6. Dream a Dream of You

~ Cain ~

“Please, Cain…”

My hand trembled as I it to comb back a strand of hair from Kelsie’s face. When my shaking fingers traced her temple she closed her eyes and leaned into the touch.

“Kelsie…” I breathed.

She whimpered when I said her name, and the sound was so raw, the last of my control snapped.

I plunged a hand into her hair, tugging her head back as I took her mouth in a searing kiss.

Her breath caught when our lips met.

I didn’t stop.

Lips, tongue, the flutter of hot breath…

I lowered her to the bed, devouring the sweet honey of her mouth, pinning her to the mattress with my weight as my kiss grew deeper, more desperate.

Teasing her tongue with mine, I began to follow the hills and valleys of her body with my hands until I was tracing fingers down the back of her thigh, cupping the back of her knee, pulling it up and over my hip.

And when she arched into me, then used that leg to pull me closer, I broke the kiss with a hiss. With my teeth gritted I pushed up on my hands and ground my hips against her.

Looking down on her, my heart pounding, there was no more sign of tears. She stared up at me in awe, her lower lip slack. Our eyes locked as I cupped her face, then rocked against her again.

So beautiful… so innocent. 

My wolf shuddered with an overwhelming wave of protectiveness and desire.

Kelsie reached for my arm, bracing against me to raise her hips to meet me. The delicious friction between us made my entire body shake. I had to have her. My wolf panted, quivering with need.

I had to have her. But—

“It’s not enough,” she gasped as we rocked together again, our bodies trembling.

I stared down at her, barely able to think because of the fight for control to not simply tear the nightgown from her and plunge into her.

“Wh-what? What isn’t?” I gasped.

“I need you, Cain. You need me.”

I ground against her again, holding the pressure at the peak. Her eyes closed and her head sank back with the pleasure of it.

“No… I can’t…” But even I could hear the tremble in my voice. The uncertainty.

“You have to,” Kelsie whispered. 

Then she opened her eyes to meet mine again. She reached up to cup my face with both hands and hold me there, staring at her. 

“You have to accept me. You have to move on. You can’t do this alone… Take me, Cain. Have me. Then let me help you—”

I woke sweating and panting, hard as a rock, and aching with need. My wolf was furious and desperate. For a moment it was all I could do to hold off the shift. The dream wouldn’t fade. I could still smell her, still feel her soft warmth against my skin. Still hear her whispers echoing in my ears.

I wanted her.

Needed her.

But I couldn’t… I couldn’t…

*****

~ Kelsie ~

I woke with a jolt from a dream of Cain with my entire body thrumming with heat. But as I lay there panting and sweating, staring at the wall and trying to get my head straight… it wasn’t just sex that I wanted.

It was him. Like… like he belonged to me. 

That made no sense. I barely knew this guy. And he was so weird. But undeniably hot.

I could understand having a hot dream about him.  But that wasn’t what this was. There was something solid under it all.

He was mine. He had to be mine. 

But then I shook my head at the thought. 

“Don’t be ridiculous,” I muttered at myself. Cain was old. And hot. He wasn’t a boy. He was a man. And weirdly intense. I wouldn’t have a clue what to do with a guy like that.

But that feeling of ownership wouldn’t leave me.

It was so undeniable I had to get out of bed even though it was really early, because I needed to distract myself before I ran over to his house and pounced on him.

A few minutes later when I was standing at the kitchen window getting myself a glass of water to calm my fluttering heart, I saw him hurry out to his car.

I stood in the shadows. I hadn’t turned the light on, so I didn’t think he could see me. I watched as he unlocked his car and got into it quickly. Then he pulled the car out of the driveway too fast, the tires squealing for a second when he reversed into the road, then took off.

And I was left staring after him, aching. And suddenly very glad that I had his class this morning.

*****

I spent the whole morning aching to get closer to Cain. I couldn’t concentrate, even when I had to say goodbye to my parents because they were going on vacation for the next nine days. 

All I could think about was getting to school to see Cain. 

My parents were worried about me, but I brushed them off. 

“Honey, are you sure?” 

Mom was worried, but I just nodded and smiled at her and at Dad. I could tell Dad was glad that I didn’t seem sad about Daniel anymore. 

I almost laughed to myself. If he knew I wasn’t crying over Daniel was because I was having hot sex dreams about our much older neighbor, he would be so angry. 

I hugged them both and told them to have fun.

