she was flying through the air and knew without a doubt she was
dreaming. She always had vivid dreams and could control her actions
in them. As she flew, the scenery below was a beautiful myriad of
greens and the skies were a bright blue. Rolling hills turned into
mountains, and then the skies began to darken. Off in the distance she
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could hear her name being called. When she turned, she saw that
Rosa and Casey were standing near a path leading up to a castle built
into the side of a mountain.
Her feet lowered to the ground and she thought to herself, this is a
cool dream. Never saw a castle before. When her feet touched
ground she started walking. The closer she got to where Rosa and
Casey stood, the darker the skies became. When she was within a few
feet of them, it was so dark she could barely see. For being one to
control her dreams, she was having a hard time making it brighter so
she could see where she was walking. Tripping over the rocks jutting
out along the path, she had to slow down because of the rough ground.
Had to watch her footing closely and wished in her dream world she
was wearing her sensible hiking boots and that thought made her
laugh.
She should be closer to where Rosa and Casey were standing, but it
seemed like they had somehow moved farther away, without really
moving. Then suddenly, she was right there in front of them. She
could see them plain as day and they were looking at each other.
When they turned to look at her, she sucked in her breath sharply.
Their eyes were red, their mouths were open in a laugh and their teeth
were a bright white with two fangs jutting out of their mouth. Then
they lunged.
Paige gasped and shoved at the drier so she could get up out of the
seat. Her chest heaved and she stared over at Rosa with a disbelieving
look on her face. What the hell kind of dream was that? Paige fought
to even out her breathing and headed to what she was sure was the
ladies restroom since it showed a pink woman wearing a dress on the
sign.
She had strange dreams, but never once had she ever dreamed of
vampires! Splashing cold water on her face, taking care not to get her
hair wet. Lack of sleep was messing with her mind. She was going to
have to tell Rosa that she needed a nap before she was going
anywhere tonight. For peace of mind, Paige leaned forward and
pulled her shirt away from her neck; remembering that Casey had
nibbled on her neck in Rosa's room. Maybe that was what had
49
triggered the dream. Paige shook her head at her own stupid thoughts
and left the confines of the tiny bathroom.
Rosa was once again back in the chair having her rollers taken out.
The women who had been working on her hair rushed forward and
directed Paige back to her swiveling chair. She was anxious to see
what disaster they had made of her hair. To her astonishment, the cut
and style was actually flattering and made her face look slimmer.
They had chopped a good four inches off, but it looked so much
healthier and bounced with soft curls that delicately framed her face
and still fell across her shoulders.
Rosa's always looked good, but they had also cut a couple inches
from her hair, sweeping her shining black hair around her face. Her
new highlights glinted in the florescent lights and Paige thought how
pretty they would be out in the sunlight.
Being in Japan, she wondered if the weather would hold out. From
the news reports she had kept up with before transferring with her job,
they had arrived during the rainy season and it usually poured every
day. The reason the countryside was so green, but so far, it had only
rained a bit that morning and had let up before they had gone out for
the day of pampering.
Running their hands through their locks both women were happy
with their transformations and headed out of the salon with big smiles
on their face. Paige was hungry again, so they stopped at one of the
local restaurants. She was a little hesitant to stray from the foods she
knew, but Rosa had placed their order in Japanese. So once again, she
didn't know what to expect because Rosa just grinned without
responding to her question of what she had ordered.
surprised by the thinly sliced chunks of marinated steak rolled in
green onion, and then broiled on bamboo skewers. Following the
appetizer was what Rosa told her was yakisoba chicken, a stir fry with
a strong odor of soy sauce and other spices Paige was unsure of. But
it smelled and looked really good tossed over soba noodles and mixed
with carrots, what looked like cabbage and more onion. They were
stuffed by the time the waiter offered them desert. Laughing, sitting
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back rubbing their bellies, they declined. Paige definitely needed a
nap after that!
The dream she had was haunting her, had never quite left her mind
and she stared at Rosa, wondering if she should tell her about it or not.
Then thought better of it, most people didn't understand how a lot of
her dreams would come true. But how in the world would she ask her
friend if she was a vampire? That was just plain stupid. Vampires
didn't exist, and from all the shows on television, they didn't run
around during the day time, nor did they eat food. Shaking her head
mentally at her runaway thoughts, she pushed herself away from the
table, grabbing the ticket. When she had tried to pay for the massage
and the haircut and style, Rosa said it had already been taken care of.
