Naughty Nightly

by Sage Spelling

  My chest tightened when I remembered the fear in his expression when he mentioned the flames and how he’d ever so slowly touched the mask he wore to hide a part of his face. The way he’d asked me to find him and help him from his hell.

  “What if . . .” I dropped my gardening tools with a loud clank and headed to the house. I wasn’t sure what I’d find, but a few Google searches wouldn’t make me completely delusional. Would they?

  “Hey, Maddie.” Hannah’s voice stopped me in my tracks and humiliation washed over me.

  “Hi.” I stared at my sandals and averted my eyes from her all knowing powers.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Liar.”

  “Fine.” I met her glare with one of my own. “What would you say if I was going to Google if the dream guy is real?”

  Her honey stare danced with amusement and she bit her lower lip. “I’ll support you until the men in the white coats come for you, and I’ll get you the best medical care money can buy, afterward.”

  “Such a good friend.” With a bow of my head, I opened the screen door and ushered her in before me.

  She fanned her white T-shirt that clung to her damp skin. “Pour me a glass of cold spiked lemonade and let’s start this Google search.”

  “It’s only noon.”

  “Girl, it’s five o’clock somewhere.” She dropped her purse on the couch and fell into the velvet blue recliner. “So what are we researching?”

  Foolishness washed over me. “I don’t know.” I sat on the matching recliner across from Hannah and covered my face. “I dreamed about him again last night.”

  “More hot sex?” She winked at me.

  “It was more than that, he said he was stuck in this place where we keep meeting in the dreams. He asked me to find him.”

  “That might just be your subconscious telling you something. Do you feel stuck?”

  I mulled over the thought, and I did feel like I was stuck in limbo. Everything had happened so fast. The crash, the loss of my parents and Aunt Mary’s cancer had made it seem like my life was a spinning wheel of dread and sadness. But through it all, I’d had a purpose. I’d taken care of my family’s funeral arrangements, their assets, and still worked while I grieved their loss. That only lasted a month. The rug was pulled out right from under me when Aunt Mary was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. I’d quit my job as a nurse and moved to Caraway to care for her. Now, they were all gone. I had no job, no true purpose, and even Ally had gone half way around the world away from me. Besides Hannah and the boys, I was completely alone. Now you have me. Rami’s voice echoed in my heart and I remembered the sheer terror in his eyes as he’d become water and disappeared. My chest tightened.

  “Maybe, but there was more . . .”

  “More like what?”

  “This.” I lifted the cross he’d given me in the dream. “He gave this to me and just like the sand, I woke up with it on me.”

  Hannah’s eyes widened. “That’s a David Yurman cross.”

  “Who the hell is that?” I asked.

  “It’s designer. Really high end,” Hannah confirmed. She was the fashion forward one between us. I just thought it was pretty.

  “Whatever,” I shrugged. “Besides, how is it possible to have a series of dreams that continue on and on? It’s like when I sleep we pick up where we left off. Well, for him, in the dream, he waits around for me. Like he’s stuck there.”

  After explaining what I’d learned in the dream, I started a Google search and Hannah made the spiked lemonade.

  Fantasy Cove? Where the hell was that? Was that even a real place? On a whim, I searched where is Fantasy Cove?

  The first link that appeared was a Wikipedia description. Fantasy Cove is a small island south of Maui. . . My heart hammered in my chest as I clicked to the images of the island. My breath caught in my throat. Red sandy beaches, bright aquamarine waters and even the waterfall where we first met appeared in the images. Pictures of our island taunted me and nausea rolled over me.

  Hannah came into the living room carrying two cocktails and paused abruptly when our eyes met. “What?”

  “This is the island . . .” The blood rushed in my ears.

  “You could have seen it somewhere?”

  “Maybe . . . but that doesn’t explain the sand or the cross. How the hell did I get them? If this thing is designer…” I clasped his cross. “You know I sure as hell don’t have the extra funds to buy it myself and forget.”

  She peeked over my shoulder at the computer screen. “That’s a gorgeous place.”

