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Then she sat back in one of the rockers, closing her eyes and savoring the soft, cleansing sweep of the breeze, and wondering herself just who had done the tapping

She was startled a minute later as she felt a presence next to her

One that was verya low-key scent of aftershave

She opened her eyes to see that Matt had joined her, taking the chair at her side He watched her for a

She turned back and stared at the night, not waiting for hihost"

With peripheral vision, she saw that a slow rueful smile curled into his lips

"Thank God! I’d have lost all faith in you if you had said differently"

"Oh? I didn’t realize that you had faith in in with"

"That all remains to be seen"

"I’ve found that most people don’t believe in the occult," Darcy told him "Yet just the same, most people have a little voice of suspicion soand the dead"

"You mean they’re open-minded?" he said

"Maybe minds aren’t all open, but there’s often a crack there sohtfully for a minute "We’ve always had a ht into military schools and served in the army for several years The dead bodies I saw all stayed that way I first becaht suggest that the uarantee you, there were plenty of crily, but always coain, I’m the direct heir to all those years of history, tradition, one on at Melody House If so or have a link to the past, wouldn’t it be hed "Not when there’s not even one of those cracks in your mind to allow the dead to try to speak to you"

He was silent again, rocking, then looked at her with one of the smiles that suddenly sent a streak of warmth to quicken her limbs whether she wanted to admit it or not

"When my dad died, I wanted hi to do anything--I would have crawled into the coffin to go with hirandfather, except that I was older then, and one on"

The emotion hich he spoke touched her deeply Then he said, al sound, were you?"

She stiffened, cold and indignant instantly "No, I was not! And co You didn’t ainst woray eyes of his bearing soerous spark "I like women just fine, Darcy Especially the really honest ones, and yes, they are out there I didn’t mention my mother because she died when I was a few et to know her well"

She turned back to the night "Sorry"

"What about you?"

She gazed at hi at all against other women"

"No, Ihole where the dead cah to speak to you at all times?"

"Oh," she ood friend And he died"

"And then he spoke to you?"

"So to scoff at her again, but it seemed that he could be quite mercurial in his manner She was startled when his hand lay upon hers where it rested on the arentle

"Don’t you think that sometimes people see people, or hear them, just because they so desperately want to hear that person speak again?"

"Sometimes, yes"

"But not with you?"

"I wish that was all that it had been," Darcy told him

His eyes were almost affectionate, and he watched her with an appreciation that once again sent her heart thundering, her blood racing And she was startled to realize that she hadn’t been so strongly, alnetically, attracted to anyone like this in years Maybe never There was so in him beyond his extraordinary looks, and even the sense of power and security that he eainst his skin, stroke his face, and feel the warreater She was almost afraid to hear him speak, because the te He was about to speak, and she was beyond fascinated to hear what he was about to say