Dark Realms(50)

“Ahem, thanks for asking… my first day went pretty good, by the way.”

“I’m sorry, honey,” she replied, grabbing a robe from the closet. “I totally forgot. So, your first day at the diner went pretty smooth?”

“Yeah. I’m working again tonight. In fact, Nathan has to use your car to drop me off at the diner around four. His Mustang needs a new battery.”

She groaned and then nodded reluctantly. “Okay. I’ll just have to take care of some things tomorrow, I guess.”

I motioned towards her neck. “So, how’s your skin?” I asked.

She touched it and winced. “Still tender.”

I got off the bed and walked over to her. “Did you put anything on it?”

“No. I probably should. How does it look?”

I examined her skin and frowned. It looked much worse. “You should really see a doctor.”

She waved her hand and shook her head. “No, you know me. I’m just allergic to mosquito bites. It usually takes a while for them to heal.”

“At least put something on it, so it doesn’t get infected.”

“Fine, Nurse Nikki,” she said with a wry smile.

I walked over to the window and opened the blinds. “It’s a beautiful day, mom, you could use some vitamin D on that lily-white skin of yours.”

“Oh, hey… close the blinds,” she gasped holding her hand up to shield her face. “The sun hurts my eyes!”

I quickly closed them. “Wow, you seriously need to lay off the alcohol, mom. Hangovers are a bitch.”

She grabbed her sunglasses from the nightstand and put them on. “Actually, I think I have an eye infection or something,” she said. “They’ve been bothering me the last couple of days.”

“Maybe you’re allergic to Caleb. Ever since you’ve been seeing him, you’ve been acting weird.”

She smiled. “It’s definitely not him. He is such a wonderful man. I’m so happy we met. It’s only been a few hours since we we’ve been together, but… I have to admit, I miss him already.”

It sounded like she really was falling pretty hard for the sheriff. “So, when’s the wedding?” I asked.

‘Oh, God, it’s too early for that but I’ll be honest, every time he looks at me,” she sighed and her eyes looked wistful, “I just want to jump his bones.”

I shuddered. “Okay, that’s something I didn’t need to hear. That’s just twisted, mom.”

She laughed. “Oh, just you wait, my dear. You’ll meet someone who makes your toes curl and then you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.”

I’d already met two guys who made my toes curl but I wasn’t about to tell her that. “Whatever,” I said.

She walked over to me and touched my cheek. “What about Duncan? Any sparks?”

My cheeks grew pink. “Well… I don’t know. I mean, we’re just friends, you know?”

She smiled, knowingly. “Friends, huh? Just make sure you use protection if he gets too friendly.”

My jaw dropped. “Mom!”

“You are still a virgin, right?”

I couldn’t believe we were actually having this conversation.

“Oh, my God, yes!” I replied, staring at her in horror.

“Although, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. Just be safe.”

“Enough! I’m still a virgin and I plan on staying one for a while.”

Her eyes softened. “That’s what a mother wants to hear. But when things get confusing or too much, you can always come to me with any questions.”

“I’m going to take a shower,” I said. “I feel dirty after talking about it with you.”

She laughed. “You’re such a smartass.”

I left her and went back to my room. Instead of taking a shower, however, I lay down on my bed and thought about everything that had happened the night before. It now seemed so unbelievable, that I wondered if it had been just a dream.

I closed my eyes and fell asleep.





~~~





“Nikki, come to me,” whispered the smooth, masculine voice in my ear.

I opened my eyes to find that I was in a forest wearing a billowy, white nightgown. I stood up and began walking in my bare feet. As I looked down, I noticed sharp pieces of broken glass cutting into my skin, which was now bleeding.

“Hurry,” prodded the voice. It was strong and demanding; it pushed me forward, one foot after another.

“Nikki!” yelled Duncan.

“Duncan?” I whispered, turning around.

“Wait, Nikki!” he cried, running towards me. I watched in amazement as he kept moving without making any progress.