Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 90503 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 453(@200wpm)___ 362(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90503 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 453(@200wpm)___ 362(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
“No need to apologize. Can I get you anything? Water?”
I shook my head. “I’m okay. I just need to be still for a minute.”
He kissed my temple. “Okay.”
Closing my eyes, I concentrated on my breathing, inhaling and exhaling deeply and slowly, letting the ebb and flow of it calm me. Dallas rubbed my back in gentle, soothing circles.
I opened my eyes and looked at him. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Now can I make a joke about a snake in the bed?”
My lips tipped up, but my stomach still felt a little uneasy. “Go ahead.”
He sighed. “Nah. Wouldn’t even be fun. You sure you’re all right?”
I nodded, but I wasn’t. Not really. Why wouldn’t that stupid nightmare let me be? What if it had nothing to do with closure? What if Dallas and I parted ways tomorrow and I still couldn’t sleep at night? I blinked back tears and sniffed.
“Hey. Come here.” Dallas lay back on the pillows and reached for me, and I molded myself to his side with my head on his warm, broad chest. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed the top of my head. “Talk to me. Do you have nightmares a lot?”
“Lately, I do. The same one.” I described the dream to him in full detail. “It sounds so stupid. But it feels so real while it’s happening. And I don’t know what it is or how to stop having it. I’ve tried everything.”
“Like what?”
“Meditation. Yoga. Detoxing. Melatonin. Clearing my chakras.”
“Your what?”
Laughing a little, I looked up at him. “My chakras. They’re sort of like spiritual focal points in the body. Energy flows through them, and if they’re blocked or cluttered with … stagnant baggage like fear or pain or negativity, you don’t feel right. You have to clear that stuff to reconnect with your inner wisdom and allow your consciousness to grow and guide you.”
“Not gonna lie, that sounds a little strange to me, but you do you.”
I clucked my tongue. “Dallas, have you been neglecting your chakras?”
“Safe to say I have.”
“They’re probably a mess. I should teach you how to clear them.”
“Thanks for the offer, but we’re focused on you, remember? What can I do to make you feel better?”
Sighing, I put my head on his chest again. “I don’t know. I actually thought just being with you would help.”
“With me? Why?”
“Okay, this might sound sort of strange too, but I believe dreams deliver powerful messages from the universe to our subconscious mind. When you showed up yesterday, I thought maybe the dream had been a warning.”
“Am I the snake? That’s kind of badass.”
“Hey!” I slapped him lightly on the chest. “That snake is seriously messing with my mental and physical well-being. It’s not a good thing.”
“Sorry, sorry.” He squeezed me. “Go on. What did you think it had to do with me?”
“I thought maybe …” I focused on my fingertips against his skin. “It was about getting closure on my relationship with you. To be honest, that was really the only thing in my life I had unresolved feelings about. I’ve been having the nightmare for a few weeks now, and then you showed up out of nowhere, and in my head, the message was clear: this is the opportunity for resolution. So when you asked me to dinner, I said yes.”
“Wait a minute. That’s the only reason you said yes? For closure? I’m a little offended you weren’t thinking about my good looks and sparkling personality, Maren. I feel used.”
“Okay, it was a little bit about those things. You’re still sort of charming, and you do have a cute butt. But mostly it was about me.”
“Sort of charming?” He flipped me onto my back, pinning my wrists to the mattress above my head.
I giggled. “Didn’t you hear the part about your cute butt?”
He glanced over his shoulder. “It is pretty cute.”
“And I like other parts of you, too.”
One eyebrow cocked up. “Oh yeah? Which ones?”
My entire body tingled as he lowered his mouth to my neck. “Give me my hands back, and I’ll show you.”
“I don’t think so.” He worked his way across my throat, his lips and tongue warm on my skin. “I want to hear you tell me about them.”
“I like your smile and the little chip in your tooth.”
He picked up his head and eyeballed me. “This is not a promising start.” But he lowered it again and kissed a path from the base of my throat down the center of my sternum.
“I like your chin. It has a dimple I always want to kiss.”
Against my thigh I could feel his erection growing harder.
“I like your nose. It’s just the tiniest bit crooked.”
He looked up at me and dragged his scruffy jaw across my chest. “It’s taken a few punches.”
“Did you deserve them?”
“Probably.” He took one nipple between his teeth and flicked it softly with his tongue.