Dark Roses: Eight Paranormal Romance Novels

by P. T. Michelle

  Jerking my gaze back to Ethan, I started to get up and move closer to him, when the sound of hundreds of birds’ flapping wings and loud cawing rose above the wind.

  A bald man, shrouded in a flowing cloak and outlined by a violet blue glow, moved toward us across the soccer field in an unhurried, otherworldly glide. The birds heralded his approach, surrounding the figure completely. Though they never came in contact or prevented the person’s movement, they dove and swirled all around his frame, creating a kind of sketchy outline.

  His eerie presence carried a sense of finality that sent a chill rippling through me. This, I felt, just as sure as if someone had dumped a cup of ice water down my back. The closer it got, the weaker I felt. Jumping up, I moved to Ethan’s other side. Putting more distance between myself and the unknown man, I instantly felt more like myself again.

  “Do you see him?” I called over the wind to Ethan, but he wasn’t looking directly at the person. He was squinting at the birds, as if he were trying to figure out what they were doing.

  I realized Ethan couldn’t see what I did. The figure wasn’t something he was supposed to see, because it was coming for me.

  Death.

  I tried to grab Ethan’s arm, to shake him and tell him what the birds were trying to show him, but my fingers went right through his bicep.

  Somehow Ethan must’ve figured it out, because formidable fury filled his face. My scalp tingled as energy surged in the stormy air stirring around us. “You can’t have her,” Ethan gritted out as he shoved his hands, palms-outward, toward the birds and figure.

  The pocket of energy rushed away from us at the same time the birds and man flew backward, tumbleweeds at its mercy. I blinked, both amazed and thankful for what he’d done. How had he done that? I wondered, but Ethan was speaking to my unconscious self once more.

  “You can’t be gone,” he said as he began to pump my chest again. The figure had recovered and was moving toward us again at a fast, angry clip.

  Tears streaked Ethan’s cheeks as he tilted my head and prepared to blow air into my lungs once more. “Don’t leave me,” he said desperately. “I love you!” Raw emotion carried on his words as he pressed his lips to mine.

  I coughed and blinked until my blurry vision finally focused.

  Ethan was leaning over me. “Nara? Thank God!” He touched my cheek, elation and relief filling his gaze. “Can you hear me? Say something. How do you feel?”

  My chest ached and my throat felt scratchy, but I cupped my hand over his and rasped, “Thank you.”

  Kissing my forehead, Ethan gently scooped me into his arms. “We need to take you to the hospital. Have you checked out to make sure you’re okay.”

  I pressed close to his warm fleece and shook my head. “I want to go home.” I didn’t want strangers poking and prodding me for hours in a strange hospital bed. I just wanted Ethan.

  “Nara.”

  “Please, Ethan,” I said, making sure my voice sounded strong.

  Ethan sighed and started walking toward the parking lot at a brisk pace. “I got worried while I was waiting at your house,” he said, glancing down at me.

  Cool air blew around us, making me shiver. “The wind kn—knocked the go—goal on me. I could only ho—hold it up for so long.” The cold was starting to get to me and I couldn’t keep my teeth from chattering.

  When he started to bypass the bench, I said, “My so—soccer bag.”

  Ethan tightened his hold on me. “You’re freezing. I’ll put you in my car first and then get your bag and the soccer equipment.”

  “I ca—can’t leave my car here overnight. It might get stripped for parts if I do that.”

  He frowned. “Are you sure you’re okay to drive?”

  I felt a little weak, but it wasn’t very far. “Yeah, I can handle driving two miles.”

  “This insanity will stop,” he said through gritted teeth, his breath expelling in frosty plumes as he stopped to let me grab my soccer bag.

  The rain started coming down the moment he set me next to my car. Ignoring the mud and grass caking my body, I slipped inside and popped my trunk, thankful for the towel I’d thought to lay across my seat before practice started.

  After Ethan had stowed my bag in the trunk, I rolled the window down halfway so I could hear him over the wind. “I’m going back to get the rest of the equipment and then I’ll meet you at your house.”

