“Dream Sharing?” She looked confused.
“It is the way a Kindred and his mate find each other,” Richard told her. “They dream of each other before they meet. I have dreamed of you so often, my darling.”
“I dreamed of you too, but I thought you were only that—a dream,” she whispered back, which made no sense since they had known each other for years.
“Caroline—” he began but just then he heard a strident voice floating up from the first floor.
“Struck by lightning? Merciful heavens! Surely you cannot be serious, Dixon! Where is my precious daughter? I must see her at once!”
At once the two of them jumped apart, as guilty as forbidden lovers can be, for all they were man and wife. Richard yanked his hands away from her breasts and Caroline pulled up her peignoir and tied it in a hasty bow. Then she tugged the covers up to her chin, her eyes wide and uncertain.
“Is…is that my mother?” she whispered to Richard.
He frowned. Could the lightning have addled her wits so much that she truly could not recognize the sound of her own mother’s voice? Apparently so because she looked extremely ill-at-ease.
“Yes, that’s her,” he said, nodding confirmation. Inside, he was already berating himself. Clearly she was not in her right mind and he had taken advantage of her—had touched her in a way no gentleman should touch a lady. Though Caroline was his wife, he knew she was saving her chastity for another—for whatever man her mother had picked out for her, whom she would doubtless wed the moment their claiming period was up. In her right mind, she never would have invited him to touch her bare breasts.
I took advantage of her, he thought again, and felt his fangs—as well as his shaft, which had grown hard and uncomfortable in his trousers—shrink at the thought.
At that moment the door slapped open and Mrs. Lambert burst in, still wearing her outer wraps and hat, like a ship at full mast.
Chapter Six
Caroline thought she might choke with fright. The woman who was standing in the doorway was her mother…and yet not her mother at the same time. It was impossible to explain why or how she felt it but the woman staring at her and wearing a big, flouncy dress simply felt wrong in the same ineffable way that Richard felt right.
Richard—she really had dreamed of him—for many, many nights. Strange that she hadn’t remembered until he touched her so intimately, so gently. And oh God, when he had, all the dreams had come rushing to the forefront of her brain. As though his touch was magic…
Well, it certainly felt like magic. Even now she couldn’t forget the gentle caress of his big, warm hands on her body. Being Demisexual, she had never wanted any man to touch her as he had—well, except for James in high school but he had declined, being gay and also not wanting to ruin their friendship.
But this was so much more than the simple yearning she’d felt for her best friend back in high school. It was like comparing a box of crayons to an artist’s palette or a tiny flower to a huge tree. It was as though her body had suddenly come alive under his fingers. When he caressed her, she felt something she’d never felt before—that spark of attraction and connection she’d heard her friends talk about so often.
Well, spark was putting it mildly—it was more like a bonfire threatening to burn her up. She could still feel the tingling in her nipples, the wetness between her thighs. God, she was drenched down there and Richard had barely touched her! Was this what love at first sight felt like?
More like lust at first sight, whispered a little voice in her head. If your “mom” hadn’t come busting in to break up the party, I think you would have jumped his bones, Caroline!
She shook her head. What was wrong with her? She never acted like this—she couldn’t feel attracted to any man she hadn’t known for years.
But you’ve been dreaming of him for years, whispered that little voice and Caroline knew it was true. Years and years of half-forgotten dreams and unrequited fantasies and Richard was in all of them—he was the star of the show. Literally the man of her dreams. He…
He was getting up from the bed hastily so that the other Caroline’s mother could take his place.
“Oh my dear!” she exclaimed, looking anxiously at Caroline. “Are you quite well? I told you not to go to the park like that! Storms can blow up so suddenly.”
“Yes, it was, uh, rather sudden,” Caroline said, uncertain how to reply. “I just…just wanted to see the park, that’s all.”
“Well I know you’re anxious to see the spot we have picked for your Joining-Release-announcement and the following reception but you really must be more careful!” her “mom” scolded.
“Joining…release?” Caroline glanced up at Richard, who was standing now, and saw that his mouth had narrowed to a white line though the rest of his face remained blank of emotion.
“Why yes, of course! We both know that you can’t stay married to a Kindred for the rest of your life!” the other Caroline’s mother exclaimed.
Caroline’s eyes flicked up to Richard again. His face was still impassive but she thought she could see pain in those ice-blue eyes.
“Mother, please,” she said, frowning at the woman who was not her mother. “Richard is right here! Isn’t it rude to talk that way in front of him?”
The other Caroline’s mother—or “other mother” as Caroline was beginning to think of her—threw an unfriendly look over her shoulder at the tall Kindred.
“He knows what he is—he knew it when he used that archaic law to force you to marry him against your will and mine. But soon you will be free, my little bird. And you’ll let all the world know it at the reception we have planned.” She patted Caroline’s knee. “For now, though, it’s time you started getting ready for the ball at Maplethorpe Hall tonight.”
“A ball?” Caroline’s stomach suddenly felt like she’d swallowed a block of ice. She had social anxiety and really didn’t like parties. In fact, “didn’t like them” would be an understatement—it would be more accurate to say she avoided them like the plague.
