Only in Her Dreams

by Christina McKnight

  “And I was making it a nightly habit of visiting her. I fell in love with her carefree nature, her love, and her strength. I knew she was the one for me.” A tear slid down his face. “So, I went to my father ready for his rage over my disobedience.”

  “You’re too harsh on your father, dear,” Marie said.

  “Well, what happened?”

  “He heard me out and he was angry. You see, I was his only heir. The only one trained to lead in his absence.” Her father paused, as if gathering his thoughts. “He stewed for many days and I continued to enjoy my time with your mother, in her dreams.”

  Now, this was a love story to tell your grandchildren! Her respect and love for her dad grew. Nothing else mattered, not his leaving them or her mother’s sickness. Especially her anger and hurt for being lied to. None of that mattered.

  “Eventually, he released me from my obligation. But not before he told me about my own mother,” Guy said. A smile formed on Marie’s face.

  “This will answer another question you have.” Marie spoke to Lucessa.

  “My mother lived on Earth, long ago, but she was a mortal being.”

  “What? Maxim told me the Oneiroi can’t have children with humans.” Lucessa couldn’t keep the shock from her voice, or the hope from her heart.

  She should feel confused, angry, and lied to. Instead, she felt love. Love for the father who would give up his own happiness to ensure the survival of others. Love for the woman who lived in the shadows for so many years, believing in and waiting for her happiness to return to her. Most of all, she felt love for the man who visited her dreams for all those years.

  Maxim.

  Her heart yearned for him...but if Guy was her father, that’d make Maxim her uncle. How can a heart feel so many conflicting emotions at one time?

  What had her life been like without him? Empty. Sure, she functioned, moving through her day to day life. Only now she realized her life had held no joy, no love, and no connections. There was Julie and Brett, but her employers weren’t her family.

  “You’re my real dad?” she asked.

  “Yes, but you must understand, it was our secret. We debated for years whether to have a child, always knowing I might have to leave. After so many years, my father adopted twin boys to fill my role. Your mother and I decided that our family just wasn’t complete.” The words tumbled from his mouth, as if he couldn’t say them fast enough.

  “Lucessa, your dad had to keep his father’s secret. Not even Maxim knows a human and an Oneiroi can have a family.”

  “Wait a minute...did you just say your father adopted two sons?” The thought of who her biological father was left her mind and she focused on the news of Maxim’s heritage. He’s not my uncle?!

  Again, so many emotions flowed through her body. Relief. Joy. Hope. Love.

  Guy inclined his head. “That’s true. My father had shared a love with a women and he couldn’t bring himself to love another. An Oneiroi woman died giving birth to a bastard set of twins. My father took them in and raised them as his own.”

  “And neither Maxim nor Darius knew this?” Lucessa asked. I’m not the only one that’s been kept in the dark.

  “No, only I. My father came to me on Earth to let me know that my obligation to Erebos was fulfilled, as he had two new sons. I never planned to leave you and return.”

  Chapter 42

  Maxim stood outside Lucessa’s house. The tears still fell from his eyes. He couldn’t save Darius from himself. As he’d buried his brother in the land near the shack, he realized he’d held out hope for so many years that Darius would change, that he would accept Guy as leader and return to their family. It was the only family Maxim had ever hoped to have, his two brothers.

  But it was not to be.

  A new hollowness filled him.

  He’d left the shack, carrying his twin’s still form, and he’d spotted another body lying motionless not far down the dirt road. The female scream had belonged to Sandy, issued moments before Greg had run her down with Alexander’s car.

  He stood outside Lucessa’s home, hesitant to enter. Taking in the manicured lawn and fading paint, he forced himself toward the front door. He had to go inside and tell her goodbye. The danger was over and so was his presence in her life. A sob retched from his very soul, if the Oneiroi were blessed with souls.

