Ghostly Deceits Part 7

"You can run haunted events," Harper offered, squirming in her seat. "You have a cemetery on the property and you're close to the woods. The house is isolated and you can do creepy murders in the fall when people are taking color tours.

"There's not a lot you can do in the winter because of the weather and how hard it is to get to the island, but I bet you could try booking the hotel out for entire weekends for one event," she continued. "You could do Viking themed dinners, or hunting is big in this area so you could do those strange meat dinners I've read about."

"How do you know about all of this?" Jared asked, surprised and impressed.

"And how did you just whip it out like that?" Josh asked. "Seriously, those are great ideas. What else have you got?"

"Well, I don't know about your father's political leanings, but Zander always complains that there aren't enough gay-centric events in this area," Harper said. "What about a special weekend with spa people? Zander absolutely loves a good ma.s.sage, steam, and facial."

Jared snorted. "That's also a great idea. I'm not sure Mr. Stokes would appreciate forty Zanders running around, though."

"I'm in charge," Josh said. "I agree with Jared. That's another fabulous idea."

"You could also do beach party themes ... ooh, you could do a Jaws theme in the summer because you're on the water," Harper said, enjoying herself immensely.

"I think you've created a monster," Jared said, leaning back in his chair. "I think you missed your calling, Heart. You should've been a party planner."

"You definitely picked a good one," Josh said. "If I wasn't jealous before I would be now."

"I picked the best one," Jared said, smiling fondly at Harper. "She's mine, though. You missed out and now you have to live with it."

"I hear you have weird nipples," Josh said. "Maybe if I show her mine she'll trade up."

Jared's smile tipped upside down. "I'm seriously going to kill Zander."

EIGHT.

"We're never going to want to leave this place," Harper said an hour later, pushing her clean plate away and leaning back in her chair. "I cannot remember the last time I ate this well two meals in a row."

"I cooked dinner and breakfast for you this week," Jared pointed out.

"And they were lovely," Harper said. "You didn't cook prime rib and homemade omelets, though. I even got to pick out as many things as I wanted for the omelet. I think this place might be Heaven."

Jared chuckled as he wiped the corners of his mouth and shifted his attention to Josh. "I can't believe you're not fat with all this food available at every meal."

"It gets old after a while," Josh said. "Believe it or not, there are days when I'm perfectly happy with my bowl of cereal. Of course, I've upgraded from Fruity Pebbles to Raisin Bran because I'm a grownup, but some habits die hard."

"I guess so," Jared said. "How long do we have until the body drops?"

"Why? Are you trying to decide if you have enough time to sneak upstairs for another shower?" Josh teased.

"Oh, man." Harper covered her eyes with her hand. "I'm never going to live this down."

"You had to embarra.s.s me, didn't you?" Jared asked, making a face. "My girl gave you thirty ideas for theme weekends and you paid her back with snark. It's pitiful."

"I'm sorry," Josh said, holding his hands up in a placating manner. "That was uncalled for. I can't seem to help myself."

"Try," Jared said. "Harper, stop hiding your face. No one knows but the three of us and Josh is going to stop bringing it up, aren't you?"

"Of course," Josh said, although his eyes were mischievous. "I would never want to embarra.s.s Jared."

"You're embarra.s.sing me," Harper pointed out. "Jared wants to thump his chest and crow, but he's holding back because he doesn't want to upset me. I'm not an idiot."

"You're definitely not an idiot," Josh said, amused despite Harper's tone. "I want one of you. I really do. You're so ... cute." He reached out to pinch Harper's cheek, but Jared slapped his hand away.

"Don't even think about it," Jared chided. "She's mine. She's going to stay mine. She would never fall for the likes of you."

"Yes, but I own the house with the tub and shower she likes so much," Josh reminded Jared.

"Harper can't be bought," Jared said. "Right, Heart?"

"I don't know," Harper said primly. "If he has a box of those chocolates they left on our pillows last night, I might be able to be bought. I know I can buy Zander for a month straight if I take some of those home."

"Consider it done," Josh said, smirking at Jared's hangdog expression. "After all the ideas you've given me today, I think a box of chocolates is the least I can do."

