A Beautiful Dream: The Dream Trilogy

by Samantha Barrett

  “Please take a seat, and we can discuss some matters,” Randall instructed I let out a snort when he took one of the single chairs at the end. Stevie shot me a death glare, so I quickly masked my snort by coughing.

  “What are the matters you would like to discuss, Mr. Cane?” Alex asked, adopting a blasé tone.

  “First, why was I not notified of your uncle’s death? And why was I never told that Ralph Knox’s other daughter survived?”

  “I was planning on telling you my father had passed, once we arrived and got settled in. Rest assured, Mr. Cane, we were not leading you astray. Also, my sister was not raised with my father and me, so he thought it wise not to let anyone know that she was alive, since she was not under his protection. She lived with our mother,” Stevie stated.

  Randall sat on his throne, scratching his chin like he was deep in thought. He turned his eyes to me, and I forced myself to meet his gaze, head up, as Stevie had demanded.

  “Did you know of any of this, Miss Knox?”

  I didn’t know how to answer that question appropriately, so I thought telling the truth was the best option.

  “Mr. Cane, this is all new information to me, like my sister just said. I was raised by our mother. I had no idea about any of this”—I waved my hands around— “magic stuff, until this morning.” He looked like he had just won the lottery. That wasn’t creepy or anything.

  “I understand, Miss Knox, I really do. However, your father should have told us about you. It changes things with the treaty, you being alive and present in our midst.” I was about to respond when the door swung open and Jax strolled in. What the hell was he doing here?

  “Sorry I’m late! You forgot to let me know the meeting was starting.” Jax was pinning Chase with a death glare. Chase just smiled.

  Jax took a seat on a couch and asked, “What did I miss?” Randall filled him in, and Jax seemed to have trouble hiding his shock at my ignorance.

  “Why were you kept a secret?” he asked me.

  “I wasn’t a secret, as far as I knew,” I told him with a shrug.

  “Ryan was not raised with us, so she was not mentioned for her own safety,” Stevie snapped.

  “Just because she grew up somewhere else does not give you and your father the right to LIE TO ME!” Randall roared. I sank back into the couch cushions and started counting the possible exits.

  “No one lied to you, Randall. We were all children when the treaty was renewed. None of us were involved, so if Ryan’s existence being kept from you is a problem, we cannot help that. The one who could answer that question is now dead,” Alex fired back at Randall.

  “Look, we’re all a bit on edge having your cousin here. Having two heirs is unheard of, so you can see why we are a bit upset about all this,” Jax said, looking sympathetic.

  “What’s so bad about having two heirs?” I asked to no one in particular.

  Jax shared a look with Randall, and then they both looked to my sister and cousins, as if waiting for one of them to answer my question. With a sigh, Stevie finally answered.

  “An heir is someone who is next in line to rule. In our case, being an heir means one of us is in line to rule the Knox coven. Because you do not yet know how to wield your powers, I will step up to rule our people until you are ready. Then we can sort what happens next.” I could tell by the look on my sister’s face that she was eager to take on that leadership role, which was fine by me. I knew there was more to it, Stevie was withholding information. Once again I was being put in a situation I didn’t understand, by the people who supposedly loved me.

  “You know what? I never asked for this shit, Stevie, any of it! And I don’t want it.” As I stood up to leave, the office door opened once more, and in walked the last person I thought I would ever see in life. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move. Then it all went dark.

  Chapter 9

  As I was coming to, I braced myself for the inevitable pain from hitting the floor, but it never came. My head was resting on something soft. I heard the others fussing around me, wondering if I was okay. As I opened my eyes to try tell everyone I was fine. The first thing I see, Is beautiful blue-gray eyes, I know those eyes they belong to Kai. My dream man was real, He was holding me in his lap. My breaths were coming out in short fast pants; I thought my heart might jump out of my chest. I tried to open and close my eyes a few times to make sure I wasn’t dreaming, but he stayed right where he was.

