When I Close My Eyes
genre:erotic romance ~ paranormal (novella)
For as long as she can remember, Kenna has had dreams of one man whose touch filled her soul and ignited her passions. When her life crumbles right before the holidays, Kenna decides that as a Christmas present to herself, she’s going to finally learn if what she feels is real, or if it’s just a figment of her imagination.
Seth feels the presence of the mystery woman who comes to him in visions and dreams—offering her body and soul to him. He’s spent a lifetime looking for her and tonight he’s going to find her. When he rescues a stranded Kenna, he feels the attraction, but wonders if she’s “the one”.
Stranded by a blizzard in a mountainside cabin, Seth’s and Kenna’s passions ignite. Their hearthside sex leaves them breathless, but the heat they generate isn’t enough to burn the memory of the dream woman from Seth’s mind, or convince Kenna she hadn’t simply imagined the man she knows only in her dreams.
But at Christmas, magical things happen. And sometimes dreams can come to life.
Copyright © MELANI BLAZER, 2005.
All Rights Reserved, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.
With her bag stowed away in the bedroom and enough wood for her entire stay, she realized there was no more reason for Seth to stick around. He even brushed his hands repeatedly on his jeans and glanced around.
“You should get going. Used to it or not, that’s a helluva storm out there.”
“You got a phone right?”
“Yeah, I was prepared for a few days of roughing it alone. I’m set. But I do thank you for saving me the struggle of hauling in the wood.”
“Sure.”
Silence.
Go, Kenna screamed silently, go before I read more than just some Boy Scout honor thing into your hesitance to leave.
“Take down my number then. In case there’s a problem. If I can’t help, I can find someone who can.”
“I—”
“Just humor me, I’ll sleep better tonight.”
At least you’ll sleep. She just knew she’d be up all night imagining a million different ways this meeting could have happened. And then she’d think of a million more scenarios about how this night could have ended. “Let me dig out a pen.”
Fate was laughing at her, she thought as she walked in the kitchen.
Two steps later and she realized just how badly she’d jinxed herself with that mental statement. The room was plunged into darkness. As if she knew where to even start looking for a spare light bulb in this house.
“Kenna?” Seth’s voice seemed to surround her—filling all the spaces she couldn’t see. Just the soft, inquiring way he said her name left her shivering.
“It’s just my luck. You wouldn’t happen to know where they keep the spare light bulbs in this—”
“The power’s out. Storm knocked it out.”
She swallowed. “Oh.” What was she going to do now? Sit in front of the fire until the lights came on?
“Which means I’m staying here tonight.”
“You can’t—” Kenna stopped short, realizing she was suggesting he head out into the blizzard. “Never mind.”
She felt him step closer. His warmth permeated the room, his presence like a blanket around her. She knew his relief as if it were her own. Stranger or not, she couldn’t live with herself if something happened on his way home. And it seemed hard to regard him as a stranger even though she’d known him less than an hour. It became more and more apparent there was some link—some unexplainable connection between them had been present for as long as she could remember.
Despite the concern she should have over the weather outside, it was the storm inside her that kept her attention. The room suddenly seemed thick and hot. Every sense strained to learn where he was in the room. The very slight rasp of his breath put him near the edge of the room. A brush of clothing made her think he had moved closer. Her imagination had him stepping behind her. His hands slid around her waist and pulled her against him. Unbelieving, she reached down and grazed the fingers resting on her hips.
“Hey!” he said from at least five feet away.
“What?”
“Nothing. I just must have hit something that shocked me.”
Her knees locked. She grabbed for the counter she knew was just behind her to steady herself as she digested the news. Was it true? Or were his fingers tingling from the brush with hers—the one that happened in her mind?
But he said nothing more. Her heartbeat slowly slowed to a reasonable pace as he cleared his throat and said, “I, uh, know I’ve not exactly given you reason to trust me so far. But answer honestly. Are you afraid of me?”
“No.”
It was the truth. Afraid of herself, maybe. Afraid of how she might react if he gave her any more signs he sensed their amazing connection. But she didn’t fear him, despite the fact he was a stranger who had just announced he was staying the night with her.
“You’re sure? Because I’ve got another bombshell to drop on you.”
Her heart threatened to leap out of her chest. She gasped—she heard it echo in the room. Her fingers ached from the death grip she had on the edge of the counter. Never had she felt such anticipation. She absolutely shook while she waited for him to say it—say anything to acknowledge her.
