Emma (Dark Fire)

by Cooper, Jodie B.

  “You’re sitting beside him, you tell us,” Kyle said with a chuckle, nodding toward Tyler.

  “Huh?” Emma blinked in confusion. The garden whirled around her, blurring nearly black. Memories of the last few days came flooding into the forefront of her brain. She trembled in Tyler’s arms as her mind dumped images and conversations into her head with an uncaring vengeance.

  “Emma?” Tyler asked worriedly, holding her shivering body as close to him as possible without pulling her onto his lap.

  “It’s okay,” Emma said quietly. She remembered everything.

  Opening her eyes, she glanced up at Tyler’s concerned face.

  She tightened her palm against his wrist. The warmth of her skin heated. His anxiety poured into her, a tight noose around her heart.

  She exhaled her pent-up worries and smiled up at him. “I remember.”

  At her smile, his unease lessened.

  She gingerly felt the back of her scalp. Hitting her head must have given her a concussion. By rights, she should be in a hospital, but her head wasn’t hurting nearly as bad. In fact, the skin felt a bit tender, but the bump was nearly gone.

  She remembered her fingers had been covered with blood, yet she couldn’t feel the smallest cut on her scalp. She leaned against him, seeking his reassurance. “Did you lick my cut to heal it?” She hadn’t felt anything, but she’d been really out of it.

  “No,” he whispered worriedly.

  “Maybe something was left over from when you licked my cut finger,” she said, grasping for an explanation.

  She didn’t like the dark, nearly frightened look that flashed through his eyes. “It doesn’t work that way.”

  Well, cuss words. Her rapid healing concerned him. It did her too. The only good thing from the whole ordeal was seeing his reaction. Not that she wanted him upset, but he seemed genuinely worried about her. From the raw emotions flowing from him, he was more than simply worried. She peeked at him through thick lashes and he smiled.

  If she had wanted some kind of sign that she could trust him, she was getting it by the bucket load. His emotions couldn’t lie. She’d been falling for him from the beginning, but feeling what he felt for her, shoved her faster than what she was prepared for.

  She prayed she was not making a seriously bad choice. After hearing Lily sentence her to death, trusting him wasn’t easy.

  “What exactly happened?” Kyle asked Jenna, tapping her knee to get her attention.

  Jenna shrugged. “I wanted to meet Emma so I went to her room, but she wasn’t there.”

  “Jenna was still waiting for Emma when I went looking for Tyler.” Zach grinned. “I wanted to see if Ty passed Morgan’s test on the first try. Anyway, we decided to follow Emma. She went all the way to the Entertainment wing. After a while, we realized she had to be lost. She just kept going in circles. Then we smelled Lily and Andrew. They seemed to be following Emma. We split up, Jen followed Emma’s trail and I used the servant’s passageway.”

  Frowning at Emma, Zach shook his head in annoyance. “I told you to stay put. Why did you run?”

  Emma inched a bit closer to Tyler. His confusion and simmering anger filled her. Neither emotion gave her much comfort. “I heard Lily and Andrew talking,” she hedged. “Then you spoke with Andrew. I was, um, worried you’d…”

  Zach clenched his hand in the smooth fabric of his pants. His lips curled up in silent anger, stopping her cold.

  At her small sound of alarm, Tyler bared his teeth and snarled at Zach.

  “Calm down, Ty.” The teen’s amber eyes flashed with surprise. Shoving long fingers through thick blond hair, Zach chuckled. “Emma, I wasn’t growling at you. Just at what you said. You’re now part of Tyler. And Tyler is… well, not only Ty, but all of us,” he waved his hand around the group, “are truly closer than siblings. I’d never hurt you. After I heard Lily and Andrew talking, I wanted to rip him in half, but I needed to buy some time since Lily is the Wér-Dragon’s daughter.”

  Emma focused on the sincerity in the gryphon’s words; his tone had a ring of truth she couldn’t miss. “It’d be impossible to miss how loyal you are to each other, but at the time, I didn’t know whether to trust you or not, Zach. I overheard all of you talking last night and I knew how angry Tyler was with me. I didn’t know if you, or even if Tyler, agreed with Lily’s suggestion to kill me.”

