He releases my hair and throws back the covers, jumping out of bed and striding for the door.
“Reve!” I yell, pointing, while blushing, at his underwear.
“Right,” he says, looking around. He snaps, conjuring a black robe from nowhere, and wraps himself in it. Then he snaps, and boots appear on his feet, sticking out under the robe. “I’ll be good now.”
I put a hand to my face because Reve is going out to investigate whoever is at the door, and I can’t stop him.
I get up drowsily and grab for clothes and a bra to change into. Pulling on jeans at this time of day feels all wrong, but at the same time, I’m not brave enough, like Reve is, to just go outside in basically underwear and a robe.
“Reve, wait!” I call, buttoning my pants as I get to the front room and see him opening the door.
I can hear Joey’s bedroom door open in the distance.
Great, two overprotective males. But it’s my job to protect Joey, not the other way around.
“Wait,” I say, but Reve is already opening the door, and I sigh in pure relief when I see not Mark, not any other monster I’ve dated, but Jerrek standing there.
He lifts his hand in a wave. He’s wearing a brown tee shirt and jeans, and his dark-maroon hair waves over his shoulder. He’s tall and built like Reve, but there’s a wicked sparkle in his eyes where Reve’s gaze is usually calm and composed.
“Hey, Jen,” Jerrek says, raising a hand.
“Hi,” I say, awkwardly pulling my hoodie down over me. Wearing a sweatshirt and jeans, I feel almost overdressed. But with the morning sunlight streaming down, the air is still cold with the winter chill.
“What are you doing here?” Reve asks, nonetheless opening the door for Jerrek to come in.
“Your dream link turned off. I was worried.”
Reve cocks his head. “Did you feel distress through our bond?”
Jerrek shakes his head. “No. But I knew you had met Joey since you didn’t come back to the dream realm. There’s something you should know. While I’ve been doing surveillance—”
“Jared?” Joey’s voice squeaks, and he runs to the door, his hands in excited fists as he jumps side to side. “Wow, you’re here!”
Reve raises an eyebrow, and I think I sense a slight jealousy there at Joey’s reaction to “Jared.”
I put a hand to my temple and walk forward. “Sorry, what?”
Joey thumbs at Jerrek. “He looks just like his gamer profile pic.”
I exhale. “So this is your new gaming buddy?” I send Jerrek and Reve, who is trying to look innocent, a look. “I should have known it’d have something to do with you two.”
“Don’t be mean,” Joey says. “Jared’s really cool. He’s good at the game. He doesn’t swear or say gross things about girls like most of the other guys do.”
Jerrek rubs the back of his neck. “I’m sorry. It was one way to do surveillance. Sandra suggested it.”
Joey looks up at him. “Surveillance?”
Reve gives Jerrek a panicked look.
“Hey,” Jerrek says, taking a knee to be eye level with Joey. “Look, I was kind of keeping an eye on your mom. For my friend here.”
Joey looks utterly confused. “Why?”
“Because when you care about someone a lot, sometimes you want to make sure they’re okay.”
Reve’s mouth is in a flat line as if he knows he has been caught stalking but has no excuse for it.
Joey nods at that. “So are you really my friend?”
“Yes,” Jerrek says. “And that’s my friend, Reve.”
“Your friend?”
“Yes.” Jerrek nods. “And I’ve known him since I was teeny tiny. And he told me to look out for the woman he loves.”
Joey shakes his head. “He can’t love her. He barely knows her.”
Jerrek pauses. “I guess it’s a bit complicated, huh? But you know, Reve knew your mom from a long time ago. Long before you were even born.”
“He did?” Joey looks between me and Reve, and I can only shrug.
Because Reve saw me before I was even born, so I guess what Jerrek is saying is true.
“Adults are weird,” Joey says.
“Totally,” Jerrek says, putting out his fist for a bump. “But some of us aren’t the worst, right? Now how about you go set up a co-op mission we can do? You’re the best gaming partner a guy could ever ask for.”
Seeing Joey’s face light up is everything. It makes my heart hurt that I couldn’t show him what a good man and friend is because I didn’t trust anyone to get close.
