Wildest Dreams (Rogue Dream Fae Book 3) Page 4

  He puts a hand out, keeping me back, as if I’d be trying to run forward right now.

  When there’s a man with a gun in his hand, I’m perfectly happy to cower behind a gorgeous, towering dream fae with magical powers.

  Jerrek puts his hand out, and magic burns there, forming a glowing red orb that starts apple-size and grows to the size of a small basketball, burning like the sun. He pulls his arm back, aiming the ball at the man. “Die, fiend!”

  I grab his hand just as he throws it forward, jerking his aim off to the side. The glowing ball of magic fire hits my couch, instantly incinerating it with a loud hiss that leaves even the ground beneath it burning with little red flames.

  The guy holding the gun drops it, puts his hands up, looks from me to Jerrek, and nearly trips running out of the house.

  “I need to get him,” Jerrek says, face still furious as he starts through the window. I grab his arm, yanking him back. “Why did you stop me? You ruined my aim.” His wine-colored eyes are glowing, hints of purple at the center. “He should have died.”

  “You can’t just murder people,” I say, jerking him back again.

  “Yes, I can,” he says, carefully trying to extract himself from my reach. But I’m like a spider monkey, holding on every which way I can to keep him from going.

  I look over his shoulder to see the guy making a run for it, tripping on some bushes, and going into the wilderness across from my house. “I gotta call the cops, Jerrek. Good God, just listen to me for a moment. Just stop!”

  That finally gets him to calm, and he steps back into the house, sucking in and letting out a breath of pure frustration at not being able to stalk his prey.

  As he folds his arms and stares down at me, hair streaming wildly over his shoulder, armor gleaming on his huge, perfect body, I feel just a small thrill of excitement.

  This guy really is perfect. If only we had more than a week.

  If only things were different.

  He turns away from me with a little huff. “Go do what you need to. I will behave.” He glances over his shoulder at me tentatively. “Also, I have a proposition for you, when you’re ready.”

  I cock my head. “What?”

  He turns around. “Don’t you need to call the cops?”

  I sigh, then send a text to Jackie, telling her to call the cops and send them to my location.

  They can start to track him from there. At least, so far, no one was hurt.

  And his family is somewhere safe.

  “I dealt with it,” I say, putting my phone away and looking up to see Jerrek waving his hand, fully repairing my window. He snaps his fingers, and my couch appears, perfectly fine, and there’s no more magic burning on the ground.

  He walks over to me and picks me up in his arms.

  “Wait—”

  “Hush, just let me hold you,” he says. “That scared me.” He tucks me against his chest, making me feel small and helpless but also safe in his arms.

  “Scared you?” I snort. “A big, strong fairy?”

  “Scared me that something could happen to you,” he says, placing a kiss to the top of my head.

  I glare at him because it’s an oddly intimate gesture. But for some reason, it also feels natural for him.

  And we were together one night, and we have been friends since then.

  “Well, I’m fine,” I say, stroking a lock of his hair back. “Thanks for coming.”

  “I would always come,” he says.

  “What about after that lady claims your reservation?”

  His expression tightens. “That won’t happen.”

  I sit up in his lap, pushing against his chest. “Jerrek, we’ve been over this.”

  “I had an idea. Well, Lorien did,” he says. “We go to my world for the week.”

  I raise an eyebrow. “Seriously?”

  He leans back. “Who was that man anyway?”

  “The husband of someone I work with,” I say.

  “Ah,” he says. “Well, then this vacation can be dual purpose. Give me a chance to show you everything I have to offer outside the constraints of the human world and also ensure that man can’t find you. What do you have to lose?”

  “The police will find him,” I say.

  “What if they don’t?”

  He seems almost cocky about it, like he almost has me convinced.

  I narrow my eyes. “What’s the dream world like?”

  “Beautiful,” he says. “Like the most beautiful parts of the human world, but more enhanced. And there are things there you can’t even imagine.” He grins. “And unicorns to ride.”

