He smiled so wide that his beautiful eyes narrowed, flashing pearl-white teeth. “I live to please, and please to impress. So go on, what doyouthink is the reason for the sleepwalking?”
“I want to blame Hanbury Manor, I think.” Just admitting it made William feel a little better. It was early evening now, and the blanket of night settled proudly over the manor. A chill crept in through the old, damp walls, battered away by the fire Edward had lit. And yet there was a callous chill which settled so far into William’s marrow that no fire could rid him of it.
“The stress of moving to a new house, or…”
“Both. The move, the potential that it promises… but also the issues that have arisen since coming here.” William took a deep breath in, aching from the multitude of bruises across his body. It was on the tip of his tongue to bring up what he’d seen again, but hesitation stopped him. “Are we really going to talk about it?”
Turned out Edward didn’t need further explanation as to what William was thinking. “Only if you want to.”
“I don’t think I have a choice anymore,” William replied. “Besides the serious words I’ll be having with the solicitors tomorrow, I think some compensation is owed from them since I, William Thorn, now own a haunted fucking house.”
It felt like one last laugh from Archie beyond the grave.
Your decisions killed me, so this is your punishment, my love.
“You love that word, don’t you?”
William shot Edward a look. “What word?”
“Fucking,” Edward said, his teeth catching his lower lip. “You swear a lot.”
“No, I don’t.”
“You absolutely do,” Edward said, nudging William’s knee with his own.
“I fucking don’t…” William caught himself whilst Edward’s brow peeked upwards. “I’m just passionate, all right?”
“Is this where you tell me you’re Italian and swearing is simply part of your vocabulary?”
“Greek, actually. Half. Mother’s side. And yes, we’re passionate. Not to mention I’m a Gemini.”
“Wow, double whammy. Pick a struggle,” Edward laughed.
The lightness and ease to how Edward replied only made William laugh back. “If I’d take a guess, I’d think you’re trying to divert the conversation away from the fact I just admitted that I own a haunted house.”
“Correction, hauntedmanor.”
“Semantics,” William replied.
“You argue like my ex,” Edward said, narrowing eyes, although enjoying every moment of the interaction, clear from his never-ending grin. “Never could be wrong, always wanted the last word. They were a Gemini too… makes sense.”
“She must’ve been amazing too, then,” William added. “What a catch.”
“Actually,hewas actually an arsehole, but I don’t think that is a comparable fact between you both. Perhaps the most noticeable difference.”
Heat rose in William’s cheeks. He wasn’t one to guess a person’s sexuality; it wasn’t any of his business. He certainly didn’t appreciate it when people did it to him – even if those days were long gone.
“Hesounds like a challenge,” William said, hoping Edward didn’t notice the blush that crept up his neck. “But can we maybe move the topic of conversation back to ghosts… Oh, my God, that sounds so fucking stupid saying it out loud.”
“Oh, there’s that Greek-Gemini passion again,” Edward said with a wink. He pushed himself to standing, and William had to fight the urge to ask where he was going. “You also have an uncanny ability to change the subject, did you know that?”
“That’s pretty rich coming from you.” William worried his lower lip between his teeth. It was on the tip of his tongue to tell Edward that he was wrong – but that would’ve been a lie. “I don’t really know what else to say.”
“You heard something that wasn’t there, and then you saw something that wasn’t there.” Edward popped a hip. “Adding two and two together, I’d say that actually something must’ve been there. How does that sound? Am I right?”
“Yes, because itwasthere. I saw it.” William wiggled his leg and instantly regretted it as an ache formed across his sprained ankle. “Believe it or not, I don’t make a habit of falling down the stairs for no reason.”
“I did say I believed you,” Edward said, suddenly serious. His sun-kissed skin paled before William’s eyes. “Actually, I think I’ve said that a couple of times now. So, just to be clear, I, Edward, solemnly swear that I believe every word that comes out of your mouth.”
