Death Times Two(4)

“Ignore him,” a male voice says from my right. I turn to see another guy walking out of the shadows. “Jon’s a little short on manners.”
Wow, he’s drop dead gorgeous. Young, buff, and all Vin Diesel-ish, I think my panties just caught on fire. “Hi.” My voice comes out a little too breathy. When he gets closer I see he’s in his mid-twenties. Suddenly I feel like a cougar. Down girl. “Asa, is it?”
“Yes.” He strides toward me in a way that makes me think military. Maybe it’s his straight posture. Maybe it’s the fact that he’s sporting a shaved head and wearing dog tags. Stopping next to a wall, he flips on a switch for an overhead light and I get the full effect of the inn’s interior—and him. Both are impressive. “So you’re going to rid us of our ghost?”
My eyes are drawn to the others in the room. Not people, but spirits. Three that I can see. “Ghosts.”
“Excuse me?” he says, as if not understanding.
I take a deep breath. “Do you know you’ve got a lot of dead people walking around here?””






 
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Chapter Two
Asa

She couldn’t have said we have a lot of dead people walking around, right? I glance around the room and then back to the curvy blond. “I’m sorry, what was that?”
Lisa smiles at me like I’m a simpleton. “That’s why I was sent.” She turns away. “Gorgeous but dumb, just my luck.”
Even though she mumbles the last part I hear her perfectly. A spark of interest lights inside me. This one’s a firecracker all right. She might be a little older than me, but there’s something about her that’s different from anyone I’ve met in a long while.
Not like you get out much to socialize up here in the wilds of Alaska.
Yeah, there is that.
She speaks slowly, with a hint of humor in her voice. “You. Have lots. Of dead people.” She motions in big circles with her arms. “Walking around.”
“Let me get this straight,” I say, stifling the urge to snap a comeback that I am indeed more than just a big dumb guy. “You’re saying we have ghosts on the premises?”
She shakes her head and a tiny snort escapes.
My gaze travels over the full-figured woman, wondering if she laughs in bed, too. I wouldn’t mind a little laughter in my life these days. I haven’t been with anyone since Joanna last year, and this woman appears ripe and ready. Like she knows what she wants.
Get your mind out of the gutter. You’ve got a job to do.
Damn conscience. Shut up.
Lisa catches me staring. Her cheeks flame red as she glances away and motions jerkily with her chin across the room. Jon and I look in the direction she’s indicating.
Nothing.
“The tiny Asian lady leaning against the front desk? She’s got long black hair and looks as fragile as a porcelain doll.” Lisa steps deeper into the mammoth lounge area in the center of the hotel. “There’s a creepy guy with a short white goatee staring at us from near the fireplace.” She gestures with one hand.
Whirling to her left, like she hears something, Lisa faces the hallway of the north wing. “And you’ve got a serene-looking Indian guy heading toward us from the hall.”
No freakin’ way.
My mouth drops open and I glance at the werewolf across from me. Yup. Jon’s jaw is gaping like a caught fish, too.
Jon recovers first. “Am I smoking crack, or is she describing  Emiko, Ivan and Vikram?
Despite the disbelief coursing through me, I can’t think of any other logical answer. Vivian, one of the owners, wouldn’t be playing some long-distance joke on us, would she? Like using her vamp mental skills to project dead people’s images that only this human could see? Nah. Wouldn’t make sense. If she was going to mess with me or Jon, she’d want a ring-side seat while the prank unfolded.#p#分页标题#e#
Viv did say a reaper was coming, but I didn’t have a chance to think about what the hell that really meant.
“So… you’re able to see three dead people who were killed here this past year?”
Lisa slowly turns and faces me, her complexion paling. “Did you…” With an unsteady step she walks to the sofa and lowers herself to a deep cushion. She audibly swallows and stares at the floor. “Kill them?”
“No… no.” I rush to reassure her, moving to a chair across from her. She jumps slightly in her seat. I raise my empty hands in a slow-down motion. “Calm yourself. I’m not going to hurt you. I didn’t kill any of them.” Remembering my time with Emiko in the bowling alley, I add, “And one of them seriously kicked my ass.”