Why, yes he was. Rosebud went very still as he peeled off his shirt and tossed it toward the bed. Right on top of her. She didn’t move, but she did finger the fine silk knit where it slid sensuously over her hip. And she hungrily drank in the sight of him, naked to the waist.
She had forgotten how gorgeous a man could be. Ned’s skin gleamed, tanned and smooth in the golden light from the antique lamp on the dresser, and her eyes trailed over his hard chest and torso, ridged with muscle. There was a fine line of dark hair trailing between his ribs, disappearing into his pants. Her mouth watered. Did men look this delectable back in her day?
Ned stopped. His gaze skimmed right over her where she lay on the bed, and he frowned. “Why is there a bump under that shirt?”
Bump? A bump like her? What should she do? Slip out from under the shirt while he was watching, making it clear the unseen lump had moved away and something spooky was going on in his room? Or stay where she was, even if he advanced on her and felt under the shirt? His hand would go right through her while she was invisible. At least she thought it would.
Her heart beat faster, and she couldn’t think. Did she want him to touch her, to connect his protoplasm to her ectoplasm, to shock them both down to their toes, even if it meant some irreversible explosion of particles and electricity?
Oh, yes. Right now, after watching him undress, she was totally willing to risk it.
Foolish, foolish girl to get herself in this position. She felt her body suffuse with warmth under his intense gaze, and she had the terrible suspicion that a wash of hot color would show up there on his bed, like a reclining girl-shaped pool of pink. She glanced down but didn’t see anything. She’d never blushed before when she was invisible. How did she know what might happen?
Just when she thought she might pop from the strain, Ned’s phone rang. He jumped, she jumped, and his shirt slid off her hip at the exact moment he turned toward the phone. Saved by the bell. Rosebud was off his bed and safely huddled on top of the armoire, hiding up next to the ceiling, before he’d even answered it.
“Hello,” he said impatiently. But then his voice changed to a much warmer tone. “Hi, Uncle Jerry. Thanks so much for setting everything up. We really appreciate you making it happen. Your hotel is wonderful.”
She couldn’t hear what was said on the other end, but she could imagine. Blah blah blah best wishes on your upcoming nuptials…
“Listen, I will see you tomorrow, right? Yeah, the rehearsal dinner.” He glanced at his watch. “I’m supposed to be meeting Van for dinner tonight—some French place an hour from here—and I don’t want to be late, so…”
Something Uncle Jerry said got a laugh out of Ned. Rosebud rolled her eyes. Something amusing about the joys of coping with Vanessa, no doubt.
But Ned looked distracted as he spun back around, still holding the receiver. He peered at the bed, where the shirt he’d been wearing, the one that had landed on Rosebud, now lay flat. His expression grew even more perplexed. “Uncle Jerry, did you say there were stories about this place being…” He paused. “Haunted?”
Rosebud tried not to giggle. It was just the look on his face, as if someone were poking him with sticks and forcing him to ask that question. So Neddy boy was embarrassed to ask about things that went bump in the night. It was kind of sweet. Of course, she hadn’t believed in ghosts, either. Until she became one.
“No, honestly, I’m a total skeptic,” Ned said quickly into the phone. “I was starting to think there was something weird going on around here, but…Can’t be. That would just be stupid.”
He forced another laugh. “Aw, I’m sure you’re right. Just stress from the wedding. You and Aunt Win always have known me better than anyone else.”
Aw, how sweet. When she was young and desperate for guidance, it would’ve been nice to have a kindly aunt or uncle to turn to.
“Your support has meant everything to me, I want you to know that,” Ned continued. “I know I’ve been strange lately. I never thought I was the marrying kind to start out with, so this is all…”
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