"He's been working on the design since the beginning of October," I verified. "I especially love the life-size Frankenstein and Mrs. Frankenstein at the front door. They can be set to speak to you when you come in, but I have that part turned off for now. It was making the dogs crazy, plus it's a little creepy if you come in alone after dark."

"With all those orange globes you have, I'm not sure how you can see the dark for all the light."

"Tell me about it. I had to make him put them on a timer so they weren't shining in our faces when we went to bed."

"So far the only decoration we have is a pumpkin for the front porch. I think that in this case less is more, and up until today, I was pretty sure your dad felt the same way. But after seeing all Zak's electronics, I'm half-expecting to wake up to a decorating nightmare."

I laughed. "What is it about boys and their toys?"

"Every time I point out to your dad that perhaps he doesn't need to get every electronic device his future son-in-law has, he reminds me that I have an entire closet dedicated to shoes."

It occurred to me that this was the first time Mom had referred to Zak as her future son-in-law. I wasn't sure how I felt about that, since we weren't even officially engaged. On the other hand, I guess everyone realized it was only a matter of time.

"Your dad and I were going to head over to the snack shack and get a couple of burgers. Do you want to join us? You too, Ellie."

"Thanks, but we're going to wait to eat with our dates." Ellie actually blushed, which was weird because she'd been dating like crazy and everyone knew it.

"Well, you girls have a nice time," Dad said as he kissed me on the cheek before leading Mom and Harper away.

"Oh, there's Peter coming from the parking lot," Ellie informed me. "Save our place in line and I'll go to meet him."

I grinned as Ellie jogged away. She really was in to this guy. I just hoped he was as super as he seemed. I wasn't sure that a relationship would work out for them in the long run since he lived in the valley and she owned a business at the lake, but it would be nice if she found someone nice to hang out with in the short term.

"I spy with my little eye the fairest maiden in all the land." Zak jogged up behind me and scooped me into his arms.

"Zak, you nut, put me down."

"Not unless you know the magic phrase," he teased.

I whispered something in his ear.

He smiled. "That's not what I had in mind, but it will do." He set me on my feet.

"I thought you had another half hour at the snack bar."

"A couple of the guys scheduled for the second shift showed up early, so I decided to see if my princess was in need of rescue. Are you? In need of rescue?"

"Not at the moment, but you might be if you keep calling me princess."

"Oh, I do love them sa.s.sy."

"You are such a jerk."

"Maybe, but I'm an excellent kisser." And he kissed me to prove his point.

I couldn't help but smile at his playful mood. Zak was almost never in a bad mood, but he did tend to be more serious than silly. Maybe the Halloween spirit had gotten him in touch with his inner child. Whatever the reason for his playful mood, I liked it.

"Dad said he came by the house earlier. I guess you've given him the decorating bug. Mom said he's itching to keep up now that he saw all your electronics."

"He can try to catch up, but I am the decorator." Zak said that last word in the same way someone might say terminator.

I laughed. "I think you have Halloween on the brain."

"I thought it was your favorite holiday."

"It is."

"So why aren't you going a little Halloween crazy?"

"I'm crazy, just not as crazy as you. How about we check out the maze after the hayride? Just you and me," I suggested. "We can hide in the shadows and make out."

"Why don't we go home to make out and save the maze for tomorrow?"

"An even better idea."

"By the way, Levi stopped by the snack bar. He and Darla aren't going to join us. He thought things might be a little weird between Darla and Ellie."

I was sorry Levi wasn't meeting us, but it was probably just as well. Ellie was on a date of sorts-a first date-and the added tension of the Ellie/Levi dynamic might give Peter the wrong impression. Or I guess it would actually be the right impression, but perhaps not the one she'd want to make right out of the gate.

"Zak, this is Peter; Peter, Zak," Ellie introduced the guys when she returned with Peter on her arm.

"So how is Shep doing?" Peter asked Ellie once the introductions had been made.

"He's settling in nicely. He loves having the lake in his backyard to romp around."

"I'll bet."

"If you'd like to see him, you can come by the boathouse after the hayride," Ellie offered.

"I'd like that."

I looked at Zak and winked. We both recognized the smooth way she'd gotten him to come back to her place. Or maybe he was the one with the smooth moves? Either way, I was certain I was witnessing a romance in the making.

By the time we got to the front of the line, it was completely dark, which added a whole other level to the event. Riding through the dense forest at night, with all the nocturnal animals rustling about in the shrubs, was spooky even without the actors dressed as ghosts who floated around in the woods as the wagons traversed the narrow dirt trail. I was impressed by how many automated props Joel had managed to set up in the short amount of time he'd had to prepare.

I snuggled close to Zak for both warmth and security. It seemed that Peter and Ellie had had a similar idea. I was glad to see that Ellie had finally hooked up with a guy with genuine potential.

I suppressed a scream when a headless horseman came riding up wielding a sword. The live actors really added a sense of the terrifying to the event. I was pretty sure the man in the horseman costume was my dentist, but even with that knowledge, I found my heart pounding as he threatened to take the head of anyone who pa.s.sed through the woods.

"That was really fun," I said when the wagon had returned us safely to the staging area. "Anyone up for a drink?"

"I think Peter and I are going to head back to the boathouse," Ellie informed me. "I hate to leave Shep alone for too long. Catch up with you tomorrow?"

"Have fun." I grinned.

"You know," I reached up to wrap my arms around Zak's neck after they'd gone, "I bet Charlie and Bella are lonely too."

"Then I think we should definitely go home and check on them." Zak grabbed my hand and we started toward the truck. "I left a bottle of champagne to chill in case we decided we wanted to take a late-night dip in the spa."

"Champagne? That sounds . . . oh shoot." I stopped walking.

"We have a problem?"

