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Dream Vacation by Deanna Wadsworth
Pride of the Caribbean, Book 3
Lewis Martel is attending a wedding on the cruise ship Pride of the Caribbean. He’s looking forward to a relaxing getaway celebrating the grooms’ happiness—a happiness Lewis desperately longs for in his own life. A believer in true love, he has yet to find that one man to be his best friend and other half.
Lewis soon discovers all is not what it seems aboard the LGBT friendly cruise ship. From his first night aboard, Lewis is inundated by vivid dreams of an ancient time full of shadows in the night and mysterious warriors. The haunting—and often sexy—dreams become so all-consuming, Lewis looks for every chance to fall asleep and immerse himself in this dream world.
A trip to an antique shop on St. Martin brings the reality of these lucid dreams to the fore. Lewis is faced with a past he can’t recall and a lover he’ll never forget. Can the paranormals living aboard the Pride help Lewis understand his new reality or will ancient demons ruin his chance at happiness with the other half of his soul?
Lewis finished the last remnants of his wine and shook his head. “Guys, all this alcohol is going to my head. I need a good night’s sleep to enjoy the ship tomorrow.”
He bid goodbye to his friends with hugs. When Jeremiah sat, he wrapped an arm around Skip and kissed him on the cheek. Their love was a palatable thing, and while it made Lewis happy because his dearest friend had been through so much loss and heartache, he ached for a relationship of his own.
Lewis took the long way back to his room in order to walk the outside deck and gaze at the ocean. A rush of warm breeze fluttered his dark curls as he stepped outside. A few couples enjoyed a secluded moonlight stroll, and he was far enough away to not disturb them.
The moon had risen, full and bright in the sky. The dream he’d had today of the young monk lured by a seductive vampire flitted through his mind.
Why had he dreamed something so realistic?
Maybe it was that romance novel. Skip insisted the book contained no sex, but Lewis’s mind must’ve filled in the fade-to-black scenes all on his own.
He gazed up at the moon, wondering if someone like the monk named Liam had ever stared up at it, longing for his one true love. An avid lover of history and random trivia, Lewis knew the full moon would be this week. It would also be a blue moon, that rare second full moon in one calendar month.
He leaned on the railing and soaked in the beauty of the midnight sky sparkling with stars, and the luminous moon hanging above. That moon had lit countless nighttime skies and cast its light on millions of dreamers over the centuries. Giving his romantic side full sway, he imagined his other half, his fiancé, his soul mate, gazing up at the moon at this exact moment.
It wasn’t the first time he’d imagined such a thing.
Probably explained his love of romance novels and Hallmark movies. Kendra found the obsession amusing, but Lewis longed for romance. His sex life was satisfying, even with its infrequency, but his
love life remained sadly empty.
Maybe he’d meet someone this week like his friends had.
The soft sounds of a woman humming an all-too-familiar Disney tune startled Lewis from his melancholy yet hopeful musings.
An adorable little woman with big eyes and a streak of hot pink through her blonde hair was humming Cinderella’s song to Prince Charming. Her navy blue polo and a white skirt identified her as a member of the cruise staff. She smiled impishly at Lewis as she turned the corner and went back inside, leaving him alone.
Lewis slapped his hands on the railing and gave the beautiful moon one last reflection. The celestial orb had listened to many a star-crossed lover over the centuries, so maybe tonight it would hear him. Maybe soon, someday, Lewis’s prince
would come.
“Wish you were here already,” Lewis whispered.
With a wistful sigh, he returned to his suite, exhausted but content after a day full of friends and sunshine. The week would fly by, so he intended to savor each moment. Breakfast tomorrow with Kendra, then a little more controlled sunbathing was all he had planned. He eyed his reflection in the mirror above the dresser to make sure he hadn’t sunburned.
Nope, still his pasty self, thanks to SPF50 and a fedora. He’d step down to SPF45 tomorrow, and maybe be on 30 by the wedding.
Never one for pajamas, Lewis slipped off his clothes and slid into bed naked. A big aggressive yawn snuck out of him, and he scratched his chest. He’d almost waxed his chest hair before vacation, but he worried he’d look like a bald piglet. The hair at least gave him the illusion of definition. Settling in, he grabbed his book. Hopefully it wouldn’t fuel more odd dreams—though surely the tequila was to blame.
His sexy vampire dream had increased his interest in the book’s plot. Just after Danior had his first kiss he hadn’t compelled, exhaustion crept up on Lewis. His eyelids drooped. Laying the book beside him, he rolled onto his stomach beneath the covers. With the AC cranked, he burrowed in. Within moments he drifted off to sleep … …
… … the monks filed out of the church, headed for their rooms to rest before three o’clock prayers. I made sure to be last in line. A few steps outside the church, I heard his voice whisper, “Come to me, Liam.”
