by Jade White
“When am I taking him to the airport? I’m going to assume that he requested me.” Dom was ready to face the responsibility, but she wasn’t sure if she was ready to answer the questions that might come out of this. She didn’t even know if she was ready to tell him about it. “I still don’t know what to tell him.”
“He’ll be returning in a few weeks, in the meantime if you find yourself ready to talk to him about it, you can always pick up the phone.”
“I know, I know, I just don’t even know if it really happened yet. I would like to have some evidence before I went and worried him.” Dom explained.
The witch could almost picture Anna nodding on her end of the phone call. “I understand, but he insisted on this.”
“I did have a question.”
“I’ve been waiting for you to ask, so go ahead. I’ll answer what I can.”
“What is this child supposed to be?”
“The power that was emanating from the child in my vision was extremely powerful. I believe that he is meant to be something incredibly special. Something that could change the way our world works. He is supposed to have the ability to shift into many different forms. It is a rare gift, rarer than the white tiger.”
“I never thought that ability existed. Why would it change things?”
“Every time someone with that ability is born, they usually go into hiding. They are extremely magical creatures that can take the form of almost anything. It is an important gift, and one that can only be born when two different people with different abilities have a child. Even then it is very rare. There haven’t been enough of them born to really be able to track genetic causes or mutations.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I know that you don’t right now. For the moment however, you need to keep what I am telling you secret. If anyone finds out about him, they might want to hurt you or the baby. I can’t let that happen.”
“That I understand.” Dom acknowledged the order and stared at the picture of her grandmother. She would have given anything to get advice about this situation. After she received the information about Gregor’s flight, she began to speak to the beautiful black and white photo of the young woman in the white dress. “What would you do?” She knew that she wasn’t going to get an answer. “Should I tell him? What if I’m not pregnant?”
She hung her head, trying to think. “What if I’m not pregnant? Knowing that I could be the mother of someone so special, could I deny that destiny? What should I do? I don’t know anymore.” The picture smiled at her, not responding. She was frustrated and knew that she had to figure something out by the time he was supposed to leave. Trying to think wasn’t working, so maybe she needed to relax.
Dom turned on some music and placed her mp3 player in the docking station. Easy jazz started to croon out of the speakers as she placed it in the bedroom outside of her bathroom. She started the water and walked out to lock the doors. As she reached the back door she heard movement from the front of the house. Locking the door, she headed for the front of the house. The front door was closed so she peeked through the peephole. Shaking her head, she opened the door. “Gregor, what are you doing here. Your plane doesn’t leave for almost twelve hours.”
“I wanted to see you again, before I left.”
“I’m going to take you to the airport. You are going to see me again.”
Gregor looked at her. His face looked incredulous. “Can you just blow me off that easily?”
Dom tried to explain. “Look, we’re under the effect of a spell. This isn’t a real attraction. It’s better if we spend as little time as possible together.”
“No, I was attracted to you the first moment I saw you. I wanted you then and I want you now. The spell didn’t change that. Give me a chance.”
Dom was stunned. She didn’t know what to say, but she knew that she had to say something. Her mind reeled over possibilities and she just stared at him. He moved in and kissed her. His mouth came down on hers, gently, slowly, needing to touch her. The moment, the kiss, seemed to last forever. The world stopped and they existed only in each other’s arms. His hands were on the small of her back, pulling her closer to him. She brought her arms up to wrap around his neck, giving in to his embrace.
He lifted her, carrying her back to her bedroom. Without a word he stood her next to the bed and began to undress her. She stood, naked in his vision, not feeling ashamed or inhibited, the sound of rushing water in her ears. He undressed; it was almost surreal how calm and serene the moment was. They looked at each other, feeding on the sight of each other, standing about a foot apart. Their eyes grazed each other, drinking in a memory that would last a lifetime. They seemed to feel the power of that time, and neither of them was willing to step away. He moved in again, initiating contact between them. He ran his hands over her body and she did the same to him. He kissed her and she returned the motion, tongues intertwining in desire.
Picking her up once again, he placed her on the bed, settling between her legs. Sounds of rushing water accompanied her soft moans as she felt him start to pleasure her body. The motions were smooth, slowly making love. It felt like a sad sort of good-bye. They moved against each other, hands roaming over bodies, touching each other everywhere at once. They needed each other. They felt each other as the moments turned into minutes of pleasure.
They moved in perfect harmony, making love in a way they had never known existed. Touching and playing, feeling more than their skin could handle. They touched each other, needing the love in that moment.
At the moment of their mutual release, they confessed their love. The words came out in a mixture of moans and sobs as they needed each other. Their words spoke more than any other they had ever said. There were only three or four of the words that created another world, but they knew that they symbolized something much deeper, something that meant so much more.