  How can I leave her behind? Surely, his brother couldn’t expect this of him. But had Guy not said that any relationship between him and Lucessa was doomed? This must be what he meant. Maxim couldn’t stay on Earth with Lucessa, or anyone else for that matter, it was just not possible. Guy needed help monitoring the remaining Melas Oneiroi. They’d be a handful and could never be fully trusted. He and Guy would always have to be vigilant to deflect another uprising.

  Could Maxim defy his brother and declare his love for Lucessa and his intentions to remain with her? He suddenly knew the pain Guy must’ve felt when he chose to return to Erebos. The guilt of abandoning the one he loved. In Guy’s case, he was forced--by Maxim, no less--to abandon both the people he’d loved.

  And Maxim must do the same.

  He shoved his hands deep into his pockets and started up the stairs.

  # # #

  The front door opened and closed. A part of her tensed, but she quickly relaxed. The danger was over. There was no one left to hurt her or her family.

  Goosey struggled next to her on the couch to rise and greet the newcomer. She didn’t growl but wagged her tail. Lucessa felt his presence before she saw him. Maxim had returned. She held Goosey down and turned toward the hall.

  When he stepped into the room, his face, partly hidden in his black hoodie, was smudged with dirt. He looked exhausted. His shoulders slumped. Lucessa knew, through this all, Maxim cared very deeply for his brother. His death would weigh heavily on him. She restrained herself from going to him and taking him into her arms.

  She’d never be able to let him go.

  “It’s done.” Maxim addressed her dad. They never strayed to Lucessa. “Is it your wish I return to Erebos now?”

  Lucessa’s heart sank. He’d made his decision. He was leaving. A part of her was glad she hadn’t run to him when he entered.

  Her dad’s words took her by surprise. “No, Maxim. You have another situation to handle here.”

  “I’m sure the Melas Oneiroi will behave for now. That can be monitored from Erebos.”

  “You misunderstand your brother, Maxim,” Marie said from her position next to her husband.

  His eyes finally swept across the room to connect with Lucessa’s. In them she read all of his pain, his suffering, his guilt, but she also saw love. Was the love for her? Could they possibly share the same feelings for each other?

  “You have feelings for my daughter. Is that not correct?” her father asked.

  “I don’t see how--”

  “There are things you should know about yourself,” Guy cut him off.

  “What can you possibly--” Maxim started again.

  “Let him talk,” Marie cut in.

  Maxim spread his arms in a gesture of surrender and stood in the doorway to the room.

  “Have a seat. There’s much to discuss,” Guy said.

  Maxim hesitated for only a moment before seating himself next to Lucessa on the couch. He reached over and patted Goosey’s head.

  “I know what you came here hoping for,” Guy started. “You may have begun in an attempt to protect my daughter, and by that I mean my flesh and blood daughter, but you stayed because you love her.”

  Lucessa risked a glance at Maxim. His mouth hung open and his hand no longer patted Goosey’s head.

  “Your flesh and blood daughter? Surely, you now know our love, if that is what we feel, is hopeless,” Maxim said. Defeat radiated in each word, pulling at Lucessa’s heart.

  “It is you who is unaware of your lineage, Maxim,” Marie whispered.

  Maxim’s eyes moved from his brother to Lucessa next to him. It felt good to not be
the one left out. A small smile spread across her face at the thought.

  “It’s true. We don’t share a father.”

  “Explain yourself!” Maxim’s shoulders visibly lifted and Lucessa saw the man she’d spent the last several days getting to know.

  “After I left Erebos my father despaired about not having an heir to lead after his passing. He encountered an Erebos citizen who was pregnant with twins, with no means of providing for them. She died during childbirth and my father took you and Darius in as his own.”

  Her eyes didn’t leave Maxim’s face as this news sank in. Is that hope I see in his eyes? She didn’t dare dream he cared for her, as much as she cared for him.

  “Maxim, you have a decision to make. As my father gave me the choice, I too will extend it to you.”

  “What are you saying?” Maxim asked.

  “While you’ll always be welcome in Erebos, you also have the choice to stay here.”