But I do trust Jerrek and Reve.
As soon as Joey runs off down the hall, Jerrek turns his attention to us, suddenly serious.
He grabs Reve by the arm and pulls him over to me to talk.
“Hey, there’s a car parked outside. I felt danger around the home, and my beacon went off. So I thought I’d check in on you guys.”
“We just woke up,” I say, my heart already starting to race.
Reve puts an arm around my waist. “No, it’s going to be fine. In fact, this is good that he showed up so soon. I can have a talk with him.”
“If it’s Mark, then no way,” I say, grabbing Reve by the arm as he tries to walk away. “He’s just—ignore him. He’s not worth your time. And he hasn’t hurt me, not since—”
Reve whirls on me then, and I’ve never seen his irises so bright, so green, as when it dawns on him—on me, on both of us—what I just said.
“It was only once,” I say, trying to grab Reve’s arm and pull him back again. “Back when I was pregnant. And when the baby kept us up and—”
Reve turns to me, and I let him go, shocked by the rage in his face.
“Please,” I say. “That’s years ago. In the past. I left him. All he does is whine and try to annoy me. He hasn’t even gotten close to hitting me again.”
Jerrek is like stone now, and Reve jerks away to head to the door.
“Shit,” Jerrek says. “I better stop him.”
But as Reve yanks the door open and heads out through it, he’s already pulling out something long and coiled and ominously dark from his robe.
He shakes it out to the side, and it drags behind him in a long, sharp-looking line about ten feet long.
He raises it above his head and brings it down, and a crack splits the air, making my hair stand on edge.
I see Mark’s white Pinto across the street, and the door opens and slams shut as Mark gets out, looking enraged.
“What the fuck is this?” Mark asks, crossing the street with a face red with fury and hands clenched. “You send some guy with a whip out to intimidate me? Bitch, I’ll show you.”
Mark reaches for something in his jeans just as he gets within range of Reve’s whip. With a flick of his arm, Reve sends his whip flying out and jerks it back, and Mark yelps as I see his gun go flying to the side.
When he turns to retrieve it, Reve’s whip cracks the air by Mark’s face, and I gasp as I see that there’s a slash across his cheek, freely bleeding.
Reve circles him now, not caring about the slush in the street or the fact that he’s in a bathrobe. He’s so focused on what he’s trying to do.
Which, apparently, is whip my ex senseless.
The whip cracks again and again, and I hear Mark yelp, both sides of his face bleeding. He brings up his hands, but Reve’s whip is relentless. Reve brings the whip all the way back and, with a savage snap, hits Mark’s arms, which are trying to guard his face.
He’s now bleeding there as well, even worse, and he falls to one knee, whining.
Reve simply walks forward.
“It’s okay,” Jerrek says, putting a hand gently on my shoulder. “Reve is excellent with punishment. He won’t lose himself.”
But then we’re both distracted as Reve hits Mark again and again, his whip stinging the air with loud cracks like someone setting off fireworks.
Mark crawls back, trying to defend his face and head as Reve hits
him on his neck, his face, his arms, his hands.
Why on earth was Mark out here in just that tee shirt?
I almost feel sympathy for him, seeing him cringe back until he slips, lying on his back, whimpering as he tries to guard with his arms.
But it’s also nice to see him feel how I felt. Terrified and powerless and unsure what I had done wrong.
I didn’t mean to tell Reve that Mark had hit me. I just panicked about them running into each other so quickly.
But I can’t say I hate this outcome.
“He’s going too far,” Jerrek says, voice slightly tense now as we watch Reve.
Reve has one booted foot on Mark’s belly, holding him down while he raises his arm again and again, whipping Mark from every angle.
Every inch of Reve’s posture is tight with pure rage, and Jerrek and I just stand there helplessly as the whip flies again and again.
Crack. Crack. Crack.
With a scream, Mark begs for mercy, but this time, I hear Reve speak, cold and low.
“Want to pick on kids? On your mate? You don’t like how it feels when it happens to you? You don’t like feeling helpless? If you can’t take what you’re willing to dish out, then you should just die.”
The whip flashes out, but this time, it must have wrapped Mark’s neck because he stops making noise except gagging and grabs at his throat.