He rolled off of her, laying by her side. Dom realized that she could still hear the water running, then remembered what that sound meant. “My bath!” She jumped up and ran to the bathroom. The tub was just starting to overflow out of the receptacle. She raced for the tap and turned the flow off. She reached in to empty the tub. Forcing the stopper out of its place the water started to swirl down, extricating itself slowly from her sight.
“I’m sorry I disturbed your bath.” Gregor leaned against the door-frame, watching her try to save her bathroom floor from the water damage that could occur. Towels were whipped out of the small shelf as she threw them on the floor to sop up the water. Gregor stepped into the small room to help. He reached for a towel and their hands touched for a moment. Electricity flowed between them and there was a moment that was reminiscent of the earlier fireworks as they looked into each other’s eyes before getting back to work. It didn’t take long for the two of them to clean up the small mess that had been made.
It wasn’t until they walked back into the bedroom that her mind realized the vulnerability of her lack of dress. She flushed, her face showing the embarrassment she was feeling as she reached for her clothes. “We shouldn’t have done that.” The regret was almost overpowering. She knew why she kept falling into him, and knew that the sooner they separated the sooner her life could return back to normal.
“It’s a memory that I will carry with me for the rest of my life, and well worth running away from my keepers at the safe house.”
Dom balked. “They must be panicking, we have to call them.” After clothing herself she called headquarters and told them where Gregor was. She told them that she would take him to the airport when he was ready. It was agreed upon and she turned to see him dressing himself. He pulled on his slacks and buttoned his shirt, unashamed of his body.
“Would you like me to take them off again?” He asked. “I could arrange it, and we could hide in bed until it’s time to leave for the airport.” His voice held the promise of many hours of mutual pleasure.
Dom almost agreed to it then she remembered that they wer
e still under the effect of the spell. “We shouldn’t do that. We don’t know how long this is going to last.”
“If that’s what you want, I’m not going to argue with you about this. I want to spend our last hours for the next few weeks in pleasantness.”
“You do know that we probably won’t see each other once I drop you off. If we do, it will only be in passing.” Her words were matter of fact, precise and hid the shakiness and insecurity that she was feeling.
He touched her hand, feeling her. “If after a few weeks without me you don’t think that you love me anymore, you don’t have to do anything, but if you do, please come to the airport and pick me up.” They talked for a little while, deciding that they would give themselves some time before they headed to the airport. The pair slept in her bed, holding each other for all of the hours that were leave. They needed to feel each other.
The drive to the airport was wordless and filled with a strange sense of mourning. She walked him into the airport after parking in the short-term parking. He carried the bags that he had brought with him when he first came down. “Remember, if you still feel something for me, come pick me up at the airport when I come back, I’ll be here, waiting for your face. I’ll do my best not to bother you until then and we’ll figure out what to do then, Dominique.”
“I don’t like being called Dominique.”
“Why not, it’s a beautiful name that has a beautiful woman to carry it. Would it be alright if I called you Dominique?”
She flushed again. “Yes, I think that will be alright for now.” She mumbled as she examined her feet. “Don’t you have to get on the plane?”
“Yes.” He swept her into his arms once again, kissing her deeply and with a great need that could only be expressed by the motion. She gave into the sensation for a few moments, thriving on his touch. His tongue slipped into mouth, possessing it for an eternal moment. As he pulled away from her, he brushed her hair out of her face and whispered, leaning into her ear. “I’m hoping that you will be here when I come back.”
“I don’t know.” She thought about the baby, thinking about telling him, but her mind continued to make excuses. She still didn’t know if she was really pregnant or not, she decided to confirm before she informed him. As she watched him step onto the escalator and wave she thought about calling out to him as he slipped out of sight, but she couldn’t do it.
Instead, she sat there and watched him leave her vision and bit her lip. One chance had slipped through her fingers. She touched her phone, pulled it out of pocket and looked at it, yet still she stalled. She couldn’t tell him of the child she was supposed to bear. She couldn’t help but admit to herself that she wasn’t ready to have that conversation yet.
Walking out of the airport, she saw the sunlight, reveled in it for a moment, then climbed into her car. Driving home was almost painful, she missed him and her heart ached for his touch once again. “Get a grip, Dom.” She told herself slamming her hands down on the steering wheel.
Chapter10
Dom looked from the phone in one hand to the positive pregnancy test in the other. A part of her wanted to answer the ring, but another part of her was still unsure. She didn’t know if she was ready to have that conversation, but knew that Gregor had to be wondering what was going on. She knew that she had to come to a decision as the phone rang again. His name popped up on the screen and she sighed and hit the ignore button. She couldn’t talk to him at that moment; she had to admit to herself that she was afraid. His reaction to the news was uncertain, and that was the scariest thing that she could imagine. The problem was, she wasn’t sure what response would frighten her most: the thought that he might want to stay by her side or the thought that he might run for the hills at the closest opportunity. She was already guilty of lying to him by omission, by not telling him as soon as she found out, and knew that waiting would only make the anxiety and frustration worse, but she couldn’t bring herself to answer his call.
