Claiming His Fire (21 page)

“So mote it be.”

The air, charged with magick, brushed over my skin. A gentle caress. A welcome back. I’d missed doing spells, but the pain of our banishment from the coven had kept me from practicing. I’d lost so much when we left, but I’d gained more, found my balance. Found my future once I met Shadow.

My inner fire receded, calming and cooling, no longer painful. Magick balancing magick, as it should be.

“I’ve never seen you do something like that before.”

I turned, smiling at Shadow. He’d sat up, leaning a hip against the edge of the desk, shirtless and smiling and beautiful.

“It’s been a while,” I said with a shrug. He held out a hand, beckoning me. I answered him with an eagerness I couldn’t contain. Rushing to him, curling into his hold. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too, Firecracker.” He nuzzled into my neck, his favorite spot it seemed, and placed small kisses to the skin there. “I can’t imagine what I would do if…”

I ran a hand over his arm, wanting his words, wanting him. “If what?”

He swallowed hard, clinging to me. “If it were you. If they’d taken you.”

My heart cracked, paused, the fear in his voice making me ache for him. And whoever was living the nightmare in his thoughts.

“It wasn’t me. I’m right here.” I rubbed my hand over his hair, soothing him as much as I could with my touch.

“Scarlett?”

“Shadow?”

“I’d never give up.” The intensity in his voice had me pulling back, staring down at him in question. “If someone took you away from me, I’d never give up searching. I’d find you, no matter what. I want you to know that.”

I nodded, confused and heartbroken. Whatever happened in North Dakota had harmed him in more than just the physical. The way he spoke, the words, the feel of his hands shaking as he gripped my hips. Something had scared him.

“I know,” I all but cooed. “I’d find you, too.”

My heart beat fast as I hopped up the porch stairs at Scarlett’s house, a sure sign of my nerves. Not that I had much reason to be nervous. We’d been sleeping in the same bed since I came home from North Dakota. Three days of lying beside her, holding her, kissing her, but not much else. She called it taking things slow so I could heal; I called it my absolute favorite kind of torture. But tonight was different…we were going out on our first official date.

First and possibly last…at least for a few weeks. I’d told Scarlett about the “loose ends” Jameson and I still needed to deal with back in Chicago. Those loose ends included a missing pack Alpha and Beta from the group that’d taken Kalie, a lack of leads on who the hell The King really was, and a complete information dead end. For being a successful mission—we’d decimated the pack, saved the girl, reunited her with her mate, and gotten them both safely to Merriweather Fields for medical care—we’d failed. Miserably.

Jameson was just waiting for me to participate in the charity ride, then we were heading out to bang on doors and rattle cages.

“Young Shadow,” Amber said when she opened the door, a sarcastic smile on her face. “What can I do for you this evening?”

Shaking off the negative thoughts about my job, I bent into a mock bow, playing along. “I’m here for Miss Scarlett.”

“Well, come on in.” She stepped back and beckoned me inside. I gave her a smile as I passed, too busy looking for my mate to pay her a lot of attention. “Scarlett will be down in a second.”

“Okay, thanks,” I said, glancing her way before training my eyes on the stairs again. Anxious. Ready.

Before Scarlett could appear, Amber made a choking sound, causing me to turn. Her eyes were wide, pupils blown as if under the influence of some kind of drug. But worse than that was the fact that while she was looking at me, her eyes were so unfocused, it appeared as if she was looking through me. Seeing things I couldn’t. An act that made my blood run cold.

“Are you okay?” I asked, steeling myself for whatever she might throw at me.

“Your fight can’t be won without loss,” she hissed, her head cocked to the side and her hair lifting in a breeze I sensed but couldn’t feel.

“Excuse me?” I took a step back, willing Scarlett to come down the stairs, not comfortable around Amber’s brand of magick.

“He lifted the shadows in a time of need, but his time is up.” She closed her eyes for a moment, a sad smile forming on her lips. “Another avoided it once and wears the stain, but they’ve always been meant to fall. The smoke will call them.”

The growl that rumbled through me was unstoppable and dark, the burn of fear flaring bright under my skin. “You want to explain what you mean and who you’re talking about?”

