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Love Gambit
D. Agnew--
1
Love Gambit
Copyright 2001 Denise A. Agnew
What do you get when you combine two rivals with attitude? Fireworks! Ginny Boswell thinks
Ty McLeod wants to take over her brother-in-law's ghost buster company. When she's
challenged to discover the truth about a haunted house or lose a $500 bet, she'll go head-to-head
with the gorgeous ghost hunter to discover whether the ghosts are real, or a figment of their
imaginations.
Ginny Boswell pulled her blue Saturn coupe to a stop at a red light just as her cell phone let
out an obnoxious ring. She started, her nerves on edge after one crazy, annoying day at Psi
Group. She glared at the phone on the dash and ignored the noise.
Executive Assistant’s Day had turned into Hell Week.
It all started when her absent-minded boss neglected to give her a card, flowers, or any other
recognition, and her so-called boyfriend Fergus stood her up for lunch.
The phone rang again and she punched the button on the hands free unit cell phone. “Yeah?”
“Ginny, it’s Dan. I’ve got a hot one.” Her boss’s tone held a note of imminent excitement.
“You’re not going to believe this.”
“This late in the day?” Ginny didn’t feel like dealing with another case of faked poltergeist
activity or dubious psychic ability. “Where’s Joseph? Can’t he handle this one?”
“His mother is in town, remember? I really need you to check this one out. It sounds like
the genuine article.”
The light turned green and Ginny eased through the intersection. She sighed, eager to get
home. “Uh-huh.”
“Come on. You’ve got the smarts to figure out if this case is for real.”
Leave it up to Dan to know how to butter her up. “I’d rather be home eating microwave
pizza.” And escaping these panty hose, thank you very much.
“Look, sweetie, I know its been a few years since I started this organization and we’ve yet to
see a real case of haunting. But Cleveland House appears to be the ticket.”
Her boss could call her sweetie because of his relationship to her. Brother-in-law.
She tapped the power window button and savored the cool breeze flow over her face. “And
you’re stuck at the office finishing reports, I suppose.”
Love Gambit
D. Agnew--
2
Stuck at home with my sister Benny and two rambunctious preteens. Ginny didn’t know
whether to envy his home life or frightened of it. Since Psi Group was located at Dan and
Benny’s home, they had the added distraction of working around family situations throughout
the day. It didn’t make for a dull moment.
“And Jack has that band concert at the junior high tonight,” Dan said.
She glanced at the Denver skyline. Black and blue thunderheads reached over the Rocky
Mountains and threatened a nasty storm.
“This better be good, Dan. There’s a helluva storm brewing over the mountains.”
Dan chuckled. “If you do this favor for me, I promise you better than microwave pizza.”
As traffic slowed to a crawl in front of her, exhaust fumes drifted inside. Wrinkling her nose,
she rolled up the window. “Giovanni’s Restaurant? Downtown?”
“Nope. Something much better.”
Suspicion rose to the fore at the same time a headache started in her temples. “This
haunting of a lifetime can’t wait until morning? Do you think the ghosts will leave before we get
there?”
“Well…”
Ginny knew that well anywhere. She’d heard it many times in the four years since she
finished her psychology degree and signed on as an assistant…an executive assistant at Psi
Group. Her sixth sense itched like a bramble on the back of her neck. So often in her life she
bounced back and forth, knowing her intuition worked well when she gave it a chance. Her
practical side too often tried to talk her out of listening to her inklings.
“Dan, what’s so important about this particular house? I’ve never heard of it before.”
He cleared his throat. “Um…I got a call about an hour ago from a man who swears the old
house he just bought is haunted.”
Ginny had heard it before. Weary, she brushed back a strand of her auburn hair and
concentrated on the slow traffic. “Who’s the man?”
“Albert Cleveland. He inherited this dump of a Victorian monstrosity last week. He’s been
there one week and he says the place is jumping with activity. Creaking doors, rattling chains,
moaning, cold spots. You name it.”
“Rattling chains. You’re kidding, right? How cliché.”
“This case is unique.”
Love Gambit
D. Agnew--
3
Her suspicion-o-meter reared its head. As traffic inched forward, she shifted in her seat.
“How?”
“This Cleveland guy has photographs that defy explanation. Digital images that experts say
are not faked.”
“In a week he’s had experts look at it?”
“You got it.”
Somewhere in traffic a car horn blared, and her headache escalated another notch. “What
else? Fess up. There must be more for you to send me out there this evening.”
“Well…uh…”
“ Dan .” She drew out the word. “If you’re holding out on me, I’ll tell Benny what you do
with those bean sprout sandwiches she makes you.”
He groaned. “All right. Somehow Ty McLeod found out about the house and is already on
his way there. He’s got the key. Apparently he told Cleveland he could do the job better than we
could.”
Wonderful. That explains everything. “Dirty rat!”
“He’s just competitive. Besides, the owner says he’ll pay whoever discovers what is
happening. If anyone can bring Ty down a notch, it’s you.”
Mr. Superior Ghost Hunter from Anonymous Investigations. Her favorite pain in the
posterior. Memories of her last encounter with Tyler McLeod surged forward and snapped at her
heels. She flushed, amazed at the traitorous arousal rushing through her body. No matter how
much she disliked the man, she couldn’t seem to lasso her attraction to him. Not only that, he
wanted to buy Psi Group. Despite money problems, Dan didn’t want to sell.
