Dark of kNight (10 page)

“I guess I do like him.” I heard a slight “
Yes”
that hissed under her breath. “Okay now, let’s not get carried away.” I cautioned. “I have a lot on my plate.” Her smile told me she understood.

Turning the car down their driveway, I could feel the grumbling in my stomach again. I checked my watch and it was already six-thirty. I pulled the car to the garage and popped the trunk. Casey and I hopped out and started pulling shopping bags full of clothes out. Heading into the house, we went straight up the stairs to our rooms. To my relief as I breezed through the great room, I could smell food. One more trip and the treasures of our expedition were stowed. Seating ourselves around the table, we all met in the formal dining room. It took every ounce of restraint I could muster to not cram everything on my plate in my mouth at once. Remembering my manners, I chewed one bite at a time. In a way, it gave me the opportunity to savor the flavor and enjoy food. The table conversation remained light. Thomas discussed his golfing buddies. Charlotte mentioned the garden club meeting. Casey rambled about our shopping trip. Gazing in my direction throughout dinner, Daniel remained quiet.

“Julie?” Thomas's voice broke the concentration on the savory piece of meat I was about to devour. I looked up. “Well, you have not spoken a word all evening.”

My first reply would have been something like,
I’m trying to stuff my face and don’t have much time to talk.
The best response was always, “It was an eventful day. I enjoyed the shopping trip with Casey. It feels good to be home.” I hoped the smile on my face would assure them my sincerity.

Wiping his mouth with his napkin, Thomas leaned back against his chair. “So Julie, what are your intentions?”

“
Could someone just let me finish my food
!” my thoughts screamed out while I tried to control my facial expression. Daniel chuckled in amusement by my reaction. I shot him a quick glance as a “
What are you laughing at?
” crossed my mind.

“Well, that’s something I wanted to discuss with you. I do have one semester to finish in college. I have the apartment there with at least six months left on the lease. I have no idea exactly what my options will be when I graduate.” Everything rolled out at once.

Thomas raised his eyebrows and cleared his throat. “You can always transfer to the college here, unless you are determined to graduate from your college. Then, I can always help with the lease. As far as your career, you do have many choices. Did anything in particular interest you yesterday?”

“Well as a matter of fact it did. I’m very interested in DalMar’s theories on DNA reconstruction.”

Thomas nodded slowly in agreement. He locked eyes with Daniel momentarily and then his eyes fell upon me. “You do know that you own half of DalMar Industries? So if you choose to have a job, it can be easily arranged.”

Thomas made everything sound so simple. It was as if he waved a magic wand and everything became clear and perfect. Your wish is my command. The new semester would begin in three weeks. This would give me time enough to plan my move.

“If you don’t mind I would like to start staying at my house.”
My house,
it sounded so strange. I would always consider the expensive home my father’s.

“Well, we do want you to be safe. It is a large home, Julie, and it is not exactly in a subdivision where neighbors could keep an eye on you.” He paused, giving Charlotte an intense stare. “However, we are just a few minutes away, and there will be people coming over to take care of the house. So I think you should be all right.”

I heard a slight gasp coming from Charlotte and turned to her to see she wasn’t in agreement with Thomas. She held her tongue, but her eyes held all the protest in the world.

“Great, I’ll move my stuff tomorrow.” A sudden sigh of dread hit me. All those clothes I’d just bought.

“Daniel and I can help!” Casey shot in.

“Really,” I breathed, “it’s not that bad. I can manage.”

“Nonsense. I saw the bags you two brought inside today. It looked as though you two bought the whole mall out.” At last he speaks, and with humor too.

I was defeated once again, winning one war and losing another. Smiling I nodded. Yes, it would be nice to have help with my baggage. After finishing dinner, I promptly excused myself from the table. With a full stomach and contentment, I headed upstairs for a shower and then to bed.

Rolling over in the bed, I pulled the sheets up to my chin. The full moon shined brightly outside the window. So bright, I wanted to close the blinds, but I was too comfortable to move. Closing my eyes, I focused on the night’s silence. Relaxing into the soft pillows, my body drifted into that wonderland of sleep.

