A Glimpse of the Dark Side: Adult Paranormal Erotic Romance Collection (16 page)

Simon didn't blame Holli for not liking Raven.
It wasn't as if Raven made any great effort to be liked.

But the fact that Dreama and Holli had become
like close sisters seemed to irritate Raven more. She was jealous.
When she used to be the one people prefer to be the apple of their
eyes, now Dreama was having her own place in the spotlight.

Simon knew things about Raven that she probably
didn't realize herself. Not everything really was her fault.

Raven had been "trained" in competitive
situations since she was old enough to walk and talk. Her mother
had thrown her into one beauty pageant after another until Raven
had become old enough to refuse.

The really sad thing was that once Raven started
to put her foot down about not entering pageants any longer, her
mother lost interest in her. It was almost as if Raven had been a
doll that she could play dress up with over the years.

So Raven went from being the center of her
mother's world to being an afterthought. That couldn't have had a
positive effect on her.

WHEN DREAMA CAME along, things got worse for
Raven.

Since Raven was the one entering all the
pageants, Dreama never had to deal with any of that. Not only was
she very young, she was intelligent in a quiet way, and had started
to make her own way by being very good in her academics. Her father
adored her and her mother seemed to find time for her that didn't
involve a purpose of some sort. Dreama looked quite a lot like her
mother, with her light blonde hair and aquamarine eyes. Truthfully,
her name was perfect because she did look a lot like a dream woman.
She had always looked like that.

But Dreama's appearance belied the type of young
woman that she really was. In spite of the fact that she looked
angelic and almost waifish, Dreama was actually a very strong young
woman. When she was asked to enter a contest her mother wanted her
to enter, she refused, reasoning her way intelligently out of it
that made her mother proud of her instead of hateful that Dreama
refused to obey. The people that dared to challenge her had found
out quite quickly just how strong she was.

Her strong personality pushed her into
situations that should have made other people cower. She was so
unselfish she would put herself in the way to protect other people
who could not protect themselves. She was something of a rebel and
a champion of the underdog. That was one of the many qualities that
made her such a wonderful psychiatrist.

Her intelligence and quick wit made her very
memorable, too. Once someone met, they never forgot her.

Simon certainly had not. He thought about her
all the time. Did he want to cause more problems between the two
sisters? They already had such a rocky relationship that something
like this would be more than a drop in the proverbial bucket.
Dreama had really never shown him the slightest romantic interest.
For all he knew, she had a boyfriend tucked away somewhere.

But that didn't seem possible unless she was
hiding him from everyone. He could not imagine why she would. She
was not the kind of person who would hide the person she loved from
anyone, regardless if other people would love him or not.

So he perked up. He knew that Dreama would still
be available. But he was also sure he wasn't the only one attracted
to her, so he really had to make his move as soon as he could.

"Well?" Raven's voice intruded on his thoughts.
"Will you let me know what the dress code will be?"

"Um yeah," he finally replied. He did not find
this harmful. A lot of people would be waiting to know the dress
code, invited or not. "I'll see what I can find out and let you
know."

"Excellent!" she exclaimed. "Now, would you like
to tell me what's got you so lost in thought? You've barely said
two words the whole time we've been here."

"Oh, it's just this new client I met with today.
Nothing unusual."

"Is it anything you would like to bounce off
me?"

"Not really," Simon replied, erring in the side
of caution. He should best avoid even the usual talks he used to
have with Raven. In fact, he should avoid her altogether.

Did this mean he would have to continue with his
plan to put up a firm of his own? Erick had introduced the idea a
long time ago, but he was more focused then about clients and not
about building up a reputation for himself, enough for opening up a
successful law firm. He did not realize that taking care of his
clients also earned him the reputation he needed that people would
notice when he started business on his own.

It wasn't a bad idea. He realized that once
Raven found out he was interested in Dreama, she would be more than
determined in hounding him, whether his pursuit of Dreama would be
successful or not. He certainly didn't need that. He knew she would
never be anything more in his eyes than a colleague.

"You know how I get when I'm first getting into
a new case," he heard himself saying.

"Well, if you change your mind," Raven said.
"I'm happy to listen."

"I appreciate that," he said. And if only Raven
wasn't a big complication, he really would.

Raven was actually one of the top attorneys in
the Moon Bay area and she had a legal mind like a steel trap. If he
had actually needed any help with a case, she would have been the
one to go to.

But she didn't know about Simon's special
ability to help those clients that were truly innocent. This talent
of his was also why he never accepted clients that he knew were
guilty of the crimes they were accused of. Being in practice by
himself made this possible. He knew that guilty people deserved a
defense, but they wouldn't be getting it from him. He already had
his mission in life and it was to protect the innocent. There were
plenty of other attorneys around that didn't care if their clients
were guilty or innocent.

Simon was
finally
able to end the lunch
so that he could get back to the office. He would have to figure
out a way to get out of taking Raven to Erick and Hollianne's
wedding.

As far as he knew, she hadn't been on the guest
list because of the way she behaved to Hollianne.

They would shoot him on sight if he dared to
bring her to their wedding.

AS IT TURNED out, Hollianne provided the way out
of his dilemma.

She called him soon after he had returned to his
office with a question about the wedding present she was getting
for Erick. During the conversation, he mentioned that Raven had
invited herself to be his date for their wedding.

"No," Hollianne said firmly. "I will not have
that woman at my wedding. In fact, you know what? Tell her that you
can't escort her to the wedding because the wedding party is
matched up with each other. Now, that means that you, as the Best
Man, will be paired with my Maid-of-Honor, which is Dreama. If you
don't feel that you can tell her, I certainly have no issues with
letting her know another way."

