Off the Beaten Path: Eight Tales of the Paranormal by Sharon Sant, Angela Roquet, Jason T. Graves, Monica La Porta, Chip Putnam, D.R. Johnson, Kath Langdon

denial.  “Not yet, love.  You’re not quite ready.”
    “Oh, I think I am.”  I stood, surprised at my own aggressiveness.  I couldn’t believe those words had just come out of my mouth. Nik grabbed my other wrist and spun me around, handling me like I was a newborn kitten.  Butterflies flew rampant in my stomach.
    “Soon, love,” he whispered from behind me, making my skin tingle.  “First, you must sleep.”
    “Sleep?”   I giggled, feeling the same way I did after a couple beers. “I can’t sleep now!”
    A smooth, deep chuckle was his only response.  It reverberated through me, and all I wanted to do was spin around and jump into his arms.  I realized, though, that I wouldn’t be able to manage that maneuver.  I was having a hard enough time walking, even with Nik there to guide me.  Pouting, I stopped arguing as he aimed me toward my bedroom.
    I fell into my bed, laughing again for no reason.  I rolled onto my back, stretching and trying to assume a sexy pose, bolstered by false confidence from my dose of the unknown.  When I opened my eyes, I was happy to see that Nik was appreciating my display.  The light in the room was dim, but I could definitely see a fire burning in his eyes.
    He sat on the edge of my bed, and I reached for him.
    He was quick to push me back down.  “It’s time to sleep, now.”
    “But I’m not tired!” I said, reiterating my earlier point.  I let him push me back nonetheless, still trying to entice him with my body language.
    “Relax,” Nik whispered to me.  “I’ll be here when you awake.”
    I paused at that, taking the time to study him.  That was when I realized the tension from before had returned.  I was about to ask him what was wrong when he attacked, one large hand covering my mouth and nose.  Panic and fear surged through me.  I tried to fight, tried to scream, but nothing seemed to affect him.  His hand was a vise against my mouth, and my hands and legs might as well have been flailing against steel.
    Flecks of black were starting to invade my vision, but I kept trying to fight.  My lungs burned for air that I couldn’t get.  My lips were crushed against my teeth and the taste of blood filled my mouth.  I gagged and choked on it, but found no release.  As my struggles died and the blackness took over, I focused one last time on the handsome man I had trusted.  He looked down on me with sadness in his eyes.
    I wanted to ask him why.
     
    I awoke.
    Memories of being deprived of oxygen flooded through me and I gasped for air.  The feeling of relief was unmatched as I was able to draw in a deep, unhindered breath.  My fingers touched my lips, expecting to feel a bruise but everything felt normal.  There was no soreness of any kind.  No wound that was the source of the blood I swore I could still taste.
    My mind tried to battle through the haze.  Had it all been a dream?  A nightmare?
    I sat up and fought off a wave of dizziness.  Blinking, I looked around my dimly lit room, feeling as if I wasn’t alone.  The shadows moved.
    My shrill scream split the night.
    Then he was there – Nik was there – his hand over my mouth again in an attempt to silence me.  I shook him off and he let me.  It was only when I tried to claw him that he grasped my wrist and held me still.
    “ Shh, love, shh,” he said, crooning in his deep, sexy voice.  “No need to wake the neighbors.  The worst is over.”
    I had drawn in another breath to scream again, but his words gave me pause.  I stuttered in response, “The worst?”
    “Yes,” Nik said and nodded, releasing my wrists but drawing closer to me than he had ever been before.  Every desire I had felt for him earlier seemed to crash back into me ten-fold, despite the fact that he had attacked me.
    “But you tried to kill me! ” I yelled, reacting as much to ward away my unwanted feelings as to deter his advance. It worked against neither.
    “No, love.   I’d never hurt you.  You just