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“Can I ask you something?” Beau asks, a hint of nervousness in his voice.

I turn to look at him. “What’s on your mind?”

He twiddles his thumbs in his lap and stops pedaling. “Well, I was considering maybe… changing my flight and extending my stay.” He lifts his gaze to mine. “What do you think?”

My heart hammers in my chest and hope rockets through me in a way that leaves me momentarily breathless.

Beau hurries on. “I mean, I’m worried we won’t have wrapped up this case yet, for one thing.” His smile turns shy. “And also, we could use the more time together to maybe figure out”—he waves a hand in the air—“us.”

Something deep and profound settles inside me.

“Aye, beautiful. That’s pure dead brilliant, that is.”

Beau snorts with laughter. “Pure dead brilliant? I bet that means it’s a great idea, right?”

I grin so hard my cheeks hurt. “That’s right.”

Merriment flickers across his face. “Excellent. I’m mighty glad you’re on the same page with me, sugar.”

I unsuccessfully fight back a laugh and then lean over and kiss him before that distracting mouth of his can say another word. When I pull back, he’s got a dazed look in his eyes that fills me with satisfaction. It’s good to know I can get one over on him on occasion. Most of the time, he’s got me happily dancing along to his tune.

“You should stay at mine for the rest of your visit,” I say, not even stopping to ponder what I’m proposing.

Beau’s eyes widen and his grin is downright blinding. “This isn’t just because I rode you to the finish line and blew your mind last night, is it?”

I flush but hold my ground. “That might well have played a small part in my thinking, but even if we don’t do that again, I want to spend as much time with you as I can while you’re here.”

The words come out as sincerely as I mean them, and even I’m a bit startled by how much I want this.

How much I want him.

Beau’s eyes are brimming with tenderness. “It would be my honor to stay with you, sir. Thank you kindly.”

A knot of worry in my gut that I hadn’t even noticed loosens and an unexpected warmth rushes through me. Having Beau with me every day and night for however much longer we have together in London brings with it a profound relief and contentment.

The old me, the Callum Fraser before the accident, would have turned tail and run in the face of my growing feelings for Beau. That Callum would have seen them as an unnecessary distraction from work, from more important priorities. I’m self-aware enough now to admit that.

If the accident had never happened, and if I’d never been able to see ghosts, Beau and I probably never would have crossed paths, and for the first time, I think that maybe the accident wasn’t all bad. Hell, I’m starting to believe that the pain and suffering were actually worth it because it somehow brought Beau Montgomery into my life. And more and more, I don’t ever want to let him go.

CHAPTER

TWENTY-THREE

Are you taking care of your mental health? This is an important issue for everyone, but I want to emphasize this for folks in our community.

Some of the subjects we cover and situations we encounter can be emotionally complex. Most supernatural phenomena has a connection to death, and the living tend to have a complicated relationship with that subject. Many of us have experienced loss and grief, but we also have our own fears about when we too must meet our end. Knowing that there’s more once we’ve left the land of the living can inspire hope and offer reassurance. Even if we don’t have all the answers, there’s still something for us to hold on to.

But while we may find the supernatural comforting, others can be disturbed by it. They may steer clear of us the moment we start discussing ghosts, the afterlife, and everything in between! So make sure you’re taking care of yourself and don’t let the haters get you down. Love and hugs, friends.

––Beau’s Boos and Beyond, Episode 70

Beau

“I have good news and I have bad news,” Liz says over the speakerphone the next morning.

Callum and I huddle together at his kitchen bar as we listen, still in our pajamas after a long night of… mutually pleasurable exertions, so to speak.

“Lay it on us, Liz,” I tell her.