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A twig snapped near my head and my eyes fluttered open. Someone hovered over me, not three inches from my face. I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them again. He was still there, still right in front of me.
This doesn’t seem right. Am I still asleep?
The sticky, drowsy warmth dulled my reaction to the bizarre awakening. Sunlight skewed my view of his face and made his eyes look like they were two different colors. One was the same Atlantic Ocean blue as mine, but the one struck by sunlight looked hazel; nutty brown with green and gold flecks dancing around his pupil. He wore his chocolate brown curls to his shoulders.
And he was staring at me for what felt like an eternity.
A hint of a smile played at the corner of my mouth. He’s so pretty. What a strange dream.
My heartbeat danced as he moved his head, closing the distance. His lips touched mine like a whisper of warmth.
A boy kissed me.
Someone found me, and they kissed me. A beautiful boy with beautiful, weird eyes. I couldn’t be sure it wasn’t a dream. His eyes searched me and felt like they could see through me. It was like he knew all my thoughts and fears and understood them. It was like we had known each other all our lives.
My face heated as my dizzy brain tried to catch up. It replayed the kiss on a loop. I was speechless.
“What are you doing up here and not over there?” The boy asked, his voice stuck between man and boy.
“I’m hiding.”
“What are you hiding from?”
“I…”
Chapter One
PRESENT DAY
Lia
His tongue shifted and my back arched off the bed, then my morning alarm blared. A frustrated groan scratched up my throat; I’d been having my favorite recurring dream, and it was just getting juicy.
Damn.
I picked up my phone and silenced the cruel, shrill reminder of 6am. No time for lying in, yearning to hit snooze half a dozen times. The big meeting was in three hours, and even if it wasn’t my meeting, I still needed to be prepared.
Blood rushed in my ears as I stretched my arms overhead and pointed my toes. I sat up, defeated by pragmatism and urgency. My sleep-mussed bun flopped down into my face, taunting me. Dragging myself out of the warm blanket cocoon for a shower was the first hurdle, but definitely not the last.
“Hey, Shell, I’m getting in the bathroom. You’ve got thirty minutes to get moving!” I called, poking my head into my roommate’s doorway.
She mumbled something into the pillow pressed against her face and rolled over, hiding from my wake-up call. She was, as usual, out late the night before, but needed to get her life together, too, so we could catch the 8:15 train into Shoreview for work.
Shell and I worked at the same design firm, Design Everything since graduating college. They covered everything from interior projects to graphics and ads. Where she landed her dream position right away in interior, I was stuck in the trenches as a graphic designer where my mundane duties included uninvolved fluff stuff and waiting to get noticed by someone who mattered.
My life wasn’t exciting or glamorous, but I still pushed like I was going to get there. I aspired to so much more than fluff. Someday, someone was going to take notice of my talent, and I’d get bigger projects working directly with clients instead of sifting through low-budget logo designs for websites that wouldn’t exist in six months. I could handle the serious ones, and I would prove it even if it was the last thing I did.
But how deep was patience? Some days I felt like I was already standing on the bottom of a dried-up well. I had more creativity than Derrick wanted to give me credit for, but I was stuck in a rut, getting the fat, arrogant, ignorant SOB his coffee every morning. And my reward? The same boring projects on repeat ad nauseam.
I turned on the water for the shower to heat up while I undressed. Once freed, my long golden locks spilled down to my waist and I combed them out, letting them cover my chest. Looking at myself in the mirror, I felt like a mermaid. My hair was my pride and joy; it gave me confidence and security.
Once the bathroom was significantly steamy, I stepped into the spray. Goosebumps erupted across my flesh. I tilted my head back and let my eyes drift closed. The pulsating drops were so soothing, I couldn’t resist letting my mind float back to last night's dream.
It had been a while since I had a visit with Mystery Guy. He would help me get through my treacherous work day better than anyone else could. Real-life relationships were too messy. Going out to bars and parties was fine for people like Shell, but I preferred to keep my distance. Dream boyfriends never cancelled or made other plans. They also knew exactly what I liked, and gave it to me whenever I wanted.
No one I’d ever encountered could hold a candle to Mystery Guy, the guy I met when I was young enough to have an innocent heart and sheltered mind. Back when my brother was still alive. Mystery Guy discovered my hiding place and tore the world open. At the time, I didn’t know how badly I needed to be found. It changed me.
From that day forward, I imagined what I would do or say if I came across him again. My brother told me if I liked someone, I should tell them they’re special. That falling in love for the first time was something I would never forget, and he had been right.
