Dreams~Shadows of the Night

Why weren’t they listening to her? She knew she was only a child, but she saw things – awful things that terrorized her mind and made her heart pound.

>>>>dreams<<<<

Catherine Ashley bolted upright in bed, awakened by the sound of
her own
screams. She pulled her knees to her
chest
,
wrapp
ing
her arms around them
,
in an effort to ward off the chill that shuddered through her
body
. Her throat felt raw. Tears dampened her pale cheeks. It’d been twenty years since she’d first envisioned her parents’ lifeless bodies floating in water. But the dream still managed to slip through her defenses from time to time, stripping away the layers of protection she’d carefully built up to block out the horror.

Other prophetic dreams still came occasionally, but none as frightening as her parents’ deaths. They hadn’t listened to her warning and two days later they’d drowned in a boating accident
–
f
orever fracturing her carefree childhood. She flopped back, fighting to regain control of her emotions until sheer will allowed her to drift into a more pleasant dream
–
a
dream in which a mysterious auburn haired man appeared sporting a smile that lit up the darkness and made her insides quiver in the nicest way. But by the time dawn crept in washing away the darkness, she felt wary.

The fact that he showed up in a dream so soon after recalling a horrendous nightmare might not be a good thing
– f
or either of them.

Chapter One

Josh Dallas surfaced in slow motion struggling through the fog that swirled inside his head, as a sliver of light crept beneath his fluttering eyelids. A woman leaned over him and he worked to bring her into sharper focus. Skin the color of fine porcelain, hair like pale sunlight, and unbelievable sapphire eyes. She had to be an angel. He was pleased to see she wasn’t the alternative with pointy horns poking out of her head.

“Am I dead?”
Despite the words being slurred with grogginess, his deep voice maintained its usual rugged quality that mixed well with his natural aura of raw sexuality.

“No
,
you’re not dead. You had an accident, Mr. Dallas. You’re in the hospital.”

He thought her voice sounded a little
shaky, but decided it could have something to do with the throbbing inside his head.

“Accident?” It took his brain a few seconds to process the information. He winced, remembering. “I rammed my truck into a lamppost.”

“From what I’m told, you swerved to miss a
child who ran into
the street.”

“It all happened pretty fast, but I guess I did. How’s the kid doing?”

“He’s fine. His parents called. They’d liked to come by and thank you in person.”

“Tell them I’ll have to take a rain check.” He stared at her, enjoying the lazy pull of attraction that tugged at his stomach muscles and decided to go with impulse. “Have dinner with me
Catherine Ashley
,” he said reading her nameplate.

“What did you say?”

“I want to take you to dinner when I get out of here.”

“Is that so? Well, I’ll have to give you a rain check on that.”

Her humor made him grin. “I can be pretty persistent when I want something.”

“So can I when I’m not sure something is a good idea.”

“How do you know unless you try? I like to give the lady flowers on our first date. What’s your favorite?” He held up a hand. “Wait, don’t tell me. Roses? Daisies?

No
, I've got
it. Violets.” Her expression told him he’d finally hit on the right one.

“Aren’t you the clever boy?” She walked to the door.

“Top of my class in school. So how about that date?”

“Go back to sleep, Mr. Dallas. You’ve had enough excitement for one day.”

“You have no idea how much excitement I can handle, angel nurse.”

>>>>dreams<<<<

Josh scanned the hospital entrance waiting for Catherine to appear. He smiled recalling their lighthearted bantering, but his inner radar told him she possessed a sensuality simmering beneath her playful façade and he had every intention of exploring those intriguing depths. He approached her as soon as she came through the glass doors.

“I was hoping I’d be in th
e right place at the right time,
”
he said sliding easily into the courtship mode ready to take his wooing to the next level. “Looks like I got lucky.”

Their eyes locked before she took a couple of steps back. “I beg your pardon.”

He saw her flash of recognition and something else that looked like caution. If she wanted to pretend she didn’t know him he was willing to play along. He treated her to his most winning smile.

“Don’t tell me you don’t remember me. I was in here a few days ago and you were my nurse. I’m Josh Dallas, the guy who rammed his truck into a lamppost.”

“Oh yes. You’re the man who saves little boys. How’s the head, Mr. Dallas?”

“It’s feeling better by the second, especially now that I’m here seeing you again.”

A brow lifted.

“Don’t tell me you actually get results with such a line,
Casanova?”

He winced.

“A pretty woman like you shouldn’t be so sarcastic. I like Josh if it’s all the same to you
,
and I’m here to remind you we're going out to dinner.”

“Strange, I don’t remember agreeing to that and FYI: I don’t date patients.”

“Technically, I’m no longer a patient.” He brought out the nosegay of violets he’d
hidden behind his back. “I promised you flowers. Don’t I deserve some kind of reward?”

A smile tugged at her mouth, as she took the flowers.

“You are outrageous.”

“But loveable.” His eyes took in her petite shape clad in pants and a cotton smock dotted with tiny red hearts. “You’ll want to change. I’ll pick you up at seven. All I need is your address.” He waited while she gnawed her lip seeming to wage a battle with herself.

“Make it seven-thirty and all I need is to have my head examined,” she muttered.

“Hey, I could be the man of your dreams.”

She
rewarded him with a shivery laugh. “Funny you should say that.”

“
Yeah, how so?”

“Let’s just say there’s a possibility we could both end up regretting this.”