“Damien…” I sighed. His presence felt like home. He came around and sat in front of me; his eyes bright with excitement. He lifted my chin up and looked directly into my eyes.
“Do you have any idea how beautiful you are? I could look into your face for all eternity,” he whispered hoarsely, his hazel eyes smoldering. Before I could say anything, he leaned over and kissed me urgently. Electricity coursed through my veins; charging my heart and making it beat wildly inside my chest. I had wondered for so long what it would be like to kiss his beautiful lips. He slowly lowered me onto the sand, hovering on top of me, his mouth never leaving mine. He tangled his fingers into my hair, and in response, I pulled him closer to me, pressing my body against his. I wanted him. I vaguely wondered how much time we had left; how much time before we were ripped away.
“You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to do that,” Damien said, finally breaking the kiss. He smiled and caressed the side of my face.
“I’ve never been kissed like that before,” I proclaimed, my voice ragged.
“Neither have I,” he admitted. Just then, I noticed his silhouette begin to quiver. Our time together was coming to an end. His smile slowly faded and his eyes mirrored my own sadness. I looked down at my hands - my fingers were transparent and turning into vapor.
“I’ll see you again. Soon,” I promised. He reached out once more to kiss me, but as he did, he turned to mist and disappeared before my eyes.
I sat there watching the particles swirling, floating… and I was breaking.
I sat up drenched in sweat, my heart racing frantically. I could still smell the salty air, still taste the sweetness of his mouth on mine. That kiss had felt so real. The touch of his lips on mine was heavenly; unlike anything I’d ever imagined. I wondered if kissing him in the dream realm would be the same as kissing him in the flesh. Now I was far too excited to fall back asleep, so I decided to try and find an outfit for Friday’s trip. I stood up too quickly, and became dizzy; my vision blurring. As my eyes refocused, I realized I was no longer in my bedroom. I again felt the heaviness of beaded silk on my body, and the weight of my hair, much longer than it actually was. I started to panic, thinking I was going to have another strange hallucination like the one I experienced inside Madame Yelena’s shop. I looked down at my shaking hands - gold rings covered most of my fingers, and I noticed my skin appeared to be darker than it really was. I squeezed my eyes shut, praying that when I opened them once more, my hands would be my own.
My eyelids slowly fluttered open, and I was in my bedroom once more. I sat down on the bed, my entire body shaking. I took several deep breaths before deciding to get up and grab a glass of water. I didn’t know exactly what these hallucinations meant, but somehow I knew they were tied to my past life.
I decided to put off the task of packing and picking outfits for the trip. I didn’t want to put too much pressure on myself at the moment, wondering if it was stress that was exacerbating my situation. I would pack after Lillian confirmed my request for vacation time.
Perhaps the thought of actually meeting this man was so overwhelming, that it was causing me to have these strange hallucinatory episodes? I couldn’t allow myself to panic. Not yet. I had to get some sleep, and quickly, or else I would be useless at work tomorrow. I got back into bed, and despite the mounting stress, I finally fell asleep.
CHAPTER 16
DAMIEN
The memory of Madelyn’s lips on mine haunted me all through the night. Once I awoke from that dream, I never fell back asleep. I wanted to call her immediately afterward, but it was one o’clock in the morning her time and I didn’t want to disturb her. I decided to take a shower in hopes of relaxing, but as the hot water ran down my face, I couldn’t help but think of her - her beautiful face, her soft lips pressed against mine - the more I thought of her, the more aroused I became. I turned the shower knob to cold in frustration, and let the cool water bring me back to my senses.
I dried myself off and dressed, grabbed a glass of warm milk in hopes of it making me sleepy, then went back to bed. Unfortunately, it took ages to fall asleep again, and once I finally did, the rest of the night was filled with restless, fitful sleep.
***
After trying futilely to sleep, I gave up and decided to go make breakfast at the ungodly hour of 5 am. I began gathering all the ingredients to make pancakes, trying my best to make as little noise as possible. As I focused on the task of making breakfast, I felt the restlessness within me finally abate. I had just placed the skillet on the stove when I heard Bentley rustling about the house.
He walked into the kitchen, a look of horror on his face. “Are you cooking? In my kitchen?” Bentley asked.
“Yes, I am. And technically, it’s my kitchen,” I said laughing.
“I. Am. Shocked.” Bentley came over and hovered over the skillet.
“It’s no big deal. I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I would make breakfast.”
“This actually looks edible,” Bentley joked.
“Ha, ha. Very funny. You know, I’m not completely useless in the kitchen. Take a load off,” I said. “I’ll get some coffee.” Bentley laughed as he made his way over to the table.
I started tossing pancakes onto plates when I heard my phone ring.
“Hi, Mom,” I said after looking at the display.
“Hi, honey! I can’t believe you’re up. I was planning on leaving a message since it’s so early there,” she said.
“Yes, I’m up. How are you? How’s Dad?”
“We’re fine, honey. I was calling to check up on you. How are you feeling? I’ve been so worried about you and still a little mad that you wouldn’t let me come and take care of you,” she scolded.
