Pixie Dust, A Paranormal Romance

by Laura Lee

  Roxy grabbed my hand pulling me further inside. “I got us two cabanas.” She yelled over the music. “C’mon they’re up here.”

  We followed her upstairs and were met by Amanda and five other people that I didn’t know. Tom joined us a minute later after making arrangements with the bouncer to let Joel in once he arrived.

  “Karli, who’s your friend?” Amanda asked.

  “This is Tom. He’s running security tonight. Don’t ask.” I looked at the people sitting around enjoying their drinks. “Who are your friends?”

  “Guys, this is Karli from my work.” She nodded her head towards each person from left to right as she introduced them. “Karli, this is Kim, Leah, Scott, Tanner, and Tynesha.”

  Tanner gave me a very appreciative once over as he moved towards me. I couldn’t help but return the gesture. His pretty college boy look was definitely turning some heads around here. “Hi there Karli. It’s very nice to meet you. Can I buy you a drink?”

  “Um, sure. A vodka and cran would be good.”

  “Coming right up.” Man, he had a sexy smile.

  One drink turned into many as time flew by. Bass thumped deep in my body, commanding me to move on the dance floor. The girls and I were surrounded by gorgeous frat boys, each of them trying to rub up against us as much as possible, hoping to convince one of us to go home with them. Tanner was doing a really good job holding my interests. We danced together for hours, rhythmically moving and swaying to the music. He pulled me closer, whispering all the naughty things that he’d like to do to me back at his place. God help me, but I was tempted. It felt so good to escape all the drama that has been controlling my life lately. He pulled me into the cabana, closing the curtains behind us. I caught a quick glimpse of Joel who looked very uncomfortable with the whole situation. Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew he would be reporting every bit of my behavior to Vance but I didn’t really care at the moment.

  He sat down on the plush red couch, pulling me into his lap. “So Karli, why don’t we get out of here?” He started kissing my neck and stroking my sides making it really hard to turn him down.

  My body trembled when he started sucking on my earlobes. “Um, look Tanner, I don’t think that’s the best idea. I drove my friends here and I really can’t leave them stranded.”

  “You’re in no condition to drive.” He continued kissing a path down to my collarbone, leaving goose pimples in his wake.

  “No, but my bodyguard can.” I replied.

  He pulled back from me. “Why do you need a bodyguard anyway?”

  “It’s a really long story.”

  “I have plenty of time.” He moved to the other side of my neck while his hand moved up to my right breast.

  “I really don’t want to talk about it.” I gasped from the heat of his touch.

  He pulled back again, flashing me his pearly whites. “It’s all good baby. Talking is overrated anyway.” My reflexes were a little slow from all the alcohol, so I didn’t even realize what was happening until he was already kissing me. I felt like someone had thrown a bucket of ice water on me the second his lips touched mine. I was horrified at how wrong this felt. What is the matter with me? I have a hot, uncomplicated, normal human guy who wants me. He may as well have been a hideous troll based on the freezing effect his kiss had on me. I pursed my lips, quickly pulling away from him. I jumped out of his lap and smoothed my dress into place. “Whoa, what’s wrong beautiful girl?”

  I backed away, opening the curtains. “I’m sorry. It’s not you, it’s me.” I looked back at Joel before returning my attention to Tanner. “I gotta go.” I swung around, grabbing Joel by the arm and yanking him down the stairs. “I need you to take me home. NOW.”

  Erica and Roxy caught up with us on the way down. “Wait guys! Can you give us a lift?” Erica asked. “We are way too blitzed to drive. My car’s at your place anyway. We can just crash in your living room and I’ll drive Roxy back to get her car later.”

  I looked at both of them and could easily see they were in no condition to get behind the wheel. “Yeah, let’s go.” The three of us stumbled into my apartment twenty minutes later as Joel assumed his normal guard dog position outside my door. I went into my bedroom and grabbed some pajamas, blankets, and pillows. I threw everything on the couch. “Here. Take what you want. I’m going to bed.” I peeled off all of my clothes and crawled into my wonderful new bed.

  I woke up with the distinct impression that someone was watching me. I saw movement in the corner of my room and had to stifle a scream. I tried to make sense of the shadows but it was too dark to see anything. I sprang up in bed and turned on my lamp. Nothing was there. WTF? I checked my window which was still locked, then put on my robe and tiptoed down the hall. Erica was fast asleep on the couch and Roxy was on the floor beside her. I opened the door to talk to Joel. “Hey, have you been out here the whole time?” I whispered.

  “Yes, with the exception of a quick piss break about an hour ago.” He replied. “Why?”

  “Oh, it’s probably nothing.” I replied. “I just thought I saw someone in my bedroom a few minutes ago, but it must have been my imagination.”

  “Do you want me to check it out?”

  “No, my window’s locked. There’s no way someone could’ve gotten in with you on guard out here and the two sleeping in the living room. It was probably just a dream.”

  “Okay, well let me know if you change your mind Ms. Lane.”

  “Thanks, I will.”

