by Ashley Meira
I batted my eyes innocently. “What else am I supposed to do? I can’t move.”
“Please?”
“For a guy who claims to never say please, I hear it a lot,” I said with pride. If the way I made Adam feel was the only power I got addicted to, being Fireborn wouldn’t be so bad. “Ollie will know what I want to eat.”
“Don’t you have to be in the room for him to read you?”
“He’s my best friend,” I said. “If you stay, you can be my best friend.”
He shot me a glare and left a bruising kiss against my cheek. “I’ll be back in twenty.”
Chapter Eighteen
While Adam was off regretting not staying in bed with me, I finally got into the shower. Hopefully this thing’s ability to drown out my worries would hold. I didn’t want Adam to come home and hear me screaming.
Luckily, I was able to keep my mind clear. For the most part. I’d clicked my heels a few more times and wished for Fiona to be the only sister in my life, then did it again and wished not to go to hell. Snow may have been working for evil, but she was as much a victim as Fiona and me. The only difference between us was we’d escaped. Whether or not she was terrible beyond her horrific conditioning, I couldn’t tell — and I was reserving judgement until I could.
After drying myself off, I rifled through my bag for something to wear. My face heated up when I remembered what happened in the hall last night, and I settled on the most conservative PJs I had: a matching long-sleeved button-up and pants in baby blue. I nodded at the fluffy clouds on them. They weren’t cute, fuzzy animals, but they would do.
Grabbing my phone, I dialed Adrienne. The digitized voice telling me her phone was shut off topped my list of most infuriating things on Earth. I tried again, letting out a growl of frustration at the failure. Had it been twenty minutes yet? I’d been too distracted when Adam left to check the time. His magic wasn’t in the house, so I decided to check on Symeon.
It took some detective work. His control over his magic didn’t fade with sleep apparently. He had to teach me how to do that. Maybe I’d take a few lessons in place of cash as payment for his next job. When I finally found Sleeping Beauty, he was snoozing peacefully. There was a nasty bruise on his face where Snow had punched him, the redness spread out like a freshly bloomed rose. I fully expected to be awoken tomorrow by an enraged shriek when he checked his mirror.
I tried calling Adrienne again as I made my way downstairs, the vanilla taste of Adam’s magic making my stomach — and Fire — growl. Good thing too, because I was lost trying to find his kitchen. It helped having a trail to follow.
“Your house is too big,” I announced.
He smiled when he saw me. The way his eyes raked over my body was too indecent for the kiddie pajamas I was wearing. “You look good. Feeling better?”
“A little, but still not good,” I admitted.
He handed me a to-go cup. “Would Ollie’s coffee help?”
“Depends on how much you brought.” I took a sip and instantly relaxed. Ollie added magic to this, bless his soul. He may have needed a license to sell his magical products commercially, but he always gave his friends the good stuff. After all, we’d never report him.
“I bought a few bags of beans.” He pulled the little treasures out of the plastic bag on his counter.
I smiled and wrapped my arms around his waist. “I’m dying for—”
“Ollie’s mac and cheese.”
Ollie must have told him. “Mhm. He uses—”
“Three cheeses and pancetta.”
I narrowed my eyes. Uncanny. “You only get points if you can name the cheeses.”
He kissed my cheek and continued emptying the bag. I eyed the contents warily, frowning when he laid out three different wheels of cheese alongside a few other ingredients.
Raw ingredients.
“I have a bad feeling about this.”
“Ollie gave me his recipe,” he said, pulling a piece of paper from his pocket. “I thought this might take your mind off things.”
“Setting your home on fire is a good way to distract anyone,” I said flatly. “Trying to cash in on some of that sweet insurance money?”
There was a reason Fiona and I ate out all the time, and it wasn’t because we couldn’t be assed. Well, it was, but we also couldn’t cook to save our lives. Except barbecue. We had a lot of experience cooking animals over a bonfire. It brought back memories of huddling around a fire in the dark; cold and scared — constantly looking over our shoulders for the boogeyman who’d kept us captive. We didn’t barbecue anymore.
