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1
ABBEY
“No…no!” Abbey shifted and turned on her side, her long eyelashes fluttering as she clutched at the sheets. She was having the dream again—the one she couldn’t wake up from.
In her dreams, she could see again. The cloudy fog that had covered her vision completely since her early twenties was lifted and everything was sharp and bright. The change should have delighted her—she missed seeing details. Instead, what she saw terrified her.
She wasn’t looking through her own eyes—that much was clear. Not just because she could see again with amazing accuracy, but because whosever eyes she was borrowing, was huge. Abbey felt she was looking down from a great height on the world below.
But it wasn’t just the height of the man who bothered her—because yes, it was most definitely a man whose eyes she was seeing through. It was the sound of his voice when he talked—it was a deep, inhuman growling that seemed to shake her bones.
Sometimes Abbey caught a glimpse of his muscular forearms and hands. His skin had a strange, golden sheen to it—almost as though he was covered in fur— and his fingers were long and powerful. He was easily strong enough to overpower her—to hurt her and take what he wanted.
And in Abbey’s experience, that was all men wanted.
“Soon,” he was saying in that deep, growling voice. “I’ll find her soon, I know it. I’m so close now—I’ve narrowed it down to a single Earth city. Every time I Dream Share with her, I gather more details.”
“You’ve been saying that for months,” another male voice replied. “How can you be sure you’ve got the right place?”
“I’m not completely positive—yet. But I’m sure now about where she works—it’s a shop that sells flowers. They specialize in a kind of Earth bloom called a ‘rose.’ That’s where I’ll find her the next time I go down to Earth—I’m sure of it.”
“Well, I wish you luck, Brother,” the other voice replied. “I know you’re eager to Claim your bride.”
“More than eager,” the deep voice growled, sending a shiver down Abbey’s spine. “Can’t wait to hold her in my arms and make her mine forever…”
The dream ended abruptly and Abbey woke up in a cold sweat.
She lay in the dark, panting, wishing she could turn on the light. She couldn’t see much—vision for her was like looking through a frosted pane of glass that warped and distorted everything. But the presence of light still comforted her and drove away bad dreams.
That’s all it is—just a dream, Abbey reminded herself. She refrained from reaching for the lamp, knowing that even the slightest bit of light seeping under her door might alert her aunt—who had chronic insomnia—that she was up. As much as she loved Aunt Rose, she wasn’t interested in having a middle-of-the-night conversation right now.
She shifted uncomfortably, turning over on her side and pressing her thighs together. The worst thing about the dreams was the aftermath. Because they didn’t just leave Abbey terrified—they left her inexplicably aroused.
How can something that scares me so damn much turn me on? she wondered for the hundredth time. What was it about the stranger’s voice that made her so hot and bothered?
It’s not just his voice—it’s his scent, whispered a little voice in her head. Which was true. Ever since a rare and incurable version of optic neuropathy had stolen much of her vision, Abbey’s other senses had become incredibly sharp. She supposed it was a blind girl cliché but it was true—her sense of hearing and smell were twice as acute as they used to be.
But how could she smell him in her dreams? The question continued to plague her. Even her most vivid dreams had never included scent before, but now, every time she looked through the eyes of the stranger, she could smell him—an exotic, enticing fragrance that had wild notes of leather and fur as well warm notes of sandalwood. And under it all, was a dark, masculine spice that made her whole body tingle when she smelled it.
It was definitely his scent that was attracting her and making her feel so strange and hot and achy between her legs, Abbey thought. She had never had a scent affect her that way before, but she couldn’t deny it. Sometimes when she woke from one of these dreams, she could still smell it, like a cloud of potent pheromones floating around her head.
She hated to give in to her urges, but she was afraid she’d never get back to sleep if she didn’t. Listening to be sure her aunt wasn’t anywhere near, she finally slipped one hand down between her legs. She winced as she realized she was wet—more than wet—drenched down there. And so swollen and hot it was almost painful.
I won’t think of him, she told herself as she began a slow, silent exploration of her inner folds, her sensitive fingertips circling the throbbing button of her clit. I don’t want anything to do with him—he’s awful. A monster—I’ll never go with him!
She knew who the male in her dreams must be—a Monstrum warrior from the Monstrum Mother Ship which orbited Mars. The race of alien warriors had come to Earth several years ago and saved humankind from a deadly invasion by the darklings. In return, the leaders of the Earth had agreed to let them call brides from all the countries of the world along with the other Kindred warriors.
The Kindred, who had already been on Earth for over ten years, had set up a Bride Draft that every unattached woman of marriageable age was required to participate in. Once a girl came of age, she was expected go to the nearest Human/Kindred Relations building and put her name into the system with the understanding that she might be called in the draft as a Kindred or Monstrum bride.
Not that he’ll ever be able to call me, she thought. Not as long as my exemption comes through.
Abbey had been required to put her name in, just like everyone else. But as soon as she started having the dreams, she’d taken steps to protect herself. They were just dreams—just nightmares, she told herself—but still, better safe than sorry. So she had gone to the nearest HKR building and found someone to help her fill out the paperwork to be excused from the Bridal Draft.
She had used her blindness as the reason for the exemption. Neither the Kindred nor the Monstrum excluded anyone based on disabilities—they took the brides they wanted no matter what. But it was possible to be excused if you had a legitimate reason and the nice woman at the HKR building she had explained her problem to seemed to think there would be no difficulty in excluding her. Abbey thought wryly that it was the only time her blindness had actually helped her out instead of hindering her.
At last she felt her pleasure peaking. As the orgasm rushed through her, she did her best not to think of the stranger—not to hear his voice or smell his enticing scent. She didn’t trust him or any man. She didn’t?—
“Ahh!” Abbey muffled the cry in her pillow, trying to keep quiet.
