The house my grandmother owned in the 50s and 60s was supposedly haunted by a ghost she named Ethel Beth. This house was located in Los Angeles, not far from Century City, in a neighborhood of homes. In fact, it was a rather nice neighborhood (probably still is). Nothing spooky about it, really.

Ethel Beth had been known to open windows (the kind that had to be pushed upward), turn on lights, and throw hats out of a closet. I never witnessed any of her antics, but more than one person admitted to seeing these things. Now, whether this was a story that people loved to get in on, or Ethel Beth really existed, I’ll never know.

And while I loved to visit my grandmother and listen to the stories, I wasn’t always so keen on spending the night. Every noise spooked me! I never saw any sign of Ethel Beth, though (maybe she knew I was scared).

But the stories always intrigued me. Ghosts intrigue me. So when my husband suggested I write a book with a ghost, I thought, why not? And that’s how Ghostly Liaison was born (to be released on January 19, 2015 through Lyrical Press/Kensington).

Avoiding love is hard. Catching a killer can be fatal…

When Rob’s sister passed away, she left him her dog and her house. He can handle the dog part, but he doesn’t need another home. Especially a fixer-upper the neighbor swears is haunted. Then he meets Bridget, who’s working on getting her life back together after a car accident left her scarred in more ways than one. She can’t pass up Rob’s offer of free lodging, regardless of the shape it’s in. Or the roommate that’s part of the package. She’s never believed in ghosts, but now she’s living with one who wants Bridget’s help in catching a killer. There’s only one problem: the killer has unfinished business…

So… If you saw ghosts (and didn’t die of fright), would you tell anyone? How might you go about doing that? Well, this is how Bridget tells Rob in the following excerpt from Ghostly Liaison:

Rob scooted closer and placed his hand on her knee. “The whole incident was in the papers. Could we please talk about something less depressing?”

Bridget’s heart sped up from his touch. “Like…like what?”

“I don’t know. Movies, TV, the weather.” He removed his hand from her knee and stroked her fingers. His warmth zinged through her extremities.

Her heart went from double-time to whoa-baby-come-to-mama. She had to stop his advances and sitting with her legs wide open was probably inviting him in. She lowered her knee and straightened. Wrong move. That only gave him more room and he scooted closer.

He smelled good—of soap and wood—and grasped her hand before she could pull it away. “What are you afraid of, Bridget? Did some guy break your heart?”

“Sure, what girl hasn’t had her heart-broken.” She stared at his lips. Would it be so bad if they kissed? Kisses were just kisses, not a commitment. “How is it you’re still free? You a playboy?”

His smile made his eye gleam. “Not a playboy. Never found the right woman. Until…maybe…now.”

He held the back of her head. With the sound of blood rushing in her ears, she closed her eyes. He brushed his lips across hers and she leaned into them. What started out soft gradually became hard, almost as if he was staking a claim. She opened to him and he thrust his tongue in, exploring. He tasted better than she imagined, a mix of beer and pizza and something uniquely him.

He rubbed his thumb against her nipple and she moaned into his mouth. It had been too long since someone had last touched her. She craved everything he had to offer.

Slowly, he trailed his hand down her body, ending at her core. Frozen in place, she gradually thawed as he stroked her. She grew wet for him. Tentatively, she placed her hand on his chest, wishing the shirt would disappear. The buttons were at her fingertips. Could she slip her hand in?

He was nuzzling her neck when her mind cleared. Shit! Charlie was probably in the room.

Watching.

“I see dead people.” Hell’s bells. That had come out all wrong.

*~*~*~*

Buy Links (available for pre-order)

Amazon: 
https://www.amazon.com/Ghostly-Liaison-Stacy-McKitrick-ebook/dp/B00OZUMI7E/ref=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1414875823&sr=1-7&keywords=stacy+mckitrick
Barnes & Noble:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/ghostly-liaison-stacy-mckitrick/1120657538?ean=9781616506377
Kobo:
https://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Ghostly-Liaison/book-GzLyRUdu9Eala9IQ1BMMDw/page1.html?s=imnGgimVgEy0ZdR5BRjfTw&r=1
Google:
https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Stacy_McKitrick_Ghostly_Liaison?id=AFgcBQAAQBAJ
Kensington:
https://www.kensingtonbooks.com/book.aspx/31120?category=313157

Stacy McKitrick fell in love with paranormal romance, decided to write her own and found her passion in life. She used to work in accounting, now she spends her time with vampires, ghosts, and aliens. Born in California, she currently resides in Ohio with her husband. They have two grown children. www.StacyMcKitrick.com