elemental 02 - blaze

by Ladd, Larissa

  The two times he had lit his bed on fire, he had been in a deep sleep. Dreaming. The first time, Aiden had found himself in the middle of an impassioned argument with a woman whose face was not quite clear to him; no matter how many times he recalled the dream, he could never remember what she looked like. When he tried to remember what had started their argument, he was never able to. The dream began in the midst of the argument, past the point where something as mundane as cause was irrelevant. He and the woman were shouting at each other for no real reason simply venting their frustration. In the dream, Aiden felt his anger transform into something else: pure, unadulterated lust. He had no idea what his connection with the woman in his dream was, but there was the suggestion that they were involved somehow—though the idea was vague. He reached out and grabbed her, silencing her words with a deep, passionate kiss. The woman in his arms froze for an instant in shock, and then her body relaxed against him. She responded, deepening the kiss as her hands explored his body.

  The heat rose inside of Aiden. He knew he should be controlling himself, pushing it back, but her touch made it impossible for him to do anything but give his inner fire free reign. He began to peel her clothes off slowly, his hands too slow for what he wanted. With a rising sense of urgency he needed her naked immediately and in his arms, her skin pressed against his, every inch of their bodies touching. He wanted to be inside of the woman he had been arguing with just moments before, to feel her power surging through him; somehow he instinctively knew that she, like he, was an elemental.

  He had just managed to get her naked, to touch her exposed skin, when the smell of smoke woke him out of the dream abruptly. Aiden’s eyes opened to flames rising around him, burning the sheets and the frame itself, digging into the mattress. He managed to contain the fire before it reached the walls or floor, but the bed had been utterly destroyed. The dream had remained with him. His desire for the woman he had been fighting with, their passion for each other, was something that still stimulated everything within him. It was exactly what Aiden wanted—a person who wasn’t afraid of him, a woman willing to stand up to him, who would fall into his arms when his mind shifted from frustration into lust. The woman he had been wanting his entire life, only available in his dreams.

  The second dream had been similar. He had been dreaming of a woman whose face he couldn’t see—in this case, they weren’t fighting. He was comforting her. Aiden had never been fully comfortable with the prospect of extending comfort, but in the case of the woman in his dreams, he had put forth the effort, murmuring things that he couldn’t remember the next day, touching her and soothing her grief. He couldn’t remember what she was upset about, what it was that had caused her so much pain. But he knew that she trusted him—completely and totally—by the fact she was willing to cry in front of him. He had wrapped his arms around her, and she had turned to him, pressing her lips to his in an impulse he could completely understand. The kiss transformed from an expression of the woman’s need for comfort into something deeper; she was touching him everywhere, her warm tears rolling onto his face. Her hands, small and deft, slipped under his shirt, and Aiden knew that the kind of comfort she really wanted was something much more visceral and much less gentle than he had been giving her.

  Once more, clothing was shed and both of them were touching each other, hungrily kissing every spot their lips could reach. Aiden had been so turned on it was agonizing, his whole body tense with anticipation of release. The smell of smoke had pulled him out of his deep sleep, and once more the bed had been destroyed. The incidents had since ceased, not because he had gained control of his abilities, but because Aiden’s dislike for lighting his bed on fire prompted him to wake up from the increasingly erotic dreams before they became so intense that his abilities kindled everything around him. He had never been able to recognize the woman in his dreams, but Aiden knew if he ever met her, he wouldn’t be able to handle himself. He would have to have her—he would have to win her, convince her that no other man would be able to give her what he could. Of course, remembering that resolution, he knew it would be a good idea to keep his fiery impulses under control to avoid lighting another bed on fire when, and if, he managed to win the woman of his dreams.

  Thinking about the dreams distracted from the larger point. His lust had been nearly insatiable and was still difficult to control. Aira would be going through the same thing. He had never asked what happened before her power surge. He wondered what she had been dreaming of and he suspected it was not going to be an isolated incident.

