Page 55 of The Moonstone Major
And blinked again.
A woman in white, and she was still there.
He staggered to his feet, stupidly thinking he could chase the vision away if he showed no fear and approached it.
But as he stumbled across his garden toward those beach steps, the vision seemed to be coming toward him with an equally determined purpose. An angry ghost, he could tell by her strides.
Were hauntings supposed to work this way?
The glorious vision was now directly in front of him, within arm’s length, to be precise, and she was glowering at him.
He felt the sting of a slap across his face.
The brain matter between his ears rattled, but that unexpected jolt had the remarkable effect of clearing his thoughts and his eyesight. “Blessed saints, Chloe. You should not have come. What are you doing here?”
She was sobbing and heaving breaths while her hands were fisted at her sides. “You gave me your word and then you broke it.”
“For your own good. Do you think any of this is easy for me? Look at me. I’m so drunk, I am not even sure you are here in front of me. Are you real or an illusion? You look exquisite, by the way.”
“Says the man who cannot see straight,” she muttered. “And look at me. Can you not see what you have done to me?”
“That slap was a helpful hint.”
“Fionn, I am brokenhearted.” Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“And I am angry that you might have drowned walking over here. Does your family know where you are? What time is it? Must be after midnight.”
“It is. Everyone’s asleep, but how could I close my eyes? I had to slip away.”
“To confront me and tell me what a wretch I am? As you can see, I have beaten you to it.” He glanced at his bottle and then raked a hand through his hair. “You cannot stay. I’ll walk you back.”
“You’ll fall down the stairs and break your neck. I walked over from the beach on my own and can make it back the same way once I am ready.”
“You’ll drown.”
She rolled her eyes. “I am not in danger of drowning. The tide is out.”
“But it won’t be for long.”
“What I have to say to you won’t take long.”
He was numb enough to accept whatever chastisement she intended to serve up, and probably wouldn’t remember a thing she’d said by morning. “You look beautiful, by the way.”
“You’ve already told me.”
“I have? When?”
“Less than a minute ago.”
“Oh.” His gaze raked over her. “What are you wearing? It looks deliciously skimpy.”
To his fuzzy eyes, it looked like a gown of ivory silk that clung to her exquisite curves. Her hair was unbound and in a wild tumble down her back, the ends curling in a becoming fashion about her womanly hips.
What a body on this girl.
“I have on my nightgown and robe. It is absolutely proper.”
He laughed. “You are here after midnight. In seductive nightclothes. It is not—”
