Page 116 of Ghost
“You’re diabolical.”
“And you love it.”She gripped his shirt.“Someone mentioned food...”
He chuckled.“Frozen pizza or takeout?”
“Pizza.”
He eased her onto the couch, then went to the kitchen.As the song played, she picked up the remote from the coffee table and foundHome Aloneon his streaming service.
Twenty minutes later, they were cuddled on the couch with bubbling cheesy pepperoni pizza.
She’d never been happier.
EPILOGUE
Ghost scrubbed hishand over his face.The sound of a party horn echoed through his office door.Pearl rounded the corner, peeking in.She wore cheap pink NYE glasses, a lit-up necklace, and a sparkly black dress.In her hand was a plastic cup full of her homemade eggnog.
“You’re not still working!”she said.“The party’s in full swing.”
He sighed and rolled away from his desk.The office was packed with all the employees and their families.Toth, Savannah, and Roman; Rami and Ivy; Gigi and August; Zain and Dana; a very pregnant Sephie, Taschen; and Brick, Natalie, and Bray.The dogs, Kevin and Micha, trotted around collecting treats and scraps of food from whoever would slide them something.
A pang of guilt hit him.He’d kind of abandoned Mila with Ivy and Gigi for a few minutes, but Rami had told Ghost he needed to speak with him, so he’d come into his office to wait.
“I’ll be right there.Save me some meatballs.”
Pearl tsked and placed the cup on his desk.“I’ll make you a plate before it’s all gone.You’ve got ten minutes.”
He smirked.Rami walked through the door with Kevin at his heels, and Pearl gave a little wave as she stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her.
Kevin jumped into the dog bed—each office was equipped with one—and lay down to rest.Ghost couldn’t blame the little Frenchie.He wanted to escape the commotion, too, and just take Mila back to his place.Although the party was entertaining, the urge to get home was strong.
From the moment he’d found her he’d wanted to ask Mila to move in, but with all that’d happened, he’d decided not to rush her.Instead, he’d asked her to stay while she healed.She’d agreed, and he’d collected a bunch of her belongings from her place.Until he got the balls to make things official, their living arrangement would be temporary.
“What’s up?”Ghost asked, as his friend took a seat across from him.
“I overstepped a little,” Rami said.He placed the folder he was holding on Ghost’s desk and rested his hand on top.“Something about Mila’s story nagged at me and I, well, I just couldn’t shake it.”
Annoyance prickled the back of Ghost’s neck.“If you came in here with some kind of dirt on her and you think—”
Rami held up his hand.“No, man.It’s not like that.”
Ghost gestured for Rami to continue.
“Her story ate me up.Being kidnapped and—” He shook his head.“I’ll leave this with you.”With that, Rami exited, taking Kevin with him.
Curiosity gnawed at Ghost.He slid the slim manila folder across the desk and flipped it open.
His blood slowed, and he blinked repeatedly as he read the words over and over.Finally, he lowered the folder.
Holy shit.
***
Mila accepted thecup of coffee from Ghost.Despite it being the morning after New Year’s Eve, she’d slept great.She’d been a little apprehensive about attending Ghost’s work party, but she’d had the best time with all the women.Seeing Dana had instantly settled her nerves and made her feel more welcome.
“Can you believebothNatalie and Sephie are pregnant?”
Ghost poured cream into his mug and sat at the table next to her.“Just watch, Ivy and Gigi will be next.”He chuckled.“But yeah, it’s pretty amazing.More Backcountry kids to have running around the office.”
