Constant Cravings Read Online Free PDF Page A

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    “Was that a vision of the future?” I wondered aloud.
    One thing was certain, I had not imagined him. My imagination wasn’t that good.
    As I enjoyed my third cup of coffee, I began to make notes on things I had questions about from the night before.
    At the top of the list was, “What does ‘unseelie’ mean?” This was immediately followed by “Who the fuck is Oberon and why does he sound familiar?” A few minutes alone with a search engine and I had only created more questions.
    There were so many sites with information about fairies. Sometimes the internet can be too much of a good thing. I needed answers, and there were plenty here. Mostly to questions I hadn’t asked yet. Several sites did agree on one thing, “unseelie” was definitely bad.
    The group known as unseelie was considered the “Dark Court”, consisting of solitary fairies who were supposedly more inclined to be wicked because they didn’t fit in with the rest.
    “Shit. They make them sound like serial killers.” Upon closer investigation, I found that such unsavory characters as hobgoblins belonged to the unseelie court. What had Liam done to be put in this category? Or was Nym just being an ass?
    I thought this over in the shower. It was there, with my bathroom filled with steam, that I was distracted not by thoughts of grief but by fantasies of Liam. I imagined him there with water saturating his long hair, making it cling to his neck and shoulders. I could see every inch of him, just as real as I could look down and see my own body.
    Was my mind trying to protect me from what I’d seen? Was I having these visions to avoid reliving the horror that I could only remember in flashes?
    “These are not the thoughts of someone who just lost a friend,” I said to myself.
    Imagine my surprise when Liam answered, “How would you know? Have you ever lost a friend before?”
    “No. But apparently I’ve lost my fucking mind.” His smile looked so real. He looked so real. I reached out to test that theory just as Liam seemed to realize he was naked.
    20

    Constant Cravings
    “Naughty you,” he teased.
    I ran a hand through my wet hair to get it out of my face. Truly, I expected him to vanish in the time it took me to do this.
    “I’m not naughty, because this isn’t happening. I’m standing here like a nut, talking to myself. I’m hurting and this must be a manifestation of my pain.” He propped against the wall and as he crossed his arms, rivulets of water cascaded down his body.
    “See, nobody looks that good naked, so this can’t be real. You are a fantasy, right down to your…” My words trailed off as I paused to take in the full view. “That can’t be real.”
    He didn’t laugh at me, but there was barely contained amusement in his smile.
    “If you’re done trying to convince yourself, I’d be glad to tell you what’s really happening.”
    I took a step forward, frightened by the depth of my obvious psychosis. In the process I knocked down a bottle of shampoo. It stopped before reaching Liam’s foot. I’d been expecting it to roll right through him.
    “Fine. Let’s hear it.”
    “You summoned me here.”
    “Summoned you?”
    “It’s a side effect of the kiss we shared.”
    I remembered what he’d said, about if you kissed a fairy your souls would touch.
    “It’s for this reason that Oberon discourages mixing with humans. If they have a bit of psychic ability, they can summon you, just like this.” He indicated his body before winking at me. “The naked fantasy is a nice touch.” A light switched on in my memory. “Oberon? As in, king of the fairies, Oberon?” He looked impressed. “You know your folklore.”
    “I know my Shakespeare,” I corrected.
    He sighed. “I know where you’re going with this. Just because he was in a work of fiction doesn’t make him any less real.”
    “If he is your king, then you’ve gone against his wishes.” He shrugged. “It’s not the first time. He’ll