Worlds on Fire (Guardians Book 1.5)

by Lexi Ostrow

  She was in his arms in an instant as he scooped her out of the seat. She could feel his muscles perfectly under the wetness of his shirt and she wanted to explore him. He opened the lock to his home quickly and had gently laid her down on the couch. Tugging his shirt over his head he flipped a switch on the wall and a fireplace flared to live in his hearth. She should have asked how it happened, but her mouth was dry as she took in his muscular form.

  The warmth from the fire licked out and touched her wet skin. The look in his eyes as he walked closer to her made her hotter than any fire. His eyes were darker than normal and water dripped off his face and ran down the muscles on his chest. She didn't think, she just leaned up and let her tongue slide over his hardened body and catch the trail of water.

  “Serena.”

  Her name was barely choked out and he lowered his face to hers, stopping a hair's inch from her mouth. She cried out in frustration and stood on her tiptoes to reach him, but he pulled back slightly.

  “Serena, tell me to stop because if you don't right now, there will be no going back. Seeing you there, wet and ready from the rain and touching me like that. No man, not even a knight would be able to stop.”

  Serena answered him by sliding her hands down his chest and placing soft kisses on his pecs. “Make love to me, Julian.”

  The fire behind him darkened his skin and the look in his eyes made her shift uncomfortably. She needed him and she thanked whatever force was responsible when he didn't wait for her to ask again. His mouth descended onto hers and his kiss was hungry, demanding. It sent Serena's heart racing and her pulse pounding. She wanted him to know how much she felt, how perfect it was. She let her tongue slide against his as her hands raked through his hair, pulling his head closer so she could deepen their kiss.

  Julian's arms wrapped around her as his mouth broke free from hers and kissed a trail down her neck. His teeth grazed the column of her neck. She sighed at the contact and a chill raced over her skin. As he kept kissing her neck, she arched into him. Her hands grazed up and down his back before she took his head in her hands and brought his mouth back to hers. Their lips locked and she couldn't think of anything that felt more right.

  She felt his hands at the bottom of her dress just before he tugged it up and over her head, breaking their kiss to do so. The cold, wet material rubbing against her heated skin made her flush with embarrassment for how badly she needed him. But he didn’t seem to mind, his mouth went to her neck, sucking and biting and she did the same to him until he moved to toss the dress away. The pink dress was tossed backwards onto the couch and she stepped out of the flip flops. She was bare before him save for a matching pale pink under garment set. Flames from the fire danced in his eyes and she suddenly felt self-conscious. Her arms crossed over her body, hiding herself from him as she took a step back.

  His growl slightly frightened her as he tore the belt from his jeans and closed the space between them again. “Are you sure?”

  Her throat was dry and she wasn't sure she if she could speak so she nodded. Sensations buzzed over her skin when he ran his finger over her arms. His eyes bored into her and she knew her own must look as lust filled as his.

  “Uncross your arms. You're beautiful and I want to see all of you.” He walked behind her, his hands a gentle caress down her arms as he kissed the nape of her neck.

  She shuddered at the chills that raced through her body at his touch. She felt his hands on the top undergarment —the bra— and she trembled. But not as much as when the article of clothing grew lose on her breasts because he had opened it. Julian's hands wrapped around her and covered her breasts while his mouth sucked and kissed her collarbone.

  “Absolutely perfect.”

  His hands continued to massage her breasts and a whimper tore past her lips. She could feel the wetness between her legs growing and she wanted him there.

  “Julian—”

  She didn't get to ask him to hurry up. He spun her to face him again and her hands went to the waist band of his jeans. They stuck to his legs from the water and she jerkily tugged them down.

  His cock jutted out of the strangely placed slit in what he called boxers. She pushed them past his hips and she licked her lips in anticipation. He was large and her body pulsed harder and the thought of him pounding into her. But she wanted it.

  Tentatively, she reached out and traced a finger up his length. He groaned when she did it again and she wrapped her hand around him, dragging her hand up and down his thick erection. His hips gyrated, thrusting his cock into her hands and she wondered if she was doing it right. There were no trainings for things such as this and she wanted him to enjoy it; to enjoy her.

  She leaned up and kissed him again, sighing at how delicious she found the way he tasted. His tongue thrust into her mouth at the same rhythm as her hand stroked his length. His body crowded hers and he picked her up, only to lay her down on the floor in front of the burning hearth. It was romantic really, but her body and her brain didn't care much for romance at the moment. It was focused on need and want. Julian was the answer to everything. She didn’t know how it happened so quickly and she didn’t want to. Her mother always told her not to question things that made her happy and her brain was in agreement as his hands continued their exploration of her naked body.