  “I know.” The threat of tears stung my eyes. “Has anything weird happened to you since we read that spell?”

  “Not really.”

  “What’s that mean?” I sat up straighter in the chair.

  “Well, it’s nothing. I just keep dreaming about my first time, but every night, it’s a little different. I’m always wearing the same tiny mini shirt and crop top I wore all those years ago, but the sex, OMG, it’s so much better. And he, girl, he’s so much finer,” she laughed.

  “You think there’s something to that?”

  “Yeah, something like I need to get laid in real life.”

  “What if?”

  “No, I think I always felt awkward about my first time and my brain is giving me a do-over.”

  “Enough about me.” She looked over my shoulder. “Girl, you need a narrower search.”

  And the gate was closed and locked. Never letting me in too deep. Oh well, it was just her way. “I know, but I don’t have much to go on.”

  “Let’s go with what you know.”

  I attempted to narrow the search by just using the keys words, construction, fire, Rami, and Fantasy Cove. That search showed a bunch of different things that had any of the key words in the body, far too many to help.

  “He almost said his last name, but then he heard the voices. Yale-something.” I added Yale to the key word search.

  Three hundred links appeared in the search. With a sigh, I began to review the finds. I hesitated on an article about a construction explosion in Fantasy Cove, but it was dated three years ago. We stayed for nearly two hours reading through the articles and our searches yielded nothing except some weird testimony of strange things happening to visitors of the island. Whatever hope I’d had evaporated.

  Hannah squeezed my shoulder. “Let me make us some lunch, I’ll be back in flash.”

  I rested my eyes and hoped sleep would come. I’d be able to ask Rami for something – some sort of clue that would help me prove that he was real. My body relaxed and the world fell farther way.

  The sound of waves greeted me. I opened my eyes and found myself perched on the sand in front of the roaring waves. The sun kissed my skin and my hair whirled in the wind.

  “Rami. I’m back, where are you?” I scanned the beach desperate to find him, but only the sound of my voice echoed back to me.

  I walked toward the canopy we’d slept in that first night, hoping to find him sleeping.

  A distant tweet tweet rang at the door and dragged me back to reality. Damn it. Frustration washed over me. “Hannah, why’d you lock yourself out?” I huffed and stomped to the front door. With a hard pull of the doorknob the door swung open but instead of Hannah, a strange man stood on my doorstep.

  “Sorry, is this a bad time?” An attractive man in his mid thirties with dark curly hair, natural olive skin and deep-set chocolate eyes surveyed me.

  “Can I help you?”

  “Sorry, miss, I’m Ghaith with YB Construction. I believe we had an appointment to give an appraisal for the roof?” He handed me a black and white business card.

  “Yes. I’m sorry, I’d forgotten.” The roof. Dang it. I’d been so distraught after reading that silly spell that I’d neglected to note the appointment with this roofing company.

  “Is this a bad time? Would you like us to come back out?”

  “No, you traveled all this
way, don’t be silly. Why don’t you come on in and I’ll brew a pot of coffee. My head was like mush. I felt like I hadn’t slept in days and Hannah’s margaritas weren’t assisting my lethargic state.

  “Actually, how about I check out the roof and meet you inside for that coffee while we look at options and prices.”

  “Sure.” A lump formed in my throat. Ghaith had a confident demeanor that reminded me of Rami. Ugh. I needed to stop this. Stop comparing men to him. Rami was a figment of my imagination that I’d created with my lonely, twisted brain. But I didn’t make up that cross. How could I? Unless I was even more delusional than I thought.

  With a sigh, I picked up the margarita glasses and padded into the kitchen to wash them. Taking my time, I washed out the remainder of this morning’s coffee. I filled the coffee filter with fresh grounds and added water to the coffee machine. As the aroma of Hazelnut filled the air, I used elbow grease to wipe down my already immaculate kitchen counters, stove and appliances more out of habit then necessity. Anything to keep busy and not think about the dreams. I was relieved when Ghaith returned. The need to get out of my own head was overwhelming.

