Still, Angelo liked to think himself irresistible in a natural sense. To some extent, he wasn’t wrong. My brother was beyond handsome and he could be charming when he chose to be. He just rarely felt the need.

  “Hello?” he said, jolting me out of my own thoughts.

  “Hello what?”

  “I just asked you why you have the web page of a male escort pulled up if ‘it’s not like that’”

  “Good Goddess, you are relentless,” I replied, now even more embarrassed about trying to book an appointment with Tobias. Angelo just frowned at me as if to say he wouldn’t stop harassing me until I answered his question. “It was the only way I could get him to see me again—he’s Tobias Mathison.”

  “Ah, the owner of the house the ghost wants into?”

  “Right,” I answered. Then I started to explain what had happened between Tobias and me the first time we’d met.

  Angelo skirted around the counter as he listened, retrieving the basket of croissants I’d set out before he walked in.

  “You want a croissant?” he asked.

  “Sure.” I continued my story about Tobias and his ominous house as Angelo split our croissants and put them in the toaster oven. He listened intently and retrieved the butter and strawberry jam, returning to take another sip of his coffee while he waited for the croissants to toast.

  “I still don’t see why you’re going through all this trouble to meet with the man,” Angelo said, shrugging. “When he moves, maybe he’ll take his ghost with him.” He paused. “And he is planning on moving?”

  “I don’t know and I don’t know that the house was haunted either,” I answered, shaking my head. “The energy felt… different. Heavier, stronger.”

  “Did you see Rhea there?”

  I shook my head. “No. I’m still not sure what she has to do with any of this… other than the fact that she wants into the house. But, why? Who knows?”

  He nodded as he pulled the croissants from the toaster oven, putting them on a plate for each of us. He buttered both and then followed with the jam, before handing one to me—the smaller one, I noted with amusement. Even though Angelo was becoming more and more tolerable, it seemed, deep down, he was still Angelo.

  “So… you don’t think it’s ghosts in Mathison’s house?”

  “No.”

  “Then what is it? A demon?”

  I cleared my throat. “Maybe?”

  He nodded. “If it’s a demon, I’m not going to let you go it alone.”

  “Angelo,” I started, ready to argue because I wasn’t sure I wanted Angelo helping me with this. In general, he wasn’t very helpful.

  He shook his head as he looked at me. “I promised I’d keep an eye on you.” He paused to lift the croissant to his mouth, and he took a bite. Still chewing, he added, “Besides, it would be a real hassle to take over the realty office if anything happened to you. I hate paperwork.”

  “That was almost sweet,” I replied sarcastically, walking over to open the laptop again. It fired back to life, and then I faced Tobias smiling back at me in a very uncharacteristic way. I took a deep breath and hit the ‘submit’ button to request my date with him before I talked myself out of it.

  Then I sat down to eat my croissant as Angelo finished his in what I believed was three bites.

  “Don’t leave me out of this, sister mine,” he said, already headed back toward his room to finish getting ready for work. He paused at the threshold of his door and turned back to look at me. “As regards this man or demon, or whatever he is… we are now in this together.”

  “So you’re not going to tell me I’m supposed to turn this over to the council?”

  He scrunched his face up and shook his head adamantly. “The council can kiss my demon ass.”

  I couldn’t help the smile that took control of my mouth. Even though I wasn’t sure how genuine it was, I did like it when Angelo acted the part of protective older brother. “I’ll let you know if my appointment with Tobias gets approved. If it does, you can bring a date and tag along. It’ll be like a double-date.”

  “I can’t think of anything I want to do less.”

  I shrugged. “Hey, you said you wanted to be involved. This is me involving you.”

  But Angelo didn’t appear convinced. “I don’t believe the escort will appreciate a ‘double date’, as you called it.”

  He probably had a point there. Tobias seemed skittish by nature, and it was going to require a small miracle for me to get through the date with him, let alone adding my brother and a date. “Maybe I’ll just have to… convince him,” I answered, even though I hated what I was implying.

  Angelo’s smile was radiant. “Ah, not only has she fully fed, but now she’s thinking of using the succubus gifts of persuasion nature intended for her. Never have I been prouder.”

  “Go get dressed for work,” I grumbled.

  “Fine. My boss is a real pain when I’m late, anyway.”

  I smirked and finished up my makeshift breakfast before closing my laptop and putting it in my briefcase. Then I picked up the plate Angelo had left on the counter, carried both his and mine to the sink, rinsed them and then put them in the dishwasher. Yes, it wasn’t right that I cleaned up after my brother, but I knew from experience that if I left his plate on the counter, that’s exactly where it would remain until I eventually gave in and put it into the dishwasher.

  ***

  On the way to the office, I couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that there was something missing in this puzzle. Something important.

  There was a reason that Rhea had come to me. There were others she could have appeared to, and yet, for some reason she’d chosen me specifically. And when she’d seen Angelo, she’d gravitated toward him as well. I was more than sure the reason behind that had something to do with us being demons. What I couldn’t understand was her tie to Tobias or her need to get into his house. Or the murders Tobias had mentioned.