  He recalled being yanked from a relatively sound sleep by Aira’s screams and rushing into her dark bedroom as the wind beginning to howl outside. Seeing her thrash around the bed, struggling against the power running through her body, Aiden knew at once what she was experiencing. He recognized the agony of the sensory overload and being consumed by the energies transforming her body, everything so intense. He had acted without thinking, pinning her down to the bed, trying to get through to her; in retrospect he understood his mistake thoroughly. It still grated on him that Dylan had been better able to calm her than he had. In fact, in some respects, he thought he had somehow managed to make it worse, judging by the lightning strikes that had occurred while he’d had her pinned down.

  One aspect of that night replayed in Aiden’s mind. He had purposefully avoided mentioning it, and had even tried to avoid thinking about it, but the image of Aira sprawled out on the bed, her body exposed to her hips, leaving little to the imagination, had remained with him. The sight of her breasts moving as she panted, her creamy skin, the pale, dusky pink of her nipples, was forever impressed in his mind. He had never known Aira slept in the nude; he wasn’t even sure it was a normal occurrence for her, but having her in the room next to his and knowing she might was in his mind every night since.

  He had been trying to find a way to suggest Aira take a more proactive approach to finding a mate; but after that night he couldn’t help the surge of jealousy at the thought of any man having full access to her curves. He told himself he was simply a connoisseur—that he appreciated her body as a lithe, nubile woman. But he knew if he was honest with himself, he was perilously close to losing his objectivity about Aira.

  When she had hesitantly told him and his brother that she had joined one of the elementals-only forums, he had been both relieved and a touch jealous. She could find someone there more suited to her personality. In spite of his increasingly difficult to ignore hunger towards the woman, Aiden knew deep down he and Aira would not make a good couple. He began to distance himself from her after the night he rescued her when he had overheard her talking to Dylan in a way he realized was more flirtatious than friendly. Nothing had come from it, which confused Aiden. His brother was objectively attractive and had a lot to offer a woman. But Aiden also knew that all air elementals found it as easy to flirt as they found it to breathe. Emotionally, he felt a little bad for Dylan because his brother hadn’t felt confident enough to press his suit. He hadn’t broached the topic, but Aiden knew that it would be difficult for any man that Aira had her sights on to ignore her or disregard her charms.

  When Aiden began investigating Alex’s family, he had no intention other than probing to see if there was any possibility of danger to her. However, Aiden quickly found himself drawn into Dolores’ subtle, wry charm. Dolores had used the wits that embodied her air alignment that Aiden’s interest in information was more than casual. He had not admitted he was set to guard Aira until she found a mate, but he admitted to a sort of brotherly interest in her well-being. Our families are close, he had explained to Dolores. I’ve known Aira since we were kids and I just want to make sure…you understand. It was a little lie, but he reasoned that if a time for the truth came, Dolores shouldn’t fault his intentions.

  Increasingly Aiden found himself chatting with Dolores, not just to get more information about the family—what kind of politics they were into, their position among the elementals, things that might raise
a red flag—but because she was interesting to talk to. Both Alex and Dolores were musicians, like his brother and himself. But they had managed to make a living from their music. They performed in separate bands that often toured together throughout the United Kingdom. A year before they had settled stateside, wanting a change of pace and were happy to find things “less stuffy” in the U.S. for elementals, as Dolores had put it. When she had suggested they chaperone the first meeting between her cousin and Aira, Aiden had been more than happy to agree, interested in meeting the distracting woman in person. He welcomed her high energy and humor. He needed something to take his mind off of the woman he was guarding, to keep him from compromising himself. When Aira mentioned she was thinking of inviting the two cousins to celebrate her birthday, assuming all went well at the first meeting, Aiden was happy to give his consent.

