Dream Catcher (Woodland Creek)

“S-so what are you exactly?” The flutters in my stomach started to feel like butterflies that had been stomped on, broken wings and lies tainted what was left. Warren tensed through his reflection in the bathroom mirror, clean shaven and yet not himself.

“Kerri, it’s complicated.” Holding up my hand, I willed him to be truthful and tell me what I’d seen wasn’t real.

It was a mistake.

A dream and nothing more.

“That’s not an answer.” I wavered, and his lips pressed together and his brow furrowed. I imagined the lines of his face changing and I shook it off. I didn’t even know what I’d seen out there at the park. I didn’t have any proof, but my heart knew and beat frantically at the possibilities. I didn’t want to have to say the words because then it might have actually been real, and then I wouldn’t be crazy, because maybe crazy was better and easier than whatever that might have been.

“It’s not what you think. I’m not…we’re not going to hurt you.” He put the towel down on top of the toilet, but stayed inside the bathroom. I thought about bolting, but the distance from the hallway to the door wasn’t much, and I knew he would catch me.

“So there are more of you? Not just what I saw out there?” He was quiet, thinking maybe, and took a step toward me, nodding.

“Yes. There are more of us.” I felt like prey when his eyes dilated and the nostrils on his nose flared.

“I saw what you did. You changed, you’re not you.” Warren stepped toward me and the nervous energy returned. I was confused, unsure, and void of emotion.

“I see the way you look at me.” Stepping backward into the living room near the fireplace, the heel of my flat shoe caught behind me, making me stumble slightly into the wall behind me. Warren reached out to me and I put my hands out to ward him off. Our eyes never left each other while my heart pounded faster in my chest with nowhere to go.

“How do I look at you, Kerri? Say it. Say the words.” Was he joking? His eyes were gray with golden flecks against his tan skin and even darker hair. Shaking my head, I blinked my eyes and swore he’d licked his lips.

“Like you’re hungry and I’m the only food source for miles around.” He was smirking and trying not to laugh, which made me mad. Angrier than I felt when Dillon let me down. I reached behind me to steady myself, grabbing the fire poker near the stack of wood.

Would I actually hit him with it?

I didn’t think I could. He’d never hurt me and if anything he’d been kind and generous since I got to Woodland Creek. Warren took a step near me and I stepped back again. There wasn’t much room between us and my discomfort grew along with my conflicted feelings for him.

“Tell me what you think I am.” Firmly, he waited and the air sucked out of the vacuum, leaving just us and the truth.

“A wolf.” It choked me, but there it was. I’d said it and all the jokes I vaguely recalled between Jase, Reagan, and Warren came back to me. Silly things that now fell into place and made the puzzle an actual picture.

“Would that be a bad thing, dear heart?” The air between us crackled and tingled against my skin. The scent of pine permeated the house and Warren’s skin fluidly moved muscle over bone when he stepped closer.

“I-I don’t know. I’ve been looking all my life for something good, as stupid as that sounds. Warren, what happened in those woods…I don’t know you at all, do I?” I wanted him to understand my life hadn’t been easy. Being Dillon’s girlfriend came with a shit ton of baggage I’d only started to deal with when I ended it with him.

“Why, because I treat you the way a woman should be treated? I might have kept something from you, but I had to protect you since you don’t live in our world.”

I tried to interrupt him, but he kept going. “Don’t blame me for your ex’s behavior. You deserve to be appreciated, Kerri, and that’s all I wanted you to see.” Warren was practically a prince among men, maybe a dark prince, and I didn’t know what to do with that.

“Don’t you get it, Warren, all this time you’ve made me feel special, like a princess…” Tears broke through my lids, stinging my eyes. “I’ve been so scared it’s really the big, bad wolf coming to get me and maybe I was right.” Warren made a face, looking away for a moment, shielding his eyes. A strangled sound that could have been a laugh or a growl emitted from him as he put a hand over his mouth and then ran his fingers through his hair, pulling on the uneven shaggy locks.

“Kerri, honey, you have no idea what kind of big, bad wolf I can be.” Warren pressed on, standing chest to chest with me. He grabbed the poker from my hand I hadn’t realized I’d clutched in my panic and flung it to the floor several feet away. The ringing rattle of metal on wood vibrated in the house. “Just know that I’ll always be the one that protects you.” Warren grabbed my arms and hauled me against him. My back was flush against the wall and he wedged a leg between my own, breathing heavy and panting into my hair.

“One what?” My eyes closed as I asked the question, unsure of what to anticipate next in his answer. The woods flashed back to me and everything I saw there replayed in slow motion. The twist of skin, muscles twitching to rip clothing, and the hair that covered him.

“Wolf.” Warren slammed his lips against mine, growling and sucking the soft tissue between his sharp teeth. Sensations drowned me. Air was forced from my lungs and the dizzy feeling overwhelmed me as he thrust his tongue inside my mouth, stroking the inside, claiming me with each unhurried and controlled movement. Nerve endings fired rapidly and Warren tasted of spice, melted ice and happy endings I never thought possible.

The kiss was an unspoken bond between us. I let my fingernails rake over his shoulders and back, clutching him closer to me.

“I want only you, Kerri, but I need you to accept me as I am.”

“Yes, Warren.” I didn’t care what I was agreeing to as long as I didn’t have to give him up. Against his warm body I felt light-headed again. His mere presence continued to overwhelm me as I learned by taste and touch what he was without the words.

“There’s something I need to tell you first.” Holding me up by my arms, he gave me a gentle shake, dissipating the heady spell of emotions flooding my body and the space we occupied.

“Haven’t we covered all the bases? I think I know what I saw out in the woods.” Uncomfortable, I laughed and Warren hesitated. Could I have been wrong?

“I’ve, uh, I’ve never done this before.” Speech robbed me for a moment. What was he talking about?