  When I arrived at Hallowed Homes, I greeted my employees, then retired to my office and closed the door before hopping online to research the Mathison house. I had access to the Haven Hollow library’s online database, and I started my search there.

  And… nothing. Which was impossible.

  I didn’t understand how there had been murders in the Hollow, and that news wasn’t public. But the more I searched, the more I realized there wasn’t a word about any murders anywhere.

  When I pulled up the history of the Mathison house, I wasn’t able to locate any information about someone named Rhea as ever having lived there—a search made even more difficult considering I didn’t know her last name. Regardless, all I was able to learn was that the house had fallen into disrepair and was eventually sold for unpaid taxes. The weird part, though, was that there was no record of the property ever being sold to the Mathison family.

  Figuring Henner was probably the best person to ask about that, I texted him as much.

  He immediately responded, telling me that once emergency systems were updated (aka once 9-1-1 was introduced), some of the addresses in Haven Hollow’s more rural sections were changed. The address for the Mathison house would originally have been just a number listed along Route 7. And in order to find the sale history, I needed to know the original address.

  Once I learned about the changed addresses, I was able to dig until I found the original address of the house: ‘99 rural route 7’. Armed with this new information, I was able to determine that the Mathisons had legally purchased the place. But, still, there was no mention of a ‘Rhea’—either according to the old address or the updated one.

  It was obvious from the history of the house that she’d never lived there. The original owners had built the place and died childless. And Tobias’ parents had only one child—him.

  I took a deep breath, trying to understand just what was going on and where Rhea fit into this picture, but I kept coming up with more questions. Suddenly, my phone dinged with an incoming text. Picking it up, I realized it was Roy.

  Are you avoiding me? The text read.

  I immediately responded: No, I’m sorry. I’ve just got a ton going on right now. Can I call you later today and we can talk?

  I’d rather talk in person.

  Okay, I texted back. I’ll text you after work and we can figure out when?

  He responded by sending me the ‘thumbs-up’ emoji and I wondered if he were being passive aggressive or maybe he was just busy? Either way, I put the phone back into my briefcase and made my way into the breakroom, not surprised to find that Angelo wasn’t here yet. Oh, well, some things never changed.

  I walked over to the fridge, retrieved the large can of mocha-flavored coffee and started making a large pot for the employees, who were still filtering in. Then I pulled a pack of cinnamon buns from the freezer and popped them in the oven.

  “Mmm, something smells good,” Bea said as she walked through the door and dropped her glamour to reveal her true fae form. We didn’t have any customers yet, so she was safe.

  “I have something to tell all of you this morning.”

  “Oh? Bad or good?” she asked, sounding concerned.

  “Good. We’ve all been so busy, we’ve missed out on the little morning meetings we used to have.” I gave her a smile. “I miss them.”

  “So do I,” she said, her grin widening as soon as she spotted the cinnamon rolls in the oven.

  As the others filed in, Bea and I set up the meeting table in the conference room with the cinnamon rolls, the coffee and carafes of orange juice for those who weren’t in favor of caffeine. She retrieved a stack of paper plates, cups, utensils, and cream and sugar while I gathered up the employees for our quick morning meeting. They all walked in and took seats around the table, looking pleased with our little surprise. Hmm, maybe I wasn’t the only one who missed our morning meetings.

  Once everyone had assembled, dished themselves up a cinnamon roll and poured themselves a cup of coffee or orange juice, I started.

  “So… I wanted to take a few moments and just address the elephant in the room.”

  I noted the side glances and downcast eyes as I spoke, but I needed to get this out for my own peace of mind and theirs. I watched as Angelo stepped through the double doors and, seeing us all in the conference room, headed our direction. He didn’t bother to take a seat at the table, but instead remained in the doorway, leaning against the frame.

  “I know there may be rumors going around that I’m having a mental breakdown,” I continued, looking around the room, but no gazes met mine. Everyone was obviously uncomfortable with this conversation, but that wasn’t going to stop me. It needed to be had. “I want you all to know I haven’t lost it. Though it might have appeared I was talking to myself the other day, there was actually someone in my office.”

  I noted the unsure looks again, but I continued.

  “I know it sounds crazy, but the truth of the matter is that you just couldn’t see her.”

  “But, if she’s a ghost,” Bea started.

  “I’m not sure she is a ghost,” I interrupted. “Or if she is a ghost, she’s like no ghost we’ve ever encountered before.”

  “Fifi is right,” Angelo piped up from the doorway, his expression threatening anyone to disagree with him. “I saw the ghost, too.”

  That seemed to help my case because a few people nodded while a few others started meeting my gaze again. I smiled my thanks to Angelo and inside, I felt nothing but gratitude towards him. I wasn’t sure what was spurring on this change in him, but it was nice to see. And it was nice to know that maybe, just maybe, I could start counting on him.

  Before I got too mushy and teary-eyed, I continued addressing my employees. “Anyway, this spirit seems to be hellbent on getting into a listing that Glenn has been pursuing.” I took a breath as I looked at the person in question.

  “Which one?” he asked.

  “The Mathison house.”

