Page 37 of Baking With A Ghost

"I won't give you the details, but we kissed that night and it was the most glorious moment of my life. We arranged meetings after that. I'd sneak out and walk an hour to meet him halfway. We both walked because we couldn't always use the horses and didn’t want to be noticed. Sometimes one of us couldn't show up and we had no way of knowing ahead of time that would happen, but we both kept sneaking out because it was the only choice we had."

Wrapping my arms around him, I hold him tight. I hate that anyone has to hide something like that. I can't tell him it will be different now, because even today, we sometimes have to hide to protect ourselves. But it will be my mission to make sure he never feels like that again.

"So, I fell in love with him over a few weeks. It was easy to do. But we both didn't like sneaking around and sometimes missing our meetings due to farm or mill work. On the night I was leaving to run away, he was late. He wasn't there to help me. I learned that from Mike."

"Is that why you never really left, to wherever spirits go? You never got to say goodbye?"

A tear runs down his cheek. "I think so? It's a whole other thing to explain what it's like to be a ghost, but I remember looking across the riverbank and he wasn't there and I knew if he was, he would have come forward. I was happy he didn't see me fall, but I was heartbroken I didn't get to see him. I didn't know I wasn't going to wake up. My last thought before I fell asleep was "I hope Ronald is okay."

"What did Mike tell you?"

A small cry passes his lips. "Ronald wasn't okay. He learned I died after I didn't make two more meetings and came to the mill asking about me. My father immediately knew it was him I was going to run away with and blamed him for my death. Ronald… he… died a few years later, but I could never reach out to him because his spirit passed on quickly, so it was too late. Then I broke all the rules and stayed on earth, hoping one day I could find another man like Ronald and experience how it felt to be so alive again I'd risk my life to be with that special someone."

I'd never thought of it as him risking his life to be with me, since he was already dead. But when Mike explained what could happen if we hadn't formed a bond before he crossed over, that sounded like something even worse than death.

"Simon… I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything. Just be with me and know you're the one who brought me back to life."

John

Fashion Shows and Missing Clothes

Crossingspiritualplanesmustbe more exhausting than birthing a baby.

Between talking and eating, Simon has slept for twelve to fourteen hours every day. He assured me today he will try to be on my schedule and help with the bakery. He wants so badly to help and be there with me. I couldn't say no, after learning of his past. He's the best thing to ever happen to me, and to have him share my love of baking is the cherry on top. Part of my dream was to run this place with someone I love.

But I don't think he likes 3 A.M. wake up times.

"Hey, sleepy head. If you want to work with me today, you need to get up."

I flop down beside him on the bed and lean in to kiss his neck.

"Mmmm… can't we stay in bed?"

His hands blindly reach for me and he doesn't even open his eyes. Laughing, I slide out of his reach forcing him to crack an eye open.

"You're mean."

"Si, stay and sleep if you need to. You know where to find me. I'll leave you breakfast to heat up and just join me when you're ready."

This time when his hands reach for me, I slide back over and let him pull me into his warm body.

"You're too good to me, John. I'll get better at wake ups. I promise."

I drop a kiss on his temple.

"I think we're good for each other. We have forever, no need to rush."

When my lips press against his, I wish I didn't need to get back to work either.

Mymorningisinfull swing, and I’m still in the kitchen when my phone pings with a text.

Instead of answering I hit the video call, grinning when my best friend’s face fills the screen.

"Johnny, I thought you'd disappeared on me. I haven't heard from you for five days." Her voice is teasing, but I can tell by her expression, she was worried and I feel horrible for not touching base with her.

"I'm sorry, Ivy. I should've checked in. I was just... I didn't…" I puff out a breath. "It's so fucking wild, I don't even know what to tell you."

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