Page 40 of Dark Witch Resurrection

What about Shakespeare, though? Would the teardrop be able to tackle that?

She began to recite lines from A Midsummer Night's Dream, the words flowing from her lips in a steady stream of iambic pentameter. But even as she spoke, she could hear the way the teardrop struggled to keep up, and she did not doubt that the meaning of the words was lost in the translation.

She activated her earpieces in a stroke of inspiration, letting them translate the Kra-ell translation back to English. She'd been right. It was a mess.

Switching to a more contemporary play, Jasmine watched the prince's face for any sign of awareness, not expecting to see anything, but then she saw something that hadn't happened before.

The prince's eyes were moving beneath his closed lids.

Her heart racing with excitement, Jasmine rushed out of the room and ran into Bridget's office.

"You have to see this." She waved the doctor on and rushed back into the prince's room.

Bridget came running, her forehead creased with concern as she hurried to his bedside.

"Look at his eyelids," Jasmine said. "They are twitching."

"I can see that. He's dreaming. His brain activity is increasing, and his eyes are moving, suggesting he's experiencing REM sleep. It's a good sign, Jasmine. A very good sign." Bridget spent a few more moments checking the readouts on the equipment before leaving the room.

Jasmine felt a wave of emotion washing over her as she looked down at the prince's face. He looked so peaceful, so vulnerable in his sleep.

"I'm here for you," she said.

Then, realizing that she hadn't activated the translating device, she turned it on and repeated the same sentence. "You are not alone. Your sister is in the next room, and the doctor is taking good care of you both. You are safe, and you are going to be okay. I promise." She leaned down and brushed her lips over the back of his hand.

31

PETER

"I've never seen so many cars," Marina breathed as Peter pulled into the mall's parking lot. "Not even in the village. There is a sea of them."

He smiled. "You ain't seen nothing yet." He found a spot, which was a stroke of luck on the weekend, slid his car into the narrow space, and cut the engine. "Wait until you see the inside."

He planned a whole day of wonders for her, and the mall was just the first stop. It might be too much for her first outing in a major city, but his Marina was a trooper, and she would do just fine.

She released her seatbelt. "I'm still amazed that I was allowed to leave the village."

He leaned over and kissed her pouty lips. "I told you that no one would object to that as long as you were with me. If you wanted to venture out on your own, the answer would have most likely been no."

She smiled. "My protector, my keeper, my Guardian."

Her tone was clear of sarcasm or ridicule. Marina enjoyed being under his protective wing, and he enjoyed the fact that she was okay with him hovering over her like an overprotective, over-possessive, overly romantic boyfriend.

Hell, he loved it.

Peter also loved that she waited for him to go around the car and open the door for her. All it had taken was him asking her just once to allow him to be a gentleman. He hadn't asked her permission, though, to show her all the wonders and delights the world had to offer and make up for all the years she had spent locked away in Igor's compound and then isolated in Safe Haven.

He was going to surprise her with that.

As she took his offered hand, he pulled her to him for a quick kiss. "Let's go shopping like there is no tomorrow. I want you to get a whole new wardrobe, with clothes for every occasion, shoes to match, sexy lingerie, makeup, jewelry, hair color, whatever you need to feel like a princess."

But not a Cinderella.

When he'd seen the duffle bag containing all her earthly possessions, he'd found it difficult to hide his wince. The bag hadn't even been full. He took more things with him on a weekend vacation than everything Marina owned.

She chuckled. "I've only been working in the café for two days, and I don't even know how much they will pay me. I can't afford all this."

Shaking his head, he wrapped his arm around her. "When you are with me, you pay for nothing. It's my treat."