by Lily Thorn
He squeezed her hand, looking at her instead of the spectacle overhead. Her insides fizzed, but it was too late to blame it on the cider.
The crowd oohed and ahhed at the explosions overhead. More and more sparks went up, until the whole sky was peppered with flares. Around them, people began to cheer.
A cloud of smoke filled the sky. Seraphina squinted. Surely that wasn’t it? She would have rather experienced another piece from the musician.
“What did you think?”
She shrugged. “It was okay.”
He smiled. “You could do better, couldn’t you.”
Her fingers itched. Only a handful of people had ever seen her magic. What if the crowd panicked at the sight of flames? It could be disastrous.
Still, she wanted to show them how fire could be beautiful, and more than a sloppy explosion.
Maybe she could make a grand finale.
Stepping away from the bench, she took a breath. They needed to see. She had to show them fire’s true beauty.
Reaching within herself, she found the fire inside. Throwing up her hands, she sent up a pillar of flames. Around her, people gasped. She let the pillar dissolve into a thousand flowers. They drifted down, extinguishing before they could touch anyone.
The crowd went wild.
“More!” someone shouted. “Again!”
Heat rushed through her. They loved it more than the fireworks.
She waved her arms, commanding the fire to form a flaming river. Fish jumped out of it, so hot that they glowed a vivid blue. She looked up to meet Easton’s eyes. He grinned, and gave her a thumbs-up.
Seraphina closed her fist, making the river disappear. This was child’s play. She wanted to show them what she could really do.
Felix sauntered out of the bonfire to stand on her feet. She hadn’t even done anything, but the crowd loved it anyway. They liked Felix as a cat? She’d do even better. Calling on the fire again, she had it form a tiger. The great beast was as tall as she was. It bent to sniff Felix’s nose, then paced the open space around her.
“So pretty!” A woman reached out, trying to touch the flaming beast.
Seraphina called the tiger back. She couldn’t let anyone get burned. Could they not tell that the creature was made of fire? She had the tiger form into an eagle, flying high above the crowd. Its orange wings beat down, fanning them with heat.
The crowd watched, transfixed. All eyes were on the magnificent bird. This was what fire should do. Bring warmth and light and wonder. Not fear.
Maybe the crowd had finally gotten the idea that fire was hot. She had the eagle drift down, and now a horse cantered around the square, blazing through the night. It was a lion, an antelope, a shark, a peacock.
And now it was time for the real finale. Seraphina bade the fire to form a griffin, which leapt into the air. The crowd whooped as it soared over them. She looked out over their eager faces, and a pair of toad eyes gazed back at her.
Her heart stopped. Vince.
Someone screamed. Above, the griffin had lost a wing. It faltered, then fell through the air.
It was going to crash. Seraphina pushed, forcing the fire to form another wing. The griffin righted itself, but it was still too low, and heading right for a child sitting on a fencepost. Seraphina urged it to rise, her arm muscles aching, but it wouldn’t be in time.
Then Easton was there, snatching the child to one side. The griffin’s talons grazed the fencepost, scorching the top of it. The child ran screaming to her mother as the flaming creature veered toward the edge of town.
“End it!” Easton shouted.
She wanted to yell that it wasn’t that simple, that the fire needed to burn out on its own, but terror seized her. Seraphina looked back, searching for the toad eyes, but they were gone. Had she imagined them, or was Vince still lurking? Either way, Easton was right. She couldn’t do this anymore.
It was all right, though. She could recover. She just had to tell the griffin to shrink, to return to her—
“Seraphina Blackwood…”
She whirled. She felt like cornered prey. High in the air, the griffin burst apart in a shower of flames. Some winked out, but others continued their course, streaking toward the edge of town. She’d lost her concentration, and couldn’t call them back. Even if they missed the houses, they could hit the forest. And there were many dry leaves this time of year.
Seraphina took off at a run, Easton on her heels.
“What happened?” he asked.