She shook her head in self-reproach. Ginny tried not to think about the pig-headed, arrogant
man that had been Dan’s ghost hunting rival for years, but he managed to pop up like a bad
summer rerun on television. In the four years she’d known Ty he teased her, challenged her, and
often annoyed the ever livin’ stuffing out of her.
“On top of that, Ty bet us—me—five hundred dollars if we could discover the mystery of
the haunting first.” Dan’s voice bubbled with exhilaration.
Anger made her grip the steering wheel like a lifeline. “Five hundred dollars? We don’t
have that kind of money to toss around.”
“That’s why you need to get the answer to this puzzle first, Ginny.”
Love Gambit
D. Agnew--
4
She gritted her teeth in frustration. Her jaw ached and she rubbed at her temple. “You
know McLeod is just trying to get your goat. Why do you let him do that?”
She could almost see him shrug as he answered. “You know me. Never could resist a bet.
Besides, you can’t fool me. You like tangling with McLeod every chance you get. I’ve seen the
way you guys look at each other.”
Ginny’s insides warmed. Don’t think about how McLeod’s intense, assessing looks make
you feel. If you do you’ll go up in flames right here. “Don’t go there, Dan.”
He cleared his throat. “Okay, okay. Look, if you can pull this off you’ll have an extra
special Executive Assistant Day treat tomorrow. We’ll go out to lunch.”
“When did you remember that you forgot Executive Assistant’s Day?”
“Um…I didn’t. Benny reminded me.”
Ginny sighed. She drew in a steady breath, realizing she didn’t have the energy to argue
anymore. “And what if the investigation takes longer than an evening to accomplish?”
“McLeod said he’s willing to go the distance. You can continue the investigation as long as
it takes.”
“Being in the same house with that man day after day would fry my cookies.” When he
remained silent she relented. “Fine. I’ll do it.”
Dan let out a whoop. “Good deal. Now you can get there by…”
* * *
Fading sunlight dipped behind thunderheads as Ginny pulled into the circular drive of
Cleveland House. Huge tree branches hung like sentinels over the Queen Anne style mansion.
Peeling white paint and a weed filled front yard gave extra credence to the haunted house cliché.
As she turned off the car, she noted the battered house already had a visitor. The sleek,
silver BMW shone like polished money. McLeod. So rich boy had arrived. Pain in the rear had
entered the mansion and started the investigation. Figures.
She hadn’t traveled back across town to obtain equipment from the office. She had pad and
pencil tucked into the oversized leather fanny pack at her waist. Maybe big shot McLeod
brought the requisite equipment for hunting paranormal phenomena. A digital recorder to obtain
EVPs, electronic voice phenomena, and countless other gadgets like the electromagnetic field
Love Gambit
D. Agnew--
5
detector. You name it, McLeod owned the high-tech stuff needed to finish the job. He usually
brought a whole team of helpers as well. She didn’t see the van that usually brought his helpers
along for the ride. Hmm.
Then again, how smart was she for investigating a so-called haunted space on her own?
How smart was Dan for suggesting she do it alone? Crud. She should know better.
Ginny had been aggravated all day by more things than a space case boss and an absent
boyfriend. She’d had an epiphany. Her life had slipped into a rut. She might have a degree in
psychology, but a she also had a job in a ghost hunter company that might fold soon if something
didn’t change. Dan hinted that although he didn’t want to sell, he might have to if things got
rougher. Behind that knowledge came uncertainty. Would a new owner want to keep her on,
and did she want to stay?
Ginny never wallowed in her stew, but job problems didn’t tell the whole story. Her sisters
Benny and Olivia had great husbands, nice homes, and two children each. Ginny lived in a tiny
apartment, had noisy neighbors, and not a good man in sight.
Again she recalled her last meeting with Ty. They’d met, by accident, during a trip to a
dance club. Ginny had gone there with Dan and Benny. Ginny had run into Ty as she headed for
the bar to pick up drinks.
Ty’s musk scent mixed with the touch of his hands on her upper arms as he’d kept her from
bouncing off his solid chest. Dark as sin eyes had met her startled gaze, latching onto her breath
and holding it prisoner. While he’d led her to the dance floor for a slow number, his arms had
slipped around her and drawn her close. He’d whispered to her, low and soft in her ear, that he
wanted to know her better. She knew Ty’s real reason for plying her with sweet words. Did he
think he could influence her in his favor so when he bought the company she would be pliant?
Right. The man could eat straw if he thought she’d fall for that tactic. Just when her heart
solidified info stone, he’d given her a sweet, sexy grin.
Sweet? No way. Sexy? Yes.
Ginny slapped her hand on the steering wheel to send the memory away. She couldn’t—
wouldn’t give in to rogue hormonal thoughts about him.
She exited the car as thunder rolled in the west. A chill rippled through her body and she
buttoned the cardigan of her twin set. As last sunrays dabbled and sparkled on the leaves, Ginny
started for the three-story structure. Rain began to slap the ground, so she dashed through the

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