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  “It’s okay, Mike,” I replied.

  Even though it wasn’t okay as I claimed, I couldn’t be angry with him. He had a job to do, even if he didn’t necessarily like it.

  I hauled myself out of my chair. “So I take it I have the day off?”

  He sighed and I felt a twinge of remorse for my quip. “I’ve enjoyed working with you. Please put me down as a reference. I’ll give any prospective employers a glowing recommendation.”

  My smile was half-hearted but I appreciated his effort. “Thanks, Mike.”

  I trudged out of his office, unsure of what to do next. Retracing my steps, I returned to the break room. My full coffee cup was still sitting on the counter. I poured it down the sink and washed the mug.

  I didn’t bother to go to my cubicle. I stopped bringing personal items to work when I realized that Norma, the woman in the workspace directly behind me, was a kleptomaniac and stole everything on my desk that wasn’t nailed down. Except for my work files. Those she was happy to leave.

  Removing my bag from my locker, I left the break room and took one last look around the place I’d worked for the last four years. The bland grey carpet and white walls weren’t much and the generic landscape paintings hanging throughout the offices were actually damn ugly, but I’d enjoyed my time here.

  Now, I was leaving for good.

  I said good-bye to Claire as I left. She seemed to know exactly what was going on because she looked sad.

  The elevator doors opened up and I was face-to-face with Jerry the Annoying Ghost again. He sneered at me as I stepped on.

  “Back so soon?” he asked.

  After I pressed the button for the first floor, I faced him. “For the last time. I gotta tell you, Jerry, I won’t miss you.”

  “Miss me?” he asked.

  I was actually kind of glad I was alone in the elevator with him so I could speak freely without people thinking I was a fruitcake.

  “It’s my last day. I won’t be back.”

  He actually looked surprised. “But who’ll I talk to?”

  I laughed. “No one, Jer. No one. You should really think about moving on.”

  The elevator steadily descended toward the bottom floor with no stops.

  “You can’t leave me,” he demanded. “I won’t let you.”

  The elevator dinged as it halted on the lobby level.

  “Good-bye, Jerry,” I replied.

  “I’ll find you. I won’t let you leave me here alone,” he spat out. His words were venomous and full of menace, but they were empty. He’d never be able to leave the elevator unless he went to the next plane.

  “Fuck you, Jerry,” I answered levelly, marching off the elevator car as the doors slid open.

  I could hear him screaming at me as I walked through the lobby and out the front doors, but I didn’t look back.

  Like all ghosts, he was stuck in the past and that’s where I intended to leave him.

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  About C.C.

  Born and raised in Texas, C.C. Wood writes saucy paranormal and contemporary romances featuring strong, sassy women and the men that love them. If you ever meet C.C. in person, keep in mind that many of her characters are based on people she knows, so anything you say or do is likely to end up in a book one day.

  A self-professed hermit, C.C. loves to stay home, where she reads, writes, cooks, and watches TV. She can usually be found drinking coffee or wine as she spends time with her hubby, daughter, and two beagles.

  Titles by C.C. Wood

  Novellas:

  Girl Next Door Series:

  Friends with Benefits

  Frenemies

  Drive Me Crazy

  Girl Next Door-The Complete Series

  Kiss Series:

  A Kiss for Christmas

  Kiss Me

  Novels:

  Seasons of Sorrow

  NSFW Series:

  In Love With Lucy

  Earning Yancy

  Tempting Tanya

  Westfall Brothers Series:

  Texas with a Twist

  Wicked Games Series:

  All or Nothing

  Paranormal Romance:

  Bitten Series:

  Bite Me

  Once Bitten, Twice Shy

  Bewitched, Bothered, and Bitten

  One Little Bite

  Love Bites

  Bite the Bullet

  Blood & Bone Series (Bitten spin-off)

  Blood & Bone

  Souls Unchained

  Destined by Blood

  Forevermore

  Cozy Paranormal:

  The Wraith Files:

  Don’t Wake the Dead

  The Dead Come Calling