“Vince.” She barely managed to choke out the name. It tasted like poison. “I thought I saw him.”
Easton looked over his shoulder. “Is he back there?”
“There’s no time!”
With a muffled boom, a fireball connected with a roof. Seraphina sprinted as fast as she could, hoping she didn’t turn an ankle on the cobbles. They skidded around a corner as the roof began to glow. It was the butcher’s shop. Two young women ran out, faces white with fear.
“Fire!” someone shouted.
“Get the hoses!”
But that would take too long. The butcher’s was connected to shops on either side. If that roof kept burning, half of Wolfsbane could go up.
This was her fault. All her fault.
“Sera.” Easton gripped her shoulders. “Can you hear me?”
“My fault.”
“Breathe. You can fix this.” He put an arm around her. “Pretend the fire is just Felix misbehaving. What would you tell him?”
“Stop it,” she said. “Stop!”
The fire waned slightly.
“Good,” Easton said. “Keep going.”
“No!” A burly man charged onto the scene. “It can’t be!” He looked around, stricken with rage and grief. “Who’s done this?”
“Die down,” Seraphina said to the flames. She had to ignore everything else, at least until she got the fire to obey. “Sleep.”
“Are you doing this, witch girl? I’ll have your head!”
Easton snarled. It didn’t sound human at all. Startled, the man took a step back.
“Father!” The two young women ran to him.
“Prudence! Felicity!” He wrapped them in his enormous arms. “Where’s Verity? Where’s Verity!” The butcher seemed ready to charge into the shop, but his daughters held him back.
“Verity!”
“Father?” The voice came out of the dark. “Father!” A girl ran to him.
“Verity! I thought I’d lost you.” There was such relief in his voice. The butcher held her tight.
“Quiet,” Seraphina said to the fire. “It’s time to go.”
It didn’t want to go. There was dry wood under the shingles. It could almost lick the beams. It could grow, and become a blaze.
“Not here,” Seraphina said. “Not now. Come back to me.”
It refused. It wanted to live, to grow, to tower over the town.
“No.” Putting out a hand, Seraphina made it bend to her. “You’re coming with me. There are better things to burn.”
“They have the hoses!” someone shouted. “Make way!”
But by the time the fire brigade dragged their hoses to the butcher’s, the fire was gone. Only a wisp of smoke and some charred shingles proved that anything had ever been there. They still hosed off the roof, just to be sure.
Easton tried to drag her away, but her feet were rooted to the cobbles. What would have happened if she hadn’t gotten the fire under control? What if Verity had been trapped in the shop?
“You!” The word came out like a curse. “What do you think you’re doing? This shop and my girls are all I have and you almost took them away from me.”
“I—” She tried to form an apology, but her mouth was too dry for words.
“There’s no ‘sorry’ that can fix this. You’re too dangerous to stay here. Begone, witch!”
She stared at him, stunned. It felt like a hundred pairs of eyes were on her. “Please, I—”
“Begone!”
This time, she let Easton pull her away.
How was this happening again? Why couldn’t she belong anywhere?
Easton guided her into the forest, Felix lighting their way.
“That’s what they wanted, Mr. Dark and the rest.” The words seemed to fall out of her. “They wanted to turn me into a weapon. Fire’s beautiful, but not everyone sees it that way. All most people can think about is what happens if it gets out of control. But I can control it. Just not when—” The thought of those bulging, toad-like eyes made her shudder. “And now I’ve ruined everything. Again. It would be better if I didn’t have magic at all.”
Furiously, she dashed the tears from her eyes. She didn’t need them right now. All she wanted was to find her sister and live a quiet life.
“Don’t swear off magic too soon,” Easton said. “Sometimes, powers are useful. What about last night, when I couldn’t find my flint? We had a fire thanks to you.”
She sniffed. “You would have managed without me.”
“But I didn’t have to. And what about all those people who saw your fire show? Some of them liked it more than that music. I could tell.”
