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shaky voice, “Is anybody home?”
    When no answer came she stepped tentatively inside, wondering who lived here—and why. She had barely taken in the common room in which she stood when the door slammed behind her. She turned and jumped, letting out a throaty scream. She found herself looking into the faces of two very large dogs, one yellow, one black. They growled and she froze until a sharp command broke the air. “Back!”
    The dogs retreated hesitantly, and Abbi’s eyes were drawn to a man leaning against the door who was anything but what she’d expected. His bearded face and long, dark hair gave him the appearance of some kind of primeval hermit, but they did nothing to hide the blatant anger in his eyes. His voice was gruff as he asked, “Didn’t your mother ever tell you about Goldilocks?”
    Abbi was so taken aback by the question that it took her a moment to come up with a suitable answer. “My mother died when I was very young. I barely remember her.”
    “Oh, that explains it.” His flippant manner contradicted the hovering anger in his eyes.
    “Explains what?” she squeaked, wondering what she had gotten herself into. Perhaps her dream had come from some horrible, evil source that would lead her to downfall and destruction.
    “Growing up without a mother would perhaps explain your being so ignorant and foolish. When Goldilocks went uninvited into a strange house in the woods, she got herself into a great deal of trouble.”
    He walked toward her and she backed away, step for step, attempting to keep up the conversation as she did. “What happened?”
    “It depends on which version you’ve heard. When my mother told it, Goldilocks ran away and never came back. My father said the bears ate her for breakfast, since she’d eaten their porridge.”
    Abbi gasped again as she backed into a wall and found no retreat. He took another step toward her, and she pressed herself as tightly against the wall as she could.
    “What are you doing here?” he growled in a voice so angry that Abbi felt certain she would never get out of here alive. For long, grueling moments she attempted to come up with an answer that would make sense. “I asked you a question!” he snapped.
    She winced. “Perhaps I should just follow Goldilocks’ example and leave before . . .” She attempted to worm past him, but he grabbed her arm and pressed her back against the wall. He took a step closer to prevent her from moving. She became fully aware of how tall he was when she found herself facing the well-worn shirt that covered his chest.
    “You’re not going anywhere,” he snarled. She could feel his hot breath against her face.
    Abbi drew courage enough to look up into his eyes, and for a moment she became lost in their blue chasm, as if she might have found something deeper and more sensitive than the man she saw before her. The sharpness of her breathing intensified as a clear memory of her dream catapulted into her mind. Please don’t leave me. I need you . The faceless man in her dream had said it with conviction. Abbi’s heart softened, wondering what kind of hurt might be hiding within this wretched man who was trying to frighten her. The compelling quality of her dream came back to her, and she knew with all her soul that she was supposed to be here, that he did need her. She was attempting to come up with a way to tell him what she was feeling when the fury in his eyes deepened so hard and fast that she sucked in her breath.
    “You’re not going anywhere,” he repeated, “until you tell me how you got here.”
    “On a horse,” she said.
    He sighed with disgust. “I know that,” he growled. “This horse of yours is outside flirting with my mares. I want to know what you’re doing here, and how you found me.”
    “I . . . I . . . just . . .” She scrambled for words to explain, certain that he’d never believe the truth.
    “Just what?” he demanded.
    “I just . . . happened upon it,