“Don’t be mad, Mother. I’m fine and all of my injuries are pretty much healed. Just a little soreness in the ribs, but other than that, I feel fine. I suffered much worse on the farm. Remember the time Dad’s new mare kicked me and sent me flying? I broke my arm and two ribs,” I reminded her.
“That’s true. I hated that darn horse. I was so glad when your father finally sold her. Anyway, I just wanted to see how you were doing and let you know that your father and I miss you. Hope you still plan on coming home for Christmas,” she stated, more letting me know that she fully expected me to make good on my promise to them.
“Yes, I do still plan to come. I will let you know as soon as I book the ticket.”
“Thank you, dear. Please say hello to Bentley for me. And Ava, too,” she said reluctantly.
“Well, Mom. There is news on that front. Ava and I broke it off,” I told her.
“Oh, honey, I’m sorry,” she said, but then after a short pause, she added: “I have to say, maybe it’s for the best? To be honest, I never really trusted that girl...” she trailed off, but we both knew her relationship with Ava had been strained from the beginning and our break-up didn’t exactly ruin her day.
“I know how you feel about her, Mom. And yes, I think it was for the best too.”
“Well, good. You deserve better, sweetie, and I’m sure you’ll find someone who will appreciate just how wonderful you are, and not want to be with your for your fame or money.”
“Ava has fame and money too. I don’t think that’s what she was after.”
“No, you’re right. But she seemed to be more preoccupied with how popular the two of you were as a couple than loving you for the right reasons,” she proclaimed.
“That’s exactly why she wanted this relationship. Thanks for being you, Mom. I love you, you know that, right?”
“Of course, honey. I love you too. Come home for Christmas. I am going to tell all the neighbors you’re coming. Oh, everyone is going to be so excited!”
“Please don’t say anything until I book the flight!” I pleaded.
“If you plan on coming then it’s not a problem to let people know, right?” she noted, adding, “But I guess I can keep the secret for a little while, just to put your mind at ease.”
&nbs
p; I knew how long that would be. News travelled fast in our little Midwestern town and within the hour everyone from Frank the butcher to Cheryl at the post office would know I was coming home for the holidays.
“And please tell Bentley he’s invited too, of course. I hope he knows he is always welcome at our home.”
“I will let him know.” I smiled, thinking how downright sweet my mother was.
“You have a good day, sweetheart. I love you. Daddy too!” she exclaimed.
“Thanks Mom. Love you too, and say hi to Dad. We’ll talk soon, okay?”
“Okay sweetheart. Bye.”
I hung up the phone, and tried to push away the overwhelming emotions surging within me. I missed home. I missed the simple life that I had there. And most of all, I missed my family.
“Everything okay with Mama Pierce?” Bentley asked.
“Yeah, she’s doing well. She wanted to remind you that you are invited to come spend Christmas with my family,” I told him.
“She’s one of a kind, your mother. Sweet lady. Thanks for the invite,” he said.
I finished up cooking the rest of the batter, and placed all the dirty dishes in the sink.
“Are you going to eat?” Bentley asked, as he helped himself to a second plate of pancakes.
“Oh. Yeah, I’ll eat,” I said, finally grabbing a plate for myself. I poured a big mug of black coffee and sat down, checking my phone to see if Madelyn had possibly messaged me about our rendezvous in the dream realm last night. Nope.
There were, however, several messages from Ava from the night before. She and I had spoken only once since breaking up, and it didn’t go well. The last two days, Ava had done nothing but send me messages apologizing and asking to see me. I wondered how much Nick was playing a part in all this. I could almost bet money that he was behind it - encouraging her to reach out to me and try and make amends. For the sake of our image, of course.
I agreed to meet for lunch today, as long as she promised to remain civil. Maybe if she could find some closure, she and I could still remain friends. I looked at my agenda, and apart from lunch with Ava, my day was filled with meaningless appointments with Nick. But the light at the end of the tunnel was that I promised Madelyn I would call her later tonight. I was already eager to talk to her, but there was no way I was going to call her this early in the day and risk her thinking I was crazy or desperate. I decided on sending her a quick text, letting her know I was thinking about her. Girls liked that, right? I sent the message and stared at the screen, waiting for those three dots to appear signaling that she was texting back. Hopefully I was on her mind too.
***
Lunch with Ava went better than expected. She was calm. Almost too calm, but accepting of what I had to say. She had agreed to the reasons for splitting up, saying:
“I knew we were headed down this road, Damien. The last couple months haven’t been the same and you were not yourself. Hell, I guess I changed too. Maybe we both just want different things,” she said, twisting the white cloth napkin in her hands.
“Wow Ava, I didn’t know you could be so reasonable,” I joked. “Thank you for understanding. I hope we can still be amiable.” I swiped at the condensation on my glass, afraid to make eye contact with her.
“Of course, sweetie! We can always be friends,” she said, smiling. Her face was a mask of calmness. It was weird, actually. I had never seen her so serene; so at peace. Perhaps this was exactly what she wanted too, but she had been so busy fighting to keep our image intact that she didn’t realize how much happier she would be once we moved on? I was hopeful this was the closure she was in need of.