  ********************

  The second time I awoke, I was lying on top of a warm, male body. Oh shit! What did I do? I replayed last night’s events in my head and couldn’t figure out who this block of muscle belonged to, or how he got in my bed. I looked up shamefully, hoping to God he wasn’t awake yet. Vance. Phew! Wait a minute, what the hell?

  There was a light knock on the door before Erica poked her head in. “Hey K, we’re---” She looked at Vance and smiled. “Oops, I didn’t know you had company. Sorry to interrupt. I just wanted to let you know that Rox and I are taking off.”

  Vance woke up and pulled me into him, smashing my naked breasts into his equally naked chest. “Good morning Erica.” He kissed my shoulder. “Good morning beautiful.”

  “Morning.” We both said in unison.

  “Okay…..well, I’ll let you two get back to what you’re doing.” She winked at me. “Don’t worry; we’ll lock the door behind us. Toodles!”

  “No, wait…we weren’t doing anything!” I shouted, but she was already gone.

  He moved my hair aside and kissed the curve of my neck. “Would you like to change that?”

  I rolled over, pulling away from him. “What the hell are you doing here anyway?”

  “Joel called me.”He replied. “He was concerned about you…..said that you went out last night and had a lot to drink. Apparently, you were talking nonsensically about someone being in your room.” He scooted closer to me, resting his large hand on my bare hip. “I thought maybe your brain was sending you subliminal messages because you wanted someone in your room.”

  Oh shit, could that be true? I gave him a dirty look. “Well, how convenient that you have full access to my house so you can come take advantage of a drunk girl.”

  “Oh please, Karli.” He rolled his eyes. “If I wanted to take advantage of you, I would have jumped on the many opportunities you gave me while you were groping me in your sleep.”

  “I was not groping you in my sleep!” I insisted. Crap, was I?

  He chuckled. “Sweetheart, you can deny it all you want but it doesn’t change the truth.”

  I huffed in frustration. “Whatever. Look, will you just get out of my room so I can get dressed?”

  He steamrolled me, pinning me to the bed with his weight. “Karli,” He hooked his hand around the small of my back and started kissing my neck again. “I’ve seen it all. Remember?” He forced my thighs apart with his leg, making me fully aware that he wasn’t wearing any clothes below
the waist either. I may have subconsciously arched my back in response. His hand moved down to my ass, then dipped below to my nether regions. My body was betraying me, throbbing, readying itself for his entrance. He smiled widely upon that realization before he took my nipple into his mouth, licking and sucking until it became painfully hard.

  I gasped. “Oh God!” I clenched the sheets when the head of his massive erection pressed against my cleft. “Dammit, you sooo don’t play fair!”

  He lifted his head and leaned over to whisper in my ear. “Enjoy it while you can Karli.” I shivered when he blew his hot breath into my ear. “Because this is all you’re getting for now.” He pulled his body away from me making me whimper a little. “I just wanted to remind you that I’m not the only one who wants me inside of you. The sooner you admit it, the happier we’ll both be.” He got out of bed and started pulling on his t-shirt and jeans.

  A whine may have escaped my mouth when he covered up that beautifully bare body. “You are such an asshole! You can’t just waltz in here, get me all worked up, and then leave!”

  “Why not?” He smiled. “You do it to me every time I see you. Besides, we have some work to do.”

  “What kind of work?” I asked.

  “I want you to practice changing objects again. Only this time, you’re going to do it without my powers.” He patted himself down and pulled his keys out of his pocket. “I’m going to run to Starbucks to get some caffeine. You should probably get ready while I’m gone. We don’t have a lot of time before you have to leave for work.” He walked down the hall and opened the front door. Before leaving, he said, “By the way, I love the new bed. It will definitely hold up under pressure.” He was out the door before I even had the chance to question what he meant by that.

  Chapter 28

  **********************

  Vance returned a short while later with coffee and pastries. He took a bite of his scone and patted the Formica kitchen countertop. “What color granite do you want?”

  “What? I can’t just go around changing the place like I own it!”

  “Sure you can.” He insisted. “You can easily switch it back when you’re ready to move out. Why not live with the upgrades until then?”

  “Really? I can do that?” I asked excitedly.

  He grabbed my hand, pulling me into the kitchen. “Karli, you have the most powerful magic in existence in the palm of your hands. You can do whatever you want with the right focus.”

  “Whoa that’s a very dangerous thing for one person to have.” I paused. “It’s scary to even imagine. What if I get too cocky, or even worse, what if I like the power? What if I get so hungry for it that I can’t stop myself? I could essentially bend the world to exist around my whims if I wanted.”

  He smoothed away the crinkle that I was making between my brows. “First of all, it will take you a long time to get up to that level. Secondly, and most importantly, you will never get out of control. Goodness is ingrained into your DNA. I have never met a single Fae who doesn’t exist to make the world a better place.”

  “How can you be so sure? I was raised differently than they were, in a world filled with corruption. For Christ’s sake, I grew up in the town that is dubbed, Sin City! I’m hardly what someone would call altruistic.”