  Dylan, Aiden noticed, was less than pleased with the development. Aiden understood his brother’s position. It wasn’t entirely safe for them to encourage Aira to meet new people, particularly elementals. But it was also part of their responsibility to see that Aira found a mate successfully. Her safety in the world of elementals depended upon allying herself with another family, or at least another person of good standing in the community. Once she did, there would be fewer attempts to subvert her, and whatever attempts that came up she could handle with the help of her mate. Aiden noted to his brother that if they didn’t let her meet anyone they would be guarding her indefinitely, a prospect none of them were terribly fond of. Dylan conceded, keeping his reservations silent, but Aiden knew even if he was being dazzled, his brother was not—and that was important. As long as they were not both overtaken by the intrigues of another elemental, they could collectively keep Aira safe.

  However, the issue of Aira’s growing power, the possibility of another freak weather occurrence, and Aiden’s certainty that she was experiencing lust easily as strong as his, kept him on his toes, in spite of Dolores’ distractions. Aiden wondered again if he should talk to his charge about the side effect. He had watched her reaction when she had received a letter from her grandmother that made her blush and wondered if it was a warning of the symptoms. When he picked it up later while Aira was with Dylan running errands, he found two pages scrawled in a language he couldn’t begin to interpret. He didn’t know for sure that the letter was about the full power side effect of lust, but he didn’t know that it wasn’t. He knew her grandmother would have every reason for cautioning Aira. The idea of discussing something so intimate was intimidating. Aiden himself didn’t even want to think about lust in conjunction with his charge, much less talk to her about it. He reassured himself as he tossed and turned in bed, waiting for another windstorm or a scream to puncture the night’s stillness that she would talk to him about it if she needed to. He knew she would more likely talk to Dylan about it, and Dylan would bring it to his attention. He told himself, directing his thoughts back on the beautiful and enigmatic Dolores, he was there to protect Aira and he wouldn’t let himself get any more involved than he had to.

  Chapter 4

  Dylan was awake when the sound of the wind swiftly rising signified that Aira was going through another surge of the elemental power transforming her body. He scrambled out of bed, taking the stairs at a run; Aira wasn’t screaming this time, thank goodness, but the sudden sharp rise in the local wind speed was definitely not something that should be allowed to continue. The experiences he had seen his brother go through, that Aira was going through, dulled anticipation of his own future experience coming into his full abilities. He knew the process would be, at the very least, painful and he would find himself and his power out of control. The ‘power surges’ as Aiden and Aira had termed them were clearly unpleasant judging from Aira’s screams the first time it had happened to her.

  Dylan entered Aira’s bedroom behind Aiden. He wondered, as he had multiple times before, whether it would have been a better idea for him to take the room next to Aira’s instead. While they had flipped a coin in the interest of fairness, Dylan knew his brother had a tendency to annoy and frustrate Aira and that the enigmatic, flighty woman had the same effect on his brother. He recalled his father telling him when he was young that he seemed suited for the role of “peace keeper” in any situation. It was a designation that would cement his partnership with his hot-tempered, impulsive brother. They had other siblings, but the two—Dylan and Aiden—were the best-suited to protect other elementals, to act as bodyguards or negotiators in tense situations. Dylan, with his easygoing nature and readily soothing manner was the model diplomat, while Aiden never hesitated to put his life in danger to achieve his goals.

  Aiden, perhaps remembering he had made matters worse the previous time that Aira had been in this state, hesitated next to her bed, looking down at her. She wasn’t screaming. She wasn’t even awake. But the wind intensifying outside rattled the windows. It was enough to tell both Dylan and Aiden something was amiss. Even if they had been deaf, the way Aira was moving, writhing in the bed, in the midst of her sleep, was evidence enough. Dylan was relieved on his brother’s behalf that it seemed Aira had worn pajamas to bed this time. Her nudity hadn’t bothered him—other than confirming that Aira was undeniably a beautiful woman even without clothing, something he had suspected anyway. Dylan had conceded that a relationship with Aira and he wouldn’t work out; he couldn’t give her the demanding, challenging pressure she needed from a mate.

