I Swear Page 21

  “I know. Would you happen to have the number for the ghostbusters?”

  “Sorry. I don’t guess you happen to have a handy exorcist in your rolodex?”

  “Nope. This is not something I ever considered. What did you do about your grandmother?”

  “Nothing. For a while, I kept expecting her to reappear. Somehow, I think she knew it unnerved me and didn’t do it again.”

  “I doubt if Claudette will be as understanding.”

  “You’re probably right.” Delaney placed her finger over his lips. “But, don’t say her name,” she whispered.

  Jonah kissed her finger. “I’m not afraid.” Okay, so he was a little off balance – not much. He expected his manly sensibilities would kick into gear at any time…especially with this beautiful woman in his arms. “I’ll protect you.”

  “I trust you.”

  Tightening his embrace, he tilted her chin up so he could kiss her lips. When she responded without hesitation, a contented thrill shot through him. With a moan he deepened the kiss, taking what she so sweetly offered.

  The clock on the mantle continued to tick as they lay together, enjoying the pleasures their intimacy afforded. Delaney clung to him, her body primed and ready to surrender to whatever he desired. “Jonah…”

  Her whispered plea told him what she needed. “Let me take care of you.”

  Aroused beyond her comprehension, Delaney didn’t know what he meant. She kissed his neck – his chest – her fingers hungrily touching him. She ached to be as close to him as possible. When he slipped a hand between them to cup the throbbing place between her legs, she gasped in shock and relief. “Jonah, you don’t have…”

  “I do. For me as much as for you. Let me, please.”

  Opening her thighs for him, she gave in to what he intended. His touch became her focus, her world, her whole being concentrated on what he was doing to give her release. With her fingers digging into his shoulders, she blindly sought his lips. Her hips were pumping as she rode his hand. The gentle massage he gave the pearl of her feminitity through the silk of her panties was the most amazing thing she’d ever felt in her life.

  Jonah was barely clinging to his sanity. He was so perfectly attuned to her every breath – her every movement – he didn’t know where he ended and she began. Giving her pleasure was his superpower. He felt invincible. When she began to jerk and tremble in his arms, he felt his own excitement rise to unbelievable heights. And when she came – he came. Without a touch, still in his jeans, Jonah exploded just from the perfection of giving Delaney joy.

  * * *

  Once she opened her eyes, it took Delaney a few moments to understand where she was. She was downstairs on the couch, lying on top of Jonah. Holding her breath, she tried not to awaken him. As she eased from her comfortable position, she tried not to awaken him. With every second that passed, she recalled more details of the events of last evening. Their disagreement. Claudette’s appearance. And…the orgasm Jonah gave her. Without a doubt, she knew which one of those things would dominate her thoughts.

  On her feet, she looked at the two men. They were both still sound asleep. Good, she was sure they needed the rest. Tiptoeing from the room, she headed for the stairs. There, she found Rufus and Tommy curled at the bottom as if guarding the spot. “Hey, guys. Let me get cleaned up and I’ll feed you breakfast.”

  As she mounted the steps, a niggle of apprehension snaked its way down her spine. Would she see Claudette again? She hoped not. She couldn’t quit functioning. Daily life would have to go on. “Just stay where I can’t see you and we’ll be fine.” Just voicing the thought made her quiver. If Claudette answered she’d faint dead away on the floor.

  To Delaney’s relief, she was able to shower and change without incident. Truly, she didn’t give herself time to worry because her thoughts were so full of Jonah and what they’d shared. Her body tingled with the memory. She kept waiting for some semblance of guilt or regret to arise – but it didn’t. Why should it? She’d climaxed with him before – this just seemed much more intimate than the previous times. “Yea, and it felt amazing.”

  With newfound positivity, Delaney left her room to wake the sleeping men downstairs.

