Ghost of Jealousy

Book excerpt: He spent a hundred years waiting for her. She hated him in a heartbeat. In a world where paranormals live side by side with humans, everybody knows about Ordinance 7304: the Bond Laws. Or, as the Paras snidely whisper to each other, the Claws Clause--a long and detailed set of laws that bonded couples must obey if they want their union to be recognized. Because it wasn't already damn near impossible to find a fated mate in the first place. Now the government just has to get involved... I exist-- Dodge McCoy is dead. Died more than a century ago, one of countless who never made it out of his New York City slum. And while a bullet might've ended his life, his afterlife was only just beginning. He's a ghost. A phantom. A spirit. And he's just about gone. Without his fated mate--without his "key"--Dodge will experience his second (and final) death. For years, he put off searching, mainly because he still harbors scars over the betrayal that led to his first death. In his eyes, it would be better to fade away than let another woman tear his heart to shreds. Too bad it isn't as easy as that. Turns out there's a catch that no one's ever mentioned to him before: when he dies again, so does his key. Which would be fine--if Dodge didn't know who his key was. Since he does, and he's been avoiding her for more than a decade, it doesn't seem right to take the talented beauty with him when he goes. So, using the last of his energy, he leaves the Bumptown behind in search of the one woman who could save him... I escape-- Laurel Kane is a star. America's sweetheart since she was a teen, she stepped away from the limelight at the height of her fame. Rumors swirled, gossip bloggers coming up with the most outrageous reasons why she walked away from her high-profile career. Laurel heard it all and said nothing. What could she say? That she saw dead people? She always knew that Paras were out there. In Hollywood, nearly everyone has some kind of power--there just wasn't anyone like her. Afraid she was losing her mind, she sought help and treatment, whatever it would take to stop the visions. But, just when she thought she had, right on the cusp of her comeback, he shows up. Brash. Cocky. Arrogant. A relic from the past, the century-old ghost bumps into her and, to her surprise, she actually feels it. And that's when she realizes her new sitcom might just have to be put on hold... With time running out and Death literally at their back, these two will have to get along long enough to break the curse tying them together--or else Dodge won't be the only ghost. * Ghost of Jealousy is the fourth full-length novel in the Claws Clause series. It's the story of a ghostly hero from another time and the secretive starlet who holds his life--and his heart--in her hands.