Dreamscape (17 page)

* * * *

At the top of the mansion’s breezy cupola, Jason absently looked out at the orange-tagged stakes and string that delineated a large rectangle alongside his carriage house and another twice as large painted in blue along the ground beside it. Though he didn’t know what they were about, he didn’t give a second thought. Instead his mind ran through new details and those long forgotten. Used to time having little meaning, he hadn’t realized two days had passed while he pondered his own death and his housekeeper’s mysterious disappearance. There was much to think about. Lexie had turned up so many details, large and small, and some he hadn’t known before. He felt more certain than ever that he was supposed to put the pieces together.

That Addy went missing disturbed him more than his murder, for he’d loved that old woman dearly. He could scarcely believe Cathy condemned this loving and kind woman as a thief. A thief! What a preposterous thought. Addy Fairfax was as honest as the day was long. Had Addy witnessed his death as Lexie suggested? Raking his fingers through his hair, he tried to remember how it was they’d murdered him, but no matter what angle he came to his death from, he still had no clear recollection of their deed.

This inability to recall had been gnawing at him for more than a century. It hit him then. It was no coincidence that Lanie had been dreaming about him for years. Through her dreams he could venture back to his time and solve this riddle. He came aware.
My god,
Lanie.
Lost in thought, he hadn’t seen her for who knew how long.

An instant later he materialized in their bedroom to find her just leaving her bath. Coming upon the stunning sight left him thunderstruck. Glistening beads of water sparkled all over her body, and her wet hair, obviously just fluffed with her towel, hung in thick, ebony ringlets. Completely missing the fact he wasn’t invisible, he whispered in awe, “If I had breath, you’d take it away.”

Startled, she whirled around at the sound of his voice, and her large blue eyes met his. The light blush started at her cheeks and ended just above her pale pink nipples. She looked to the bed and back at him, resisting the urge to dive under the sheets and hide herself.

Jason instantly felt remorse, realizing his error too late. . “I apologize for frightening you.”

She assured him quickly, “I wasn’t frightened, only startled. I thought you’d gone.” No, she wasn’t frightened. She was however, keenly aware of standing naked before this ghost of a man. A drop of water fell unnoticed from her wet hair to trace a wet path down the center of her breast. Feeling a chill, she crossed her arms in front of her.

“No, I’m always here,” he said softly, his eyes momentarily drawn to a sparkling droplet that hung like a jewel from her chill-hardened nipple before she covered her breasts. He swallowed. The sight made his mouth water. “I sense I make you nervous. I’d never hurt you, you know. Please believe that.”

“I believe that. Jason, I–I’m not dressed.”

“And I am a mere shadow of a man. Please don’t be shy in front of me, Lanie. I’m a ghost. Some would say I’m not even here,” he teased.

Those silly but true words helped her to relax.

“If I may, I’d like to talk to you.” Ignoring her uncomfortable nakedness, he took her by the hand and sat her beside him on the bed. The sensation was light and transparent but very real. He was there all right. And her shyness returned. She attempted to pull from his hand. “Really, I should put on some clothes…”

He chuckled but didn’t let go. “As I see it, you and I are both physicians. Medical training aside, in our profession we’ve seen the ins and outs of human anatomy. Don’t be self-conscious around me,
Dr.
O’Keefe. I repeat, I’m a
ghost.”

Another droplet fell from the ends of her raven hair. This one dropped on her lap and disappeared between her thighs. Poised to do so since he entered the room, his cock sprung to life as though he were flesh and blood again. Mastering the urge to pull her to him, he eventually said, “I’ve been thinking…”

It was hard to miss the fact Jason’s ethereal form didn’t leave an impression on her bedding. It was also hard to miss Jason Bowen. He was undeniably the most handsome man Lanie had ever set eyes on. His eyes with their unusual color were fringed with dark lashes, his mouth was full-lipped and kind and a single lock of his dark brown hair lay a bit lower on his forehead than the rest. He looked exactly as he did in her dream. Another thought came to her at his close proximity, a recollection of the dream she’d had with an unseen lover treating her to exquisite oral sex. The unbidden imagery swiftly tied him to the deed. Her imagination making her light-headed, she parroted mechanically, “You’ve been thinking?”

Noting how her eyes suddenly dilated, and her pulse throbbed at her porcelain throat, it took effort for Jason to find his thoughts. “Yes, I caught a piece of your conversation with Lexie in the kitchen. I appreciate your wanting details of my disappearance. I have none myself, you see.” He didn’t want to cloud the investigation through her dreams so left out the fact he’d been murdered. Another droplet rolled over her collarbone, and he unconsciously pulled out his handkerchief to dab it away.

She gasped softly.

The sound was his undoing. He pulled her into his arms for a kiss before he realized he’d done it. Her mouth was warm and sweet, and his tongue twined with hers as he crushed her to him with every particle of his essence. Feeling her sensual surrender as her arms wrapped around him to deepen the kiss, he stopped to chastise himself.
There is no future in this, you stupid fool.
Taking her arms from him, he said, “I’ll leave you to your sleep. Perhaps we can talk more tomorrow.” With that, he disappeared.

Lanie looked at the spot where he’d been only an instant before, the kiss leaving her breathless.

* * * *

Why did he
do
that? Jason sat on the top stair, holding his head in both hands. Feeling helpless, his curling fingers gripped at his hair.
Fool.
He had a complete and utter lack of sense where this woman was concerned. He’d already done far too much she was unaware of. He shook his head both in self-recrimination and no little wonderment. When her body yielded, he’d thought his phantom heart would burst. She’d melted without hesitation into his arms, and he felt those warm, moist lips of hers and tasted her when she returned his kiss in shy sweetness. She wanted him as much as he wanted her.
But to what end?
No, he couldn’t do this to her. He couldn’t offer her anything as he was.