She felt that she had to at least pay for their food. Rosa protested,
but this time Paige wouldn't listen to her and paid for their meals.
The day had been filled with running from place to place and she
was exhausted. Once inside the elevator heading to the second floor,
Paige sank against the wall and leaned her head against the cold
metal. Sliding silently to a halt at the second floor, Paige forced
herself away from the wall and walked the long corridor to her room.
She didn't see how Rosa could be so perky. But then again, she was
used to the lifestyle.
Rosa was slipping the card key through the lock on her door.
Paige stopped outside her and turned towards her when she spoke.
"Take a nap, but don't mess your hair up. I'll wake you up in a couple
hours." Rosa didn't wait for her response and disappeared through her
door.
For someone who wasn't the boss on this trip, Rosa was definitely
being bossy. Paige shook her head and made her way into her room.
She was out within moments of her head hitting the pillow.
* * * *
It only felt like minutes had passed when the pounding on her door
jarred her from her dream filled sleep. For some reason, the vampire
dream kept haunting her and she couldn't shake the absurd thoughts of
Rosa and Casey being vampires. The same dream had returned. She
was used to dreams repeating, but it was unusual for her to dream of
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vampires like that. Even stranger, she still couldn't control what was
happening. That bugged her the most because she had learned at a
young age to control her dreams.
Wrapping a thin robe around her waist, she didn't bother looking
through the peep hole. She threw the door open with a grumpy frown
on her face and stared straight into Casey's icy blue eyes smiling down
at her. Taken aback at him standing there, her mouth gaped at the
rose he held out to her. Her hand clenched at the front of her robe and
she took the rose while heat flooded her face. She had been sleeping
naked, so she wore nothing but the thin silk robe.
Her body reacted immediately to his eyes appraising her form. Her
nipples stood at attention. Turning quickly towards the kitchen she
tried to hide the fact that her body responded to him so easily.
"Please, come in."
A hand on her shoulder stopped her and she turned slightly to see
his face descending towards hers.
She expected to feel his lips on hers, but was surprised when they
brushed softly on her cheek and she heard his voice speaking softly
near her ear. "Hi, beautiful."
She wanted to moan, to turn in his arms and grab him to her.
Closing her eyes a smile slid across her lips, happy that he had shown
up, but wondering what the hell she was doing.
"Hi, Casey." She responded softly, leaning back against him when
his chest, his hand cupping her shoulder.
His free hand lifted the hair from her neck. He inhaled her scent
and brushed his lips across her quickened pulse. The dream rushed
back to her and she stiffened in his arms. When she stepped away, he
released her.
Moving away, he leaned nonchalantly against the counter and
watched her pull a glass down from the cabinet. The short robe lifted
and she felt the heat of his stare when her butt cheek peeped out.
.From the corner of her eyes, she saw the smile on his face. He
looked like he enjoyed watching her move around the kitchen. With
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her back still to him, she placed the white rose he had given her into
the tall clear glass.
His elbow rested lightly on the countertop. "Did you have a good
girl's day out?"
"Yes, it was very relaxing." Taking a deep breath, her shoulders
lifted and she turned around to face him.
"I see you got your hair cut." His eyes started at the top of her head
and slowly made its way down. A slight grin lifted the corner of his
mouth when she clenched the robe tighter around her. By doing so,
she unwittingly allowed him to see the outline of her breast even
better. His appraising eyes continued and he nodded. "I like it, looks
really good."
Her husband never noticed anything about her, especially not when
she got her hair cut. Once, she had even cut it from the middle of her
back to her collar and it took him nearly three weeks before he asked
if she had done something different. Yet Casey noticed it right away.
Wait, how did he know they had a girl's day out? Paige opened her
mouth to ask, but there was a knock on the door again, so she turned
and went to the door. This time however, she looked out the peep
hole and sighed.
Opening the door, Rosa came in with her usual whirlwind self, and
a big smile. "Hey Papí." Her hand trailed along his shoulder and
Paige felt her hackles rise slightly and shook her head at her reaction.
There was absolutely no reason for her to be jealous. Casey's eyes
never left her face.
She felt herself flush when his eyes crinkled in the corners and his
lip rose slightly in a knowing smile.
Rosa plopped down on the sofa and threw her long legs up on the
coffee table. With her hands resting behind her head, she made
herself at home in the small living room.
