“No,” Celeste said. “I’m not sick.” Could ghosts even get sick? She didn’t know. If asked before now, she’d have said they couldn’t, but she’d also have wagered that ghosts didn’t sleep. And she’d been asleep…a long time? “How long? Prissy, how long did I sleep?” she asked, unable to control the tinge of panic in her tone.

How much time had she lost?

“I don’t know,” Prissy looked up at Dax, who’d returned to stand beside her. “She wants to know how long she slept.”

“Just long enough for me to drive here and talk with Prissy’s folks. An hour and a half, I’d say. Celeste, are you okay?”

She nodded. She did feel better now, though she was disappointed that some of her precious time on this side had been wasted. Celeste glanced out the hospital window to see that it was now dark, definitely evening. When they’d arrived here, there had been some daylight outside; she was sure of it. “What time is it now, Dax? How much time do we have before I have to leave?”

“It’s just past eight. You and Prissy got to the plantation around six,” he said. “So, based on what you told me, midnight at the earliest, or six in the morning at the latest.”

“I hope it’s the latest,” she said and was rewarded with one of his sexy grins.

“Trust me, I do too.”

She straightened in the chair, and he backed away, giving her room to stand, being careful not to touch her while she did.

“You’re sure you’re okay?” he repeated.

“Yes, much better now.” She was telling the truth. That nap had given her more energy, and she was grateful for that, even if it did use up some of her time. Besides, Dax had been en route to the hospital, so that was the perfect opportunity to rest.

“You’ll grow weaker the longer you’re on that side, and with each interaction with one who’s living, you’ll grow weaker still. It all depends on how much strength your trip takes from your spirit, and how much you interact with the living.”

Was Celeste weak from the initial trip to this side, or was she weak from interacting with Dax? She prayed it was the trip. Because they’d barely interacted at all…yet.

“Are you leaving?” Prissy asked.

Dax nodded. “Yes, but you can stay with your folks until it’s time for you to cross.”

“Prissy’s staying with us a while?” her father asked. His face was bruised from the accident, and a line of stitches creased his right brow, but he still managed a smile at the thought of having one of his daughters with him a little longer, even if only in spirit.

“Prissy was given a day to visit with you, and at the end of that time, she’ll cross. But until then, she can stay with both of you here,” Dax said.

“Thank you. Thank you for letting us know that she and Cassie are okay, and will be okay until we see them again,” her mother said, her voice quivering as she spoke.

Prissy moved back by the bed and kissed her father’s cheek. He moved his hand to the very spot she’d touched. “I feel her.” Then the little girl turned to her mother and hugged her. The woman closed her eyes and whispered, “I do too.”

“We’ll leave you alone now.” Dax moved toward the door and Celeste followed.

They’d barely shut the door when he said, “Come on, I don’t want to waste any of our time.” He turned and started down the hallway, darting his attention from room to room, until finally, at the end of the hallway, he found what he was evidently looking for, an unoccupied hospital room. “In here.”

Celeste followed him inside, then watched him lock the door. Turning, he thoroughly inspected her, starting with her face, then down her glowing body.

“You’re really here.”

She could see the questions, the confusion, clearly in his eyes. He had no idea how she’d returned, or whether she’d be able to come back again, and unfortunately, neither did she. But Celeste didn’t want to waste time trying to figure it out. She didn’t want to return to the middle with regrets over not telling him what she so desperately wanted him to know. “Dax, I-”

“Wait.” He still leaned against the door, as if he suspected that somehow someone would come in and ruin this moment, this perfect moment, with the two of them together, and completely alone. Celeste felt the same way. She was finally with him, and it seemed, indeed was, too good to be true. Eventually, she’d be pulled away again. The impulse to simply grab him, kiss him, be with him, was so strong…but the impulse to tell him everything she was feeling, everything she’d felt for him since she’d left last time, was equally strong.

His voice was deep and urgent as he spoke. “I know you said you should be here for hours, but I don’t want to bank on anything. There’s something I’ve wanted to tell you, something I should have said the last time, before you left in the summer.”

Celeste knew it wasn’t possible, but she could swear that she felt her heart racing as he spoke.

“Celeste, I haven’t stopped thinking of you. I’ve wanted to kick myself for not taking advantage of the days we had together. That week with you and Chloe, well, it meant more to me than any other assignment I’ve had, not only because we helped Chloe cross over, but because I spent those days with you, getting to know you, being around you, watching you with Chloe…and feeling you with me.” Dax swallowed, and his jaw tensed before he spoke again. “The last two months, since you left, I’ve been a real ass to be around.” He gave her that crooked grin. “Just ask my cousins. Hell, I thought you were gone, crossed over, completely. And I didn’t think you could come back after you crossed.”

“I don’t think I could have come back, if I had crossed over. But I didn’t.”

“Why not?” he asked, then smiled again, and again, she sensed her pulse racing. “And just so you know, I’m asking so we can try to keep it from happening. I don’t want you to cross Celeste. We haven’t had enough time together, not nearly enough.”

She looked down to verify that she was, indeed, still glowing, still a spirit instead of living, breathing flesh and bones. To her dismay, the glow was definitely still there, and even a little brighter than before, more pale yellow than creamy white. She frowned.

“What is it?” Dax asked. “Tell me.”

“For a moment, I thought that maybe-maybe I was alive again.” She looked back up and was touched by the heartfelt emotion in those hazel eyes. “But that isn’t possible, is it?”

“If it is, I’ll find a way to make it happen. I swear it. And trust me, I’m a firm believer, especially now, that you can’t rule out anything about the other side.” He stepped away from the door and moved closer to Celeste, so close that she could feel his breath against her lips.

“How can I keep you here, or how can I help you come back again? Just tell me, before you have to go. I don’t want to lose you again.”

“Dax,” she whispered. “I-I don’t know why I didn’t cross. Part of me feels like it’s because my spirit simply wasn’t ready to head to the light, but another part thinks that…”

“What?” he asked, so close now that she could see his pulse throbbing solidly at his throat.

She licked her lips and thought of how that pulse would feel against her mouth. “Part of me feels like I didn’t cross because I couldn’t leave you.”

The pulse at his throat grew quicker still, and Celeste couldn’t hold back anymore. She longed for him to move even closer, for that sexy mouth to touch hers, and then for his body to touch her, truly touch her, from head to toe, so that no part of her wasn’t completely engulfed by Dax. She burned to feel even more, to have him inside of her, filling her, making her complete just once before she had to cross again.

“Dax, I know you can’t touch me,” she whispered, “but those rules don’t apply to me. And I’ve been aching for this.” Her hand trembled as she tenderly brought her fingertips to his cheek.

Heat, powerful scorching heat seared through her body the moment she touched him, warming her, filling her, exciting her. She eased her hand along his face and reveled in the coarse stubble against the pads of her fingertips. Each and every sensation fueled her desire. She didn’t know what was happening, didn’t understand how merely touching him caused her to gasp, made her chest clench tight, and created an intense spiraling need deep within her core…but it did. And she didn’t want to stop.