Dreams: Part One (2 page)

“He’d been abandoned.“ She smoothed the dog’s rough fur, and Specter leaned more heavily against her leg. His watchful brown eyes looked up at her with open adoration.

“Somehow, the fact that someone had enough sense to abandon him doesn’t surprise me. What is he, anyway? I mean apart from half-dragon?“

“I’m not sure. The lady at the pound said she thought he had some Rhodesian Ridgeback in him, but she didn’t know what the rest was.“

“I’ll bet he earned his living as a junkyard dog before you got him.“

Specter grinned savagely, and then tried to hide it behind a doggy yawn.

“What did you earn your living at before you became a writer?“ Diana asked suddenly. Her curiosity about Colby was growing daily. She knew she was deeply attracted to him but she didn’t like the idea of being attracted to what she did not understand. Diana was accustomed to being very much in control of herself and her life.

“Anything and everything that came along. I was in the army for a while. Construction work mostly after that. Then the writing started to sell.“

She knew he was impatient with her questions. This was one of the few he had bothered to answer. Diana savored the small tidbit of information. “Would you like some more rice?“

“Thanks.“ Colby took the bowl with alacrity. “No offense, but is stir-fried vegetables and rice the only thing you know how to make? You’ve served the same thing every night I’ve been here.“

Diana grinned. “It’s my one and only company dish. I’ve never really had time to learn how to cook for guests.

Besides, vegetable dishes suit me. I like to keep my weight under control.“

“I guess it’s a good thing I like vegetables, too.“ Colby sprinkled soy sauce on a fresh heap of greenery.

“Obviously Specter’s not the only one around here with a hearty appetite.“

“I’ve got an excuse,“ Colby said around mouthfuls of rice. “I did some climbing this afternoon.“

“You climbed to the top of Chained Lady Falls again?“

“Yeah.“

“You’re really fascinated with those falls, aren’t you?“

“One of these days I’ll take you up there at twilight. It’s a hell of a sight. The water catches the sun in a certain way and turns the whole thing the color of blood.“

Diana shuddered. “Is that where you got the idea for the title of the book you’re working on?“

“Blood Mist!
Yeah.“ His hooded, gray eyes moved assessingly over her face as he put down his fork and reached for his wineglass.

Savagar’s gaze had a disconcerting effect on Diana. It was one of the reasons she had been careful to keep him at arm’s length since she had first met him at the post office in town a few weeks earlier. She had sensed something obscurely dangerous in that gaze, yet she had been unable to resist when he had practically invited himself over for dinner a few days later.

One dinner had led to another, and now here she was, almost a month later, playing a reckless game of sexual hide-and-seek with a man she couldn’t quite fathom. Common sense warned her to sever the relationship before she was caught, but Diana found herself unable to do that. She was too attracted, too curious, too intrigued. She felt compelled to take the risk of learning more about her summer neighbor.

“What did you do today?“ Colby asked, as if sensing the direction of her thoughts and wanting to distract her.

“The usual.“ Diana smiled and fed Specter a bite of broccoli. The dog wolfed it down as if it were a choice piece of steak. “Had breakfast, typed up some more resumes and letters to my job-hunting contacts, picked up the mail, took a long walk with Specter and read a few more chapters of
Shock Value.“

“Sounds like you’re having one hell of a summer vacation, aren’t you? What made you choose this burg in the first place? How come you didn’t go to the coast?“

Diana shifted restlessly. She’d privately asked herself that same question more than once. “I’m not sure what made me choose this part of the state. I wanted someplace quiet. One day when I was looking at a map, I spotted Fulbrook Corners and something just clicked. I made the decision on the spot.“

“And now you’re stuck feeding me and trying to get through one of my novels. Fate works in mysterious ways, I guess. It’s not exactly a compliment to my writing that you’re taking so long to finish that book, though.“ Colby’s mouth curved wryly upward at one corner.