  We sat at the kitchen table and I poured two steaming cups of coffee. He flashed me a lopsided smile and a familiar ache twanged in my chest. His smile was charming, but not as dazzling as Rami’s. Stop it.

  The back door swung open and Hannah appeared carrying a tray of sandwiches and refreshments. I’d forgotten she’d gone to make us lunch. “Hey there, I didn’t know you had company.”

  “Yeah, sorry. I forgot I had an appointment scheduled about getting a new roof. Hannah, this is Ghaith with YB Construction.” She set the tray down and her jaw dropped as Ghaith stood up to greet her. “You,” she whispered.

  “It can’t be.” Ghaith’s eyes lit up like it was Christmas morning and Santa had left him an Audi with a big a red bow. “You’ve been in—” he cleared his throat. “On my mind.”

  “Umm, you guys know each other?” I asked.

  “Yup.” Her tone was clipped like she wanted me to drop the subject.

  “Hannah,” he whispered.

  “No worries, darlin’. Have some lunch.” Hannah’s heels echoed in the kitchen as though she didn’t have a care in the world, but I’d seen the shock in her eyes. Ghaith had meant something to her. Judging by his rattled demeanor, she’d meant something to him, too. She pulled a few plates out of the cabinets and returned to the table. “Eat up, darlin’, I made plenty.”

  Ghaith’s eyes finally returned to me as his expression hardened and returned to business. We went on with pricing and turnaround times for the process of patching the roof and completely renovating it. The truth was, he’d given me the best price so far and it needed to be done before winter reared its ugly head. Many of the quotes I’d received had strongly suggested that the roof probably wouldn’t last through another Michigan winter. Hannah stayed quiet through the entire sales pitch and when I glanced at her she nodded in agreement.

  “Okay, where do I sign?” He handed me a stack of papers and I signed in all the marked boxes.

  “Congratulations, Madison, you’ll be getting a new roof this summer. We like to close our meetings with a little history about our company. YB Construction – originally named Yaldo Brothers Construction is a family owned and run operation. We take pride in every job we take and normally, one of my cousins, Raad and Rami who started this company, would be here, but . . .”

  “Rami?” My throat tightened.

  “You know him?” He looked at me curiously.

  “I think so.” The blood rushed to my ears.

  “Then you know about the accident?” He asked.

  “Holy fuck.” Hannah covered her mouth with both hands.

  My heart nearly leaped out of my chest. “In Fantasy Cove?” Rami’s words in the last dream came to me in a rush of information. It was the biggest job Yaldo Brothers Construction had ever gotten. I’d known how to find him all along. Jesus, he’d given me the name of his company and I’d disregarded it.

  “He’s in a coma.”

  Hannah’s warm hand covered mine over the trembling mug and took it from me. “Where is Fantasy Cove?” She’d sensed that I’d no longer had the ability to speak.

  “A small island south of Maui,” he said.

  “What hospital?” Hannah asked.

  “St. Michaels.” I watched the exchange between Hannah and Ghaith in an out of body experience.

  “Madison, are you okay?” Ghaith’s large hand clasped my shoulder. “You’re shaking.”

  The contact awakened me and I turned to Hannah. “I have to go to him.”

  “How do you know my cousin?”

  “It’s a long story, and I’m pretty sure you won’t believe it, but please tell me everything you know.” His gaze traveled to Hannah, and lingered before returning back at me.

  “Rami was heading the project and had been in Fantasy Cove for nearly six months. The project was over and he was getting ready to come home when a faulty wire in the new building electrocuted him five days ago. He hit his head and has been in a coma ever since.”

  “Did he burn his face?”

  “How did you know that?”

  “Have you checked in on him?” The image of him fading away in the dream sucker punched me in the gut.

  “Yeah, I talked to Raad this morning, he had some complications last night, but he’s stable.”

  “Hannah, I need to go.” I glanced at Ghaith, who deserved an explanation. “I know this sounds completely crazy, but I dreamed of your cousin and I promised him that I’d find him. I have to go to him.”

  “You dreamed of him?” Shock and disbelief danced behind his brown eyes.

  “He gave me this.” I showed him the cross and his eyes widened.

