Chapter 10 – More Damage Than A Soul Should See

She screamed his name: "WYATT!!!" He tried to break free of the impossible weight that prevented him from rushing to her rescue. His heart broke as an assailant's hand struck across her face, causing golden brown hair to fall from the normally neat bun that held it back out of her face. Screaming, he tried to lunge to his feet, only to find it to be a futile struggle against the crushing force pinning him to the ground. He looked back up, watching helplessly as she was pushed to her knees. Brown hair turned to black and hazel eyes flashed clear, icy blue. Her voice changed and she was now reaching for him. "WYATT! Don't leave me!" Then the light finally came, pushing away the weight and pulling him to the surface.

Wyatt took in a deep, ragged breath as he awoke. The first thing he noticed was that it was still dark outside. The second was that DG was kneeling in front of the chair in which he sat, her hands on his forearms and her eyes looking deep into his. He started to try to move from the chair, but she pushed him back down.

"It was a dream," she said quietly. "Just try to calm down. Breathe."

"What time is it?"

DG looked at the clock on the mantle. "Just after 3:30."

"I woke you?"

"Something like that," she said dryly as she turned her eyes back to him. After a moment's pause, she added: "Your dreams are getting more intense."

"Why do you say that?"

"You're remembering them. I can see them when I touch you. You're pulling at me more is getting more insistent."

"Pulling?!"

"Yeah…through the magic."

"It's happened before?"

"A few times…usually when you're dreaming."

He just nodded slowly. That explained what he'd felt in the afternoon after their conference with the Queen. She'd been distraught enough that her heart had called for his.

She stood and placed her small hand over his ear, her fingers brushing through his short hair. He looked up at her, reading the sadness in her eyes. "What, DG?"

"Mr. Cain—"

"DG, I think this has put us beyond formalities. Please, call me Wyatt."

"How sincere were you earlier," she said, ignoring his interruption, "when you told me that you love me?"

He put his hand over hers, turning his head and kissing her palm. She held her breath, which was nearly taken away by the simple gesture. A tear rolled from the corner of her eye. He hated the fact that she was in such a dark place emotionally, and wanted more than anything to see her beautiful smile again. That smile made his world seem right. Actions speak louder than words.

He stood to his feet and cradled her cheek in his hand, using his thumb to wipe away the solitary tear. He stepped as close to her as he could and brought his lips to hers, letting them rest softly there, waiting for her to give him permission to go further. She whimpered, but put her arms around his waist. That was all the encouragement that he needed. His lips moved against hers as he entangled his hand in the hair at the base of her neck and wrapped his other arm around her waist, his tongue running along the bottom one, waiting for her to allow him in. When she did part her lips, he quickly deepened the kiss, dipping inside her mouth and stroking her tongue with his own, running it along her teeth, and exploring the corners of her mouth. As he pulled back, he nibbled on her lower lip, nipping at it lightly and earning a mewling sound from her the back of her throat.

Cain rested his forehead against hers, looking down deeply into her eyes. "Do you doubt me now?"

She stepped back from him and his arms immediately ached to hold her again. The next words from her mouth pierced his soul.

"Cain, I can't ignore the fact that less than twelve hours ago you wanted to be rid of me. Az said that this thing between us is responsible for the way you feel for me."

"DG—"

"No, Mr. Cain, let me finish, because I don't think that you'd be here at all if it weren't for the connection. I don't want to live in the shadow of the ghost, and I don't think it's fair to either of us for you to pretend that you could actually love any other woman than Adora. Please, don't expect me to."

Cain's eyes hardened slightly. How could she think he was quite that cold-hearted? He didn't quite know what kept him from being insulted by her words, but he asked her levelly: "What do you want me to say, DG, to make you believe me?"

She turned away from him, unable to look him in the eye. "I don't know, honestly."

He stepped up close behind her, daring to place one hand lightly on her hip. Remembering his unthinking words earlier, he figured an apology was a good place to start earning her trust. He pulled her long, raven hair from in front of her ear and whispered in it from over her shoulder: "I'm sorry that I pushed you away." He used the hand on her hip to turn her around to face him. "Can you forgive me?"

All she could do was nod. He pulled her into his arms, wrapping her in a tight embrace. She strained up onto her tip-toes and rested her chin on his shoulder. He picked her up and carried her back to the bed, where he laid her down gently. "Good night, Princess," he whispered into her ear. He turned away, considering gathering his things and returning to his chambers, when he felt her hand on his arm. Turning back, he raised an eyebrow at her.

"Stay," she said simply. That one word nearly undid him.

"DG, I don't think that would be appropriate."

"Please…nothing needs to happen. I just…I don't want to be alone. Please, Wyatt."

His heart soared as she finally spoke his name. It sounded like a song to his ears. He nodded at her as he removed her hand from his arm. He kicked off his boots and shrugged out of his vest. When he turned back to the bed, he saw that she'd turned back her bedding and was safely under the covers. He walked around to the other side of the bed, sliding across it and covering himself with the blanket that she'd slept under earlier, not daring to tempt himself with sleeping under the covers with her. She turned her back to him, letting him pull her tightly to himself with an arm over her waist. Sighing contentedly, she closed her eyes and fell back asleep.

Author's Notes: Aren't you all lucky? Two in one night. :-) Please review if you like.