by C.M. Owens
His composure rapidly unraveling, he seized hold of her dress with the intent of ripping it free of her. This was his dream after all, and he could do whatever he desired in it, and he desired her.
The scent of her tears stopped his rushing, heedless movements. He pulled back from her, horrified that he had frightened her in his urgency. Even if it was just a dream he couldn't bring himself to upset her in anyway. He didn't know the extent of her experience with men, but he sensed that there hadn't been much. There was no way that she had ever been pawed and molested by a nearly crazed vampire before.
It made no sense though, if this was his dream she shouldn't be crying, she should be throwing herself at him with reckless abandon. If this was his dream, he shouldn't be feeling like he was actually experiencing her emotions. Something niggled at the back of his mind, but he wasn't in the mood to deal with his doubts and questions right now.
"Cassie what's wrong? Did I hurt you? Please," he whispered. "Please tell me that I didn't hurt you."
She shook her head forcefully. He smoothly pushed back the strands of hair that fell across her damp cheeks. Cupping her chin, he lifted her face to his. Tears slid down her cheeks, her eyes were bright and alive with sparkling moisture. Though he'd been frightened that he'd hurt her, there was happiness and joy radiating from her.
"Cassie?"
"I'm fine," she breathed as she cupped his hand in hers and leaned into his touch. "I'm just so happy here. This is the most fantastic thing that I've ever experienced. I can say that here because it isn't real." Her eyes flitted away from his for a moment. "But out there…"
She shook her head, closing her eyes as she nestled closer. "Out there what?" he prodded, knowing that she was talking about the world that existed outside of this dream.
"Out there everything is difficult. Out there, this cannot be."
Confusion filled him as he studied her. She kept her gaze focused on the lake as more tears filled her eyes. He sensed these were tears of grief and loss, not of joy. He didn't understand what she was talking about, but it was more than apparent that she was greatly upset about something.
"Cassie, look at me." She slowly turned her eyes to his, her forehead furrowed. "Why is it difficult? Why can't this be?"
Though she smiled wanly, the depth of her sorrow was nearly palpable. "Even if I could tell you, you wouldn't believe me anyway."
"I would believe anything you told me."
Her eyes warmed and melted. "I've never felt like this with anyone before, never even knew it could be possible to feel like this. Even though it's a dream, I feel like you would be like this in the real world, that you would make me feel this good."
"I would," he promised, surprised by the strange turn of events this dream was taking. It was his dream after all, she should still be happy and in his arms. She should not look lost and wounded or talking in riddles that he couldn't unravel. She should tell him what was bothering her, not keep it hidden from him.
What kind of crazy dream was this?
Though she kept her face pressed into the palm of his hand she turned her attention back to the lake. "I used to love coming here," she whispered.
Devon started in surprise as he turned toward the pristine lake. The field surrounding it was covered with blue, yellow, and white wild flowers that flowed toward the edge of a thick forest. The blades of grass, and wild flowers, swayed beneath the flowing breeze that trickled over them. A dock stretched toward the middle of the lake and a single tree was off to the side with a rope swing tied to a branch over the water. He could almost hear children laughing as they swung out over the water and released the rope.
Though it could have been one of a hundred lakes in the world, it was not one that he'd seen before. "You know this place?" he inquired.
She turned back to him, the unhappiness momentarily slipping from her as she grinned. "Very well, it's Lake Waldorph. Chris and I used to spend three weeks here every summer at the camp just beyond those woods. They were fun, carefree summers."
Devon focused on the lake again; horror filled him as he turned from its smooth surface back to her. This was not only his dream, he realized with a start, but also hers. Though he was the one that had brought her into the dream, it was her mind that had created the setting. It was why she wasn't telling him the things he wanted to hear from her, and why her distress and reluctance were real. It was why things weren't going the way he wanted them to.
His body began to go numb with shock and disbelief. He knew how their minds had connected, knew he had been the one to do it, but he'd never planned to let such a thing happen. While asleep, his subconscious must have sought out hers. It had taken hold of her mind, and drawn it in.
Devon bit back a curse, unwilling to frighten or upset her even more. There was no reason for her to know what had happened, how this had occurred, or the reason that it felt so real was because both their minds were creating it. It was better for her to continue to consider this just a strange, oddly real, dream. She could never know what he was, what he was capable of, what he could do to her. She would run screaming if she knew the truth, and he wouldn't blame her in the least.
The only problem was that no matter what she said, or what she wanted, he was afraid that this dream might mean she wouldn't have an option, and that neither did he. They barely knew each other, but his ability had somehow taken them both over, and brought them both here. He'd never had such a thing happen before, had never lost control in such a way. Even when he had been a novice, floundering and uncertain of his powers, he'd never lost control of them.
He had a bad feeling that he finally knew what all of this meant. He just wasn't willing to recognize the truth of it. He still didn't even have a place to stay in town, and hadn't intended to stay. Now he was fearful that he may not have a choice about staying, or going.
Wrapping his fingers through hers, he shut his thoughts off. He didn't intend to deal with them right now. He knew that it would only result in a tangled mess of confusion that he wasn't in the mood to sort through. For now, all he wanted was to hold her, talk to her, and make both of their dreams come true.