"I'll still beat you if you don't stop hitting on her," Jared threatened.

"Sometimes you just have to put up with a beating if something is worth the pain," Josh teased, pushing himself up from his chair. "You guys have time for another mug of coffee ... or more food if you haven't had enough. The murder mystery will start in about forty minutes, and I have to check on a few things beforehand."

"We'll see you later," Jared said. "Good luck."

"Thanks," Josh replied. "I think I'm going to need it."

"LOOK AT THIS," Harper said, her voice barely a whisper as she walked into the Stokes Hotel library twenty minutes later. The body was supposed to be discovered in the distinguished room relatively soon and Harper wanted to see it before everyone descended and ruined the ambiance. "I've never seen this many books in my life."

"I think this must be what the inside of your head looks like," Jared said, his eyes wide as he took in the two-story room. Every wall was covered with bookshelves and every shelf was packed to the brim with antique books. The shelves had wrought iron ladders attached and they slid the length of the shelves. "This really is beautiful."

"Now this is a room I would like," Harper said, giggling when her voice echoed. "Of course, you could fit our entire house in this place and still have room for Zander's ego."

"What do you think all of these books are?" Jared asked, pulling a leather tome from the shelf and glancing inside. "I think this is Latin."

Harper glanced over his shoulder and nodded. "I think it's a Latin textbook. I can't be sure, though. The only Latin book I ever saw was in a poetry cla.s.s I took in college."

"I can't picture you in a poetry cla.s.s," Jared said, slapping the book shut and returning it to the shelf. "You seem like more of a horror girl, if you ask me. King ... Koontz ... those types of things."

"I do love a scary novel," Harper admitted. "I took poetry because Zander was insistent that he was going to learn how to write it to attract men. We read and wrote it for the cla.s.s, and I barely pa.s.sed."

Jared snickered. "Please tell me you have these poems hidden away at your house somewhere."

Harper averted her eyes. "Nope. I lost them years ago."

Jared didn't believe that for a second. "Zander will find them for me," he said. "I'll just bet he will do a dramatic reading for me, too."

"Ugh. Don't you dare," Harper said. "My poetry was terrible."

"How was Zander's?"

"He got stuck on the roses are red, violets are blue, look in my pants and you'll find something to surprise you' vein of poetry," Harper answered.

Jared's laugh was loud enough to fill the entire room just when the butler Trask entered.

"Do you need something?" Trask asked, his gaze busy as he looked Harper and Jared up and down. Apparently he wasn't impressed. "The mystery won't start for fifteen minutes."

"We're here for the ambiance," Harper replied, wrinkling her nose. "It's delightful."

"I see," Trask said. "I believe you're Josh's friend from college, right? Mr. Monroe?"

"I am," Jared confirmed, narrowing his eyes as he tried to get a handle on Trask's att.i.tude. "I understand you've been working for the Stokes family for quite some time."

"Since Josh was five," Trask answered. "This house has been my home for the better part of my life."

"It's a hotel now," Harper pointed out. "Do you still live here?"

"I do," Trask said, walking to the bookshelf and pushing in the book Jared handled so it lined up with the other items on the shelf. "Hopefully this hotel thing will be a temporary measure."

"Don't you like the house being turned into a hotel?" Jared asked.

"Of course not," Trask sniffed. "It's undignified. This is a grand home. It's a showplace. It is not a spot for wayward travelers and ... derelicts ... to hang their hats for a night. The house was meant to house the finest family in the area. It certainly wasn't meant to be a place where people pretend to murder others for sport."

Harper pursed her lips to keep from laughing, Trask's outrage amusing her. Jared was merely puzzled.

"If you hate it so much, why not find another job?" Jared asked. "I have a feeling the hotel is going to be sticking around for some time. Josh made it sound as if this is going to be a permanent business."

"Nothing is permanent, Mr. Monroe," Trask said. "This sad chapter in a great house's history will not last. You can be sure of that."

"You're a real charmer, aren't you?" Jared wasn't amused in the least with Trask's att.i.tude.

"I am a professional," Trask said. "I'm sure you don't understand what that means."

