The Mirror (The Lost Bride Trilogy #2)

“And the attic,” Cleo added. “The ballroom.”

Bree goggled again. “A freaking ballroom?”

“A lot of things stored up there, too,” Sonya explained. “It may take years to sort through it all. But there’s plenty of other house.”

“You’re telling me.” She looked up at the portrait. “That’s the one, right? The murdered bride.”

“Astrid, yes.”

“Okay, show me around.”

They started with the main level, which brought on more goggling. Sonya thought of her first tour, guided by Trey, and understood exactly.

“This place is something else. I’m more a clean lines, modern, open concept in my dream-house dreams, but this is something else.”

When they reached the kitchen, she put her hands on the hips of her cargo pants. “I’d give up those dreams in a heartbeat for this kitchen. You’ve got a chef’s kitchen here. More farmhouse than my style, but I have deep, painful kitchen envy.”

She wandered.

“The dining room’s a little spooky, but it’s big. Yeah, yeah, this’ll work.

“I want to go outside first before we see more in here.”

She stepped out. “Jesus, you’ve got a lot of mowing in your future. You’ve sure got the room for a shit-ton of people. If it doesn’t rain.”

“Don’t sayrain!”

Bree sent Sonya a grin. “A lot of room inside, too, but we’ll plan for dry. You could do tents, but you know, it’s such a freaking sight, as it is. And some of this stuff will be blooming in June.”

“You know about gardening?”

She shook her head at Cleo. “Not much of a damn thing, but I know the seasons around here. Are you leaving those ugly chairs on that deck deal?”

“They won’t be ugly when they’re sanded and painted.”

“I’ll take your word. Still, that’s a good spot for the band. Manny and the rest of them are juiced up about playing here at Spook Manor. No offense.”

“Absolutely none taken.” Sonya gestured out. “We can put the chairs, the bench out in the yard. We’ve got a start on tables and chairs to set out, too. We’d need to rent bar stations.”

“Uh-huh. Show me the rest.”

They went upstairs, where Bree’s jaw all but dropped on the library floor. She picked it up as they continued down the wide hallway.

“Now I have bedroom envy,” she said by the time they’d reached Sonya’s. “None of this is my style, but I’ve got the envy anyway.”

She wandered back. “Okay, so a couple of really nice powder rooms main level, a couple of guest baths and sitting rooms up here. I’d close your own bedrooms off, again unless you’re taking someone through. And no food tables up here. Maybe a bar in the library. What’s up there?”

“Third floor,” Cleo told her. “Most of those rooms are already closed off. My studio’s up there.”

“Close it off, yeah, but I’d like to see it. I want to see this mermaid I’ve heard about.”

As they started up, a door slammed as if blown in a hard wind.

“I didn’t realize somebody else was here. You’ve got a guest?”

“Not exactly,” Sonya murmured. “Spook Manor.”

Bree didn’t goggle this time. Instead her eyes ticked right, then left. “You’re not serious.”