Read Destined for Dreams: Book One for Free Online

Something’s different. Something has changed. I feel someone else’s presence.
    I pull myself from Jacqueline’s dream. “Hello?” I whisper. “Jacqueline, are you messing with me?”
    A strange energy sucks me back into Jacqueline’s dream. I try to disconnect, but I’m stuck. I search around the imaginary buildings for misplaced things, but nothing has changed.
    I jump from the roof and land on my feet in the middle of an empty street. Jacqueline’s dreams are usually eerily quiet and I wonder if it has to do with the fact that I’m not the one dreaming, so maybe I’m missing big chunks of what goes on. I don’t ask her though. It would make it awkward.
    Loud footsteps echo and I jog to the end of the block and press my stomach to the wall of a building. I wait a few seconds, listening as the footsteps move closer, and then I peek around the corner.
    I can’t believe what I’m seeing. It’s the girl from the club.
    Her shimmering, white hair blows behind her and she slides her slender fingers over the red bricks of a rundown building. In their wake, she leaves a burning trail, and it’s like the girl is setting Jacqueline’s world ablaze.
    She’s wearing an ivory strapless dress and black lace-up combat boots. She smiles as she looks around, but it’s not happiness. It’s an eerie satisfaction. I count to three before stepping around the corner to face her. She stops and stares at me with a wild glint in her eyes.
    My hands shake and I want to turn and run. Years of being taught that supers are horrible, vile creatures crowd my mind and it’s hard to stay calm. This girl won’t hurt me. She can’t...at least I don’t think she can. I refuse to let my fear of the unknown overpower me. This is the first opportunity I’ve had to talk to someone besides Jacqueline. Apart from the board, this girl may be the only person to ever find out I’m here and that I’m trapped.
    I clear my throat. It takes a lot in me to speak. “Are you real?” I ask.
    Her smile falters and she tilts her head to the side. “You shouldn’t be able to see me.” Panic sweeps across her face and she crosses her arms. She’s afraid of me, too. I don’t know why, but it makes me feel better. It makes me want to comfort her. “That’s impossible. Who are you?”
    I step closer. “My name is Hunter Sullivan. I’m a soul trapped inside Jacqueline’s mind.” I reach out to offer my hand, but she doesn’t move.
    Her fear melts into surprise and she puckers her bottom lip. “This is the strangest dream.”
    I step closer. “I’m not a dream.”
    Her gray eyes flash and she smiles. “I love when dream people are in denial.”
    She reaches out, a haunted look in her eyes, and grabs my shoulders.
     
     
    NADIA
     
    Anticipation courses through me when I reach out and grab Hunter’s shoulders. His dream essence will be as satisfying as everything else in Jacqueline’s dream world I’ve come to devour. My fingers dig into the soft cotton of his shirt and he lowers his eyebrows, frowning.
    Nothing happens.
    I give him a hard shake before letting go and stepping back. Hunter feels so utterly real. His muscular shoulders are firm in my grip and his hazel eyes are the most beautiful color.
    “You’re not—not a dream,” I stammer.
    He shakes his head. A soft, dark brown curl falls into his eyes. “Nope.”
    I wipe my arm across my forehead. “I’m so confused. I need to leave.”
    He reaches out and tries to grab my hand, but I’m much faster. “Please, hear me out. Don’t go. It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to talk to someone besides Jacqueline.” He looks so sincere that I can’t turn my back on him. His strong jaw twitches when he presses his lips together and he doesn’t break eye contact.
    “Can she hear us?” I ask.
    “She doesn’t know I spy on her dreams,” he says.
    I release a breath and stare at the bulging veins in his arms. Everything is telling me to abandon Jacqueline’s dream