Blaze Ignites (Scourge Survivor Series Book 1)

by J. L. Madore

  "What do I smell like to you?"

  He nuzzled up the length of my neck. "Mmm, the sweet warmth of spring, delicate white flowers with blush centers." Galan dipped his mouth to the hollow of my throat. "Spring blossoms." He pulled back, his eyes wild with emotion, and leaned in.

  Lips met lips. Heat met heat.

  Galan kissed me with such exquisite care. Even with his tongue in my mouth he was all about passionate restraint. It wasn't anything like the wildfire kisses we'd shared before. This was soft and gentle, unhurried. Gods he sooo knew what he was doing.

  Silky fingers traced the curves of my side, moving down my ribs, down to the bone of my hip. In a slow sweep, he brought them back up the same path. He hesitated then sent his palm down again. With each upward circuit his hand landed tantalizingly closer to the curve of my breast. I moaned as he finally slid his palm over the lace of my bra and held me in his hand. My body roared to life, arching into his touch.

  "Is this all right?" he said, roughly.

  I was famous for daydreaming, but this was beyond even my creative powers. When I nodded, his thumb brushed the peak of my nipple where it pressed against the black lace. His lips moved to my neck, gentle as a breeze. I was lucky to be lying down because my legs would never have supported me. He settled his weight over me and pressed me further into the mattress.

  "I love your curves," he groaned. He stared down at me, his hips swaying in a light rocking motion. "You are a vision."

  "Galan?" The conflict between uncertainty and yearning was evident in that one word. He was addictive, impossible to say no to, yet . . . I needed to focus. "Galan? I'm not sure, I mean—I've never been like this with anyone before."

  Galan froze. When he remained motionless I cursed my stupidity. Of course, he would want to stop. Why would someone like him, with all his experience fondling slender, elegant women want—

  "Blossom?" he said, hoarsely, "when you say never been with—"

  "Never mind. Forget I said anything." I clenched my eyes shut and tried to get up.

  Galan grabbed my wrists and pinned me beneath him. Restraining me only proved to make me struggle harder. "Blossom, please stop. Shh . . . stop this."

  "Just forget it," I muttered not meeting his gaze. My cheeks were burning hot and I wanted to crawl into the bathroom and lock myself in.

  "I never meant to upset you, neelan. I am simply stunned you are a Newling. In my world that is something to cherish. It is extraordinary." His voice was rough as he pulled back to look at me, his eyes filled with compassion. "Allow me the honor of addressing your needs. I swear we shall stay within the boundaries of playful pleasures." In his most formal Elvish he said, "Trust me to do right by you. Please."

  When I relaxed beneath him, he covered my mouth with his own.

  Oh, god his lips were soft. And warm.

  Galan took his time deepening our kiss, getting acquainted with my curves, brushing my hair off my shoulder, skimming down my arm and over my ribs. When my whole body felt loose and sinfully slick, his fingers dipped across my navel, to the lace of my panties. My eyes widened as his intentions flared in his. His fingertips tugged the lace down my thighs, sliding inside my knee, leaving a trail of warmth in their wake.

  "Sweet Shalana," he gasped.

  "Wha—" I squirmed. "What's wrong?"

  Galan stretched his leg over my thigh. "Nothing, Blossom. Nothing is amiss. I was simply taken aback. You . . . oh, you have a thicket of burgundy curls here."

  My cheeks burned as probing fingers raked through my damp curls. "You like that?"

  "I do." As he drew me tighter to his body, his erection pulsed against my hip. "It is unbearably erotic to me." Lust sizzled in the air between us as he deepened our kiss and his bare chest pressed against my bra.

  My muscles tightened and twitched as his fingers caressed the most intimate parts of me. He seemed to know exactly what ached. Timing, touch, pressure . . . he read my body as if it were Braille—exactly why he had been popular in his village. I stiffened.

  Sooo not something to think about right now.

  "Blossom, are you well? Tell me truthfully. Do you wish to stop?"

  I was right there with him, running my palms down the length of his back to the perfection of his ass. Slipping my hands under the waistband of his boxers, I explored what, until now, I had admired only by sight. "I . . . I ache, Galan. I need you."