  He kissed my forehead. “Don’t worry Karli. I know you, and I know the people that you come from. Just trust me on this, okay? You will not interfere with the natural order of things. You will only contribute positive things to this world, with or without your magic.” He moved over to the counter next to my stove. “Now, get over here and try this. We’ll start with the smallest piece first and move on until the whole kitchen is done.”

  Before I knew it, my entire apartment was transformed into something out of a Better Homes & Gardens magazine. I chose black granite countertops with real oak cabinetry for the kitchen and bathroom. The linoleum floors in those two rooms became multi-colored slate tiles while thick, plush beige carpeting blanketed the rest. The stark white walls throughout were now painted in beautiful shades of red, gold, or blue. My appliances were all top of the line; I even converted my standard bathtub into a slightly larger Jacuzzi model with dual shower heads. The TV Vance conjured was hanging on my living room wall in front of my new chocolate brown leather sofa and oval glass top coffee table.

  I stood back to admire my work as a single tear escaped my lids. “I can’t believe this is the same place. It’s beautiful.”

  He came up to me and kissed the tear away from my cheek. “No more so than its creator.” He looked at the clock on my new microwave and sighed. “It’s after five Karli. I need to drop by the station and you need to get ready for work. Are you going to be okay?”

  I choked back a happy sob. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.” I framed his face with my hands. “Thank you Vance. Really. I would’ve never dreamt any of this was possible if you weren’t around.” I stood up on my toes to kiss him. He responded by parting my lips with his tongue, slowly thrusting into my mouth. This felt so right, nothing like my experience with Tanner last night. I felt like I belonged here, with this man and no one else. I didn’t know if it was just the high from my newfound abilities, but I felt a void when he pulled away.

  He kissed the tip of my nose and smiled. “Have a good night at work Karli. I’ll see you soon.”

  **************

  I showed up for work with a spring in my step, ready to conquer the world. Leo came up to me with a curious look upon his face.“Good evening, my love. What may I ask is responsible for painting that beautiful smile on your face?”

  “Am I smiling?” Damn, my cheeks hurt. Guess so.

  He frowned. “Yes, my sweet you are. Quite a bit. What have you been up to these past few days? I’ve missed you.”

  “Um, not a whole lot really. I went out with Erica and some friends last night, otherwise, I’ve just been at home learning some new……uh, spells and stuff.”

  He raised an eyebrow in disapproval. “Really Karli? Spells and stuff?”

  “Yeah, you know…like witchcraft?” He started walking away from me, throwing off some major wounded puppy vibes. “Leo, wait!” I said as I was chasing after him.

  He took me by the arm and pulled me into a corner. Looking around, I could see that we were drawing too much attention to ourselves. In a hushed tone he said, “Karli, I thought we were making progress. I understand if you feel the need to omit certain truths about yourself, because you doubt my trustworthiness, but please do not lie to me. I can sense it from a mile away and quite frankly, it hurts me. I have been nothing less than completely honest and trustworthy with you and I simply do not deserve it."

  “Leo, I---”

  He held his hand up. “Don’t Karli. This is neither the time nor the place for this conversation. If you really want to discuss this, we can do so after the bar closes.”

  I stared at my feet, too ashamed to look him in the eye. “Okay.” Walking away I added, “If you need me, I’ll be in my usual spot.”

  The night went by in a thick fog. Leo had one of his men stationed at his table while he stayed in the back the entire time. Jesus, he couldn’t even be in the same room as me? I was on autopilot mixing drink orders, avoiding conversation as much as possible. I was on the verge of breaking into tears so many times that I had to keep running to the bathroom to pull myself together. My tips sucked, as expected, making my night even worse.

  After closing, Roxy came up to me and whispered, “Hey Kar, are you okay? You’ve been really out of it all night.”

  A tear fell which I quickly wiped away. “Um, thanks for your concern Roxy, but I’ll be fine. I’m just having a bad night.”

  “Does it have anything to do with Leo?” She asked.

  “What? Why would you think---”

  “Shh,” she warned. “He’s coming out of the back.” She jerked her head in his direction.

  I involuntarily looked his way and averted my eyes as soon as the guilt sucker punched me. “Did yo
u need something Roxy?”

  “Um, yeah. I was just going to ask if you’ve seen my cell phone. I haven’t been able to find it since I was at your place.”

  “No, I haven’t, but I wasn’t really looking either.” I answered.

  “Would you mind if I dropped by tomorrow to check?” She asked. “My life is in that phone and I really need to find it.”

  “Yeah, sure. I should be home until five or so. Drop by anytime.”

  “Thanks Kar. I appreciate it.”

  I sank into a booth as Leo let everyone out. “Are you coming Karli?” He asked.

  What? Did he change his mind about talking? “Um, I thought---”

  “We can talk upstairs.” He growled. I stood up and trailed behind him silently all the way up to the penthouse. He shut the door behind me and started pouring himself a drink from the wet bar. “Karli, would you like one?”