She hugged him tighter. “You are meant to live free. Don’t stop fighting.” Then she pulled away, her eyes welling with tears. “Don’t quit. You’ll find a way out of this. Please keep trying.”
He heaved a heavy breath. His mind and body were tired of fighting. “I have no life. Everyone takes it from me.”
Heartbreak wracked her face. “Please don’t quit. Do it for me.”
At that moment, he would have found a way to make this airplane fly to the moon for her. She’d only asked him to continue fighting for his freedom.
Once again, she gave him a renewed sense of hope.
He rubbed his beard carefully over the tender skin of her cheek, longing to keep her next to him, but he couldn’t. He had to push her back to safety. These dreams felt too real.
The fact that he knew he was dreaming, but his mind would not accept that as entirely true concerned him.
One look at those sweet lips, and he needed to kiss them again. He moved toward her, and this fearless woman met him halfway, clutching his shoulders and kissing him as if this could be the last.
It very well could be.
His heart thudded hard, longing for this female who felt important. He’d begun to accept his and Titan’s fate, but now he did not want to lose her. He’d never felt this deep need for anyone, not like he did for Alifair.
He ran his tongue along the seam of her lips and delved into her mouth, playing with hers. She sucked on his tongue. He bent his knees and strained against the metal constraints so that he could move closer to her.
Too soon, she ended the kiss and sat back.
He glanced past her to see if she’d been discovered. Everything except Alifair was a blurry shape.
Where were the others on this flight to hell?
Was any of this real? No, it was just a dream.
His chest hurt from having to let her go. He wanted... so many things he could never have. Silly to want the impossible. His destiny had been written the moment he’d been born a shifter. His pack had lived as outcasts, and now he was a monster wanted by no one.
“That’s not true,” Alifair whispered. “You aren’t a monster, and... I want you.”
Had he said his thoughts out loud, or had she heard the words in his mind?
She urged him, “Stop convincing yourself you can’t escape. You got away from Krol. You can break free of these people. Be ready when the opportunity comes and take it.”
“I will... try,” he mumbled, blinking his eyes. He did not want to sleep. Not yet. A wave of exhaustion rolled over him again. Every time he woke, he could not remain awake long. His eyelids drooped again.
He felt small hands shaking his shoulder. “Wake up, Bosse. What’s wrong with you? I watched you battle everything Krol tossed at you and defeat them all, many of them with horns and hooves.”
He forced his eyes open. “I have never been so tired, even after battles. These shifters shot me with drugs. I can’t fight them off.”
She leaned in close and whispered, “Start drinking water. Ask for as much as you can get. That will flush the drugs from your system until your shifter healing can take over.”
“Water will work?” He never stopped marveling at the intelligence of this woman.
“Yes. You haven’t eaten enough. That’s why the drugs hit you even harder.”
“I will try to get water, but ... you should not come back to me. I don’t want you to see me if I fail to break free.”
She exhaled on a sob. “Please don’t give up. I believe in you.” Her body began to fade.
“No, Alifair. Don’t leave me.” He cursed himself for asking that of her. “I am sorry. You must go. I want you safe.”
“I can’t stay. I don’t understand how I can be with you in a dream. This never happened in my dreams before, not until I met you. I’m so happy to find you this way. I’ve been worried about you.” She faded again, her last words ghosting to him. “Remember, lots of water and fight for your freedom. You can do this.”
Then she vanished, but he kept staring at the empty spot.
