Page 9 of Haunted Spurs

The phone buzzes again. I cave and wipe my fingers on a paper napkin.

Jessica: Don’t ignore me.

Me: I’m not ignoring you.

Jessica: You should be thrilled. A haunted house? That’s your natural habitat, Selene.

Me: I am. But did you read the fine print? “Strictly in pairs and with a cowboy.” I don’t have anyone to go on the show with. Let alone a cowboy.

Jessica: Well, find one! Who wouldn’t want a hot cowboy? Elm Hollow definitely isn’t short of them.

Me: Absolutely not.

Jessica: Here we go again. This is about your ex, isn’t it? You need to stop moping.

Me: Drop it. He is ancient history. Completely irrelevant. I don’t even remember his name.

Jessica: Wasn’t Aunt Tina a huge fan of yours? That woman worships the ground you walk on. She’ll lose her mind if she finds out you want to be on the show… I’m sure she’ll let you apply solo.

I chew my last bite of muffin, staring at the screen. I hate to admit it, but she’s right about Tina. She’s obsessed with my books. But that doesn’t change a thing.

Me: The idea isn’t bad, but… I’m not about to encourage Aunt Tina. I need peace and quiet to find my inspiration.

Jessica: And I need to pitch your next bestseller ASAP.

Jessica: No buts. Call her.

Jessica: Not up for debate.

I decide to ignore that last message. I pretend it doesn’t exist, putting my hands back on the keyboard.

Three seconds later, the screen lights up again, but this time accompanied by the continuous buzzing of an incoming call. Jessica.

“I can hear you groaning from here, and you haven’t even answered yet,” is the first thing she says the second I pick up and press the phone to my ear.

I roll my eyes. It’s not like she can see me.

Then, since the rush of petty rebellion feels weirdly… satisfying, I do it again in protest. I could keep this up all day.

“You’re listening to me, right?” she presses, her bossy, sharp voice piping through the speaker. “You absolutely have to do this. This is exactly the kind of experience you need.”

“Uh-huh, which is exactly what you just texted me,” I reply, tapping my nails against the wooden table. “You’re distracting me.”

“From what? You haven’t written a single damn word since you and Jim broke up…”

I choke back a noise of pure exasperation. “Drop it. I told you, that chapter is closed. Sealed. Buried and paved over.”

“Oh, yeah? And when was the last time you were with someone else? It’s been six months since…”

Okay, I can’t take her anymore. Someone once said that your agent shouldn’t be your best friend. Well, that someone was a fucking genius, and they were right.

“Two weeks ago,” I snap, spitting the words out before my brain can stop them.

There. At least now she’ll stop bringing up my idiot ex. Except… saying it out loud makes it real. And thinking about two weeks ago… God. The smell of leather, the fogged-up truck windows, those blue eyes locked on mine, the ruthless rhythm of his hips snapping against mine.

No. I can’t think about that.

“What?!” Jessica shrieks, hitting a pitch that forces me to pull the phone away from my ear. “You’re kidding me, right? You’re just saying that to shut me up so I stop worrying…”