Page 22 of Be Our Ghost
The guy was such a try-hard. Not to mention, Knox had already switched up his specials last week. Right now, the most popular drink on the menu was his bourbon-cranberry cocktail, followed by his take on a smoky apple cider margarita.
When his phone buzzed, he grabbed it, hoping Miles wasn’t running late. Instead, Logan’s name appeared on the caller ID.
“Hey, man, what’s up?” Knox said.
“Thanks for sending all that intel on the Duchess. When I talked to a few other locals, no one knew any of that shit about your hotel.”
“I’d never heard of it, either. Our local ghost whisperer is the one who uncovered the murders. But the other research? That was all Charlie. She’s been incredible.” When Knox had gotten her email, with a full report attached, he’d read through it twice, blown away at everything she’d discovered.
“Incredible, eh? Tell me more about thisCharlie.”
“She’s just a coworker. That’s all.”
“Nope. You sounded excited, and that never happens.”
Ugh. Knox’s voice had given too much away. He infused his reply with an extra level of surliness. “I don’t have time for this. Not with happy hour starting soon.”
Logan laughed so loudly it made him wince. “Got it. But I’m not letting you off the hook.”
“We can talk about Charlie later. Do you have any updates about the show? My boss has been riding my ass.”
“Not gonna lie, he seems like an intense dude. But yeah, I called to let you know your hotel is in. We’re going with a two-fer—filming at the Pendray Innandthe Duchess. Two nights at each place. One for interviews and setup, and the other for overnight observation.”
Relief flooded through Knox’s veins. Even if he’d initially loathed the idea of being involved with the show, it had brought him closer to Charlie. She’d put in so much work he was glad her efforts would be rewarded. “Do you know the exact dates yet?”
“I’m still firming things up, but I’ll send you the filming schedule once I have it. Let Charlie know we’ll want to interview her, as well as that friend of yours who works for the archives. The one with the sixth sense. Can you also ask her if she’d be willing to join us during the lockdown?”
“You bet. I’m sure Celia would be into it.” For once, Knox didn’t try to hide his enthusiasm. “This is great. I hope you get some decent footage.”
By the time he hung up, he could barely keep the grin off his face. Now that he’d done exactly what Preston wanted, his boss might be less inclined to hold Knox’s past over his head. And Charlie would be delighted her research had helped seal the deal.
Charlie.
Though he’d barely reached out to her over the past few days, she’d been on his mind constantly. On Thursday night, when they’d taken Celia and Glen up to the storage room, she’d mentioned having a busy week. Even so, she’d seemed more distant than usual. After preparing her meticulous report, she’d emailed it to him, rather than sharing it in person. Which made him suspect he’d done something to upset her.
He tried to pinpoint the moment when things had gone off the rails. It all came back to the storage room. He wished he’d taken the initiative and kissed her. Or explained why he’d built up such an aversion to romance. Even if her outburst had been unexpected, he hadn’t handled it well. And after the incident? He’d retreated inside his shell again.
Somehow, he had to make things right. He could start by sending her an update aboutCanada’s Most Haunted. While he was at it, he should thank her profusely for all her help. Before he could figure out what to say, a couple came up to the bar and ordered glasses of the Coolshanagh Reserve Chardonnay—a local wine from the Okanagan Valley. They took their drinks over to a corner of the lounge and settled into the leather club chairs.
He brought out his phone again, intent on texting Charlie before happy hour got underway. But he stopped when she marched into the Gilded Lily and approached the bar with a determined scowl. In the three years he’d known her, she’d never greeted him that way.
“Hey, Charlie. You okay?”
“No. I need to talk to you. Not by choice, either. The Damsels made me do it.”
Her words dug into him, making him fully aware of how closed off he’d been. “You’re always welcome to stop by and chat. You know that, right?”
She plowed on, pointedly ignoring his attempt to bridge the distance between them. “They want you to host a costume contest at the Gilded Lily on October twenty-third. And they need you to be all in.”
Though she was trying to come across as assertive, the slight wobble in her voice gave her away. He’d done something to hurt her feelings, and it was time for him to deal with it head-on. “Are you upset with me? I feel like I screwed up, but I’m not sure how to make it better.”
“It’s not you,” she snapped. “I’ve been working myself to the bone this week. All this research, plus a hotel filled with demanding guests.”
“You sure that’s all?” It had to be more than that.
“I…I don’t know.” Her voice broke. “This sounds so stupid, but I haven’t stopped by the Lily in three days, and it feels like it didn’t matter. You didn’t even miss me.”
Her honesty shook him to the core. “I did miss you. But…”