"You'd be surprised what I understand," Jared said. "What you should understand is that Josh is doing the best that he can to save this place. It's not some personal slap at you. It's business, and I think Josh can turn this place into a real moneymaker if he's given the tools to do it."

"Of course you would think that," Trask said. "You're a police officer, correct?"

"Yeah. So?"

"While I believe you have an important job to do, you cannot possibly understand the history of this house," Trask said. "It's out of your area of expertise. You should excel at the mystery game, though. I would think you'd have a leg up."

"Wow," Jared muttered, turning his attention to Harper. "Do you want to hang out with Mr. Friendly or go somewhere else until the fun begins?"

"I'm actually curious why you would go around telling people all of this when you're supposed to be working for the Stokes family," Harper said, her eyes dark as they fixed on Trask. "They're trying to build this into a business and they need strong word of mouth to do that. It seems to me that you're working against Josh's efforts. Why would he keep you here if that's the case?"

"Josh was always a good boy and he's turned into a charming man," Trask replied. "That doesn't mean he's lord of the manor."

"I think he is lord of the manor," Harper countered, crossing her arms over her chest. She clearly didn't like Trask any more than Jared did. "My understanding is that he's in charge of all of this. Doesn't that make him your boss?"

"You run haunted cemetery tours, right?" Trask asked, his tone derisive. "Do you really think you have the knowledge base to be involved in this conversation?"

"Hey!" Jared barked, taking a step forward. "What's your problem?"

"I'm sure I don't have a problem," Trask replied, flicking a piece of imaginary lint from his shoulder. "I think you must be confused."

"Is something going on here?"

Jared turned his attention to the doorway where Linden Stokes, Josh's father, hovered. "Nothing is going on," Jared said. "How are you, Mr. Stokes? I didn't really get a chance to talk to you last night. Thank you so much for inviting us."

"I was happy to see you, too," Linden said, his smile welcoming as his eyes darted worriedly in Trask's direction. "It's been a long time. You're certainly not the rabble rouser you were back then."

"I hope not," Jared said, smirking. "Josh isn't either."

"No, he's grown into a fine man," Linden said. "I understand you have, too. You work at the Whisper Cove Police Department, right?"

Jared nodded.

"How did you end up there?"

"I really wanted to work for a bigger department but there weren't a lot of openings," Jared explained. "I thought I could start at Whisper Cove and work my way to another department in a few years."

"That sounds smart," Linden said. "Whisper Cove is a beautiful area."

"It is," Jared agreed. "Now that I'm there and I've seen all that the town has to offer, I'm not sure I want to move on to a bigger job. I haven't made any decisions yet, but I think the smaller job might be the perfect job now that I'm in it."

"I think your decision hinges on Ms. Harlow more than the job," Linden said, his eyes twinkling as he glanced at Harper. "I can't say that I wouldn't be swayed by her either, though. She is a vision."

Jared couldn't be sure, but he was almost positive he heard Trask snort.

"I wouldn't say I'm a vision," Harper said, moving closer. "I do love Whisper Cove, though."

"Harper Harlow," Linden said, his voice taking off a faraway quality as he racked his brain. "You aren't related to Phil Harlow, are you?"

Harper sighed. "It depends," she answered. "What did he do?"

Linden chuckled. "He didn't do anything, my dear," he said. "We went to summer camp together several years in a row. I always found him delightful. He's your father, correct?"

Harper nodded. "He is my dad."

"That would make Earl Harlow your grandfather," Linden said. "I knew him through business dealings he had with my father. They worked together on a development near the sh.o.r.eline a good fifty years ago. He was a wonderful man."

"He was," Harper said, an odd lump lodging in her throat. Her grandfather died more than twenty years before and she still missed him. Ironically, it was her grandfather's death that revealed she could see and talk to ghosts. He visited her after pa.s.sing away and before moving on. Her parents didn't believe her at the time when she said her grandfather was there, but they did now even though they weren't remotely interested in her job. "I miss him a lot."

"I'm sure you do," Linden said, his expression thoughtful. "Did your grandfather ever take you golfing with him?"

Harper nodded. "He did," she confirmed. "He would let me drive the cart even though I could barely reach the pedals."