  “Unicorns?” I can’t really hide my excitement about that.

  “What do you have to lose?” he repeats, stroking my cheek lightly.

  “It’s more what you have to lose,” I say. “I don’t want to get your hopes up. If I can’t save you—”

  He shakes his head. “It’s not your responsibility to save me. If you don’t want me, then I want you to leave, and I’ll deal with the rest. Of course, I would never blame you for what becomes of my life.”

  “Maybe I’d blame myself,” I say.

  “You will want me,” Jerrek says. “You will feel what I do. That we’re made to be together. That no one could make either of us as happy as we would be with each other.”

  I sigh. “You just can’t know that. And you have to know that it’s likely that, at the end of this, I’m going to leave you. And feel terrible about it.”

  I truly am tempted. It would be a good time to have a vacation. But…

  I jerk up. “Wait. I can’t. My mom.”

  “What about her?”

  “I need to be here so they can reach me if they need help. If she has a bad day and needs me.”

  “Where is she?”

  “She’s in a home,” I say. “She wasn’t safe when I was at work. She kept forgetting where she was and panicking.”

  “Her mind is failing,” he says. “That’s odd, considering she’s dream fae. Perhaps we should take her back to my world with us.”

  “Is that even possible?”

  He nods. “If you’re a dream fae, then she likely is too. Our healers may be able to help.”

  “The doctors say it’s Alzheimer’s.” I sigh. “Early-onset. Severe. It’s so unfair. She already had things so hard.”

  He puts his arms around me, holding me tight. “Perfect. We can help your mother while you see the kingdom with me, experience what I have to offer. Hopefully, something positive can happen either way.”

  I glare up at him, still skeptical. “So you’re just going to let me go home at the end, if I don’t want you?”

  “Soul bond, you’re my everything. I only want you to be happy. If you can’t be happy with me, then I would want you to go be happy. But at least this way, you’re giving me a fighting chance. I think I deserve that.”

  I think for a moment. “I guess so. What do we do to hide the fact that we’re taking my mom with us?”

  “Leave it to me,” he says with a wink. “I think I can put a charm on the staff there so they won’t notice for at least a week. But I’ll assess that when we get there.” He gently stands, setting me on my feet. “Can I help you with anything you need to pack?”

  “I got it,” I say, jogging for the stairs. On the way to my room, I glance down at the window. At Jerrek standing in the middle of my living room.

  Perhaps I have been working too hard. And that crazy guy might show up again.

  And my mom… There might be hope for her.

  I’m really glad Jerrek showed up. Coming when I needed him at least gives me a sign of something worth chasing.

  And I would love to see the dream fae world.

  “I’ll be down in a minute,” I say. Then I rush into my room to pack up so we can go get my mom.

  6

  Sandra

  I don’t know what I expected from the dream fae world, but I would have to say my first impression is that it’s beautiful a
nd clean.

  Even the walkways of the hall we’re going down sparkle, like the granite here is made of pure glitter and rainbows.

  Dream fae really like their rainbows.

  “This is the healing ward for our kingdom,” Jerrek says, opening the door and leading us into another wing of the large castle we’re in.

  “What’s going on?” My mother is confused by all of this, though I’m glad she isn’t going into a panic like she often does when we leave hospice.

  I’m afraid to even hope something could help her, but I have to give it a try.

  I have to give all of this a try just in case it’s my chance at happiness.

  “We’re just seeing a new doctor, Mom,” I say. She nods warily, allowing me to lead her through the doors with her hand on my arm.

  She took care of me my whole life, and it’s an honor to take care of her now. I only ever wish I could do more.

  She gives Jerrek a grin, then looks at me. “Handsome man. Where’d you find him?”

  I’ve answered this several times, but I just smile. “I met him through Tess.”

  “Mmm. I want one like him.” She nods.

  A beautiful woman with arms extended, in a white, shimmering robe, approaches us, smiling softly. “Ah, so this is our new resident. Welcome, my name is Serena.”

