DREAM LOVER (20 page)

Rochelle didn’t like Damian and Renato, mostly because of the way they used Nicolo, but also because neither of them made any pretense about their feelings towards her.  They’d figured out pretty quickly that Nicolo had staked his claim on her when she’d brought refreshments to the sitting room where all three of them were having a discussion one day.  Damian’s lustful eyes had followed her every move and when she’d asked if there was anything else she could do for them, he’d made some crude suggestion about visiting his bedroom that night so she could service his needs in private.

Nicolo’s eyes had gone cold and his tone had turned lethal as he informed both his cousins that Rochelle was off limits.  They weren’t to talk to her unless it was with the utmost respect, and they certainly couldn’t touch or look at her in any way that was inappropriate.  She was to be treated like a lady or they’d answer to him for it.  Rochelle could feel their seething hatred in spite of the mumbled apologies and contrite expressions.  From that point on she avoided them whenever possible and if she did happen to venture into a room where one or both of them were, she made a hasty retreat.

“So this is where you’ve been hiding,” Nic teased when he found Rachel curled up on a window seat in the library. 

“I’m not hiding, I’m just… thinking.”

Nic leaned down and dropped a quick kiss on her mouth.  “Brooding is more like it, and maybe a hint of obsessing.”

She turned her head when he tried to kiss her again.  “Go away if you’re just going to be insulting.”

Hoping to coerce Rachel out of her somber mood, he sat down beside her and held out his hand.  “I brought something for you.”

A little bewildered as to why he was giving her Rochelle’s locket, she eyed it for a moment before taking it from him.  “It meant a lot to her,” she said in a subdued tone.  “She couldn’t wear the other jewelry Nicolo had given her but she could wear this as long she kept it hidden under her clothes.  She never took it off, not even when they made love.”

“That’s why I thought the locket would work better than any of the other pieces in her jewelry box.”

“Work better for what?”

“Well… it’s just a theory but if I’m right, the locket may be a way for you to get a firm grasp on being lucid in your dreams.  I was trying to figure out why you’re having such a hard time with it and I think it’s because there’s nothing in your surroundings that’s familiar enough for you to grab on to.  Or it could be that you’re so emotionally involved with both Rochelle and Nicolo that you basically tune out everything else around you.”

“So you want me to focus on the locket?”

“Yes, but in more ways than one.  I’ve sent Celia out to buy a new chain for it so you can start wearing it.  I want you to get used to the way it feels around your neck and where the actual locket touches your skin.  Pull it out often, look at it, and familiarize yourself with the texture of it.  Then when you go to bed tonight I want you to tell yourself that sometime during your dream, you’re going to take the locket and do something out of the norm.”

“Like what, lick it or something?”

Nic grinned.  “Don’t tempt me with visuals that involve your tongue.  I was thinking more along the lines of taking it off, even if it’s only for a few minutes, then hold it up to the light or twirl it… anything as long as it’s a conscious decision.  Choose what you’re going to do before you fall asleep, that way if you’re able to perform that particular task in the dream, you’ll know for sure you were actually lucid.”

“It’s worth a try,” she said with sigh.  “Nothing else seems to be working so I might was well give it a whirl and see what happens.”

                            ***

“I have a confession to make.”

Nicolo brushed the damp curls from her forehead.  “Have I told you how incredibly beautiful you look after we make love?  Your skin is so warm to the touch and you’re…”

“Did you hear what I said?  I have a confession to make.”

“The only confession I want to hear is that you’re madly in love with me and can’t wait to be my wife.”

“In that case, I have two confessions.”

“You have my full attention for the next five minutes,” he said, propping himself up on one elbow.  “Any longer than that and I can’t guarantee I’ll have enough will power to keep from kissing you again.”

Now that she’d made up her mind to tell him the truth there was no going back, but she was worried sick that he’d be angry with her.  She’d thought it out so carefully, had planned just what she’d say, but when she opened her mouth to speak Rochelle couldn’t remember one single word of it.  If Nicolo hadn’t leaned forward as if he was going to kiss her, she might have found a better way to tell him, but with his lips so dangerously close to hers Rochelle knew the conversation would never take place if she didn’t say something to keep him from advancing.

“I lied to you about who I am,” she blurted out, then flinched when Nicolo’s head snapped back as if she’d slapped him.  “I know it was wrong but I wanted to get to know you… the real you before I told you.  My real name is Adalina Rochelle DiCarlo.”

His brows drew together.  “DiCarlo? 
You
are the princess that my parents have been badgering me to marry?”

“Please don’t be angry with me Nicolo.  I just couldn’t agree to marry you without knowing whether you were capable of loving me or if I could ever love you.”

His eyes narrowed.  “Did your parents put you up to this?”

“No!  They don’t even know I’m here.”

Rochelle proceeded to tell him the whole story and by the time she was finished, Nicolo was laughing so hard he had tears in his eyes.  When he finally regained control of himself, he insisted they tell his parents at once so they could have their blessing to be married.

“No,” Rochelle was adamant, “your mother and father must learn to accept me as I am.  I don’t want to tell them until after we’re married so they’re forced to open their narrow minds and see the only thing that matters is how very much in love we are.”

“They aren’t as rigid as you think they are.  They want me to be happy and if I tell them I’ll be miserable unless I can marry you, I’m confident they will welcome you to the family.”