SIX

Dreams are involuntary images of the mind while the person sleeps. They are a place where the mind creates images of real and fictitious people and places. Relating to dreams, I supposed they come from the subconscious mind. Too much information to process during the day, that was my theory anyway.

Where the dream began, I don’t know. The beautiful dreamscape blended with a previous dream of a green meadow. The fresh aroma of clover covered field complemented the bright sun and gentle breeze. Daniel stood in front of me in the middle of the meadow. His beautiful long black eyelashes softly accented the warmth of his light brown eyes.

The light blue polo shirt accentuated his well-defined muscular arms. His soft hand reached to my face, touching me lightly. His finger lingered on my cheek then traced the contour of my cheekbone. The sensual smell of his cologne intoxicated me. A whirlwind raced through my mind like a tornado when his head slowly moved closer to mine. My thoughts were all rushing at one time. My breath caught in my throat when his lips grazed over mine. Savoring the moment of the electrical surge that ran through my body, my hand went to his face, touching his cheek. Slowly my fingers explored the line of his face to the nape of his neck.

We both jumped when a low growl erupted behind me. I peered into his eyes for the confirmation that matched the fear in my heart. Before I had a chance to speak, he grabbed my arms and under gritted teeth, I heard the word “
RUN”
clearly. Heart pounding and full of fear, I followed his gaze. The green brush parted by a horrifying werewolf.

With its eyes firmly locked on us, it crouched, preparing to pounce. Gripping Daniel’s arm, I stepped backwards. My heart raced, pounding wildly in my ears. Vaguely, I could hear Daniel as he turned quickly and yelled “
RUN
!” This time his voice was louder and sharper. I broke into a run, sprinting toward the end of the meadow. Looking back over my shoulder, I screamed when the werewolf leaped into the air toward Daniel. What I didn’t expect to see came next. Daniel moved in a blur toward the creature. A second later, a giant black wolf stood in his place. The two locked into a battle of life and death.

Cringing, I dared not look, while the sound of ferocious snarls and teeth snapping rumbled behind me. The sudden silence shot the hair on my neck to its ends. I knew the battle was over. My feet tried to keep speed with my heart, racing for my very life. It didn’t take long before I heard the galloping of fast-paced feet closing in behind me. A low growl bellowed from the creature followed by heavy huffs of air. I turned my head to the side just in time to catch a glimpse of the dark body when it leaped in the air toward me. I screamed.

I could’ve said that the most humiliating moment in my life happened when I woke up screaming hysterically while people were watching. Charlotte and Daniel both tried to wake me from my horrid dream. Both spoke calmly to me while I wrestled with the reality of the nightmare. Gathering my senses, I fell back on the pillows and accepted my embarrassment.

Something of a shock ran through me. I sat up in the bed and leaned closer to his face. Staring into his eyes, I felt that I was still dreaming. He gave me a precarious look.

“Daniel?”

“Julie, are you all right? You look like you have seen a ghost.”

“Since when have your eyes been hazel?”

Charlotte laughed and then walked out the room. A slight brush of red covered Daniel’s face when he let out a laugh. “My eyes have always been hazel. Why do you ask?”

“Because, a few days ago your eyes were a dark brown. In my dream they were light brown.”

“In your dream?” He lingered on to the last word a little too long. Then that sly grin crossed his lips.

“Oh, get over yourself!” I snapped and hopped off the bed.

“Well, you were the one who had the dream.” The amusement in his voice was utterly unbearable.

“Actually, you were not the one who made me scream,” I said flatly with my back to him.

I could hear his soft steps as he padded toward me. I glanced up in the mirror to see him stop and stand behind me. He leaned closer to my neck, with his lips barely touching my ear. His hard body pressed closer to mine, close enough to feel the heat that emanated from him.

“
If I were to make you scream
,” he whispered, “
It most certainly would not be in fear
.” The vibrations of his deep voice set off certain signals inside my body. I wanted to melt right through the floor.

Standing in front of the mirror, I caught my breath when he strolled out the bedroom. With the feeling of his words still lingering on my neck, my body felt like it was on fire.

