A WHISPER OF ETERNIT

Page 29



Dominic sat back and sipped his wine. Time and again, his gaze moved to her neck, to the pulse beating steadily in the hollow of her throat. Thinking of the rich red blood that flowed through her veins made the wine in his glass taste like water. He licked his lips as he thought of running his hands over the mortal heat of her skin, tasting the warm, sweet essence of her life on his tongue.

Clenching one hand into a fist, he thrust such thoughts from his mind lest she see them mirrored in his eyes.

Tracyfound it difficult to enjoy her meal with Dominic sitting across from her. It was terribly disconcerting to know he was watching her every move. If only he would eat something, too! But he simply sat there, occasionally sipping his drink, his gaze intent upon her face.

She looked up, her meal momentarily forgotten, when he asked her if she believed in reincarnation. "No, I don't," she replied firmly. "Do you?"

He nodded slowly. "I sense that you have a very old soul."

"Me?" Her voice emerged in a high-pitched squeak. "Why would you think that?"

His eyes darkened as he leaned across the table. "Have you had dreams of things you could not possibly know? Remembered people or places where you know you have never been?"

"Of course," she said. "Who hasn't? But it doesn't mean anything."

"Have you ever dreamed of being a doctor?Or of being a queen during the Crusades?A witch in Old Salem?"

"Stop it!"

He drew back and took a sip of his wine. "Forgive me. I did not mean to upset you."

She stared at him, remembering the dream that she'd had the night before. She had been a queen then. And Dominic had been her bodyguard…

With a start, she realized that she had dreamed of him in the past, dreamed of him even before they met. That was why she had thought he looked familiar when she met him on the beach.

A cold chill ran down her spine. How was it possible to dream of someone she had never met?
She pushed her plate away, her appetite gone. "I… I've got to go."

"Is something wrong?"

"I… I have… uh… an appointment with a future client, and I'm… I'm late… and…" Grabbing her handbag, she quickly slid out of the booth. "I'm sorry."

He watched her hurry toward the cash register.
She didn't look back.