The minute they drove away, I ran back into the house to get ready for school. I had nine days without them hanging over my shoulder to figure out why I was obsessed with Cain. 

I didn’t even get nervous about going back to school because I was so desperate to see him.

I felt nervous butterflies when I got into the English building and some people were looking at me. But I just fixed my eyes on the door into Cain’s class and walked so fast I was almost running.

I was so focused that at first I didn’t notice when a deep voice said my name. But just before I reached the classroom door a big hand landed on my elbow.

“Kels… where’s the fire?”

I blinked and turned to find Daniel standing over me. His forehead was pressed into lines which meant he was stressed.

He looked good today. His sandy-brown hair was a little messy and he was wearing the leather jacket I loved because it made his shoulders look really broad.

Correction: I used to love it.

I used to get that little flutter in my stomach when I saw him wear that jacket. But now, with my back to the wall and Daniel standing over me looking worried, all I could think was, get out of the way. I need to get somewhere.

“Kels, you don’t have to run away from me, okay?” he said, dropping his voice and looking up the hall.

There was a pinch in my chest as everything that had happened between us rushed into my mind. But that urgency, that need to see Cain wouldn’t leave me alone, so I just flapped a hand at Daniel and shook my head.

“I’m not running from you, Daniel. I’m just living my life.”

I started to turn and go to the classroom. The door was just a few feet away, but Daniel caught my elbow again and tugged me back.

Irritation flared in my chest and I glared at him, yanking my arm out of his grip.

“Daniel?! What the hell?”

He let me go but leaned down, dropping his chin. His expression got worried and… apologetic?

“Kelsie… I’m really sorry. We need to talk. I know I was wrong. I want to fix it. You have to let me fix it… Please?”

I was so surprised that Daniel would even speak to me that it took a moment for the anger to arrive. But as I stood there gaping at him, everything that had happened came rushing back.

Rage was a volcano in my chest and it was about to blow.

“First of all, you don’t touch me ever,” I hissed.

Daniel pressed his lips thin. But he used the hand that had grabbed my arm to claw through his hair.

“Sorry. You were just rushing and I thought you were trying to avoid me.”

“I wasn’t. But what if I was? You’re a cheating asshole, Daniel. I don’t want to have anything to do with you.”

He shushed me, looking up and down the hallway. But I leaned in closer to him and kept my voice at normal volume.

“Don’t shush me. And don’t act like no one knows what you did. I wasn’t the one sending out fake porn—”

“Hey, I had nothing to do with that! That was all her!” he said, lifting both hands like I had a gun on him.

“I notice you didn’t make her take it down.”

“I didn’t even know about it until later and everyone was already talking about it.”

“So?! Geez, Daniel, I can’t believe I didn’t even know you. Two years, and first you cheat, then you just let that bitch humiliate me?”

“I didn’t let her, she just did it—”

“You didn’t help!”

His brows pressed heavily down over his eyes and he looked around again, glaring at a guy who was walking past when the guy looked at me like he was checking that I was okay. Then he turned back and shifted his weight so he was a little closer.

I stepped back to give myself space, but I ran up against the wall. Daniel didn’t move, so I was left pinned between him and the wall.

I wasn’t scared of Daniel. I knew he’d never physically hurt me. But damn… what an asshole he’d turned out to be.

“Back off, Daniel.”

“Look, Kels, all I’m saying is… it has been two years. You shouldn’t throw that away.”

“You threw it away!” I snapped loudly.

His jaw went tight.

“I waited two years, Kels. Two years. Then I made a mistake—”

“That’s not a mistake, that’s a decision. I hope that bitch was worth it because we’re done, Daniel. I can’t believe I was willing to have sex with you at all. Happy fucking birthday! Thank God I learned the truth. My instincts were totally right this whole time. I should have listened to them.”

But Daniel’s face had gone wide with surprise.

“You were ready to have sex?” he whispered eagerly.

­I blinked. Oh. Right. He never learned that part. 

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Of course it matters, Kels.”

He leaned in even closer so when I pulled away from him my shoulders came up against the wall and my head thumped on it.

But Daniel wasn’t giving up. He put a hand on the wall beside my head the way I used to love. He used to hover over me like that, giving me a sexy grin before he’d kiss me. It used to thrill me. Now it just turned my stomach. But maybe if I threw up on him he’d actually leave me alone?

“Kels, I know this is my fault. But we can get through this. It’ll be even better because—”

“Is there a problem?”

I knew that deep, dark voice that had suddenly appeared from my right.