A hot rush filled my veins and burned into the very core of my existence. A slight tremor ran through me, causing me to steady myself against the dresser. Yes, a cold shower would do wonders for me at that point.

With each passing day, Daniel became more dangerous to me. He stirred unexplored feelings and emotions within me. I prided myself on being in control of any situation, but with him, it was impossible. He did a great job of unraveling my self-control, bending my will to match his. I felt a depth attraction that I had never experienced before. This new attraction unnerved me.

Showering and dressing quickly, I packed my suitcase. The new clothes I purchased remained in their bags. Scanning through my cosmetic purchases, I found the cologne I felt the most like. Dashing out the bedroom, I leaned over the balcony and looked for Daniel.

“Daniel?” My voice loud but not so loud that it would ring throughout the large home.

“Yes.” He voiced from behind me.

“Um,” My thoughts eluded me, Daniel’s body was closer than I expected. I tried to refrain from looking into his eyes, but that required a will power that I didn’t possess.

Brown. I knew it. This morning his eyes were hazel, but now they’re brown. I knew I wasn’t losing my mind.

“Yes?” He prompted with one raised eyebrow.

“Oh! You were going to help me with my stuff.” Shoving past him, I grabbed the bags. He followed me into the room and picked up my suitcase and a few shopping bags.

With my purse on my shoulder and hands full of shopping bags, we headed out of the room and down the stairs.

Charlotte met me at the bottom of the stairs with opened arms. I set my bags down and reached up to hug her neck. I lovingly accepted the hug.

“Thank you so much.” I squeezed her tightly.

“You know you are welcome. Listen.” Her voice was firm. Pulling back, she looked directly into my eyes. “There is a tropical storm coming and if it becomes too bad I want you to come back here. Do not forget to lock your doors at night. AND for heaven’s sake, do not go wandering around those woods in the dark. You never know if there are any… .well strange wild animals out there.”

“I promise. Tell Casey when she wakes up to come over and visit anytime.”

“I know she will. If you need us, just call.”

I acknowledged her request with a warm smile just as Daniel pulled the car up to the front door. Quickly moving past her, I ran to the car. Jumping in my Mitsubishi I started her up and was off down the driveway with Daniel following close behind. I suppose again, I was a little more excited than usual.

When I made it to the main road, I applied a little more pressure on the accelerator. To my surprise the car spun out and did a little fish tail. Looking up, I saw Daniel laughing in the review mirror. He was right on my bumper. I pressed the accelerator to half way, the car engine hummed and then with a burst I was in the wind. Looking back, I saw him move up closer. I pressed the accelerator further down. Soon we came up on the curve. I tapped the breaks before hitting the curve, and then gunned the engine in the middle of the curve. I didn’t see him flash his headlights, so I increased the speed. Soon, we topped the hill. My foot came off the accelerator. I glanced in the review mirror, still no flashing lights. It was too late for me to slow down. The police car sat at the top of the hill. I went passed him doing a nice round eighty-five. Daniel was just a breath behind me. He passed the police car and flashed his head lights. I looked in my rearview mirror expecting to see the police car spin out with its blue lights flashing and sirens blaring.

Nothing but Daniel with his head lights flashing. I slowed the car down and pulled over on the side of the road. Daniel pulled up behind me and stepped out the car.

“Did you just see that?”

“He didn’t even pull out. I was doing eighty-five when I passed by him.”

“No, I mean something is wrong. His radar gun is always turned on. I’m going back to see what’s wrong.” He turned before I could say anything else.

I pulled my car back onto the road and followed him back toward the police car. He pulled the car off the road onto the shoulder. I pulled up behind him.

“Stay here and leave the car running.” I heard the anxiousness in his voice.

He crossed the road and walked over to the police car. He stepped back a couple of steps and looked around on the ground. Daniel saw something and followed it to the rear of the police car. His body froze when he looked down at the ground. His head rose, looking around the woods behind where the police car was parked. Cautiously he crouched down to the ground with his left hand extended. He stood up quickly and backed away reaching into his jean pocket. Looking back behind him, he flipped the phone open. He ran toward my car with the phone held to his head. His words were unclear as he started to speak. “Call Dad!” The tense tone in his voice sent chills up my spine.