She smiled. “Believe me, having the gifts can cause more problems than not.”

  “You don’t have to worry about having them around me.”

  “Thank you.”

  “On another topic, I was curious about something. When I visited your mansion, I hadn’t smelled any cats in the place,” he said.

  “Oh, Mae came by to offer us a kitten.”

  Kolby laughed. “That’s right. Pookers, as we all call her black cat, had kittens a couple of months ago.”

  “I think they’ve been good for Eric since he has been a little unsettled in his room. He keeps them with him.”

  “Oh, that’s good then.” Kolby rode with her back to the ranch, helped her to dismount, and then took her in to see the foal. Her brother was busy cleaning out the stalls with another guy. She was impressed. If she’d told him to clean out stalls, forget that. Maybe he could work with the ranch hands a few days a week. She’d have to discuss it with her brother first and see if he was even interested. But he seemed to like all the ranch hands at least.

  They heard a couple of cars drive up.

  “I guess it’s time for me to start teaching the horseback riding class,” Kolby said.

  “Do they all know how to ride?”

  “Some, but it’s not something we’ve done on a regular basis. So we’re eager to do it.”

  “Okay, good.” She’d worried that her brother would be a total newbie and everyone else would practically be professional riders and he’d feel insecure about it.

  Kolby took charge and started introducing all the teens, including Bobby Mayflower. “Bobby is thirteen, but he was excited to join everyone.”

  Everyone agreed and Rosalie was glad he was included with the others, and they were eager to have him join them.

  Then Kolby talked to the teens about how to handle the horses, how to saddle them, and then they finally went for a ride.

  She could tell that some of the kids knew how to ride, but all the kids were so friendly and glad to meet the new teen in town. Eric looked so happy. No one had even asked to see him in his snow leopard coat, but she suspected the other kids’ parents had told them not to ask him about it the first time they met him.

  She had thought of returning home to get to work on stuff, but she would have to have someone drive her and she thought Eric might still want her here for him. Next time he came, he should be fine on his own. She wasn’t worried about being in the mansion alone. Not too much, anyway.

  Tracey came out on the front porch and waved to her. “You don’t have to stand out there, waiting for your brother to return.”

  “Oh, okay, thanks.”

  “Besides, we have a welcoming gift for you and Eric. I was just getting the basket ready. I had to bake the cookies and fudge.”

  Rosalie went inside and Tracey showed her the lovely fall basket filled with hot cocoa mixes, cookie and fudge brownies, Yuma Town mugs, and a package of small marshmallows.

  “Oh, this is just delightful. Thanks so much.”

  “We are all just delighted you’ve taken over the mansion and it’s not sitting idly. All our law enforcement guys and gals, including me, took turns making sure no one broke in and looted or vandalized anything, so we’re thrilled you’re living there now.” Tracey began making them mugs of hot cocoa.

  “I wondered how it went unscathed for all these years and suspected it was because of your cougar network.”

  “It sure is.”

  “Thanks for everything. Both Eric and I love chocolate.”

  “Hey, our parents told us not to say anything about it,” Bobby said to Eric while they were finishing up their riding lessons with Kolby, “but when you feel like it, we want to see you wearing your snow leopard coat. None of us have seen one that is a shifter before.”

  The other teens looked to see how Eric felt about it. Kolby hoped he wouldn’t be bothered by it. The same thing had happened when they learned Ted’s mate was a white cougar. No one had seen a white cougar before, not to mention one who was a shifter, and they all had wanted to see her in her white cougar coat.

  “Yeah, sure,” Eric said.

  Kolby was proud of him for saying so. “All right. That sounds good to me. We can run together as shifters after our riding lessons.”

  “Can you help teach me to drive a car?” Eric asked Kolby. “I’ve been driving some with my sister.”

  Kolby laughed.

  “I’m turning sixteen in a week.”

  “A birthday party!” several shouted.

  Kolby smiled. “Your sister might have that planned.”

  “You can both teach me too.”

  Now that was something Kolby had never planned to do!