"Would you like to sit by the lake?"
Her face lit with pleasure, her eyes sparked merrily. He knew in that moment that he would do everything he could to make her smile like that as often as possible. "I would love to."
He leisurely led her down to the water and stopped at the edge of the lake. The water lapped gently against his feet. "Just as warm as I remember," Cassie whispered.
"Why did you stop coming here?"
She shrugged as a tremor of tension raced through her. "There wasn't any time for camp once Luther and Melissa arrived."
His eyebrows knitted together as he thought over her strange words. "Who is Luther?"
"Melissa's father, adoptive father," she amended.
Devon shook his head in confusion. "I don't understand. What does he have to do with the fact that you no longer went to camp?"
She held her hair back as the breeze briefly picked up again. For a moment grief enveloped her and that lost look filled her eyes again. Then her gaze cleared, and she smiled cheerfully at him. She squeezed his hand before standing on tiptoe to kiss him briefly. Devon started in surprise, but he enjoyed her sudden, playful demeanor. He was certain it wasn't an attitude she had very often.
"This is a dreary topic for such an amazing dream, and one that I don't want to think about right now. I think about it too often during the day."
Devon was once again confused as to what she was talking about. What did Melissa's adopted father have to do with anything major in her life, other than taking care of her friend, and maybe driving them to the movies or dances once in awhile? Those things were certainly not something that would occupy her thoughts often during the day, at least not as often as she had just suggested.
Before he could question her further, she tilted her head to the side and gave him an impish grin. "I would much rather go swimming."
With that she released his hand and plunged into the water. Her beautiful laughter trailed off as she dove beneath the surface. Devon stood for an astonished moment before shrugging negligently. It had been a long time since he'd gone swimming, and he couldn't think of anyone he would rather do it with.
Cassie burst back to the surface and inhaled deeply. Her skin glimmered in the sun, her dress pressed against her and drops of water clung to her as she smiled beckoningly at him. Excitement spurted through him. She was tantalizing, irresistible, and completely delicious looking. He couldn't refuse her as he began to wade into the warm water.
He was only feet from her when her head tilted to the side and annoyance flitted over her delicate features. "What is that noise?" she mumbled.
"What noise?"
He could hear nothing except for the subtle lapping of the waves against their skin. "Alarm," she whispered.
Then she was gone. Dismay filled Devon as he frantically looked around for her. It took him a few moments to realize that she had simply awakened. She hadn't disappeared for good but he couldn't stifle the suffocating disappointment he felt.
Retreating from the lake he returned to the shore, he ignored the feel of the grass now. It didn't matter as much without her here to enjoy it with him. He slid to the ground and draped his arms over his knees as he stared at the serene lake that Cassie had placed here. He wanted to know more about her days at camp, her childhood, and life experiences both happy and sad. He would like to know everything there was to know about her, and he was tired of being dodged all the time.
He didn't care about his own feelings of confusion and doubt; didn't care about their strange conversation, or the fact that he had lost control of his ability. There was only one thing that he cared about now. It didn't matter if Cassie fought him every step of the way, he was going to get closer to her in real life. He was going to make their dream come true.
CHAPTER 8
Cassie was humming cheerfully under her breath as she breezed into the kitchen and grabbed an apple from a bowl on the center island. Her grandmother froze in the act of beating some scrambled eggs. Her delicate eyebrows drew together as her azure eyes tracked Cassie's every movement. Reaching over, her grandma turned down the country song drifting from the radio.
"You seem much happier today," her grandmother said.
Cassie stopped to drop a kiss on her grandmother's smooth cheek. Though she was in her late fifties, she barely looked a day over thirty. Only soft laugh lines marred the corners of her eyes and mouth. Her shoulder length, strawberry blond hair, was pulled into a lose ponytail that bounced against her neck.
"A little," Cassie agreed.
"Did you finally get some sleep?"
Cassie nodded, a sly smile flitted over her mouth as she recalled the night of sleep she'd had. Though she knew that it had only been a dream, and could only ever be a dream, it had still left her feeling warm, alive and strangely loved this morning. Her gaze shot to the window where she could see Chris just walking out of his house.
"Yes," Cassie answered absently.
Though she had woken up strangely revived and optimistic, the sight of Chris's slumped shoulders reminded her that this wasn't some strangely realistic dream. This was her life, and in her life, there was no room for hope and optimism. There was no room to have feelings for someone, because in the end she would have to give them up. Though she reminded herself of these things, she couldn't stop the excitement that filled her at the thought of seeing Devon today. She was playing with fire, and bound to get burned, but at this moment she couldn't put the matches down.
"Luther is working you all too hard," her grandmother muttered before returning to her eggs.
"We're fine, grandma."
She glanced sharply back up at Cassie. "You haven't been fine for the past week."
Cassie shrugged as she shoved the apple into her bag. She couldn't meet her grandmother's eyes; she knew how observant she was. "I was just a little stressed over school."
"Hmm," she grunted. "You're too young for such responsibilities."