Simon was relieved, though he was now feeling a
bit bad for disrupting Raven's plans. "Raven's not going to take
this very well. But I completely understand why you feel the way
you do. This is your wedding, and after the way she's acted toward
you, if you don't want her there, I won't be the reason for her to
turn up."

Sighing, Simon disconnected the call. On one
hand, he was relieved that he wouldn't have to take responsibility
for Raven not being allowed to attend the wedding.

On the other hand, however, he would be the one
to tell her that he couldn't take her as his date. Since Raven had
asked him specifically about the dress code, she would be back for
the answer as soon as she possibly could. He knew her to be that
way. So he could tell her about the dress code, but would keep
quiet about the invitations. She would soon find out she wasn't
invited to the wedding soon, anyway.

He was not looking forward to see her face when
she found
that
out. Not at all.

WHILE SIMON WAS having his uncomfortable lunch
with Raven, Dreama was at the hospital getting her patient settled
in a private room.

Allison required the privacy because she was
rather unpredictable at this stage, and Dreama didn't want to risk
her hurting another patient while in one of her tirades. The
sedative had worn off about the time that Allison was being
transferred to a room and she had needed to be sedated once
more.

After leaving instructions with the nurses that
would be attending to Allison, she checked on her patient once more
before leaving. As it turned out, she had just enough time to run
home and change clothes and still make it to Erick and Hollianne's
for dinner.

She was very excited about tonight because she
was hoping to have some time alone with Simon, if he was to be
there.

Once she reached her condo, she hurried inside
and took a quick shower. Applying light makeup and blow drying her
hair gave her a more restful look along with emphasizing her
natural beauty. She had decided to wear a pair of black well-fitted
jeans along with a purple V-neck sweater and black leather knee
boots.

After spraying on some of her signature perfume,
she felt she was presentable enough, even for the very handsome and
very appealing Simon Draco.

She got into her car and headed to the outskirts
of Moon Bay. It was a drive that she always enjoyed because it was
all countryside once she had left the city. No one loved the beauty
of nature more than Dreama. Of course she also loved visiting the
castle. It was one of the most relaxing locations on earth as far
as she was concerned, and she couldn't wait until she had a few
days to spend there.

She smiled when she remembered how she was
informed that a part of Holli's closest friends could stay in the
castle after they left for their honeymoon. Holli specifically
informed her she was one of those a few weeks ago, and so she made
preparations and had her schedule wrapped around this short break.
She would love getting to catch up on those books she had long ago
purchased but had not enough time to read.

When Dreama finally arrived at Erick and
Hollianne's, Holli threw open the front door and hurried down the
front steps to greet her.

She had to smile at the enthusiasm that Holli
seemed to inject into everything she did. It also didn't hurt that
she loved to feel so welcome. Holli rarely met a stranger and, even
when she did, that stranger typically became a fast friend in no
time.

Everyone, that was, except Raven.

But it was Raven's fault. For some reason, she
had disliked Holli on sight and was actually embarrassingly rude to
her on many occasions. It had shocked Holli and Dreama, though
Holli recovered pretty quickly, which was pretty cool. After a
couple more attempts at being friendly to Raven to win her over had
failed, Holli threw down the gauntlet. She would often say that she
was surprised Dreama and Raven were sisters. Dreama had heard this
observation numerous times in her life, and she really didn't have
an answer as to why Raven remained this way anymore.

Dreama knew more than anyone else how life had
been for her older sister when they were young, but she was
expecting that Raven was mature enough by this time to know to cut
her losses and look forward to a future she was adult enough to be
able to control. Dreama, more than anyone else, knew how lucky they
were to be born in a rich family, and been able to afford more
necessities and comforts more than any other people in this world.
Look at Holli, who had lost so much more than Dreama could ever
imagine. Yet, she remained positive and happy.

On the other hand, Raven had always been more
selfish than anyone Dreama knew. And that's really sad, she thought
as she sighed and shook her head. Some things, there was no way
other people could help with.

Raven had to learn to become unselfish and
sensitive to other's needs first before she could be really
happy.

DREAMA HAPPILY ACCEPTED Holli's hug and entered
the house with her.

"It's so great to see you!" Hollianne enthused.
"It's been too long!"

"I agree, Holli," Dreama said. "You know how
much I love coming out here and seeing you. It's just been so crazy
lately."

"Erick and I were hoping that you would be able
to spend a few days here," she said.

"I wish I could," Dreama lamented. "But I'm
going to have to go back into the city tonight after dinner. I've
got a new patient that is in pretty bad shape and I need to be able
to spend some time with her for the next few days. I'm hoping to
get her stabilized."

"Ah, I understand," Hollianne said. "Your
patients always come first. Your dedication is one of the many
things I adore about you! Well, you know that you're welcome here
at any time. And when Erick has business near you, I can always
come! Do you know that I'm, well..." Holli suddenly looked a bit
shy. "I'm thinking of going back to the university. If you have
time, I was hoping I can discuss what course to take with you?"

"Of course, Holli! I will be delighted! Oh, I'll
make inquiries and I'll prepare a list of choices for what I think
you might want to take."

"How about -- oh, not immediately after the
wedding," she said, giving her future husband a sweet smile. "Maybe
you can spend time here sometime after that? When you're free?"

"I honestly cannot wait to get some free time to
come here for that. Imagine, you're about to study for a new
career! Isn't that just wonderful?"

They got inside the castle talking like this.
When they got to the hall, she started giving her updates about the
wedding preparations that she didn't know yet. Erick quietly left
them to get the dining room ready for their dinner after giving
them drinks as they sat on the massive sofa.