Chapter 56

Marcus

ONE YEAR LATER

"... For as long as humans have roamed the Earth, there have been enough horror stories to fill an entire library. It's no wonder today we have more potential ghost sightings than ever. After all, it's not the stories with happy endings that give us restless spirits.

Whether you believe or not, there's no denying the history of our incredible species. Even if it's not all favourable. And that's what ghost stories are - a celebration of history.

Thank you for joining us on our tour around the city. We hope to see you next week for more Phantom Footsteps.

Marcus bit his lip as Erica smiled at him from the screen, his heart racing uncomfortably.

Everyone around him was silent, everyone focused on the television as a voice-over spoke over the rolling credits of their first episode.

"And you can catch episode two of Phantom Footsteps at the same time next week. Next, are you afraid of a hot stove? Let our amateur..."

The pub erupted into applause. Cheers soon followed, drowning out the announcer. Marcus turned to Erica, who sat beside him, her nails biting into her hand as she tried to calm her nerves.

"You okay?"

Without letting her answer, Martin, the pub's current owner, grabbed Erica's hand. He motioned for Marcus to join them.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" Martin rang the bell above the bar to grab their attention. "Let's hear it again for Marcus and Erica, the dream team that put our pub and our city on the map!"

Marcus couldn't help but laugh as face after face grinned up at him. He recognised most of them. They were regulars at Agnes' bar, customers who had taken the tour, and some old employees of his.

On the other side of Martin, Erica's cheeks blushed. She waved off the compliments being thrown her way.

"Speech! Speech! Speech!"

Ringing the bell again, Martin encouraged them both to say something. Erica glanced at him, exhaling a chuckle as she shook her head in disbelief. Clearing his throat, Marcus addressed the crowd, who waited expectantly. "First, a massive thank you to all of you who have come out to support us. Erica is a little speechless now. But I'm sure she would want to thank you, just as I do."

Erica nodded her agreement, laughing as she wiped a tear that escaped the corner of her eye. His heart soared with love for her and just how much the positive reception meant to her.

For all his life, he had hoped for a woman like Erica.

For someone as passionate as he was. Who wanted them both to succeed as a team and would never shy away from a challenge.

Tonight was definitely the night.

"When I was a lad, it was Agnes and this pub that ignited my imagination and made me fall in love with all things spooky. My da' told me that if I didn't behave, I'd feel the ghostly presence of Agnes and her cricket bat.

"I should have been terrified. And if a living person came at me with a cricket bat, I'd have pissed my pants. But there I was, eight years old and being the biggest pest I could just to see if scary old Agnes would come and get me."

He smiled at the titter of laughter that went around the room.

"She did not. And nor has she any time I've returned to this pub. Not once have I ever felt that Agnes or any other ghost lived in these walls. I still hold hope that one day, Agnes will deem me worthy. Because if not for her and her cricket bat, I wouldn't be standing here today giving this speech.

I wouldn't have spent hours researching ghost stories. Or visiting those places. And I wouldn't have created a business to tell these stories to others."

Taking a breath, Marcus calmed himself, glancing at Erica. "Without this business, my ex-wife might not have seen me as a penniless failure and cheated on me. Believe it or not, that was the best thing to ever happen to me. Because it led me to the beautiful woman you see standing up here with me."

Erica waved him off, blushing again even as she smiled at him.

"Without Agnes, I wouldn't have a weird job that would make me interesting enough for Erica to want to stick around." She laughed, and he reached for her hand, pulling her close. "Okay, that was a lie," he said. Even when I was a penniless failure, this woman became my best friend. She was my biggest advocate and the most incredible support I could have hoped for.

"Phantom Footsteps would not be where it is today without Erica and her wonderful passion. I would not be where I am without her unwavering belief in me."

Marcus cleared his throat as emotion stung his eyes. He chuckled at his nerves and met Erica's gaze. This time, he addressed her, everything else melting away.

For me, there was nowhere else in the world I could watch the premiere of our show. It had to be the pub that inspired my entire career. There was no other moment when I could ask you to be my wife. It's this moment when I am on top of the world and you're the reason I'm there.""

Erica's eyes widened, filling with tears as she covered her mouth. Once again, the room filled with silence as people looked on at them. Marcus' heart leapt into his mouth, white noise ringing in his ears.

"What are you doing?" Erica asked from behind her hand, a slight squeak in her tone.

Marcus smirked at her. He then dropped to one knee and pulled out the box from his jacket pocket. He revealed the ring he'd had custom-made for her .

"Erica, I can't imagine a life more perfect than the one I share with you. In our short time together, we've been through so much and conquered the world.