“Ava, I wish you all the best. I mean that. I want you to find happiness. I know you’ll be snatched up before long. You’re too desirable for your own good,” I admitted.
“Aw, Damien, you always know just what to say to make me feel better. You’ll miss me, you know,” she giggled.
“I’m sure I will,” I said, trying to be nice.
“I’ll miss you, too,” she confessed. She rose from her chair, placing her napkin on the table and came over to me, kissing me lightly on the lips. Her mouth was warm, and she smelled like vanilla, but her lips against mine didn’t stir anything within me. I felt nothing.
“Goodbye, Damien. I’m sure we’ll see each other around,” she said as she grabbed her things to leave. I stood up too and gave her a hug.
“We can’t avoid it in this business,” I said jokingly. “Bye, Ava.” I watched her walk out of the restaurant and felt a small weight lift from my shoulders.
Now that she and I were amicably separated (I hoped), nothing could stand in the way of Madelyn and me getting to know each other. Madelyn would be here soon, and I could barely contain the excitement I felt. It was like electricity was running through my veins, and the closer I came to being with her, the more intense the feeling became.
I paid the tab and left, imagining several wonderful ways Madelyn and I could spend time together as I walked out to my car.
CHAPTER 17
MADELYN
My team and I had been busy all week with the MacMahon house, not to mention all the extra duties I inherited from Lillian since she left the office on Monday. Her unforeseen circumstance had been the death of a beloved aunt which no one knew she had, since she never, ever mentioned family. The way she lived and breathed this business, all of us at the firm thought she hatched out of Gaston Bachelard’s The Poetics of Space (“an essential for any designer”, she would say, and the book she made each and every one of her team members read upon being hired).
I was just finishing up sending some pertinent emails on Lillian’s behalf. She may be out of the office, but she was never out of the loop. Luckily, she approved my day off tomorrow, as long as I was “able to manage delegating the rest of my duties while I was gone,” she had explained in her email.
My team and I had returned about half an hour ago from the MacMahon house and got busy ordering pieces and organizing details. I sent Sarah (my trusted project assistant) out on a coffee run. Caffeine was essential to productivity, and sacred around these parts. As I awaited Sarah’s return, I took a moment to check my phone, and noticed a message from Damien:
“Good morning, Madelyn. Thinking of you. Send me your email address when you get a chance so I can forward your flight itinerary. Looking forward to talking later.”
I couldn’t help the grin spreading across my face. I felt like I was on cloud 9. I loved that I was on his mind. He was always on mine, too. I replied to him, sending him my email address, just as Sarah walked in with the coffee.
“What are you so happy about?” Sarah asked.
“Hmm? Oh, my day off tomorrow,” I replied.
“Wait, you’re not going to be here? Lucky.”
“You’ll be okay taking care of things, right? I think we’ll get pretty caught up today, so you shouldn’t have much to do. And, you can email me or message me if you need anything,” I told her.
“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry. Are you doing anything special this weekend?”
“Nope,” I said, smiling mischievously, imagining what my coworkers would say if they knew I was going to spend the weekend with Damien Pierce.
***
I took a moment to step outside the office and call Madame Yelena. I couldn’t explain why, but I had the desire to tell her all that had happened since I decided to reach out and contact Damien. After all, she had asked me to update her on the matter. I hoped she could give me some insight or guidance as to how I should proceed once I met him in person. I sat down at one of the the little garden tables around the fountain which graced our outdoor courtyard and dialed her number. As the phone rang, I took in the beautiful courtyard and wondered why I never made the time to sit out here in this lovely spot and eat lunch. Oh, right… I’m too busy. Madelyn Yelena answered, bringing me back to reality.
“Madelyn, I’m so glad you called. You have news for me, correct?” Man, she was eerily on point...
“Um, yes, I do have some information to share with you.” I quickly explained all that had transpired since reaching out to Damien. She listened intently, sometimes interjecting an “uh-huh” or a “mmmm” where necessary.
“You do not need worry yourself so much, Madelyn. You are fulfilling your soul’s quest by joining Damien. This is a step in the right direction. Come to my shop after work today. I can give you a special tea to calm your nerves, if you wish,” she added.
“Thank you, Madame Yelena. The tea would be wonderful. I’ll swing by after work, then. Goodbye,” I said hanging up the phone. I never thought that I would be willingly calling a psychic for anything, let alone seeking one out for advice, but it seems she was turning out to be the real thing.
***
The drive to Madame Yelena’s shop took longer than expected due to an accident that was backing up traffic. Hopefully Damien wouldn’t call me early like he did yesterday. I wanted to be home when he called, so I wouldn’t have any other distractions. But of course, as I pulled into the parking lot of her shop, my phone rang. I stepped out of the car, phone in hand, and noticed Damien’s number on the screen.
“Hello, Damien,” I answered, imagining how amazing it would be when I finally met him face to face tomorrow.
“Hi, Madelyn. I’m sorry to call you early again, but I couldn’t wait any longer,” he said. His deep, velvety voice caused a warmth to spread in the pit of my stomach and I yearned to be with him.
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