Funeral home owner and undertaker Dual Hood knows a good thing when he sees it, so when Charlie Soder applies for the job of embalmer, he snatches up the young man in a heartbeat. Charlie, fresh-faced and just out of college, also knows a good thing when he sees it, and immediately sets his sights on his new sexy boss.<br><br>It doesn’t take long for sparks to fly and romance to blossom. But Dual worries what folks in his small Mississippi town will say, and whether his family-owned business will suffer if word goes round about his new love interest. He isn’t at all certain he has the courage to do the right thing and grab love before it slips through his fingers.

The Undertaker's Secret

One of the girls was the first to stand up.


“Sure, Mr. Dewey,” she said in a drawl.


“More like Mr. Mountain Dewey,” one of the boys said as he got to his feet and smirked.


Charlie and I waited until they had gone back around to the front. Charlie then turned, gave me a sort of “come-hither” look.


I smiled, but immediately tensed. Did he want to kiss?


“Have you been thinking about what I said?” he asked quietly.


“That’s all I’ve been thinking about,” I admitted.


And there it was again. That feeling of wanting to take him in my arms. To say what I wanted to say. To reassure him. To put his mind at ease. But the words were stuck in my throat and all I did was stare at him and frown.


Like I said before, Charlie has the most expressive face, and what passed across his angelic features in that moment was a look of hurt and confusion.


“I just need time,” I said, trying to salvage the situation.


Chapter 24