Cassie heaved her backpack onto her shoulder. Chris was already parked on the street, waiting for her. He usually came inside in the morning, either to say hi to her grandma, or to steal some food. The fact that he wasn't coming in led Cassie to believe that he'd had a rough night.
"You were younger than me when you learned what you were," Cassie reminded her. "And you had the same responsibilities."
Her grandmother turned toward her. "I always knew what I was Cassie. It wasn't staggering to me, and at the time we never could have imagined that such a thing as The Slaughter would occur. You shouldn't have had to know either."
"Grandma…"
She waved her hand impatiently. "I know Luther had to find you. It was part of your destiny after all. It just would have been nice to have been able to keep you sheltered from it."
Cassie hurried to her side and hugged her tenderly. "I know grandma, but there are things in life that we can't predict, or avoid."
Cassie thought over her words and was startled to realize that they could apply to her situation with Devon. She couldn't have predicted his arrival, and she was beginning to feel that it would be easier to stop a locomotive than to continue to fight her strong attraction to him. She trembled with anticipation at the same time her mouth went dry with dread. If she did this, there would be no turning back, and she found she almost welcomed the change.
"When did you get so smart dear?"
Cassie blinked as she was brought back to the present. "A wise person raised me."
Her grandmother's face lit up with her smile. "And don't you forget it. Now hurry up, get going, Chris had a rough night."
"Yeah he did."
Cassie kissed her cheek again, squeezed her hand, and hurried out of the house. The day was bright and warm, the chill of fall hadn't settled in completely, but the leaves were beginning to change. Cassie glanced up at the clear sky and eagerly inhaled the fresh air as she tried to steady her tingling nerves and pounding heart. She had a feeling that after today there would be no turning back.
***
Cassie's shoulders throbbed from the ramrod position she was maintaining. It was impossible to relax though, not with him only mere feet away. In fact, as long as he was near, she was pretty sure that she was never going to relax again. Not after that dream. Unwillingly, she pressed her fingers to her mouth. She could still recall the heat of his lips against hers, the unyielding stroke of his tongue, and the press of his solid arms encircling her. He'd made her feel so safe and protected, and whole. It had been the strangest most realistic dream ever, and she was desperate to know what the real life experience would be like.
She had to force herself not to look at him, not to cast surreptitious glances his way and relive every moment of pleasure he'd given to her last night. It was impossible. She clenched her hands. Her nails dug into her palms, her knuckles ached from the force of it. Her pen was clasped so tight that she feared it would crack. Her pulse pounded in her ears, as her heart beat rapidly.
She hadn't heard a word Mr. Maddox had said since class started. Unwillingly, her gaze drifted over to Devon. He was sitting casually in his desk, his legs stretched before him as he stared straight ahead. Those hands that had touched her so reverently last night were splayed before him; the long fingers were flat upon the desk. Though his posture was relaxed, she sensed a current of tension and power just beneath his smooth surface. The power that ran through him seemed completely out of place for a normal teenage boy in history class.
Seeming to sense her focus, he slowly turned toward her. She knew that she should look away, that she should be embarrassed to have been caught staring, but she couldn't. It took everything she had not to stretch across the space between them as her fingers twitched with the urge to touch him.
He didn't look away from her as he leaned forward and shifted with an easy grace. His emerald eyes burned with intensity, and a p
assion that left her breathless. The ripple of his muscles made her mouth go dry as her body erupted with tingles of electricity. She felt like a volcano bubbling beneath the surface, ready to explode in a torrent of molten lava that would certainly destroy her. She was certain that she would enjoy being buried beneath the heat.
Somehow, she didn't know how, but her pen was no longer in her hand, her hand wasn't clenched, and it wasn't on her desk. Her hand was now in the middle of the aisle, reaching toward him.
She blinked, snapping out of the brief trance. Her face flamed red, heat burned down the back of her neck as the realization of what she had been doing crashed over her. He didn't look at all appalled by her strange behavior as he leaned even closer.
She was tempted to reach toward him again, but she couldn't bring herself to make such a forward gesture once more. She couldn't believe she'd done it in the first place. It wasn't within her to make the first move, especially not with someone that she didn't know, and who now probably thought that she was crazy. The few boys she had dated had always approached her first.
The loud ringing of the bell caused her to jump in surprise and she knocked her forgotten pen to the ground. Cassie groaned, disgusted with herself, and the entire situation. She had to get her act together before she completely lost it. She couldn't continue to let some guy wreak havoc on her life in such a way.
She shoved her book into her bag and bent over to retrieve her lost pen. But it wasn't where it had fallen on the ground. Instead, it was held in a long fingered, strong hand that she recognized instantly. Her gaze traveled deliberately from the hand, to the man now kneeling before her. His clear eyes clashed with hers and caused her toes to curl. There would be no going back after this. If she took that pen from him, if she touched him, she knew that nothing would ever be the same again.
A small smile curved the corner of his firm mouth as his eyes seemed to taunt her. Annoyance filled her in the face of his unspoken challenge, he was daring her to take the pen back. She had never backed down from someone before. Taking a deep breath, Cassie steeled herself. She was probably overreacting anyway, nothing was going to happen.