Rochelle had her doubts about his parents but she didn’t voice them.  Throwing back the covers, she climbed out of bed and slipped into the shirt Nicolo had discarded on the floor and went out onto the balcony.  There was a warm breeze but it felt cool against her damp skin, making her shiver.  She watched the stars twinkling in the sky for a moment then felt a sudden compulsion to look at the locket that symbolized Nicolo’s love for her.  Rochelle lifted the chain from around her neck and held it up, letting the locket dangle in front of her face so she could admire the way the pale moonlight danced off the gold.

When Nicolo came up behind her and slipped his arms around her waist, she welcomed his warmth.  “Is this really happening, Nicolo, or am I just dreaming?”

“Maybe we are sharing the same dream,” he said softly.  “What difference does it make if it’s a dream or not as long as we’re together?”

“Will it always be this way for us?  Will we always love each other as much as we do at this moment?”

“Always,” his reply was fierce.  “No woman will ever possess my heart as you do.  There is only you, my love, until the end of time.”  He took the locket and looped it back around her neck.  “Keep it close to your heart where it belongs.”

Rochelle turned in his arms, despondent at the thought of ever losing his love.  “Your cousins will be angry when they find out we’ve eloped.”

“They’ll learn to live with it.”

“No, they won’t,” she disagreed.  “They know I don’t care for them and they’ll try to make trouble between us.  And they’ll resent me even more when I give you children because it will mean less money for them.  They frighten me, Nicolo.”

He hugged her to him, brushing a soft kiss to her temple.  “They’re a little rough around the edges but I promise you they’re harmless.”

Rochelle prayed he was right but something deep down inside warned her to stay as far away from Damian and Renato as possible.

                             ***

“Well?”

Rachel greeted him with a sleepy smile.  “I did it.  At least I think I did.”

“You took the locket off?”

“Well, I… I suppose you could say that.”

Nic sat up and switched on the light.  “I want to hear everything from beginning to end, but first I think I’ll run downstairs and grab a couple of glasses and a bottle of wine.”

“Scrounge up some cheese and crackers and you’ve got yourself a date.”

While Nic was gathering the food and wine, Rachel pulled on her robe and strolled out to the balcony.  This was where Rochelle and Nicolo had stood over a hundred years ago, vowing to love one another forever, confident that soon they’d be married and no longer have to slink around or seclude themselves in his bedroom for a few stolen hours.  If only Nicolo had taken Rochelle more seriously when she confided that his cousins frightened her.  There had been so many missed opportunities, so many things either of them could have done or not done that would have changed Rochelle’s fate. 

When Nic returned with a serving tray that included a bowl of fresh strawberries, she came back inside and made herself comfortable on the loveseat while he settled the tray on the coffee table and poured two glasses of wine.  Rachel took a few sips before popping a ripe berry in her mouth, her mood growing even more sullen when the thought rolled through her head that Rochelle and Nicolo had probably done something very similar to this.  They would have been blissfully happy, so completely absorbed in each other it wouldn’t even have occurred to them their time together was limited.

Nic leaned back with his glass in one hand and a cracker in the other.  “Tell me about the locket first, and then you can go back and fill me in on the rest of the dream.”

“It wasn’t like I thought it would be.  It’s kind of hard to explain but… it’s not
me
in the dream, it’s Rochelle.  But it’s not like those dreams where you feel you’re on the outside looking in either, because I feel her emotions and know what she’s thinking.”

“Are you aware that you’re not Rochelle?”

“Not really.  You know that little voice in your head that tells you not to take a second helping of dessert and then scolds you later because you did it anyway?  That’s kind of what it’s like.  I’m there, but she doesn’t really listen to me.”

“You had to have gotten through to her somehow if she took the locket off.”

“I suppose so,” Rachel said as she laid a sliver of cheese on a cracker.  “It wasn’t the way you described it though so I’m not sure if you could call it a lucid dream.  I didn’t actually
make
her take the locket off; it was more like I planted the idea in her mind and she did it because she wanted to, not because I’d told her.”

Nic could hear the defeat in her voice but he was far from discouraged that she hadn’t been completely successful in having a lucid dream.  True, she hadn’t been in control of the dream, but she’d still made contact even if it was on a subconscious level, so she was definitely making progress.  Even if Rachel didn’t master the art of having a lucid dream, there was still the chance she could persuade Rochelle to change something about that night and possibly alter the chain of events that followed.

“I can’t believe I’m going to suggest this,” he shook his head.  “I think you should practice nagging.”

Rachel choked on the cracker she’d been chewing and had to take a big gulp of wine to wash it down.  “Nagging,” she eyed him skeptically.  “Why on earth would I want to do that, and even more disturbing is why you’d want me to.”

“You said you were able to get through to Rochelle because you were like her subconscious, a voice in her head.  I don’t know about you, but when that little voice starts talking to me it’s usually nagging me about something I should or shouldn’t do.  You were successful in getting her to take off the locket, so there’s no reason to believe you couldn’t plant other ideas in her head.”

“Keep on her about how dangerous the cousins are, you mean?”

“Among other things.  If you could persuade her something horrible is going to happen if Nicolo goes to that dinner party or if they stick to their plan to meet in the gardens, she might be worried enough to coax him into staying with her.”

Rachel considered that for a moment.  “With Monica as a sister I’ve always been on the receiving end of the pestering, but if nothing else I can imitate her techniques.”

“Just as long as you contain sister Monica’s techniques to your dreams and refrain from using them on me.”

“Agreed... and as long as you give me what I want there won’t be any need to,” she quipped.

“Is that so?”

“Yes,” she set her wine glass down, “and what I
want
right now is to be kissed senseless.”