  The two stood and stared at Aira for a long moment, neither entirely sure what to do. The previous time she had experienced a power surge, she had been fully awake by the time they had caught on. The wind speed rose sharply. Dylan cringed at how the windows in Aira’s room rattled in their frames, the high-pitched wail of the wind moving through nooks and crannies of the building itself. He looked at his brother in concern, and felt himself blushing slightly as Aira let out a low, throaty moan. It was obvious that she was in the throes of a particularly vivid and apparently erotic dream, her senses cranked to the hilt. Aiden reached out to touch Aira, and Dylan knocked his hand away. Dylan had contacted Aira’s grandmother after the first power surge and mentioned the lightning that had accompanied it. Was Aiden in contact with her when it happened? Lorene had asked sharply. Lightning is the manifestation of air and fire combined. They’re both unstable elementals, their powers came together. It’s dangerous—try to make sure it doesn’t happen again. He hadn’t told his brother, and Dylan was still digesting the importance of what Aira’s grandmother had said, but he understood the warning.

  Just as Dylan knocked aside Aiden’s attempt to awaken Aira, the wind shifted, becoming more violent. Dylan and Aiden jumped, startled when the windows rattled harder, the sound of the wind shaking the panes of glass. Before either of them could organize another thought, the glass shattered, the fragments being sucked out into the night. Wind surged through the room, scattering loose paper and knocking heavier items around. Dylan knew he had to act. Aira wasn’t going to wake anytime soon, at least not before her abilities made more of a mess than could be easily explained by freak weather.

  Dylan placed his hands firmly on her shoulders, pinning her down to the mattress as he focused all of his thoughts on the spell he had used before. He murmured the spell, feeling the cold, calm pressure of his water energy flowing through his body. He repeated the incantation again and again, calling upon his ability to dampen and suppress the flow of energy rocking Aira. He sent waves of calming energy through Aira’s body until the squall gradually died down. The howling, keening, and wailing wind began to falter. Aira shivered. Dylan felt the power coursing through her body tingling through his touch. He let go of her as the wind calmed to a draft.

  “Aira,” Dylan spoke softly. “Aira.” He kept his voice above a whisper, but he did want to wake her.

  Aiden stared at the broken window, then glanced from it to the woman he had sworn to protect. Absorbing the shock of the broken window; he moved between Dylan and Aira and gave the woman an abrupt shake. �
�Wake up!”

  Dylan rolled his eyes at his brother’s methods—but they were effective. Aira gasped, her dark eyes flying open. She squinted at the men hovering over her and rubbed at her face, shaking her head in confusion.

  “What’s going on?” she asked, her voice sleepy and plaintive. Dylan smiled slightly. He could tell from the residual flush across her face and chest that her power surge had been precipitated by the same kind of dream-based eroticism that had accompanied his brother’s experiences in the destruction of bedroom furniture less than a year before.

  “You broke your window,” Aiden said bluntly, gesturing to the empty frame.

  Aira sat up alert, startled by the accusation, looking in the direction Aiden was pointing. Dylan sat on the edge of her bed shaking his head. While his brother had many sterling qualities, dealing with crises that didn’t call for either beating someone up or destroying property was not one of them. Aira took in the sight of her broken window for a moment and then turned in confusion to Dylan.

  “What? How did I break it? I was asleep—dreaming…” She blushed a deep crimson. Dylan didn’t need intuition to know she was remembering the contents of the dream.

  “You damned near created a tornado around the building,” Aiden said, throwing himself down at the foot of her bed. He smirked. “Sounded like a good dream you were having. Let me guess: Alex?”

  Dylan forestalled an angry, embarrassed retort from Aira by picking up a stray stuffed animal that had fallen off of a display shelf in her room and throwing it at his brother. “It doesn’t matter what she was dreaming about,” Dylan said firmly. “You were having another power surge. The wind grew strong enough to shatter the window. I think most of the shards flew out, but you might want to be careful walking around.” He gave her a little smile. “We can get someone in to fix the window. How are you feeling?”