“Yes, the ball!” the other mother exclaimed enthusiastically. “All your friends will be there, of course. And there is someone in particular I wish you to meet.” She made a warning face at Caroline, as though she was saying something significant that Caroline ought to understand.
Caroline didn’t understand, though—she only knew she definitely didn’t want to go to a ball in this crazy, mixed-up universe.
“I don’t know, Mother,” she said hesitantly. “I’m not…not feeling so good at the moment.”
“Nonsense!” The other mother frowned at her. “Stop this shilly-shallying and get up at once, Caroline!”
“Mrs. Lambert, your daughter was struck by lightning not an hour ago.” Richard’s voice was low but intense. “By the grace of the Goddess, she survived what should have been a fatal blow, but she is still extremely disorientated. As a physician, I cannot recommend you forcing her to go to a social gathering tonight.”
“I must inform you, Dr. Vii, that I do not care for your opinion—either as a physician or her husband—for I am certain that is to be your next complaint,” the other mother snapped, turning her head to glare up at him. “You only wish to keep my daughter bound to you and keeping her out of society where eligible men might see her is part of your plan.” She shook her finger at him. “Well, you shall not succeed! In less than a week, my Caroline will be free of you and your heathen Kindred ways!”
“Please—please stop!” Caroline burst out. She had always hated conflict and hearing the other mother shout at Richard was twisting her stomach into a fist.
“But Caroline, child—I am only looking out for you,” the woman who was not her mother exclaimed, turning back to her. “Someone has to put the big brute in his place! In fact—” She turned as though to begin berating the big Kindred again.
“I’ll go,” Caroline said quickly, hoping to stop the harangue she knew was coming. “I’ll go to the ball, Mother—if it will
make you happy.”
“There now! I knew you would come around.” The other mother was suddenly all smiles again. She patted Caroline’s knee. “I’ll have Mary Ann bring up some nice hot tea and then you can start getting ready. Your hair is a frightful mess and somehow those freckles we worked so hard to expunge have come back!” She made a tsking sound and shook her head.
“Yes, Mother,” Caroline said, feeling a tingle of unreality. The last time she’d said those words had been to her own beloved mom who had died so suddenly. To call this other woman—who looked exactly like her own mom but acted so completely different, “Mother” felt deeply wrong. But what else could she do?
“Do you truly feel well enough to be up and about?” Richard spoke at last, directing his words to her, though he had remained silent while the other mother insulted him.
He’s much more a gentleman than she is a lady, even if she doesn’t like his bloodlines, Caroline caught herself thinking. Then she realized she was getting drawn into this weird world and tried to pull herself back to reality. The problem was, this was her reality—at least for now.
“Yes,” she said, speaking to Richard and trying to ignore the way the other mother was glaring at him. “I…I’m pretty sure I’ll be oka—I mean, all right,” she amended quickly, remembering that “okay” was apparently considered some kind of slang here and probably not fit for a lady to say.
“Very well.” He inclined his head gravely. “I would by no means wish to suspend your pleasure. If you feel well enough to go to the ball, then I wish you the joy of it.”
“Oh, uh…thank you,” Caroline said weakly, not sure what else she could say.
Richard didn’t reply. He gave a brief, frosty bow to her and the other mother and left the room, closing the door quietly behind him.
“Insufferable man!” the other mother exclaimed before the door had even snicked closed behind him. “How dare he try to keep you out of society? Tonight you’ll wear your new green taffeta and look like a perfect angel!”
“I will? I mean, of course I will,” Caroline found herself agreeing, though she really didn’t want to.
“Yes, and this is the best part, my sweet—Lady Arrington has promised she will introduce you to Lord Harkens who is a Viscount. He has twenty thousand a year and he is just now back on the market since his last wife died of wasting sickness. The timing of her death could not have been more perfect!”
“What? But…but I’m married to Richard, aren’t I?” Caroline protested.
“Not for long, you’re not!” The other mother’s eyes flashed. “You’ve been keeping him at arm’s length the entire two years the law requires a bride to stay with a Kindred husband before she can be free of him. Have you not?” she demanded, glaring at Caroline.
Caroline thought guiltily of the way she’d nearly begged the big Kindred to touch her and had thrust her bare breasts into his hands not fifteen minutes before.
“Of…of course I have,” she said quickly but she could feel her cheeks getting hot with a blush. God, this was like being a teenager again and trying to hide something she’d done wrong from her mom!
“You had better be, Caroline!” The other mother shook a finger at her. “Lord Harkens doesn’t want used goods! If need be, you can review this.” She got off the bed and went around to get something off the dresser. When she dropped it in Caroline’s lap, she saw it was a small, slender book.
“Mrs. E.B. Duffey’s Guide for Young Wives and New Brides, Being an Account of What all Young Ladies Can Expect of the Marital Situation and Advice for the Best Pursuit of that Sanctified State,” she read aloud.
The title was printed in faded gold ink and pretty much covered the entire front of the book. When she flipped open the cover, she was greeted with a black and white picture of a forbidding-looking woman with a grave face and a formidable bosom. She was wearing a positively enormous hat which appeared to have a dead bird perched on it.