  “We heard you were going to teach classes on painting, Eric,” Sonny said. “I can’t wait. We haven’t had a real painter teach us how to paint.”

  “Yeah. I hope it’s surreal art though because I can’t paint anything that resembles anything,” Avery said.

  “Me either,” her twin brother, Andy, said.

  “We’ll start out really basic and then work from there,” Eric said.

  Kolby knew then that Eric was hooked on the idea. Even riding the horse seemed to be second nature to him. He wasn’t afraid of the horse and had him under control. He was gentle with him and looked like he’d fit right in here if he wanted to board a horse here and take care of it like some of the kids did. Thankfully, two of the kids had horses boarded here and they hadn’t said anything about it, like they needed to learn the ropes too, wanting to set Eric at ease.

  Kolby was really proud of all the kids that had shown up for the lessons and had been eager to befriend the new kid in their midst.

  8

  Back at the ranch house, Tracey handed a mug of hot cocoa to Rosalie.

  “My brother seems to be really happy here and he appears to like the other kids,” Rosalie said as they took seats in the breakfast nook.

  “I’m so glad. I figured he’d enjoy it.”

  They drank some of their hot cocoa topped with whipped cream.

  “Does your brother have a website showcasing his work?” Tracey asked.

  “Uh, yes. He should have some business cards made, but he’s been reluctant to do it. Maybe now he will.” Rosalie gave Tracey Eric’s website: Fantasy World Art.

  Tracey immediately checked out the site on her phone. “Oh, these are gorgeous.”

  Rosalie should just order business cards for Eric, but she knew she needed to let it be his business, not hers.

  “Yes, I definitely need him to work on some artwork for the kids’ rooms,” Tracey said.

  Rosalie knew Eric would be thrilled. Maybe he wouldn’t have any time to work at the ranch, but she knew being with others and working with the horses would be good for him too. “I’m sure he’ll be happy to do it.”

  Then someone knocked on the front door and Tracey went to answer it. “Yes, she’s here. Okay, Eric. I’d sure love to have you do some artwork in my children’s rooms. Can you come and see them before you and your sister leave?”

  “Oh, sure.” Eric cast a smile in Rosalie’s direction.

  Yeah, moving to the mansion had been the right thing to do. This had been the best day ever in a long time.

  They both went with Tracey to see the kids’ bedrooms. A couple of pictures of dragons and dinosaurs were hanging on the walls in the boys’ room, while mermaids and unicorns were featured in the girls’ bedroom.

  Rosalie had no idea what Eric could do with the rooms to impress the kids and the Havertons, but right away, Eric looked at the walls and smiled. “I envision a world of dinosaurs in jungle habitats and dragons flying high above. In the girls’ room, an ocean filled with mermaids and fish, the unicorns on an island poking out of the sea, pink clouds and a blue sky overhead. I can sketch them and then let you and the kids approve them. But I think murals would be the way to go.”

  “That sounds perfect,” Tracey said. “I’ll drive you home.”

  “Kolby said he’d drive us home,” Eric said.

  “Okay, that works,” Tracey said.

  “Thanks again for the gift basket.” Rosalie lifted it off the table.

  “Oh, wow, this is for us?” Eric’s eyes were huge as he looked over the goodies, but then he took it from her, being chivalrous, and carried it to the door.

  “Yes, and we have to share.” Rosalie smiled at Tracey. “Growing boy.”

  Tracey laughed. “I know how that is.”

  Then Rosalie and Eric left the house and met up with Kolby. She was glad that he was taking them home.

  “Are you sure you’re going to be all right on your own until I come over tonight?” Kolby asked as they loaded their bags and the kittens into the Jeep, then joined them.

  “Yeah, we’ll be fine,” Rosalie said. “But I imagine it’s about time for you to break for lunch and when we get to the mansion, we could fix something before you return to the ranch.”

  “I can do that. So what do you think about the riding lessons, Eric?” Kolby asked.

  “I loved them. And I had fun running in my fur coat with the other kids.”

