mean nothing more could come of it, but it did serve as a reminder that Marina was focused on her career, and last night could very well be a one-off. It was a depressing thought.
River forced herself off the couch, much to Shamus’s annoyance, and into her gym clothes. A hard workout, unlike the one she’d enjoyed last night, would banish the blues and help her clear her head.
For the most part, it worked. Heavy weights and hard cardio made her sweat, but that made her think about how sweaty she’d gotten while fucking Marina. She left the gym horny and wondering how the fuck things were going to work out.
There were two vans with TV news station logos on them outside her shop when she arrived.
She spotted Audrey’s lime green car half a block down and saw her shadow still in the driver’s seat.
Not a surprise. Audrey had never wanted to be the focus.
Her ability to read thoughts meant she often saw, or heard, the worst of people.
She always said she balanced that with the kindness she found in others.
River smiled at Adriana, who stood talking with another tall woman by the front door. “Sorry, I wasn’t expecting you.”
Adriana pulled her into a quick hug. “It was a last minute thing.” She turned to the other woman. “This is Emmaline Smith. She’s—”
“A journalist.” River reached out and shook her hand. “I’m sorry, I didn’t recognize you at first. I loved the work you did on the refugees of Somalia. The article and pics in National Geographic were incredible.”
She smiled. “Thanks. I’m lucky to be able to do those kinds of stories.”
Her deep southern twang was indicative of her Louisiana roots. River was pretty sure she’d heard that Emma was a lesbian too. “Not that I’m not glad to have you here, but this seems pretty different from your usual stories.”
“Emma’s looking into the larger issue of real estate developer thuggery.” Adriana grinned.
“I think I’ll use that for a title.” Emma winked.
“This story is a springboard for the bigger issue so many communities are facing, both here and abroad. I’m investigating the shadowy side of how they get people to give in.
I hope you don’t mind, but I spoke to Adriana, and we’d like to do a double interview with you today. ”
River swallowed hard. What would Marina think when River went on the record about this? But then, it wasn’t like she’d be surprised either. Fucking complicated. “Yeah, of course. But I think we should bring in some other folks too.”
Adriana gave a little shrug. “Mrs. Crabtree, maybe? She’s awesome. But I think we need to keep it intimate, you know? We’ve covered the huge rallies, the public outcry. Now I think we need to move the camera in, get a closer, more personal view.”
Emma seemed to sense River’s unease. “What’s bothering you?”
“Um…” River blew out a big breath. “It’s nothing, really. I mean, I have something going on with the lawyer at Black Pinnacle…” She waited, not sure how else to say it.
Adriana and Emma both began to laugh. “I mean, I guess I’m not surprised. She’s super hot and all kinds of fire,” Adriana said. “And as far as getting someone on your side, I hope you were good enough in bed to convince her client to just go away.”
Emma shook her head. “I doubt that. Sheila Black has a history of doing whatever it takes to get what she wants. Hell, her marriage ended after she had multiple affairs on her wife, one of which was with the wife’s best friend.”
That wasn’t surprising, and River wished yet again that Marina wasn’t tied to that woman. River shivered. “Come on, let’s get inside.”
They went in, and people with big cameras and lights followed, setting up around the tarot card table. River’s phone buzzed, and she looked at the screen.
Audrey: Can I sneak past them?
River looked up and caught Adriana’s eye. “My business partner, Audrey, wants to come in but she really doesn’t want to be on camera.”
Adriana looked surprised. “Yeah, of course. I’ll let everyone know to make sure she isn’t in any shots.”
River sent a thumbs-up text as she got the coffee pot going. Her phone buzzed again just as she heard Audrey come in and say hello to the many people crowding their shop.