The Knight of Her Dreams (Dragons and Dreamphasers) (22 page)

Keeping her expression
neutral, she asked quietly, “So why didn’t you then?”

“I didn’t think there could
be any going back, so I chose the simplest route by trying to forget you
instead,” he replied softly.  His eyes became almost pleading.  “But I couldn’t
do that, which is why I’m here now.  Our relationship means something to me.” 
Seeing the uncertain disbelief in her expression, he released her shoulders,
continuing even more gently, “Julie, please... can’t you give us another
chance?  I swear things will never be like before again.”

Julianna turned away
quickly, as if she feared being burned from having conversed with the devil
himself.

Not too far from the truth
actually
,
she considered.

His words were just what
she’d wanted to hear before, and yet... how could she go against every fiber of
her being to forgive him?  He’d done nothing but hurt her before, and
undoubtedly would again if she gave him his so-called chance.  Her mixed
feelings voiced a different response.

“I don’t know,” she said brokenly. 
“You’re like a stranger to me now, Roger.  How can I trust anything you say
anymore?”

“Give me time to prove it
to you,” he murmured, moving closer to press a kiss to her forehead.  “Please,
Julianna, let me make it up to you.”

He hadn’t used her full
name in the longest time, and the way he spoke it now, it sounded like an
endearment.

If his words were poisoned
again, they were sweetly lethal, she thought absently, surprised at this
display of tenderness from one she’d no longer believed had the capability for
it.

Even so, his last words
triggered a different memory.

Dominick.

He’d used similar words in
last night’s dream, hadn’t he?  Yet that argument had stemmed from a
misunderstanding.  He’d acted from what he thought to be a betrayal, while in
Roger’s case, he’d
caused
the betrayal himself.  Two different
situations entirely.

Dominick...
her mind repeated.  Would
he vanish from her dreams forever if she accepted Roger’s invitation to try
again?  In fact, would he vanish anyway in days to come?

Turning back to face Roger,
she tried to look in control, but it was a hopeless gesture.  Despite her best
efforts, she was confused again.  As if sensing this, Roger used her silence to
advantage, pulling her close to hold her.

Somehow, she couldn’t find
the will to break free.

“Julianna, how I’ve missed
you,” he whispered.  “It’s going to be different this time, I promise you.”

Promises in words but not
actions!
her angry thoughts reminded her.  Yet logic wasn’t always as easy to accept as
some seemed to think, warring with her former feelings.  Instead of pushing him
away, she simply frowned and said nothing.

“Why don’t we spend the day
together to do some catching up?” he suggested softly.  “We can go for a drive,
and find a restaurant where we can get lunch and talk.”

For long moments, Julianna
considered the offer.

Until logic finally took
full rein, prompting her to shake her head.  “I’m afraid I can’t,” she said
softly.  “I have some work due tomorrow that can’t wait, and I want to get it
done before I’m too tired later.  You’d better go.”

Roger pulled back to stare
into her eyes as if about to rebel, but then to her surprise, he accepted her
words with a calm smile.

“All right,” he agreed. 
“But I’ll be back later to rescue you from that workload.  Maybe over dinner?”

“Roger…”

“Shhh… just think about
it.”

Not certain how to
reply—admittedly, only half listening now—Julianna could only give a slight
nod.  Before she even realized it, he started to leave, stepping back to pull
the door shut behind him.  Just before it shut completely, he added with a
smile, “It’s good to see you again, Julie.  I can’t tell you how much just now,
but I will.”

The door’s closing hammered
against her ears, but even when Sammy’s abrupt pleading for another cookie
began, Julianna was too at a loss for words to pay any attention to either. 
After all this time, why on Earth had Roger suddenly rendered her speechless?

It wasn’t as if she’d
completely forgiven him for what he’d done, so it made no sense.  So much
different from last night when she’d wholeheartedly forgiven Dominick for his
actions without reservation.  Dear heaven, she wished he was here right now to
hold her and to kiss her concerns away as he did so well.  If he’d been here
beside her, she wouldn’t have hesitated to send Roger walking without a second
glance.  And she’d certainly have told him
where
he could go
tonight!

But that wasn’t what had
happened at all.

Instead, she’d been caught
off-guard by a weak moment.

“Oh, Dominick...” she
whispered brokenly, clutching her arms tightly.  “I wish you were here.”

*****

Buddy and Inferno stared at
Dominick with confusion as he sauntered into Lost Limbo with the unmistakable
air of better spirits.  The girls at their table were equally puzzled over the
grin on his face, but Kiri assured them with a conspiratorial smile that her
psychic ability would pick up any conversation the guys might have.

“Your best, Zantarl!”
Dominick called out cheerfully.

The near middle-aged
bartender, who instantly returned a smile as the dreamphaser approached,
wondered what had changed since his argument with Buddy yesterday.  His
curiosity showed through his amber eyes, although they were only good at seeing
through material substances—not reading minds, like Kiri could.

As the proprietor of Lost
Limbo for many years, despite his fairly youthful appearance, Zantarl had
become well acquainted with Dominick and the group he associated with.  He
related to Dominick the most though, since the lad was alone more than the
others—except for his dealings with various women, here and there—and had such
a distant relationship from his parents.

In fact, since Zantarl had
all but been there when Dominick was born, he came to regard him as the son he
never had—having five daughters from his current marriage.  Fortunately, his
wife Dreeana had been even more attached to the boy, always being available
with a brownie and a warm hug over the years.  Yes, while they loved their own
children dearly, no mistake about that, Zantarl and his wife both looked at Dominick
with the fondness of family.