  Nodding, I blinked against the rain pinging my face with frigid droplets. There was so much I wanted to say to him, but right now wasn’t the time. “I’ll see you in a few minutes.”

  “I’ll be right behind you. This ends tonight.” He tapped my window, telling me to roll it up.

  After Ethan’s parting comment, I really wanted to hear what he had to say about my close call tonight. Had he figured out a way to help me with Fate? Ethan had been right. Fate had every intention of killing me, which it would’ve accomplished, if Ethan hadn’t shown up when he did.

  I ached all over and had never been so glad to see my driveway. Once I started my dirty clothes in the washing machine, I immediately headed for a hot shower.

  Twenty minutes later, dried hair swept up into a ponytail, I came out of my bathroom, tugging a long-sleeved heather green t-shirt down over a tank top and jeans. My chest didn’t hurt as much after my shower, but I had a feeling I would be sore for a while.

  Opening the front door, I used my foot to block it from being blown by the gusting wind and peered through the pouring rain. Ethan sat in my driveway, playing drums on his steering wheel. Bet he was listening to that new band we both liked Cracking Knuckles. I waved him in.

  By the time he came through the front door, his fleece was completely soaked. Beckoning him to follow, I walked through the living room and into the hall, saying over my shoulder, “Take off your wet stuff and we’ll stick them in the dryer.”

  When he set a notebook on the rumbling washing machine, and then tossed his fleece and t-shirt into the dryer, my stomach fluttered. Shutting the door, I turned the machine on low and stretched to reach for a clean hand towel on the rack above my head.

  Ethan’s warmth covered my entire backside as he leaned against me and grabbed the towel. “How are you feeling?” he asked, handing me the towel and then moving back.

  I didn’t want him to treat me like I was going to shatter. “I feel much better now that I’ve had a shower.” Swallowing the giddiness that had surfaced when he pressed against me, I turned and stepped toward him to spread the towel over his head. “You’re soaked,” I said, scrubbing at his wet hair.

  “I’ve never been more scared in my life,” Ethan murmured as he gripped my hips and pulled me close. Sliding his nose along my cheek and into my hair, he inhaled deeply, “Mmm, I love the way you smell. Like sun-warmed air after a spring rain.”

  His sweet comment made my nerves jump and my stomach tense with excitement. Abandoning the hair drying, I tossed the towel on top of the machine behind me, then wrapped my arms around his neck. “Is ‘too good to describe’ a smell?” I asked, snuggling into his warmth.

  Ethan pressed his lips to my forehead, murmuring, “I thought I’d seen your entire practice before the storm woke me.”

  I pressed my face against his jaw. “It’s okay. I’m fine.”

  His arms tightened around me. “No, it’s not. I knew you were coming here straight after practice was over, so I didn’t worry, but then I got another vibe. I’m sorry that I didn’t get there a few minutes earlier.”

  He sounded so upset I pressed my hands to his face. “If it weren’t for you, I’d be dead. Don’t apologize to me.”

  “That was beyond too close, Nara.” He looked tortured as he searched my face. “I don’t know what I’d have done if you hadn’t started breathing again.”

  My chest squeezed at the very real reminder of my brush with death. “What happened?” I asked, setting my hands on his shoulders.

  He blew out a sharp breath. “When I got there you were uncons
cious. After I moved the goal, I realized you weren’t breathing. I only had minutes to get your heart going again, so I immediately started CPR.” He hesitated for a second, then continued, “It took several tries, but finally you started breathing on your own.”

  I shook my head in amazement. “The last thing I remember before I blacked out was how hard it was to breathe.” I pressed a kiss to his jaw. “Thank you again for saving me.”

  Ethan squeezed my waist, his voice rasping in my ear. “Don’t scare me like that again.”

  “Did anything else happen?” I hoped he’d tell me how he managed to fight off Death.

  “I didn’t feel Fate, if that’s what you’re asking.” His gaze narrowed. “But I’m sure he was skulking around somewhere. I think I might’ve figured out a way to stop him.”