  “Hmm,” Glenn said, his eyes going wide and his eyebrows reaching for the ceiling, as if to say he had no idea why a ghost would want into that listing.

  “The point is,” Angelo said. “That this ghost exists. But, strangely and, for reasons neither one of us understands, the ability to see her seems to be tied specifically to Fifi and me.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  It hadn’t taken Tobias long to confirm our appointment.

  After I finished my meeting with the staff, I had a request from him in the temporary email I’d set up, asking where I wanted to meet him. I’d given him a fake name, of course, and when I wrote back, I requested a public place, mostly because it would be more difficult for him to slam the door in my face.

  Taking a deep breath, I leaned back into my chair while a dozen different scenarios played through my head—Tobias yelling at me and storming out, Tobias sitting there patiently and allowing me to speak… I wasn’t sure which would be closer to the truth. As I sat there, I found myself nervously shifting up and down, back and forth in my chair. There was an energy flowing through me that hadn’t been there in a long time.

  It’s because you finally fed.

  I thought about the fact that I felt better than I had in a long time. And, I was right—it had everything to do with the sex with Roy. Roy had fed my succubus the way she needed to be fed and, come to think of it, I hadn’t heard her irritating voice in my head since. It was just calm and quiet upstairs, well, other than my own nerves that were eating at me.

  Roy…

  I wasn’t sure how to feel about him now. On the one hand, what had happened between us was incredible, passionate, amazing and I had to admit, I wanted to do it again. And again after that.

  But, on the other hand, I was afraid. Roy was my closest male friend—possibly even my closest friend in Haven Hollow. And knowing how completely terrible I was with relationships—what if I ruined our friendship? What if sex between us destroyed everything?

  And there was also the fact that I was willingly going against council procedures where this Tobias case was concerned.

  Only anxiety met my questions.

  Well, one thing that is good—you haven’t thought about Marty since.

  As soon as the thought crossed my mind, I realized how true it was. I hadn’t thought of Marty since seeing Roy and that was saying something, because I usually thought about Marty constantly.

  ***

  By the time my faux date rolled around, I was incredibly nervous.

  Of course, I knew Tobias was going to recognize me as soon as I walked into the restaurant. At first I’d considered meeting Tobias at the Half-Moon but owing to the fact that my situation with Roy was where it was (and I still hadn’t texted him, but made a note to do so as soon as I could), I figured that wasn’t a good idea. When Tobias had suggested Dominic’s, a little Italian place on the north end of Haven Hollow, I’d readily agreed.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” Angelo asked as I finished getting dressed for the evening ahead.

  “I don’t think I have a choice. I can’t get Tobias to talk to me any other way.”

  “What makes you think he’s going to talk to you this way?”

  I shrugged as I sat in front of my vanity and put on my pearl drop earrings. I was wearing a long-sleeved, red, silk blouse with black fitted jeans and tall black, leather boots. I’d curled the ends of my waist-length blonde hair and was in the process of doing my makeup.

  “I don’t know that he’ll talk to me at all,” I said while I paused to line my lips. Then I applied two layers of red lipstick that matched my blouse and started on my blush. “I’m just hoping I can explain why talking to each other is in both our best interests before he bolts. If I can get him to see reason, then maybe he’ll give me some information or, if I’m really lucky, access to his house again.”

  “Good luck with that,” Angelo snorted. “I think he’s just going to get angry when he realizes you’ve tricked him.”

  “Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Right?”

  He nodded on a sigh. “Right.”

  “I’ll see you there.”

  “Yes, you will. We won’t be far behind you.”

  At the mention of ‘we’, I was reminded of something. “Oh, and Angelo?”

  “Yes?”

  “Don’t try to feed off Bailey. She knows what you are, and she’s wearing a repelling potion she picked up from Poppy.” I took a breath. “And not only that, but she’s my friend and you’re not allowed to hit on my friends.”

  “Grand,” he moaned.

  I’d thought it would be a good idea for Angelo’s date to be in on our plan, and figured there was no one better than Bailey to play the part. Also, I thought she might be able to pick up on the dark energy surrounding Tobias—if she were able to get close enough to him. And it was somewhat ironic that it seemed Angelo had his eyes on her in the first place. Of course, I warned her to be careful around him and she said she was prepared. In some ways, I was almost more worried for Angelo because Bailey could be… intense. Either way, I wasn’t worried about anything unpleasant happening between them. And that was a relief, in and of itself.

  I smiled and finished putting on my face before heading out the door.

  ***

  Twenty minutes later, I pulled up to Dominic’s restaurant and texted Angelo to let him know I’d arrived.

  I checked my makeup in the rear-view mirror one last time, though I wasn’t sure why I was being so finicky about how I looked. It wasn’t as if this were a real date. But, I figured if Tobias stormed out, I could join Angelo and his “date” and just have a nice dinner. And, maybe afterwards I’d go see Roy?

  I still hadn’t texted him, and I was more than sure he’d noticed as well. I wasn’t sure what was going on with me but I was definitely avoiding him. But, now wasn’t the time to be worried about Roy. I promised myself I’d tackle that subject just as soon as I got done tackling this one.