"I will be right back." Paige ducked her head and felt Casey's eyes
following her to the bedroom. She closed the door without looking
back at him.
Leaning against the door, she took a deep breath to calm her
pounding heart. Why was she having such a reaction to a man she
53
had barely met, not even twenty four hours ago. "Yet you slept with
him." She grumbled to herself and released a sigh. Slipping quickly
into her undergarments, she slipped on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and
headed back out to the living room.
Casey sat on the loveseat by the window, but Rosa was gone. He
responded to her questioning look. "She went back to her room, said
she had to get something for you."
Paige remembered a package was supposed to be delivered. But
that quickly left her mind when Casey patted the seat next to him.
She shook her head no, deciding it wasn't a good idea to snuggle with
him. She leaned against the bar that separated the kitchen from the
living area.
"I won't bite." He smiled and wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Too
hard."
Paige laughed nervously. "Uh, Casey, about last night." She
couldn't bring herself to look at him.
"I told you Paige, I wanted you and I still do." He lounged back on
the seat, one arm thrown casually across the back.
"I, uh. I'm married. I shouldn't have done that." She inspected her
manicured nail.
"I also remember telling you that your husband was a lucky man.
So, yeah, I'm aware you are married and I don't care." He spoke
softly. He patted the seat once again.
She heard the honesty in his words, and once again shook her head,
but this time she stared at him. She had to end this. She was in Japan
to work, not have an ongoing affair with a younger man. She opened
her mouth to speak, before she could, the look on his face stopped her.
"Paige." Casey stood and walked over to where she was. His hand
rose up to her face, his fingers slid gently across her cheek, his eyes
looked haunted. "I can't stop thinking about you. I know you are
married and I know I should feel bad about that, but I don't. He
should respect you and he doesn't."
How in the world would he know that! Paige stared at him,
wondering if she had gotten herself into something she wouldn't easily
get out of.
54
"I want to be with you." He continued staring at her, but he made
no move to touch her any further than the caress on her cheek.
"But that's impossible Casey. I can't do this. I love my husband."
"You love your husband because it's the right thing to do. But how
long has it been since he has told you he loved you and really meant
it? How long has it been since he loved you the way I did last night?
If ever?"
Closing her eyes she didn't know what she was going to do. Dalton
had never made her feel the way Casey had. But that had been about
sex. She and Dalton had twenty years together and couldn't throw that
all away for one night of great sex.
"I…" She didn't know what to say, His lips descended and grazed
hers and she melted against him. Her brain screamed at her to stop,
but her body said the exact opposite. The kiss deepened and he pulled
her to him. Their tongues battled for a moment before she pulled
away and buried her head in his chest.
"I know you are going to think I'm crazy, but Paige, I think I'm
already in love with you." He pulled her close, his voice barely above
a whisper.
With her head resting against her chest, she could hear his heart
beat strongly in her ear. Her throat was tight with emotions. His
words rang in her ears and she pulled back, staring at him,
dumbfounded.
He stared down at her with a look of sincere honesty. "I have never
fallen for anyone. When I saw you last night, I asked Rosa who you
were and she told me you were married. But I couldn't stop myself.
Paige, you can't go back to him."
This was way too strange. Men didn't declare their love for her, not
men like Casey, and especially not after just one night of being
together.
"Casey, I, uh, don't know what to say." Her arms locked around his
waist, her lower body still pressed against his, but her upper body
leaned back against the arms holding her around her back. She stared
up into his bright blue eyes.
55
"I'm not a stalker. You don't have to be afraid of me." He laughed
lightly. "If you tell me you don't want to see me, I'll go away. If you
can honestly tell me you don't feel the connection between us, I will
never bother you again."
Paige pulled out of his arms and ran her fingers through her hair,
not worried if she messed it up or not. What worried her was the fact
that she did feel a connection with him and she really didn't want him
to just go away. But, those feelings shouldn't be there, not so fast!
"Casey, I don't normally do things like this." She paced. "My life is
on a schedule. I do the same thing every day, like clockwork. I don't
deal with change." She shook her head and kept walking, staring at
the floor. She stopped, looked at him, waving her hand in the air.
"All this, is throwing me completely off balance and I don't know
what I am supposed to do."
"Sometimes, what you need is change in your life, Babe."
His facial muscles relaxed a bit when she didn't immediately tell