“I’ll be here.” Adam wrapped an arm around my waist. “Besides, if you start a fire, you can put it out with your magic.”
I shuddered, remembering setting our little hut in Wales ablaze. It was winter. Fiona had been so cold that her lips were blue. All I wanted was to keep my sister alive. Instead, I almost burned down our only shelter from the snow.
“Hey.” Adam tilted my chin up. He was frowning. Because of me. Damn it. “Don’t be sad. I just thought it’d be nice to do something together. With our clothes on,” he added with a grin. “You know, I could barely drive after what you did to me.”
I forced a small smile and hugged him. “Told you not to go.”
“Mhm, but you needed food,” he said, squeezing me back. “Tell you what: I’ll cook dinner, but you have to give me credit for trying to be creative for our date night.”
“We have a date night now?”
“I’d love for that to be every night,” he said kindly, his eyes honest and warm.
“You’d get bored of me.”
“Never.”
“I hope not.” My voice cracked, making me sound more vulnerable than I ever wanted to be. I decided it was okay to be human with Adam. For now, anyway. Cupping the back of his head, I pulled him down for a kiss. Warm and soft, this kiss wasn’t like the ones we’d shared upstairs, but it curled my toes all the same.
“What did I say about keeping our clothes on?” he mumbled against my mouth.
“Your rule, not mine, and honestly, the thought of you making dinner in nothing but an apron is quickly becoming a fantasy of mine.”
His brows shot up. “Noted.”
I laughed at his surprise. “But not this time, or I’d have to get naked too.”
“Deal.”
“No deal. I’m not cooking naked. Hypocritical, I know.” I nipped his chin. “Promise to put out any fires?”
“Only if you promise to save me if I can’t get things under control.”
“Like you’d ever let that happen.”
“Don’t be so sure.” His eyes were a storm. “You make me lose control.”
I froze, unable to look away. “Good. Now you know how it feels.”
“I’m just glad I didn’t upset you.”
I shook my head, hugging him again. “No, not you. Just bad memories.”
“Tell me about them?”
I squeezed him. It was like squeezing a rock, but you didn’t stab things for a living without gaining some crazy upper body strength. “If you want. I don’t really have nice stories.”
“We can make some,” he said, causing tears to pool in my eyes. He really needed to stop being so amazing. “How about we eat what the other makes?”
I raised a brow, glad for the distraction. Enough crying had been done this week. “I’m starting to think you’re suicidal.”
He grinned and tapped my nose. “I’m making sure you’ll try your best.”
I did, and even managed to tell my Wales story without setting the kitchen on fire. Though I did almost lose a finger dicing pancetta. It was Adam’s fault, really. The way the muscles in his arms rippled with each stroke. Up and down, up and down. Who knew grating cheese could be so sexy?
He kissed me after the story, and I kissed him back when he finished telling me about his childhood. It wasn’t as exciting as being on the run or hunting ducks for food — hey, every type of water bird was a
royal asshole, so I didn’t feel bad for a second — but I was glad to hear he had a happy childhood, though he didn’t speak much about his father.
“Spelling bee, huh?”
“I won,” he said smugly. “Then Damien had to win our school’s relay. He doesn’t even like that kind of stuff. Just wanted to even things out.”
“Did he?” I asked, stirring in the cheese. What was it about melting cheese that made me drool out all the water in my body?
“Yes. Then he spent the next week waddling around the house muttering ‘ow, ow, ow,’” he finished with a soft laugh. “Whipped him into shape though.”
“Yeah. I noticed.” That Witch Mode cover he’d posed topless for was seared into my mind. I wondered if it survived the fire? Probably. Fiona almost always had it on hand. It was actually very concerning. “Could never bring myself to borrow that magazine. She’d never let me live it down. Should have though.”
“To stare at my brother?” He sounded disinterested, but he’d stopped stirring his pot, and his eyes were fixed on me.
“Jealous?”
“Depends on your answer.”