  “Never,” Tyler said vehemently, interrupting her words. Pulling her forcibly onto his lap, he hugged her with enough force to squeeze the air out of her lungs.

  “Em, even if you refused me, I could never hurt you, not ever,” Tyler said amid a growl. The fierce quality of the rumbling sound was quite opposite from the excruciating gentle kiss he pressed against her temple. “I was crazy about you from the first moment I saw you, whether you ended up being my mate or not.”

  Astonished over his admission, she blinked into his forceful gaze. Deep blue eyes stared back at her. His desperation flared through her, emphasizing the honesty she felt through their link, a tenuous connection that was growing stronger with each passing moment.

  A strong sense of yearning wrapped through the wholesome emotion. A white-hot flare of another emotion blazed through him, astounding her. She tasted its brilliant intensity for a split instant then all of his emotions disappeared, sucked away from her in an instant.

  Forcing back a whimper, she leaned her cheek against his, sighing contentedly as the skin-on-skin contact made the black hole disappear. Now she knew how her uncle felt. At least, she thought she did. That brief glimpse of intense emotion could only be one thing.

  She struggled with herself, not wanting his emotions to sway her one way or the other. On one hand, she knew she could easily fall in love with him. On the other, she feared she already had. Her sense of self-preservation demanded she ignore both theories and protect her heart from future heartache. Mental bond or not, she honestly couldn’t believe Tyler would want a mortal, a mortal without an ounce of royal blood in her veins and even less beauty to make up for it.

  She eased away, shifting until she slid off Tyler’s lap and onto the cold bench. The change was a cold shock to her system. Tyler hesitated. His face reflected the fight he had with himself. Sighing he pulled his arm from around her. Skimming his fingers down her overheated arm, he slowly stopped touching her.

  On again, off again. His emotions plowed into her before he stopped touching her.

  She shuddered as a shaft of mental pain rippled through her, crackling through every synapse of her brain. She quickly leaned against his side, entwining her fingers around his. The simple movement brought his spinning pain to a halt. In a brief second, he went from sharp pain to intense joy.

  She sighed, literally melting in the sparkling wave of sweet emotion. She tugged his arm around her shoulder. Resistance, at that point, seemed impossible.

  “Thank you,” he said softly. Turning his back on his three friends, he ignored them as they spoke among themselves.

  She glanced toward them, but they acted as if she and Tyler weren’t there. She didn’t think the teens were trying to be intrusive, but she needed privacy to talk with him. She knew that wasn’t about to happen any time soon. She had a sinking feeling they felt the need to remain near. As strong as Tyler was in dragon form, their concern didn’t give her a warm fuzzy feeling.

  She shoved Lily and Andrew’s plan to the back of her mind, focusing on the gorgeous young man sitting in front of her.

  Nibbling her lip, she gazed into Tyler’s face, taking in the crease of worry above his eyes. She didn’t know what to say. She didn’t want to cause him any additional pain. She shivered; no, she definitely didn’t want to hurt him. His shaft of pain had throbbed with such a feeling of rejection that she didn’t want him to feel that way again, not ever.

  Still, she needed to understand.

  “You say you liked me, but I could…,” she paused, not wanting to admit she could feel his emotions. She changed her words before she uttered them, “I
saw how angry you were. How disgusted you were just by talking to me. How can you say you liked me from the beginning? And yesterday, you weren’t just angry, you were furious at what I am. You wanted a vampire over me. I can’t help being mortal. I can’t change what I am.”

  “Em,” Tyler sighed, glancing toward his retreating friends as they left the garden. “Yes, I was angry and disgusted, but never at you. I was furious with myself. My reaction when I found out you were mortal completely disgusted me. I wanted you to be my mate so bad that I was literally praying for it. Then, when I heard you would only live a little more than half a century, I froze. My entire world felt like it was falling apart.” His face contorted with pain. His fingers trembled as he gently brushed them down her soft cheek. “The thought of losing you terrified me. I couldn’t believe, after finding my mate, after finding you, I’d lose you that fast.”

