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Prologue

Claire – The First Night…

Keep drea sensations coat every inch of les in its wake Rough bristle runs along the back of h my hair until soft lips touch the skin below my ear

It feels so lifelike; I never want to wake up This is the best dreains low in the pit ofue darts out, ever so s the tendon in htens, hauling ht as his war”

My eyes fly open, and I realize this is not a dream

The events of last night co back toended with us in a naked frenzy, neither of us holding back as we gave in to pent-up lust and desire The brush of his hand against htat him from across the room, all of it built from inside, and the instant ere alone, I pounced

Ies of us replay in hter He twists us, pulling his hand away to turn on ainst his side When ht, I’m face to face with Mathis Bennett

The Mathis Bennett

Soon-to-be officially Dr Bennett

A eous I fell in love with hi I wanted in a man

My mind danced with visions of a future filled with promise and hope

I kneas crazy… insane… and possibly certifiable, but Mathis Bennett had that effect on me

Now, he’s staring atwhy I was eager to fall into bed with hi settles in my chest

“What time is it?” My voice comes out croaky, and I clear the sleep from my throat

“It’s early, four-thirty am”

“Is so?”

“I need to get going and didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye”

“Why do you have to leave this early?”

“Doesn’t Bizzy get off shift at five? I don’t think it’s appropriate if I’ets ho to do We don’t want her to get the wrong impression” \

My heart plummets, and I try to pretend his words don’t slice rate into a fiery explosion

Stupid, stupid Claire! I should know by now there are no such things as soul mates My defense mechanisms jump into place, and I force o She’ll be ho off shift The last thing ant is to give her the wrong ireeable

His face softens, and he cupsto say I’m sorry it came out that way What I should have said was I am a private person, and I respect you too much to let anyone knoe shared Bizzy can be a

bit overzealous with her curiosity If you choose to tell her, that’s your business Last night was a I want is to tarnish it with my idiocy”

Well, that’s sweet—kinda He’s looking out forto shieldOverzealous is an understatement

“Thanks,” is all I can say