Page 173 of Dead Vengeance

“Honey,” he laughs, taking my hands, “I’d love nothing more than to stay with you for as long as I can.” He places a peck on my lips, sweet, if tired, then asks me, “How’s your ghost stuff going?”

“There are a lot of ghosts,” I admit, looking out the window, down at the street. “I’m doing like you said and just not making eye contact. But it’s weird.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty weird.”

“Yeah. It is. But unlike you, I have someone to talk to about it. Someone who gets it. And you know, you’ve built a whole business around it. A whole life. So maybe one day…” I chuckle, embarrassed. “I don’t know. All I do know is I’m heading over to see Gerald this morning to get that mirror. Hopefully, that will calm things down a bit. If he fires me, it will be worth it.”

I reach past him to grab the mugs, but Archer’s hand finds the small of my back, pausing me. “If he fires you? You’re planning to stay and work for him if not?”

“I don’t know. I guess so? It’s not that I want to work for him, especially knowing that he’s so shifty. And knowing that the work will probably dry up as soon as I get that mirror out of his hands. But I have to do something, don’t I?”

I reach for the mugs again, and I’m halfway across the kitchen with them when Archer suggests softly, “I can think of something you could do…”

I pause, swivelling around. “Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah…” He steps over to me, takes the tea and places it down on the bench, then rests his hands on my hips, exactly where they belong. “It’s… a pretty action-packed workplace. A little dangerous at times. And it’s long hours.” He drops a kiss on my neck, sending a shower of tingles down my spine. “Lots of late nights.”

I lean into him, whispering, “Tell me more.”

“The boss is very demanding…” Teeth on my neck that just about end me.

“Is that right, Mr Gravely?”

He pulls back, scowling at me sternly. “And insubordination is handled with swift discipline.”

Before his hand can slip any lower, here in my mother’s kitchen, because god knows I won’t be able to stop him if it does, I cry out, “I accept your terms, sir. When can I start?”

Archer laughs, then softens. “Are you serious? Would you really?”

My heart stutters, part disappointment, part embarrassment. “Wait… Are you serious?”

He slightly raises one shoulder. “I’m serious if you’re serious?”

“Are you seriously serious?”

“Seriously serious. Liam, would you please join Dead Vengeance? Business partner, chief investigator, any title you like. I have more than enough work to keep us both occupied for millennia. And I could really use your help. I guarantee you the pay will be better than the ExorSquad.”

I tilt my head, enjoying another kiss at the corner of my mouth, pretending I’m thinking it over. “Could I be… Vice Presidential Chief Executive Fuckboy?”

He smiles against my lips. “I don’t know. Do you take good dicktation?”

“I thought I proved myself during the training module…”

“Good point. You’re hired.”

It’s a while before I can escape with Archer. I need to get back to the flat as soon as possible to make us feel like a whole family again. Which I want. This is a gift from Archer greater than anyone could ever imagine, and I’m desperate to curl up on the sofa with the pair of them, get some soft drink and crisps, watch some bad movies. Just feel the kind of normal I never thought I’d feel again. That you don’t know to treasure until someone comes and rips it away from you.

Mum and Jem are obviously both really keen for that too, so it’s only under the guise of going out for supplies that I can slip away to see Gerald. Archer, since that first day, remains steadfast by my side.

I’m anxious, exhausted, really not looking forward to another scene. But this has to be done.

I push open the door on the ExorSquad office, bracing for the worst, but all I get is Ted looking equally tired as me. He raises a sardonic eyebrow, picks up the phone and mutters into it, “He’s back.”

Okay, great. So Gerald knows.

Gerald must know because before I can even make it past Ted’s desk, his door swings open. “It’s good to see you, lad. Come in!” This with a pat on my shoulder as I pass through the doorway.

I’m pretty sure I catch an anxiousness in his gaze when it lands on Archer, but he quickly hides it as he sinks down behind his desk to begin. “I’m going to cut right to the chase with you, Liam. Ted’s informed me of your concerns, and I’ve taken the appropriate actions required of me at this time.”