She placed a hand on his arm. “No, it’s not a matter of trust.”
“Then what is it, Camilla? Because I don’t see any other explanation.” She bit her lip, and some of Marco’s tension eased—Cam never bit her lip. He took her hand and said, “What is it? You can tell me.”
She looked away. “The last thing I want is for you to think I’m one of those clingy, needy women.”
He smiled. “Somehow, Camilla, I doubt that is possible.”
At his amused tone, she shot him a look. Good, her fire was back.
“Maybe I should become one, just to piss you off then.”
He squeezed her hand. “You’re deflecting. Tell me what’s wrong, because I’m not going to let you off the hook, even if it takes me the entire plane ride to wheedle it out of you.”
She sighed. “And you would, too. Fine. Ever since I’ve woken up from the whole jumping-into-the-ocean thing, whenever I try to close my eyes, I feel as if I’m back on that boat, helpless and weak. Unless…”
He brushed her cheek. “Unless what?” She mumbled something he couldn’t hear, so he said, “Louder, Camilla.”
She blurted out, “Unless I can feel you next to me. For reasons I can’t explain, your scent seems to calm me.”
Marco blinked. He’d worried about her trusting him, and here she was, telling him he was the only thing that helped chase away her nightmares.
He knew how hard that admission was for her, so for once he wasn’t going to tease her. Instead, he raised the armrest between them. “Then come here and lean against me.”
She hesitated, and he had a feeling he knew why. “Denying a weakness is far more dangerous than admitting one. If sleeping against me will help you get the strength you need for our upcoming visit, then do it. Seeing as I haven’t showered in nearly a day, there’s plenty of eau de Marco to chase away even your worst nightmares.”
Cam smiled, and he knew he had her. She eased against him and he pulled her close with his arm before laying his head on top of hers. “Do you think you can sleep now, even without a sleeping pill?”
She nuzzled against his chest. “Yes, I think there’s enough eau de Marco to lull me to sleep.”
He chuckled. “Good girl. Now sleep, I’ll wake you when we’re about thirty minutes from landing.”
“Marco?”
“Yes, Camilla?”
Her voice was sleepy when she answered. “Thank you.”
He sat up and leaned his head against the seat. “Hush and go to sleep.”
She stilled and soon her breathing started to even out, telling him she was asleep.
He brushed her hair back with his free hand and studied her face as he thought about what she’d admitted to him. Even though they’d only known each other a short time, she’d given him her trust both in and out of the bedroom.
And considering all of the shit she’d gone through with her ex, he wasn’t about to take it for granted.
Cam mumbled something in her sleep and snuggled closer against him, if that were possible, and her actions shifted something inside of him. It’d been a long time since he’d had a woman to look after. Too long, in fact.
She’d given him something, so Marco decided he’d give her something in return. Once they landed and were some place secure, he was going to tell her about the other Elemental Masters.
Cam suddenly appeared in the middle of an empty water park. Looking down, she noted the skimpy bikini, and was grateful that no one was around to see it.
But while she could see the sun in the sky, she didn’t feel any warmth. Determined to find out why she was half-naked at an empty water park, she started walking. When she passed a large jungle gym-like structure standing in the middle of a shallow wading pool, she heard a unique whistle.
She looked over and noticed a woman in a bright pink bathing suit, her curly hair plastered against her head as a large tub of water poured over her. Once the water stopped flowing, the woman climbed down the structure and headed over to Cam.
When the woman was close enough, Cam said, “Neena, care to tell me why you decided to bring me to a water park?”
Neena grinned. “Well, I needed to dream-speak with you, and I didn’t know how long you were going to take to get here. So I decided to find a place to play and relax while I waited.”