Page 22 of Haunted Spurs

Me: In your dreams.

New-cowboy: We already talked about this, Selene… my dreams might make you blush.

Pfft. If only he knew mine. But he absolutely must never, ever find that out.

Me: I’m the smut writer here, babe.

New-cowboy: Hmm… then I strongly believe you should go out with me. You know, for research purposes.

Me: Has that line ever actually worked on a woman?

New-cowboy: You tell me… this is my first time trying it. So?

Ron’s chat vanishes abruptly.

The screen goes black, then flashes with Jessica’s name. Incoming call.

Dammit.

The weight in my chest hits me again like an anvil. The brambles in my stomach tighten.

I take a deep breath. Okay. Time to face the music.

“Hello,” I huff. Yeah, I’m still really mad at her for trapping me in this damn reality show.

“Hey! What an explosive amount of joy for someone who finally wrote something new!”

Her voice is, as always, a high-pitched trill full of vibrant energy. We are the sun and the moon.

I think she’d be great with Ron.

A perfect match. Two human golden retrievers.

Just the thought of it sends a dull pang of irritation to the pit of my stomach. Why is that bothering me? I shake my head, chasing the image away.

“Well?” I ask, standing up from my chair. There is an unwritten, unbreakable rule in my life: when I’m on the phone, I have to walk. Preferably pacing back and forth. “Is there anything usable?”

“Anything usable? Did you even reread it?!”

Here we go. Now she’s going to tell me I’m a hopeless, lost cause. Then she’ll launch right back into her rant about my asshole ex Jim, and how that narcissistic bastard destroyed my creativity and drained me emotionally. I brace for impact.

“IT’S AMAZING, SEL! I THINK THIS MIGHT BE THE BEST THING YOU’VE EVER WRITTEN!”

I stop mid-stride, nearly tripping over my dark rug. “W-what?”

“Did I not yell loud enough for you?”

I pull the phone away from my ear, just to be safe and avoid permanent hearing damage.

“No, I heard you loud and clear.”

“Good! Then keep writing it! Spending time with this cowboy is doing wonders for you… I’d say I told you so, but the show hasn’t even started yet!”

Her tone is infuriatingly smug. Even though I can only hear her, I can clearly picture her winking at me, looking far too pleased with herself.

“There’s no…”

Fuck. I stop myself.