Chapter Fourteen
What dreams may come
I was in the parking lot of my old high school. The old building has long since been torn down and a new one built on the same site. Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew this. However as I watched, construction was still going on. I was walking around, not sure why. The air was crisp and cool. Everything around me felt more alive and so did I. I took in my surroundings for only a minute before turning my attention back to the school.
I needed to get inside before they closed.
Without hesitation I took off on all fours, running through the grass and clay. The cold grass crunched beneath my palms and I loved the feeling. It was refreshing. The way the damp clay squished between my fingers felt better than any massage.
When at last I came to the door of the school I realized they might be put off by my appearance. After all, I was barefoot and had mud on my hands. The girl inside looked at me funny. I laughed, I couldn’t help myself. I mean, I’d just been running full out like an animal across the grass. What must she be thinking? I waved and said, “I need to wash my hands. Can you let me inside?”
She did. I washed my hands and she quickly locked me out. I laughed again, unable to recall why I was at the school in the first place. The next thing I know I’m in a mall. Don’t remember ever being in this mall before, but it had nice carpet. I couldn’t seem to get where I wanted to go fast enough. So, in front of everyone, I started running on all fours again. I didn’t get nearly as many strange looks as I’d expected. The carpet felt good and I enjoyed it, but not nearly as much as running outside.
The cool grass crunching underneath my palms, the wind in my face, and a sense of absolute freedom. It felt powerful, good and free. No sooner had I thought of the outside then I was there. My arms couldn’t reach fast enough to meet the ground. My body felt more alive with every stretch of my limbs.
And then suddenly I was listening to a drum. Who the hell plays a drum in the middle of nowhere? It was getting louder.
Eramus’ heartbeat. That’s what I was hearing. I wasn’t running across a field, I was snuggled up against his chest. Feelings of warmth and safety were wrapped around me just as tightly as his arms. The sound was slow, rhythmic, entrancing in its simplicity. Without thinking I pressed my lips to his throat because it felt natural that I should do so. He stirred and snuggled me closer. I could feel his smile against my cheek as I drifted back to sleep.
*
The only reason I woke was because I was freezing. Cold was the first thing I was aware of in hours besides the sound of his heart and his slow, even breathing. I sat up and pushed back the covers. The light streaming in was a dull gray, proof that last night’s storm hadn’t passed.
“Eramus?” When he didn’t answer I scooted toward the edge of the bed. “Are you here?”
He’d left my dry clothes at the foot of the bed and I got dressed before pulling his robe back on.
When I went downstairs he was nowhere to be found. I did find where he’d started to make coffee. Fresh beans had been ground and were still sitting in an open canister on the counter. I found the coffee filters easily enough and in no time at all had a fresh pot brewing.
Even though I couldn’t see Eramus anywhere, I could feel him. With that thought my strange dreams returned. Running on all fours? Was that because of what he’d said to me? Surely I must have been influenced by our conversation just before I fell asleep.
Eramus came inside as I turned around, soaked to the bone and looking hot as hell. He was wearing jeans again and a white t-shirt that clung to him like a second skin. Every ridge and curve beneath the wet fabric was perfectly outlined. He was a work of art. I would say that nothing was left to the imagination, but that’s not true. The more I looked, the more I imagined how it would feel to touch him. I imagined the wet skin beneath those clothes and how exciting it would be to peel him out of them. I could feel my mouth watering and licked my lips involuntarily. He hadn’t shaved this morning and a light stubble was visible along his jawline. It suited him. Not only that, but his hair that had been shaggy yesterday looked almost chin length this morning.
Eramus pushed his wet hair back from his face and smiled as he looked at the coffeepot.
“Did you decide to make the coffee yourself so I couldn’t drug you?”
I shook my head. “I was just trying to be nice.”
He opened the cabinet, took out a dish towel and draped it over his shoulders. All the while I watched the way his back flexed, every movement visible beneath the tight wet shirt. When he turned around I’m surprised my expression didn’t give away my thoughts. Or maybe it did and he was too nice to say anything.
“I’m really sorry about that. The chamomile tea I drink is laced with other things to help me rest. It tastes so close to that Breakfast Blend stuff that I didn’t notice the difference. My carelessness is inexcusable. I hope you’re not upset.”
He should have been freezing. He’d just come in from a cold drizzly day and yet when he moved near me I could feel the heat rising from his skin.
“I’m not upset.” I couldn’t stop myself from touching him. As I placed my palm flat against his chest I remembered what Eramus had said. A compulsion to touch him, that’s what he’d called it. At first I didn’t want to accept that, but it was true.
My hand traced the front of his wet shirt idly, admiring the curves that I could just barely see. “What time is it? I didn’t see a clock.”
“It’s morning.”
“I know that,” I said, laughing softly. “What time of the morning?”
“Thursday morning.”
“What?! Are you kidding? You’re kidding.” I said the last quickly, not waiting for an answer.
Eramus took a coffee mug down from the cabinet. “Sorry, but it’s no joke. It’s Thursday morning. I told you the draught you had was strong enough for a werewolf. What would have helped me to get a good eight hours rest made you sleep since Monday night.”
