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Dread filled me.
This had to be another dream.
I was Abraxia again.
The camisole and skirt fashioned around me might be fit for a queen, but they didn’t stop a chill from running down my spine. A wayward wind that didn’t belong here in the hot, humid realm.
What was she doing sneaking around?
As soon as the thought took form I wanted to smack myself in the head. She’d taken Caius's soul. Of course she was sneaking around. But maybe not. Something about it all made me think this was a vision before she’d stolen from him, otherwise, what was the point in sneaking once the deed was done?
She stepped with confidence, her movements lithe and matching that wayward wind. It blew her long, dark hair around her, hiding her face like a veil. The wind was coming from her.
No wonder it felt strange and foreign. This was her witch powers at play. I scarcely remembered my own and found myself fascinated by the way she controlled the wind with such little effort. It was as second nature as breathing to her.
Abraxia stepped around a large tree at the edge of the city. Strong arms grabbed her around the middle, but instead of jumping and trying to get away—as I wanted to—she melted in his embrace.
Bergamot and lemon invaded my senses.
“I missed you,” a deep voice said.
But it wasn’t Caius.
Abraxia leaned back in his arms, weaving one over her head and cupping the back of his neck. She tilted her head back, a smile playing at her lips. I wanted to curse her when her eyes closed, only letting me see the curve of his jaw lined with stubble.
“I missed you more,” she murmured.
Lips met hers. They both groaned, coming together like only lovers did. I tried to make out the voice she was speaking to, it sounded familiar. I just couldn’t place it . . .
Hands gripped her clothes, shoving up the fabrics of her skirt. It didn’t take a genius to know what was coming next and my mind revolted even if Abraxia did not.
Wake up,I told myself.
Wake up. Wake up. WAKE UP!
I gasped, my eyes flying open.
“It worked,” I rasped, throat dry. I sat up, rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand. “Haha, it worked! Wait a minute . . . why am I on the floor?”
My hands bunched on the rug beneath me.
“I only just woke up myself, love. Why don’t you tell me?” He rumbled in a sleep thickened voice. I turned to gape at him.
“Oh bullsh—” I stopped short. Caius was under the blankets he’d been in last night. I wasn’t, and I was half on top of him. My leg was thrown over his, my bronze skin stark against the light blanket and fur. One of my hands was on his chest, but the fabric kept us separated from the mid-chest down. Beneath my palm, his heart pounded in a familiar rhythm, syncing in time with my own. My mouth went dry.
There were a few ways I could have ended up on the floor with him, but much as I was loath to admit it—Caius carrying me here wasn’t one of them.
“What was that?” he said, dark eyes roaming over my body and exposed skin. He hadn’t seen my skimpy pajamas last night, but he was definitely getting a good look at them this morning.
“N-nothing.”
“Uh, huh. You weren’t going to say bullshit, insinuatingIam a liar,now were you?”
“No . . . yes. Fuck. I don’t know.” I pulled at my hair with one hand, fingers tangling in the knots that formed in my sleep. “I don’t see how else I ended up here.”
“Maybe you sleepwalked?”
“What?” I said, my head whipping around so I could give him a dirty look, but it morphed into a playful glare. “I don’t sleepwalk and even if I did, it would be right out the door.” I might have been snarky, but I lacked conviction.