“She probably doesn’t even know.” Scarlett appeared at my side, smelling like heaven and sin all at once, staring down her sister. “Her visions are acting up.”

She reached for Amber, holding on to her arms as the two took a moment to breathe together. To settle one another. To whisper quiet words of calm and comfort. After a few minutes, Amber closed her eyes again and dropped her chin to her chest, her entire body sagging as if exhausted.

“Without a grounding point, sometimes things get away from me,” Amber said, her voice quiet. “I’m sorry if I scared you.”

I gave her a small smile when she glanced up, relieved that her eyes were now bright and focused.

“Better?” Scarlett asked, only smiling once her sister nodded. Still, she paused, uncertain. “Do you need me to stay?”

“No,” Amber replied, shooing us toward the door. “Go out. I’m fine.”

Scarlett still waited, obviously uncertain. “Okay then. My bag’s already in the trunk. I won’t be back tonight, but I’ll be at the denhouse in the morning for the ride to Chicago. You’re picking up the other girls there too, right?”

“Yeah. We’re all taking one car since the rest of you will probably ride back with your guys.” Amber nodded, looking exhausted. The two women exchanged a long hug before pulling apart.

“You sure you’re okay?” Scarlett asked.

Amber huffed. “Yeah, yeah, go on, have fun, do things I wouldn’t.” She grinned before her eyes went unfocused again, just a flash, something I doubted Scarlett even noticed. “Stay off the carousel.”

“What carousel?” Scarlett asked, her words slow, her face filled with concern.

“No idea. The smoke is blocking everything.” Amber rubbed her temple. “Just…don’t go near one.”

Scarlett watched her sister amble toward the back of the house before turning toward me. She seemed distracted, concerned, not that I blamed her. Whatever was going on with Amber had made quite the impression on me. A bad impression.

“Would you rather stay home?” I asked, wishing she’d say no but understanding she may need to.

“No, she’ll call me if she needs me.” Scarlett huffed as we walked out the front door. “I’ve got to talk to Phoenix about her.”

“Why Phoenix?”

“He’s supposed to be able to help her, some kind of wolf spirit air magick balancing act.” She shook her head as I held the car door open for her, pasting on a bright smile I knew she didn’t mean. “No more bad stuff. Where are we going?”

“We can cancel,” I said, staring into her green eyes, pulling her against me. “I can hang out with you here so we can keep an eye on your sister.”

Scarlett’s smile brightened, turning true. Making my heart soar. “You are the sweetest, but that’s not necessary. She’ll be okay for the night, and then tomorrow we’ll go to Chicago. A change of scenery may do her good.”

I leaned down, placing a soft kiss on her pink lips. “If you’re sure.”

“I’m sure,” she mumbled before deepening the kiss. Our mouths moved in concert, tongues sliding together as if we’d done this a million times. And maybe we had. We’d been taking it slow these last few nights but hadn’t stopped exploring one another. Torture…pure, blissful torture.

When she finally pulled back, she gave me a saucy smile. “So, where are we going?”

“Dinner, and then dancing.” I helped her into the car and shut her door before hurrying around to my side.

“
Where
are we going for dinner?” she asked as I slid into the driver’s seat.

“You’ll see.” The engine roared as I turned the key. “You look beautiful, by the way.”

“You always say that.” She tried to sound flippant, but she couldn’t hide the small smile my compliment brought out. Beautiful didn’t begin to cover it.

I ran a finger down her cheek, and then threw the car into reverse. “You’re always beautiful.”

“Charmer,” she said with a smirk.

“I do my best.”

The restaurant was crowded, but my reservation got us seated at a table with minimal waiting. Wine, bread, and more food than was probably a good idea were all consumed while we made small talk and laughed. It was a real, honest to goodness, normal date. Something I’d never experienced, and something I found myself enjoying much more than I ever thought possible. Especially as Scarlett got a little tipsy and started telling me about growing up in a coven full of witches.

“I swear to the Goddess,” Scarlett said, her face red and her eyes wide. “They’ve tormented me about that damn porch for years, but I was not the one who set it on fire.”

I coughed to hold back my laugh. “You can see how they’d doubt that, right?”

Scarlett rolled her eyes, sitting back when the waiter came to place her dessert in front of her. Once he left us, she leaned forward again and pointed her fork at me.

