Page 9 of He Will Always Love Me

I feel whole. Complete. Like I was never meant to be anywhere else.

Then a shadow overtakes everything. Karvex breaks away from the embrace and begins going away from me. Like he’s going to fight it.

I try to chase after him, but no matter what I do, I can’t seem to catch up to him.

The shadows loom closer, swallowing up everything around it.

And then it consumes me.

I jolt awake, my breath coming in ragged gasps.

What was that?

Karvex as an Ishani. The darkness swallowing everything. And the strange loving embrace Karvex and I shared.

Strangely, that feeling above all the others sticks out to me. That undeniable love between the two of us was so strong. So real.

I shake my head, trying to clear away the dream. Because that’s all it was. A dream. A crazy, fever-induced dream.

“Are you going to stop looking like a scared animal anytime soon?”

A small scream escapes me as I notice for the first time that Karvex is beside me.

“What are you doing here?” I ask hoarsely.

He frowns at me, like this is somehow my fault. “I heard you making all sorts of noises in your sleep. I thought someone was trying to kill you. Or maybe you were just dying from whatever weird human illness you have.”

I open my mouth to speak and then close it again, the energy suddenly leaving me. Between the fever and the lack of good sleep, I don’t feel like exchanging witty banter tonight.

This close to him, the memories from the dream come flooding back to me.

His warmth. His love. The love and warmth I felt for him.

It’s almost palpable again, now that he’s sitting here near me. It’s like if I simply reach out and caress his dark skin, that feeling will flood through me. I’ve never felt so compelled to want anything as much as I crave the affection of the Karvex in my dreams. If only they were the same, and he could hold me and make me understand.

I shake my head again. It’s ridiculous. Sure, he's been treating me better, but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything.

And he was an Ishani of all things in the dream. The sheer ridiculousness of that one fact should negate any of those loving emotions.

And yet it doesn’t.

Instead, looking at him there beside me, I only feel them all the more.

CHAPTER 5

KARVEX

Silence takes over the space between us as the seconds tick away. Despite the temptation to grab and take her right here, there’s something just too unusual about the moment. Too familiar. Then there’s the look on her face.

Alana’s gray eyes pierce me with curiosity that has me shifting from the bed. If I didn't know better, I’d say she wanted me there. But that wouldn’t make sense. In no universe can you kidnap a woman, make her your slave, stalk her in her sleep, and expect her to make room for you in her bed.

The cross of her arms and the drop of her brow says she wants me gone, but she isn’t screaming. She hasn’t demanded me to leave. If anything, sitting together like this feels sort of natural. Too natural.

I can’t stand this awkward, unfamiliar closeness. It’s itching at me. The sensation pulls me to my feet. I stumble some words together on my way to the door. “Sleep, now. You. We have work in a few hours.”

“Okay?” She pulls strands of her jet-black hair from her face. “You came in here to tell me to sleep?”

“Never mind what I do.” My gruff voice cuts through the confusion on her face. “If I want to check on my human, I will. The last thing I need is a carcass stinking up the place because you die in your sleep.”

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