“They sure didn’t like it when I almost scorched that kid and tried to burn down their town.”
“Well, you’ll know to avoid that next time, won’t you?” He stopped in a small clearing, and started making a bed of orange leaves. Seraphina knew she should help, but she couldn’t quite bring herself to move. What if she set those on fire, too?
“Do you want to leave?” she asked abruptly.
“What?”
“Leave,” she said. He didn’t seem to be getting the idea. “You don’t have to keep helping me, just because I’m not good at anything. I told you, I’m still dangerous. Those men might be after me, but they’re still terrified of me. I don’t need your help.”
She shut her eyes, trying to keep more tears from leaking through. Hopefully he would be gone when she opened them.
Easton put his fingers beneath her chin. “Hey,” he said. “Do you think I’m scared of you?”
His tone compelled her to open her eyes. Traitor tears fell to the leaves at their feet. “Everyone else is.”
“Felix doesn’t burn me,” he said. “Neither will you.”
“I might, though,” she whispered. “Someday. What if I get mad, or there’s an accident? What if you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time?” She let out a shuddering breath. “It’s okay if you don’t want to be with me anymore.”
“But I’ll always be with you.” He grasped her hands in his. “I didn’t tell you earlier because I didn’t want to scare you—humans don’t usually understand—but you’re the one I’m meant to be with. My fated mate.”
“Fated?” She stared at him. “How could you even know that?”
“I just… know. As sure as the stars.”
She looked up into his golden eyes, tinted silver with the reflected moon. How could he be so sure of anything? And why would he want someone as messed up as her?
“You don’t have to stay out of pity or something,” she said. “I’ve made it on my own for this long—I can do the rest on my own.”
He wouldn’t let go of her hands. “You don’t have to be alone anymore,” he said. “Not ever again.”
“Really?” Her voice cracked. She had been alone for so long. Too long.
“Really. I want you, Sera. Now, and tomorrow, and every day after. I want you for your fire and your laughter and your fierce heart. I want every part of you.” His hands slid down to her waist, just like they had on the dance floor. But this time, there was a fire in his eyes.
“Kiss me, Sera,” he said.
She happily obeyed.
Chapter Six
HIS LIPS WERE softer than she expected, and far warmer. They sent a spark through her, one that grew into a tendril of flame. She pressed closer, hungry for him. One of his hands was in her hair, the other moving down her back. It was hard to decide which sensation to focus on. She shivered with delight.
Seraphina wrapped her arms around him. He was so tall. She wanted to kiss him long enough that she might get a crick in her neck. Seraphina tried to stand on her tiptoes, but almost slipped in the leaves. In one swift motion, Easton grabbed the back of her thighs, pulling her up to his level like she weighed nothing at all.
Now she could focus on the important things, like how his lips still tasted faintly of cider. She licked them, making sure she got every last bit of sweetness.
Easton moaned, pinning her back against a tree. It took some of the breath from her, and she gasped at the force of his desire. Heat rose within her. She needed him, from those hard muscles to those golden eyes.
Her own intensity frightened her. Was she losing control again? She broke her lips away from his, and they both panted.
“Is this too soon?” she asked, hating herself almost immediately as she heard the words. Why couldn’t she just let a good thing happen? Why did she have to question it? After all this, Easton might just drop her on the leaves and walk away.
Slowly, he let her down. His eyes were kind, though. He pushed a lock of hair behind her ear.
“If you feel it’s too soon, I’ll wait for you. As long as it takes.”
One look into his golden eyes convinced her that she didn’t want to do any waiting.
“Kiss me again,” she said.
This time, he obeyed.
His kisses trailed down her neck like fire, leaving burning blossoms behind. She peeled off his shirt, wanting him to be bare before her. Seraphina put her hands on his hard chest—he radiated heat. Neither of them would be cold tonight.