  “Serena,” my mom says, looking slightly hazy. “Nice to meet you.” She gives Serena a hug, much to my shock, and Serena puts an arm around my mom to lead her away.

  “This is Roberta, my mother,” I say.

  “I’m going to show her to her room.” Serena looks at me for confirmation. “Is that okay?”

  I look at Jerrek. “They aren’t going to do anything… experimental? Or harmful?”

  He turns to me, rubbing my shoulders and warming me immediately. “The last thing I would allow is anyone to hurt her.” He looks at Serena. “If she comes to harm, there will be severe consequences.”

  “We will be careful, prince,” Serena says, bowing her head to him. “You know our only wish is to heal. She has dream fae blood. She is a warrior. She has been through much. Perhaps with simple pampering and relaxation, here in the dream realm, she will recover her strength.”

  It seems impossible, but God, I hope so.

  “Come on,” Serena says, leading my mom down the hallway. “You should see your room. Jerrek recommended the most beautiful…”

  Serena’s voice trails off as she goes down the hall, leaving me with Jerrek.

  My mom already looks better, unless I’m imagining it. I kind of want to go to her, help more, but Jerrek slides a hand around my waist.

  “It’ll be okay. Let them do their work to help her heal. She’ll be spoiled beyond all reason, I promise.” He leans down to kiss the top of my head, and I have to admit I love when he does it, even if it is presumptuous. “Besides, this is your vacation too. You work hard, and you were almost hurt, and—”

  “You’re right,” I say, folding my arms and letting Jerrek gently usher me away from the healing ward. “I don’t like it, though, leaving her alone.”

  “I know,” he says. “And that’s one thing I love about you. You take doing your duty seriously. But I take my duty seriously also, and it’s my job to show you this place and help you relax. Not to mention help you find your dream mate.”

  I raise an eyebrow. “Isn’t that you?”

  Jerrek smirks. “Obviously. But since you need to decide that for yourself, I need all the time I can get with you.”

  We walk down a hallway, passing fae who stare at us curiously. Even though I’m wearing red robes similar to Jerrek’s, which shimmer like all the material here, it’s clear I don’t fit in.

  It’s not the color of my skin. Interestingly enough, dream fae come in all colors, like humans do. But it’s the way I’m staring at everything around us, wondering how this world could be so different and yet so similar to my own.

  He takes my hand. “Come on.” We cross a busy foyer and head up the stairs to a door on the left. He knocks, then pulls me in, and a small man with a kind smile and a long white beard looks up at us.

  “Can I help you?” His eyes narrow, and he grins and stands, hands extended. “Jerrek! My boy, I’ve missed you.”

  “It’s only been a few weeks,” Jerrek says, releasing me to go engulf the older man in a hug. “Albert, is my mother around? I’d like to introduce her, and you, to my dream mate, Sandra. Sandra, this is my mother’s second attendant, Albert.”

  I blink then take his hand, shaking it. “Nice to meet you, Albert.”

  Albert’s eyes narrow shrewdly. “Dream mate, is it?” There’s a pleased gleam in his eye. “Everyone thought Jerrek was crazy, but it doesn’t appear to be that way, does it?” He grins at Jerrek. “We never should have doubted you.”

  “You never did,” Jerrek says.

  Albert nods. “I knew that, as a warrior, it’s impossible to deny if you have a dream mate. Your mother is my dream mate, you know.”

  “But you’re…”

  “Part of her harem?” Albert laughs. “Yes. But I always knew she was the woman I wanted to be with and serve all my days. I have enough time to serve my passions and spend time with her. It is fine. She is still my dream.”

  “Your mother has a harem?” I ask, still shocked by it, even though I’ve heard the dream fae mention harems before.

  “Yes,” Jerrek says. “Many powerful queens do.” He frowns. “I hope you won’t, though.”

  “Of course not,” I say. “It’s hard enough to trust one man. I don’t need more than one.” I laugh.

  “Where is my mother?” Jerrek asks. “I’m looking for her.”

