A Tangle of Hearts (A Shade of Vampire #44)(26)

“Okay,” I conceded.

He reached forward, placing his hand on my shoulder. “I’ve lived most of my life in isolation. Then you crashed into it, and I’m still wrapping my head around you, adjusting as best as I can.” Draven smiled and squeezed my shoulder, signaling me to move.

His words poked me in the chest. I cleared my throat and headed for the door.

We had a long journey ahead of us.





Vita





[Grace and Lawrence’s daughter]





Serena took her turn watching over Phoenix after midnight, and I went upstairs and collapsed onto our bed. It took me forever to fall asleep. My mind kept dwelling on Bijarki. And when I finally did drop off, even in my dreams, I couldn’t escape him. I wasn’t sure whether I’d had more visions of the future in my sleep or if my brain was just playing fast and loose with the visions I’d already had of him, but the array of scenes that flickered before my eyes was intense.

When I woke up the next morning, it was to bright sunshine and Aida sound asleep next to me. I was flushed and hot, beads of sweat lining my eyebrows. I wiped them off with the back of my hand and breathed in the cool morning air, going over the few dream fragments that I still remembered.

An enormous canopy bed in the middle of a poppy field. Soft white sheets of translucent fabric undulating with the wind. The sky, enormous and blue above. And me and Bijarki sitting in the middle of the bed looking at each other. His fingers touched my face, then moved slowly down my neck, tracing the contour of my shoulder all the way to my wrist before he took my hand in his and pulled me into his arms. He whispered something in my ear, but I couldn’t remember what he said. I only remembered how my heart fluttered at the sound of his low, husky voice. We melted in a long kiss, his lips over mine in a perfect fit…

The sound of snakes hissing pulled me back to consciousness.

No wonder I was feeling hot and flustered.

But I quickly shifted from flushed to irritated, remembering what Bijarki’s special ability was as an incubus.

He wouldn’t dare.

I narrowed my eyes as I got out of bed and padded to the window. Lo and behold, he shimmered in the sunlight, wearing his military suit as he brought out a couple of duffel bags from the house and placed them by one of the magnolia trees out front.

Would he?

My blood simmered as I saw him look up and notice me at the window.

He stilled, his cool eyes fixated on me. I could almost feel him drilling into my soul, but I wasn’t sure whether it was his nature or just my reaction to his presence, even at this distance. My knees quivered.

I clutched my fists at my sides and rushed downstairs. I had to confront him. I had to find out whether he’d been playing his incubus tricks on my mind while I slept. I needed a reason for those intense and colorful dreams of him touching me in ways I’d never been touched before. My cheeks burned.

I darted through the mangled foyer, jumping over the wooden threshold, the only part of the doorway left intact after yesterday’s emergency landing. Someone had swept away all the broken glass.

Bijarki stood by the magnolia tree where I’d last seen him, looking into the distance.

I allowed the anger of his potential invasion of my mind to engulf me. I needed all the rage I could possibly muster to confront him and call out his underhanded tactic. It must have been his fault. He must have manipulated my dreams.

“Hey, you!” I called out as I marched across the front lawn. The grass was soft and still dressed in morning dew, reminding me that I was barefoot. Despite the sunny sky, the temperature outside wasn’t that hot, and I felt chills running down my spine and arms.

He turned to face me, and his blank expression faltered my step. He scanned me from head to toe, and his eyes darkened as they reached my torso. The light breeze blowing through my nightgown made me aware that I was only wearing a flimsy, semi-transparent organza nightgown I’d found in the attic the other day. It may have been long and covering me from neck to toes, but the fabric was as thin as they came, in soft shades of pale green.

Bijarki had a pretty good view of my body beneath the gown, as I strutted toward him, struggling to hold on to the anger before embarrassment snuck up on me. His eyes flitted over my breasts as I closed the distance between us and poked him in the chest with my index finger.

“Have you been playing tricks on me in my sleep?” I demanded.

Deep blue and silver mingled in his eyes, as he lifted them to meet mine. “What are you talking about?” His gruff voice shot tiny sparks through my veins.

“Have you been manipulating my dreams? Dropping thoughts, bending my mind in my sleep or whatever it is you incubi like to do to women?” I was surprised I still had so much energy in my voice. His gaze captured mine and refused to let go, while I struggled to stand straight before him.

The breeze grew stronger for a fleeting moment, enough to blow through my nightgown and flutter the organza against my body. Bijarki’s eyes dropped again to my thin nightgown, breaking the stare.

“I would never,” he said slowly, his eyes wandering along the pale green fabric.

I had a hard time finding my next words.

“Vita, I swear on everything I hold dear in this world that I would never invade your dreams or push your will in any way,” he continued. “I don’t want you to do or feel anything that isn’t yours to feel. I respect you too much.”