Caged Bird (BBW Ghost Romance)

By Haley Whitehall

Amanda agrees to a surprise vacation in order to salvage her failing relationship, but her dream fades when she discovers her ghost-hunting boyfriend has booked them into a haunted former brothel in Butte, Montana. To her surprise, the ghost of the former brothel owner takes a liking to her – in more ways than one. When Amanda and her boyfriend break up, she finds new passion with the ghostly lover. But her ex isn’t done ghost-hunting yet and Amanda must foil his plans to get rich quick before it’s too late and the love of her life vanishes forever.

Joel Rankin has been trapped in the Caged Bird since his ex-fiancé cursed him in 1880. Only the power of love can save him. When Amanda enters his establishment he is drawn her. The brunette with the beautiful curves is his type, but is she merely a ghost hunter like the man she is with or is she the one he has been waiting for?

Note: This 25,000 word novella contains explicit romance and is suitable for readers 18+

• Language: English
• Publisher: Haley Whitehall
• Release date: Jul 30, 2015
• ISBN: 9781310350139

Haley Whitehall

Haley was telling stories before she could write. When she was four, she woke her parents up to write down her burning ideas. Growing up on John Wayne movies and the Little House on the Prairie books, she has always loved historical fiction. For ten years Haley developed her writing craft and voice by studying authors such as Avi, Ann Rinaldi, and Mark Twain to name a few. She received her B.A in history through Central Washington University. During all her research, her soul was pulled deeper in the 19th century U.S. Using her words to transport people back in time continues to give her a thrill. Sometimes she wishes she could escape the present and float down the Mississippi River on a raft. But then again, just writing another historical fiction novel is a much safer journey. You can visit her at HaleyWhitehall.com

Book preview

CAGED BIRD

Haunted Hotel, Book 1

By

HALEY WHITEHALL

CAGED BIRD

Published by Expanding Horizons Press

Copyright 2015 by Haley Whitehall

Smashwords Edition

Cover Art by Fantabanner

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical or otherwise, including photocopy, recording or any information retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher. This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Blurb:

Amanda agrees to a surprise vacation in order to salvage her failing relationship, but her dream fades when she discovers her ghost-hunting boyfriend has booked them into a haunted former brothel in Butte, Montana. To her surprise, the ghost of the former brothel owner takes a liking to her – in more ways than one. When Amanda and her boyfriend break up, she finds new passion with the ghostly lover. But her ex isn’t done ghost-hunting yet and Amanda must foil his plans to get rich quick before it’s too late and the love of her life vanishes forever.

Joel Rankin has been trapped in the Caged Bird since his ex-fiancé cursed him in 1880. Only the power of love can save him. When Amanda enters his establishment he is drawn her. The brunette with the beautiful curves is his type but is she the one he has been waiting for?

Note: This 25,000-word novella contains explicit romance and is suitable for readers 18+.

Dedication

This story is dedicated to my friend Greg. Thank you for challenging me to write a ghost story. I know this isn’t the horror you were hoping for, but you do know I write romance, right? The Bird Cage would never have come to life without your inspiration.

CAGED BIRD

Chapter 1

MY PHONE DINGED. It sounded like an oven timer, but I never used the oven, so I knew it was my phone. Pulling the cell out of my purse I checked the text message.

On my way home. Do you have your luggage packed?

Gabe. My mood brightened, and then my heart clenched reminding me to be careful. We’d been on shaky ground lately. As in I thought a 7.0 earthquake had rocked our comfortable existence. We’d gone from boyfriend/girlfriend to feeling more like roommates.

Yes, I texted back, adding a smiley face for good measure. So looking forward to our get away. Where are we going?

It is a surprise.

I huffed. While I liked surprises, they didn’t always pan out well. Like when Gabe got me a deluxe espresso machine for Christmas. I stared down that monstrous machine every morning wishing it would just spit out coffee without me having to push a million buttons.

Gabe loved his gadgets including our talking refrigerator. The stainless steel beauty had such a seductive feminine voice it made me jealous. Pretty pathetic being jealous of a refrigerator, right?

I didn’t think dating a geek would have so many disadvantages. Gabe worked for Microsoft as a troubleshooter. He’d fixed my computer more than once, my smart TV, and even my alarm clock. Yeah, I’m not much of a tech person.

Gabe said he found my being technologically challenged charming. Truthfully, he just liked being useful. Think of Sheldon on the Big Bang Theory. That’s my Gabe. Not the strapping masculine type, but I find his brain sexy, and he didn’t mind my curves. Most men didn’t view my big bones and extra pounds a turn on. Speed dating in Seattle had finally paid off after two previously disastrous attempts. At first I thought we were a match made in heaven. How quickly that romantic notion faded. I sighed.

Lately, I’d turned into a technology widow. Microsoft was in the midst of planning the next big computer program, and it sucked up all of Gabe’s time. I’d confronted him more than once about whether he was seriously committed to our relationship. Each time he’d calmed my fears with a night of mind-blowing sex. Gabe would rather communicate through a tablet screen than in person. He wasn’t much of a talker. I knew he was putting me off. I mean great sex was one thing, but I wanted a future. The usual a little girl dreams about with a house, kids, a dog and maybe even a minivan.

I got the feeling his plans weren’t the same as mine. However, I shivered thinking about getting back into the dating scene. I hated dating. I could only take so many men staring at me like I was a fat cow. So I decided to stick it out a little longer with Mr. Tech Guy. I’d invested a year of my life trying to make us work. The least I could do was give him a shot to rectify things.

We weren’t the perfect couple, but perhaps this was just a rough patch? This weekend would tell. We were going to celebrate our one year anniversary. We’d both taken a few days off work and had booked us a room somewhere. Maybe I’d finally receive that ring I’d been dreaming about for months!

I fantasized about five-star hotels with an attached spa and salon. Now that would be a real treat. Spendy yes, but with his salary he could afford the luxury. If men learned anything about women, it was we could be bought. I’d treat myself to a manicure, too. Maybe then I’d stop biting my nails. Worrying about my romantic future had torn me up. I deserved to relax, pamper myself.

Gabe strode into the room, the front door swinging open. With his briefcase in one hand and a cup of Starbucks in the other he managed to shut the door with his foot before I could get there.

You didn’t buy me a cup of coffee? I asked, pouting.

I only have two hands.

I swallowed to tamp down my disappointment. What a lame excuse. Those cardboard beverage carriers were invented for a reason.

He set his coffee on an end table, gave me a quick hug, and kissed the top of my forehead. I’m sorry. It was another long day at work. I wasn’t thinking. Don’t worry, we’ll swing by the drive through and grab you a cup on the way out of town.

Out of town? How far out of town?

He tsked, shaking his head. You’ve been trying to pry hints out of me all week. Not going to happen, Amanda. He smiled. Unlike you I know how to keep a secret.

After setting his briefcase in his home office, he pulled his outer space patterned luggage out of the bedroom. The solar system on wheels. It was something a little boy might take with him, but it fit Gabe somehow. My Barbie pink suitcase sat by the door. It was bulging with everything I thought I’d need at our mysterious destination. Cute tank tops and shorts and some jeans and t-shirts in case the weather was cooler. May was so unpredictable. Of course, I stuffed in some new lingerie as well. Time to spice things up.

I opened the door, and with luggage in both hands, Gabe headed out to the car. At least he was gentlemanly enough not to expect me to carry my own luggage. We had promise.

* * * *

I rested my head against the passenger window. Wherever