“Matt.”

He moved his face farther into the pillow.

“Matt.” The hand against his back was insistent.

“Go away, Cain,” he whispered as he held onto slumber. Matt would rather catch up on sleep, which was hard enough to come by nowadays, than to have to listen to another recount of Cain’s latest conquest.

“Matt, it’s me.”

Why was the voice female?

He opened his eyes. Turned onto his back and looked up to meet the beauty he’d missed all year. “Alana, is that really you?”

Alana nodded once, her black shiny hair spilled forward on either side of her face like a curtain of silk. Her skin was as white as he remembered it, a few freckles on the bridge of her nose. The aura around her body made her bright, every feature enhanced. She wore the same purple dress she’d worn the night a bullet struck her.

“But how can that be?”

“Matt, you have to allow your gift to open up to me. I need to speak to you about something very important,” she said. Alana sat down at the end of the bed, and it dented beneath her.

Ghosts didn’t have weight like this, did they? But what else could she be? She died on October 31, the year before. He’d seen it with his own eyes. Caught her small frame before it hit the ground, held her tight until she took her final breath and her blood had soaked his shirt. He’d refused to let go of her when Cain persisted and even when the ambulance arrived.

They’d all had to pry him off her.

“My gift?” he echoed.

“Don’t you remember what you told me about your mother? She was a medium, Matt. And so are you, but I can’t make contact with you—“

“Then how are you here now?”

“You’re dreaming of me. I found a way to slip into your consciousness. But we can talk while you’re awake, if you’ll let me.” Her voice was soft. The moonlight that poured in through the curtained window made her already radiant skin shine further.

“I don’t know how to.”

“Yes, you do. Just open your heart to me,” Alana whispered. She stood up and headed toward the motel front door on the other side of the room.

“No, wait!” Matt jumped off the bed and made his way toward her. He caught her elbow, and it felt solid beneath his palm. He looked at his hand wrapped around her skin, then back up to her face. He was shocked at how real this felt.

She looked over her shoulder with a smile. A rueful smile that made his heart ache all over again.

“Haven’t you felt me near you during the last few weeks?”

He shook his head.

Alana turned around and touched his cheek. “I’ve been trying to make contact since August.”

“August, that’s when we met….”

She nodded.

“But how…and why?”

“I don’t have time to talk right now, he’s coming back. But Matt, if you let me, I’ll come back to you.”

“Of course.” He took a step forward. Their bodies were flush against each other, and he could feel her warmth against his front. Matt’s body reacted to her closeness. The erection ignited so fast it hurt, but he didn’t care. The intoxication of her fruit‑scented shampoo and body lotion still clung to her. He closed his eyes to everything that kept her memory alive.

He lowered his face to hers and felt her breath against his face. He opened his mouth over hers to enjoy the kiss that she returned. Matt swept his tongue between her lips.

Alana pulled away. “Matt, we don’t have long. Please let me contact you again before All Hallows Eve is done, okay?”

He nodded and opened his eyes.

Close Window

  Copyright © 2007 | Cobblestone Press, LLC™