  Albert frowns. “Up on the outer wall. Big group of scarlaths showed up today. She’s supervising the warriors. Could probably use your help, but she might not want to be bothered.”

  Jerrek nods. “I’ll play it by ear.” He puts his arm out for me. “Should we go see the outer wall? Want to see how we deal with danger in this kingdom?”

  I nod. “I’d love that.”

  As we walk through the twisting, winding hallways of the palace again, it occurs to me that I’ve only seen the inner courtyards, sparkling and surrounded with lush, exotic greenery.

  I haven’t seen what lies past the walls.

  Jerrek keeps me close as he opens a door that leads up a long, spiral staircase made of old stone. Walking up sends little rocks skittering ominously down to the bottom, but Jerrek pays it no mind.

  He simply leads me up and out, and I squint as the bright daylight shines over us, nearly blinding.

  We’re standing on a huge stone wall like they have in medieval castles, and my mouth falls open as I see dream warriors in armor patrolling all sides.

  Jerrek pulls me past them, which is fine because they’re either shouting orders or aiming magic down at something below the wall.

  Jerrek pulls me to a spot where the wall moves up to form a platform someone could stand on and look over everything, surrounded by turrets. Atop it, a tall woman is standing with folded arms, surveying everything around her and occasionally barking orders.

  “Mother, do you have a minute?” Jerrek calls out.

  She turns, and the imperious gaze of a queen pins me to the spot. Her eyes are red wine, like Jerrek’s. Her face is lined, her age proportionate to Albert’s, though who knows how old they are in reality?

  Dream fae live a really long time, according to Jerrek.

  “I suppose.” Her eyes light on me. “What for?”

  “This is my dream mate,” he says, taking my hand and pulling me forward.

  She sends an impatient look over the side of the wall. “Don’t get me wrong. I really would like to meet your mate, Jerrek. But we’re having some real trouble with one of the scarlaths—”

  “You can’t get it?” he asks.

  She puts her hands on her hips. “I could if I hadn’t used too much of my energy, being without my strongest warrior for the past month.”

 
Jerrek grimaces but grins. “I’ll handle it.” He pulls me up to stand by his mother. “You can watch.”

  The next moment, his armor appears on his body and he jumps over the side of the wall, and I have to run forward and look down to see where he went.

  I gasp when I see what’s beyond the walls of Jerrek’s kingdom.

  Dark, scorched land for most of what I can see. Close to the castle, things are still green and lush but currently being burned by huge creatures that are spraying smoke and fire across the land.

  Fae are fighting them from the parapets, but it’s no use. The monsters keep coming.

  The largest of them, at the front, keeps catching dream whips or attacks and absorbing or sending them back. It’s at least thirty feet high and looks like a giant shadow of dark energy. It has arms and legs, but that’s about all I can make out.

  How can Jerrek handle something this big if all the rest of the fae couldn’t?

  “I know what you’re thinking,” Jerrek’s mother says. “But my son is incredibly strong. It hasn’t always been easy for him because he can’t control his whip, but his power is unmatched.”

  As I watch, Jerrek’s hand produces a ball of red energy, which glows as he approaches the scarlath, as that creature must be called.

  When he’s twenty feet away, he pulls his hand back, then unleashes it toward the creature. When the fireball hits, it instantly engulfs the scarlath in flame. It shrieks as it burns, slower than my couch but still almost fast enough to be unbelievable.

  Jerrek isn’t done, though. Untouched in his gleaming armor, he makes another ball of energy, sending it at another scarlath. Then another. And another.

  Until there are no more creatures attacking and the battlefield is black and singed and empty.

  Quiet, until the shouts of the fae warriors on the parapets ring out.

  “Amazing,” Jerrek’s mother says, looking down.

  Jerrek’s wings fly out, and he lifts into the air and gently touches down on the wall, extending his arms for me as his wings retract into his back. “What did you think, soul bond?”

  I walk over to him, feeling awkward, but pull him into a hug. It feels good to hold him.