in Montana where she’d sometimes acted as hostess and sometimes as server. She’d been fortunate that they were just as suitable for her job in the office here and she hadn’t had to buy new clothes.
Her shoes were different though, Ildaria noted. They were still black high heels, but open-toed, and the black bow had been moved to rest on the band across the top of her foot rather than the heel. A quick swipe of her hair told her that it was up in the customary bun she wore to work, though. So he’d only changed the shoes and added glasses. Not much of a change to her mind, and she turned her thoughts to wondering how she’d been so slow to realize this was another shared dream.
The answer was obvious. Despite the fact that she was asleep, it seemed so real, and so natural. It wasn’t like she’d pushed through a door into an upside-down circus or something. She’d walked into one of the rooms of the club and had assumed she was awake and this was reality. But in reality she hadn’t seen much of G.G. for the last two weeks since she’d moved into the apartment and the dreams had started. He’d been avoiding her. It hadn’t started right away. The night she’d moved in, he’d checked on her in the office often, and had his breaks there with her and H.D., sharing meals and chatting comfortably, laughing a lot. An hour before closing, he’d shown up to tell her that her eight hours were up and she and H.D. should go up to her new apartment and relax. He’d pick up H.D. once he’d cleaned up after closing.
Ildaria had taken H.D. upstairs and played with the pooch. When G.G. finished cleanup and showed up to collect his pup, she’d greeted him at the door with the offer of hot chocolate and they’d sat on her couch talking for several hours before he’d left for his own apartment. Ildaria had dragged herself off to bed then and fallen into the first of their shared dreams.
The next day had followed the same pattern, with G.G. checking on her often, sharing his meals with her, and enjoying hot chocolate and laughter together as they unwound afterward. Again it had been followed by a restless sleep full of shared dreams. Those dreams had continued every day for the last two weeks, but her waking hours had slowly changed. G.G. had started sending Sofia to check on her rather than doing it himself, and then he’d stopped having meals with her, and finally he’d stopped having hot chocolate at the end of the night too, claiming he was too tired for it. Now, the only time she saw him was in dreams. She supposed that alone should have told her this was a dream, because in reality, she would be upstairs with H.D., not searching him out in the club after closing.
“The damned glasses were supposed to make you less attractive,” G.G. said with irritation, drawing her attention to him again. “They were supposed to slow me down a little so I wouldn’t jump you the minute you walked into the room. Instead, you look hot as hell. Like some sexy librarian or something.” He clucked his tongue with self-disgust. “I’m dressing you up in my dreams like a bloody sex doll, Ildaria. If you had any idea—”
Pausing abruptly, he scowled and turned back to his task, his movements abrupt and angry now as he swiped up glasses and slammed them onto the tray.
“G.G.,” she said with a small frown and crossed the room quickly to his side. But the moment she touched his arm, he jerked upright and stepped back.
“No. Don’t touch me,” he snapped, and then closed his eyes on a sigh when she retrieved her hand and stared at him with embarrassment and confusion.
“I’m sorry,” he breathed wearily. “I’m just tired. I spend my days having all these dreams that leave me feeling like I haven’t slept at all, and then I spend my nights working the door of the Night Club, but fantasizing about you the whole time.” Irritation flickered over his face, and then he burst out, “And I know the customers are reading every dirty little thought in my head. They give me these knowing looks and grins as I let them in. They know that I’m stripping you naked in my mind and—”
He closed his eyes on a short laugh, and muttered, “And