I stammered for a minute or two before something coherent finally came out. “But I’ve got a job, a business to run.”
“Your phone is working, by the way. I called Justina and let her know what happened.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Maybe I was still dreaming? “You told her what happened? What did you say?”
He pulled out a chair and when he sat down I watched the way the wet jeans clung to his thighs. Damn. I had the vulgar urge to walk over and cup his package in my hand.
“I told her that you’d been chased over here by a werewolf. I told her everything. Well, almost everything.”
“So, you told her the truth?”
“Of course. We didn’t do anything wrong. You needed a place to stay and I let you stay here. Other than that, our tea got mixed up and you passed out for a while.”
“Wow. It doesn’t sound like such a big deal when you say it.”
He laughed. “It isn’t a big deal unless you want to make it one. The shop has been running just fine.”
My jaw dropped. “You’ve been going by the shop?”
“Just to see how things were going in your absence. I figured you’d want to know stuff like that.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
“And to answer your other question, no I did not tell her I’m a werewolf. It’s not wise to let too many people in on a secret like that.”
“Hmm.” Everything he just said was running around in my head in an incoherent jumble while I turned back to the coffeepot. I guess my brain was trying to wrap itself around what was going on. Finding out my hot neighbor was actually a hot werewolf was quite a shock. Realizing I’d just used the words “hot” and “werewolf” in the same thought was another.
I selected another coffee mug, making sure it was a different color than the one Eramus had put on the counter.
“Just in case,” I said, holding up the cups. Taking the coffeepot in hand I asked, “How do you take it?”
“Any way
I can get it.”
The sexual innuendo was even stronger than the coffee I’d just made. When I gave Eramus a questioning look he explained, “I like coffee.”
I crossed my arms underneath my breasts and continued to stare at him, unable to stop my playful smile. “You weren’t talking about the coffee.”
He rose slowly and I tried to focus on his eyes instead of the way those jeans clung to his crotch. Eramus was close enough to touch. His scent drifted to me as I my eyes moved to his smile. Seeing my gaze deliberately shift made his grin even wider, revealing his even, white teeth once more.
He lifted his arm and took the sugar from one of the lower shelves beside the sink.
“You mean you aren’t going to drink it black?”
He laughed. “Do you know why men drink black coffee? ’Cause if you don’t I’m going to let you in on a secret.”
I leaned toward him, propping on the counter. “Enlighten me.”
“To impress women.”
I threw my head back and laughed. “You’ve got to be kidding. That’s ridiculous.”
“It’s true.” He added two heaping spoonfuls of sugar to his cup and then went to the fridge. “No one really likes black coffee. At least, that’s my theory.”
“And you think that men only drink it that way to impress women?”
He closed the refrigerator and turned around with a carton of fresh cream in his hand.
“Exactly.”
I watched the cream swirl around in his cup before asking, “So, you’re not trying to impress me?”
Eramus took a sip of coffee and then added more cream. “Honey, if you’re not impressed with the fact that I didn’t molest you for the past two days, I don’t know what else to do.”
“Is that right?”
I took a step toward him and he didn’t back down, meeting my look and smiling at the challenge. Eramus set down his cup and leaned closer, close enough that I could almost taste the coffee he’d been drinking.
“That’s right.” His lips almost brushed mine as he spoke. The already deep baritone of his voice seemed even lower, as if he were deliberately trying to create a certain vibration. “I had you in my bed for two days, naked except for my robe.” Eramus brushed his face against my hair. “Your shampoo smells like hyacinth.” He pressed his lips to my throat and I could feel his sharp inhale as he ran his face up to my ear. “And your skin smells like vanilla.” He moved back just enough that I could look into his eyes and doing so nearly brought me to my knees. “I held you against me in the night, felt your soft breath against my skin—and I never once looked underneath the robe.”
“Eramus…”
He smiled again and the spell his words had cast was temporarily broken.
“I didn’t take advantage. I’m not saying I didn’t enjoy myself.”
It was all I could do to hold the pot steady as I poured myself a cup of coffee. When I sat down at the table, Eramus remained propped against the counter, giving me the best view I’d had in days, including the sunset.
“So, what have you been doing for the past two days?”
He took another sip of coffee and made a face. “I put too much sugar.” Then he seemed to remember what I’d asked. “I’ve been planting wolfsbane in your yard.”
“O-kay. Do you think that will keep the other wolf away?”
“It should at least keep him out of your yard. But if he really has business with you, I doubt it will keep him from following you around.”
That scared the shit out of me. Was he trying to give me a heart attack?
“What do you mean, follow me around? I can tell you right now he doesn’t have any business with me.”
Eramus nodded his acknowledgement of my words. “There’s a good chance he was after me, but couldn’t enter my yard. Yours was the closest he could get.”
I sighed with relief. “Well, that makes a whole lot more sense. I mean, what the hell would a werewolf want with me?”
The raised eyebrow was answer enough, but if there were any blanks, his smile filled them in nicely.
“Forget I asked that.”
“Any time you want the answer, just let me know.”