  Jonah was already awake. He lay there unmoving with a big grin on his face. Yea, he’d done that. Made Delaney come all over his hand. God, she was sweet. And he’d come too. So hard. Afterward he’d cleaned up as much as he could in the downstairs bathroom, hurrying so as not to leave her alone for very long. For his sake as well as hers. Being with Delaney was becoming addictive. Rising to his feet, he checked the kitchen to see if she was there. Finding the room empty, he headed upstairs.

  They met halfway. “Good morning, gorgeous.”

  He held out his hand and she came to him, wrapping her arms around his waist.

  “Good morning. I bet you’re stiff.” She rubbed his back.

  “Uh, getting there.”

  A hearbeat later she became aware of what he meant. She could feel the hard length pressing against her. Immediately, her body reacted. Softening. Tingling.

  “Delaney!”

  John’s call brought them up short. “Dang,” he whispered. “That old man has no sense of timing.”

  “I’ll take care of him, then start breakfast.” She kissed him on his cheek. “Thank you for last night. You fulfilled all my needs.”

  With those parting words, she continued downstairs – leaving him with needs of his own.

  …A little while later, they were all ready for the day. As Delaney picked up the breakfast dishes, she remembered the date. Turning to Jonah who was finishing his coffee, she remarked, “You have that weight-lifing competition tonight. Right?”

  He looked blank for a moment, then nodded. “I do. Dammit. I wish I hadn’t agreed to do that.” He’d rather stay home with her.

  “Why not? I’m sure it’ll be fun. Will you eat there or here?”

  “Oh, there I imagine. Don’t worry about me.”

  She did though. “We have to eat. I’ll save you some just in case.”

  “I wish you could go with me.” He looked over at his father who was staring out the window. “If he changes his mind, just know I’d love to have you two there.”

  This made Delaney happy. “We’ll see. If he wants to, I’ll let you know before you leave.”

  “Okay.” Jonah leaned onto the table, his hands cupping the now empty cup. “About last night…”

  “Yea, what are we going to do?”

  “About Claudette? I think I’ll talk to Cady McCoy, she’s knowledgable about such things.”

  “What kind of things?” This intrigued Delaney.

  “I really don’t know a lot, just a few things I’ve picked up on in conversations. She’s known for being psychic and into healing crystals and things.”

  “Oh, okay. Yea, she might be able to point us in the right direction. That’s a good idea. At least she won’t be shocked by your question.”

  “No, she’s a nice lady.” Standing up, he bent over the table to join his lips to hers. “What I started to say about last night was how much I loved what we did. I came so hard, just from the pleasure I received from touching you. I don’t even know how to handle that, Delaney.”

  “You don’t?” She touched his face, running her nails through the sexy scruff on his jaw.

  “No. I wasn’t prepared for you. You have taken me completely by surprise.”

  Delaney kissed him again. Softly. “Is that a good thing?”

  “Oh, yea. Hell yeah. It’s a very good thing. I swear.” He kissed her hard, then turned and left – leaving Delaney to watch him go.

  …The day passed quickly and Delaney managed to put Claudette out of her mind. Nothing weird happened. Sitting at the dining table, she patted her foot in time to the music on the radio. The task at hand was to come up with a new set of menus to accommodate the changes she wanted to make in John’s diet. The doctor’s appointm
ent was coming up and she wanted to be able to ask him some questions at the visit. She’d told John they wouldn’t bring up his condition, but if she got a chance to speak to the doctor alone she would. For one thing, she had some questions about his medications. There were days when she felt like they made him worse instead of better.

  Hearing a noise from the living room, she put down her pen and went to check on her charge. “John?”

  “I’m here,” he answered from the opposite direction.

  “What are you doing?” She found him at the front door.

  “I’m waiting.”

  “For who? Jonah? I think he’s out on a call. I heard him leave a few minutes ago.”

  “No, I’m waiting for my taxi. I’m leaving.”

  “Why? Where are you going?”

  “I don’t know. Away. Jonah would be better off without me.”

  Delaney’s heart broke for him. “That’s nonsense. Come on, let’s go sit down. Your son loves you very much.”

  “I let him down. I let him go.” John began to cry. “He left me. I didn’t see him for years.”

