“Ghosts.” She nodded thoughtfully. “It’s entirely possible. This wouldn’t be the first time I’ve encountered one.” She held her hand out. “Hi, I’m Autumn.”
“Gigi.” Their hands touched, and a comforting warmth spread through her.
Autumn’s hand tightened around Gigi’s and she held on for a moment longer than normal as Autumn stared in wonder at her. Then she blinked, dropped Gigi’s hand, and took a step back as she cleared her throat. “Welcome to the Thorne estate sale. Are you looking for anything in particular or just treasure hunting?”
“Garments in particular,” Skyler called from his place over at the clothing rack. “But I want to see everything. You never know what you’re going to find.”
Autumn stared at Gigi for a moment longer before turning to Skyler and smiling. “Perfect. When you’re done there, let me take you upstairs so you can see the rest of Mrs. Thorne’s wardrobe.”
“There’s more?” Skyler breathed, his face alight with excitement.
She chuckled. “Yes. The garments you’re looking at are just a sampling.” Autumn walked over to him, introduced herself, and the two of them got lost in a conversation about all of Mrs. Thorne’s favorite designers.
Gigi watched them for a few minutes before slipping out of the room and following the arrows to a large sitting room in the back of the house. It had obviously been the formal living room with an attached dining room. The walls were covered in wood paneling, and there was a more modern white couch and two matching armchairs facing each other. But the end tables and china cabinet were the same Louis the XV style as the settee from the other room. It was clear the owner had gone for chic comfort while trying to keep the rest of the furnishings as original as possible.
“I knew you’d come,” an ethereal voice called from behind her.
Gooseflesh popped out over Gigi’s skin. She froze before carefully turning in the direction of the voice. At the head of the table in the adjacent dining room, there was a shimmering outline of a woman wearing an elegant beaded gown. Her curly hair was piled up on her head with tendrils framing her face and showing off teardrop diamond earrings. She held up a gloved hand and beckoned for Gigi to come closer.
As if in a trance, Gigi moved forward, both drawn to the woman but also terrified because she knew that face. She’d seen it before in a black and white photo in her mother’s things.
“You know of me, don’t you?” the woman asked.
“Yes,” Gigi said. “You’re my great aunt Celia.” Gigi had gotten used to being around ghosts at her own house, but the materialization of a relative in a house she’d never been to before was starting to freak her out. “What are you doing here?”
The ghost let out a humorless laugh. “Enjoying my home before that twit Garrison Thorne, Jr. sells it for the cash that he’ll waste on bad business deals and even worse investments.”
Gigi racked her brain, trying to remember what she knew about Celia. Not much. “You lived here?”
Celia nodded. “My entire life. It’s too bad Branson and I never had children. If so, the house would’ve never fallen into my cousin Tillie’s hands. The only thing she was good at was decorating. At least she passed that on to her great granddaughter. Vanessa Thorne had great taste. She sure made it pleasurable haunting this old place the last several years.”
“Wow. I don’t know much about this side of the family,” Gigi said, taking a seat at the table, content to keep talking to her ancestor for as long as she could. The truth was Gigi didn’t know much about any of her ancestors. She had some photos from her mother’s things, but nothing from her father at all. He’d left before she was old enough to even remember him. “Do you have more living relatives around here?”
The ghost shook her head. “Garrison and his gold-digging trophy wife are only related by marriage. Neither are worth your time.”
“Oh. That’s unfortunate. But that’s okay. You’re obviously here to tell me something,” Gigi said, narrowing her eyes at Celia. “Otherwise you wouldn’t be using that much energy.” The light around Celia had started to dim, and Gigi could tell the ghost would be fading away soon. Most couldn’t materialize for a long period of time. It appeared Celia was at the end of her energy cycle.
“I am. I like that you’re a smart one.” She smiled at Gigi and then sobered. “Listen carefully now because this is important. Trust doesn’t come easily, but if you don’t earn it, history will repeat itself.”
Gigi’s body stiffened as she felt her insides turn to ice at the warning. Leaning forward, she stared at the fading light of the ghost and asked earnestly, “Earn whose trust?”
The ghost opened her mouth to say something, but before she could get any words out, she vanished.
Tears of frustration stung Gigi’s eyes. History will repeat itself? What the hell did that mean? Gigi couldn’t help but think the worst. Her mother had disappeared, and her case had gone unsolved. Did that mean her abductor was back and someone else would be harmed?
Sebastian’s face materialized in her mind, and she felt sick to her stomach. Had the authorities been right all those years ago?
No.
The word was loud in her brain, but she had no idea where it came from. Her subconscious? Celia? All she knew was that deep in her gut, she didn’t believe that Sebastian had anything to do with her mother’s disappearance. And if there was one thing she’d learned in her forty years, it was that when she listened to her gut, it never steered her wrong.
Sebastian. He was the key. The one from her past who had the answers. Friday couldn’t come soon enough.
Chapter Six
“I hired Autumn today,” Skyler said as he placed his charcuterie board on her counter.
Gigi placed a stack of napkins next to the plates and looked up at him. They were in her kitchen doing the last-minute prep for her cocktail party. “You did? For what?”
“He wants her to be his assistant at the boutique,” Pete said, snaking an arm around Skyler and pulling him close. Skyler glanced up at his husband and gave him a small smile as Pete added, “And it’s not a moment too soon either. I’ve barely seen this one since I got home. He’s been so busy he even missed dinner last night.”
“Sky!” Gigi exclaimed. “The dinner Pete spent all day working on for you?”
“I got a call from a private client who needed something to wear to an event! I couldn’t say no.” He squeezed Pete. “I’m sorry, honey. But I made it up to you later, right?”
Pete’s eyes gleamed as he gave his husband a mischievous smile. “Yes, you did, baby. Who cares about dinner?”
Skyler chuckled. “That’s what I thought. Dinner was still excellent warmed up for brunch this morning.”
A small stab of pure jealousy pierced Gigi in the chest as she watched them. She couldn’t remember a single moment in her marriage when she and James had been even half as in love as her two friends were. Their joy just radiated off them, and while she loved seeing it, she also couldn’t help but feel just a little sorry for herself.