Antique
Charming
By
Natalie-Nicole Bates
The
night he came home…forever
Third-generation
funeral director Lizzie Morton is about to have her dream realized.
She has purchased the long abandoned Nichols Funeral Home and its
upstairs flat, determined to restore the funeral home to its once
former glory.
But
a late night visitor, Adam Nichols, claims the funeral home still
belongs to his family. Lizzie scoffs at his odd behaviour and
outlandish claims, but when a vintage photograph appears, she soon
realizes, to her horror, that Adam Nichols did once own the funeral
home—more than one hundred years ago—and now she has allowed this
entity to pass into her home.
Book
Trailer on YouTube http://youtu.be/Z1U7hlZ0koQ
She
heard it again.
The
same time as last Friday night.
Three
taps at her front door.
Lizzie
muted the television, tossed the blanket off of her body and scurried
out of bed. She slipped her robe over her shoulders and tied it
securely, determined to find out who in the world would knock at her
door at three in the morning. By the time she had reached the door
the week previous, no one was there. The street had been dark and
still.
It
had to be a mistake. She had only recently closed sale on the long
abandoned funeral home, determined to restore it to its once former
glory. She had only been living in the upstairs flat for a few weeks.
As
she hurried down the staircase, each step beneath her feet creaked in
protest. There was no one visible through the peephole. She unchained
the door and opened it just enough to peek around it.
No
one was there, just like the previous week.
The
street was dark and quiet. Not even the whisper of a wind could be
detected. Only the cold dampness of the October night raised a chill
on her skin.
Who
was playing this weekly joke on her? Could it be the ghosts of some
departed soul who had passed through the halls of Nichols Funeral
Home sometime during the past century? A small smile crossed her lips
as she prepared to close and lock the door. She was a third
generation Funeral Director. Did she now believe in ghosts?
Before
the door could close, a hand poked into the slight space and seized
her wrist. A cry rose in her throat and she jerked backward, but the
hand held tight and the door flung open.
The
man emerged, shrouded in darkness. He was an ethereal creature, tall,
and dressed in anonymous black. Only a streetlight glowed behind him.
“I’m
home,” he announced.
About
the Author:
Natalie
Nicole-Bates is a book reviewer and author.
Her
short paranormal romance, Antique Charming, was
published by Books To Go Now Publishing in October 2011 and her
contemporary romance, Change of Address, is scheduled
to be published by Secret Cravings in January 2012.
Her
passions in life include books and hockey along with Victorian and
Edwardian era photography. Natalie contributes her uncharacteristic
love of hockey to being born in Russia.
She
currently resides in the UK where she is working on her next book and
adding to her collection of 19th century post-mortem
photos.
Visit
Natalie online at http://natalienicolebates.blogspot.com/
Donna~Many thanks for hosting this stop on my blog tour!
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