The Many Lives of Hadley Monroe by Bec McMaster

Author:Bec McMaster
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bec McMaster

Chapter 5

The fair rolled into town that weekend, setting up over by the old school grounds.

"Come on!" Hadley called, catching Death's hand, and dragging him down from the truck. "I haven't been to one of these in years!" A little bit of the old childhood excitement lit through her. Sometimes she wondered if she were teaching him about life, or whether she was rediscovering it herself.

Emmie Purnell and her little harem of gossips caught sight of Hadley, as she rounded the ticket booth to the Ferris wheel. A false smile froze on Emmie's painted lips, then her eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open as she caught sight of Death.

It seemed he could step out of the Between when he wished to.

Hadley had made him leave his coat in the truck. People would notice a man wearing heavy dark clothing in the liquid heat of a Georgian summer. What she hadn't expected was the opposite; people were noticing him now. Mainly women, eyes slinking over his tall, hard form, and eyeing the muscles that his rolled up sleeves revealed.

In Copeland, anything new was interesting. Especially six and a half feet of smoldering blue eyes, and dark hair. She wasn't quite sure how she felt about that.

"Why, look at you, Hadley." Emmie called, grabbing her hand, and winking. "Who's your handsome stranger? A cousin?"

You wish. Hadley smiled. "This is–" Her mind blanked.

'Dean.'

All three women blinked faintly at the sound of his voice, husky enough to send a shiver through a corpse. Hadley could almost see the subconscious part of them recognise danger when they saw it.

Or perhaps misconstrue it.

"I'm Emmie," the woman said boldly, holding out her hand. Her eyes glittered with interest. "An old school friend of Hadley's. This here is Jo Lynne Hale, and Rita Bellefleur."

"How's your husband?" Hadley broke in. Tommy Purnell had once been the running back of the Copeland Sasquatch's, but the last she'd seen him, there were hints that his hair was starting to creep back up onto his skull, and he had that look of muscle that was slowly giving way to that six-pack of Bud's he drank every night.

And I am not going to take guilty pleasure in that. Hadley linked her arm through Death's. She didn't like the way Emmie was eyeing him.

"Nice to see you girls again," she said, her smile stiffening.

Who's your Daddy, Hadley?

Didn't he want you either? Like your mama didn't?

Echoes of the past.

"It's been a real pleasure." Rita's eyes drank in Death's tall frame.

"Hope to see you around," Emmie added, but it was clear from the direction of her gaze who the 'you' was.

Bitterness is a worm that eats away at you, Miss Hadley. That from her grandfather. The worst thing that could happen isn't what them girls could say to you. It's what they could make you be, make you say back. You don't ever let that bitterness in, you hear me?

Hadley swallowed hard, tipping her head toward them politely, as she pushed Death toward a ride, aptly named the Hurricane.

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