Christmas Spirit (The Middle-aged Ghost Whisperer Book 1): (Ghost Cozy Mystery series)

Christmas Spirit (The Middle-aged Ghost Whisperer Book 1): (Ghost Cozy Mystery series) by Morgana Best Read Free Book Online Page A

Book: Christmas Spirit (The Middle-aged Ghost Whisperer Book 1): (Ghost Cozy Mystery series) by Morgana Best Read Free Book Online
Authors: Morgana Best
from mine, and we would be a picture perfect family. These people meant well, but I always felt as if they blamed me. Maybe some of them did, with all the wild rumors my husband had let loose about me.
    “I’m happy that you have family here, because no one should be alone on Christmas,” Constance said loudly. “Is there more bubbly?”
    “I’ll get it,” Barbara said. “Prudence, I’ll take that with me and throw it in the trash.” I thanked her and handed her the dustpan and brush. She went into the kitchen and returned with two bottles. “White or pink champagne?” She held them both up.
    “Huh!” Constance made no attempt to hide her disdain. “That is bubbly , Barbara. Don’t you know anything? The name ‘Champagne’ is reserved for wines grown in France. Have I ever told you that I’m an expert on wine? My mother lived in the south of France for years. She was high society, you see, as am I. I’m fluent in French, too.”
    Barbara set the wine bottles in front of Constance, and then returned to her chair. I could see she was itching to say something, but thankfully, she didn’t. Iris kept rolling her eyes. Christina shook her head and poured herself another wine.
    “Do you have any beer, Prudence?” Uncle Tim said.
    I stood up. “Sure, I’ll get you a bottle.” I went into the kitchen and took a bottle from the fridge, but when I turned around, I saw that Clara was sitting at the kitchen table and sobbing quietly. When Luke saw me looking, he pretended to sob.
    I rubbed my forehead. “Are you all right, Rainbow?” I patted her shoulder.
    She stood up. “Luke doesn’t want to sleep on the mattress on the floor, so he can have my bed and I’ll have the mattress on the floor. Is that all right?”
    “Yes, of course,” I said, wondering why she was even asking me. “Make yourselves at home. But don’t you want any dinner?”
    “No, thanks. I’m going to bed now,” she said. “Luke doesn’t want to go to sleep yet, so he’s going to play games on my iPad.”
    “In your room?” I said hopefully.
    Clara nodded. I smiled and rejoined the others.
    “The kid’s a brat,” Uncle Tim said when I handed him his beer.
    I shushed him. “His father’s a geologist on an oil rig, as you know, and he can’t be home for Christmas.”
    “That’s no excuse,” Uncle Tim said. “The kid’s still a brat.”
    I breathed a huge sigh of relief when the door finally shut tight on my three friends. I looked around at Christina, who had fallen asleep on the couch, clutching a half-empty wine bottle. I tried to extract it from her sleeping hand, but she had it in a vice-like grip.
    “Looks like it’s only the two of us for dinner, Uncle Tim,” I said.
    He responded with a burp, and then clamped his hand over his mouth. “Pardon me. Just as well your parents aren’t here to see me, Prudence. I hope they’re having a good time on their cruise. Have you heard from them?”
    I nodded. “Yesterday. I’ll just set the table.”
    Uncle Tim shook his head. “Not for me, thanks, Prudence. I couldn’t eat a thing. I’m a bit over-refreshed.” He chuckled. “I think I’ll go to bed. Do you have any beer I could take to bed, just in case I get thirsty in the night?”
    After Uncle Tim had gone to bed clutching a six pack of ice-cold beer, I leaned against the smooth oak frame of the door.
    “I came from a small family. Is that how all relatives and women friends act?” Alum asked me.
    “I’m not sure,” I admitted. I groaned as I looked at the mess of glasses on the table and empty wine bottles on the floor. It would only take a few minutes to clear away, but I wasn’t quite up to it. I shuffled to a chair and sank into it with a sigh of relief. “I’m not exactly a social person. I don’t know if all people talk that way, or if we’re just, um, special.”
    Alum raised his eyebrows. “You aren’t a social person, but you do live shows for a living?”
    “That’s different. That’s

Similar Books

The Reunion

Summer Newman

A Lotus For Miss Quon

James Hadley Chase

Hope(less)

Melissa Haag

The Fourth Pig

Naomi Mitchison Marina Warner

The Quiet Game

Greg Iles