He took off her shirt, kissing her throughout the process. His lips slid down to her breasts, and he cupped them with his hands while his tongue ran over them, making her breaths ragged. Easton’s lips went down, down, over her breastbone and belly, until he was kneeling before her.
“Sera,” he started.
“It’s—it’s Seraphina.”
“Seraphina.” He smiled, seeming to like the way her full name rolled off his tongue. “What do you want me to do to you?”
She could barely breathe. It was hard to believe that such a beautiful man was at her feet.
“Don’t worry,” he said. “I have some ideas.”
Slowly, tauntingly, he pulled off her pants.
“Easton,” she whispered. She didn’t want him to stop—truthfully, she didn’t know what she wanted.
But Easton knew. Gently, he spread her legs.
“Are my hands warm enough?” he asked as he slid them up her thighs.
She didn’t trust her voice, so she only nodded. Her legs were already quivering. What was he going to do to her? And why was she so eager to find out?
Leaning forward, he kissed her below her belly button. His fingers worked their way between her legs. A moan escaped her at his touch.
“You’re so wet,” he whispered.
“I want you.” Her voice was shaky.
“And you’ll have me.”
Meeting her eyes, he caressed her. He was gentle, but every new touch made her quake and jerk. Easton braced her with an arm, for which she was grateful—she was worried that within minutes, she’d be unable to stand.
He stroked her, his fingers slick with her. Faster and faster, he stoked the core of her until she felt heat emanating from the places where flesh met flesh. Just when she thought she couldn’t take anymore, he slipped a finger inside her. Seraphina wondered if her gasp was loud enough to wake the forest. He slid back and forth, two fingers, then three. Her knees trembled. She thought she might fall on top of him.
“Okay,” he whispered. “All right. Easy, now.” Rising, he took her in his arms. Planting kisses on her cheek, he set her down in the bed of leaves. “Is that better?”
Seraphina pushed down his pants. He kicked them the rest of the way off, then straddled her.
“Now it is,” she said.
“Naughty.” He backed up, trail
ing a finger over her waist. “Don’t you know what happens to women who lie with shifters?”
“What?” Her breath hitched as he parted her legs again, pushing his face between them.
“They get what they deserve.”
Then he pressed his tongue against her, licking at her core. She arched her back, all thoughts gone. All she knew was that Easton’s tongue was hot enough to mark her like a brand. It felt like he was carving into her soul. And she couldn’t deny it—she was his. He was what she needed.
She lost track of time and space as he licked her, making her even more wet, making her moan for him. She came right to the edge of losing herself, only for him to stop, and make her beg him to continue. When she did, he satisfied her again and again, until she felt utterly spent.
But she still wanted more.
“Easton,” she managed to say, her voice hoarse, “fuck me.”
A change seemed to come over him. His eyes almost glowed, though it could have been the reflected glow of their campfire. While he didn’t grow fur, he somehow seemed more wolf than man.
“On your knees,” he said. Before she could move, he flipped her over so that her hands were in the leaves. He was rougher now. She felt her breath come faster. This side of him excited her.
Easton knelt behind her. One hand went to her waist, the other to his massive cock. She stared back at it, bathed in moonlight. She never could have imagined anything like that. Would it even fit inside her?
Easton, it seemed, had no such worries.
“You’re so perfect,” he whispered. “In every way.” He ran his cock between her legs, until it was slick with her. She shuddered. She couldn’t wait much longer.
But he seemed to know her better than she knew herself.
“I know what you need,” he said. Slowly, steadily, he pushed his cock into her.
The air was forced from her lungs as he went deeper, deeper. He was filling her, giving her all she could take, and somehow she wanted more of him.
“Easton,” she moaned. She pressed back against him.
He let out a guttural noise. She could feel his cock throb inside her. Good. She flexed her muscle, making herself tight around him. Easton’s fingers spasmed on her waist. Slowly, he pushed in all the way. He felt so good inside her. Perfect, in fact. She flexed again, liking the feel of it.