  “They loved your snow leopard coat,” Kolby said.

  “Uh, can I work with the horses too?” Eric asked.

  “Yes. We’d love that. I have to warn you though. I told a few people about your artwork, and you might be getting a few orders,” Kolby said.

  Eric pulled out his phone and scrolled through it. “No emails or text messages or phone calls.”

  “No, because you don’t have a business card and you haven’t shared your emails or phone number with anyone. Tracey asked me for your website address, and I gave that to her,” Rosalie said.

  “Okay, last night before I went to sleep, I ordered the business cards online. They should be in tomorrow.”

  She sighed. “Good. Finally.”

  Kolby cast her a smile.

  “So who else is interested in my artwork?” Eric asked Kolby, sounding eager to get started on a whole lot of paintings.

  “Dottie Barrington. She’s in charge of setting up the library. It’s opening in a couple of weeks.”

  “Oh, the library? That would be cool. I guess I need to get with her and learn what she is interested in.”

  “They have a kids’ section with books for that age and another for teens. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’d want you to do a mural for the walls in each of those areas. You’ll have to talk with Dottie about it. She’s in charge of all that stuff and has a whole decorating committee.”

  “Do you have her phone number?” Eric asked.

  Rosalie was proud of him for checking with her right away and not putting it off. She was seeing a whole new side of her brother.

  Though she supposed if the library was opening that soon, he’d have to get the painting done at once. Rosalie couldn’t imagine doing that on a tight schedule, though she couldn’t paint for the life of her, so she knew she wouldn’t be able to manage something like that. He could see a scene painted on a wall before he even touched it with a dot of paint, like she could see a scene in her mind when she “painted” her stories.

  Kolby parked his Jeep at the mansion where Stryker’s deputy sheriff’s car was still sitting. Then they got out and Kolby pulled out his phone and gave Dottie’s phone number to Eric.

  “Hi, this is Eric Squire, the artist,” Eric said, grabbing the cat carrier while Kolby got the cat litter box and a bag.

  Carrying her bag, Rosalie smiled as she unlocked the door to the mansion.

  “Hey,” Stryker called out to them. “I was just housesitting until you came home. Chase took off on a call. Hey, Kolby.”

  “I’m staying with them tonight,” Kolby said. “We’re having lunch, and then I’m returning to the ranch.”

  “Will the two of you be all right here alone until Kolby returns to the mansion tonight?” Stryker asked.

  “Yes. We’ll call you or Kolby, since he’s close by if we run into any trouble.” Rosalie saw Eric talking on the phone and heading for his art studio. “Did you see any ghosts?” she asked Stryker, her voice low, trying to avoid Eric hearing her.

  Stryker looked at Kolby.

  “Yeah, I told her. She was worried the place might be haunted.”

  Rosalie created a ball of light in her hands. “It’s okay. I have an unusual ability too.”

  Stryker stared at the light in her hands, his eyes wide. “Hell, I can’t do anything like that.”

  She smiled. This was the first time she felt special for her ability and not cursed. She felt she could share it with others, just like she wanted them to know they could share their abilities with her, and she was perfectly fine with it.

  Eric came out of his art studio, holding onto both kittens. “Hey, I know we were going to just have my birthday party here and eat some ice cream and cake, but that was before I had any friends.”

  “Oh, absolutely. We could reserve some tables at Mrs. Fitz’s shop, or we could—” Rosalie said.

  Eric shook his head. “Everyone wants to see this place before the Halloween party. And you know, we gotta to have your birthday party during that one.”

  “Uh, just afterward,” Rosalie said, not wanting anyone to feel they had to bring a gift for her. She caught Kolby smiling and nodding at Eric.

  She figured Kolby and Eric would do something on the sly anyway.

  Rosalie looked at the furniture still covered in plastic.

  “We’ll get it cleaned up,” Eric assured her. “We can order a cake and make this work here. It’s in just five days so we have to really move quickly. Come on, sis. We can do it.”

