The Ghost of Christmas Present by Jenny Lykins Read Free Book Online

her.
    "Don't...worry."
    She watched as he seemed to lose
consciousness.
    "Jared!" she yelled, then screamed his
name again when he didn't answer.
    "Okay, stay calm," she told herself.
She sank back onto her heels and stared at the face already
precious to her heart.
    Just a hint of his form was visible on
the couch. Just a hint of his existence.
    Is that how much he'd given up to touch
her? Is that all that was left of him on this earth?
    She knew now what he'd meant about
using his energy. About ceasing to exist. The thought terrified her
and she swore she'd forbid him to touch her like that ever again.
Nothing was worth the price of his existence. She refused to be the
one he would give up his existence for.
    She knelt by his side, cursing her
helplessness. Her mind raced for ways to help him, but all she
could think of were mortal comforts. She couldn't get him a pillow
or drape a blanket over him. She couldn't even hold his
hand.
    The fire died in the grate and the
candles guttered in their holders, and still she stayed by his
side. Sometime during the night she woke to find her head cradled
in her arms, resting on the couch cushions. Every joint in her body
ached and she finally struggled to her feet and dropped into the
recliner. Moonlight fell across his body on the couch, but he
looked no stronger than he had hours earlier.
    She sat there and stared at
him until her eyes burned. She willed him to get better. And as she
sat vigil she faced the truth that she'd fallen in love with a dead
man. After knowing Jared, every other man she'd ever known,
including David, especially David, paled in comparison. Jared would
forever be the standard to which she measured other men, and she
knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that none would ever come
close.
     
    ********
     
    Sometime before noon his eyes finally
opened and he stared heavenward for a moment before turning his
gaze straight to her, as if he'd known she was there all
along.
    He just looked at her, with such a love
and sadness in his eyes it brought burning tears to her
own.
    "Thank you for staying with me," he
said quietly, his voice stronger than before. "I knew you were
here. I don't sleep, you know, but I'd lost the strength to
speak."
    Alane didn't trust her voice so she
just smiled and shook her head to tell him it was nothing. When
she'd swallowed back the tears, she knelt by his side, aching to be
able to take his hand in hers.
    "You're never to do something like that
again, do you understand?"
    "Do what?" he asked with a weak,
innocent grin.
    She couldn't even punch him in the
arm.
    "Touch me, smart-alec. You're never to
take a chance like that again."
    He lifted his hand and drew it along
her cheek.
    "It was worth it."
    "No, it wasn't. You nearly faded
completely away! I was scared to death!"
    He dropped his hand to mingle with hers
and all traces of a smile left his face.
    "If I had awakened in Hell this
morning, it still would have been worth it. I kissed an angel last
night, and I learned the joy of what it is to love and to be loved.
If I cease to exist this minute, I will go a happy man."
    "And you'll leave me to mourn you for
the rest of my life. Promise me you won't take that chance again."
When he didn't answer she nearly screamed for wanting to shake him.
"Promise me!"
    When he still didn't answer, she got to
her feet and glared down at him, hands on her hips. She had to know
he'd be safe.
    "Promise, or I'll leave right now and
never come back. I won't stay here and jeopardize your
existence."
    He struggled to sit up, then swung his
feet to the floor and sighed.
    "I promise never to touch you again,
unless you ask. How's that?"
    A hollow victory, she thought. But at
least it would keep him safe. She nodded.
    "Now. Is there anything I can do to
help you get your strength back?"
    "A cup of coffee and a twenty ounce
steak would do wonders."
    She picked up a throw pillow and hurled
it at his head. He actually tried to dodge it, but it sailed
through his chest