Who was that man?
He seemed so real?
His scent lingered in her room.
What? Wait! That was crazy talk.
Emma shook her head and just tried to shake him from her system. She had a busy day and she didn't need Mr. Perfect to ruin her big presentation at work.
Nope! Not her!
She rolled out of bed and started to wash up but she still couldn't forget. Why wouldn't he say his name? Something about having power over him.
Cool! She wouldn't mind having power over his luscious body.
MINE!
He said she was his.
What the hell did he mean by that?
Letting out a low growl in frustration with herself, she wanted to scream at the top of her lungs.
There it was again.
His scent! How could that be? Can you imagine scents like that?
He smelled so perfect; it was a musky scent with a hint of fresh rain.
How could this be?
MINE!
Why did she keep hearing that?
What Emma didn't know was that Matthias was still watching her from the shadows of her room, something that he would now need to be careful about, as their mating connection grew stronger.
He watched as she stood as still as a Michelangelo statue, in all of her glory and perfection. Her porcelain white skin glistened from her shower and her red hair cascading down, dripping like rain.
How he longed to kiss her perfect skin?
She dropped the towel and dressed quickly as she kept having feelings that someone was watching her. The feelings were mixed with his scent and she was disoriented by fear and desire.
"I need to shake this off! I can't behave in this distracted manner at work or I'll lose my job," she grumbled.
Suddenly the scent was gone, for she was alone.
She was able to get dressed and headed off to work with her hair up in a professional bun. Wearing a tailored blue suit with black patent leather shoes, she was ready for the marketing presentation that she needed to give.
She had confidence!
Emma's presentation went over with a bang and everyone was impressed with her market intel and the board members approved the new marketing strategy.
She was walking on the clouds as she was packing up her office for the night. Daydreaming about her mystery man.
Randy was standing there in the hallway and knocked gently on the door before entering. Emma froze in place because Randy was practically a Greek god and she always avoided him because whenever Tony found out that she was talking with him, it ended in a fight.
Somewhere, deep down, she thought Randy knew this and tried to taunt Tony.
"Hey! What's up?" Emma asked as she started to pack her computer bag again.
"I heard the news. Tony ditched you last night. How are you doing?"
She glared at him and didn't want to respond. How was she going to correct Tony's lies? She broke up with him. She decided not to correct the lie and just replied, "I am fine. Actually relieved."
"Oh! I thought that you might need a shoulder to cry on and lips to kiss. I was going to offer mine for the evening." Randy said with a straight face.
She just stared at the gorgeous blue eyes and wavy blond haired god that was standing in front of her. Oh, another time, another place and under different circumstances, she would have taken him up on his offer.
Shaking her head, she answered, "Randy, we just broke up last night, not even 24 hours. I need time to recover and I am not up for a one night stand. Maybe in a few months, if you are actually looking to have a real relationship."
He looked taken aback and asked, "Really? Do you really think that I would ever settle down? That's just so cute!"
He laughed as he walked away and she was relieved that she got rid of him by pretending like she could be interested in him. It worked!
She walked absentmindedly to the elevator and wanted to die when she smelt the musky-rain scent again. The eyes, she felt the eyes. What was happening to her?
If she only knew how close Matthias was, she might have died. He was standing there in his Schatten form, watching her now as she headed to the hotel. He wanted no harm to come to her as she walked home from work in the city.
Once it appeared that she was in her room for the night, working on her computer in her PJ's with a pencil stuck in her bun, room service ordered and eaten, he left her until she went to bed. He would be back soon for another evening of dream casting.
As midnight rolled around, Matthias returned and watched as she fitfully slept and he entered her dreams to sooth her restless soul.
This time he brought her to the grand ball room within the castle and he dressed her in a beautiful cerulean blue gown with silver beads. Her hair was pinned up with diamond accents and curls hanging around her face. She looked magnificent, like the queen that she would be one day.
He was in his tux and crossed the ballroom to greet her. "Emma, darling you look beautiful. Someday, my dear, we will rule this world and all of our subjects will bow down to you."
She looked at him with such wonder and curiosity. What a crazy world she was creating in her dreams? It must be this fancy hotel and the old fashion charm.