Diana looked up from popping another tidbit between Specter’s huge jaws. “I can’t take too much of it at a time,“

she said honestly. “It scares me to death.“

Colby shrugged. “Probably because you’ve never read much horror fiction before.“

“I’ll admit it’s not my first choice of reading material. After finishing half of
Shock Value,
though, I now know why I’ve had the good sense to avoid the horror genre all these years. Your stuff gives me nightmares if I read it right before going to bed, Colby.“

“I guess I can take some pride in that,“ he replied smoothly. “Scaring people is what I get paid to do.“

Diana frowned. “How can you write that kind of thing? Doesn’t it bother you? Don’t you frighten yourself with your own fantasies?“

“When my fantasies succeed in scaring me, I know the writing is going well.“

Diana shook her head, aware of a curious sense of frustration. “I doubt if I’ll ever completely understand how your mind works.“

“Is that a problem?“ Colby asked softly. He leaned back in his chair, stretched out his legs under the table and swallowed the last of his wine. His gaze was sharp and questioning under half-lowered lashes. “Is that why we’re playing this look-but-don’t-touch game? You’re trying to figure out how my mind works before you’ll let me take you to bed?“

Diana became very still. Under her palm Specter came to attention. The dog glared at Colby with accusing eyes as if daring him to make any further offensive moves.

“I wasn’t aware we were playing a game,“ Diana said, mustering the sort of composure that had always served her well in the business world. “I thought we were becoming friends. If you feel I’m playing games, perhaps you’d prefer to leave.“

Specter didn’t growl, but his lips retracted just far enough to show his teeth.

Colby glanced down at the dog and then back at Diana. “Forget it,“ he said, sounding half-amused. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily. But I’m not going to let you off the hook, either, you know damned well you’ve been doing your best to keep me dangling since the first day we met. You let me get just so far and no farther.“

Diana surveyed him, rapidly growing annoyed. “I see. You’re not interested in developing a friendship, then? You’

ve been inviting yourself over for dinner several times a week because you’re restless and bored? You think things might be a little more amusing here in Fulbrook Corners this summer if you had a convenient bed partner?“

Colby eyed her for a long moment. “For the record,“ he finally said carefully, “I have never found Fulbrook Corners amusing, with or without a bedmate.“

Diana flushed, sensing the savage intensity behind the words. “Then why did you come back here after being away for nearly twenty years?“

Colby leaned forward and folded his arms on the table. “I’ve already explained why I’m here. I have to make a decision about what to do with Aunt Jesse’s house, and I needed a quiet place to finish
Blood Mist.
I decided to kill a couple of birds with one stone this summer.“

“I think there’s more to it than that.“

Colby shook his head slowly. “You can think whatever you like. But I’m warning you, Diana. I have no intention of letting you entertain yourself this summer by trying to see what makes me tick.“

“No problem,“ she retorted. “I’m sure I can find better things to do with my time, anyway. I’ve told you I’ve got some major career decisions to make this summer and I will no doubt be much better off if I concentrate on them instead of on you. Let’s just call it quits here and now. We both made a mistake. Our judgment was off. It happens, even at our ages.“ Her smile was all challenge as she got to her feet and began collecting the dishes. “Dessert?“

“Yeah, I’ll take dessert.“ Colby’s voice was a low growl as he surged to his feet directly in Diana’s path. He reached for her, pulling her roughly into his arms.

“Colby.“
She spread her fingers across his chest as she fell against him. Her eyes flashed with anger.

Specter gave a fierce, disapproving whine as Diana struggled to find her balance.

“Call off your dog,“ Colby ordered, his mouth hovering an inch above Diana’s.

“Why should I? He’s only trying to protect me.“

“You don’t need protection from me. You can take care of yourself. Tell him to get lost.“

Diana hesitated momentarily, dazed by the implied threats, both human and canine, that seemed to cloud the air around her. Then common sense took hold.

“Easy, Specter,“ she said firmly. “That’s a good boy. Go lie down, Specter. Everything is fine. Go on, boy. Lie down.“

The big dog looked unconvinced. He studied his mistress as she stood locked in Colby’s embrace. Then the animal swung a deeply suspicious gaze on Colby.

