Page 16 of Road Trip With the Ghost Hunter

“Not what I hoped.” I scooped another forkful and offered it to her.

She had no qualms taking it, which gave me a chuckle. She smiled around her bite. “What was the dream?” I asked.

Sighing, she leaned her head on my shoulder. “She was teaching me to make her hot and sour soup?” Lifting her head to look at me, she asked, “Ever had it?” I shook my head. “Are you good with spice?”

“Didn’t grow up on a ton of spicy food. Grew a better tolerance when I got older, but I doubt I could match whatever level you might be used to.”

Smiling, she leaned her head back on my shoulder. Her long hair draped over it. A faint floral scent filled me on my next inhale.

“It’s so good. We were in our kitchen. Kind of. It was our kitchen, but different somehow. Dreams never get it right. She was,” she stopped to laugh. “She was chopping the largest mushroom in the world. Normally, we use wood ear and dried shiitake mushrooms, so no, they shouldn’t have been huge. I mean, like, bigger than our heads, huge.”

I chuckled. “What else?”

She sighed and stayed quiet for a minute. “I miss her,” she whispered.

I looked down at the top of her head. Her nose scrunched. I moved my arm to wrap it around her. Her head came up to faceme, and even in the darkness, I saw her eyes water. “I know,” I said, my voice scratchy. Because I did. I knew exactly what she was feeling.

Her breath hiccupped before she broke. I pulled her in closer. Li wrapped her arm around my chest and let herself cry. There was a safety in letting go in a dimly lit room while the world was asleep. Holding tightly as Li released, I let a few of my own tears I’d been holding back fall. Remembering my uncle’s broken body in that hospital bed. His head was swollen from the trauma after the fall. The squeeze of his hand in mind before he took his last breath.

My chest stuttered as Li whimpered and held me tighter. We both released pain, still raw, and every moment we walked around pretending we were not wounded and bleeding felt like salt being rubbed in, waiting to be confronted later.

Two lost souls on a road trip.

Where will we end up?

Chapter Nine

Li

Warmth.

I nuzzled my face deeper into the delicious masculine scent I seemed to be enveloped in. Fine hairs tickled my nose. Then, multiple things registered. The hand tightly wrapped around my back practically cupped my side boob. As those fingers curled in, my breath hitched from the shivers that traveled down my side. My leg, which seemed to be hooked around another larger, stronger one, pressed closer involuntarily until my thigh bumped something.

Something warm, thick like a log, and faintly pulsing. Oh my God.

I was terrified to open my eyes.

Last night flashed in succession. Crying all over Lucas. Feeling the warm, wet drops fall against my shoulder and arm. He was crying. We held each other for, I couldn’t tell you how long, and I’m pretty sure we fell asleep that way.

Now, I’m still in this man’s arms and we’re like, really freaking close. We’re practically fused together. And my core is tightening, heat is spreading in my entire lower half, and what the hell is wrong with me that I want to lick the bare chest I’m lying on?

When did he take his shirt off?

The sexiest, most inconvenient sleepy groan came from the Viking beast under me.

Hello, lady bits. Calm the hell down.

His nose brushed the top of my head as he pulled me deeper into his body and, oh, my word, that felt so damn good. Maybe I’m momentarily insane, you know. I was struck with grief last night. This reaction is just heightened emotions playing with my libido. My libido which had been dormant for over a year, decided now was the time to wake up?

It was like my body was ignoring my mental freak out because my arm wrapped around his torso and held on tightly.Traitor.

Lucas’s other hand found the thigh curled up against his—well, very awake, you know—and slowly caressed up my bare skin. Those softly calloused fingers fired every nerve ending in my lower half. I couldn’t help my back from arching, my lips brushing up against his jaw, then his neck. My breath panted, and his body really seemed to be on board with that. His hold on my upper thigh, under my PJ t-shirt dress, gripped on, and that’s it. My vocal cords betrayed me. I whimpered.

Lucas was breathing heavily. Somehow, I knew he was awake. Like, before this moment, I think he was only half awake and not fully aware. Oh, but he was fully aware now. I could feel it. We both turned into immovable statues. Both panting.

Who the hell was going to break first?

A sharp knock on the door caused both of us to jerk hard.

---