Page 15 of Fall I Want
“Autumn,” he says, matter-of-factly, like he knows me.
Spraying it inside the house would be bad for both of us.
“Notyou,” I whisper, but the truth is I’ve wanted to see him. I’ve wished for it.
“The feeling is more than mutual.” His jaw clenches.
The only explanation for this is I’m still asleep. My alarm hasn’t gone off yet and I never went for my run. Right?
There is no way I’m in Hollow Manor standing in front of the douchebag that has plagued me for two weeks.
“Is this real?” I finally ask. When I say that in my dreams, my subconscious always wakes me up.
“More like a goddamn nightmare,” he snaps, and I’m not ripped away, but this time I wish I were.
His stony gaze stares through me like I’m invisible.
A few more seconds pass as he studies me. I holster the bear spray and glance away from him.
This man is my curse, with his high cheekbones, chiseled jaw, and bad attitude. Alex has haunted me since the moment he stormed out of Cozy Coffee.
For once, I should’ve listened to my best friend and not turned that knob. Or maybe I’m supposed to be here. Everything happens for a reason, right?
“You shouldn’t fucking be here.”
Chapter 4
Alexander
Autumn stares at me like I stole her voice.
“Did you forget how to speak?” I ask, surprised she’s standing in my house. I’ve somehow avoided the coffee shop for two weeks, even though I’ve been tempted to visit again just to make sure she was real.
When she entered the library, she didn’t see me sitting in the room’s corner reading. For a few minutes, I watched her eyes scan over the books. Weirdly, I’d been thinking about her, and then she waltzed into the room. It was like she was summoned.
The athletic clothes fit her like a second skin and leave no room for the imagination.
“I’m very sorry,” she mutters. “I wasn’t trying to— Wait, do you live here?”
I narrow my eyes. “You’re not in a position to ask me any goddamn questions. I should have you arrested then file charges for breaking and entering.”
“I broke nothing. The door was unlocked. Since it was raining I—”
“I’m calling the chief of police,” I say, turning to exit the library.
It’s one of my favorite rooms in the house, the place I spent most of my time when I was a teenager, filled with my favorites.
Autumn scoffs and follows behind me. She keeps up with my long stride. “Please don’t do that. We can discuss this like adults.”
I stop walking and she crashes into the back of me. I turn and glare at her. “You’re trespassing.No oneshould be in this house other than me.”
“Fine. Good luck here. It’s haunted,” she says, glancing up at the high ceilings like she expects a ghost to pop out, then tries to skirt past me, but I grab onto her.
“Excuse me?” My face almost breaks into a smile, but I force it away. She’s too damn adorable.
“A family was murdered within these walls,” she says with a serious expression. “Didn’t anyone warn you about Hollow Manor?”
I shake my head at the ridiculousness. My mother and father built this house and have been the only owners and residents. Sure, it’s been vacant for a long while, but if a ghost is haunting the space, it’s my mom. She would’ve loved the thought of that.