  Ethan didn’t say a word about what I’d seen while I was dead. Had I dreamed seeing Death coming for me? Did dying somehow allow me to have a normal—read: crazy, out there—dream, since I no longer had a future to dream about?

  Ethan was right. Fate was my biggest problem right now. “If it weren’t for that raven swooping down in front of me, I never would’ve turned and seen the goal falling toward me.”

  “Animals can sense a disturbance in Nature. The bird was probably trying to warn you.” he paused, then asked, “Did you ever hear from your dad?”

  “I don’t know.” Walking into the kitchen, I retrieved my phone from my backpack’s inside pocket. There weren’t any messages. “Not yet.”

  Ethan had followed me and I glanced at the notebook he’d tucked in his hand. “Why did you bring your drawings?”

  He gestured toward the couch. “Let’s sit.”

  Setting my cell phone on the island, I winced at the dull ache in my chest, then walked with him over to the sofa. “How’s the wound on your shoulder?” I asked.

  “All healed.” He turned so I could see. His wound was just a faint pink circle now. I gingerly touched the new skin, then slid my hand across his shoulder to the feather, running my fingers over the tattoo. When he shuddered, I said, “It’s a shame you can’t see this feather up close. It’s so real looking I feel like I could pluck it right off your back.”

  I rose up on my toes and pressed my lips to his skin. I wanted to show him I thought his tattoo was beautiful and not something that freaked me out.

  Exhaling a shaky breath, Ethan turned and sat down quickly on the couch. “Let’s talk before you distract me even more.”

  I loved the fact I could distract him so easily, but forced myself to focus as I sat beside him.

  When Ethan opened his notebook, I tried not to look at the graphic images as he flipped through them, but my gaze was drawn, despite my squeamish stomach. Ethan blew past a picture he’d drawn of me slipping the telephone into the end table drawer, then turned to a page he’d dog-eared.

  “What do you see?” he asked, placing the notebook in my lap.

  I studied the drawing of me standing near the payphone at Walmart. Ethan’s artistic skills were truly awe-inspiring. The art leapt off the page. “You should enroll in college art classes. Your talent is truly amazing.”

  His lips crooked as if pleased, but he clasped my chin and turned my attention back to the page. “What do you see, Nara?”

  Thunder boomed as I scanned the picture once more. “I’m dressed in winter clothes and standing next to a payphone. The building, streetlights and shadows are in the background. I look very tense and worried, which I was.”

  Ethan quickly flipped to another page he’d marked. “And here?”

  I studied the second drawing. “I’m on the phone. I have an anxious look on my face as I glance over my shoulder.”

  “What else?” Lightning flashed through the room, highlighting his expectant expression.

  I furrowed my brow. “There’s a dark sense of tension in this picture, though I don’t know why I feel that way.”

  Ethan turned to another page. “This is you talking to Jody outside her car. What do you see?”

  I studied myself. “I’m fisting my hands. I look anxious. Tension is all over my face and in the way I’m standing. It wasn’t as dark outside as you’ve drawn it though.”

  Rain pummeled the front door while Ethan turned to yet another page. It was the scene from the hall when I’d tried to warn Sophia. “Whoa,” I said, an eerie shiver passing through me. Blinking at the image, I pointed to the paper. “Why is there a dark shadow all around me? It was the middle of the day.”

  “Exactly. That dark shadow is in every one of these pictures.” As Ethan flipped through all the pictures once more, I saw what he was talking about.

  My gaze locked with his. “I’ve never seen any shadows when these events happened. And how is it that you saw them? Except for the event with Sophia, none of these were from my dreams, but real-life outcomes I initiated after my dreams.”

  “Remember I told you that I used to see flashes of images in my mind whenever I touched people. Each of these scenes were outside of the ‘dream’ I’d had about your normal day. I figured they might have something to do with your negative vibes—the reason I’d taken your dreams in the first place—so each time a scene came to me outside of your dreams, I drew them.”

  Ethan flipped to a few more drawings: the one of me riding in the car to Farmville with my mom, another of me laying on the floor at Aunt Sage’s, surrounded by the dogs and the next one of me diving for a ball in goal during practice.

