Yet here he was, forcing her to stay, inadvertently bonding her to him. Yes, he wanted her as much as she wanted him. He’d been hard-pressed not to go to her and caress every inch of her body. He’d been hard, period.
But he was fighting for his afterlife here. For his sister’s soul. No way should he even be thinking about sex with Sierra. He needed to stay strong and resist temptation. Maybe they’d be able to reach Adele at the séance today and he could learn more about her situation.
He held the door open for Sierra. “Let’s go.” His voice was brusque.
She wisely obeyed and didn’t bring up his mind-reading abilities again.
“Thank you for offering us the use of your house,” Sierra said as they entered the premises next door.
“You’re welcome,” Zoe said. “Bruce and Pat are already here, waiting for you.”
“Let’s do this,” Bruce said eagerly.
“You’re sure Hal can’t leave the house?” Pat asked.
“As sure as I can be about any of this,” Sierra replied.
“How sure is that?” Bruce asked.
“Ninety-five percent,” she said.
“What do we do if he does show up?” Bruce said.
“Duck,” Sierra said.
“Vampires don’t duck,” Ronan said. “We fight.”
Sierra ignored his comment. Instead she told Bruce, “I can’t guarantee that your friend will show up again.”
“I know,” Bruce said. “But she showed up before, so that’s a good sign.”
Ronan tugged Sierra aside as the others set up four chairs in a circle. “What about your father?”
“What about him?” she said curtly.
“Does having this séance put you at risk of his spirit showing up?”
He could tell by the look on her face that this wasn’t the first time the possibility had occurred to her. “It’s been my experience that once the evil have gone to hell, there is no further contact available to them.”
“We don’t have to do this,” he said gruffly.
“I sense that Bruce’s friend has something very important she needs to share.”
“We can stop if it gets to be too much,” Ronan told her.
Sierra was still angry that Ronan had invaded her thoughts earlier. It was one thing to be bonded to him physically, but it was quite another to be invaded in such a personal way. She felt as if there was nowhere she could go to have some privacy or freedom, which left her feeling jittery and unsafe.
And that was what had brought the memory of her father back to the forefront of her mind. She’d managed to squelch those fears since his death. Yes, occasionally something would happen to trigger a reaction of panic. Overall, she’d refused to let her life be ruled by that. Until she’d had the misfortune to get hooked up to a vampire.
“Would it throw things off if my grandmother and I joined the séance or should we just watch?” Zoe asked.
Sierra said, “Is your grandmother…?”
“A witch?” an older woman asked as she joined them. She had white hair and vivid blue eyes and was wearing a flowing caftan. She looked like Betty White’s twin sister. “Yes, I’m a witch. I’m Irma Adams and you must be our new next-door neighbor I’ve heard so much about.”
“Um, nice to meet you,” Sierra said. She was still trying to get used to this supernatural world she’d inadvertently moved into.
“Well, can we join the party?” Irma asked.
“I honestly don’t know,” Sierra said. “I haven’t held many séances and never with, um…”
“Vampires and witches?” Irma supplied helpfully.
“I participated in the séance yesterday,” Ronan reminded Sierra.
“Zoe, maybe you and your grandmother should sit this one out,” Bruce suggested. “Let’s see what happens with three vampires and a medium.”
“I’m not a medium,” Sierra said.
“She’s an entity empath,” Ronan said. “That’s why she can’t be compelled.”
“We can’t be compelled because we’re witches,” Zoe said as she handed Sierra a candle.
Sierra sat between Bruce and Pat. That way she didn’t have to hold Ronan’s hand and be distracted. The look he shot her let her know that he was aware of her move.
“I brought a photo of her,” Bruce said. “In case that might help.” He set it on the table near the candle then touched Mother’s face with his trembling index finger. “Parting is such sweet sorrow.” At Sierra’s surprised look, he got defensive. “What? You don’t think a clown should know Shakespeare? Mother had me read all his plays.” He looked down at the crisp blue shirt he wore. “Too dressy, or not enough?”