Unexpected: Forever His (Book 1)

Chapter 8: Dreaming Into Reality

I sucked in a deep breath of air as if I hadn't taken one in a very long time and I opened my eyes. I knew instantly where I was, but I had no idea how I had gotten here. I made my way onto my feet and only then did I realize that I was wearing an exquisite gown. It was very similar to the one Alex had given me, only this one was sapphire blue. The fit was just as perfect, as well as the shoes that once again matched it.

I looked back up around the throne room and only then did I really notice that I was behind the throne and there was someone else in the room. I couldn't see who it was, but I could feel them. Their presence was overpowering. I gasped and took a few steps forward, but the click of my shoes against the hard floor caught me off guard and I stopped. I looked back towards the throne in front of me. I knew it was Alex. It had to be.

I took the few more steps needed and placed a hand against the smooth texture of the throne. I steadied myself with a deep breath and slowly stepped around the side.

His burning blue eyes swirled only slightly with lustful black as I captured his gaze with my own. Oh, but he was beautiful. Possibly the most beautiful man I had ever seen. His laughter instantly made my cheeks burn with embarrassment, but instead of dropping my head, I smiled instead.

He reached his hand out for me to take and I hesitated only briefly before I let mine fit into his. He pulled me around the front of the throne and down onto his lap. I fell against him softly and shivered at the sensations the contact with him was giving me. "Are you cold, Kayla?"

I almost laughed out loud at his question. He already knew my answer. "O...of course not. I...I just wasn't expecting to feel like you are really touching me since this is a dream...a very good dream...but a dream." I shook my head and smiled.

"And what makes you so sure it is a dream?"

I looked at him confused. "W...what...I mean..."

He lifted me up and stood beside me, but he never dropped his arm from my waist as he started walking with me in a direction of the castle that I had yet to visit. "I really did not have much time to explain this to you, Kayla. Things did not go as I had expected them to last night." He looked down at me briefly as the black in his eyes swirled deeper. "It took everything inside of me not to rip your alpha's head from his shoulders. Do not for one second think that it was easy for me, love."

I nodded. "I know you had no choice." I looked up at him. "It doesn't make it any easier."

He remained quiet for a few moments while we walked through a corridor that was lit only sparsely by candles. I took the moment to absorb where I was. I could feel the immense power of Alex, but there was something else present in this castle. It brought an extreme nausea to my stomach and I immediately covered my mouth. Whatever it was, it made me feel miserable and I desperately wanted to get away from it.

I turned and looked up at him. "What is that?"

He laughed. "It is an old castle, Kayla. You are bound to smell things from time to time that will not be pleasant. I have to admit that my sense of smell is a bit distracted at the moment."

He looked at me and I dropped my gaze from his. "I...I'm sorry."

He shook his head. "You have no need to be sorry."

I looked back up into his eyes and saw that the black had receded if only slightly. I smiled. "Alex, I don't...I am confused by...this. I feel like I am really here with you, and yet I know I'm not."

He nodded and gestured towards the empty hallway ahead of us. I turned and, with his arm still around my waist, we continued our walk down the hall. "You are correct, Kayla. You are not really here. Your body is asleep back in Redwood territory."