Only in Her Dreams by Christina McKnight Page B

moved toward the refrigerator. She opened the door and grabbed a container of liquid hazelnut creamer and set it by the mugs.
    His hand lay on the counter. As she reached for the coffeepot, her hand grazed it. The feeling that rocketed through his body could only be described as pure, hot desire. They both pulled back their hands.
    “I’ll pour you a cup before I leave for work,” she mumbled.
    Her face turned scarlet red probably matching the color of his own face and neck. “No need, I can pour my own. You should finish getting ready for work so you’re not late,” he said as he grabbed the coffee pot and filled both cups to the brim.
    He could do nothing else but watch as she retrieved her mug and headed toward the stairs.
    She reached the bottom step and turned. “What are your plans today?”
     

Chapter 14
     
    Maxim glanced behind Lucessa at the clock on the wall, hoping to distract her. When he didn’t answer her question she too turned to look at the clock.
    Her eyebrows rose. “Oh my gosh! Seven-fifteen already?”
    “You should dress. I do not seek to anger your boss, we can talk more when you come home.”
    “Okay, I have lots more questions.”
    “I assumed as much.”
    “If you’re going out today there’s an extra key in the drawer under the microwave. Lock up.” Taking her steaming coffee, she left the kitchen and headed upstairs.
    While she dressed, he threw on his clothes from the day before. When she returned downstairs, he tried not to notice the way her skirt hugged her hips or her toned calves below said skirt. Instead, he rushed her out the door.
    After her car pulled out of the driveway he grabbed the spare key from the drawer and headed out the door. With the key to her house resting comfortably in his pants pocket, he started down the street. His chore was to find Darius and persuade him to back off; Guy wouldn’t go easy on Maxim’s twin again for his misconduct. He should be grateful he was only banished and not put to death the last time.
    Maxim concentrated on thoughts of his brother, closing his eyes as he walked along the road. Opening them, he stood on another street in a different part of town. The freshly painted, picket fenced houses were replaced by rundown residential homes mixed among warehouses with nonexistent windows. The biggest differences between the neighborhoods were the smells. This area smelled of hopelessness and sorrow, while Lucessa’s neighborhood smelled of new beginnings and prosperity.
    One house attracted his senses, and he knew his brother would be found inside. The building showed more decay than the rest, missing the front door and both front windows; the fence surrounding the backyard now sagged at an angle that wouldn’t withstand a heavy wind. This was the type of grim, drug-infested house Darius frequented. How his brother had fallen.
    He would’ve gone to his twin sooner, but the way he lived was unacceptable and Maxim feared any reconciliation between Guy and Darius was hopeless anyway. It didn’t matter how much he cared for Darius or longed for them to be reunited in Erebos...it would never ever happen. Darius was set on his destructive path, evident by his refusal to improve his lot here on Earth.
    He kicked litter and garbage out of the way as he headed toward the void where a door should be. The interior of the house was dim, even with the sun rising in the sky, now closer to midday. Men lay sleeping or in drug-induced stupors around the room, many undressed or wearing tattered clothing. His twin wasn’t among them. Since death was unlikely and hard to achieve for any of the Melas Oneiroi, short of a bullet to the head or heart, they partook in more taboo and risky activities than the normal human.
    Continuing through the room, Maxim made his way to the back of the house and a closed door.
    As he approached, the doorknob twisted, and the door creaked opened. Maxim stood face to face with the brother he hadn’t seen in over two