Chapter 28
Chapter Twenty-Eight
THEO
Iwait until Kennedy has gone to slip back from the void. The blankets have been folded neatly in a pile; the fire completely extinguished. Only the reminder of the night before lingers in the room.
I was a coward.
I got scared and ran away, just like I’ve always done, both in life and in death. No matter how many times I continue to feel this connection to Kennedy, I can’t seem to allow myself to embrace it.
She didn’t mention where she was going today, but I assume she’ll at least be out for the morning, so I levitate the blankets and make my way upstairs.
The first floor of the house was difficult to clean, but the second story will be an entirely different beast. The front room, the entryway, the kitchen, and the dining area all lack furniture, so there were significantly less surfaces to wipe and dust. The bedroom, on the other hand, is littered with antique fixtures and clutter.
Even worse is the library. Part of me wants to close off that room entirely and forget it exists, but I know that’s not possible.
I summon the cleaning supplies from the pantry downstairs and wait for them to appear in the bedroom.
I can complete most of my tasks in my spirit form if I use my magic, but only for so long.
Using magic is nearly as draining as being in my physical body, but I’m not ready to return to it just yet.
It will only remind me of Kennedy’s gentle touch.
As I remove dust and grime from all the furniture, I begin to lose track of time, and with it the ache I feel for continuing to push Kennedy away lessens. I’m in the middle of polishing the posters of the bed when I hear a knock coming from downstairs.
I float over to the front window and look out on the lawn.
The view of the door is obstructed by the porch, but just as I’m about to check downstairs, Aidan walks out from underneath and looks up.
He smiles cheekily, then gestures at someone on the porch to come out.
Joanna appears and waves up at me dramatically.
Perfect. Witnesses to my embarrassment.
They’ve let themselves in by the time I make it down the stairs.
“This is your third visit in one week,” I tell him. “You must be truly bored.”
Aidan chuckles jovially and scratches his chin. “Happy to see you too, old friend.”
“Shouldn’t you be at work? Or something?”
Joanna answers for him. “It’s Saturday. We both have the day completely free.”
I arch my eyebrow. “And you chose to spend it here?”
“I told you I wanted to help with the house,” Aidan says. “You didn’t think I was going to let that go, did you?”
“Of course not,” I grumble.
Joanna’s eyes travel around the space. “It already looks so much better!” she sings.
“Where’s Kennedy?” Aidan asks, the barest hint of a smirk on his face.
I rub my spectral hands together in a rhythmic motion. “She’s been going into town every day. She found her sister.”
I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be a secret, but given the size of Shadow Hills, I don’t think it would stay that way even if Kennedy wanted it to.
“I couldn’t believe it when Kiki told me,” Joanna gushes. “I mean, they look so much alike.”
So, everyone does know.
Aidan catches my annoyed expression and changes the subject. “What are you working on today?”
I point up. “I’m almost done with the bedroom. The library is next.”
It actually makes me feel better knowing I’ll have help with that room. Going through it alone is probably not the best idea. Who knows what memories it will trigger.
“Well, let’s get started then,” Aidan suggests, rolling up his sleeves.
It’s been about nine months since he last stepped foot in that library.
At the time, he was searching for information that would confirm Joanna was his mate.
Since then, his cheeks have gained coloring, and I can only assume having unlimited access to his mate’s blood is the reason his temples now have streaks of gray and there’s a new light behind his steel-colored eyes.
I used to spend a lot of time going through the same books Aidan used for his research.
I scoured all the pages of my father’s records and the journals containing firsthand accounts of Shadow Hills’ history.
But over the past three days, I’ve wanted to revisit those pages less and less.
For the first time in ages, I find myself wanting to focus on the present—on the woman who quite literally raised me from the dead.
Joanna jogs up the stairs, kicking up dust with her boots.
More to clean, I guess.
Aidan gestures for me to go ahead of him. “Shall we?”
In the library, I give Joanna the duty of cleaning off the bookshelves while Aidan assesses any damage to the house. Seeing the titles will only tempt me to open them, so I concentrate on dusting—the task I seem to have become proficient in over the past twenty-four hours.
We keep busy, and for the most part, we’re able to work in silence, but occasionally she asks me questions, mostly about Kennedy. Do I like living with another ghost? Does she plan to stick around? Things that are both difficult and simple to answer.
I give her vague, open-ended responses. Living with Kennedy has been the best thing that’s happened to me since I died—hell, probably even since I was alive—but I don’t know how to put that into words. Especially to them.
I know they would understand. They’re fated mates, after all. Out of anyone, I’m pretty sure they would know exactly how those small moments of electricity between us feel. But I’m not ready to face those feelings just yet, and I’m definitely not ready to know what they mean.
I don’t know if she’s planning to stay. Her comment about painting the walls has been floating around in my head since she said it.
What if she just wants to help like Aidan and Jo, then move on with her life?
She has family here. There’s no reason to stick around just because I was her first contact in Shadow Hills.
Her first friend.
Yesterday was the most amount of time we’ve spent together, and I don’t know if that can be replicated again. Our chemistry may have been a fluke, and I could be getting my hopes up for nothing.
But something keeps urging me forward. I can’t seem to stop myself from wanting to be near her. I keep pushing the boundaries of our friendship, if I can even call it that, but I desperately want her to know me. I want to know her.
I open the top drawer of my father’s desk and find the pocket watch I stowed away decades ago.
The gears have stopped turning, and the gold finish needs to be polished, but it looks just as it did dangling from my father’s waistcoat.
He passed it on to me on his deathbed. Little did he know, I’d die only a few short years later with no children to continue the tradition.
I put it away so as not to drive myself insane watching the hands tick by, but now, time doesn’t feel so scary anymore.
For ages, it reminded me of the world continuing to move on without me.
Now, time passing means time spent with Kennedy.
I place the watch in my pocket for later.
Even with Joanna and Aidan here as a distraction, every inch of this house makes me think of Kennedy. She’s already left her mark like a brand, and no matter how deeply I try to clean, I don’t think it’ll ever go away.