AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"Tell me about your dream. I want to hear it if you feel like telling me.”
His voice startled me. I scooted closer until I sat at his side, so close our legs were touching.
“I have a question for you first.”
Lukas twisted his mouth into a smirk. “Of course you do.”
“You were in here with me the entire time, right? I never left the room?” I asked quietly.
“Not only did not leave, you didn’t move. I could’ve sworn you were dead.”
Taking a deep breath, I plunged in. "In my dream, I saw Stefan as a human man. And I was with him. I was me, but not me. And my mother was with me. She told me to trust fate. It's all sort of confusing."
Lukas sat quietly, listening to me rattle on. He gave me an inquisitive stare. "What the hell are you? You're not just a human and vampire hodge podge mixture. What else are you?"
Closing my eyes, I swallowed roughly. "An Eudaemon."
A black eyebrow arched. He pursed his lips as he considered my words. "A guardian spirit or a bringer of good luck. His vision..."
"Was probably just a memory of me. We both need to remember the past. And I need my uncle's journals to help learn how to do it," I murmured. "Do not tell Anna or Nikolaus about any of this. I need to talk to Stefan first."
Lukas nodded and he finally released my hand. Standing, he gave me a weak smile. "You’re different now. Stronger. I envy you, Josephine. You’re not afraid to love, at least not anymore. Life had gotten boring until we found you. And it keeps getting more interesting with each passing day."
I was preparing an entertaining retort when the sudden reemergence of Stefan in the bond reignited, stopping all coherent thought. The pain that had hovered in my chest for hours lessened, replaced by the renewed force of the tie between us. I felt alive again with his essence slowly pumping through my veins, his magical blood reigniting the part of me that was slowly fading without him.
"Josie? What’s happening?"
Pushing by Lukas, I hurried down the hallway and almost ripped the locks off of the front door. Flinging it wide open, I found myself face to face with the man I'd feared I'd lost.
It was Stefan.
His six-foot-four frame was covered from head to foot in soot, blood and grime. His golden blond hair was matted and dark smears of dirt marred his handsome face. Ignoring the filth, I launched myself into his arms, burying my face into his chest, grabbing handfuls of his ruined shirt into my fists.
I felt the odd feeling of my feet dangling. He'd lifted me off the floor until our faces were mere inches apart. His tortured blue eyes met mine, offering me his unspoken apology and begging me for acceptance.
“I love you,” I murmured softly. It was all I needed to say.
A mangled sob choked him as he captured my lips with his. His force of his guttural moans of happiness shook my entire body, leaving me to cry out in relief to feel his powerful body against mine once again. The tattered tendrils of our bond slowly knitted themselves back together every moment we were together.
His mouth became more insistent on mine, the strength of his kiss growing more powerful. The kisses were wet, filled with unbridled want.
Reluctantly I pulled away and studied his dirty face. "You need to come with me."
Wordlessly, my feet once again met the floor and he followed obediently along behind me. Leading him into the bedroom, I dragged him to the bathroom. I adjusted the water in the bathtub and stripped him of his dingy clothes, checking every part of his body that was revealed for any injury. Satisfied that he was unharmed, I moved quickly to turn off the taps.
“You need to get in so I can give you a bath. You’re a mess,” I wrinkled my nose and motioned at the tub. Still silent, he climbed into the steaming water, sighing loudly as he sank into the hot water.
I hadn't been planning on joining him. My plan had been to bathe him only, but once he settled his body inside the tub he looked up at me with his persuasive blue eyes. Unable to resist him, I shed my clothes. Lowering myself into the water along with him, I sat astride his legs in the large tub. Releasing a ragged breath, I ran my fingers over his cheekbones, across the chiseled line of his jaw. Biting my lip and blinking back tears, I relished the feel of his skin under my fingertips.
Methodically, I began to wash him, lathering his hair with shampoo and gently wiping the soot away from his face with a washcloth. I soaped his shoulders and chest, leaning in to place kisses over the exposed skin I lovingly cleaned. Our bond was strumming in contentment that he was safe, alive and we’d reconnected. I'd been concentrating so hard on taking care of him that it wasn't until Stefan raised both hands to my face that I realized I was crying. He gently wiped away the tears from my cheeks with his wet hands, is thumbs stroking over the outline of my lips.
"I thought you were dead. I couldn't feel you at all. My heart felt like it was being ripped in two pieces," I sobbed. “I dreamed of you as a human. I heard you talk. Skjarr kvikindi. Hitta minn hlið síða. Elska minn, dveljask innan minn fold. Fá minn lífdagar, fagr víf. Stefan, do you remember?”
His hands hadn't moved from my face. He continued to cup my face lovingly, cradling it as if I was the finest china that was going to break into a million pieces. His blue eyes bored into mine, intense and shaken by my words.
"I was with Amir and the others on the Council when the explosion happened. I think Adolfo and Lenora are dead.” Stefan whispered, finally speaking. He stroked my cheekbone, a wistful smile on his face. "Whatever you are is more than either of us can imagine. You spoke to me in Old Norse, a language I have not spoken in many years. You smell of the sea. Your memories of my human life mystify me. When I factor in the way we feel when we are together and our bond, it is as if we are picking up where we left off."
I didn't need to mull over his words. He was speaking the truth. In some way, our lives became intertwined almost a millennia ago by some spiritual, mystical occurrence.