  Stryker said, “Oh, we changed out all your locks in case anyone has keys to the old locks. Here are the keys. I’ve got to go into work.”

  “Thanks so much,” Rosalie said.

  Then Stryker left, and Kolby asked if he needed to help with making lunch.

  “I was just going to make some grilled cheese sandwiches,” she said.

  “That sounds good,” Kolby said.

  “She’s got this,” Eric said.

  “Come on, let’s go uncover all the furniture,” Eric said to Kolby, all enthusiastic. He set the kittens on the floor to allow them to explore. “At least in the living room and den. Rosalie already cleaned the smaller dining room so we can have the party in there. But I was thinking at my birthday party, we could explore the house first, tell spooky stories, then have a bonfire, roast hotdogs, marshmallows, make s’mores, and play music. Then we could have cake and ice cream in the dining room. Uh, I sent Dottie the link to my website, and she wanted me to start working on a couple of murals for the library right away.” He lowered his voice. “I asked her if she could order Rosalie’s books and she said you had already mentioned it. She said she has them ordered.”

  “That’s great on both counts. When are you going to do the murals?” Kolby was glad Rosalie and Eric were here now with the cougar town and that they could help celebrate their birthdays. They would love all the birthdays they could attend.

  “Dottie gave me a couple of ideas and I’m going to sketch them this afternoon after I help clean some more. I’ll need a ride over there to see the new library and give Dottie the sketches. I’ll meet with her tomorrow early.”

  “If you need a ride, just let me know, if Rosalie’s busy. We have several drivers at the ranch.” Kolby pulled a plastic cover off one of the sofas and folded it on the floor, the kittens quickly pouncing on it.

  “Okay, thanks.” Eric was pulling the covers off a couple of chairs, then saw what Kolby was doing with them and folded his and added it to Kolby’s stack of plastic covers. “Hey, my sister says that girls like it when a guy cooks. Is that true?”

  Kolby folded another plastic cover on the growing pile. “They sure do. I’m working with the new ranch hands to teach them how to cook. That makes them self-sufficient and ladies like when the guys can make meals for them too. I can show you some of the meals I like to fix sometime.”

  “Uh, yeah, sure.”

  Then they continued to uncover all the furniture. The wood furniture—sideboards, end tables, coffee tables were beautiful oak. They just needed some polishing. The sofas could use some cleaning, reupholstering, or replacing. The wood floors could use some polishing also, and the Turkish rugs needed to be professionally cleaned.

  “We’ll have you come out to the ranch around your commissioned art jobs and your homeschooling,” Kolby said.

  “I’d like to earn some money to buy a horse. I mean, I’ve got money from the inheritance, but you know, Rosalie says I need to save it for my art school fund. If she needs money for the mansion, I want her to have it also.”

  “When you work at the ranch, you’ll be paid,” Kolby assured him.

  “Oh, great. I’m getting paid for my artwork too.”

  “That’s good. What do you think?” Rosalie asked as she set the plates of grilled cheese sandwiches on the table. Then she returned to the kitchen and brought out a dish with pickles and green olives for whoever wanted them. She gave them glasses of water also, then peeked into the living room. “Oh, my, that’s beautiful. It doesn’t look half as ghostly now.”

  “Yeah, I feel better about staying the night here now,” Eric said, both he and Kolby washing up, then joining her in the dining room. “I kept feeling like something could be hiding under the covers.”

  Rosalie laughed. “I did too. I swore sometimes one would move and I’d turn and really look and realize nothing had happened.”

  “That’s creepy,” Kolby said, intent on helping them to get this place all fixed up, though he suspected the teens would have liked its ghostly appearance for the party.

  They sat down to eat their sandwiches and she ended up making seconds for everyone.

  “Okay, we’ll need a stack of wood for the bonfire for your birthday party,” Kolby said.

  “There’s a bunch of wood out back of the mansion,” Eric said. “I’ll text everyone that I want to come.”

  Kolby hoped he would include Bobby too since he met him at the horseback riding lessons. Bobby really looked up to Eric already.