Heartsick and depressed, she slept most of the day away. But there was no escaping Rhys in her dreams, either…
He came to her, an apparition dressed all in black, his dark blond hair glowing like a halo in the darkness. His voice whispered over her skin like a caress.
“Megan.” Just her name, filled with such longing it brought quick tears to her eyes.
“Rhys. I wish…”
He covered her mouth with his hand. “Don’t say it. I can’t change what I am. I can’t give you the life you deserve. I only wanted to make love to you one last time.”
She shook her head. “This isn’t real.”
His gaze burned into hers. “It’s as real as you want it to be.”
And because she wanted to hold him, love him, she closed her eyes and surrendered to his touch. His hands glided over her body, each stroke a symphony played by a master musician. She clung to him, wanting to be closer, closer, to believe it was more than a dream.
She shivered when his tongue slid along the tender flesh below her ear, moaned softly as his teeth grazed her skin.
He was biting her! For one endless moment of time, she gave herself up to the sensual pleasure of it. It was, after all, only a dream.
Wasn’t it?
As from far away, she heard Shirl calling her name.
With a start, Megan opened her eyes, her heart pounding, her body warm and tingling from his touch.
Jumping off the sofa, she ran into the bathroom. Holding her hair away from her neck, she turned her head to the side and looked in the mirror, her stomach knotting when she saw the truth reflected in the mirror.
There, on the left side of her neck, two tiny bites and a single drop of blood.
“It had to be a dream,” Shirl said.
They were sitting at the kitchen table, eating the Chinese takeout Shirl had brought home for dinner.
Megan pointed at the bites on her neck. “Do these look like a dream to you?”
“What?” Shirl leaned forward. “I don’t see anything.”
Megan frowned. “There were two bites there just a few minutes ago.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course I’m sure.” Jumping to her feet, Megan ran into the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror. She turned her head this way and that, but her skin was smooth and unblemished.
Frowning, Megan went back into the kitchen and resumed her seat. “I was so sure….” She shook her head. Maybe it had been a dream. But what if it wasn’t? “Okay, so I imagined the whole thing. You’re the vampire expert. How can I keep him out of the house?”
“Well, according to lore, you have to rescind your invitation.”
“How do I do that?”
“You need to say that you take it back, that he’s not welcome here anymore.”
“Don’t I have to say it to his face?”
“No, I don’t think so. Just do it.”
Feeling a little foolish, Megan said, “Rhys Costain, I revoke my invitation. You are no longer welcome in my home.” Was it her imagination, or did the house seem to sigh? “How do we know if it worked?”
“I don’t know,” Shirl said, shrugging. “Wait and see, I guess.”
It took all the energy Megan possessed to get up and get ready for work Tuesday night. She didn’t want to go to Shore’s, but she didn’t want to spend another day curled up on the sofa, brooding, either.
Because it suited her mood, she wore a black sheath to work. Black was the color of mourning, after all.
And of vampires…
She shook the thought from her mind. She would not think of him.
She was surprised when Drexel came into the shop shortly after ten.
“Hey, babe,” he said. “How are you?”
“I’m doing all right. I’m sorry about Kenny. I know how close the two of you were.”
“Yeah, Ken was with me when we first started.” He cleared his throat. “Best songwriter I ever knew. We’re gonna miss him.”
“How about you?” she asked. “No ill effects from the fire?”
He shrugged. “My throat was sore for a few days. Nothing major.” He lifted his arm, which was bandaged from elbow to wrist. “The burn turned out to be worse than they first thought. Doc says I’ll probably have a nasty scar.” A muscle twitched in his jaw. “But it could have been worse. Anyway, I came by hoping that dude who was with you might be here. I want to thank him for getting me on that ambulance when he did.”
“I’m sorry, he’s not here.”
“Well, give him my thanks when you see him, will you?”
“Yes, of course.” She blinked away the tears scorching the backs of her eyes. “Can I show you anything tonight?”
“Just your gorgeous self,” he said with a wink.
Megan shook her head. “Take care of yourself.”
“You too, babe. My proposal still stands, anytime you want to say yes.”
For one mad, crazy moment, she was tempted to accept. Why not? Rhys was gone, and she was tired of being alone. Drexel was cute; he was rich; he was famous. If she married him, she could have anything her heart desired—houses, luxury cars, expensive clothes and jewelry. Anything she wanted. Except the man she loved.
“We’re going on tour day after tomorrow, but I’ll stop in when I get back.” Leaning forward, Drexel kissed her cheek. “See you soon, babe.”
With a farewell wave to Mr. Parker, Drexel left the store.
Megan stared after him. She had always been fond of him, but there was a subtle difference in their relationship now, born of the fact that they had shared and survived a terrifying experience.
The rest of the night crawled by. Megan waited on several customers, but she felt as though she was moving through quicksand, as if time itself had altered somehow since that night in the park.
She was grieving for Rhys as if he had passed away, she thought, or maybe she was mourning the loss of their relationship. But she’d get over it.
“Are you all right, Megan?” Mr. Parker asked, coming up beside her.
She nodded. It wouldn’t be easy, but her heart would heal, in time.
Rhys stood outside of Shore’s, his presence cloaked from passersby as he gazed through the window, watching Megan move about the store.
He had tried to stay away, told himself they were both better off. In spite of the lies he had told himself, he had known from the beginning that, sooner or later, she would discover what he was and that knowledge would put an end to their relationship. He just hadn’t expected it to happen so soon, or to hurt so damn bad.