Prologue
I was standing in this tiny, dirty cabin that smelled of old vomit and stale urine. I had no idea where I was and it didn’t like it. The only thing that made it bearable was that she stood less than 5 feet in front of me. I could see how scared she was, hell I even felt it as if it were my own. I had this sense of danger and need to protect this fragile, beautiful, woman standing in front of me. I took a cautious step towards her but stopped in my tracks when she screamed, "NO!!!! Don't come near me!!!" I could see her trembling from the fear coursing through her. I began trying to calm her down by speaking soft soothing words I also began to inch towards her. As my words finally struck her, she finally looked up at me and a look of confusion spread across her delicate features as she whispered, "Alex?" I replied, "Yes Katherine, it's me Alex, please calm down. I'm not sure what happened here but it’s over now and you are completely safe with me." She started to cry as I was speaking. My heart broke to see her so vulnerable.
She looked up at me with tears flowing freely from her enticing green eyes, and then she ran into my arms and cried against my chest. I gently wrapped my arms around her and rubbed small circles up and down her back to try and calm her down. She calmed down enough to look up into my smoke colored eyes. I looked down into the endless pool of emerald that were the eyes of the woman I loved; I softly wiped the tears away from her face. I held her face in my hands and looked deep into her eyes and although I still saw some fear, I also saw a fierce love and passion that I longed to fully awaken. I decided to take a chance; I lowered my face closer to hers, we both closed our eyes just as our lips joined. It didn't last as long as I would have liked but I pulled back and stared into her beautiful eyes for a few more seconds.....
That’s when my alarm went off; I reached over and turned it off. I lightly felt my lips and although it was only a dream I could still feel how soft her lips had been when I kissed her. I got up to get ready and as I did I remembered the first day I saw her, that was also the day that I realized what I had been missing all my life. The first day my life gained a true purpose. That purpose had a name, and it was Katherine O’Connell.