And Reve is holding his end tight, pausing only to send me a look of satisfaction.
“All right,” Jerrek says. “That’s my call to intervene.” He approaches Reve warily while Reve continues to pull on the whip, seemingly enjoying Mark’s struggling.
“Hey, big guy,” Jerrek says, and I stare in shock as he puts an arm around Reve’s waist and bodily pulls him off Mark, trying to get his whip with his other hand.
Reve whirls on him, trying to shove him off, but Jerrek simply snarls and lunges forward, grabbing Reve by the neck and holding him up in the air.
Damn, these men are strong. Though they’re both equally tall and built, Jerrek can hold Reve in the air as if he’s nothing. And Reve isn’t even too bothered by it. He’s just kicking the air, trying to pull at Jerrek’s hands and sending furious looks at Mark like he wants to finish what he started.
“Calm down!” Jerrek says, shaking Reve more intensely.
Reve stills, looking slightly dizzy.
“Don’t lose yourself,” Jerrek says. “Remember what happened to Lorien. They came for him. Auctioned him.”
Reve slowly slumps, and Jerrek sets him on his feet. Reve goes over to grab his whip, pulling it off of Mark.
He looks at me, then, with growing horror, to the door where Joey is watching.
Joey quickly shuts the door and presumably runs away, and I just look from Reve to Jerrek, not knowing what the heck is going on.
Reve goes to Mark and kneels down to talk to him. I see Reve gesture to me, forcing Mark to nod.
Then Reve picks him up, deposits him in his car, and stands back with folded arms, waiting for Mark to drive away.
When Mark is gone, swerving away into the distance but looking like he’ll be fine, there’s silence between us in the road.
“I need to go see Lorien,” Reve says simply. When they meet mine, his eyes are apologetic. “I’m sorry.” He looks at Jerrek. “Keep an eye on her. On Joey. I’m sorry. I need to go compose myself.”
And then, with a pained look, he’s just gone in a poof of smoke.
9
Reve
Everything in me feels utterly broken. I’ve never even been at risk of losing control.
And I know only one dream fae would understand what I’m going through right now.
Maybe two.
I poof into Lorien’s space to realize he’s not at home but at Josh’s place.
Josh is a neighbor who also happens to be a dream fae, and I suppose he and Lorien have become friends since Josh helped Lorien’s mate Tess rescue him from the dream realm.
I don’t know what Josh did to get sent here, but I know Lorien lost his temper and got taken back to the dream realm.
So he knows how I feel right now.
Or maybe not. I lost it. I really lost it. I wanted to hurt that man. To kill him. To punish him beyond any logical punishment.
My brain still burns bright red when I think of him hurting Jen or Joey at all. I can’t think of it. I can’t even conceive of it. All I feel is that man’s pure evil and my need to see it eradicated.
But Joey was watching. The horror in his eyes… I’ve lost all hope of having him trust me now. Of showing him I’m not some brutal, violent jerk like his dad.
If that man is actually his dad, that is. I didn’t even let Jen explain. Hell, she might be mad at me. I should have asked what she wanted.
My whole life, I’ve been in control. Logical, composed. But I couldn’t in that moment. I just couldn’t. And that makes me feel weak.
Lorien is staring up at me, holding a piece of pizza and just patiently waiting for me to stop standing there like a statue and talk.
“Reve?” He sets down his pizza on a cardboard box they are using for a table and stands, walking over to me.
Then he wraps his arms around my shoulders and pulls me in for a firm hug, making me realize I’m trembling with shock. “Hey, what’s wrong? You okay?” He pulls back to look at me. “I’ve never seen you like this.”
I look at Josh, who’s wearing his usual ratty bathrobe, nothing like the plush one I conjured for myself.
Then again, Josh has been here being lazy, not training, so I doubt he can produce much with his magic.
He gives me a lazy wave. “You look like hell.”
“Thanks,” I say sourly.
Lorien grabs me by the arm and shoves me over to Josh’s sunken couch, handing me a piece of pizza. “Here. Eat. Calm yourself. Tell me what happened.”
“Where’s Tess?” I ask.