“Just review that, will you, Caroline?” the other mother said, frowning ominously. “I gave it to you as a present on the day you were forced to Join with that Kindred and I know it has served you well since then. However, you may wish to take another look at it and remind yourself that you have less than a week left in this ridiculous and onerous union. Soon you will be free to make another match—if you are careful to keep your chastity. Mrs. Duffey’s guide will certainly help you there.”
“All right,” Caroline said meekly.
“Good.” The other mother smiled brightly. “Now then, I shall send Mary Ann up very soon.” She clasped her hands together. “Oh, I cannot wait to see you shine tonight, my dear! Lord Harkens will be smitten, I am sure! He and everyone else there will have to admit that you are the most beautiful—and the most accomplished—young lady in the room!”
“Yes, Mother,” Caroline said again, though she was beginning to get a very, very bad feeling about the upcoming ball. She wished she could back out but just one look at the other mother let her know that wasn’t an option.
“Goodbye, my sweet—I must get ready myself.” And the woman who looked so much like her mom but acted nothing like her swept out of the room.
* * * * *
Richard heard the door shut and the tread of his mother-in-law departing Caroline’s room. For a moment, he considered going back to speak to his wife. He wanted desperately to see her again—to touch her and hold her in his arms.
He knew it was wrong—knew that he had taken advantage of her unbalanced mental state—but he couldn’t get her look of desire and her soft, panting plea that he touch her out of his head. Gods, if only she wasn’t so beautiful—so desirable! She made his fangs and his cock ache with need and a promise unfulfilled for the two long years they had been joined.
He stopped himself only with a considerable effort of will. Caroline didn’t want him for a husband, any more than her mother wanted him for a son-in-law, he reminded himself. Clearly Mrs. Lambert already had a new suitor all picked out and she was probably planning to introduce Caroline to him tonight at the ball.
Let them go, then, he thought bitterly. If they are so eager to be rid of me, why should I stand in their way? I should allow Caroline to pursue another life—one with a man who can make her happy, as I so clearly cannot. I will stay in my room and read and not bother my head about them.
But then he remembered the look in her soft brown eyes when she whispered, “I dreamed of you.”
“No, damn it!” he growled to himself, pacing the floor of his room. “I will not give up so easily. She is mine, at least for a few days longer. I must watch over her until the end. I will go to the ball.”
Though it was the last place he wanted to be, especially when his mother-in-law would no doubt be introducing his wife to her next husband, Richard felt he had no choice. For as long as Caroline was his in the eyes of the law—even if not in her own eyes—he must watch over her as a proper mate and husband would.
He only wished to the Goddess that he could be a proper husband to her in every way. But even though that was not possible, he still had his duty to consider. It was not duty, however, that was uppermost in his mind as he prepared to go to the hated ball.
The look in her big brown eyes when she admitted to dreaming of him was.
Chapter Seven
After the other mother left, Caroline spent a full minute staring at the door. What was it about that woman that disarmed her so completely? Was it just that she looked so much like the mom she had lost and missed so badly? Or was it her bullying, bossy personality that Caroline—who was a confirmed introvert—had a hard time standing up to? Whatever the reason, it appeared she was stuck going to the ball and there was nothing she could do about it.
With a sigh, she looked down at the book in her hands. Her first impulse was to throw it across the room but on second thought, she decided it might be a good idea to find out what was expected of her in this strange universe.
“Guess it’s time for some light reading,�
�� she muttered to herself. Opening the book, she looked for a table of contents but found none. Flipping to a random page, she read,
“Sexual intercourse is, of course, a necessary step in the process of procreation and the only way a woman can enter into the most holy and desired state of Motherhood. As is commonly known, Nature abhors an empty womb. However, to treat the method of filling that womb with life as anything more, is wrong—a sin against both yourself and your Creator.”
“Wow—are they for real with this stuff?” Caroline muttered to herself. She’d known plenty of people growing up who considered sex before marriage to be a sin. But surely sex after you were married was okay—wasn’t it?
Well, apparently not according to Mrs. E. B. Duffey, Caroline thought sourly. She flipped to another part of the book and read some more.
“Sadly, many men have too ardent a drive and cannot be made to see that entering too often into sexual congress—even within the sanctified confines of marriage—is neither advisable or agreeable, especially to his new bride,” Mrs. E. B. Duffey wrote.
“No, of course not,” Caroline muttered sarcastically. How many years had she spent wishing she could find someone she could have a deep enough connection with so she wanted to have sex with him? Sometimes she felt so sexually pent up inside she thought she would burst!
But obviously in this universe, sex was a big no-no except for baby making. And women weren’t supposed to want sex at all—it was always the beastly men who wanted it. Luckily, Mrs. E. B. Duffey had a solution for this too.
“If a husband attempts to kiss his wife on the lips, she should turn her head slightly so that the kiss falls harmlessly on her cheek instead,” Caroline read. “If he lifts her gown and attempts to kiss her any place else, she should quickly pull the gown back in place, spring from the bed, and announce that nature calls her to the necessary room to relieve herself at once.”
“Oh my God—really?” Caroline exclaimed out loud. She couldn’t believe this crap!
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