Page 1 of Dead & Dating
Chapter 1
Esme
I’m pissed. Not just because Liora, my backstabbing sister, stabbed me in the back.Literally.Well, it was more of a “sleeping powder in my donut which caused me to fall down the stairs and break my neck” kind of stabbing. Like, what a way to go. Bullshit, really.
However, I’m not even mad about that.
I’m mad about the coffee.
That perfect cup of coffee sitting on the counter, mocking me with its cold, separated layers. A week ago, I was buzzing with excitement to try the vanilla pumpkin creamer Milo bought just for me. The fucker isobsessedwith everything pumpkin and just had to grab an entire case from the local grocery store once they started stocking it. I don’t care what goes in my coffee as long as it’s sweet. With his infectious enthusiasm, I was just as excited to try it.
Especially when he promised that it would be my new obsession.
But I never got to that part of my morning.
So, now it’s all spoiled, the creamer probably curdled into some gross, chunky mess. I drift over to the counter, my ghostly form flickering through the dimly lit kitchen, and stare down at the mug. It’s still there, untouched from that morning, like a cruel reminder of everything I’ve lost.
I wave my hand and try to touch it, anyway, praying for even a whiff of that rich bean scent to strangle my senses. My fingers pass right through, not even a whisper of resistance.Fucking hell.
Of course, I couldn’t at least get some enjoyment from being a ghost in my own house. I never even had my first heat. Hell, I didn’t even have a scent before I was rudely killed. And now, I can’t even play with things in the afterlife? I gotcheated.
My shoulders sag as I twist around to look at what’s left behind. The house is mostly clean now, the spot at the base of the stairs where I died mopped spotless. No blood, no trace of my sprawled-out form, just sparkly hardwood.
It feels wrong, though. Like all of it just kind of got swept under the rug. Even my clothes are spotless and I am doomed for eternity to be in a tank top and sleep shorts that barely cover my ass. It’s not like I have to worry about modesty but damn, the wedgie is front and center, a pain in my ass.God, I’m hilarious.
I continue to look around, searching for something to occupy my time. Nothing catches my eye, much of the kitchen boxed up and ready to be moved out. “Liora really didn’t waste any fucking time, did she?” I walk through one of the boxes with Mom’s fine china she told us never to throw out. Itclearlysays trash. If I could kill Liora, I would but she got to it first.Bastard.
My attention shifts as my body suddenly heats up, my stomach flipping over. That’s been happening too, recently, hot one minute, cold the next, like my body can’t decide what it wants. It’s one of many reasons why I keep hoping that I pass over soon. I’m irritable and needy and keep wanting to curl up withsomething soft. Pillows. Blankets. Or, better yet, Vesper’s arms around me, his sweet, dark scent wrapping me up against his chest.
Hell, I’d even take Duske’s grumpy ass and Milo’s quips at this point.Anythingover the silence. Liora will never understand how much she stole from me. I didn’t just lose my life because obviously, I’m still here but I lost my jobs, my friends, the cute little preschool kids I spent my days teaching. I lost my lover, my dignity, my…
A growl tears from my throat as I shake my head, willing myself to stop thinking about that. The funeral is in a few days. Hopefully, when they bury me I can say goodbye to this existence and start my next one, far, far away from Liora.
I curse under my breath and kick at the floor, but my foot just glides through. “Stupid ghost rules,” I mutter as I head for the stairs, hating the way I can’t even control my own body. My foot sinks through the first step, then the second, my body just kind of hovering in the middle of the goddamn third step.
“Seriously? I can’t even get upstairs. Perfect. Just perfect.”
The sound of a handle turning has me freezing, my gaze locked on the front door just a few feet away. The moment the door opens, Duske’s smooth voice glides through the air. “I don’t remember the place feeling like this.”
I dart behind the kitchen counter, my form flickering as I try to hide. Liora used to tell me wild stories about how they were exorcists and could feel the presence of spirits in the area. I laughed it off knowing that it was bullshit.
Because they’re fucking demons.
Well, Duske is the grim reaper.
Ironic, really and the main reason, I’m trying to hide. Because I really don’t want to have to face the possibility that Duske has to eat my soul or whatever he does.
I peek over the edge of the counter, watching as Vesper steps in behind him, followed by Milo. God, I miss them so fucking much, probably more than I should. They don’t even really fit into our biological hierarchy but they’ve figured out how to make it work. I just wish I had more time being alive so I could have made them mine.
My heart sinks into my stomach the moment Liora pops in, her cheery voice echoing through the kitchen. “Welcome boys,” she giggles, throwing her arm out like I didn’t just fucking die at the edge of the stairs a week ago. “Shall we get started? I don’t want to be here any longer than we have to.” She wiggles her eyebrows suggestively, Milo and Vesper trying and failing to hide their disgust. Duske, however, doesn’t hide anything, annoyance flashing through his expression.
My sister places a hand on Milo’s arm and squeezes a little. “Look, we’ve got the rest of our lives ahead of us, okay?” Her smile widens a little before she disappears around the corner into the living room.
That’s when Milo scrunches up his nose, glaring after her. “I don’t evenlikeher. Why would she touch me? Vez, cleanse me please.” He holds his arm up and I watch, holding back my laughter as Vesper leans down and drags his tongue across the spot Liora touched. Milo lets out a heavy sigh, a sound that slowly turns into a moan. “Much better.”
A pang of loneliness hits me in the chest and I crouch a little lower, trying to keep my sorry ass out of sight.
Chapter 2
