Janet Evanovich - Full Bloom

He grinned. "I'm not the jealous type, because I always get the girl in the end."

"You are so full of yourself, Bridges."

He stepped closer and toyed with a lock of hair. Annie met his gaze. "How about it, Annie?" he said softly. "How about you and me? Don't you ever wonder what it would be like?" He traced the lines of her mouth with one finger. "Think about it."

She watched him go. Holy hell, she thought. How could he possibly not know that she hadn't stopped thinking about it since the minute she'd laid eyes on him? It was Destiny's fault. All the woman talked about was sex. Sex, sex, sex. Anyone who thought about sex that much had a serious problem. Of course, Destiny would never admit to it; she blamed it on the house.

Annie looked around the room. With all the naked statues and titillating art filling the rooms, it was impossible not to think of sex. But maybe there was more to it, she thought. What if Destiny was right and there was something about the house itself that caused people to feel more sensual?

Annie walked over to one of the walls and pressed an open palm against it. She waited. She didn't feel any different. She tried the other palm. The wall was surprisingly warm. Why had she not noticed it before? It warmed her hand and slowly moved past her wrist and up her arm. Annie wondered if she was just imagining it, even as the tension seemed to drain from the muscles in her shoulders and on either side of her spine. Her body became loose, and she was filled with a sense of well-being. Her mind floated.

She thought of Wes. The two of them locked together, embracing. Warm and naked in her bed, Wes's hands caressing her, deft fingers seeking. And suddenly his mouth on her, tasting, and her breath becoming rapid. Her reaching out, grasping him tightly as he filled her.

"Oh, my Lord!" she said, and snatched her hand from the wall.

* * * * *

The bearded man sitting across from Destiny read the form she had filled out. Finally, he looked up. Kind eyes peered out from beneath bushy gray brows. "Okay, Miss Doe," he began.

"You may call me Jane, Dr. Smithers."

"How may I help you, Jane?" he asked.

"I know this is going to sound strange," she began.

"Please feel free to speak your mind. You're safe here."

"I have a problem with dead people following me around. Sometimes there are more than just one of them; they just latch on to me and won't let go. It's driving me crazy."

"I'm sorry you've been having such a hard time," he said.

"The problem is convincing them they're dead and pointing them to the light. Like this redneck named Ronnie who got drunk and fell out of the back of a pickup truck while coon hunting," she said. "He died instantly, but he was too dumb to realize it. Followed me everywhere, even came into the shower with me. He was a pervert."

"That must have been awful for you."

"Took me forever to get rid of him. I finally lied and told him there was a strip bar on the other side of the light, and let me tell you, he hauled ass the minute I said it."

Dr. Smithers looked sympathetic and he made notes on his tablet. "Tell me about your childhood, Jane."

Destiny frowned. "My childhood? Listen, Doctor, we don't have time to go into that. I have more immediate problems. There's a new spirit following me, and I haven't had a good night's sleep since she showed up.

"She was a prostitute many years ago. She met her death violently, and that's why she's still hanging around. But I can't help her, because she won't talk. I'm pretty sure she's a mute." Destiny leaned closer. "There are other problems that I can't discuss with you in her presence because she's blocking them."

One hairy brow arched high on Smithers's forehead. "She's in the room with us?"

"Yes. I'm hoping you'll hypnotize her and help her remember these things in her past that are too painful for her to face alone."

Dr. Smithers put down his pen and studied Destiny closely. "Let me make certain I understand what you're asking," he said. "You want me to provide counseling and hypnotherapy for a spirit. So she will go to the light."

"Right. But first she has to help solve a murder. See, a friend of mine has been charged with murdering her husband and burying his body. If I could get this spirit to talk — her name is Lacey, by the way— she might be able to tell us who the real killer is. Oh, and if you could convince her to stop stealing our underwear in the meantime, that would be great," Destiny added.

He took a deep breath. "Okay, back to this friend of yours who has been charged with murder," he began patiently. "Is this person a spirit as well?"

"No, she's real."

"So you're able to differentiate between what's real and what's not?"

Destiny gave him an odd look. "Excuse me?"

He smiled gently. "I believe I can help you, Jane."

* * * * *

Annie was setting the table for dinner when Max and Jamie arrived. "Bad news," Jamie said. "Destiny called as we were leaving the office. She's been locked up in a psychiatric ward."

Annie, Theenie, and Lovelle just stared back at her, looks of astonishment on their faces. Finally, Theenie spoke. "I'm not surprised. I suspected her elevator was one floor short."

"I don't know what that means," Lovelle said.

"It's all my fault," Jamie said. "I knew what she was planning to do, and I didn't stop her."

"I'm equally responsible," Max said. "I should have tried to talk her out of it."

Annie finally found her voice. "What did she do?"

Jamie sighed. "She took the spirit to see a psychologist, hoping he could help her overcome her fears of what happened that traumatized her. I don't know the whole story, because Destiny and I only spoke briefly. She's pretty upset, says she's surrounded by crazy people."

"Jeez Louise," Annie muttered. "They're going to throw away the key. What else can go wrong?"

"Don't ask," Theenie and Lovelle said in unison.

"What should we do?" Annie asked.

"Nunamaker is going to take her case," Max said. "He can't do anything tonight, but he promised to check on it first thing in the morning. I personally want to know how it all came down. You can't just lock someone up without going through the proper channels." He looked at Jamie. "We need to get going."

"Are you sure you can't stay for dinner?" Annie asked.

"We're dining tonight with Max's family," Jamie said. "We wanted to tell you about Destiny because we knew you'd worry when she didn't come home tonight."

Wes came through the back door soon after Max and Jamie left. He glanced about the kitchen. "Uh-oh. How come every time I walk into this house I sense another catastrophe? A new drama?" he added.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Annie said. "Everything is fine."

"Couldn't be better," Theenie said, obviously following Jamie's lead.

Lovelle nodded. "Life is good."

"Not only that," Annie said brightly. "Dinner is ready."

"Isn't Erdle eating with us?" Theenie asked once everyone was seated at the table.

"He's probably embarrassed," Annie told her. "I lowered the boom on him after the stunt he pulled."

"Maybe it wasn't a stunt after all," Wes cut in.

All three women just looked at him.

Wes shrugged. "It's a thought. He could have had his buddy lie for him."

"I don't think Erdle could stay sober enough to get away with murder," Theenie said. She looked at Annie. "We really should get him some help."

Annie nodded. "I worry about him, too. I'll take a plate over after dinner."

"He's probably out cold and won't hear you," Lovelle said. "You'll have to climb through his kitchen window like before. Maybe this time he won't have his underwear soaking in the sink. Maybe he got rid of that mouse and you won't sprain your ankle again running from it."