Whispers (Argent Springs) (25 page)

Three months later…

Erin turned on the sound system in the atrium
before resuming her place on the couch next to Rick. “This was Annabelle’s
favorite song,” she said to the young newlyweds who held hands as they sat in
the opposite chairs. She never tired of telling the stories of the resident
ghosts, and she had to admit, it did help keep the rooms full.

“How do you know there’s more than one ghost?” the
woman asked, her green eyes wide with interest.

“When Rosa’s here, I can smell lavender. Annabelle
is a little trickier. I’ve learned she’s the one who likes to close doors or
flip on the lights. I think it’s her way of letting us know she’s still
around.”

Rick nodded in agreement. Erin had wondered after
he’d moved back if the ghosts would continue their antics in front of him. They
had, but to a much lesser degree. It seemed they’d found their peace as well.

“That’s so cool,” the new husband said. “Do you
think we’ll notice anything while we’re here?”

“You never know,” Rick added. “They do seem to
like young lovers.”

The guy snorted as a laugh slipped from the girl.
“Maybe we should go to bed and see if they visit us there,” she said.

The young husband stood and held out a hand to his
wife. “No arguments from me.” They said their goodnights and headed out of the
room, leaving Erin and Rick alone.

Erin took his hand in hers as a sense of happiness
and overwhelming love filled her. “I like to think Annabelle and Rosa are
sitting somewhere dressed in their fancy costumes, slinging back Jack Daniels
and dancing with all the men.”

“That’s a nice thought.” He stood and held out a
hand to her. “Maybe we should be dancing, too.”

She took it and let him pull her into his arms as
the song suddenly restarted, and she shared a knowing grin with her lover.
“I’ll never get tired of you holding me.” She slipped her hands over his broad
shoulders before running her fingers through his hair.

He gazed down at her, looking every bit the
confident, sexy man. “That’s good because I’ll never get tired of holding you.”

Shivers of excitement raced across her skin as he
leaned down and captured her lips. “Want to go upstairs and see if there are
any ghosts hiding in our bed?” he asked, his lips against her mouth.

“Mmm-hmm.” She kissed him, heat building in her
core as his tongue tangled with hers. “I definitely think we should.”

“You don’t mind if they watch?” he teased. “We
might shock them a little.”

She laughed as she turned off the music and tugged
him toward the doorway. “Knowing the history of those two ladies, I doubt we
could. But I’m willing to try if you are.”

They hadn’t made it to the stairs before he hauled
her against him for another heated kiss. “God, I love you.”

She took his face in her hands, marveling at how
her life had changed since the day she’d met Annabelle. “I love you, too. Now
and forever.” She gave him a soft kiss before she wiggled out of his arms.
“First person upstairs gets the top.”

He growled and grabbed for her as she laughed and
dashed up the stairs, the scent of lavender trailing them as they went.

The End

Chapter One

From the corner of her eye, Lily Chandler caught a
blur of black as it dashed into the road. She slammed on the brakes. The tires
on her little white Honda screamed as she swung off the pavement and onto the
grassy area at the side of the road, narrowly missing a ditch.

When the car had come to a standstill, she
plastered a hand against her chest, trying to slow her racing heart. "What
the hell was that?"

Hannah eyed her as though she'd lost her mind.
"I was going to ask you the same thing. Are you trying to kill us?"

"No.” Lily glanced across the isolated
two-lane highway, searching for the critter that almost lost its life.
"There was something in the road. Didn't you see it?"

"Uh…no.” Her friend looked around. "It
was probably a skunk or raccoon. We have those out here, you know," she
said with a touch of sarcasm.

Lily narrowed her eyes. "I know that.”
Actually, she had no idea what she'd find in the small town of Aspen, Utah, but
she wasn't about to admit it. She scanned the surrounding green pastures one
more time for the little beast who'd stolen a year of her life.

"Can we go now?"