“She’s working,” Lorien says. “She doesn’t need to, but she still loves doing romance covers, and I want to give her space. I’ve been here trying to redeem our friend Josh.”
I give Josh a look, at this point suspicious of him even being a dream fae. His long hair is grayish and bland, and if he was at some point handsome, his overweight, unkempt state has dimmed any attempt at appearing that way.
But there is something about him…
Josh grabs a piece of pizza and digs into it as Lorien sits next to me, patting my knee in a way that is grounding.
At least Josh won’t judge us for bonding. Human men and women have odd ideas about how much men can touch. But women can do anything with each other, and it’s just normal.
It’s so strange to me because we all need physical touch and to bond with our friends.
“Tell us what happened,” Josh says. “I promise it’ll help.”
I sink forward, pushing away Lorien’s hand as I put my head in my hands, groaning. “I screwed up. I screwed up so bad.” I raise my eyes, giving Lorien and Josh a haunted look. “I wanted to show I was different. Trustworthy. Now I look like a violent monster.”
Josh just grins, but Lorien’s eyes widen in worried shock.
“What happened?” Lorien says. “Did your dream link break?”
“Yes,” I say.
“Oh no.” He stands, rolling up his sleeves. “That means they’re coming for you. Don’t worry. We won’t let them take you, right, Josh?”
Josh, who’s still sitting, merely raises an eyebrow. “Let him finish.”
I look at Lorien. “I don’t think they will. I didn’t kill anyone.” I close my eyes in pain. “Jerrek stopped me. I don’t know what I would have done.”
“I know that feeling,” Lorien says, sitting down again. “I tried to apply reflexive punishment on gang rapists, and they all chose death.”
I rub my face, feeling like puking. “The rules don’t work here. I feel too much rage to punish properly.” I give Lorien a look full of the horror I feel. “What is the appropriate punishment for
someone who has hurt my dream mate? The woman who mothered his child? What is the right thing to do? Me hitting him could never be equal.” I sigh. “If only Jen knew her strength, he’d never be able to touch her again. But right now, she thinks she’s human. And all I could think was that I needed to protect her.”
Josh lets out a snort. “I’m honestly not seeing the problem here. If that guy is a wife-beater—”
Lorien hisses. “Was he? Was he really, Reve?”
I nod. “Apparently. I only found out when he showed up.” I sigh. “I don’t know what came over me. It’s not my place to kill.” I scowl. “But I wanted him dead. I still want him dead, to be honest.”
“Want me to do it?” Josh asks, grinning at us. Just a hint of rainbow flashes in his irises, giving us a glimpse of who he might have been. “I don’t care what the dream fae try to do.”
“Whatever you did, he deserved,” Lorien says carefully. He pats and then rubs my back. “Seriously, Reve. It’s traumatic, some of the things that happen in this world with untrained, unwatched warriors. But as unpleasant as it is, it’s our job to use our strength to counter nightmares. You’ve done nothing wrong. In a broken world, there are no easy solutions.”
I put my head in my hands again, grief moving through me. “But Joey, her son, saw me—”
“She has a son?” Lorien asks. “Wow, Jerrek hid it from all of us.”
“He respects her privacy,” I say. “He’s been gaming with her son, though, as part of his surveillance.”
“Kinda creepy,” Josh says.
My gaze snaps to him. “Jerrek would never be creepy. He’s an excellent bodyguard. Skilled in physical combat—”
“Right, right,” Josh says. “Just from a human perspective—”
Lorien swallows. “That’s right. In this world… I can’t think of it.” He looks pale. “I’m sorry, but I lose myself when we talk of human evil as well.” He looks at me. “I’m sure they don’t hate you. Both Josh and I think you did the right thing.”
“But she loved him, presumably, at one point. Maybe Joey does too. I was out of line… I wanted to kill him.”
“Listen,” Josh says, walking over to grab me by the lapels of my robe and pull me up. “What you did was awesome. I wish I could see some abuser get the shit whipped out of him. I presume you whipped the shit out of him? You’re kind of a goody-two-shoes, so I doubt you used anything but your whip.”
In Her Dreams Page 6