Matthias laughed and her heart raced as she felt the pull to be in his arms. Holding out his hand like the perfect gentleman, he took her into his arms and they danced to the music playing in the background.
"Emma, my dear you feel so wonderful in my arms. May I kiss you?"
Nodding without using her words, Matthias pulled her into his embrace.
He just stared into her eyes before he leaned in and kissed her soft lips. She didn't hesitate since she had spent the day desiring him. When they separated, she let out a soft sigh of pleasure, thinking 'Mine!'
Whispering her name, he said, "Emma, I cannot wait to bring you here forever. We belong together and we will be so happy in each other's arms."
Gasping, she managed to say, "But, how? Once again, I say that I don't even know your name."
"In time you will. It's too soon. Let me get to know you better." He leaned in and let his kisses trail down her neck before moving back to her lips.
Emma gave in to her passion for him, thinking this is just a dream.
It's just a dream!
Why resist?
She could be as wild as she wanted to be without regret!
She didn't realize that with each tender touch, their souls were intertwining and once she met him face to face, she would be powerless to resist him.
He didn't dare move past kissing her, not yet. The mating bond was getting stronger and he would need to be careful because she would be able to sense his shadow soon.
He knew that she could smell his mating call for he could hardly resist hers; jasmine and roses.
What perfection!
They walked outside onto the balcony and he held her as they took in the beauty of the land. She rested her head against his shoulder and sighed in contentment at his touch.
He was irresistible to her and her desires to know him intimately were growing by the second.
He stayed with her in her dreams most of the night, kissing and teasing her. Before he left, he whispered, "Emma, I am already falling in love with you my mate. I cannot wait forever to have you in my arms."
She thought, "What a dream? Do I even want to wake up from this?"
In the morning, Emma felt as if she hadn't slept a wink and his scent was all over her body. She couldn't shake his presence off of her and her desires and fears were growing exponentially.
This stranger was not only invading her dreams but somehow was sharing a bizarre reality with her.
Was she going crazy?
The last thing that she remembered was his warning, "Emma, do not betray me by talking about me to anyone. No one, Emma. Do you understand me? Or you will pay the price and you will not like the consequences."
She was shaking.
How could she betray the man in her dreams? Why couldn't she tell her friends about him?
Shaking her head, she decided that he was just a dream, ... right?
He was reading her thoughts when he cast to her, 'Because I am real and you are mine!'
She froze in place and wanted to die.
Without thinking, Emma reached out and her hand passed through his icy Shatten shadow. She shivered as the words slipped past her lips, "You are mine!"
Binding their souls further together.
Soon there would be no escaping his world.
Emma heard the words slip out of her mouth, "You are mine!" Utter fear filled her to the very core and she covered her mouth with her hands to keep from speaking anything else to him. The tingling sensation wouldn't leave her hand and she rubbed it before crying out, "What kind of monster are you? Just leave me alone!" Emma backed away from Matthias' shadow and bumped into the bed. She was scared of him now. Who could haunt your dreams and your waking hours? He was a freak. This was not natural! Was she going crazy? She screamed, "I am not yours! You freak." Matthias cringed at her torment as he could hear e
“You bastard! Show yourself!” She was seething and wanted to ripe his eyes out, when she could get her hands on him.Oh, he would pay in her dreams tonight, if he dared to show up.He laughed and cast to her, ‘I am looking forward to your feisty dreams tonight.”“Stop this. You are going to drive me crazy. Please just let me be. Please.”She started to cry when the door opened and Randy took one look at her, asking “What the hell is going on?”“I just can’t do this Randy. Not today. I just need to go home. I am sorry.” Tears were flowing down her face and she was a bundle of nerves.She sensed Matthais was still there and suddenly she felt calm and turned to Randy, “I cannot take that job.”“Why not? You deserve it. Emma, you have worked so hard for this and you are telling me that you are walking away from your dream job. This opportunity will never c
