Read Online Only in Her Dreams by Christina McKnight - Free Book Online Page A

clean set. Greg had left for his internship soon after they purchased the old home, and they hadn’t gotten the chance to invite his sister and brother-in-law over to stay.
    Now, his family lived in the next state and didn’t keep in touch. She sighed. Alienation was a lonely thing.
    She had no one she could invite to stay. Her friends had mostly disappeared over the last year, whether it was her pushing them away or their choice, she didn’t know. Julie, Bret, and her mom were all she had. Julie and Bret lived only a few blocks away and her mother wasn’t in stable enough condition to stay with her.
    As she finished making the bed, she heard Maxim’s footsteps heading up the stairs.
    “I’m in here,” she called.
    “All the doors and windows are locked tight. I also put my own locking mechanism on the garage roll up door.”
    “Really? Thanks.”
    “Your broom’s handle works sufficiently for now.” Maxim walked into the room. “You don’t have to go through all this trouble. The old sheets would have been fine.”
    “It’s no trouble, really. You’re my first guest and these sheets were put on the bed the day Greg and I moved in. I’ve neglected my housekeeping duties over the last year.” She was babbling. She stopped and took a deep breath…in and out. Gathering the sheets from the floor she faced him, ready to let him settle in.
    “Thank you, again.” He bowed. His action seemed at odds with the time but she wouldn’t fault him for his gallant gesture.
    “Please stop thanking me,” she huffed. The man was all ‘thank you and please’; it was making her feel uncomfortable. It’d been a long time since a man had been polite to her.
    She moved past him, sheets pressed against her chest, and paused. “Oh, I left you a pair of pajamas on the dresser. You didn’t bring an overnight bag, did you?”
     
    # # #
     
    Maxim had no more settled in bed, the lights extinguished, when an image of Lucessa burst into his head. Physical attraction to humans was something he forbade himself to entertain. His connection to Lucessa surprised and confused him. Pushing all thoughts of her from his mind, he concentrated on her other qualities. She’d grown from the childish exuberance and charm of her dreams into an educated woman. The changes were subtle, with the most obvious being her maturity. Her hair flowed down her back in mahogany waves, her eyes were a clear dark blue, not unlike his own; and her smile brightened something deep inside him.
    A shuffling noise disturbed his wandering mind. The sound was most likely the house settling, but he needed to investigate to be sure. He slipped out of bed and eased across the floor, his steps silent. The door to the hall opened without a squeak and he was met by Lucessa, bat in hand, in the hallway.
    The woman was determined to get herself hurt.
    “What are you doing out here?” he whispered.
    “I heard something. I wanted to make sure you were all right and have everything you need.” She blinked in the bright hall light.
    “Why are you carrying the baseball bat, then?”
    Lucessa blinked again and glanced down. Confusion clouded her face. Did she realize she clutched the bat to her chest? Her knuckles were white. He pried her fingers from around the bat’s handle and set it against the wall.
    “Stay here. I’ll look around.” He slid against the wall and down the staircase, looking for anything out of place. He rounded the corner into the kitchen. The back door had been jimmied.
    Maxim swung around and caught Lucessa inching down the stairs behind him. She couldn’t listen to simple directions. Several shadows moved across the living room behind her.
    Darius and his men were back. He hadn’t expected them so soon, at least a few days for his twin to digest the relationship between Lucessa and Guy, before coming up with a new plan of action. Maxim wasn’t used to being wrong where Darius was concerned.
    With a finger to his lips, he moved beyond