Death by Chocolate (The Davenports 2)

o keep it true and vague.

“Oh, so you believe in ghosts?”

“I didn’t use to.”

Clara’s dark brown eyes grew as round as quarters. “You experienced something?”

“More than I would’ve liked,” she admitted.

“Wow. I can’t even imagine.” Clara frowned.

“I hope you never have first-hand knowledge.”

“The Davenport boys have a way of finding romance in the most unlikely places.”

“How did you meet?”

“I was his sister’s lactation consultant after her pregnancy. We got off on the wrong foot at first, but eventually, I came to see what a great guy he was.”

“I feel like there’s a wealth of story you aren’t sharing.”

She laughed. “Okay, I couldn’t stand him. He was rude to me at our first meeting. He’d been up all night with his sister and a crying baby. At the time, I didn’t know him well enough to gauge if it wasn’t his true personality.”

“So, you made him work to prove himself?” Daize said.

“Exactly.”

“Do we want to know?” Micah asked. She looked up to see him with a plastic bag full of food.

“Just girl talk, honey.” Daize fluttered her eyelashes.

“Uh huh,” Asher said skeptically.

“How cute, I think we made them nervous,” Clara said.

“I leave my fiancée alone with your girl for a few minutes, and they’re already plotting against us,” Asher huffs playfully.

“Us girls have to stick together, babe.” Clara winked at Daize who felt as if she’d met a kindred spirit. “We won’t interrupt your date any longer. Let’s exchange numbers.”

“I’d love that,” Daize said brightly. She pulled out her cell and took Clara’s number, calling her so she could save it on her phone. They hugged as they said their good-byes, and she wondered if maybe things were taking a turn for the better.

Chapter Five

Three months later

Micah

“Look what the cat dragged on,” Luka drawled as we entered the front door.

“We just saw you at brunch a week ago, drama king,” Micah said with a playful roll of his eyes. He liked this laid-back version of his brother. His wife, Olive, had done a good job of getting him to loosen up and enjoy life. As the head of the household and the company after their parents died, he’d aged overnight. His control freak tendencies had driven many women away, but Olive challenged him. I guess we have that in common.

He smiled down at his steady girlfriend. Everything about their situation when they met challenged him. As did her current situation. She lived in a haunted house, and while the spirits had turned helpful when it came to Daize, they continued to show their disdain for him. He wanted her to move out, but she refused until they took care of her “friends” on the other side. Currently at a stalemate, they agreed to disagree.

“What my husband means to say is he missed you,” Olive came up beside him all smiles in her bright yellow dress with a dark blue ethnic pattern. “We’re glad you guys could make it. Cookouts aren’t the same without you. Even Kane is here.”

“How did you manage that?” Micah teased.

“I think he’s simply refueling before he goes back out into the world. You raise them, they leave the nest and never come back.” Luka sighed.