You've given me everything. In return, I promise to do all I can to make you happy and to ensure you never regret tying yourself to a fool like me. So, Erica Starling, we've both been here before and heard promises from other people who stomped on our hearts. But I'm asking you now, will you take this journey with me and become my wife?

"Erica, will you marry me?"

His heart pounded painfully as the silence between them stretched for an age. Suddenly, he was aware of their audience, a hundred pairs of eyes waiting with bated breath.

Fuck, he should have done this in private.

What if she said no? What if she hated everything about -

"Yes."

It was only one word. But it held the most weight. One syllable was enough to send his heart soaring with relief before his entire body felt lighter as sheer happiness filled his soul.

"Yes, I'll marry you!"

Her smile took his breath away as she sank to the floor with him, and he pulled her into his arms. She didn't care about the dirty wooden panels on her silk trousers. Nor did she worry about how she looked to the cheering people.

Later, when Marcus reflected on this moment and remembered the intoxicating atmosphere that filled the pub, it would occur to him how different the two women he had proposed to had reacted when he popped the question.

Unlike Erica, who only had eyes for him and only wanted to be his wife, Sophie refused his proposal twice. She insisted he needed to plan the perfect moment so that everyone could admire her.

Like a fool, he'd followed her request.

He should've figured out a long time ago that she wasn't the woman for him. She wasn't even close.

No.

The perfect woman was currently in his arms and crying happily into his shoulder. His only regret was that he hadn't found Erica earlier and had wasted time with someone who did not deserve him.

Standing, he supported Erica's weight, lifting her with him. Pulling back from her, he ran his fingers through her hair, pushing it away from her beautiful face.

Her smile was radiant, her eyes warm and open as they sparkled up at him. He was still holding the jewellery box, pressing it against her back as he held her close.

God, he loved this woman.

"God, I love you," he murmured, dipping his head to capture her lips in the sweetest of kisses.

"Let's hear it for Marcus and Erica!" Martin said, ringing the bell to an accompaniment of cheers. "Next round is on the house. Get your drinks in, you lot!"

Another cheer went around the room, this time in celebration of the free booze. Marcus could feel it when the attention shifted from them. The normal hum of pub life filled his ears, rather than the silence before.

With the pressure off, he felt like he could breathe.

"Do you want to see this ring, then?" He asked Erica, whose eyes had still not left his face.

"Yes," she said, laughing as she wiped her eyes. "Yes, please. It looked beautiful from what I saw—"

"Reviews are coming in guys!" Marcus frowned, looking up as a media manager from the London Group approached him. For the life of him, he couldn't remember this guy's name. But every time they saw him, he clutched his tablet as his life depended on it.

"Everything looks positive so far," he continued, obnoxiously tapping away at his tablet. "Our hashtags are trending, we've made the top of—"

"Matthew!" Erica interrupted. "Can this wait? We're sort of in the middle of something."

"Oh, yes?" Matthew said politely, smiling between them. "What's that, then?"

"I..." Erica looked up at Marcus and frowned. "Well—"

"I just asked Erica to marry me," Marcus said, a tic in his jaw as he stared down at Matthew. "And you're sort of killing the mood. "

Matthew looked between, drawing his eyebrows together as he noted their embrace and the tears staining Erica's cheeks. His eyes dropped to her hand, clicking his tongue.

"No ring? Marky boy, you can't just propose on a whim, there needs to be a ri—"

"Matthew, if you don't remove yourself from my presence in the next five seconds, I'm going to have to grab Agnes' famous cricket bat."

This time, Matthew's eyes widened as he nodded, dropping the stylus for his tablet. "Yup. Right-o. Right you are." Fumbling, he bent to retrieve the stylus. "I'll just come back later, yeah? Congratulations."

Erica giggled, hiding her face in Marcus' neck to disguise the sound. Matthew backed away, fiddling away with the damn tablet once more as Marcus turned his attention back to Erica.

"That was mean," she chastised him. "The poor boy looked terrified."

"Ah, he'll be okay." He chuckled. "I'll create an ‘I'm sorry, Matthew' hashtag and all will be well."

"You're terrible," she laughed. "But you're probably not wrong about the hashtag. Now. About that ring."

"Ah yes," Marcus said, finally releasing her and opening the jewellery box once more. Taking her hand, he kissed her ring finger before sliding the ring onto it. Warmth filled his heart as he watched her admire her ring, her delicate fingers tracing the stone. She looked as if she was the luckiest woman.

He didn't know about that.

But he was certainly the luckiest man in the world. And with her promise to be with him forever, he was going to make sure she felt just as lucky. He'd do it every day for eternity.