Interview with a Ghost in Arizona (Humorous Cozy Mystery) (Ghost Mysteries of the Southwest Book 2) by Angela Pepper

Author:Angela Pepper [Pepper, Angela]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Published: 2016-07-22T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

Otis and Piper walked Teddy around the park, each speaking their own language: English, Mandarin, and Terrier. Piper's Mandarin was rusty, to put it mildly, but she could have been making nonsense sounds and Otis would have bought it. As the date progressed, she grew more inventive with her declarations.

Teddy seemed thirsty, so she stopped to give him water, using the palm of her hand as a bowl and pouring from the bottle she'd tucked in her purse before coming out. Otis watched with interest as Teddy slurped at the water.

“He's literally eating out of the palm of your hand,” Otis said with wonder, crouching down to squat next to her.

She smiled and said the equivalent of, “I am merely the servant to His Royal Highness Emperor Theodore, the Demander of Food and Maker of Stinky Farts.”

Otis gave her a serious nod. “You take good care of him.”

She replied again in Mandarin, “He repays my kindness by occasionally humping my Coach bag.”

Otis gave her a sidelong look. “Coach? Hey, I know that word. Are you talking about a sports coach?”

She patted her purse. “Coach.” She folded back the opening and showed him the label.

He leaned in close, as though looking for treasures in the dark recesses. They bumped foreheads, and he apologized, grinning. Again, their faces were so close, his nice lips so near her own. Her head began to swim.

He leaned in more.

She pulled back, suddenly remembering her promise to herself that she wouldn't kiss him until she told him the truth. Right about now would be a good time for a confession, in fact.

Unfortunately, she'd been so captivated that she'd forgotten her body position. She was still squatting, with her hand forming Teddy's water bowl. She lost her balance and tipped over, grabbing Otis's arm a little too late. Once again, the two tumbled into each other. She went limp and fluttered her eyelashes. He was above her this time.

Someone shouted, “Get a room!”

They both sat up and looked around guiltily.

Over on the park bench sat a pair of old men, laughing to themselves.

“Get a room, you two,” one of them said.

“Or not,” said the other one, chuckling. To his friend, he said, “This is better than whatever's on TV.”

The other agreed.

Otis waved to the men. “Hi Darryl. Are you following me?” To Piper, he said, “Darryl is a regular at the restaurant.” He mimed holding a plate with one hand and eating with a fork. “I know Darryl from the diner, from the Roadrunner. He's just a harmless old goofball.”

Piper got up, dusted herself off, and fastened the plastic cap back onto her now-empty water bottle. It was getting dark. The sun had set already and the lamps over the pathways were flickering on.

Otis stood next to her, leaning toward her in a way that felt protective. Teddy stood on the other side, also leaning in. She had two bodyguards now.

Over on the bench, the first man, still laughing, said to them, “You two carry on. Pretend we're not even here.

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