Haunting Rachel Read Online Free Page A

between the house and the gate, but what Rachel saw was clear enough.
    And definitely real.
    A man with silvery blond hair was standing at the gate, looking up toward the house. He was very still for a moment, and then, with a hunching movement of his broad shoulders that might have been a shrug or some gesture of indecision, he turned and walked away, hidden immediately by the high brick wall and numerous tall trees.
    Rachel lifted a hand as though to stop him, but her flesh touched nothing except the cold glass of her window.

TWO
    ’m sorry, Rachel. I should have done this months ago.” Mercy Sheridan, Duncan Grant’s former assistant, had come to the house to bring Rachel a box of personal articles she had cleared from Duncan’s office at the bank. She was still with the company at least through the process of settling the estate; she hadn’t announced her decision about what to do beyond that time.
    She grimaced slightly. “But it was hard enough to go through his files when 1 had to, never mind his personal things. I think this is everything not directly related to the business, though—unless I come across something misfiled.”
    Rachel had meant only to thank her, but heard herself say a bit dryly, “Does Nicholas want to move into Dad’s office?”
    Obviously surprised, Mercy replied, “Not that I know of.” Her violet eyes softened, and she said gently, “Heisn’t trying to take your dad’s place, if that’s what you think. In fact, he’s been pretty adamant about keeping Duncan’s memory alive at the bank. He wants his office left just as it was, wants that portrait to hang in the lobby with a brass plaque saying that Duncan founded the company. And he doesn’t mean to change the name after you sell out to him, Rache. It’ll go on being known as Duncan and Ross Investments, Ltd.”
    Rachel hadn’t known that, and it made her feel she had done Nicholas Ross an injustice. But all she said was “I’m glad. Dad would have liked that.” He had chosen to use the name Duncan in his business because it was his mother’s family name and because he’d liked the sound of it—especially once Nicholas Ross’s name had been added to the letterhead.
    The two women were in the den, a comfortable room where Rachel spent much of her time. Mercy left the box she had brought on a side table, then joined Rachel on the Victorian settee near the fireplace.
    “You are going to sell the business to Nicholas?”
    “Probably. It makes sense to, after all.” Rachel shrugged. “I guess I just have to get used to the idea first.”
    Mercy leaned back and crossed one long, elegant leg over the other. A beautiful, raven-haired woman with a voluptuous figure, she was still single at thirty despite the attentions of half the bachelors—and more than one married man—in Richmond. Rachel suspected she was involved with someone at the moment, but Mercy seldom offered details even to her best friend, and Rachel had been too preoccupied these last months to ask for them.
    “Rache, are you thinking of staying in Richmond? I thought going back to New York was the plan.”
    “I’m just having second thoughts. Natural enough, I suppose.”
    “Sure. You’ve got a lot of history in this house.” She paused a beat, then added quietly, “And a lot of memories.”
    “Yes.” Rachel started to tell Mercy about the blond man she had seen twice, but bit back the words. Mercy had adored her brother, and Rachel couldn’t bring herself to open up those old wounds. There was nothing to be gained by having Mercy as upset as she was herself, she thought.
    “And maybe it’s time you dealt with those memories,” Mercy went on steadily. “You didn’t go on with your life after Thomas was killed, you just started a whole new one.”
    “What’s wrong with that?” Rachel frowned. “You know I’d always wanted to be a designer, and the best place to learn was in New York—”
    “Yes, I know that. But, Rachel, you