Page 102 of You'll Be the Death of Me

“You’re right, but we don’t need her.”

“We don’t?” she asked when he abruptly stopped on the next landing. “Why not?”

Cole cupped her cheek in his hand. “Becauseyouare strong enough to do it, Dell. Exceptionally strong spirits have the ability to defy the physical laws of the afterlife. That’s why you could do everything you did on earth. And that’s how you’re going to send us back to the day we met.”

Dell blankly stared at him. “What? I’m sorry, did you just suggesttime travel?”

“I did, yes. And if we had more time, I’d take a moment to ask:That’sthe thing you can’t believe in all this? But we need to keep going; if they catch us, it’s not going to be pretty.” He smoothed his thumb over her cheek and gave her an assuring smile.

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing, but then again, they were two ghosts being chased by afterlife security guards, so anything seemed fair game.

“Okay,” she said, willing to try. “And how exactly do I achieve time travel? And what are we going to do when we arrive back on the day we met?”

“Avoid our deaths.”

“Solid plan, but how?”

“Well, you’re pretty much an expert at possession now, right? And I’ve successfully done it once before, so we’re going to go back to that ski slope, find ourselves, hop in, and reroute ourlives by going to the lodge, and ideally making out for the rest of the day.”

“That sounds completely reckless, and I love it, but you still haven’t answered the time travel part.”

“Right. So, the book says a spirit of exceptional power can pass through space—and time, under the optimal conditions.”

“And the optimal conditions would be...?” Dell asked.

“A mix of strong emotion, determination, and a critical need.”

The door one floor below them banged open. They both jumped.

“This need feels pretty critical,” Dell said.

“Yes, it does, but just to be sure, we’re going to make the situation even more dire,” Cole said. He gripped her hand and pulled her through the door in front of them. Instead of another hallway, they tumbled through it and landed outside. Wind whipped the crisp air, sending Dell’s hair flying. It felt thinner, the sky much closer.

“Are we on the roof?!” she shouted at Cole.

“Yes!” he shouted back. “The fall will leave us with no choice but to escape!” He’d started jogging, still pulling her along, straight toward the building’s edge.

“What do you meanthe fall?!” she screamed in fear. Sure, they were dead, but they weren’t really going to—

“We have to jump!” Cole called. He dodged a ventilation pipe sticking up out of the roof. The gritty flooring scraped beneath their shoes.

“You can’t be serious!” Dell wailed when they got to the wall. She didn’t dare look down. “I thought you were afraid of heights!”

Cole turned to her, gripping her hands. “I am, but I’m more afraid of what will happen if we don’t try. I’m in love with you,Dell. I fell for you that day on the slopes. I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true. I looked at you, and had this feeling ofOh, it’s you, as if I’d been wandering around looking for you. I remember it now, because it’s the same feeling I got on your doorstep the other day. But that day on the slopes, all I could think of was how much it would hurt if you didn’t feel the same. If I let myself give in to the vulnerability of that feeling only to lose you. That’s why I let you go and didn’t try harder. I’ve spent too long avoiding risks and not going for what I want in life. And death,” he added with a small chuckle. “We are total opposites, and I think that’s what makes us perfect. You are the biggest risk of my life, but I’ve never wanted anything more. I’ve messed up over and over, but I’m not going to mess up another chance at being with you.” He stared at her with his soul-searching eyes, baring his own soul. Dell could see the depths of it. His regrets, his hopes. His feelings for her burning like the sun.

If she could feel her heart, it would have been pounding. Not only because they were standing on a very high ledge considering hurling themselves over the side, but also because it was telling her something. Her heart was the thing Dell had followed all her life. It was how she ended up a chef and not a real estate mogul, like the rest of her family. How she ended up back in San Francisco, where she’d grown up, to open her restaurant. How she poured herself into serving others and spreading joy. How she knew, deep down, Tommy was never the one for her. And how she knew Cole was. And she knew if she didn’t try to be with him now, she would carry on feeling like half her heart was missing because this man—this clumsy, adorable, bumbling, secretly hot-as-hell man who’d tried to save her life and, in a way, did—would vanish back into a world she hadn’t even known existed.Staring down that possibility made the soul-deep knowing they were meant for each other fizz in her veins.

“Okay,” she told him with a nod. “I’ve got the strong emotion.”

He smiled at her, doing his best to shield his nerves. He glanced over the building’s edge right as someone burst through the rooftop door. “Great. Do you trust me?”

She gripped his hands tighter. “With my life.”

“Stop right there!” the security guard who’d burst through the door shouted.

Cole stepped up onto the ledge and pulled Dell up with him. Her skirt whipped in the wind. They were so high up she couldn’t even see the street below—which was probably a good thing.

“Ready?” Cole said.