  As he was leaning his head down to look at me, I realized my head was resting within an inch of his manhood. I couldn’t help the blush that spread across my cheeks. I tried to sit up, but he put his hand in the middle of my chest to stop me, and in the quietest whisper, he spoke to me.

  “I would never let you fall, mi amor.” Holy fuck, he is real. I couldn’t wrap my head around that. He called me ‘mi amor,’ so that must mean he was really in my dreams, right? But how?

  I looked at him, at a loss for words which was a rare thing for me. I had been dreaming about this man for years and now here he is, holding me.

  “Thank God you’re okay,” Chase breathed, kneeling down beside me. He started to slide his hands under my arms so he could lift me up, but my beautiful dream god growled. I snapped my head back toward him and gaped—he had his lips pulled back and his fangs out. Yes, I said fangs! My dream guy was real and he was a…vampire? I am clearly fucked in the head. The dude has fangs, and I’m sitting here swooning over him.

  He looked down at me, and his eyes told me what he couldn’t. He was ashamed of himself and his actions. He clamped his mouth shut, as if to hide his fangs, and turned his head away. Out of sheer instinct, I reached out and turned his face toward me so I could look him in the eyes.

  “Don’t hide from me,” I said firmly. He had nothing to be ashamed of. I mean I’m a fucking witch—so what if he is a vampire? Before he could respond, my sister spoke.

  “Let go of my sister now, enforcer. If you harm her, I will end you.” Stevie had so much hatred in her tone that it made me gasp.

  I was about to say something to protect my dream man, but before I could, Kai had me on my feet in a flash. He had his hands on my hips to steady me, but it also felt like he didn’t want to let me go. I couldn’t help but remember my dreams—were they real? I tilted my head back so I could ask him the one question burning a hole in my head.

  “Who are you?”

  “My name is Melakai Cane, Miss Knox. I am the head of the vampire king’s enforcers.” He had a look of regret on his beautiful face. He was being so formal. I didn’t like it. Where was my relaxed sex god, who always made me laugh?

  “Kai, step away from her now, before you do something you will regret,” Jax warned Melakai, taking a step toward us.

  “You take one step closer, Jackson, and you and I will finish what we started years ago—right here, right now,” Kai growled at Jax.

  “Melakai, son. Step away from the girl,” the king ordered. Son? Wait, did that mean Randall was his dad?

  With a final look at me to make sure I was okay, he took his hands off my hips. I felt instantly cold without his touch to warm me. I didn’t want him to let me go. I wanted him to hold me forever. He was real, and I needed to know if he was really in my dreams. I have never been one to be like this toward a guy, but I just couldn’t help the pull I felt toward him, like my life force was telling me to hold onto him. I have never felt safe in my life except when Kai was holding me. After stepping away from me, Kai made his way over to stand by the king. Stevie came rushing over and gave me a bone-crushing hug.

  “What the hell was that, Ry?” she asked, looking me over for injuries, I guess.

  “I don’t know. Sorry for worrying you. I should have had something to eat before having that glass of champagne, I guess.” I couldn’t tell her the truth about Kai being one of my dream guys. I don’t know why, but I felt like Kai being in my dreams was something I needed to keep private. Glancing over at Kai and seeing the look on his face, I knew I made the rig
ht decision.

  “Now, can we all have a seat and try this again? I would like to finish our discussion,” the king barked.

  “Sounds good to me, but why is he here?” Jax asked, nodding toward Melakai.

  “He’s my heir and my son.” Oh, so he is the king’s son. “He has every right to be here, Mr. Marshall. Do not ever question my leadership or my sons again. Do I make myself clear?” Randall said, pointing a stern look Jax’s way. Kai had a look of disdain plastered on his face, but he quickly masked it. That look was pointed at Randall, not Jax.

