“Are you okay?” I asked.
His eyes rolled back in his head and his body began to undulate from his shoulders down to his hips and back up again.
“Gus!” I shouted. I grabbed his arm again and shook it. “Are you sick? Somebody call 911!”
“I’m calling now,” Douglas said.
“Do it,” Wade demanded. “Now.” He grabbed Gus’s other arm and we tried to hold on to him. But he shook us both off.
“Tell them to hurry!” I shouted.
Gus stopped moving as suddenly as he’d started. After shaking his head back and forth a few times, he bent over and leaned his elbows on his knees, trying to catch his breath. He gave up, slid down the wall, and sat on the floor. “What the hell is going on here?”
We all stared at him for a minute.
“Wow,” Douglas whispered.
“What just happened to you?” I asked, kneeling next to him.
“Here, drink this.” Wade handed him a bottle of water.
He took a long gulp. “I . . . jeez.” He was still breathing heavily. “It felt like my whole body was taken over by . . . something. I know that sounds weird, but it’s the best I can do.”
“Are you in pain?”
He patted his stomach and chest as he mentally checked himself out. “No. I feel pretty damn good, actually. Really damn good.” He pushed himself up off the floor and stood, but he had to lean against the wall as he brushed his hair off his forehead.
Wade stared at me, but I was clueless.
“I don’t believe it,” Wade muttered.
“What?” Gus demanded, glaring at Wade. “What was that? You know something. Tell me.”
I gulped. “Do you believe in ghosts, Gus?”
“Sure, babe,” he said, his tone casual. “Why not?”
“Okay,” I said, nodding slowly.
We all stared at him some more and now he stared back.
“Is that what that was? Huh.” He rubbed his chest some more as it slowly dawned on him. “Oh, yeah, the Rawley ghost. Damn. I never thought I’d see the day.” He turned and gazed around the room, beaming that sexy smile that had won countless ladies’ hearts all through high school. “Hello there, Ms. Rawley.”
The lights abruptly began to flash off and on and the chandelier started to sway again. A strong wind came up from nowhere and swept through the room.
Gus grinned. “Yeah, nice to meet you, too.”
Suddenly one of the breakfront windows cracked. I let out a little shriek and I was pretty sure Douglas jumped at least two feet off the floor.
Gus’s grin just grew wider. “Damn, lady. You are one powerful ghost.”
Everything calmed down at once.
I shook my head, not quite believing what I had seen. But one thing was for sure. “I think she likes you, Gus.”
*
It was almost four o’clock when I left Emily’s. Gus took off at the same time, first calling Emily to let her know that he would meet her at the tea shop instead.
The guys and I moved all the tools and paint and supplies out of the house for safekeeping. We still couldn’t figure out what was going on in there, but we needed to find a way to keep working without distractions—and having Gus there was a definite distraction. Of course, he’d been a distraction ever since first grade.
Wade and I agreed to meet back here first thing tomorrow morning to discuss everything that had happened since we’d first started the job. I wanted Emily to be here, too, to hear about Gus’s encounter and to help figure out if there was any possibility of danger to her or my crew.
I headed for home, intending to finish paying the bills this afternoon. But I decided to stop off at Jane’s to see how her second day as a high-class innkeeper had gone. I found her sitting at the check-in desk, working on her computer.
“Hey, you,” I said. “How’s it going?”
“Wonderful,” she whispered, not wanting to be overheard by any of her guests. “We had the best breakfast. The girls made my recipe for stuffed French toast croissants.”
“The one with mascarpone cheese and blueberries?”
“Yes, only they added raspberries and strawberries and bananas and sweetened the mascarpone cheese with orange liqueur and sprinkled chopped caramelized pecans over the top. And served it with bacon, of course.”
“Oh my God.” I sat down in the guest chair. “Are there any leftovers?”
“Everyone was raving about it, Shannon. We had all the juice and coffee and muffins and the usual spread, of course, and we even had a gluten-free version for one of our guests, and she was delighted. I’m so happy.”
“And I’m so happy for you.” I felt silly whispering, but I understood her need to be discreet. She actually had paying guests walking around the place!
“Excuse me. I’d like to check in.”