  “You’d allow that?” Maxim’s brow lifted and his head cocked to the side.

  “It’s your choice. I will return to Erebos and lead.”

  It was Lucessa’s time to stare at her parents in shock. “You’ll leave mom, again?” she asked.

  “He won’t have to.” A musical voice sounded.

  Lucessa looked up to see a woman, stunningly gorgeous in a cream colored, floor length dress of silk, standing regally in the doorway.

  Maxim and her father immediately stood, each dropping into a low bow. “Hera, our lady of hearth and home.” They both spoke with reverence.

  Lucessa was unsure if she should hop to her feet and bow...or curtsy. Or whatever a person should do in the presence of a Greek goddess.

  “Please sit,” Hera continued. She turned to address Guy. “I only have a moment. You have greatly pleased Zeus and I have been sent to reward you and your family.” Her arm arced to include Lucessa and Maxim.”

  “It is my honor to serve him,” Guy mumbled. His eyes remained on the floor.

  “It is my wish that love always prevail.” She turned her attention to Marie. “Therefore, it is my pleasure to report Zeus’s command that Marie travel to Erebos, posthaste.”

  With that, Hera disappeared as mysteriously as she’d arrived.

  A collective gasp rang through the room.

  “But I just got the both of you back. I don’t want you to leave.” A new hopelessness filled Lucessa. She couldn’t handle being alone again.

  Marie shifted on the couch, her legs moving out from under the lap blanket to rest on the floor in front of her. “We will visit, darling. There isn’t any danger now.”

  Lucessa turned to Maxim. Will he chose to leave me as well?

  His stare focused on her and her alone. “I love you, Lucessa. Only you, forever.”

  Author’s Notes

  Thank you for reading Only In Her Dreams, The Oneiroi Book 1.

  Only In Her Nightmares, The Oneiroi Book 2, featuring Darius and his lost love, Lauren,

  has a tentative release date of December 2013.

  Only In His Visions, The Oneiroi Book 3, featuring Alexander,

  has a tentative release date of December 2014.

  If you enjoyed Only In Her Dreams feel free to review it at Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, or Goodreads.

  ChristinaMcKnight.author@yahoo.com

  I’d love to hear from you.

  www.Christina-McKnight.blogspot.com

  Check out my website for giveaways, book reviews, and information on my other projects.

  @CMcKnightWriter

  Follow me on Twitter

  www.facebook.com/christinavellamcknight

  www.goodreads.com/ChristinaMcKnight

  I’d love to connect with readers on Facebook and Goodreads, too.

  Please watch for the first book in my Historical Romance series, Shunned No More,

  to be released in the Summer of 2013.

  On a personal note, I wrote this novel shortly after my father passed away in a motorcycle accident. Writing Only In Her Dreams helped me through a very difficult time in my life. I’d like to thank all the people who helped my dream come true. Especially Lauren Stewart, Emily Feustel, Rebecca Graves, Brandi Johnson, Rachelle Ayala, Angel King, Lucie Ulrich, Mary Merrell, Vanna Smythe, Shannan Sinclair, and Alex Ewell. You have all been very patient and wonderfully supportive of my eccentric ways.

  A very special thank you to my editor, Norine Fisher. You’ve taught me to elude capture and allude to what I really mean. Thank you for sticking with me through this arduous editing experience.

  Norine Fisher can be contacted by email at Norfisher@earthlink.net. She is always looking for new projects to work on.

  Finally, thank you for supporting indie authors.

  About the Author:

  Christina McKnight is a book lover turned writer. From a young age, her mother encouraged her to tell her own stories. She’s been writing ever since.

  In college, Christina took many courses to help develop and enhance her writing skills. She completed a seventy-page dissertation on the need for community policing in American society. Now, she focuses on Historical Romance, Urban Fantasy, and Paranormal Romance.