  “He’s back now. You’re together.”

  She settled him in the recliner and he sat with his head in his hands. “I just want to go.”

  “Where?” She knelt in front of him. “Where do you want to go?”

  “Anywhere. Somewhere I don’t have to face what’s coming.”

  She didn’t have to ask what he meant. “I’m here. I’ll be with you.”

  He took her hands in his. “I need to escape. I don’t want to stop being me.”

  “You won’t.”

  “I will.” He looked around wildly. “Maybe I can be frozen.”

  “What?” She studied his distraught face, wishing she could help.

  “Just outside of Comfort, there’s this place where they’re gonna be able to freeze you. I think it’s called Timeship or something like that. I should call them and offer myself as some weird type of experiment.”

  “Oh, you mean a cryolab?”

  “Yea, I guess. Maybe they could put me in one of those capsules and freeze me until there’s a cure for this shit.”

  “Oh, John. I pray there will be.” She hugged him, so sorry she began to cry.

  “Hey. Hey.” He took her by her shoulders. “This is my pity party. Not yours.”

  Delaney laughed and they were quiet for a moment as the words of Kris Kristofferson’s Why Me, Lord? filled the room.

  “Listen to that song. Don’t that beat all. It could be my theme song.” He raised his hands toward the ceiling. “Why me, Lord? What did I ever do to deserve this?”

  “Nothing. You didn’t do a thing.” As she gave him what comfort she could, the song and the singer struck a cord with her. “Wait. Wait.”

  “What?” John asked.

  “Hold on. Let me think.” Something her grandfather told her came storming back into her brain like a tornado. “There was something about Kris Kristofferson.” Hugging herself at the waist, she began to pace across the room. The singer had been one of her grandfather’s favorites. If she’d heard the song currently playing on the radio one time during her childhood, she’d heard it a thousand. The lyrics were deep and thought provoking. But now…something else came to mind. “Hold on, I need to check something.”

  Grabbing Jonah’s laptop, she began a search for Kris Kristofferson.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Checking for an article. I’m remembering something my grandfather told me. Kris Kristofferson was…misdiagnosed.” Scanning through a dozen links, she found it. “Here it is!” Her fingers trembled as she pulled up the website. She could remember well how this news had affected her grandfather, how he’d told her about it, made her read this account. “Kristofferson was diagnosed with Alzheimers and treated for it for years. Until…a discovery was made that he didn’t have the debilitating disease, he’d contracted Lyme disease which mimiced the symptoms of Alzheimer’s.”

  “What? I don’t understand.”

  “Lyme can cause brain fog and the medicines he was given only made matters worse.” Looking John full in the face, she asked him an important question, “Did you ever get bitten by a tick? Maybe after visiting Cletus?” She could still remember what he said about the possums.

  “Oh, yea. A couple of times. Them little buggers can get on you before you know it.”

  “Huh.”

  “Why?”

  “Don’t worry about it right now. Just let me check on some stuff.” She stood up. “Would you like some grapes or some roasted nuts?”

  “Got any ice cream?”

  “Sorry. We’re eating healthier these day.”

  He made a face and pouted. “Don’t I suffer enough? Do you have to starve me?”

  “I’m trying to take care of you, Duke.” She gave him a kiss and he brightened. “I’ll take some Brazil nuts. I love Brazil nuts.”

  “I’ll give you the whole bag. You can pick them out if you want.” She went to find the nuts, then she intended to do some heavyduty research. This might come to naught, but it wouldn’t be because she didn’t try.

  * * *

  “Hey, Jonah. What you doing?”

  “Finishing up a job, Jacob. What’s up?”

  “You ready for tonight? We’re counting on you.”

  “I am. What time shall I be there?”

  “The deal starts at seven. Come early if you can. We want to figure out our strategy over who lifts first and what not.”