  "Ahh," he purred, kissing down my breastbone, down my belly, down further still. His movements were slow and smooth, as if I was an animal ready to bolt and he was trying not to spook me. From beneath lowered lids, with his gaze locked on mine, he nipped and kissed his way down my stomach. Warm palms drifted along the inside of my thighs and pressed them open. I shuddered when he slipped his arms under my legs and dipped his head.

  "Sweet female," he moaned, the vibration of his words rippling into my flesh. My fingers dug into his hair and my hips jerked forward. He nuzzled against my core, pushing deeper with each lap and kiss. "Be still, Blossom. Relax," he whispered and then continued working between my thighs. He'd found a seriously erotic rhythm, the friction of his tongue darting and penetrating as his fingers swirled.

  I dimly felt one of my legs get thrown over his shoulder, then the other. He blew a long hot breath over my most sensitive skin. I thought I would lose my mind. "Galan," I cried, not recognizing my own voice. I clutched his shoulders, the tension building and clenching, threatening to overwhelm me. "I don't think I can do this."

  "Let yourself go, Blossom. Breathe. Allow the sensation to overpower you."

  Returning his attentions, his tongue delved deeper and deeper still, his chin and lips and mouth adding to the magic. It was the vibration of a manly moan against my flesh that sent me out of my body. I arched back, my nails gripping the sheets. Wave after wave of blinding pleasure washed over me, burned through me. It seemed endless. I was lost.

  Dizzy and breathless I finally collapsed into the crumpled sheets. Galan climbed up my body and nipped the crook of my neck. His smile lit me up. Never had I experienced anything like Galan. He held me in a full-bodied embrace, murmuring in Elvish as he kissed his way up and down my neck. "Are you well?" He waited until I was able to nod. "Gratitude, Blossom."

  "You're thanking me? Why? You did all the work." As Galan's laughter vibrated against me and shook the bed. I was ashamed to admit it, but I had often wondered what it would be like to be with a man, to want a man to touch me. It was a communion sweeter than anything I imagined. It really was magic.

  "It is a great honor for a Highborne to pleasure a woman, though to be your first—" he shook his head. "I am humbled beyond words you chose me."

  I cupped his jaw and giggled. "I think I'm addicted to you, Highborne. Suddenly, every female desire that has lain dormant my entire life is throbbing and screaming out for you."

  He grinned, unrepentant. "I feel it as well. It is as if the sun has broken through the haze of my life. Everything has brighter colors, richer fragrances and more succulent flavors than ever before." His smile was glorious, his face glowing in the morning light.

  "When a Highborne loves, it is eternal, Blossom. I am yours, body and soul, if you should ever choose to claim me." His lips moved soft and silky against mine. When his hips rolled, it became obvious he was still very much aroused. I reached down but he caught my wrist. "This is about you, Jade, not me."

  I pulled back to look at him. "But surely you'd enjoy some attention too."

  He shook his head. "I am completely, deliriously sated to focus on you." His kiss trailed down my neck to my collarbone. "May I ask you something personal?" I rolled my eyes and he laughed. "When you said you have never been intimate . . . I mean, Samuel courted you for some time and humans have different customs. It would be understandable if the two of you. . ." Galan's voice tightened as his suggestive ramble began to unwind.

  "No," I said. "Much to Samuel's annoyance, I never felt right about advancing our relationship. It's what broke us up in the e
nd. I couldn't bring myself to be physical with him or anyone before you. He hasn't even shared the privileges you enjoyed just now."

  "Enjoyed? Past tense?" His lecherous smile made my heart jump. "Oh, by no means am I finished with you yet, Blossom. Our loveplay has just begun."

  My body heat rose instantly. He may have been much more experienced, but I was a willing learner. Just the thought of his touch had me pulsing again.

  He pulled back to stare at me, a sinful smile playing on his lips. "Your eyes are dancing like liquid emerald. What are you thinking?"

  "I was considering how I'd like to honor you next." I pushed myself up to straddle his waist. With fingers shaky but determined I unclasped my bra and tossed it. "You have half a century worth of moves I haven't seen yet. I wouldn't want any of them to go to waste."

  Galan growled low in his chest and rested his arm behind his head.

  A knock at the door brought us up short. "Crap! I never locked the—"

  "Jade, are you up?" Without waiting for reply Kobi opened the door.

