Dreamer (The Dream World Chronicles Book 1) by Camille Peters (thriller books to read .txt) 📕

assure you I had a reason for it. I feel I’m walking a fine line, one as delicate as the balance of the Universe.” He grazed my hand with his fingertip. “But please be assured that I have nothing but your best interests in mind.”

The hope filling my heart swelled. Could that really be true? “Was that your sole motivation?”

He nudged my shoulder. “Well, perhaps there’s also been a bit of curiosity. I’m drawn to mysterious things, and you certainly fit that description.”

I managed a smile. “I’m surprised you and Stardust don’t get along better.”

He chuckled. “Some things will always remain a mystery.”

Another silence stretched between us, but now my urgency to give Darius the cold shoulder had been replaced by the strange desire to fill the immensity of space that felt like universes between us, to get to know him. While I wanted to rationalize my feelings with hoping to better understand him, I couldn’t deny I was curious.

“So tell me, do you have any hobby outside of looking in the mirror?” I asked.

Amusement filled his smile. “I would love to weave for multiple Mortals. I could definitely handle it—that is, if you’d ever speed up your own weaving so I had time to take additional assignments. I really enjoy coming up with nightmares.”

I shuddered. “But why nightmares? What good could possibly come from scaring Mortals?”

“If their nights are full of darkness, won’t they better appreciate the light during the day? No matter what bad things happen in their sleep, they always wake up the next morning.” He glanced sideways at me, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Besides, scary things are more interesting.”

I gaped at him, the soft swirls of color lighting up the sky momentarily forgotten. “Do you really believe that?”

He tilted his head. “Haven’t you ever been tempted to scare someone, just for the thrill of it?”

My first response was no, but unwillingly memories loomed to the surface of when I’d done exactly that, especially the secret thrill I always felt at the dark circles beneath the eyes of my village tormentors after a restless night’s sleep, while their juicy nightmares lurked over them like a shadow.

Darius’s expression softened. “But someone like you wouldn’t understand such a reason. You’re a Dreamer, after all.”

He wouldn’t say that if he could see the secret part of me, buried deep, that was like him—the portion of my heart that enjoyed making Mortals scared. But, I reminded myself, giving nightmares was a different matter entirely.

Darius leaned closer. “To answer your earlier question, believe it or not, I have another hobby besides looking in the mirror; I also study legends.”

Though I already knew of this hobby considering I’d seen him reading his books during our Weavings, I happily listened as he proceeded to share some of his favorites—the birth of the very first Dreamers and Nightmares from falling stars, how those early Weavers discovered how to create dreams, and the rift that eventually developed between them that led to the separation of the two worlds. His words painted dancing images across my mind as vivid as the flying colors until I was paying more attention to the soothing rhythm of his voice than the colorful display lighting up the sky.

He paused, smiling in a way that caused my heart to flutter. “It’s refreshing seeing you interested in anything that has to do with me. I wish you’d do it more often.”

Heat flooded my cheeks, especially when he scooted a few inches closer and rested his hand over mine. I startled. “What are you doing?” My tone was so breathless I could barely speak. But I didn’t pull away; doing so would be impossible.

He smiled as our gazes met. “Playing with your hand.” He traced the back of mine with his finger before pausing, suddenly wary. “Is this not alright?”

It shouldn’t be, and I had every intention of telling him that it wasn’t…only to find myself nodding, the feelings developing within my heart far outweighing everything else. My breath hooked as Darius resumed his touch, his look concentrated as he traced his fingertip up and down each of my fingers, causing my pulse to palpitate wildly.

Soon his touch explored further, moving from the back of my hand up my arm before caressing my cheek. “The lights are reflecting off your glitter.” He reached out, almost hypnotically, to brush against my shoulder and grasp the ends of my hair.

For a moment time seemed to stop as he caressed my hair between his fingers, his gaze filled with a look similar to Caspian’s when he’d played with Angel’s hair. I found myself leaning against his touch before I came to my senses and pushed his hand away.

“Please don’t,” I whispered, but my fingers lingered against my will on his warm skin.

He slowly pulled away, severing our contact. “Tell me about life on Earth. What was it like living amongst the Mortals? I’ve always wondered how they get along without magic.”

And in an instant, the beautiful moment was ruined. Although his emerald gaze was soft, inquiring, I felt my guard raise and my doubt return. I searched his expression. Why would he want to know? Was it curiosity, because he too could sense our connection, or for a more sinister purpose? I hesitated, torn between telling the truth and lying.

“You already know the answer to that considering how much you spied on me for the Council.”

He sighed. “You can’t blame me for noticing the only possessor of magic on Earth who’s ever been seen by Mortals. You obviously possess unusual power. I’m surprised you haven’t managed to scrape more wins during our Weavings.”

His fishing was getting closer and closer to my heavily protected secrets. “It’s not my fault I’m partnered with someone so annoyingly talented,” I snapped. “I saw the nightmare you created for your exam in the weaving highlights. Why are you such an accomplished Weaver?”

Darius shrugged, feigning modesty. “Just lucky, I guess.” He chuckled, a sound that was light, bouncy, and full of