  “His mother just gave him that cross before he left for this job. I saw her put it on him.” He glanced at Hannah and I saw desire surge in his eyes. Something exchanged between them and he turned to me. “I’d go with you, but with Raad and Rami . . .” his voice dropped to a whisper. “Gone, I have to be here.”

  “I got this. Can you work with Hannah to make any arrangements needed for the roof? I’ve got to get to an airport.”

  9

  Twenty hours of waiting and travel, and I finally made it to my destination in the dead of the night. I’d slept off and on, seeing flickers of Rami’s face and the island then jerking awake. Those were actual dreams and not the ones I’d shared with him before. They were distorted and had no rhyme or reason to them. A heavy sadness pressed in my chest. What if I’d already lost him?

  I exited the little charter plane with the help of Guy, the eye-catching pilot. He clasped my hand in a gentle grip and helped me down the narrow staircase. If I wasn’t already smitten with Rami, I might have swooned over his sparkling blue eyes and shy smile.

  “Thank you, Guy.”

  His gaze not meeting my own, he tangled his fingers in his silky blond hair and shrugged his broad shoulders. “Sure thing.”

  He rolled my small suitcase to the waiting white sedan on the runway, where the most enchanting couple greeted me.

  “Welcome to Fantasy Cove. I am Mrs. Keeper and this is the Mr.” She placed a lei made of pink orchids over my head and kissed both my cheeks. The sweet scent of the flowers a wonderful welcome after being on stuffy planes for so long.

  She was stunning with long flowing black hair and golden kissed skin and he was equally good-looking with black wavy hair and big brown eyes. They wore matching white suits, hers was a tailored pencil shirt and blazer that hugged her fit body and he wore white slacks, shirt and jacket in the same tailored fashion. They could have been on a Paris runway and I felt instantly inadequate in my traveling yoga pants and Batman T-shirt.

  They ushered me into a white sedan and Mr. Keeper took my suitcase from Guy.

  “What brings you to the island?” Mrs. Keeper smiled brightly as she opened the car door for me.

  The fear in my gut twisted
and reminded me that I might have made this journey for no reason at all. “I’m here to see a friend at St. Michaels.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry dear.” A gentle hand touched my shoulder. I sat in the back and Mrs. Keeper took the front passenger seat. Then Mr. Keeper got in the driver’s seat and we drove in silence to the hotel. The salty sweet scent of the ocean greeted me like an old friend as the car trudged along.

  Then I saw it. The resort that Rami showed me, but we were driving right past it. “Wait, can you stop here for a second.”

  “Are you sick, my dear?” Mrs. Keeper turned to check on me, concern laced through her tone.

  “No, I’m fine.” The car pulled over at the side of the road and I got out to stare at the exact building from my dream.

  “That’s our new resort. It’s almost ready for its grand opening, but someone was injured and we had to push the date back.”

  The banging of my heart was louder than the high school band. The someone who was injured was my Rami. My stomach twisted.

  “Rami Yaldo? From YB Construction?”

  “Yes, you know him?” Mrs. Keeper asked.

  Did I know him? I clutched the cross that he’d placed around my neck and memories of him sliding the cold metal around my neck washed over me like sunshine after a rainy day.

  “Yes, he’s the friend I’m here to see.” It was so unnerving and yet still reassuring to see it.

  I wasn’t losing my mind – this was our island. The sight of it smoothed some of the tension in my gut. Some sort of magic had brought us together and I hoped to God that it wasn’t all for nothing.

  “I’ve been traveling, do you know how he’s doing?”

  “No, I’m sorry dear.” Mrs. Keeper placed a consoling arm around my shoulder and led me to the car. “But I’m sure he’s still stable at least or we would have heard otherwise.”

  Nodding my head, I got back in the car on unsteady legs and we drove the rest of the way in polite chatter while I idly played Bejeweled on my phone. It was a serene game that had calmed me for most of the waking hours on this journey. The Keepers talked about the island – the snorkeling and other water activates available, wildlife tour schedules and the amazing amenities at the hotel. Not that I planned on seeing any of them.