Eternally Yours (26 page)

Her visitor frowned. “Are you a friend of hers?”

He nodded. A feeling of possessiveness stung him and he threw back, “Are
you
?”

“I’m her ex-husband, Ron Sulley.”

Her ex?
The piece of information almost knocked him over. What was her ex doing here, answering the door, as if he owned the place? From everything she’d said, she wanted nothing more to do with him.

His jealousy raged, along with a sickening feeling of deja vu. Karen had gone back to her ex, despite all of their problems. Had Lara done the same? He would have liked to think not, but his experience with Karen left him worried. He remembered Lara insisting that her ex had his good points--the guy who’d run up all those bills behind her back!

“Who should I say is here?” Sulley asked, his mouth twisting in an unpleasant way. He didn’t look as though he appreciated Mark’s presence any more than Mark did his. Maybe Lara had told the jerk about their relationship.

“Never mind.” He turned toward the steps, then thought twice and looked back over his shoulder. “If you cared anything about her, you’d keep your problems to yourself.”

“What problems?” His rival gave him a look of confusion. “I don’t know what you mean. I came over here because Lara called me.”

So she’d called him, exactly as Mark had feared. Heat rose under his collar. He didn’t know whether he was more angry at her or at himself. She might have been weak enough to run back to this idiot, but
he
 had driven her to it...with one stupid mistake.

“I’ll come back if she ever comes to her senses,” he snapped and bolted down the steps.

As he hit the slate walk, he glanced back and saw Sulley step out onto the porch. The man still looked more baffled than mad, but Mark wasn’t in the mood to have it out with him. What good would arguing with him do? The guy wasn’t likely to change his ways, and he certainly wouldn’t give up Lara.

Before Mark turned back toward the car, something prompted him to look up at one of the upstairs windows.

Lara stood at the glass staring down at him, her eyebrows lifted in surprise. When he met her gaze they both froze for a split second, then she looked away. A second later she disappeared from view.

He watched the window for a moment longer--until Sulley shouted to him again.

“Hey, buddy! What the hell were you talking about? Who are you anyway?”

“Someone who has Lara’s interests in mind--rather than just my own.” He sounded like a self-righteous clown, but he was too wound up to be eloquent. Furious with himself, he stormed out to the car.

As he opened the door he heard the man let out a snort. “Well, I’ll be sure to let her know that some fruitcake has her interests in mind. That should be a great comfort to her.”

Mark climbed inside and slammed the door. Damn it if Sulley wasn’t right. His declaration wouldn’t mean a thing to Lara. Had he had her interests in mind when he let Karen go to the zoning board about her studio? He could have at least tried to find out if the studio really was commercial--or warn Lara about what was coming.

He started the engine and lunged out onto the road, spinning the wheels. Why had he said something so stupid to Sulley? He hoped the guy wouldn’t actually repeat the statement to her. If she’d been there to hear it herself, she probably would have laughed in his face.

Imagining the two of them laughing together over him, he slapped his palms against the steering wheel. Losing Lara was bad enough without losing her to
him
.

He never should have gotten involved with another divorcee. Why hadn’t he gone with his initial instinct and stayed away from her in the first place?

Because, he thought, I didn’t want to stay away from her then any more than I want to now.

Chapter 17

Geoff watched his descendant speed away in the motorized carriage. A week ago Mark’s bungling of the situation would have amused him. Now, since he’d taken note of the riddle in Mariah’s poem, he suspected that his only chance for salvation might lay in the success of their love. His descendant’s failures had become a source of concern rather than one of laughter.

Floating in the cloud of dust the vehicle’s tires had kicked up, the ghost frowned. If he meant to “advance” the mortals’ love, he clearly needed to head off the current crisis. Unsure what steps to take, he decided to linger at Lara’s. Since she was the party putting up resistance, he concluded that he must need to concentrate on her. He glided into her house with no idea what he would do.

