“Banner has to rescue the heroine, right? She’s trapped in the grotto?“
“Right.“
“Have you decided what it is that’s menacing her?“ Diana asked.
“Just a standard, run-of-the-mill cave monster.“
“Colby, please. Tell me the truth.“
He caught the thread of fear in her voice and was instantly contrite. “Hey, take it easy, honey. The villain is something of my own creation, not something from our dreams. I told you, all I got from the dream was an idea, a feeling of fear that I can translate into a fantasy and a setting.“
“You’re sure you haven’t seen something in our dreams? A real monster? Colby, if you have, you’ve got to tell me.“
“No. If I had, I wouldn’t have to work so hard to think one up.“
But he didn’t want to tell her the rest. He didn’t want to explain how the sense of menace from the cave was stronger in his dreams these days. The desperate, pleading longing from the hidden grotto was still present but the danger in the outer cave was becoming the main component of his dreams. If that overwhelming feeling of threat got much more intense, Colby knew the dreams would cross the boundary from disturbing to nightmarish.
“I should let you get back to work.“ Diana took a step back. “I didn’t mean to interrupt you.“
“Don’t worry about it. Want some hot chocolate?“ He got to his feet.
“If you’re going to have some.“ She traipsed after him as he headed for the kitchen. “When I woke up and found you gone, I got a little nervous, I guess.“
He stopped and dropped a quick kiss on her forehead. “That just shows how well you’re adjusting.“
“Adjusting to what?“
“Married life. You’re getting used to sleeping with me on a regular basis. You’re getting so accustomed to it that now you feel strange when you’re alone in bed.“ He opened the refrigerator. Specter trotted over and stood perusing the contents with him.
“Colby?“ Diana sat down at the kitchen table and tucked her feet into the warmth of her robe.
“Yeah?“
“I’m sorry I embarrassed you earlier when I told you I loved you.“
He went still for a second and then forced himself to continue preparing the hot chocolate. He reached for the milk.
“Don’t worry about it. You didn’t embarrass me. You were, what’s the old-fashioned term? Overwrought. As I said, pregnant ladies tend to be emotional. Remember that last book I brought home from the library? The one that talked about mood swings in the early months of pregnancy?“
“You think that’s what happened to me today? I went through a mood swing and got overly emotional?“
She sounded as though she might get angry again. Colby tried to soothe her. “You’ve been through a lot lately.“
“Not enough to addle my wits completely,“ she said tartly. “Besides, I knew I was in love with you weeks ago.
Why in hell do you think I went to bed with you the first time or all the times after that, including that night in the cave?“
Colby stopped stirring the hot milk. “Diana, you never said anything about love.“
“Of course I didn’t. I wouldn’t have said anything today, either, if I’d been in control of myself. Colby, I really hate this feeling of being out of control. You don’t know how hard it is for me to accept that my whole life is running wild and that there’s not much I can do about it.“
Colby turned around, his own emotions suddenly precarious. Diana was staring out the window at the city lights, her chin cradled on her palm. She was idly stroking Specter with her other hand. Her tawny hair was tumbled around her shoulders and her bare feet gave her an air of sweet vulnerability. She looked like a very forlorn little amazon tonight, he thought. He wondered if she had any idea of how far he would go to protect her.
“Diana, you don’t have to tell yourself you’re in love.“
“Why not? We’re married.“ Her head came around, her eyes searching his face. “And we’re going to stay married, aren’t we? At least for the foreseeable future?“
“You’re damned right we’re going to stay married.“ He heard the harsh certainty in his own voice.
“Then where’s the harm in my telling you I love you?“
“The harm lies in the fact that you might wind up fooling yourself and me as well.“
Her eyes widened. “You don’t believe me, do you?“
He ran his hand through his hair. “Diana, listen to me. You’ve been under too much stress lately. I’ve explained to you that at this stage of your pregnancy you’re going to go through a whole range of emotions. It’s all right. You’re not responsible for them. I just don’t want you to say things you’ll regret later.“
“The milk’s burning.“
“We’re both adults, Diana,“ he went on seriously. “We don’t need to feed each other the kind of silly romantic fiction teenagers need in order to justify having sex. We’ve got all we need for a solid marriage. There’s no point in inventing a fantasy to romanticize our physical attraction.“
“You’d better do something about the milk. It’s burning.“
“What?“ He stared at her, feeling acutely stupid.
“I said the milk’s burning.“ She got to her feet. “Never mind. I don’t want any hot chocolate now, anyway. I’m going back to bed. Good luck with your book.“
She yawned and padded out of the kitchen. Specter trailed after her.
Colby whirled around as the smell of burned milk finally got through to him.
“Damn it to hell.“ He dropped the sizzling pan into the sink and stood glowering at the black, gooey mass of burned milk. He realized he had a violent urge to put his fist through the nearest wall.
Diana wasn’t the only one whose emotions were running too close to the surface these days.
Half an hour later, he realized he wasn’t going to get any more done on Blood Mist that night. He knew where he wanted to go with the story, but his mood had been shattered. All he could think about was Diana lying alone in her bed.
With a small, disgusted exclamation, he turned off the computer and headed back down the hall to the bedroom.
Specter raised his big head from his paws briefly as Colby walked silently into the room. Then the dog went back to sleep.
Colby stepped out of his jeans and walked over to the bed. Summer moonlight mixed with the background glow of a city at night played over Diana’s sheet-covered body. He could see the lush sweep of her hip and the gentle curve of her br**sts.