I rolled my eyes. “To stare at you, dummy.”
He may not have been on the cover, but Adam was in a few pictures on the inside. Apparently, he and Damien had volunteered to build homes for people in Africa. Witch Mode published the article, probably as an excuse to get the Pierce boys on their page. It worked, and the thought of Adam taking time out to help the less fortunate instead of just sending a check made me appreciate him that much more.
He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “Should I start cooking naked? We’re almost done though.”
“Keep talking, and you’ll be done.” I rolled my eyes but didn’t stop smiling. “How were things at the cafe, by the way?”
“Calm, which I’m told is normal post dinner hour. Fiona didn’t stop eyeing me the entire time, so I suspect you two were gossiping.”
I snorted. “You’re not that interesting.”
“Ouch.” His lips pulled into an exaggerated frown. “Jeffery was still there. Fiona thinks he can’t bring himself to go home.”
“Sandra’s death hit him hard,” I said softly. “I’m impressed, though.”
“That he’s capable of caring for another human being? Me too. Feels mean after the fact, doesn’t it?”
I nodded. “I’m glad he manned up. Made breaking into Thomas’ home easier. Breaking out… not so much.”
“He loved Sandra,” Adam said as he set the table. “Loves her. A man will do a lot of things for the woman he loves.”
“Like go against his brother?” I asked, my heart jumping at the expectation in my question.
He kissed me, his lips lingering on mine. “Let’s just say I can relate.”
I stole a kiss before he moved away and started piling delicious-smelling mac and cheese on expensive looking plates. “Damien doesn’t like me much, does he?”
Adam took one plate from me while I filled the other. “He doesn’t dislike you.”
“Hard to believe. Hey!”
My feet hit air as Adam lifted me up and carried me to my seat with a cocky grin. I smacked his chest.
He just laughed and said, “Damien doesn’t like many people, but he doesn’t hate them either. He’s remarkably neutral for such a pain in my ass. Doesn’t matter. I’ve said several times I like you enough for two people. More than two, actually.”
“I noticed,” I said with a warm smile.
Coffee wasn’t a good match for macaroni, but I found myself sipping Ollie’s coffee through the meal anyway. The delicious meal.
“Ollie can never know how much I enjoyed this,” I said, shoveling another spoonful of heaven into my mouth. “He will ban me from his cafe.”
“Didn’t take him for the jealous type,” Adam said, taking smaller bites.
I frowned. He didn’t seem to be enjoying his food much. Had I screwed up that badly? I did the exact same things he did. “How is it?”
“Good.”
I nudged him with my foot. Hard.
“Really,” he said, not meeting my eyes. “Honest.”
I switched our plates. “Jerk.”
“No, really—”
“Shut up and eat.”
He leaned over to kiss me before digging in. Good, my ass. He was practically swallowing the spoon with each bite now. The second my food touched my tongue, I knew why. Urgh. It tasted raw. We cooked our pasta for the same amount of time. What the actual hell?
“Maybe I’m cursed.”
“Want more of—”
“No,” I huffed, taking the meager remains of my food to the trash. He managed to force down a lot, poor guy. “No need for you to suffer. Your food is edible. Which is why you’re doing all the cooking from now on.”
“Implying we’ll be eating together more?”
I looked over my shoulder at him. “I hope so.”
“Why hope?” he asked, clearing the last bite off his plate and joining me.
Why hope? Because people like me didn’t get happy endings. Because he’d shun me the moment he knew the truth — if not for being Fireborn then for lying to him. Because being with me was essentially a death sentence. Because, because, because. I could do this all night.
Adam’s lips interrupted my pity party. “Forget I asked.”
“I’m not—”
“Yes, you are.” He kissed me again and again until my lips were sore and his were swollen, which still looked good. “Tonight is supposed to be about taking a break.”
I nodded. Tonight was also a complete lie. “You made the good food. I’ll do the dishes.”
“Leave them,” he said. “You need rest.”
“We both do. You’re always worrying about me. Leaves no time for yourself.”