He made up his mind then. He’d only visit her in her dream world. In the waking world there was no future to be had with a phantom without substance. But there in her dreams he didn’t have to worry about her future. He could love her there. Invisible now, he returned to their bedroom to see if she was sleeping. Her muscles were slack, her breathing regular. Carefully sitting beside her, he closed his eyes and whispered, “Take us back to the study, take us back to my time.”

* * * *

“Whadaya mean you’re
letting
me go?” Mr. Paxton’s voice rose above the steady din of flying shuttles below.

Raising her voice to be heard, Lanie repeated, “I said I will be keeping most of my father’s businesses and have hired another foreman to handle all instead of a different man for each.” She handed him an envelope. “You’ll find your severance not without its compensation. This holds $300 as a thank you for your years of service to my father.”

“What’s going on here, Miss O’Keefe?” he snarled angrily, his soft Southern drawl made sharper by emotion. “I was your father’s right-hand man for
seven
years. His hand-picked foreman since he bought this place! I hardly think this is a fitting way to treat me after all that time seeing to his success.” He swung his arm wide in illustration.

“The books show you were paid well, sir. You’re no longer needed, Mr. Paxton, so please remove your things and leave now. I have other workers to meet with. Good day to you, sir.” She turned to go.

Like a flash he stood between her and the door. “Don’t walk away from me, lady. We aren’t finished. You’ll lose all these people their work because you don’t know
how
to run a mill. Just like you don’t know
how
to deal with a man in a man’s world.”

“We
are
finished, Mr. Paxton.”

“No we’re not, lady. There’s a wager I must see to. One I mean to win.”

“Wager?”

He reached out and fingered the cloth of her sleeve. “I’ve a mind to pet me a kitty cat. And after the petting, you’ll never want me to leave.”

Just as she opened her mouth to say she didn’t own a cat, a deep voice from behind said, “Apologize to the lady, Paxton.”

“Who the hell are you?”

“I said apologize.”

“
Fuck
off.”

To Lanie, Jason said, “Please step outside.”

“Jason, I…”

He gave her a look that clearly said,
go now.

She left the room but stood just outside the doorway unseen. Below, the workers tried to discover what was happening in the foreman’s office. Several inched closer to hear. She heard a scuffle then jumped back when a body hit the other side of the wall. “You go anywhere near Miss O’Keefe again, you’ll deal with me. Do you understand? Do you?”

The reply was choked and muffled. “Yeah, yeah all right.”

Jason led him from the room with one arm twisted behind his back. “Apologize to the lady.” The arm behind him wrenched higher in emphasis. “Now.”

Paxton winced. “I’m sorry for any disrespect, Miss O’Keefe.”

Lanie nodded at him as they passed.

Jason shoved Paxton to the street where only the passing ragman heard his rage-filled comment. “You’ll get yours soon,
sir
. Oh yes you will!”

Jason was more than a little angry. What was Lanie thinking that she took such a chance alone? Taking her firmly by her upper arm, he led her back into the foreman’s office and closed the door behind them. “
Why
didn’t you wait for me? You knew Paxton had little respect for women…he might have
hurt
you.”

“I believed letting him go would be simple. He’d already made up his mind about his not wanting to work for me. I thought the severance pay would be enough to send him off with.” She shook her head. Aside from his touching her sleeve, he’d really done nothing that would suggest… She looked at Jason and realized that he obviously understood the situation differently or he wouldn’t be angry right now. “Why did you demand an apology a moment ago? Was it for what I overheard him say yesterday?”

Jason clenched his fist, he’d forgotten about that and remembering now he had the urge to find Paxton and beat the man to a pulp. He told her, “No, the apology was for what I heard as I came up the stairs.”

Lanie went through every word she’d had with the foreman.
Petting a kitty cat? Whatever does that…mean…?
No sooner did the words come to her mind when an odd sensation of knowing seized her. She didn’t know how she knew, but she knew what Mr. Paxton meant. “Never mind.” Her lips clamped shut.
That odious man.

Jason watched the transformation as fire lit her bright blue eyes and realized it was her knowledge in the waking world coming to the fore. Her time was by far the more vulgar of the two. At least that was the opinion he’d formed based on what came out of Margaret’s television.

An instant later her dream surroundings changed and Jason found himself walking in the clock garden. Apparently Lanie had dreamt enough of Mr. Paxton.

“Jason?”

He turned to her. “I’m sorry, I didn’t hear…”

Laughing, Lanie said, “Your mind is a hundred miles away, and I’m beginning to suspect you’re having second thoughts about being my partner.”

Before he could answer, Bertha’s braying laughter coming from the bricked path behind them was followed by Richard’s soft Southern drawl, “Good afternoon, Lanie, Jason.”

Jason smiled and nodded with far more politeness than he felt. “Richard. Good afternoon, Bertha, and where is my lovely wife?”

“Seeing to our lemonade.” Bertha chortled happily. “You look lovely today,
Lanie.
” She said the name like it humored her. “That really is charming fabric. You’d never think it at all plain.” Her eyes then devoured Jason from head to toe. “And Jason, of course you always look so splendidly turned out.”

Though the woman’s words to Lanie bordered on insulting, Jason forced the smile to acknowledge her compliment to him. He had to play their game. “That’s kind of you to say, Bertha.”

There was no missing Bertha’s odd comment suggested the opposite. Smoothing her blue-and-white striped summer dress, Lanie suddenly felt self-conscious next to the elaborate ensemble the other woman wore. Feeling a need to explain her inadequate wardrobe, Lanie said, “Thank you. My travel necessitated packing light.”