“Elemental witches can control more than one element, my friend. Zuri’s a water witch with a leaning toward air and the ability to join me in controlling fire. I’m a fire witch with a hefty control of earth magick and a little air teachings.” She smirked, her eyes bright. “If you ever see what looks like a water tornado on fire, you can trust it’s Zuri and me screwing around.”

“I…okay.” I laughed, not knowing what else to say. Fiery water tornado?

Scarlett waved me off. “And Amber…well, she’s the air witch, the psychic. But she also has an uncanny control over fire. She can light things up that no one else can, other than me. I think she’s the one who burned the porch down.”

“Of course.” I grinned at her, shaking my head slowly. God, she was gorgeous. Full of life and energy, of love and spark. I wanted to bask in her, let her tell me all her stories. I wanted to take her away somewhere we could be alone and hoard all her attention. I just wanted
her.

She smiled, a little questioning in her eyes. “What are you laughing about?”

“Nothing,” I said, grabbing her hand and leaning across the table. “You’re beautiful.”

She rolled her eyes, neck flushing, drawing my eyes down to her chest. “You always say that.”

I recaptured her gaze, tugging her closer. “And I always mean it. You’re beautiful…especially on the inside. So damn independent and confident. I like that about you, your strength. It’s very appealing.”

Scarlett’s eyes went soft, and her hand clutched mine. “You’re a sweet man.”

“I do my best.”

Scarlett looked down at her plate, a slight flush to her cheeks. “Hey, Shadow.”

“Yeah?”

“I know you said we were going dancing after this but” —she looked up at me, eyes serious— “can you take me home?”

My stomach sank and I was sure my face had to portray the sudden sense of regret flooding me. How I’d screwed up so quickly, I had no idea, but I desperately wanted to fix my mistake.

Scarlett squeezed my hand harder and brought her intense stare up to meet mine.

“Take me home…to your place.”

Shadow gripped my thigh on the drive across town. Hard and strong, he held me in place with one hand, and yet I’d never felt more free. This was my decision. Everything we’d done and not done since he returned from North Dakota—battled, scarred, and in more pain than he wanted to admit—had been my decision. He’d never pushed me, never demanded, always let me lead. He had no problem letting me decide how far or how fast anything in our relationship went. And I had decided to move the physical side of things forward. Tonight.

When we pulled into the lot behind the denhouse, I didn’t hesitate. I opened the door and stepped out into the night, striding toward the entrance. Shadow followed, catching up and placing a hand at my lower back. As if I needed guidance. As if I needed his touch. Hell, by the way my hands were shaking and my heart was racing, maybe I did. Or maybe he needed mine.

By the time we reached his apartment, my breaths were coming faster, my body had overheated, and my panties were already wet. This night, this moment, had been building for weeks. Through refusals and misunderstandings, through quiet moments between us and learning how to build a relationship on a single thread. This moment was my future.

So I walked into his space with confidence and desire, without fear, and with full control of the magick within me. No more unintentional burns from me.

As soon as Shadow closed the door behind us, I spun into his hold, grabbing his face, pulling him down to me. He wrapped his strong arms around my waist and lifted me off the ground with no effort, his show of strength making me groan into our kiss. My legs found their way around his hips, one hand fisting his hair and the other splayed across his shoulder blade, pressing into the mark I’d already given him. Holding him tight. Tying him to me.

“Scarlett,” he whispered, pulling back an inch.

I closed that gap, biting his bottom lip with a smirk. “Shadow.”

His growl was a constant and deep rumble in the room, like the underlying bass in a song. Meant to push things, to set the pace of the dance. To keep us moving forward.

“I don’t want to rush you.” He kissed me again, long, lapping strokes of his tongue against mine as he massaged my ass. Damn, I loved the feel of his hands on me. Wanted them all over. Every inch.

“You’re not rushing me. If anything, I’m rushing you.” I dropped my head back as he nibbled his way down my neck. Nuzzling, licking, sucking, making me crazy for more. I clung to him, pulling him in tighter, secretly wishing he’d give me a hickey. Some kind of mark. An adult equivalent of a letterman’s jacket or a class ring exchanged to show that connection between us. Something like the burns he wore proudly on his back.