Lily sighed as she pulled out onto the
never-ending stretch of blacktop. Her bug-spattered windshield showcased nothing
but farmland alive with early summer grass. Occasionally, a house had popped up
on the horizon, but not often enough for Lily's comfort. Somewhere up ahead was
Hannah's brother hauling a good portion of their possessions in Hannah's truck.
Everything else had been left in a storage shed in Salt Lake with the hopes
that she and Hannah would be returning soon. "I'm starting to wonder if
this was a good idea."

"Are you kidding?” Her friend tilted her
head, the action making her auburn ponytail shake. "Don't second guess
this now. When I left home seven years ago, I swore I'd never move back. I'm
only going now because you begged."

"I didn't beg.” She hadn't. But moving in
with Hannah's family seemed preferable to being homeless. Two weeks ago, they'd
both been fired from their respective jobs at a local newspaper in Salt Lake
City, all because their boss hadn't been able to keep his zipper zipped. His
wife had found out, and now the paper was slowly disintegrating from all the
bad press and soon to be split assets. If it hadn't cost her a job, Lily would
have been happy the jerk had been found out. She could totally commiserate with
her boss's wife. She'd dealt with similar humiliation and pain when she'd
caught her fiancé cheating with her sister.

Hannah folded her arms. "This was your idea.
No complaining. I warned you my family lived in a rural area."

"Rural?” Lily let go a nervous laugh.
"To an L.A. girl, rural is like…subdivisions. Like the outskirts of Salt
Lake. Places where people still live. Not this…vast emptiness.” She gestured to
the hills that didn't stop until they touched the sky. "If a person got
lost out here, they may never be found."

"Ain't that the truth," Hannah said with
a laugh. "Let me rephrase then. My parents live in a backward, podunk,
God-forsaken town.” Her friend pretended to shudder. "And look. We're
here.” Hannah pointed to a sign stating, Aspen, population: 250. "Welcome
to my version of hell."

Only 250 people? There had to be that many living
on their block in downtown SLC. Lily forced a smile and slowed as the speed
limit dropped considerably. What if the people here didn't like her or couldn't
relate to her? She was a city girl through and through.

The little town was cute, though. Baskets of pink
and purple petunias swung from streetlamps, and all of the buildings were in
good repair. It was like going back in time fifty years.

"Sorry to postpone our arrival. Mom asked if
I could pick up a couple of things before we head out to their place.” Hannah
nodded toward a building with Andersen's Grocery painted on the side. "Do
you mind if we stop?"

"Not at all.” Lily cruised into the small
parking lot, grateful to have arrived. "I'd like to look around the place
I'm going to be calling home anyway."

Hannah snorted. "Don't get too excited."

Her friend seemed really down on her hometown, but
Lily hoped it wouldn't be that bad. More than that, she hoped they'd both have
new jobs before long and be headed back to civilized Salt Lake. Lily shouldered
her purse and headed down the short street as Hannah went inside the store. The
air was fresh, if a bit cooler than it had been in the city. She inhaled again.
Like
really
fresh. Like it almost had a sweet taste to it. That was
certainly a nice change her lungs would appreciate during her morning runs.

In the same parking lot as the grocery store,
stood a small strip mall with a pizza parlor, a beauty salon, and Betty Johnson
Real Estate. A small "help wanted" sign tucked into the corner of a
window near the door of the real estate office snagged her attention. She'd be
headed there first thing after they got settled in.

A gas station took up space on the other side of
the strip mall, and a bit farther down was a bigger building with the words
Swallow's Bar and Grill. The other side of the street housed a cute little
bakery and coffee shop. The town's version of Starbucks, perhaps? She'd
definitely check it out later. Ahead of her was Randall's Western Outfitters
that apparently carried clothing, tools and more. Everything a girl could want,
all in a few short steps. It would certainly provide a different shopping
experience than Rodeo Drive.

The door to the western outfitters store swung
open in front of her, and she had to stop short to avoid running into it.

"So sorry, Miss," said the older guy in
a worn cowboy hat when he realized he'd almost plowed the door into her face.
He totally looked the rancher part with short, grizzled whiskers, accompanying
denim jacket, and carrying a large bag of something over his shoulder.