  I barely made it under the covers as Galan rose to block Kobi's view. I felt like a teenager caught in the act as Kobi laughed, eying the two of us without an ounce of embarrassment. "Nice. Well, Galan's certainly 'up' and you seem to be getting a jump on your . . . day?"

  Kobi was dressed entirely in black: ripped jeans, muscle shirt, boots and wide leather bracelets with skulls on them. The only hint of color was the gold and scarlet bands clamped through his ear and the scarlet anarchy symbol on his shirt. I asked him once about the bands and the piercings. The look he shot me was so venomous I never brought it up again.

  Ignoring his jibes and double entendres, I pointed to the white heap of robe crumpled on the floor. "Do you mind?"

  He set the breakfast tray on the desk and came to my rescue. "Reign's on the warpath. He's been calling you and you're not picking up." After tossing me the robe he gave me his back and pulled the drapes open all the way. "You're lucky he's swamped at the Academy or it would have been him busting in on the two of you."

  Well didn't that just make me want to throw up?

  Kobi cocked a brow and laughed. "Not ready for daddy to walk in on your shore leave?"

  I resisted the urge to stick out my tongue and went over to my backpack. Pulling out my phone and the charger, I plugged it in. Seven new messages. Great. Without opening any I set down the phone and left it to charge.

  Kobi pointed to the food. "Come eat, Galan. I bet you've worked up an appetite."

  Galan's wicked smirk made me blush. He sauntered to my side and winked as he lifted a glass of juice to his lips. He seemed unabashed that his boxers were tented and doing nothing to conceal his current state of arousal.

  Kobi looked him over head to toe and whistled through his teeth. "You can't be the same half-dead Elven road-kill Jade brought in two days ago. Damn, Blaze, you even managed to get color into his ivory cheeks. Must be those healing hands of yours."

  I added milk and sugar to a mug of coffee and palmed a banana chocolate-chip muffin. When I looked up, Kobi was staring at me. I'd seen the look enough times on the face of warriors to know what it meant. "What? Tell me."

  He crossed his arms over his chest and exhaled. "Well, first off, everyone's fine." He raised his hands as I began to speak. "Nothing happened, well, almost nothing." He met my glare and shrugged. "A party of Dark Elves took a stroll through the Highborne village yesterday. Apparently, they wanted to reconnect with their long-lost cousins."

  "What?" Galan choked on his juice. His face blotched red as I thumped his back. "Are they well? Was anyone injured?"

  "No." Kobi tossed Galan a napkin. "It was just an intel scout. They came in, looked around and left without so much as a scuffle."

  "Were they working with the Scourge?" Galan asked.

  I swallowed my coffee and nodded. "Even if the men weren't transitioned, there are plenty of Dark Fae and Shifters in that camp. It would be nothing for a scouting party to gather info and report back to Abaddon and his men."

  "Can naught be done?"

  "Sorry," I said. "As long as they make nice, there's no laws against walking through a village." Galan's scowl said he did not agree.

  "I should also tell you," Kobi said, "Reign has ordered your sister's things and your friend's newborn onto Haven grounds."

  Galan strangled the napkin in his fist. "What has Nyssa's young to do with this?"

  Kobi shrugged again. "Reign knows more than he's saying. Big surprise. I hear he's been a beast since the trip to the Queens." Kobi speared a piece of pear with his knife and bit it from the tip. "Anyway, it's time to get you two home. He should settle a bit then and you can ask him."

  "Yeah . . . about that." I set my mug on the tray and smiled as sweetly as I could manage. "Galan and I are planning a short side trip first."

  Kobi's eyes burned red, the piercings in his brow reflecting the scarlet glow. "Fuck, Blaze, don't jam me up. I've got orders to send you straight home."

  "No one's jamming you up. Galan and I just need to make one stop."

  "Reign will tear me a new orifice, you know that."

  I rolled my eyes. "Don't be so dramatic." He wasn't and we both knew it. Reign was going to flip that we didn't follow orders. Protocol was for safety . . . everyone's safety. I sighed and softened my voice. "It's important, Kobi. Really."