“Go on,“ Colby said. “You heard the lady. Go lie down. I’m not going to hurt her.“

With one last, complaining growl, Specter turned reluctantly and slunk off toward the corner of the room.

There he obediently settled down, but he didn’t take his eyes off Diana.

“You’re making him nervous,“ Diana said. “You’re also making me nervous.“

“We’re even. You’ve been driving me crazy for the past few weeks.“ Colby slid his fingers into her hair, tugging the tawny mass free of its knot. “I’ve been wanting to do that for a long time,“ he added in satisfaction as Diana’s hair tumbled down over his hands. He bent his head as he used his thumbs to tip up her chin.

Diana was suddenly breathless. The dark, mysterious fate she had been tempting for a month had finally cornered her. After putting off the inevitable for so long, she was awash with a reckless desire to surrender to it, to experience it completely.

Colby groaned as Diana lifted her arms to encircle his neck. “That’s it, honey. Now you’re catching on. That’s the way it’s supposed to be. Why the hell have you been so damned stubborn and elusive this past month?“ His mouth came down on hers with swift eagerness, and he crushed her against the lean, taut length of him.

The kiss was exactly what she’d been expecting and yet stunningly unexpected. The intimate caress was exotic, almost alien, yet the most natural thing in the world.

It was as if Colby were some strange new masculine life form she had just encountered. Yet it was as if she’d known him well in some other time and place – had known him and feared him.
And fought him.

He tasted the way Diana had known he would taste, and at the same time his mouth was new and strange and beguiling. He was as demanding as she’d guessed he would be, but she discovered within herself a rash need to meet his demands with a few of her own.

Colby’s arms tightened around her and Diana felt the hardness of his lower body thrusting against her softness.

He wanted her and he was making no secret of it. Something snapped within her, and the fiery kiss threatened to roar out of control. It was as if she had been waiting for this man and this kiss all her life.

Diana was only dimly aware of the sliding, gliding, exploring movement of Colby’s hands as he moved his palms down her body to her hips. She felt his fingertips brush the curve of her breasts en route, and a sensual warmth filled her. When he cupped her buttocks and brought her more tightly against his hardened body, Diana shivered and cried out softly.

He freed her mouth with slow, drugging reluctance and began talking to her as he tugged her shirt out of her trousers.

“I knew it would be like this with you,“ Colby muttered as he inhaled the fragrance of her hair. His hands were trembling with the force of his desire. “Hot and sweet and frantic at first. I feel like I’ve been waiting for you for a long, long time.“

“Oh, Colby, I wish…“

“Shush. Don’t try to talk. Not now.“ He drew a thumb across her parted lips and his eyes burned as he looked down into her questioning face. “This first time is going to be fast and hard and wild. But later we’ll take it slow and easy, I promise. Hell, later well become connoisseurs. But not this first time. I’m too hungry for you this time.“ His hands were moving up beneath her shirt now, seeking the gentle curves of her breasts.

The tiny snapping sound of her bra fastener as it came unhooked was what pulled Diana back from the brink. She blinked rapidly, trying to unfog her mind. She was aware of a curiously scattered sensation as if important parts of her were spinning wildly, uncontrollably. She wondered fleetingly if this was how the moth felt when it approached the flame.

Primitive, feminine instincts took over, jerking her back to safety.

“No.“ Her voice was a soft, beseeching thread of sound. “No, Colby,“ she said again, this time more firmly. “Not now. Not tonight. I don’t…I’m not ready. I want to think. This isn’t what I…“

He silenced her with an impatient kiss and his palms covered her taut nipples with deliberate possessive-ness. “I want you.“

“That’s not enough.“

“You want me.“

“That’s still not enough. Please let me go, Colby.“

For an instant Diana wasn’t sure he would release her. She knew with unnerving certainty that if he did not, she would be drawn back to the edge of the abyss, and this time she would go over into the velvet darkness with him.

She wasn’t ready for that. Not yet. There was too much she did not know or understand about him.

And then, without any warning, she was free. Colby swung around and strode violently away from her, one hand raking through his dark hair. He halted in front of the cottage window and stood staring out into the night.