  “Ty, if we become mates, you’ll die when I do. That must make you angry with me,” she insisted, trying to wrap her mind around his heart-felt admission.

  “I’m not angry with you, and for the record, there’s no maybe or if about it. You are my mate,” he said firmly, cupping her face in his large hands, he very gently kissed her lips, seeming in awe of her. He pulled back before she could respond. “Emma, I am dragon. Dragons do not live past the death of their bonded mate. It’s devastating to me that our time together will be so short, but I don’t blame you. As you said, you are what you are.”

  “What makes you so sure I’m your mate?” she asked desperately, unable to help herself.

  “A lot of small things that add up,” he said with a smug smile. “And you smell incredible.”

  “I smell?” she choked out, horrified by his admission.

  He chuckled. “I’ve never smelled anyone or anything so incredibly delicious.” He lowered his face to the spot just below her ear and inhaled, gently nuzzling the side of her neck before continuing. “Most races on Tuatha depend heavily on our sense of smell. It tells us if someone is lying or honest. It enhances our instinct when a dangerous situation arises. It’s also a major indicator for when we find our mate. Your scent is intoxicating to me.”

  He looked a bit sheepish. “Just smelling your scent makes it hard for me to even think straight.”

  “Oh,” she paused, “so you can’t feel my emotions?”

  “No,” he sighed; regret flickered through his eyes.

  “Oh, okay,” she said, unconsciously rubbing her chest with her free hand.

  Hesitating, he asked, “How long have you felt my emotions?”

  She licked her lips, not wanting to lie to him, she simply asked, “Why?”

  A look of concern crossed his face. “You felt my excitement earlier. That’s why you laughed. Em, just how long have you been able to feel my emotions?” he asked again.

  Shaking her head, she refused to speak. She had actually forgotten about her earlier hysterics.

  He groaned; pain laced the sound. Gently, he curled his arm closer around her, rocking her in place at his side. “Your arm is warm to the touch.” His entire body trembled. “Just like your uncle with Aunt Lydia, you’ve felt me from the first day, haven’t you?”

  She rubbed her cheek against his chest as he held her close and whispered, “Yes.”

  His groan deepened, filling the air. Sharp, jagged pain slashed through her. Regret. Guilt. Shame. The hateful emotions were worse than anything she had ever felt. She shuddered in response and tears filled her eyes, spilling down her cheeks.

  “Em, I’m sorry, so sorry,” he said hoarsely. He wrapped both arms around her, trying to cuddle her closer to his side, while obviously attempting to give her the space she asked for. “When the bonding first starts, we usually don’t feel anything, because the mate mark doesn’t appear for weeks. That’s why you thought I was disgusted with you. Isn’t it?”

  He glanced down at her. The exact moment he saw her tears, she thought he was going to come unglued. His remorse and horror smashed into her, stinging and slashing at her with guilty intensity. It felt like her emotions had gone haywire. She couldn’t separate hers from his. She made a choking sound of utter distress and crawled onto his lap, clamping her arms around him.

  “Stop, please, stop hurting,” she begging, hugging him tighter, trying to absorb his pain away by touch. “Please stop, it hurts so badly. You’re killing me.”

  He shuddered. His groan turned into a growl as he repeatedly kissed the top of her head, her cheek, and every part of her body he could reach. “I’m trying, but this is new to me as well. I want to bash my head against a wall for hurting you. I wasn’t there when you needed me most. You had no idea what was going on. Just thinking about what you must’ve gone through is unbearable for me.”

  “Then don’t think. It’s over and done with.”

  “It’s not that easy. I’m so sorry,” he said once again, rubbing his head against hers.

  “Well, make it easy and stop,” she said, frowning when he tried interrupting. She pulled back, looking him in the face. “Don’t say it again. I can feel that you are sorry, that you’re soaked in regret. You’re so sorry that I feel like bursting into hysterical tears. I can feel your grief and pain so bad that it goes all the way to the tips of my toes!”

