Oleander House: Bay City Paranormal Investigations, Book 1

and stepped back a pace. “Fine. Whatever.”
He started back down the stairs, deliberately not looking back.
“Sam?” Bo’s voice was full of uncertainty.
“It’s forgotten,” Sam said without turning around. “See you in a few minutes.”
He’d reached the bottom of the stairs before he heard Bo’s footsteps in the upstairs hall.
Chapter Six
    Sam wasn’t surprised when Bo switched the teams around, pairing himself with Amy and Sam with Andre. That was fine with Sam. Spending the day awkwardly avoiding each other’s eyes didn’t appeal to him any more than it evidently did to Bo. He wondered morosely if they’d ever be able to return to the easy camaraderie of the previous day.
    First full day on the goddamn job, he thought as he put a tape in the player, and you fuck it up by kissing the boss. Stupid, Sam.
    Almost as stupid as the boss coming on to his new employee when he’s married and trying to pass for straight, the troublemaker in his head answered.
    “Shut up,” he muttered.
Andre turned to frown at him. “What?”
Sam forced a smile. “Nothing. Just telling my brain
    to settle down so I can work.”
    Andre laughed. “Weirdly enough, I know what you mean. Sometimes my thoughts get so loud I can’t think through the noise, you know?”
    “Exactly.” Sam gave Andre a considering look. “Do you think that’s why we’re having these weird dreams and no one else is? Because of our overactive brains?”
    “Could be. I’d be interested to know whether the freaky electromagnetic field in this place has anything to do with it, too.”
    Sam leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling. “Hm. I wonder.”
“We should bring that up with Bo and Amy. See what they think.”
Just hearing Bo’s name made Sam’s heart thud painfully against his ribs. He had to fight to keep the turmoil inside him from showing on his face. “Yeah, good idea.” He leaned forward to start the tape rolling, then stopped and sat back again. “Hey, Andre?”
“Hm?”
“Can I ask you a personal question?”
Andre popped the tape he was holding into his VCR and grinned at Sam. “You can ask. Doesn’t mean I’ll answer.”
Sam laughed. “Fair enough.”
“So what’d you want to know?” Andre swiveled his chair to face Sam.
“You and Amy have been together a while.” “Yeah.”
“And you love each other, right?”
“Sure do.”
“Well, how’d you know? I mean, did you know right away that she was the one for you, or did it take a while?”
Andre smiled, dark eyes shining. “Why? You got a girl you’re wondering about?”
“Something like that.” Sam felt his face flame with embarrassment, but he held Andre’s gaze.
“It wasn’t love at first sight, if that’s what you mean. I don’t believe in that. But I knew there was something special about her the minute I met her. I think we both knew right from the start that we were headed for something long-term, even if we didn’t know exactly what it was.”
Sam nodded, his heart sinking. He didn’t want to have those sorts of feelings for Bo, but he was very afraid he did. “Okay. Thanks.”
Andre gave him a narrow look. “You don’t look too happy.”
“Let’s just say that the person I might have feelings for isn’t someone that I should be feeling that way about.” Sam let out a frustrated sigh. “Let’s get to work, huh?”
To his relief, Andre didn’t push the issue. “Sure. Which tape you got?”
“Barn.”
“Okay. I have the washhouse.” Andre flashed a grin as he started his tape. “Here we go!”
Sam laughed in spite of his stormy mood, started the barn tape and settled back to watch.
The morning dragged by. Sam had a hard time keeping his attention on what he was doing. His mind kept running in endless circles, replaying that one electric kiss over and over again. The satin softness of Bo’s lips, the slick warmth of his tongue against Sam’s. He wanted that kiss again so badly it hurt.
The hell of it was, he knew Bo wanted it too but wouldn’t allow either of them to have it.
When the tape came to an end, Sam shut it off with a sense of relief. He yawned and stretched. “Well, that was a waste of time.”
Andre glanced over at him. “Nothing, huh?”
“Not a damn thing. Just you and Amy talking.”
“Hey, that’s enough entertainment for anybody.”
“Andre, you and Amy are great people, but take my advice and keep your day jobs.”
Andre roared with laughter. “Smart ass. Bet your movie’s not any