“It’s not that I don’t believe in it per se.” I pursed my lips, trying to figure out how to explain it. I hadn’t in so long. “I think you can believe in ghosts and not believe in curses and vice versa.”
“In The Haunt, you focus mostly on decaying houses, the ones that need restoration. You don’t think homes with that much history are prone to ghosts?”
“Maybe.” I met his gaze again. “You know, people say Dolos is filled with ghosts, lost souls that never made it back to wherever it was they came from. Do you believe that?”
“I do.”
I raised an eyebrow. “That surprises me.”
“Why?”
“Why would you live there if you truly felt it was haunted?”
“Who says I’m not the one they should be afraid of?”
My heart skipped as I watched his eyes darken. I swallowed, pushing down my trepidation. I needed to change the subject. Talking about haunts and ghosts on the verge of a cliff was definitely not my idea of fun, and that was saying a lot for someone who did what I did for a living.
“Do you have a cell phone?”
“What a question.” The side of his mouth turned up as he pushed off the car and went back to the driver’s seat.
“Do you have friends?” I followed and got in the passenger’s seat, eyeing him as I put on my seatbelt.
“Of course, I do.” He chuckled. “You’ll meet some of them tonight.”
“Did you go to college?”
“Did you?” He raised an eyebrow and I knew he knew the answer to that.
My lips pursed. “I couldn’t afford that specific luxury.”
“I beg to differ.” He turned the car back on and we both reached for the air vent, our fingers crashing. I yanked my hand away quickly, ignoring the palpable electricity he elicited from me.
“How so?” I folded my hands on my lap.
“I think you could afford any luxury. You just choose the ones that give you instant gratification rather than the ones that may not, like a college degree.”
“Well, considering the fact that most people I went to high school with ended up with a college degree and no job security upon graduation, I think I’m doing okay.” I shrugged. “I have no student loans. They do.”
“I can’t argue there.” His gaze flicked to mine briefly and then back to the road.
“Why’d you take me there?”
“To the Devil’s Peak?”
I nodded.
“I don’t get to go there often.”
“Why not?” I watched the side of his face. “You have an apartment in town and everything. You’re obviously over here often enough.”
“I’m in a lot of places.” He smiled, a small, secretive smile. “And yet, I’m not.”
“What does that mean?”
“It’s difficult to explain.” He stopped in front of the black iron gates, and Gustavo was on the other side, unlocking and opening it.
“Why don’t you have a mechanical gate like everyone else?”
“And throw away the—what did you call it—antiquated vibe this whole place has?” River laughed, the sound vibrating my pulse.
“Hilarious.” I rolled my eyes, but couldn’t keep myself from smiling.
I realized as we drove up the winding road and the gravel gave way to cobblestone and greenery, that the house was as well-lit as I’d ever imagined it could be, with torches outside, probably to keep the mosquitoes at bay, and grand lamps up the steps. It still looked every bit a dark manor, but something felt different about it. It was as though it was happy to have people in it. It was odd though, being that it was just a house, but it stuck.
As the doors opened before us, I reached out for River’s arm. I didn’t love being the center of attention, especially with this many people, and there were a lot. A lot more than yesterday. There must have been at least sixty people in attendance; it was a lot more than I’d anticipated, and every single one, man and woman, was staring. I began feeling self-conscious and grabbed onto River a little tighter.
“Relax. You’re the belle of the ball.” I could hear the smile in his voice even though I was too busy trying to find familiar faces in the crowd.
“Sir River Ambrose Caliban and his guest Miss Penelope Maria Guzman.” The announcement came from a woman’s voice, which I traced back to Fabiola, the woman I’d seen at the bar last night. She smiled at me, then at River, then at the crowd. Everyone clapped, which made the entire thing feel even more awkward. River let go of my arm to make a slight bow. I just stood there, unsure of what to do, so I smiled slightly, uncomfortably. River’s hand reached for me, and this time instead of offering me his arm, he slid his fingers through mine and held my hand, squeezing slightly before he started to walk the room with me at his side.