  “There aren’t any shadows in these pictures, Nara. They’ve only shown up in the scenes where you were trying to change the outcome of something you’d dreamed.”

  Rumbling thunder shook the house and the lights flickered. My pulse accelerated and I reflexively dug my nails deep into my palm. “You think the shadows are Fate, don’t you? I noticed you called it ‘him’.”

  Ethan nodded. “After I made the connection to the shadows in my drawings, it became a him.”

  “But I can’t see him, so how do I stop Fate?”

  Ethan threaded his warm fingers with mine. “I have an idea how you might be able to see Fate. I don’t know if it’ll work, but I think it’s worth trying if you’ll trust me.”

  I wasn’t ready to face Fate as a physical entity. He was ominous enough as an unseen presence. But I folded my fingers around Ethan’s, feeling more confident. “I trust you.”

  Running his finger in a gentle caress along the bend of my thumb, Ethan searched my face. “Do you trust me enough to sleep with me?”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  “What?” I stood and gulped my excitement and apprehension, even as my hand remained locked with his.

  Ethan followed me, folding his hand tighter around mine. A burst of heat shot across my cheeks, and I involuntarily swept my gaze along his bare chest and defined abs. The dragon tattoo only enhanced his earthiness and dark mysterious edges. Without even trying, he was devastatingly beautiful and dangerously seductive. Warmth flowed like melted chocolate sliding through my veins, its rich thickness slowing my ability to think. “Well, I—”

  His lips twitched in amusement, even as his blue eyes sparked. “I meant sleep with me. Like, literally.”

  “Oh.” I released the breath I’d been holding and felt a brief stab of disappointment. Loosening my tight grip on his hand, I squinted in confusion. “I’m not sure how that will help—”

  Before I could finish, he pulled me close and spoke in a velvet purr in my ear, “Loved your reaction though.”

  I pressed my hot face to his jaw and felt him smile.

  Kissing my forehead, he pulled back, his expression serious once more. “Back to my idea. I think the crystal your aunt gave you is what allowed you to see my dreams. If you wear the necklace and fall asleep while I’m holding you, maybe you’ll be able to see your own dreams through my eyes. In other words, you might be able to see the shadows I’ve been seeing.”

  I shuddered at the idea of wearing the crystal necklace again, but his idea was worth tr
ying. “If this works, how does this help me face Fate?”

  Ethan’s eyes held warmth and encouragement. “The shadow seems to show himself when you’re interfering in the natural course. You’ll just have to try to change someone else’s Fate.”

  I frowned. “But I’ve never consciously tried to manipulate something within my dream, since my dream is just a preview of my next day. I’m just going through my day.”

  “Hmmm.” He gnawed his bottom lip for a second, thinking. “I still think you can make this work, mainly because you’ll be watching yourself go through your daily routine.”

  “You think I’ll see myself like you do?”

  “That’s the hope. That picture I drew of you hiding the phone in the end table drawer? That was the night your dad was supposed to call. Even though you’d already prevented him from calling by contacting the phone company, you hid the phone in the drawer. Were you trying to make sure?”

  “Exactly. I wasn’t taking any chances.”

  “Did you notice the slight shadow in the background behind you?”

  “No. Was Fate there?”

  “He was, but just barely. If you can do something like that in your dream tonight, you might be able to get him to show himself, however faint he may be. And then you can confront him.”

  I scowled doubtfully and Ethan squeezed my hands. “Don’t you think it’s worth a try?”

  “I’m scared.”

  He pulled me close and his chest felt so warm. “I’ll be with you, holding you tight. I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.”

  I marveled that he cared enough to come up with a plan to help me. “I’m so lucky I met you.”

  He kissed the tip of my nose. “I’m the lucky one.”

  “Then if we’re going to sleep, we may as well be comfortable.” Taking a step back, I pulled my long-sleeved t-shirt off. Static electricity crackled as the shirt dragged against the white spaghetti-strapped tank top I’d left on.

  Ethan waited for me to shut off the kitchen light before he followed me upstairs to my room.