I awoke from sleeping facedown on the beach. How did I get here? My mouth was open, lips coated in sand. I brushed it off and rolled to the side. Water. I needed water. Badly. As the thought formed in my mind, I got a splash of Lake Michigan on my back. Someone had a sense of humor.

But then a glass came into focus not too far away. I squinted to notice it filled with delicious fresh water. It was just waiting for me to reach over and grab it. I inched closer, salivating and wasting precious moisture when my fingers wrapped around it. Without a doubt, it was going to be the best-tasting water I’d ever had in my life.

I took hold of the glass and brought it to my lips, ready to feel the cool liquid pouring down my parched throat when she was there, seeming to materialize out of nowhere. “Hello, Jillian. How lovely to see you again. Mind if I share your water?” Her vile smile made me shudder, then pissed me off.

“No, you can’t share my water,” I screamed. “You can’t share anything of mine. Stay the fuck away from me and my family.”

“Jillian?” I raised my arm, water in hand. “Jillian?” The voice got deeper, and her form began morphing. A fucking evil shapeshifter. Now what role is she taking on?

“Don’t fucking come near me,” I screamed again as she took another step. She was trying to trick me, transforming her body into a man. Into Chase.

“Jillian?” she said in his perfect tone, sounding exactly like him. It all bubbled out of me and I threw the glass, aiming right between the eyes.

The crash bolted me upright. I was no longer at the lake but in my bedroom, softness instead of grit underneath me. It was bright, and I narrowed my eyes. Then I saw her standing there—in my fucking bedroom. She’d fully become Chase, shirt soaked through, staring at me like she was worried out of her mind. Fucking bitch.

“Get the hell out of my house before I throw more than just a glass of water.” She/he came even closer, and my stomach recoiled. “I fucking mean it, Cassie.”

“Cassie?” the voice I normally loved said. “No, baby. It’s me. Chase.”

“No, it’s not. Get out.” I reached over and dug through my bedroom drawer. Pencils. Lots and lots of sharp pencils. Good for stabbing.

“Please, Jillian. I came home early.” She grabbed hold of my wrists. “Please, you’re… fuck, I don’t know. Having night terrors or something. Please, just listen to me.”

I tried kicking her away. No, I wouldn’t listen. Couldn’t listen. She was only going to tell me all these horrible things and then laugh her diabolical laugh. I couldn’t deal with it anymore.

She covered me with his body, holding me still. She was ruining everything. I loved this body, and she was making a mockery of it. I’d never be able to touch it the same again. I fucking hated her. Every little shred of me was repulsed.

“Baby, please.” It was a plea, making her sound helpless. Good. “Please, Jillian. I love you. My music, my lyrics, my everything. Just please come back to me, baby.”

I began to soften. I noticed how wet my chest was. The scent… pure rain, fresh earth. Spice. I hadn’t been able to smell his scent before. It was so distinct. So incredibly him. Either she was getting better at deceiving me or…. “Chase?” I whispered.

“God, yes.” He cradled the sides of my face and kissed me. “It’s me, Jillian.”

I let everything slowly sink back in. I was awake. It’d all been another nightmare. They were getting worse. So lifelike. They were going to make me lose my damn mind because it was only a matter of time before I didn’t want to go to sleep at all. I was functioning somewhat okay in the day now, but I couldn’t afford to lose any more shut-eye.

Oh shit. How late did I sleep? Chase wasn’t due back home until Monday afternoon. “What time is it?”

“A little after four.”

I tried pushing him up and off, but it was like banging my head against a brick wall. “Oh my God. I missed my calls? I have to go to my office, Chase.”

“Jillian, 4:00 a.m.”

What? I missed an entire day? “Tuesday?” That’s even worse.

He laughed. “No, baby. Still Monday. I told you I came home early. Changed my flight and took the red-eye. Just flew in and came straight here. I missed you too damn much.”

He kissed the sides of my face, soft and slow. “Do you know how badly you scared me there?”

“I… I had a nightmare.”

“Fuck, Jillian. It seemed like it was more than that. It was like you were taken away from me. You were hallucinating. The way you looked at me as if I were something you loathed. That scared the shit out of me.”

“I know. I’m sorry.” The dampness stuck to my skin, to his. “We’re soaked.” Oh no… that came back to me too. I touched his chest. “God, Chase. Did I hurt you?” Holy shit, I whacked a glass at him. And not just a little teacup but a thirty-two-ouncer. Good thing my aim was off and I didn’t get his face like I’d attempted.

“No, it broke on the floor. I’m just wet.” He smiled, tracing over my nipples poking tall through my tank top. “And hard.”

Yes, he was. He sat up and pulled the shirt over his head. Good morning to me. I ran my fingers down the ridges of his stomach. “You know, I could always dry you off with my tongue,” I said.