  “All right. I’ll knock off here pretty quick and get cleaned up.” It was on the tip of his tongue to back-out, but he couldn’t do his friend that way. Especially since the McCoys were a main source of his income. “Don’t worry. Those other guys won’t stand a chance with you and Canyon on the team.”

  “I hope you’re right. This might just be for bragging rights, but I want those bragging rights.”

  Jonah laughed. “I understand. I’ll do my part.”

  “I know you will. See you later.”

  As soon as Jacob hung up, he thought of what he’d told Delaney about Cady McCoy. Searching for Joseph’s number, he gave her husband a call.

  “Jonah? This is Joseph. What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing’s wrong. You sound uptight.”

  “Oh, yea. Nathan, my little brother, he’s going through some shit. For a minute, I thought you might be calling to tell me you’d been called to pick up his car at the scene of a wreck or something.”

  “I don’t usually make those calls, Joseph.”

  “I know. Anyway, I’m sure he’s fine. He’s not answering his cell.”

  “Do you want me to help you look for him?”

  “Nah. I wouldn’t know where to tell you to start searching.”

  “Well, call me if I can do anything. I’m sure he’s all right. Is there anything I can do for you?”

  “Uh, yea. I’d like to speak with your wife if you wouldn’t mind.”

  Joseph laughed. “Jonah, Cady is her own woman. She doesn’t need my permission to speak to anyone. What’s this about?”

  “Oh, nothing important. Just some weird stuff going on at my house. I wanted to run it by Cady, I’ve heard she has insight into these things.”

  “Oh, yea. She sure does. Well, I know she’ll be glad to listen to you. How about now? She’s right here.”

  “Oh, that would be great. Thanks.”

  “No problem. If all goes well, I’ll see you tonight.”

  “I’ll look for you. Good luck with Nathan.”

  “Thanks.”

  In a few moments, Cady came on the line. “Jonah, what’s wrong?”

  “Uh, well. Man, I don’t even know where to start.”

  “Just dive in, I’ll catch up,” she encouraged him.

  “Okay, here goes.” He began to tell her about the strange events occuring at his house. Telling her as much as he could remember, he ended with what they
’d seen last night. “I was shocked. I didn’t believe this was possible. Yet, she was there one second and gone the next.”

  “Well considering everything you’ve told me, I think she might want an apology.”

  “An apology?” He never would’ve thought of such a thing.

  “That’s what I’d start with. Sometimes, spirits just want to be acknowledged. Especially if they think they’ve been wronged in some way.”

  “I’m not sure she has been wronged.”

  “Jonah, this is from her perspective. Just because the woman’s dead, doesn’t mean she’s been granted ultimate wisdom. She’s still feeling whatever she felt while she was alive. Right or wrong.”

  “So…should we hold a séance or something?” The very idea made him feel odd.

  “No, that’s not necessary. If she’s made herself known this many times, she’s lingering near enough to hear someone speak to her.”

  “Good Lord, I feel like I’m in the twilight zone.”

  “Don’t. This is life. Death is a universal condition. No one’s escaped yet. One day mankind will understand this transition better than we do now. Until then, we can only speculate.” She paused for just a second. “Talk to her. Have your father talk to her. Make peace with her if you can.”

  “Oh, can you sense we had a conflict? Between me and Claudette?”

  “Did you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, work it out. Communication is key – on both sides of the veil.”

  After thanking her, Jonah ended the call. He wasn’t sure if he was any better off or not. “Oh, well. It’ll be worth a try.” He pocketed his phone, then locked up the shop. “Time for a shower and a kiss or two.” He grinned at the thought. “If I’m lucky.”

  When he let himself in the front door, he could hear Delaney singing Me and Bobby McGee at the top of her voice. She was slightly off-key, but he thought she sounded perfect. “Hey! Are you planning on being the next Janis Joplin?” he asked when he found her in the kitchen.

  “Oh, no. I’m on a Kris Kristofferson kick. He wrote that song, you know.”

  “No, I didn’t know that. Why are you smiling so big?”

  She held on to his shoulders and bounced in place on her tiptoes. “I’m happy.”