"I forgot that I promised Tawny I'd cover the final two hours of her shift at the haunted maze. Her babysitter needed to leave early. Rain check on the champagne?"

Chapter 9.

Sat.u.r.day, October 25

The worst thing about the zombie run is that it always starts very early in the morning after a very late night. Last year Zak had arrived early and gotten everything set up before I even showed up, and this year was no different. When my alarm went off a full hour after the time I'd originally set it for, I found a note from him where his warm body should have been, letting me know that he was heading over early to set things up and that the coffee was on the timer and an egg pie was warming in the oven.

Have I mentioned that I have the best boyfriend ever?

"Ellie's not here?" I asked after eating my breakfast, showering, and driving to the starting point of the run.

"I haven't seen her," Zak answered after he kissed me good morning.

"I guess she might have had a late night with Peter. Do we have enough volunteers to man all the stations?"

"I think we're covered. Levi is going over last-minute instructions with the zombies and Darla is manning the sign-in table for the runners. I have all the electronic equipment set up, and a couple of cheerleaders showed up with the football players Levi recruited to play the zombies, so I have them giving out numbers and T-shirts. We should be good to go. Did you decide to leave Charlie at home?"

"Yeah, he was curled up with Bella. I made them go out before I left, but they both seemed pretty content to go back to sleep. I miss having Charlie with me as much as I used to, but I think he enjoys hanging out with Bella part of the time."

"I bet dogs like spending time with other dogs the same way people like spending time with people."

"I know there's one people I like to spend time with." I stood on tiptoe and gave Zak a quick kiss on the cheek. "I missed waking up to you."

"I figured you'd prefer to sleep in a bit."

"You figured right, but I have to say I'm quite enjoying this cohabitation thing."

Zak smiled.

"I guess I should head over and make sure the runners know the rules."

"I'm pretty sure Levi has that handled," Zak a.s.sured me. "You might want to check with the cheerleaders, though."

I looked toward the table where the four young girls were talking and laughing. Sometimes it seems like a million years since I was in high school and my biggest goal was to get an invitation to the homecoming dance and my biggest fear was that I wouldn't. Of course, all the high-school students at the race today were either jocks or cheerleaders, so I was pretty certain all of their dating needs were taken care of.

"Who is that talking to Paul?" I asked.

Paul Iverson, the newest member of the events committee and the new director for the summer camp in the area since Frank Valdez had been arrested for attempting to rob the bank the previous spring, was standing near the registration booth talking to a man I didn't recognize.

"I'm not sure," Zak answered. "They arrived together a little while ago. I overheard a bit of their conversation and got the impression that the man is somehow involved with the camp, either as a volunteer or an investor. I suppose the man could even be a parent, although they were talking about long-range consequences of one sort or another. It looks like Levi is getting the runners lined up; I should head over. I'll meet you at the finish line."

"Okay, and thanks again for getting up early and getting everything handled."

"No problem. It's what awesome boyfriends do."

"You didn't take a quiz in a men's magazine, did you?"

Zak just smiled as he walked away.

I looked back toward where Paul was speaking to the man I'd noticed before. I was certain I didn't recognize him, but I felt the familiar tingling I often do when trouble is brewing. The man looked to be in his early- to midthirties. He wasn't dressed like a businessman, so perhaps he was a volunteer or even a parent. Of course, it was early on a Sat.u.r.day morning. Maybe investor types didn't even dress like investors at that hour. I was debating about whether to go over and introduce myself when Darla waved me to the sign-in table, where a late arrival was demanding to be allowed to partic.i.p.ate even though the race was seconds from starting. I would have liked to a.s.suage my curiosity about the man Paul was speaking to, but when duty calls, it's only polite to answer.

"How can I help?" I asked as I approached the sign-in table.

"I'm running a little late, but I'd still like to partic.i.p.ate," a man dressed as a zombie answered.

"The race has already started, but if you run real fast, I guess you can try to catch up."

"Thanks." The man took off running at a pace that was never going to catch him up to the others, but if he didn't mind running the race a good quarter mile behind the pack, who was I to stop him?

I looked back toward the location where I'd seen Paul talking with the man I'd had a feeling was someone I should talk to. "Did you see where Paul went?" I asked Darla.

"He headed toward the parking area. I think he was leaving."

"Do you know who that was he was talking to?"

"No, he didn't say, but I got the feeling the guy was from out of the area. When he arrived, Paul looked surprised to see him. He went right over and shook his hand, so I a.s.sume they know each other from before today."

"Did Paul say anything at all that might indicate who he was or where he knew him from?" I asked.

Darla frowned. "Why? Do you know him?"

"No. I just have a feeling I might have seen him somewhere before."

Darla shrugged. "Paul didn't say much at all, really. We were talking, he looked up and saw the man, said something like 'what is he doing here?' and then walked over and started talking to him. If you want to know who he is, I guess you can call Paul."

"I just might do that."

After the zombie run wrapped up, Zak and I headed back into town to have some lunch and attend the kiddie carnival. Hazel and the other members of the events committee who'd helped decorate the community center had done a wonderful job. Children of all ages, most dressed in costume, were dispersed around the room, playing the twenty or so games the committee had come up with. The lines wound through the room as tykes tossed beanbags through the face of a giant jack-o'-lantern made of plywood or rolled plastic bowling b.a.l.l.s at plastic pins. The longest line of all, much to my surprise, was the fishing booth, where the partic.i.p.ants cast strings attached to a pole over a blanket hung on a line in the hopes of catching prizes.

"Do you remember doing this when you were a kid?" I asked Zak as I watched the mother of a couple of little boys who were standing in line wrestle with a toddler who had other ideas.

"No, I don't think my parents ever brought me to a kiddie carnival when I was growing up."