His Halloween

By S. J. Coles

FROM POPULAR AUTHOR OF LGBTQIA+ ROMANCE S. J. COLES

Book four in the Once Upon a Holiday series

“ Spending the night with you in a haunted house? That' ll absolutely make his Halloween.”

Lukas Kowalski has worked hard for his independence. He emigrated to England to live and work in the White Hart pub in Littleton. He loves his job, the chance to paint and being at the heart of the community.

But something is off. He' s not sleeping, and as Halloween approaches, it' s getting worse. Whether it' s the unexplained noises at night or something unseen ghosting inside himself, he can' t seem to put it to rest.

Now paranormal investigator Ely Douglas has been hired to get to the bottom of what' s been going on at the White Hart. Lukas is expected to help the professor in any way he can. But Lukas is skeptical about the paranormal, not to mention haunted by his and Ely' s one-night stand earlier in the year.

Forced together on a night when the veil between this world and the next is at its thinnest, the truths about the two men' s fears, love and lives will be revealed.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pride Publishing
• Release date: Oct 10, 2023
• ISBN: 9781839433085

S. J. Coles

S. J. Coles is a Romance writer originally from Shropshire, UK. She has been writing stories for as long as she has been able to read them. Her biggest passion is exploring narratives through character relationships. She finds writing LGBT/paranormal romance provides many unique and fulfilling opportunities to explore many (often neglected or under-represented) aspects of human experience, expectation, emotion and sexuality. Among her biggest influences are LGBT Romance authors K J Charles and Josh Lanyon and Vampire Chronicles author Anne Rice.

Book preview

Pride Publishing books by S. J. Coles

Single Books

Blood Winter

Straight to the Heart

Dark Summer

The Devil You Know

Once Upon a Holiday

Your Christmas

Our Valentine’s

My Summer

Collections

My Bloody Valentine: Blood Red Roses

Sun, Sea and Small-Town Secrets

Enemy Territory: My Iron Knight

Once Upon a Holiday

HIS HALLOWEEN

S. J. COLES

His Halloween

ISBN # 978-1-83943-308-5

©Copyright S. J. Coles 2023

Cover Art by Kelly Martin ©Copyright October 2023

Interior text design by Claire Siemaszkiewicz

Pride Publishing

This is a work of fiction. All characters, places and events are from the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher, Pride Publishing.

Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Pride Publishing. Unauthorised or restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.

The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the author of this book and illustrator of the artwork.

Published in 2023 by Pride Publishing, United Kingdom.

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the authors’ rights. Purchase only authorised copies.

Pride Publishing is an imprint of Totally Entwined Group Limited.

If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as unsold and destroyed to the publisher and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this stripped book.

Book four in the

Once Upon a Holiday series

Spending the night with you in a haunted house? That’ll absolutely make his Halloween.

Lukas Kowalski has worked hard for his independence. He emigrated to England to live and work in the White Hart pub in Littleton. He loves his job, the chance to paint and being at the heart of the community.

But something is off. He’s not sleeping, and as Halloween approaches, it’s getting worse. Whether it’s the unexplained noises at night or something unseen ghosting inside himself, he can’t seem to put it to rest.

Now paranormal investigator Ely Douglas has been hired to get to the bottom of what’s been going on at the White Hart. Lukas is expected to help the professor in any way he can. But Lukas is skeptical about the paranormal, not to mention haunted by his and Ely’s one-night stand earlier in the year.

Forced together on a night when the veil between this world and the next is at its thinnest, the truths about the two men’s fears, love and lives will be revealed.

Dedication

For all my fellow spooksters.

Trademark Acknowledgements

The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:

Monster Mash: Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett

Ghostbusters: Ray Parker Jr.

Thriller: Rod Temperton

Google: Google Inc.

Chapter One

The wind howled in the chimney like a lost soul. Rain rattled against the window like it would shatter the glass. The storm, bad even for October, had blown in that afternoon and even now, well past midnight, showed no signs of letting up.

Lukas didn’t mind. The noise drowned out the sounds of the old building he lived in settling for the night.

He layered a gray wash over the background of ice blue he’d already swept over the treated paper. He was working on yet another watercolor of All Saints’. The church stood at the edge of Littleton, surrounded by a picturesque graveyard crowded with worn headstones and ancient yew trees. It had captured Lukas’ imagination when he’d first moved to the village. He’d spent so much time there he knew the names of the dead like they were family. He’d tried to paint it many times but found it hard to capture the feel of the place—the quiet loneliness, the beautiful mournfulness of it. But by painting at night, he seemed to be getting close.

He tilted his head to examine the paper, trying to decide if the base was the right hue before he started building up the darker colors.

Daylight was better for painting, but he had room for three spotlights in his studio bedroom above the White Hart public bar. The landlord let him live there for a peppercorn rent, and right now his insomnia gave him extra time to paint, so he didn’t complain.

He never complained.

Even when Ely Douglas kept messaging, emailing, calling. Lukas snuck a glance at his mobile. There was still a message flagging from earlier that day.

Did you get my email about me coming to town? I really hope you’ll see me :)

The emoji had annoyed him more than anything else—adding a smiley face, like everything was normal between them. It twisted an uncomfortable feeling that filled his insides whenever he thought about the professor. It had been months, and Lukas had never sent a single