His grin convinced me that was a definite ‘yes,’ but he said, “We’ll have time for that later. Right now I need to take care of you.”

Hmm. He left for the bathroom, returning with a towel. “Up, baby,” I lifted a bit so he could peel the wet shirt from me, and as he was drying, I moaned. “Jillian,” he said deeply, warning me.

“Can’t help it, Chase. Do you really want to waste that morning wood?”

He chuckled. “There’ll be plenty more. Making sure you’re all right takes precedence.”

“Of course I’m all right.” He covered me with the blanket. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You didn’t see yourself before.” He kissed my forehead. “Be right back.” He went out, bringing back more towels, a broom, and a dustpan. “How often do you have nightmares like that? I’ve never noticed one before.”

“I can clean that up, Chase.”

“I’ve got it. Now, answer my question.”

“Just this week.” He turned to face me. His eyes held… panic? “Chase, I’m okay. Nothing happened to me.” I could read exactly what he was throwing out. He’d blame himself if I’d been put in any danger and he wasn’t around. In fact, I knew Jeff was probably invading his mind that second. “Chase, I’m being honest.”

“Something happened, Jillian. Why’d you think I was Cassie in your dream?”

I curled up, wrapping my arms around my knees. “I had a fight with her at the shower.” I bit my lips closed, then released them. I needed to know. “Did she do anything in New York?”

“Meaning?”

“Anything, Chase. Badmouth me, taunt you with shit, come on to you? Um, try to sneak into your room?” Ugh.

He sat down on the bed beside me. “No, baby. There was nothing. She acted no differently at this seminar than any of the others.”

“But that picture….”

“I’m dealing with it.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means I’m dealing with it.”

Dammit. “Chase, she said she had other pictures to show you too. Pictures that would make it hard for you to believe me anymore. She threatened all kinds of shit. I don’t know what she’s talking about, but I know what she’s capable of and….” My throat was gurgling.

“I believe you, Jillian. It doesn’t matter what she threatens. She will never come between us. No one will.”

“So then you also believe she’s not so innocent anymore?”

“I never did think that.”

“But you said—”

“I said she kept her distance and respected boundaries, and that was the truth.” He stroked my hair. “Now, lie down. You’re exhausted.”

I lay on my side while he finished cleaning up. ‘She will never come between us. No one will.’ A twinge of guilt hit me. I loved this man so much. I loved him so much that I could share anything with him. Except for what Daniel had asked of me.

When he was done, he came beside me, his front to my back, and held me tight. “Is Daniel in Chicago?” he asked. “His car wasn’t in the driveway.”

“No, um, we had a fight too. He’s with Cassie.”

“I’m sorry, baby.” He nuzzled against my neck, and I felt so incredibly safe with him next to me. “You should have told me. I can see now why you had the week you did. I couldn’t even be there for you.”

“Chase, it’s fine. You had work, and I’m a big girl. I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time now. If it were something critical, you would have been here.”

“Well, I’m here now, and I’m not going anywhere. Get used to me sticking around because I’m not leaving you alone. Not until I’m positive that you’re okay again.”

I sighed. “Chase, I’m perfectly fine. I can take care—”

“Dammit, Jillian. I know you’re fully capable, but I said I’m taking care of you, so fucking let me. Because you’re mine to take care of. My family.”

Family.

Chase stayed true to his word as if I’d ever doubted that for a second. It’d been about thirty-six hours since he’d come home, and I’d probably slept for thirty of them. I had no idea how sleep-deprived I was until I wasn’t. At first, I thought it was silly for him to take my bad dreams so seriously, but then I hadn’t seen myself the other day. Maybe I really had looked like some freaky shit.

He cooked for me, washed my hair in the shower, sat in the office while I made my one work call I couldn’t reschedule. And when I slept, he held me. Perry had taken care of me before, but it was different having a man do it, especially so completely. It felt strange. Until it didn’t.

All that time sleeping and not one nightmare.

Chase never asked for specifics about my fight with Daniel. Either he assumed it was due to my Cassie hatred or he felt I’d only discuss it if I was ready. And I didn’t think I’d ever be ready to hurt him like that. He’d bow out if he knew. Daniel was the only man Chase would never fight for me.

Perry went over plans with me that day after Mike left—several, in fact. I declined them all. They all involved setting Cassie up, tricking her like she’d done to me. Recording conversations, putting her in precarious situations to be caught by Daniel. All things to trigger a breakup. As much as I wanted to punish Cassie, I didn’t want my son to pay the price. He did love her, and he’d be devastated when it ended. If he found out I had anything to do with that ending, even with her deception revealed, it would tear him up even more. He needed to be the one to figure it out. I was past the point of being able to force the truth on him. I couldn’t stop his hurt from happening; I could only be there for him in the aftermath.

Perry told me not to make a rush decision. To take my time and see if anything changed.

