AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Settled at my desk with my food, I opened up my research notebook and began reading through my notes. As I read, I cross-referenced things in my journal with social media posts and old articles. It was time to figure out what I was going to do for this Ghost Parker story. It was arguably the most important article of my career, and I hadn’t been able to focus on it for days.
There had to be a story here, something that wouldn’t require me to exploit Ghost and the band members’ personal tragedies. I stared at the mess of notes, articles, and social media posts scattered across my desk.
I read through interview notes from some of the road crew that I’d highlighted. Equipment malfunctions, tour bus breakdowns, missing items, and lights flickering probably occurred on every rock tour in existence, but I could spin some of those things to sound more ghostly.
Better quotes were the ones that discussed feelings of being followed or watched, unexplained cold spots, and strange shadows or figures spotted. I could really play up the eerie nature of those incidents. A few other happenings that occurred, like when a crew member was accidentally locked in a room or when a road case mysteriously slid off a dolly and almost crushed a man, were probably due to human error more than ghostly haunting, but I didn’t have much to work with.
I had enough material to paint the picture of a ghost with a malicious nature preying on the band. But who was this supposed ghost? Outside of exploiting a few tragedies that would hurt members of the band, I didn’t have any suspects.
Surely there was another angle I could pursue? What if the ghost didn’t have anything to do with the band? What if the band was just the unfortunate people that the ghost attached to?
A spark of inspiration flickered in my mind. Old theatres often had histories of paranormal activity. If Ghost Parker had ever performed at a venue like that, I had my connection. It was admittedly weak, but it was something.
I spent hours poring over Ghost Parker’s early tour dates, cross-referencing venues with reported paranormal activity. My fingers tapped away at the keyboard, my determination growing stronger with each passing minute. If I could find a way to tie their ghostly photograph to a haunted venue, it would be a compelling angle for my story — one that wouldn’t involve exposing the band members’ private lives.
Long after the last person had cleared out of the newsroom, I finally found what I was looking for: an old theater with a chilling history of unexplained events, including the sudden death of its original owner. Ghost Parker had played there just days before the infamous photo was taken.
“Gotcha,” I whispered triumphantly, as a sense of satisfaction washed over me.
I had all the information I needed. Now, I had to weave the disjointed threads into a spellbinding story that would capture the attention of the masses. With a newfound sense of purpose, I closed my research notebook and began typing away on my laptop.
Chapter 26
Greyson
I took a deep breath and steadied my nerves as Lucy entered the bedroom set. This was the first love scene we’d ever filmed together, and while I knew she was a professional, the thought of being so intimate on camera with someone I thought of as a friend made me anxious.
Lucy sauntered over, her silk robe flowing around her legs. She flashed me a reassuring smile as the director called out, “Action!”
I pulled Lucy into my arms, my hands roaming over the curves of her body as our lips met in a passionate kiss. Her mouth opened under mine, her tongue sliding against my own as my fingers found the knot of her robe and pulled it loose. The silk slithered to the floor around her feet, leaving her nearly bare — except for a modesty patch and a couple of pasties — in my embrace.
My hands cupped her breasts, kneading the soft flesh as she moaned into my mouth. The sound had my dick twitching enough to make me frantically start reciting the famous ‘To Be or Not To Be’ soliloquy from Hamlet in my head. I backed her toward the bed, laying her down on the mattress and climbing over her.
This was all acting, I reminded myself. Just another day at work.
I leaned over her, brushing my lips against the curve of her neck.
“Are you ready?” I whispered, trying to ignore the heat pooling in my gut. It was hard to make my body listen to my brain.
She nodded, her hazel eyes meeting mine. “Whenever you are.”
I lowered my head, placing my mouth over her pastie as I’d been directed to in rehearsal by the intimacy coordinator. Lucy gasped, arching into me as I rested my mouth against her breast. Her hands slid into my hair and I remembered to sweep my hand down the soft skin of her thigh.
Fuck, this was weird.
Her breath hitched as my fingers crept higher, and I gritted my teeth against the sudden tightness in my jeans.
I kept my movements slow and sensual for the camera, all the while cursing the arousal coiling inside me. This was Lucy, my friend, not some nameless woman I was taking to bed. But in this moment, with her soft moans in my ear, while I kissed a trail across her collarbone, I could almost forget.
“Colton,” she whimpered, her nails digging into my arm. “Please...”
The director finally called “cut”, so I took a deep, steadying breath and opened my eyes to find Lucy watching me, her cheeks flushed and eyes dark with lingering passion.
This was going to be a long day.
Lucy pulled on her robe and I took a drink of water while makeup touched us both up.
“Ready for another take?” the director called.