It had been days since he’d called me and my heart skipped with excitement. Unable to ignore the command, I grabbed Brother Aesop’s sleeve.
“I’ve left my rosary,” I whispered, needing an excuse to slip away.
“You have grown very forgetful, Brother Liam. Perhaps sleep would do you well before our next prayer,” he offered with a kind smile. “You don’t want to have any more spells due to exhaustion.”
Guilt flooded me. Sleep was not what I needed. What I needed I should ignore, but I would stop at nothing to be with my secret lover again.
That heady voice called, insisting I hurry.
“I am quite well,” I assured the brother.
“Be careful on your way back in the darkness. Monsieur Le Salle from the village said there have been strangers camping in the wood for several days now. They have bright colorful tents and arrived mysteriously in the middle of the night. Be cautious, for surely they are thieves. If they choose to steal something from the monastery, I do not wish any harm to befall you. We have already lost many brothers to sickness, and others to sin.”
I was shocked Brother Aesop would allude to the brothers who’d been expelled from the abbey the summer I ran away. Foolishly I’d thought to find them on my brief travels. Brother Fergus had been my mentor, a dear friend. I’d never known he was like me, or that he’d been sharing a bed secretly for many years with Brother Jean-Luc. When Brother George exposed their doings, they’d fled into night.
Though we spoke no more of the two, I thought of them often, especially now that I had an understanding of pleasure. Had they found a similar bliss in each other’s arms?
Ignoring Brother Aesop’s words of caution—doubtless the brothers would speak of me as being lost to sin one day too—I bowed my head. “I will be vigilant and swift, brother.”
Was I just a fool or a depraved sinner? Suspecting both might be true, I hurried away.
The wind picked up and the voice whispered,
“Liam, come to me. Now.”
Maybe this would be the night he swept me away from this cold wretched place. He’d promised forever and I was ready for forever to begin tonight.
Choosing to cut through the barn because Brother Elton was always the first to fall asleep after vespers, I knew I would go undetected. The lantern still glowed inside the structure, so I crept inside. The door to his chamber was closed. Peeking out from around a stall, I made sure I was alone before I headed for the opposite door.
That’s when something attacked me.
My scream never escaped as a large hand clamped over my mouth. A trunk-like arm wrapped around me. A man’s voice hissed in my ear, “Be still, monk.”
Monks eschewed violence, but fighting back was moot anyway. My captor was twice my size and effortlessly spun me around.
Thinking fast, I collapsed my legs, hoping the weight of my slight body would free me of his grip, or surprise him so I could scurry away.
But the man had inhuman speed.
I found myself flat on the ground, pinned beneath him. His huge thighs caged my upper legs and the top of his boots trapped my ankles. Even if I had wanted to kick him, he’d rendered my legs useless. He pinned my wrists above my head with one powerful hand, his other still clamped over my mouth.
Pulse pounding in my ears, my eyes widened. This must be one of the mysterious thieves Brother Aesop warned about. In our struggles, my robes had been hiked well above my knees. Wanton whore that I’d become, I’d foregone my woolen hose again, so any bare skin not trapped by his solid body shivered in the cold night air.
The golden glow of the lantern illuminated his face, a mere hairsbreadth from mine. My heart pounded faster. The sight of him sent sensations through me I’d only experienced in the orchard. The naked state of my body beneath my robes didn’t help matters. His face was angelic somehow, even as it was hard and masculine. Beneath the sharp lines, the shadow of a beard traced his jaw. Long hair the color of summer ale framed his face, and his eyes were so black they appeared inhuman.
Was he possessed by something otherworldly?
Or could he be the specter calling me every night?
To my shame and delight, my struggles and his sheer size had begun to arouse me. He did not have to strain to keep me immobile, and perversely, I liked him holding me down. Wildly, I imagined him pushing my robes up all the way, exposing me fully then quenching his savage lusts on me.
Rather than fear, the prospect excited me beyond belief.
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About the Author:
Deanna Wadsworth might be a bestselling erotica author, but she leads a pretty vanilla life in Ohio with her wonderful husband and a couple adorable cocker spaniels. She has been spinning tales and penning stories since childhood, and her first erotic novella was published in 2010. She has served multiple board positions for different RWA chapters, including President of the Rainbow Romance Writers in 2017. When she isn’t writing books or brainstorming with friends, you can find her making people gorgeous in a beauty salon. An avid reader, she also loves gardening, cooking, music, and dancing. Often she can be seen hanging out on the sandbar in the muddy Maumee River or chilling with her hubby and a cocktail in their basement bar. In between all that fun, Deanna cherishes the quiet times when she can let her wildly active imagination have the full run of her mind. Her fascination with people and the interworkings of their relationships have always inspired her to write romance with spice and love without boundaries.
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