Too late. I just made one.

In a little over two weeks, we’d have our anniversary of when we’d first met. It took me many months after that to accept what we had, for me to fall so irreparably in love with him that my world would forever be altered. We may not be married or engaged or share a child or have been together for a decade, but he meant everything to me. He was my family, and family is forever.

My choice was Chase.

I turned around to face him, and he fondled my still-damp hair. I was going to need new pillows after this. We’d taken a shower a few hours before, then went back to bed. He had to be going out of his skull just lying around with me all day while I slept.

“Glad to see you awake again. You look better.”

I smiled. “I feel better.”

“Can I make you something to eat?”

“No, thank you.” I slid my hand over his shoulder, down his arm, feeling his strength.

“Perry called to check in on you earlier.”

“Did you tell her I was being well-taken care of?”

“Of course, even if it had to be done while kicking and screaming.”

I burrowed into his chest. This whole time in bed we’d had shirts off but pajama pants on. In the shower he’d kept enough distance from me, seeming to ignore that erection he always carried around with him. He’d watched out for me like usual, unsure if I was safe or not. After falling asleep with him that first time, I’d been too out of it to think much about it. But now I felt brand new again. My mind was clear, and my body was craving him big time.

“I only kicked and screamed during my nightmare, Chase. I haven’t had any more.”

He kissed the top of my head. “I’ve noticed.”

“Because of you.” He clenched me tighter, hardness everywhere. “Can we take these off?” I asked, tugging at his pants, already shimmying out of mine. “I’m safe right now, and I just want to feel all your skin close to me.”

“Now you tell me. It would’ve been much easier washing you down if I didn’t have to do it with a cherry picker.”

I giggled. Yeah, I’d earned my right for that too, so suck it, Cassie.

“Sorry, I wasn’t all with it then. And I know I gave you a bit of a hard time about taking care of me, but thank you. Thank you for being there for me when I really needed you. Even if I didn’t realize how much until now.”

“I’ll always be there, Jillian. You should know that by now. Not even wild horses could drag me away from you.”

I laughed. “I know.” God, had anything ever felt so right before? For the first time since the argument with Daniel, I revisited our future and what that might mean.

“I’m ready to talk about it, Chase. Truly talk about it.”

“Talk about what, beautiful?”

“A baby,” I said quietly. Or maybe I just thought it was quiet because my heart was deafening my ears.

He grasped my chin, tilting my head up. “Do you honestly think you can say something like that without looking at me?”

“I’m nervous.” I shouldn’t have been, but maybe he’d changed his mind. Which was a little ridiculous considering it hadn’t been that long. But God, this was major.

He pulled away the strands of hair that kept flopping in my eyes. “What are you nervous about? Talk to me, Jillian.”

I stared into his eyes, and they both calmed and vitalized me. His green irises had softened into a shade I hadn’t noticed before. It might have been caused by that sappy moment I was having, but they looked exactly like spring. New life.

“I want a baby with you, Chase. I want that experience, and there’s no one else I could ever imagine having it with. I was scared before because I didn’t know if I could handle it, but I know I can. I’m healthy and you’re healthy, and with our love, we can create something wonderful together. We already have.”

I was frickin’ babbling while he watched me, his lips curving. “I fucking love you so much, Jillian.”

“Um… so that’s a yes, then?”

His kiss gave me the answer, and I couldn’t help feeling his cock even harder against my stomach. I broke free as his teeth nipped at my bottom lip. “Does just talking about this excite you?”

He began feasting on my neck. “You have no idea, Wild Horses.”

Mmm…. I squirmed. “We still need to have a serious discussion about it. With clothes on. Maybe after all the wedding stuff’s over?”

“Sounds perfect.” His lips traveled lower.

“I want to get checked out first. Just to make sure everything’s good to go.”

“Whatever you need.” Fuck, more of that. His tongue was so hot against my breasts.

“And I want the baby before I turn forty.”

He looked up and laughed. “Even I’m not that good, Jillian,” he said, causing me to laugh with him. Yeah, even if I got pregnant that very second, I wouldn’t have him or her until I was a fortysomething. But I was okay with that.

We hadn’t discussed marriage yet either, and I was okay with that too. I knew forever meant forever with Chase, and that it’d happen for us. We couldn’t not be together.

“Any more requests?” he asked.

“Make love to me, Chase. Make me feel so good I’ll never want anything between us ever again.”

“Always.”

I swore he growled, a primal response that showed how much this meant to him. How ready he was for our life together. But as raw as his emotions were, he loved me gently, pouring his entire heart into it. Into me. It was exactly what I needed. The intensity would have torn me apart otherwise.

Later that night, I lay curled in his arms, never feeling better, my eyelids lazy in a post-pleasure haze. I was safe and secure and very much relaxed with Chase dozing beside me.

And that’s when I felt the twinge in my side.