As he passed through the foyer, he reflected on the events of the last few days. He’d been following the mortals’ budding romance closely but hadn’t understood how he could play a role in it. The two had fallen into each other’s arms from practically the moment Lara introduced her theory about Mariah’s curse. The change in their relationship seemed sudden to Geoff, but it suited his purposes--except for one important detail. They’d wound up together so quickly that until now he’d wondered if he would ever get a chance to help them.

Now trouble had arrived, and he had his opportunity. A nervous shiver billowed through him. He hadn’t the faintest idea how to nurture love. His strong point had always been
avoiding
entanglements.

He heard voices coming from the kitchen and drifted in that direction. When he entered the room, Lara stood before her former husband carrying a large cardboard box. She held the carton out to him. “Here’s your Aunt Helen’s tree.”

“Thanks.” The fellow took the box. A slow grin spread across his face.

Geoff felt a wave of distaste toward him. The ghost had been present when he moved out, and he’d observed the man’s gruff manner toward Lara. Plainly he was no gentleman. Learning that the boor was related to the demure Mariah had come as a surprise.

Sulley stooped down and placed the carton on the floor without bothering to look inside. Standing back up, he said in a sly manner, “By the way, while you were upstairs, you had a strange visitor.”

Lara walked up to the counter, where two steaming mugs of coffee stood. “Which one of these is mine? And what do you mean by ‘strange’?”

Geoff knew that she’d spotted Mark from the window. She must have been too embarrassed by his behavior to admit she’d witnessed the scene. At least she wasn’t encouraging her ex-husband’s line of conversation. If she’d chimed in and called Mark a few choice epithets of her own, matters would look worse.

“The white mug.” Sulley stepped up beside her and handed her the drink, taking the other one for himself. “Some guy came to the door asking for you, but he wouldn’t give me his name. He ran off in a huff, muttering something about having your interests in mind.”

“Is that what he said?” A hint of disdain twitched her lips.

“Yeah.” He looked at her more closely. “Does it sound like someone you know? He claimed to be a friend of yours.”

Her expression went bland, and she looked away from him.

“It must have been the guy from the historical society. He’s been here a few times to talk about the house.”

“This visit seemed to be about something else.” Sulley continued to study her. “He looked very worked up about you. I got the impression that he had more at stake than a passing interest in the house.”

“The man I’m talking about has a
great
interest in historic homes. He can be pretty fanatical about the subject.”

His lips stretched into an unpleasant grin. “Well, this guy may well have been a fanatic of some sort, if not a flat-out lunatic.”

Geoff scowled. It was one thing if he himself insulted Mark, but he didn’t like having a stranger deride his family. In the time he’d spent with his descendant lately, he’d noticed how the mortal’s attitude toward him had changed. Unlike Lara, Mark hadn’t completely condemned the ghost for his mistakes. On the contrary, he seemed to be trying to understand Geoff. The mortal had spent hours with his nose buried in Geoff’s biography and letters. He’d even taken up reading the poetry he’d once dismissed as “maudlin.” Geoff had been pleased to find that Mark wasn’t so devoid of discernment as he’d originally seemed.

“In any case, if he had something important to say, I’m sure he would have stuck around.” Lara stared into her coffee. Her blue eyes looked huge and sorrowful. “Let’s forget it. Why don’t you tell me what you’ve been up to, Ron? Anything new going on in your life?”

“As a matter of fact, there is.” His smirk broadened into a genuine smile. “I think I’ve finally sold one of my household appliance ideas to Lambro Corporation.”

“Really?” Her gaze shot to his.

He nodded. “They’re the ones I’m meeting with today. The deal’s all but final. They’ve even given me reason to hope this will only be the first of many ideas they buy from me.”

“That’s great.” She hesitated. “Are you getting the sort of money you were looking for?”

He shrugged. “What I actually make will depend on whether or not the product takes off--but if it does what we expect, I should be pretty well set.”

Wonderful
, Geoff thought. Her former husband had suddenly come into money. He worried that the development would make Sulley more attractive to her. Success meant a lot to women. His own love life had soared through the roof after he’d started publishing poems.

“You’d better make sure you’re getting a fair percentage of the profits,” she said, her brow furrowing.

