Janet Evanovich - Full Bloom

"It won't be easy climbing in a window with a plate of food in your hand," Theenie said. "I would help you if I wasn't afraid that mouse was still in his house." She shuddered.

Something hit the cabinet door and everyone jumped. Peaches sat there looking at Annie. "You've already eaten," she said. Peaches began batting the door with her paw, never taking her eyes off Annie.

"We should drop that cat through Erdle's kitchen window." Lovelle said. "She'd sober him up right quick."

"That's mean," Annie said, although she grinned at the thought.

The garbage can toppled to its side and dumped trash to the floor. Peaches stuck her head inside searching for food. Annie pretended not to notice.

"I'll clean it up," Wes said, shoving his chair from the table.

"It can wait," Annie said. "Go ahead and finish your dinner."

"She's making a big mess," he said.

"Trust me. It's best to ignore her when she gets into a mood."

The garbage can rocked back and forth. Inside, Peaches kept digging, and before long all the litter was on the floor. The garbage can began to roll. It rolled through the open swinging doors and into the dining room and kept going. Something shattered in one of the rooms. The women didn't look up from their meals.

"Is there ever a peaceful moment in this house?" Wes asked.

Annie looked at him, remembering he once had referred to it as a crazy house. "All the time."

Lovelle nodded. "It's usually real quiet around here."

"Boring, you might say," Theenie added.

Wes went back to eating. "By the way, where's Destiny?"

"Locked up in a mental hospital," Annie replied, concentrating on her food once more.

It was after 10:00 p.m. by the time Annie showered and climbed into bed. Theenie and Lovelle had turned in early, and Wes, who'd selected a Ludlum book from a stack in the sunroom, had gone up shortly afterward. Annie set her alarm clock, turned off the light, and snuggled deep beneath the covers, not because she was cold but because she needed to feel the heaviness of the blankets on her, the sense of security their weightiness evoked.

Moonlight peeked through her window and cast a soft glow in the room. Annie had slept in this room the very first time she remembered visiting her grandmother, and it had become her own when she moved in. She'd felt safe and loved, knowing the woman was just next door. Annie had remained in her small room even after her grandmother had died. She'd closed off the grand master suite with its ornate furnishings and mirrored ceiling, slipping inside from time to time for a nap on the tall rice bed, covering herself with the woman's favorite shawl.

Shortly before Annie was to be married to Charles, she had packed her grandmother's clothes and personal items and moved them to the attic, and eventually the woman's scent had faded, replaced with Charles's Aramis cologne and Annie's simple White Linen perfume. Their lovemaking was squeezed in between Larry King Live and David Letterman. When their marriage began to sour, Charles channel-surfed during the hour-long gap and Annie spent her evenings reading magazines on "How to heat up your sex life," "How to drive your man crazy in bed," and "Satisfying him every time."

She obviously hadn't gotten it right, or so she thought at the time, because one day Charles was there and the next day he was gone. Annie moved back into her old room and read magazines on "How to survive the split," "Life after divorce," and being "Happily single."

Annie jumped when something hit her door, and she heard Peaches mewing on the other side. She thought of putting a pillow over her head to drown out the sound, but she was afraid the cat would wake the others. Annie dragged herself from her bed and opened the door, but the cat started down the hall toward the steps leading to the kitchen. Darn cat, she thought. It would be easier if she just stuffed a feeding tube down her throat.

"Peaches," Annie called out softly as she tiptoed down the hall. "Come here, Peaches." The cat made a sound low in her throat and dashed away.

Annie saw it before she felt it, something light and wispy hovering several yards away, coming toward her slowly. She froze as she caught sight of a woman's face and long swirling hair, barely visible but there nevertheless. Then, a brush of cool air against her cheek, the smell of flowers, and the feeling that something was swirling around her. The air shifted and became icy cold.

"Holy crap!" Annie staggered forward, trying to escape whatever it was, but she fell to one side, hitting her elbow on the wall. She tripped on her own feet, grasped an armchair to break her fall, and stubbed her sore toe. A multitude of four-letter words came to mind, but she was too scared to speak. She had to get back to her room. She turned and hit something solid. The ghost was bigger than she'd thought.

She was screwed.

"Annie?"

"Outta my way, Wes. Can't you see I'm running for my life?" Annie bypassed him and raced to her room, closing the door behind her. She made a mad dive under her covers.

Wes poked his head inside. "Problem?"

Annie mumbled from beneath the covers.

"What's a gust?" he asked.

Annie peered out. She could barely see him in the shaft of light from her bedroom window. "Not gust. Ghost." It was hard to talk with her teeth chattering.

Wes closed the door, walked to the bed, and pulled the covers aside. "Good thing I'm here to protect you." He slid beneath the sheets. "The things a guy has to do." He slipped one arm beneath her head. "Come closer."

Annie snuggled against him.

"You're shivering. What did you see?"

"A woman's face and hair. She just came at me, and everything got cold."

"Did she appear menacing?"

"No, but it still scared the hell out of me." Annie was quiet for a moment. "You know, I think I've seen her before. Maybe when I was a little girl," she added. "Or maybe I just dreamed of her." When Wes didn't say anything, Annie lifted her head and looked at him. "Do you believe me?"

"I think you were just trying to get me in your bed." There was a smile in his voice. "I may start hiring people to scare you so I can sleep here every night."

Annie grinned. "Sorry about the flannel gown," she said. "I wasn't expecting company."

Wes ran his finger across the material. "Feels nice."

"It's been known to send ice water through a man's loins."

"Trust me, my loins are feeling just fine. If they start feeling any better one of us is going to have to leave."

Annie liked the timbre of his voice against her ear. She had to admit snuggling against Wes's warm body was a lot more fun than lying beneath a pile of blankets. "I'm glad you're here," she said after a moment. "I was feeling sort of lonely."

"I would have been here a lot sooner if I hadn't been afraid you'd kick me out."

"It's been a long time since I shared a bed with a man," Annie confessed.

"After one night it'll be old hat."

"You're assuming I'll invite you back."

"I'm assuming you won't let me leave."

She punched him lightly. After a moment she grew serious. "Wes, I'm scared. About being convicted of a crime I didn't commit."

"I know."

"I'm not afraid for myself, but if something happened to me, if a jury actually found me guilty and I had to go to prison, I don't know what would happen to Theenie and Lovelle. Or Erdle, for that matter," she added. She remembered how bad the man had looked when she'd delivered his dinner and a short sermon on his drinking.

"Do you trust me, Annie?" Wes asked.

Oddly enough, she did. "Yes."

"Then take my word for it: I'm going to do everything in my power to keep you out of jail."

"You don't really think Erdle killed Charles, do you?"