  His lips twitched at her exasperated explosion. Her cheeks flushed, deepening into a scarlet red. She knew he couldn’t help the deep chuckle slipping past his lips.

  Her snicker joined his and they laughed together. Every time one of them started to say something, the other started grinning and they started all over.

  Emma finally sighed, leaning her head against his shoulder. She’d never felt so in harmony with another soul in her entire life. “This is going to take some getting used to.”

  “Yeah, I just wish I could feel your emotions,” he said wistfully. “Until I can feel what you’re going through, you’ve got to tell me if something is wrong or if I say or do anything that hurts you.”

  “You don’t act like a normal teenage boy,” Emma teased, grinning as he frowned at her. “On earth, most teenage guys would rather die than talk about their emotions or their girlfr..., uh, other people’s emotions.”

  “Emma,” his somber tone snatched her attention, “you’re more than my girlfriend. On Tuatha, having a mate is a critical part of our lives. I’ll tell you anything you ask. You’ll be begging me to shut up, because I’ll probably tell you a lot more than you’ll want to hear.” He sighed and abruptly switched gears. “But I do have a question for you. Why aren’t you wearing your sash?”

  “No big deal, I just don’t wear belts,” she said offhandedly.

  The muscles along his jaw tensed.

  Even though the wacky mate link had gone silent, so dead she couldn’t feel a wisp of his emotions, she could see the serious emotion building within him. His frown deepened and his jaw slightly clenched. Emotions flickered so fast across his face that she couldn’t identify them. They just meshed into a boiling crush. He wanted serious, but she didn’t.

  She had a sinking feeling that the elaborate sashes weren’t just important. They signified something rather critical, like commitment. A long-term vow was not a topic of conversation she wanted to have, not yet anyway.

  Grinning, she impulsively kissed his cheek and hopped off his lap. Grabbing his hand, she tried (unsuccessfully) to tug him to his feet.

  “Come on, you promised me a tour,” she said, watching his solemn face turn grim.

  “Em, I realize the customs on Earth and Tuatha are completely different, but the moment you realized we were mated and didn’t wear a bi-colored sash you refused me as mate.” He hesitated. His eyes flickered to her lips, watching her bite them nervously.

  Jaws clenched tight, his expression darkened even further. “Are you refusing me, Emma?”

  “Tyler, don’t do that,” she complained. Rubbing her chest as a shaft of his agony rammed straight through her. “I’m not refusing you, but I’m also not jumping straight into such a serious re
lationship. This is earth and I can’t help the way I was raised. I’ve only known you a couple of days.” She sighed, looking into his way too adult eyes as they flickered from startling blue to solid white and back to gem blue.

  She gritted her teeth together in frustration, trying to make the stubborn dragon understand, but knowing it might be impossible. “This is all so foreign and so, well, just crazy. I can’t even think straight. One minute I feel your emotions filling me and the next minute I have this huge black hole in my chest. You grew up expecting all this, but I’ve only had a couple days of notice. You might not need time to accept all this, but I do. If you want me to spend forever with you, then I need time to get to know you first.”

  Rubbing the tense muscles of his neck, he took a long moment to think, keeping her hand in a firm grip as if she might disappear if he let her go.

  From his viewpoint, she didn’t doubt she was asking him to do the impossible.

  He grimaced. “Stop frowning. You’re too beautiful to frown.” Her sigh of exasperation brought a slight smile to his face. “I don’t want to lose you. So, if it’s time you need, then that’s what I’ll give you.”

  Her smile lit up her entire face. “Thanks. I have a feeling that was really hard for you.”

  He groaned. “You’ve no idea.”

  She chuckled with feeling, rubbing her chest, she said, “Actually, I think I do.”

  “Do all dragons have a third shape?” she asked, not very subtly steering the conversation to a less sensitive subject.

  With a sigh of resignation, he let her change the subject. “Most dragons shift between two forms, their human form and their winged form. Any type of wér, whether it’s a wér-dragon or a wér-wolf, has a third form. The third shape is a human shape with all of the characteristics of the stronger animal form, such as smell, strength, and endurance.”