As for their daughters’
reaction to Dominick, they rarely protested his visiting, particularly since a
few had cases of ‘puppy love’ since he’d transformed from a cute boy to a
handsome man.  But despite his charm with the ladies, Zantarl never worried
that Dominick would turn his amorous attentions on his own girls, since he
stated quite clearly one time that he loved them all as the sisters he never
had.  No, Dominick regarded them as his foster family, and he was a good lad. 
A bit rough around the edges sometimes, but good deep down.

“Well, it would seem you’ve
gotten the brawling out of your system for one day,” Zantarl said finally,
placing the newly concocted drink on the counter, before leaning on one arm. 
“Care to let me in on the secret behind this?”

“No secret, Zan,” he
replied lightly.

To the careful observer,
his words sounded more like ‘No secret, Dad’, but Dominick took this in stride
since it seemed true most of the time.  Stirring his drink absently, he gave
Zantarl his usual enigmatic look, yet for once it seemed a bit more serious.

“Right,” the clever
bartender murmured, not masking his disbelief.  “And you’re a guardian angel
with a shining gold halo to match.  The truth now, son.”  Dominick gave a short
laugh, explaining the past three days he’d spent with Julianna, not to mention
their first meeting two months ago.  Zantarl listened quietly, mixed emotions
flashing across his face, until he finished.  “Ah, I see now.  Your latest love
for the time being.  No, hear me out.  Now Chaos knows there’s no stopping you
when you’ve set your sights on a pretty female, but don’t you think it’s about
time you let this one go, for her sake if not your own?”

The younger man’s face
sobered somewhat, but he shook his head.  “You don’t understand, Zan.  I can’t
just let her go.  Maybe at the very start I could have, but not now.”

“Dominick, for once try to
see reason.”

“Reason?” he sneered,
staring up at the ceiling with a weak smile.  “No, I’m afraid reason doesn’t
stand a chance anymore.  And you have no idea what Julianna’s like.”

“I can guess.  Flawlessly
beautiful and passionate like the rest.”

“No,” Dominick protested. 
“I mean... yes, she’s beautiful, and surely passionate too, but she is
not
like the rest.  She’s beautiful on the inside too, Zan.  As sweet as honey,
with a fiery spirit to match.”

“Really now?” laughed
Zantarl.  “How could that be favorable?”

“Maybe for someone who’d
like a woman with a little fire within, rather than some of your guardian angel
types who are so sweet you’re afraid of their dissolving into fairy dust in
your hands.  I’d prefer my spirited Julianna to them any day of the
millennium.  Because even with those moments, she’s also very loving and
considerate, and most of all, understanding.”

“It would seem so after
your rushed-to conclusions last night,” Zantarl agreed sternly.  “You know you
should have asked her who those people were, before you assumed the worst.”

“Believe me, I won’t make
that mistake again.”

Zantarl nodded, his
expression softening.  “It’s nice that you took her out to dance afterwards to
make up for it.”  He leaned closer.  “I would assume, in spite of omitting
further details, more may have happened at this dream castle you created for
her?”  The younger man remained silent.  “I see.”

“No, you don’t see,”
Dominick protested, earning a curious stare from Zantarl.  “There’s nothing
wrong with what we choose to do together, and that is
not
my sole
reason for wanting to see her again.  Zan, if it was purely physical, I could
have searched for someone else before.  And I’m not going to deny that I didn’t
enjoy our time together last night.  But there
is
more to it than
that.  She has caring, intelligence, a good sense of humor, and a strong-willed
spirit despite her underlying innocence.  In a way, I feel like she’s what’s
been missing from my life all these years.”

Zantarl’s curiosity became
surprise.  “I don’t believe I’ve ever heard you speak so of any of your
nocturnal liaisons before, let alone women here.  Truthfully, what are your
feelings towards this Julianna if it’s not a temporary attraction?”

A question Dominick still
wasn’t completely certain about himself.  Having never been in love before, his
feelings for Julianna were stronger than any he’d ever known.  But he needed to
be sure that it was really love, the kind that Julianna would be happy with. 
Desire might burn itself out in time, but if it was love... time would reveal
it.

After some deliberation, he
replied quietly, “I’d rather not answer that just now, Zantarl.  I can only say
that my feelings for Julianna run deeper than any I’ve ever felt towards other
women, and that I’ll do my damnedest to make sure she isn’t hurt, one way or
the other.  If that means staying with her until she says otherwise, then I’m willing
to do just that.  Fair enough?”

“I suppose it’ll have to
be,” sighed Zantarl, patting his arm quickly.  “You’d best see to your friends
at their table now.  We can talk more on this later.”

“Thanks, Zan.  I’m glad I
can trust you.”

As Dominick walked away,
Zantarl smiled after him with new understanding.  So the lad might finally have
found love after all, and apparently someone who might very well feel the same
about him.  If that was true, Zantarl would certainly be happy for him, and yet
he was forced to wonder...

What kind of love could
exist between two people from such distant worlds, who could only see each
other for a few hours a night in their dreams?

Thinking of his own dear
wife, Zantarl could see how love might make those brief moments bearable, but
he was infinitely glad that Dreeana wasn’t separated from him in the same way. 
It was too bad really.  He might have liked to have been introduced to this
young lady of Dominick’s.  If his words were to be believed, she was special
indeed.

“Zantarl, what’s the hold
up on our drinks!” came a shout from one table.

“Hold onto your shorts,
Izzy, or you’ll be dealing with a much longer dry spell!”

With that, the further
details to the saga of Dominick and Julianna would have to wait until later.

In the meantime, Dominick
sat with his friends while they amiably chatted, not noticing the attentive
looks Kiri gave him.  In fact, he seemed somewhat oblivious to the
conversations altogether, although he smiled now and then.  Kiri’s eyes were
seeking during his distraction, although with her mind-reading ability it
wasn’t hard to read the very clear images in his mind.