After visiting Emma every night for the last two weeks, Matthais needed to get back to the family estate and sign some papers for the business. He was absoletly miserable upon returning and he was grumpy with his brothers and brooded in his bed chambers most of the time. He was unsettled being back at the estate, as he was too far from Emma. He feared for her safety because of the Toten (the dead) clan. He didn't want to think about the future without Emma by his side to give him strength and courage. The Toten were their deadly enemies and Emma was in danger, should anyone discover that Matthias found his soulmate. He needed to get back to the city quickly. Their bond was growing stronger and he now could feel her mood changes, even from a distance. He frustrated her by not revealing himself to her and she would beg for him to show himself. She cried out begging him to reveal himself to
Everything about her showed the chaos that was coursing through her veins, from her unruly red hair to her crumpled pajamas and her unwashed face with very swollen eyes.She was a wreck and Matthais was to blame.She could barely think and after sitting at her desk staring at his perfect handwriting for over an hour, she decided to call out sick from work. No one would suspect a thing. She had never called out in the last 4 years.What was she going to do?She could not bear this burden alone and he wasn't coming back anytime soon.Sleep was allusive.Dreams were furtive.Her mind was burdened and she hated him.She needed him.Emma realized that her soul would be fractured without him but damn him! She wasn't going to make this easy for this bastard. He was going to pay, every step of the way.If he wanted to take her from everything she ever worked for, her family and he
Emma cried out, "You bastard! You're turning me!" She was holding onto him for dear life as she couldn't handle the pain but her anger still bubbled to the surface. Matthaus tried to calm her down as he placed her writhing body on the couch. He quickly gathered some of her possessions and packed them, before calling his driver to pick them up. He needed her to he calm as they walked to the limo so he placed her into a deep sleep, which would slow down the turning but she would only remain in it for a few minutes. He carried her out and closed the door with a charm, only to realize a neighbor was watching. Sighing heavily in annoyance, he manipulated the neighbors memories to think that there was someone in the apartment that closed the door, before heading out to the limo. Matthais ordered his driver to fetch her luggage and to lock her apartment before they left. Once the took off and were outside of t
Matthias' POVThe workers were adding the final touches to the castle. They were installing new windows into the grand ballroom and new tapestries that were made especially for my wedding day. Alice and I spent the day wandering through each room dreaming about our future together. We shared our dreams of having children and traveling to new places together. Alice had never traveled more than 100 km passed her village and I wanted to change that. We lingered in our soon to be bedroom; teasing each other about our wedding night. I whispered sweet nothings in her ear and told her how much I loved her. She was my soulmate and our souls were already starting the bonding process.She was so irresistible and I wanted nothing more than to devour her innocence, right then and there. Alas, we needed to wait until our wedding day, for a thousand reasons. We eventually made it down to the terrace to e
The marble slab in the middle of the vault was ice cold, but Emma didn't notice. The cold didn't penetrate through her sheer gown. She was just starting to stir; her brain was still in a haze as the pain of the turning was becoming a distant memory.The vault was pitch black and no human eyes could penetrate the darkness, yet she realized as she sat up she could see the boundaries of the cavernous room. As her eyes focused on the wooden door, she could make out each slat and see the details of the steel frame, the pounded black metal and iron nails. The arched door was not only locked on the inside but also on the outside; a fact that hadn't registered with her yet.Beyond the locks, were the magic that bound her within this room.She didn't know that fact yet either.Emma jumped down off of the slab and her bare feet landed on the granite floor. Her body felt different; stronger! Her eyesight was beyond normal hu
Matthias materialized just outside of the vault's door, in the stairway. His heart was heavy and felt dejected as he stood there with his back to the door. He slide down and hung his head low, and just sat there with his arms wrapped around his knees. Thoughts, crazy thoughts were swirling around; dangerous thoughts. He must have sat there for an hour, or maybe more, when he heard footsteps coming down the staircase. As two sets of black leather boots appeared, he knew it was his brothers, coming to offer support. James and Carston appeared in their military uniforms and were silent as they watched their brother suffer because of this foolish actions.James didn't approve of the stunt Matthias pulled with Emma, but knew that they couldn't let her escape without knowing how to control her Schatten and the dangers that now awaited her. James didn't come to argue again but to try to help Matthias smoot