Page 35 of Her Ghostly Embrace
“All day?”
“Right. No, that’s weird.” Gia sounded shocked. “Thanks for letting me know. I’ll be careful, but I’m sure he’ll leave.”
“He better. If you need anything, I’m across the hall.”
Aurora rolled her eyes at the eagerness in Viv’s tone.
“Thanks. I’ll see you around.”
The door shut, and Aurora reappeared. “Who’s she?”
Gia brought the pizza to the kitchen and grabbed a plate. “My neighbor.”
“You two friends?”
“No.” Gia looked confused—genuinely now—by the mere prospect. “Viv knocked on my door when I moved in, but I’ve been busy since. As you know.”
Aurora bit back a grin. She had taken up an awful lot of Gia’s time since they’d crossed paths. “Well, Viv seemedfriendly.”
Gia took a slice of pizza to the couch. “Yeah. I wonder why.” She took a bite, seeming to contemplate this new mystery.
Was she serious? Viv was probably excited to have a new neighbor closer to her age. Or she noticed that Gia was hot and wanted to get toknowher. Aurora would, if she weren’t busy being a damned ghost.
But Gia seemed suspicious of Viv, and it didn’t seem like an act. Taken alongside the cash, Gia’s attitude didn’t come across as a casual antisocial reaction, shyness, or other form of social awkwardness. It pointed to something more sinister.
WhowasGia? Aurora wanted to know more than anything.
THIRTEEN
GIA
Gia leftan invisible Aurora watching Trey out the living room window and went to have a shower.
Would Aurora float there all night if Trey didn’t leave? Gia hoped he’d go away, but then what would the two of them do if Aurora didn’t have an excuse to stay by the window? Gia had a feeling the ghost wouldn’t need sleep.
She stepped under the hot water, careful to keep her hair dry. What if Aurora had gotten bored looking out the window and followed her in here, invisible?
A thrill shot through Gia.
Clamping her eyes shut, she plunged her face into the shower spray and shook off the idea. Why had her mind gone there? Aurora wouldn’t do something so invasive. But imagining Aurora watching as she stood here naked, her core tightened.
She bit her lip. Fucking hell, she was a creep. Of all damn things,whywas she thinking about Aurora peeping on her? Magic was real—she possessed it—and here she was, spinning an inappropriate fantasy.
She didn’t even know if Aurora was into women. With herluck, Aurora wouldn’t be. And if she was, there were better things to do than watch each other bathe.
Was it possible Aurora liked women? To find out for sure, Gia needed to ask. Which she would not be doing.
She’d posed that fateful question to Tessa the summer after high school. Years of crushing had Gia convinced that Tessa liked her as more than a friend—it wasn’t just her, definitely not one-sided—and so she’d asked Tessa outright if she liked girls.
Gia’s cheeks flamed, and it had nothing to do with the warm water. The shock on Tessa’s face had been answer enough. It had given way to friendly confusion, as if Tessa thought Gia was messing around, and yet the most humiliating part had been how kind Tessa had been when she’d finally said no.
There was no one to blame for the discomfort but herself. Gia had gotten carried away, and while she was an adult now, prepared to actually talk to a woman about her feelings if she ever wanted to date one, the reality was just as terrifying.
It wasn’t like Gia had gained more experience in college. She’d been confident in her identity as a lesbian, leaving any conflicted feelings firmly behind with her adolescence, but between her migraines and Salvator lurking around, her romantic life had been about as active as a graveyard.
Not that any of it mattered. She and Aurora were literally tied together, unable to separate. Bringing up feelings and attraction was the dumbest idea. Nothing would summon awkwardness faster than Aurora saying she wasn’t interested in women, or worse, saying she wasn’t interested in Gia specifically.
No, thank you.