  Kobi scrubbed the growth along his jaw and cursed. "Fine. Get cleaned up and I'll drive you to Harbour Front in an hour." He headed for the door but paused and turned back. "Unless the two of you would like some company in the shower? You can make up for a little of the pain and suffering I'm in for."

  I stared at him, mouth agape and pitched my muffin. He snatched the chocolaty projectile from the air and crossed the floor laughing. "Another time then. Two's company, three's too much for some to handle. Not me—and I'm sure not the Highborne—but some." He looked Galan up and down, smiled, and then stepped out into the hall and closed the door.

  "Has he been offended?" Galan asked.

  I laughed at the impossibility of that. "Kobi's an Incubus demon. He's just being true to his oversexed nature." I glared at the clock. Warm arms wrapped around me from behind.

  Sliding a palm under the puffy lapel of my robe, Galan palmed the weight of my breast. "Shall we shower together?" The silk of his voice had my cheeks burning and my insides flaming. "Mayhap enjoy my Mulligan?"

  "Uh, no," I choked. "If we did, we may never leave this room."

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  The snow stopped after the second hour of hiking into the Forest of Delaran. Kobi, deciding to shadow our little outing, had sweet-talked the busty blonde at the Portal Gate into lending Galan and me each a Parka for our trek and, since night was falling here, a lantern, a knife and a survival kit.

  Not a fan of the climate or the prospect of trespassing on Centaur land, Kobi had chosen to stay behind and keep warm with gatehouse Barbie. By the casual stroking of hands down shoulders and arms, and the way she bit her lip when he tucked her hair behind her ear, things were going to get very warm at the gatehouse—the minute we were out of site.

  I couldn't blame him. The wind swept through the forest, lung-chillingly cold. Flakes of snow melted in my hair and on my lashes, deposited by the dripping pines and ice encrusted firs which loomed above us. The walking was easier deeper in the woods, the majority of the storm blocked by the ceiling of branches above.

  Galan walked head down, our boots crunching through the crest of virgin snow. Looking back the way we came he smiled at the two rows of tracks weaving through the trees. Exhaling, he reached through the wispy cloud of condensed breath. "Fascinating."

  "I guess you didn't see many snowstorms in the rainforest."

  "No," he said. "Verily, this is my first."

  Ten minutes later I raised my lantern, scanning for some hint of the Centaur city. "Chiron told me Centaurs are private, but I figured we'd stumble upon a sentry or someone."

  "Mayhap they are simpl
y being wary."

  Possible. After handing the lantern to Galan, I raised my palms and accessed my powers. As my fingers tingled with energy, I reached out. Scanning the trees and expanding to the forest beyond. Only the slightest disturbance came back to me. I saw nothing beyond shadows and the tall eerie silhouettes of trees caught in lantern light.

  "Can your acute Elven senses pick up anything, Highborne?"

  "Honestly, I can see naught save trees and snow. My sinuses are filled with cold and my ears sting with the icy bite of the wind."

  I blew into my palms and cupped my ears. "Yeah, I know what you—"

  A blast of wind drove stinging snow into our faces and I spun and hunched away from its force. Galan pulled me into his side and tucked my face into his shoulder until the air stilled. When he stepped back he held his head tilted to the side, a deep furrow creasing his brow. I waited as he glanced down at his lacings and adjusted himself.

  "Problem?"

  His ears were bright pink, but that could have been the cold. "Uh, I am not certain. Never before has my . . . how shall I describe it delicately?"

  "Your jewels are ice cold and crawling up inside your gem pouch?"

  The bewilderment on his face turned to blank amusement. "How did you know?"

  I laughed. "That's normal. It happens to men in extreme cold."

  "Fascinating." He blew into his palms and cupped himself as I had.

  I giggled. "Yep, all kinds of learning experiences today."

  "Verily." He glanced down his front again. "And when might things right themselves?"

  "As you warm up." I pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Trust me. It's nothing to worry about."

  "Listen to her, Elf," a deeply, graveled voice commanded. "It's when you have to piss and you can't find your cock, you'll need to worry."

  Galan spun in front of me, the lantern light glinting off his dagger's edge as it pulled free from its sheath. Which was actually . . . really sweet. "It's okay, Galan." I tugged his hand down and looked to the deeply shadowed trees. "What do you know about the cold, old man? You're furred from navel to hooves."