She appeared more concerned than Geoff liked. Months ago, when he’d last seen these two together, he’d detected only contempt between them.

“I’ve read the contract and I’m happy with it. I only have a few minor questions before I sign it.”

“Do you want me to take a look at it for you?” She set her mug down on the counter. “I’m no legal expert, but a second pair of eyes can’t hurt.”

The ghost frowned to himself. She was definitely softening toward the fellow.

“No need.” Sulley flashed a smug look at her. “My brother has a friend who’s almost finished law school. We had him review it. He even checked into other similar contracts and compared them.”

“Good. It sounds like you’re handling it the right way.” She shook her head and gave him a small smile. “I have to say that I’m proud of you.”

Her show of pleasure deepened Geoff’s fears. He hoped she’d keep in mind that the fellow couldn’t hold a candle to Mark. Sulley’s inventions hadn’t earned him anything yet, but Mark was a successful author. Over the past few days the ghost had read some of the mortal’s work from over his shoulder and come to respect his talent. Having another decent writer in the family, after all these years, had been a welcome surprise.

“Wow.” Sulley actually looked a little sheepish about her compliment. He glanced down at his watch. “Well, I’d better get moving, if I’m going to be there on time.”

“Yeah, I need to start working, too.” She took his mug from him and set it on the drain board. “Good luck today--and in the coming months.”

“Thanks. I’ll let you know how it goes.”

They said good-bye, and she showed him to the door, watching as he walked to his motorized carriage.

When Sulley had driven away she went to the coffee maker and poured another cup. Softly, she said to herself, “Well, who would have imagined that?”

An ominous feeling descended on the ghost. Damn her ex-husband for showing up now, of all times. If Geoff didn’t come up with a way to mend matters between her and Mark, he might miss his only chance to find peace. For a century he’d done his best to avoid thinking about his dismal future, but with the possibility of rest dangling before him he couldn’t forget what the alternative was. What could he possibly do to bring the couple back together?

While he raked his brain, Lara took a box of breakfast cereal out of the cupboard and poured a serving into a bowl. Retrieving a carton from the ice box, she added milk. She carried her mug, bowl and a spoon into the dining room.

Geoff watched her eat without any ideas. How could he influence this woman, who viewed him with disgust? Perhaps the first step was to try to regain her respect, to show her just how important Mariah had always been to him.

He thought of a poem he’d once written that hinted about his feelings. Unfortunately, the last time he’d tried to get Lara to read one of his poems, she’d ignored the open book he’d left on her library floor. Then again, he couldn’t think of a better way to communicate to her. All he could do was try again. He had nothing to lose.

Floating across the hall to the library, he found his book back up on the shelf. Once more, he knocked it to the floor. Blowing to turn over the leaves, he found the poem he wanted.

He glided out into the hall to see if Lara was responding to the thud the volume had made.

She still sat at the dining room table, her back to him.

Frowning, he returned to the library and searched for a way to make a louder noise. His gaze fell on her easel, currently empty. Mustering up all his energy, he rushed at the wooden contraption. The legs folded together, and it fell to the parquet floor with a loud clap.

He heard Lara’s chair screech across the floor in the other room. Almost instantly, she appeared at the entrance, her hands upon her hips. Her gaze shot to the easel, then to the open book beside it.

“All right, already,” she murmured. “If you’re going to be insistent, I’ll look.”

Stooping, she picked up the volume and read the lines he’d written about Mariah:

Your love engulfs me like the sea.

The fear of drowning fetters me,

But, dear, at moments I do wonder

Whether to save myself or go under.

As much as the waters of your love soothe me,

As much as the attention you give me moves me,

As much as I love to hear your heart pounding,

How can a man submit to drowning?

As she finished, her lower lip began to quiver. She stared at the book a moment longer, then sniffed and closed the cover. Getting up, she returned to the dining room and picked up her dishes, taking them into the kitchen. To Geoff’s consternation her sniffling continued, gradually increasing in frequency. By the time she’d rinsed out the bowl and mug, she had dissolved into tears.