Lily shook her head. "It's fine. You couldn't
have known I was here."

The wrinkles around his grass green eyes creased
when he smiled. "Still, I apologize."

She was about to respond when another man came out
right behind him, carrying two identical bags.

"Dad—"

The younger guy stopped short when he saw Lily.
"Well, hello."

He was a taller version of his father, with the
same beautiful green eyes. His biceps bulged beneath his dark blue T-shirt from
holding the weight of the two bags, and an interesting tattoo peeked out from
beneath one of his sleeves. A hint of short brown hair hung below a
khaki-colored ball cap, and she was surprised to find he wore small, thick
silver hoops in his ears. Apparently, the small towns of the world were finally
catching up with everyone else.

"Um…hi.” She felt silly now, impeding him and
his dad.

"Did you want something, Luke?" his
father asked.

He hesitated. "I'll tell you in the truck.”
He nodded toward a big black pickup, and Lily couldn't help but feel he'd just
dismissed his dad.

The older man seemed to pick up his cue as well.
He winked at Lily, nodded and headed toward the vehicle.

"You're new in town.” The younger guy smiled,
making Lily feel slightly giddy inside. She wasn't quite sure what to make of
him. Hannah had been dead wrong in her assessment of the men in this town if
this guy was any indication of who she'd find here.

"I just arrived. I'm going to be staying with
my friend's family for a while.” A soft breeze blew several blond curls into
her face, making them stick to her lip gloss. She tried several times to remove
them, but kept missing some. He reached out, holding the weight of his load
with one hand, and pulled the last hairs away from her lips.

"Thanks.” She tugged her long tresses to one
side, away from the breeze, to keep them under control. The attraction she felt
for this guy was awkward, surprising, and a little exhilarating.

"What's your name?” He continued to stand
there as though the heavy weight he carried meant nothing to him.

"Lily. Lily Chandler."

"I'm Luke Winchester. It's nice to meet you.”
His lips tilted into a grin, and she couldn't stop herself from mirroring the
gesture. "Who are the friends you're staying with?"

"The Morgan family. Do you know them?"

"Of course."

At her puzzled expression, he continued. "You're
obviously not from a small town, 'cause here everybody knows everybody."

"Lily?” Hannah yelled from down the street.
"Let's go."

Luke turned his gaze to her friend, his demeanor
cooling. "Hey, Hannah. Welcome back," he called out.

Hannah sent him a heated look and then got in the
car, slamming her door.

Lily raised her brows. "Ouch. You and Hannah
have some sort of history?"

He shook his head, a disappointed look hovering in
his eyes. "A slight misunderstanding. She'll get over it one of these
days. In the meantime, promise me you won't believe everything she tells
you."

Interesting. She couldn't wait to hear Hannah's
side of the story. "Okay.” She would give Luke the benefit of the doubt.
For now.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Lily
Chandler. I'm sure I'll run into you again."

He held out a hand, and she took it. His fingers
were strong and warm, and they sent a fascinating spike of energy coursing
through her. "Nice to meet you, too."

She let go of his hand and turned, walking toward
her Honda. She desperately wanted to look back at him, but she was certain he
still watched her. She could feel the almost physical touch of his gaze. When
she reached down to open the car door, she dared a glance in his direction. A
swift current whipped through her when their gazes connected. He nodded as
though affirming they'd meet again and turned.

Lily blew out a slow breath and slipped into her
car, trying to pretend Luke Winchester hadn't shoved her pulse into overdrive.

Click
here
to purchase RELENTLESS (Aspen Series
#1)

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on links to purchase)

ASPEN SERIES

Wounded
(Prequel)

Relentless
(#1)

Lawless
(#2)

Cowboys
and Angels
(#3)

Come
Back To Me
(#4)

Surrender
(#5)

RETRIBUTION SERIES

Branded

Hunted

STAND-ALONE TITLES

Moonlight
and Margaritas

Sweet
Vengeance