Read Ghostly (Darkly Devoted Book 1) for Free Online Page B

him stepped into the house. In an instant I recognized him as the guy who had been in my basement. He was still clad in a black shirt and jeans, but his jacket was gone. His eyes met mine as he shut the door behind him.
    “ You ,” I hissed as he walked past me to join the others in the room. What was his name, I thought, trying to remember what he said. Then I remembered he never told me.
    “Hey, Wednesday Addams,” he said. His lips curved into a smile as his eyes trailed over my body. It made me uncomfortable, but I couldn’t hide the blush on my face. It pissed me off. I didn’t like the way my body continued to react to him.
    I reached out to grab his arm so I could pull him to the side and demand answers, but he stepped out of reach.
    “What are you doing here?”
    “Joining the party, neighbor.” He motioned toward the others in the room who were oblivious to the tension between the two of us.
    “Where’s your costume?”
    He shrugged. “I’m a serial killer. I didn’t have time to make a mask or anything.”
    “Whatever.” I rolled my eyes and turned my attention to the rest of the group. “I’m going to grab some plates and cups.”
    “I’m coming with you!” Meredith exclaimed and followed me to the kitchen.
    I reached for the solo cups and plates that I’d stashed in the cabinet—black for the occasion.
    “Your neighbor is hot,” she said as she took some of the party supplies out of the cabinet. “ Girl , I know you like Ryder and all but that guy. That guy has it going on.”
    I almost dropped the cups in shock.
    “Ryder?” I asked. I tried to sound nonchalant, but my voice oozed guilt. I hadn’t told anyone that I thought he was cute, but I must’ve been easy to read.
    “It’s written all over your face. But seriously! That guy .” She pointed toward my mysterious neighbor as we reached the door.
    I poked my head around the corner to see him sitting beside Ryder and staring at me. It was some intense gaze he had, jaw set hard as the others talked around him. I stared back at him for a moment, trying to read his emotions, but I couldn’t. He was impossible to read, and I hated him for that.
    My doorbell rang again, so I shifted my eyes from him and ran across the room to answer it. When my door opened up, people began to pour inside my house.
    “What the—” I started as I was shoved out of the doorway and people continued to enter. Frowning, I could feel the anger rising in me.
    God, Briar, you’re so gullible. I can’t believe you let her talk you into this.
    I cursed as I looked over to see Meredith turn up the stereo extremely loud. It flowed through the house with its hip-hop vibe that made me wanna hurl.
    “Paaaartay!” she exclaimed and started to dance around to the music.
    Boys surrounded her almost immediately. She had that effect on them, I’d noticed. It was easy for her, and she didn’t seem to care if they really liked her or just wanted to fool around. I wished that I had that sort of control. I was terrified to be pulled back into a relationship where I got the shit end of the stick. It wasn’t worth it.
    But I was seeing red at her betrayal. She knew I didn’t want a ton of people there. Just a small celebration of Halloween to satisfy my need to do so, and then move on. It felt like the walls were closing in, and I had to get out.
    I started to move toward the hallway, but a hand landed on my shoulder. I jumped and whirled around. My heart pounded in my chest until I saw Ryder standing there with drinks in his hand. I released the breath I was holding.
    “Shit, it’s you.”
    He smiled. “Yeah, of course. Who else would it be?”
    A ghost.
    “Oh, no one in particular.”
    “What?” he screamed over the music
    “I said ‘no one’!”
    “Alright, alright, you don’t have to yell.” He winked and handed me a cup.
    “What is it?”
    “It’s just soda. I wasn’t sure if you were drinking.”
    I shook my head and took the cup from him. I had