“You’d know.” He tangled his fingers in my hair. “You’re always worrying about everyone else. About time someone worried for you.”
“Fiona does. But nice try. A for effort.”
“B for bed.”
“Bye. The first time we met, I said B for—”
“I know what you said.”
He took the plate out of my hand and covered our dishes in water before hoisting me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. My surprised squawk was as useless as my fists against his back. That didn’t stop me from fussing the entire trip upstairs. He tossed me on the bed like I weighed nothing and tugged the blankets over me.
Glaring, I kicked them off. “Never did like being told what to do.”
“Shocking.”
Rising to my knees, I smacked his chest. He caught my hand and tugged me to him, one hand cupping my backside to keep me close. Like I was going anywhere. Then, his grip loosened, as if to give me a chance to move back.
I didn’t. I just gazed into the most beautiful eyes I’d ever seen, hoping he’d move his hand up or down or anywhere at all.
The hand around mine chose down and slid under my shirt. His fingertips drew circles around my bellybutton, causing my breath to hitch. But not as much as when he popped the last button of my shirt, then the next, and the next, working his way up until my shirt was open. I looked away, embarrassed. Should’ve worn a bra.
His hand dipped back into my shirt, sliding over my stomach. His skin was hot against mine, so intense it might leave a mark. I wouldn’t mind this brand at all. Tingles streaked through me, lighting up my nerve endings in a way magic never could.
“Adam,” I whispered, my eyes falling shut.
Suddenly, my chest was bare, and I was pressed flat against him. When had he pulled his shirt off? I didn’t care. His skin against mine felt better than I imagined. Being wrong wasn’t so bad with Adam, I’d found.
Eyes still closed, I let my hands wander around his body, trying to memorize every dip and curve. His hands were doing the same, trembling fingers sliding over every inch of my bare skin. I needed a minute to realize why he was shaking. Apparently, those moans had been mine.
; Even through the lust, I was scared. This wasn’t any guy. This was Adam. The guy I wanted to be mine despite my better judgement.
But was it? He’d been so good to me. He always stood by me, he’d opened up, and he was very clear about his feelings. How was it better to cast him aside?
Adam was special. More than special.
Not to mention talented. His hands roamed my body, leaving it blazing like an inferno. He’d been right before, about me still not being ready. But just because I wasn’t ready to play the game, it didn’t mean I couldn’t run a few bases.
I laced our fingers together and met his gaze. The air was so thick with our magic I thought I might suffocate. My words came in breathy pants. “I don’t want to wake up alone anymore.”
Chapter Nineteen
Golden light slid over my eyes, pulling a sleepy groan from my lips. I’d forgotten to close the curtains. Normally, the sun’s rude awakening would have driven me crazy, but the arm around my bare waist, and the warm body underneath mine, did wonders for my mood. I’d never be able to wake up properly any other way.
A goofy smile took over my face, followed by a blush. We hadn’t gone all the way, but the things we’d done had given me more than enough reason to never let him leave this bed. Ever. I wondered if Symeon had his spare handcuffs on him?
The dawn light left me for prettier pastures, highlighting the sexy planes of Adam’s face. His lashes left long shadows across those chiseled cheeks, and his lips were slightly parted. Heat curled my toes as I thought of the things he did with those lips. I hope I reciprocated well enough. I’d certainly been enthusiastic.
As if he’d sensed my thoughts, he pulled me closer. My eyes widened at the naked pressure against my skin. Wasn’t he tired? I shifted against him, pulling a deep moan from his lips. Neither of us were, it seemed.
His eyes fluttered open. He nuzzled my shoulder, trying to get back to sleep, but the sun’s rays proved too insistent. Blinking sleepily, he looked at me.
When I showed up on his doorstep and he’d greeted me with bedroom hair and the most perfect upper body in the world, I’d thought that was the end of it. Adam was amazing when he first woke up. But his next words proved me wrong. As impossible as it felt, his sleep-roughened voice added even more sexiness. I was surprised he hadn’t exploded from all that hotness.