  With a nod of his head, Jax took his seat and the rest of us followed. The door opened again, and in walked a huge man, around the size of a big bear. He had a ginger beard, shoulder-length red hair, and brown eyes. He wore dark jeans, a black button-up shirt, and my God, was the shirt tight! If he flexed his biceps, he would tear the shirt. He gave us a nod and smiled at my sister then went to stand beside Jax.

  “Since your second-in-command is here, I thought mine should be as well. Everyone, this is Tyler. He is my Beta,” Jax told the group. Stevie couldn’t keep her eyes off Jackson’s Beta. I gave her a nudge so she would close her mouth.

  “Pleasure to meet you all,” he said with a bow of his head.

  “No, no the pleasure is all mine,” Stevie said with a wink.

  I couldn’t help it; I started laughing my ass off. Alex and Chase joined in as well. The king gave me a dirty look, but fuck him and the stick up his ass. Stevie punched me in the arm to shut me up, but Melakai didn’t seem to like that. He took a step forward and pinned my sister with a glare.

  “You would be wise to never lay your hands on her again, Coven heir,” Kai spat.

  I stopped laughing immediately, as did the others. Stevie stood up to square off against Kai. Oh no, this wasn’t going to end well.

  “You would do well to know your place, enforcer. Do not ever interfere in my family business again. It’s coven queen now,” she hissed. I felt like I was missing something here. Everyone seemed to have ill feelings toward Kai, and I didn’t understand why.

  “Why doesn’t everyone stop hating on the poor guy and get on with this talk, so I can go and get something to eat.” Kai had a look of pride in his eyes that look sent butterflies to my tummy. He could always set my body on fire with just one look in my dreams, now he could also do it in real life.

  “Tyler and I can take you ladies out for something to eat after this. Their kind doesn’t eat real food.” I could hear the dig in Jax’s voice—he clearly only said that to piss Kai off.

  “You will not be going anywhere with her, dog,” Kai snapped back.

  “Is that a threat, you leech?” Jax sneered back. Both men took a step toward each other. I quickly stood and jumped between them.

  “Thanks, guys, but I’m a big girl, I can make my own decisions, and I’d rather just go home and eat there. So let’s get this show on the road.” I couldn’t tell everyone the truth, that I would rather go out with Kai.

  Both men then stepped back, and Jax took his seat. I took my seat next to Stevie. Chase and Alex had smiles on their faces. I shot them both a dirty look; I knew what they were smiling about. They knew I was attracted to Kai.

  “Now that the pissing contest is out of the way for Ryan’s attention, let’s talk about the treaty,” Alex said, still grinning. I went beet-red from embarrassment; he was so getting punched for that comment when we leave.

  “I would like a new treaty drawn up with new terms,” the king stated.

  That was it. Everyone stood up and started shouting over each other. The whole room was in uproar. Before anyone knew what was happening, the door burst open, and guards came piling in. One grabbed Stevie, and Alex went to lunge for him, but was caught mid-air by another guard. Chase went to help his brother, but was restrained by another guard. These guys were coming out of nowhere. Jax went to grab my arm and was stopped by a fist to the face—Kai’s fist to be exact. Then they were all-out brawling on the floor. Tyler couldn’t help Jax as he was subdued by three guards.

  I was trying to help the others when a guard grabbed me from behind. I screamed, and Stevie started shouting threats at the guard to let me go or she would tear him limb from limb. I don’t know what happened: maybe it was the rush of fear I was feeling, but my body felt really hot, and then out of nowhere, blue light shot from my hands at the guard that was holding me. He dropped to the floor. Stevie had a look of utter shock on her face.

  I looked around the room and realized everyone had stopped fighting—they were all staring at me. My hands were still glowing, and I felt like a live wire.

  “She is the one,” the king said with awe in his voice, almost like he had found the missing puzzle piece.

  “Ryan, look at me. Relax, Sissy, just breathe, everything is going to be okay,” my sister said, trying to shake out of the guards hold. He reluctantly let her go and took a step toward me, but I stepped back out of her reach.

