He turned away, starting for his horse.
“You know, every redhead isn’t a total bitch.”
Startled, he turned back. His voice was far rougher than he intended. “I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”
“Your ex-wife Lavinia Harper,” she said simply.
“I see. You know this because you’re psychic?”
“You dislike redheads. One doesn’t need to be a psychic to see that. Penny told me about Lavinia.”
“Red hair can be bought in boxes for right around ten bucks. I would never dislike anyone for the color of their hair, skin, eyes, or anything else,” he informed her, meaning to sound as calm and staid as a schoolmaster, displaying his anger nevertheless.
She gave a stiff smile as she walked by him. “Sure. Sorry, then. Excuse me.”
He let her pass him while he fought his simmering temper, wondering why the hell she could get such a rise out of him, when he was usually level, sane, and careful in any judgment or assumption. Tension rippled through his muscles; he got a handle on it and turned, determined that he would politely help her mount back up on Nellie.
But before he could do so, she was already in the process of easily swinging up on the mare.
By the time he mounted Vernon, she was headed back through the forest trail.
He followed her, staying slightly behind and noticing, just as they left the forest trail, that dusk was falling at last.
Across the field, Melody House stood on its little hillock, bathed in a strange and eerie glow of crimson and gold.
The brilliance of light lasted only a few seconds; the sun dipped.
Night was coming in earnest, wrapped in shadow.
Despite Matt Stone, or maybe even because of him, dinner at Melody House was an entertaining affair, and Darcy found herself laughing a lot throughout the meal.
Matt and Penny didn’t seem to agree on anything, but the affection between them was visible and real. Penny wanted to tell legends. Matt wanted to correct her when her legends became too lurid, romantic, or too anything.
“It was as if the entire Southern army was taking refuge at Melody House!” Penny said.
“The entire Southern army!” Matt snorted. “A company at best. Twenty men, Penny.”
Penny waved a hand in the air. “They were exquisite soldiers,” she said, shaking her head and dismissing Matt’s correction. “They might as well have numbered thousands. They beat back the Yankees—”
“What? The entire Northern force?” Matt queried, a sparkling light in his eyes.
“There were at least one hundred!” Penny said, glaring back at her employer. “The point is, our boys wouldn’t give up, and they saved the day, but their leader, a young captain, was killed. Shot in the heart by a minnie ball that whizzed right through the parlor windows. Now, he is said to be here, still guarding Melody House.”
Matt leaned low across the table, amusement in his eyes as they met Darcy’s. “And no one seems to have told him that the war is over, that the South lost. He’s not at all fond of Yankee accents—so they say.”
“Thank God, then, that I don’t have one,” Darcy told him sweetly. “All those years watching late-night shows seems to have paid off.”
“But you trained to be an actress—of course you can get rid of an accent!” Carter applauded her admiringly.
“An actress, hm,” Matt said.
“I was going to study acting,” she corrected. “I never did. Not in college, anyway.”
“That’s right. She majored in everything else,” Matt said.
“You can’t major in ghosts these days, can you?” Clint asked.
“Don’t be silly!” Penny reprimanded.
Both Carter and Clint shrugged.
Dessert had been served. An exceptional baked Alaska. Darcy was certain that at any moment, an immaculate butler was going to walk in and suggest that the ladies retire to one room, the gentlemen to another, for brandy and cigars.
But there was no butler—not tonight, anyway. They had all helped to serve the meal.
“So?” Penny said excitedly, looking at Darcy expectantly. She had a feeling that she was going to hear the word “so” from Penny a lot.
“So?” Darcy repeated, smiling.
“Do you see him?”
“Who?”
“Our captain!”
“The captain who saved Melody House from the marauding Yankees who were going to burn it down,” Matt reminded her dryly.
Darcy shrugged. “I try just to get accustomed to a house the first few days I’m in it,” she told Penny.
“Oh! Of course. Let all the vibrations get through to you,” Penny said, nodding sagely.
“Something like that,” Darcy agreed.
“So, are there vibrations?” Matt asked, seemingly polite.
She stared straight at them. “The place just trembles,” she murmured.
“With?” he prompted.
She widened her eyes. “Hostility.”
Clint burst into laughter. “The living give out vibes, too, huh?”
Matt stared at Darcy, the flicker of a rueful smile curving his lips. A remarkable transformation came over him. He was almost devastatingly appealing, when he looked so.
“If I’m giving out hostile vibes, it’s not with intent of malice.”
From him, Darcy decided, that was the best apology she was going to get.
“Sometimes it’s not easy to pinpoint just where vibes might be centered,” she said, surprised to realize that she was smiling as well.
And that Penny, Clint, and Carter were all staring at them.
She rose, her movement not as fluid and easy as she would have liked. “It was a wonderful dinner. Thank you all very much. I’ve just realized how late it has gotten. If you’ll forgive me, I think I’ll turn in for the night.”
Matt, Carter, and Clint stood as one. A certain amount of courtesy seemed to have been bred into these men; it was as natural as breathing.
“You’ll be fine,” Carter told her. “I’ve slept in the Lee room. And I’m still here.”
“He didn’t even run down the stairs naked,” Clint said with a wink.
“Thank the good Lord for that!” Penny breathed.
“Hey!” Carter protested. “I look good naked.”
Darcy laughed softly. “Well, I imagine I’ll be all right.”
She was startled to see that Matt looked just a little concerned. “I’m in the house tonight, if there is any trouble, just scream.”
“Ah, but you don’t believe in ghosts!” Darcy reminded him.
He shrugged. “I believe in the power of men to do evil,” he murmured. For a moment, his strange deep gray eyes fell on hers. “I’ll be down the hall.”
She nodded, bid them good-night, and headed out of the dining room and for the stairs to the second floor. She walked slowly, thinking it somewhat amazing that Matt Stone couldn’t feel a thing regarding his house. Penny had asked about vibes. The