Then he mouthed an oath that he'd given up using once he'd left the fo'c'sle and moved aft. He shot to his feet and marched to the attic door.
* * *
The slam of the attic door echoed like gunfire through the old house.
"What was that?" Jason said, as Kathryn tugged him into the foyer.
Kathryn smiled brightly. "You know how these old houses are," she said, mentally crossing her fingers. "Things slam and bump around all the time."
"Yeah," Jason said, looking doubtful.
Kathryn closed the front door behind them. "What a wonderful surprise," she said happily. Jason put down his overnight ba
g and she took both his hands in hers. "I didn't expect you until tomorrow."
He grinned. "I know."
"Why didn't you call? I'd have met you at the airport."
"It wouldn't have been a surprise then, would it?" His hands tightened on hers. "Are you really glad to see me?"
Was she glad to see him? Kathryn laughed. Was she glad to be reminded of reality and of a place where the most frightening thing you could bump into in your apartment was a cockroach searching for dinner in the kitchen?
She sighed and went into Jason's arms again. It seemed a million years and another lifetime since she'd talked with him on the phone and been less than pleased when he'd said he'd fly down for the weekend.
"You'll never know how glad," she said.
"That's great."
Jason shut his eyes with relief and hugged Kathryn to him. All the way to Elizabeth Island, he'd worried about the kind of greeting she'd give him. It had taken endless juggling to rearrange his schedule and change his ticket at the last minute, and the flight to the island itself had almost paralyzed him with terror, but now he knew it had been worth it Smiling, he clasped her shoulders, held her at arm's length and looked at her.
"What?" she said, with a little laugh.
"You're a sight for sore eyes, sweetheart."
That was an understatement. Her creamy skin had turned the color of the palest toast, her dark hair was loose the way he liked it but the way she hardly ever wore it, and her outfit—a pair of frayed denim shorts topped with a Museum of Modern Art T-shirt-—made his body hunger for hers.
"Hell," he said gruffly, "I'd almost forgotten how beautiful you are."
She colored prettily. "I'm a mess. If I'd known you were coming..."
"Kathryn." Jason drew her into his arms again. "I missed you terribly."
"I missed you, too," she said automatically, ignoring the twinge of guilt she felt at the words. The truth was that she hadn't missed him at all. She'd hardly thought of him during the past few days.
But now that he was here, she was glad. Jason was steadfast and real. A couple of days with him would go a long way towards bringing her back to reality, despite the best efforts of a ghost with a surly attitude.
Should she tell Jason about Matthew? Heaven knew she wanted to. The question was how to do it without sounding like a candidate for the funny farm.
"Jason?"
"Mmm?" he said, nuzzling the place where her throat joined her shoulder.
"Jason, there's something you should know about Charon's Crossing."
"Tell me later," he murmured, gathering her closer.
Kathryn put her hands against his chest in gentle resistance.