Free Ghast Me Gently (Wicked Good Witches Book 4) by Starla Silver Page B

“I saw in my dream that he and the boy were going to die. They weren’t going to be fast enough, so after I woke up I raced to the beach. I got there just in time.”
    “So the boy is okay?” asked the sheriff.
    “Fine. Just fine. And I have to say, in part thanks to Riley. Because once I got there, well, I barely got there in time. The boy was saved, but the wave… the current dragged me out. I couldn’t use a spell under water, something I need to learn I guess. He… Riley, he um, saved me from drowning.” That part was actually true.
    Again no one spoke. The group’s eyes wandered to the silent Riley Deane. Melinda let out a long breath, hoping they’d believe her story and let Riley be. She did not know whether she could trust him for certain, but she was confident he did not deserve the welcome he’d gotten.
    “Look,” Riley finally dared speak. “I totally get how awkward this is, for all of you. And I can only imagine what you’re all thinking... the Deane’s are here with some diabolical plan or something. But I swear on my dead parents’ graves it’s not like that. It’s just me and my brother, Lucas. We don’t practice dark magic, at all! Never even dabbled. Neither did our parents. I swear it.”
    William was surprisingly the first to respond.
    “Mr. Deane, I fear I must apologize for my ungodly behavior. It appears that my past prejudices are much more present in my memory than I realized. Regardless of who you are you did not deserve that provocation.”
    “You can say that a few more times,” chastised Melinda, loud enough only the vampire could hear her. William gazed apologetically in her direction; she replied by tossing him a never mind look. It was impossible to stay angry at William. In her heart, she feared she had crushed the vampire all over again. That at least some of his anger was her fault. Or at the least caused by his feelings for her. Feelings he would not admit to having.
    Riley, seeing that everyone seemed to agree, or was at least pretending to agree, replied graciously. “No harm done. I get it.” He couldn’t help but sound a bit miffed as he spoke though. And regardless of his saving Melinda’s life, they would not be allowed to see each other again. Their kiss really had been a final goodbye.
    He’d have to wallow in that bitterness later. All he could do now was try to smooth things over and hope they were not too hard on her. “Look. My family was your enemy,” his emphasis meant to say, we aren’t anymore, “and here I go showing up, not just out of the blue but with someone you care about. I do get that you’d be upset and confused.”
    “Yeah, about that,” started Michael, aiming his words at his sister. “I get the whole you had a dream thing, but how exactly did you end up here? The beach is easily thirty minutes from here on foot.” And the emotions drowning his sister were all saying she was afraid of something. And hiding something. Part of him didn’t care, and was just relieved to see she’d left her room, and the mansion.
    Melinda hadn’t thought ahead enough to figure out how to explain them being at the lighthouse. She bit her lip, trying to come up with an answer. Riley had been through enough already, she didn’t need to reveal his feeling thingy to everyone on top of that. It was his gift to speak of, not hers.
    The sound of an approaching vehicle suddenly caught everyone’s attention.
    Thank God! Melinda repeated silently.
    “Tourists?” asked Emily.
    “They do like to come around as the evening approaches,” said the sheriff. “See if they can catch a glimpse of the ghost girl. I’d better call the deputy to come and block the entrance while we investigate the area. I’ll just explain to this one that it’s closed for the night.”
    An old, rusted pickup truck came barreling around the corner, skidding to a stop. Melinda recognized this new arrival instantly.
    First, by Riley’s reaction: the look on his face cried