Page 38 of Paradise West
Charli snorted and nearly missed a step. “I’m not retired. I’m too young to retire. What the hell? I’m not even thirty five yet!”
Annette smirked and grunted at her, then deftly changed topics by pointing at her sister who followed along next to them. “Amy was hoping to see the Southernmost Point. Can we take her down there?”
Charli gave them a nod. “Of course. My house is just a few blocks from it. But let’s wait for the crowd to die down before we walk down there. Jack says it always gets mobbed after the cruise ship tourists disembark.”
“Jack says, huh?” Annette’s lips twisted to the side. “You do realize that we’re tourists, right?”
Charli chuckled. “Well, yeah. But you have the benefit of having a local as your guide. Most locals turn tail and run at the first sight of a cruise ship.”
Annette’s brows shot up. “So now you’re a local, huh?”
Charli shrugged. “Well, for a little over a week I have been. I do own a house here, you know, and I’vebeen inducted into the Royal Conch Society. Plus, I’m co-owner of a rundown, haunted bed and breakfast that is currently under renovation,” she added.
Amy sucked in a breath and leaned forward, her eyes lit up and her body practically vibrating with enthusiasm. “It’s haunted? Really?!” Her voice squeaked on the last word.
“Supposedly,” Charli answered. “I haven’t seen anything yet to convince me that the rumors are true. Of course, we haven’t gone inside the house yet because we’re still working on clearing out the overgrowth and renovating the gardens. But I’ve been assured by several reliable sources that there is a ghost, and they have reassured me that Amelia is peaceful.”
“Amelia?” Annette and Amy parroted simultaneously.
Charli hummed absently. “Allegedly, she’s the ghost and incidentally a however-many-times-great aunt of Jack’s. If the legend is true, she killed herself in that house around 1871. Apparently, it was heartbreak from losing her lover in a shipwreck.”
“Oh my god! This is so exciting.” Amy squealed as she clapped her hands. “I can’t wait to see it.” She glanced around them. “How far is your house?”
Charli pointed toward the south. “Down this street about seven blocks and then we make a right and aleft and we’re there. It’s just a block away from the lighthouse and the Hemingway House.”
“Ohhhh!” Amy exclaimed, bouncing up and down as they walked. “I so want to go there, too.”
Charli grinned. Amy was like a carbon copy of her sister.
Annette nudged her. “What are you laughing at?”
“The two of you—you’re exactly alike.”
“We are not!” they both shot off in matching offended tones.
Charli burst out laughing. “Do you even hear yourselves? Trust me. You’re exactly alike, and you’re totally adorable.” She decided to change the subject. “Speaking of...how’s the cruise going so far? Lots of eye candy to enjoy?”
“Oh, girl,” Annette crooned, fanning herself with her hands. “There are some exceedingly hot men on that boat and they’ve been flirting with us nonstop.”
Amy snickered. “We’ve been on the boat two days and Annette has two guys fighting over her already. We literally had to sneak off the boat so they wouldn’t follow us.”
Charli nudged Annette. “Oh, really! I’d love to hear more about that.”
Annette snapped her fingers. “It’s nothing and you can quit trying to change the subject. I want to hearmore about you and Jack.” Her tone was firm and told Charli there’d be no further evasions or sidetracks.
Charli pressed her lips together and thought about the last week.
God, has it only been a week? It seems like a lifetime ago. What on earth do I say? How do I explain how I feel about Key West, about Jack, and about this project? It makes no sense, and yet everything in me feels RIGHT here...with him.
Finally Charli shrugged and her discreet nature won out. “There’s not much to tell.”
Annette stopped in her tracks, hands on her hips. “What the hell, Charli Harris? Don’t for a minute think that I’ll believe that crap. Now spill it,” she snapped, circling her fingers in the air.
Charli released a short breath and rolled her eyes. “Okay, but you have to let me finish without interrupting,” she replied, wagging her finger in Annette’s face.
Annette nodded eagerly with an evil grin, holding up her hand. “Girl Scout’s honor. Give it to me, sweet thang.”
Charli chuckled and began the story with how Jack had met her at the airport, holding a sign with her name on it and ending with their adventure to the Dry Tortugas to spread Dottie’s ashes. “That was four days ago and since then, he’s been nothing short of agentleman. Hasn’t even tried to hold my hand again,” she finished, her voice thick with disappointment. “I think I really offended him with the whole homosexual thing, but he’s just too nice to say anything to me about it.”