  “How the fuck is this all okay, Stevie? I’m a freak! Look at me! I’m fucking glowing, and I just hurt SOMEONE!” As I screamed the last word, a blast of blue light shot out from me. The force was so great it shattered the windows and blew out the fire in the fireplace. I couldn’t control the rage coursing through my veins. All the feelings I had bottled up, and the anger I had pushed deep down inside of me, from the years of torture as a child, were trying to break free. It brought everyone in the room to their knees— except for Kai.

  Melakai made his way over to me, pushing against the power I was pulsing out. I could see the strain on his face as he struggled to get to me. When he finally stood in front of me, he cupped my face in both his hands and spoke so softly.

  “Mi amor, it’s okay, you are safe. Just breathe. Let me help you. I can make it stop. Just let me help you,” he begged. I knew in that moment I could trust him to make it stop, so I nodded. He closed the sliver of space between us and pulled me into a tight embrace, whispering, “Sleep, mi amor.” With his words, everything just stopped and went dark.

  Chapter 10

  I awoke on the edge of the lake. Sitting up, I looked to my side, and sure enough, Kai was sitting next to me. This was our other dream land. The lake was so beautiful and calm. It was my favorite place to be, surrounded by trees and mountains. Knowing Kai is now a real person and not a figment of my imagination, I felt shy and unsure.

  “Where are we?” I asked.

  “At Lake William, mi amor.”

  “I got that part, Kai; I mean is this place even real?”

  “Yes.”

  “Are you going to tell me where this place is located?”

  “You can find Lake William hidden in the mountains in Alaska. I found this place many years ago, with my brothers.” I was determined to find Lake William now. I didn’t want to waste any more time talking about the lake.

  “So you’re real?”

  “I am as real as you are.”

  “Okay…so how are we here, and why are we here?”

  “I brought you here so your mind could relax. I know this is your favorite place, so I thought bringing you here would help. Your power was too much for you, and you couldn’t control it. So I helped you.”

  I remembered that he had offered to help me after I hurt that guard and blew the office apart.

  “I hurt that man and destroyed the office. I didn’t mean to hurt him. I don’t even know how I did it! It just happened,” I wailed.

  “He’s a vampire. He will heal fast, and he will not die.”

  Thank God for that. I don’t know if I could live with myself if I had killed him. At the time, I didn’t care what happened. It was like I wasn’t myself.

  “I’m sorry, I lost it back there. This is all just too much for me. Finding out I’m a witch and then that you are real. I mean, holy shit—like, this is mind-blowing stuff.” Kai leaned over and tucked a tendril of hair behind my ear. I felt my body starting to heat from his touch. His voice distracted me from my thoughts.

  “
I can’t begin to try and understand what you are going through, but just know I will be here to help you along the way, mi amor. I am sorry for letting you believe I was not real.”

  “What happened in my dreams—” He cut me off before I could finish.

  “All of it was real, all of it,” he said with a devilish grin.

  “Oh my God!” I started blushing, feeling so embarrassed about everything that we had done and the things I had said to him. “I’m a virgin,” I blurted out. Fucking smooth Ryan, real smooth. Kai started laughing.

  “I beg to differ, mi amor,” he said through breaks in his laughter. His laugh was like music to my ears. I loved that sound so much.

  “How is this possible? Are you telling me that my dream sex is all fucking real?” God strike me down now; this has got to be the most embarrassing moment of my life.

  He tilted his head to the side and pressed his lips in a tight line, like he was trying not laugh at me again.

  “Yes and no. After all, it is still just a dream. Your physical body has not been touched by a man in the real world, just in your dream world.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me you were real? After everything we have done and the things I have said, you could have told me.” I couldn’t look him in the eye. I behaved like a ravenous hussy in my dreams.

  He laughed at me, again! I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my face. He looked so relaxed and carefree. I didn’t really know the real him, but in person he seemed like the type that was always serious and on guard. I wanted so badly to know the real him and what made him happy.

  “I’m glad that my embarrassment amuses you, Mr. Cane.”