For his part, Gregor was unsure as to what was happening. The woman wasn’t returning his calls at all, and he had no idea what he was supposed to do about it. He was staring at his phone at the same time Dom was staring at hers, and somehow the two of them could feel the connection. They both felt the similarity of the situation and it frightened Dom.
Dom put down her phone and moved her hand over her stomach. She could feel the baby growing, its power starting to develop within her. She had already had it confirmed, and knew that she should tell him; it was just a matter of how at this point. She had confessed her fears to Anna, but it hadn’t helped the conversation that she would have to initiate any easier. Something had to be done. She had to talk to him eventually. She couldn’t keep hiding, and she knew it. Dom sighed and ran her hands through her hair, pushing it back from her face. She had lost enough sleep about this already and could feel the exhaustion creeping in.
Walking to the living room she picks up the project that she working on, a light blue baby blanket made out of soft yarn, something that will be gentle when it touches the child, something that will make her son happy. Whether she was ready to admit it or not she was warming up to becoming a mother. Everything was perceived in a softer light, everything was becoming more and more meaningful. She felt a connection to the child, something that can only be felt between a mother and child, closeness to a brand new life that was growing inside her body. A part of her loved the feeling, but it was married by a feeling of dread, fearing the revelation of the news to the father.
Her magic was growing as well. She could feel it whenever she started working, and it was getting to the point where it felt like she was walking on the clouds. Her grandmother had told her stories about the magic that the children possessed would often be passed to the children when the mother was pregnant with them. With such early effects coming to bear it was easy to believe the story that Anna had told her. It was easy to believe how special this child was going to be. The challenge was going to be controlling the power this child would possess during the rest of the pregnancy.
She felt like her mind was slowly dripping out of her skull. There were so many thoughts bouncing around that she screamed in frustration. How should she tell him, she barely knew him, should she even tell him? The questions were agonizing. She was frustrated and upset, and wondered if their connection would allow him to sense it. She wasn’t sure if she was sensing him on occasion, if it was true he was lonely and missing her, but it might have been her imagination.
She just couldn’t be sure of anything anymore. Gregor had turned her life upside down, but she didn’t know if she should be happy or sad about it. She didn’t know if she wanted someone to be as close as Gregor was trying to be.
She paced and he paced, in different parts of the country but the movements mirrored each other. It was one of the moments that transcended the distance, two hearts beating at the same rhythm, but separated by over a thousand miles. This was a connection that had transcended time and space, but the problem was, the ever burning question of the reality of it. If this was just an aftereffect of the spell that had been cast how much longer would the passion for him be burning inside her. She had no idea, so she did the only thing she could do in that moment.
Pulling out her cards from the closet in her spare room she lovingly removed the cloth covering them. The cards had been worn with age, and that gave them a special insight into the world and the way it worked. She gazed into the cards, clearing the doubt from her mind as she shuffled them.
She dealt the cards, her eyes half closed, her breathing shallow, concentrating on receiving answers to her questions. She gazed at the cards, reading the position and the deep meaning in them. She frantically searched for answers, any answer to the jumble of questions that had taken over her entire existence recently, but the readings were as confused as her feelings on the matter. She knew that the cards were not to blame, but a part of her was upset by the results. Her cluttered emotions had clouded the power of the cards. She rea
lized that her own powers had been muddled by the problems she was facing; the cards were merely a conduit of her own powers of divination.
Dom was worried; she couldn’t find the answers she needed, even though she knew that the answers were trapped somewhere inside her. She started to pace again, her eyes on the floor, wondering and slowly driving herself insane. Pacing wasn’t working so she grabbed a throw pillow from the couch and held it to her face. She screamed into it, trying to calm herself down. It helped to control the immediate frustration. He had called her, she knew that he would be on his way soon, he had promised not to call until he was ready to return.
She pictured herself at the airport. Her mind wandered over, watching her own meeting, seeing him take her into his arms, seeing him lower his lips to hers and trapping her in a passionate kiss that seemed to go on forever. Her mind jumped to a picture of them making love. Hours of passion ending in exhausted slumber wrapped in each other’s arms. Her mind continued to wander, heartbreak upon his cordial greeting, a case that terrified her just as much as the other greeting. Her mind continued to play with her heart, with her feelings as she thought about every possibility. His possible delight, anger or indifference about the child she carried frightened her. While the worst possibility would be indifference, the other two emotions frightened her equally.
She started to pace again, her mind playing tricks on her. She hated the fact that her emotions were so out of control, but decided to blame this unusual loss of control to the hormones that were coursing through her body and the situation she had gotten herself into. The thought allowed her to calm herself a little, the control returned a little at a time as she walked the line that had been worn into the carpet by a month of worried pacing.