Eramus finished his coffee as he explained about the new plants in my yard. “This is the best time of year to plant wolfsbane. It naturally grows in much colder climates. I didn’t want to mess up your yard, so I planted them behind your other flowers. No one will even see them behind the rows of azaleas. But they’re not for decoration anyway. They need partial shade and whatever you do, don’t touch them with your bare hands.”
“Anything else I should know besides don’t touch the new poisonous flowers in my yard?”
My question was sarcastic, but Eramus paused to think it over anyway. “I think that about covers it. Here’s your key.”
He put my house key on the table and I gave him a confused look.
“When you ran over here you said you left the back door unlocked. So when I talked to Justina I asked where you hid your extra key. She told me. I checked to make sure no one was inside, and locked things up for you. I hope you don’t mind.”
“No, I appreciate what you did. It’s not that.” I laughed softly. “Justina knows I’ve been sleeping here and that you’ve been in my house. I’ll never hear the end of it.”
He winked and my heart fluttered on cue. “Give her something to talk about,” he teased.
“Well, I suppose I should go back now. I’ve got work to do, things to catch up on.”
Truthfully, I felt at home with Eramus, but I didn’t want to impose. I removed his robe and shivered just a bit as I handed it to him. His big warm hand wrapped around mine and gently pushed the robe back in my direction.
“It’s cold out there,” he said softly. “I’ll get the robe when I come to pick you up.”
“Pick me up for what?”
He grinned. “For our date.”
“Is that so? When were you going to ask me?”
“I asked you Monday night.”
Teasing him was way too much fun. From the look on his face Eramus enjoyed the game as much as I did. We both knew I wanted to go out with him. Guess my pride wouldn’t allow me to give up so easily.
“And as I recall, I didn’t answer.”
I slipped back into the robe and found my bedroom shoes beside the door. By the time I looked back up Eramus was right in front of me. Once again, his look said it all.
“And what do you say now?” he asked softly.
His hand was warm against my shoulder, burning even through the robe. He could have reached for so many other places with no objection from me. But he chose my shoulder. I liked that.
“I say tomorrow night.”
“Sunset.”
“I’ll see you then.”
The kiss I gave him was chaste. However that didn’t make its effect on my body any less potent.
Chapter Fifteen
The picture in my mind
The drizzle had stopped and even though the sky remained overcast, I thought it was a beautiful day. Cold, cloudy days are so relaxing to me. I breathed in the fresh air as I made my way through Eramus’ rose garden, noticing that he’d already put up the trellises. The garden looked complete. When I stopped to smell one of the white roses I almost tripped over a pipe. It was running out of the ground and stood about two feet high. Remembering what was right beneath me, I guessed it to be an air vent.
His garden was lovely, but the most beautiful flower was his climbing Don Juan and it was growing up the other side of the house. I decided that while I was out I might as well take a look since Eramus said it was doing so well. I hadn’t looked at the rose in years and even though my old neighbor used to mention it from time to time, I hadn’t thought about it since he’d left.
As I rounded the corner my breath caught. Trellises had been attached to the entire side of the house years ago to allow for growth. And since I had last paid attention, the rose had covered at least half that spa
ce. It was magnificent. Hundreds of blood-red petals covered the ground, freshly fallen due to the storm. There were too many blooms to count and their sweet fragrance filled the air. The vines had wrapped around a window upstairs so that they formed a delicate frame, just like a picture. When Eramus appeared there I guessed it to be his bedroom.
I selected a rose and while smiling up at him, plucked it.
He raised the window and propped against the sill.
“Be careful. You do remember what happened when Beauty picked one of the Beast’s roses?”
“It was her father who picked the rose,” I corrected, lifting the blossom to my nose.
“Same difference.”
I paused, hesitant to go too far. But at the same time, I didn’t want to say goodbye. Not yet.
“Have you had breakfast?”
He looked surprised. “No.”
“Want to come over?”
Sandpaper could not have erased his wicked grin. “I thought you had work to do, things to catch up on.”
“Well, I’m not doing anything until after breakfast.”
*
By the time I got out of the shower I was sure I was running late. But one look at the clock said otherwise. It had only taken me thirty-five minutes to indulge my fantasy and take a bath. While I braided my wet hair I looked down at the drawing I’d left on the bed.
Once we were inside Eramus had offered to start breakfast and give me time to shower. It had only taken me five minutes to commit to paper what I saw every time I closed my eyes. Eramus. He was lying on his stomach, naked. Every curve and valley of his perfect body was outlined as if by candlelight. And he was watching me, peeking up above his forearm. The only part of his face that was visible was his eyes. And if I ever decided to color the sketch, they would be amber instead of brown. I was very proud of my drawing. It was the best I’d done in a long time.
Despite the fact that the picture was a nude, it wasn’t overly graphic. I had decided against full frontal nudity for a couple of reasons. One, I didn’t know what Eramus looked like naked. And two, I was afraid my imagination wouldn’t do him justice. So, the drawing left something to the imagination. Why I felt I had to draw it before getting in the shower, I’m not sure. Maybe I just needed to get it out of my head.
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