Page 26 of Just This Once

“What’re y’all talking about over here?” she asked engagingly.

“Just the supernatural,” I answered, recalling other things Alec had told me. “Which means, you andher…” I motionedtoward Faith. “Can see ghosts that are still stuck here inthisworld, right?”

“Right,” Oaklynn answered with a nod. “I draw them to me, and Faith can scare them off.”

“Handy,” I said, then glanced at Happy. “And you just learned you can see people stuck in the—” Shaking my head, I squinted before asking, “What did Alec call it? The in-between?”

Foster laughed. “Yeah. Something like that. When someone’s in a coma or in the process of dying, I can perceive their spirit once it’s outside their body.”

I shook my head, amazed by all the paranormal abilities hanging around the kitchen. I’d never met anyone with special talents before, and suddenly, here were four of them in the same room as me. “I bet that was a freaky discovery to make.”

With another chuckle, Foster nodded. “It was…” He glanced toward Raina and took her hand before finishing with, “Interesting, to say the least.”

“So howhaveyou been doing since you woke up from that coma?” I asked her, remembering how Alec had told me that’s how she’d first met Foster after she’d gotten into a car accident.

Raina turned to send me a small smile. “Much better. Foster’s been the best healing presence there is.” When she turned a grateful and warm gaze his way, I grimaced bitterly, hating how their obvious affections made me feel so jealous.

But it sure as hell would’ve been nice ifI’dhad a healing presence around after my dad had died. My mother had been too busy trying to hate my dad for being a cheater and somehow blaming it all on me to worry aboutmyframe of mind.

When Alec walked into the kitchen a moment later, my chest relaxed, my breathing grew easier, and my shoulders went lighter.

I guess I had gotten my healing presence after all. No one could calm me down like Alec could.

“So what’s up?” Keene demanded, entering with him. “Younger said we had some kind of house vote to make.” As soon as he said that, however, his eyes widened with horror, and he glanced worriedly my way. “Oh fuck. Please don’t say you want Hope to get the extra room.”

“Hope? No,” Damien started, shaking his head in confusion.

But Alec swung to me in surprise. “Wait.Doyou need the extra room here?”

The extra room they were referring to must be the one Hudson had recently vacated when he’d moved in with Faith. He had rented a room at Archer House from Damien, along with Keene, Oaklynn, and Alec, but with him gone that obviously meant a new space was up for grabs.

“Of course not.” I shook my head and held my breath, hoping Alec didn’t try to convince me to stay here. “I already have other lodging arranged elsewhere.”

I’d sold my car back home just to afford it, too—not that I wanted my brother to learn that just yet.

“Oh,” he started, looking a little crestfallen.

“Besides,” Damien continued. “Foster already asked if his cousin Xander could have Ivey’s old room.”

“Yourcousin?” Keene repeated, wrinkling his nose in disgust. “Which one is Xander again? Please don’t say the dude who owns, like, ten pet snakes.”

Eyebrows arching with interest, I wondered if Sneezy was scared of a little slithering. Oh, I was definitely going to have to do something about this newfound knowledge.

“No, no,” Foster was telling him. “That’s Drew, and he’s my cousin on my mom’s side. Xander’s a Union, andshe’smy dad’s younger brother’s daughter. The one I’ve always said we thought was our grandma reincarnated. Remember?”

“Wait, wait.” Keene shook his hands to stop the conversation right there. “Did you say she? She’s a girl? You want us to live with a female?”

“Hey!” Oaklynn threw up her arms in outrage. “What the fuck do you think I am?”

Keene scoffed at her in disinterest. “You don’t count. You’re Archer’s other half. You’re like…mom.”

“Excuseme?” Propping her hands on her hips, she lifted both eyebrows and nailed Keene with a condemning glare. “Just last week you were begging me to flash you my tits.”

He only shrugged. “Okay, so you’re like a MILF mom, but this chick…” Turning back to Foster with a relishing grin, he started to bob his head in slow approval. “This would be like a roommate I could actuallyscorewith.”

“I’m sorry;saythat again,” Foster demanded with lifted eyebrows, in essence warning Keene to retract his statement entirely.

But idiot Sneezy didn’t catch the hint. “She’s your cousin, not a sister,” he argued. “That makes her fair game. So… Is she hot? Single? Down to fuck?”

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