Free The Winter Spirit ARE by Indra Vaughn Page B

hand and she stopped talking. “No,” I said. “The mistake is all mine. If people draw conclusions around you, that’s not your fault. I was judgmental and prejudiced and there’s no excuse. If you want to leave early, I won’t hold it against you and your deposit will be reimbur—”
    “Not a chance,” Mr. Houzer interrupted. “We want to stay and celebrate Christmas here. The Lake House is an absolute delight to reside in.” He leaned closer and his eyes were wide and filled with excitement. “Do you know, I actually think this place might be—” he lowered his voice “—haunted.”
    I sucked in my cheeks so I wouldn’t laugh. “You think so?”
    “Oh yes. Such a gorgeous old house, I’d say it is most likely. When we first arrived here, we found ourselves inexplicably locked into the same room a few times, and then there was the lighting that would dim at certain moments…” His apple-round cheeks reddened. “I think you have a ghost, Mr. O’Donnelly.”
    “A romantic ghost,” Mrs. Anderson put in.
    “Well,” I said, glancing at the mirror, where I could swear I’d seen a flash of blue eyes. “I’d say if there was a ghost, he’d certainly be the romantic type.” I sobered a little. “Mrs. Anderson, I still want to apologize for my appalling behavior.”
    “It’s fine, love,” she said, patting my arm. “And call me Annie. This is my husband of thirty years, Saul.”
    I shook Saul’s hand. “Nice to meet you both,” I said, and felt humbled. “I hope you enjoy the rest of your stay, and if there is anything you need, you let me know. Elisa and I are about to start preparations for Christmas dinner so if you have any special requests…”
    “Well, could I make brief use of your kitchen to put together my famous banoffee pie as Christmas dessert?”
    “Of course,” I said. “Just leave your list with Elisa and we’ll get you the ingredients.”
    “Thank you, Mr. O’Donnelly,” she said, looking pleased.
    “Nathaniel, please. And it’s my pleasure,” I mumbled and stepped aside so they could leave. “I got off way too easy there,” I told the mirror in the room, sure Gabriel was listening, but there was no reply. I tried not to feel sad about that, and left to start my daily chores.
     
     

Chapter 6
     
    I didn’t see Gabriel for the rest of the day—which wasn’t unusual in the slightest but for some reason I remained hyperaware of his absence. I was being ridiculous, wasn’t I? So yeah, he was handsome and interesting. He could be my soulmate for all I knew. It didn’t change the fact that he’d been dead for a hundred years.
    That made me stop in my tracks. I lifted the iron off the pillowcase I’d been ironing before I burned it, and stared out into nothing. All I could see was that newspaper article.
    Detroit, Mi, Dec. 26 .
    In two days’ time, Gabriel would be dead exactly one hundred years.
    Did that mean something? Did it have anything to do with why he was becoming more real every time I saw him? And why did he keep trying to set people up together?
    I chewed this over all morning long and came no closer to anything even resembling a logical explanation. Now that I knew what to look for, I could google his past and see what came up, find more information, but the thought of invading his privacy made me feel terrible.
    That afternoon I had to run errands, making sure everything we needed for our little Christmas dinner would be ready. Elisa was cleaning out the dining room we rarely used this time of year, In the slow season everyone could fit around the kitchen table, but for Christmas she wanted to decorate properly and have everyone eat at their own table. The dining room and the lounge used to be one, and were now separated by two sliding walls. Other than the annual New Year’s Eve party, I rarely had any cause to open up the entire thing.
    Apart from the happy couple, we had seven more bookings of people who wanted to eat Christmas dinner at the