  Christina lives in Northern California with her husband, daughter, two boxers, two cats, and a Beta fish named Marmaduke. If she’s not behind a computer screen or book, she’s busy leading her daughter’s Girl Scout troop. She is very active in several writing groups and a local book group.

  Follow me on Twitter! https://twitter.com/#!/CMcKnightWriter

  My blog: www.christina-mcknight.blogspot.com

  Email: christinamcknight.author@yahoo.com

  If you loved Only In Her Dreams, The Oneiroi Book 1

  you’ll really enjoy Hyde, an Urban Fantasy by Lauren Stewart.

  A bit darker, a bit grittier…

  Hyde, an Urban Fantasy

  By

  Lauren Stewart

  Released July 8, 2012

  from

  Off the Hook Publishing

  Available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords

  Prologue

  Fifteen years ago . . .

  He woke up to the screaming. His mom’s. Different this time. More fearful. More frantic. He ran to the door and threw it open. His sister barred his way, somehow knowing what he planned to do.

  “Move, Shelly!”

  “No, Mitch,” she said, her eyes wide. “Don’t. Don’t go in there. It’ll kill you.”

  It. The beast. The creature that had been part of his life for as far back as Mitch could remember. Even longer for Shelly and his mom. They never talked about it. As if pretending it didn’t exist made life easier. Life wasn’t easy. Life was terrifying.

  Something had to change.

  His mom’s screams were louder. And then they stopped. Mid-cry, they just stopped. He pushed Shelly out of the way and ran down the dark hallway toward the living room.

  “Mitch, no!”

  Too late. It was all too late.

  His mother lay on the tile floor. The only part of her still moving was the blood pooling beneath her body.

  The beast stood above her, huge, smiling. Blood splattered across its neck and chest. It raised its head slowly. There was a flash of recognition in its eyes, then it blinked, shook itself like a wet dog, and launched toward Mitch.

  Mitch dove to the side. The beast barreled by him, into the hallway. Toward Shelly.

  “Help!”

  Her cry slammed into his mind, his heart. “Shelly!” He grabbed his baseball bat from the entryway and ran.

  The beast had her pinned in a corner. “Are you afraid, bitch?” it growled. “You should be.”

  Mitch swung the bat. Three years of little league and the last two of high school ball packed into one hit. Then another. But the hall was too narrow.

  The beast shoved Shelly against the wall and then flipped around, laughing darkly. “That all you got, boy?”

  Mitch swung again and again, sometimes making contact with an arm
, a shoulder, stepping back as the beast advanced, toying with him. The bat’s length the only thing keeping the bastard from reaching him. Back into the living room, it pawed, trying to grab Mitch’s inadequate defense. If it caught hold, if it backed Mitch into a wall, everything would end—Mitch, Shelly, everything.

  A blow to its head stopped its laughter, a quiver rippling through its body. “Come here, you little prick!” it roared.

  Mitch aimed high for another hit to its face, one step closer to use the full force of the weapon. The bat rebounded in his hands as it struck flesh, sending a shooting pain through Mitch’s arms and shoulders.

  Again, he swung. Again, he struck.

  The beast stumbled, put its hands to its ears, still cursing. Another strike landed. Then another. The beast sank to its knees, its growls turning into grunts of pain.

  Mitch lifted the bat above his head. His legs were numb, his upper body vibrating as he pounded all of his anger, all of his fear, into the monster lying at his feet.

  “Mitch,” his sister begged. “Please stop. Please.”

  He didn’t. He couldn’t.

  “Stop! It’s dead. Stop,” she said, weeping.

  He felt Shelly’s arms around his waist, holding him, pulling him back from the edge. Finally overcome, the bat fell from his hands, and he let her guide him a few steps backwards. His foot caught on the rug and he sat down hard, Shelly sliding down beside him.

  She crawled on her knees until she was between him and the bloody bodies on the floor and hugged him tightly.

  Over her shoulder, Mitch stared at the creature. Watched it change, shrink, diminish. Until all that was left was the lifeless body of his father.