  His hands slipped between their bodies and she felt the scratch of lace as he tugged the panties down. She felt more exposed to him now, but the look in his eyes reassured her. His finger circled her clit; shooting tiny sparks of pleasure dancing through her body. Her gasp took her by surprise and he smiled against her lips. Slowly, his fingers danced across her folds and he pulled back to kiss the top of her ear.

  “We are going to go slow, nice and slow.” His finger dipped inside her and she cried out.

  “Julian!”

  His name echoed off the walls of his home and when he moved his finger in and out of her she had to bite her cheek to stop from mewling and panting. She struggled to continue to stroke his shaft and finally could not do so as the pleasure made her head spin and her body stop functioning as she neared release.

  “Julian, please.” Her plea was breathy, barely audible over their breathing and he took her lips once more and he placed another finger inside her.

  Her hips were bucking against his hand and his palm pressed into her clit. Stars began to fill her vision and she couldn't focus on anything, not even his kiss as the pleasure coiled up so tightly in her stomach that with one swipe of his thumb across her, she shattered. Her core milked his fingers and he continued to move them in and out until the tremors running through her body stopped.

  Through a lidded gaze she saw him grab something off the table and take his cock into his hands. The thought of him touching himself so intimately in front of her made her flush and she hoped he could not see it. Her eyes didn't leave his hands as he slipped something over his cock before leaning back down over her. He must have seen the look of confusion in her eyes because he rubbed the head of himself against her opening and explained.

  “It's to protect you. And me.” He continued to tease his cock’s head against her entrance and she pushed her hips toward him. She rubbed against him, daring his cock to sink deep into her folds and bring her pleasure like he just had again.

  “Now, Julian. I'm ready.” As if to prove her point she wrapped her hand around his length and guided him inside her body. She clenched her teeth as he first entered her. She thought for sure his girth would be too much and when she felt a push, a sting tears filled her eyes.

  “Shh. It will stop I promise.” He held perfectly still, now fully inside of her and kissed her forehead. “It doesn't hurt for long. I won't move until you tell me too.”

  Serena brushed her hand across her eyes and titled her head up to kiss him. Her hips slowly began to move and the sensation of pleasure mixed with pain blurred her vision. But it wasn’t enough; her body wanted all of him, all that sex was supposed to be.

  Julian gradually b
egan to rock his hips. She bit his lower lip and her hands skimmed down his back and landed on his backside, pulling him closer to her. She loved the feel of him so hard beneath her hands and she kneaded her hands into his backside, pushing him deeper into her with every stroke and drawing a short moan from them both.

  He got her meaning and his pace quickened. With each and every thrust she could feel him sliding in and out. Now that the pain had subsided, her mind knew nothing except the pleasure of their joined bodies. The only sounds she heard was their deep breathing as they kissed and touched. Their mouths were entwined and had it not been so she feared her scream of pleasure would have been heard out in the streets. Her body spasmed around him and she barely could open her eyes from the pleasure to watch as the muscles in his neck tightened and his kiss grew fiercer and his hips bucked into her harder and faster until he stopped his moving completely.

  He kissed her lips softly this time before rolling off of her. She felt empty at the loss of contact as he pulled free from her body. It didn't last as his hand tugged her over to him and she laid her head on his chest. His hand ran up and down her arm and the fire crackled behind them. They didn't speak, there was nothing that needed to be said. Her body hummed with pleasure as she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep in the arms of the man she was falling in love with.

  Chapter Ten

  He'd been pleased with what he saw between Julian and Serena. There had been no need to keep his viewing doorway open once they'd gotten home the other night. He knew where it was going. There was something bittersweet about it. He spent so much of his time guarding his Word Speakers and Guardians that he couldn’t remember the last time he’d taken someone to bed. Let alone had the emotional connection Julian and Serena were sharing. It certainly made him rethink Serena. Despite her being a useless addition to the war threat, he was happy to see that it looked like Julian was going to get to keep his Guardian.

  It made his life that much easier. He was still going to pop in and have that chat with the two of them about her going home. He saw the spark between them. It wasn't as bright and shiny as the link between soul mates that he had witnessed with Ciara and Stryder. But it was strong. Even had he tried to stop Serena from coming over, Michelson would have found her sooner or later. It was fated. He would never pretend he understood even a tenth of how Word Speakers and Guardians worked. There was no explanation for how a written being, a fictitious creature, could be the perfect match for a living and breathing human. He had asked Huracan many decades back. The God had sighed and told him that not everything needed to make sense with love.

  Which was fine by him. He'd never had the experience of love. Yes, he had come and gone from the worlds he could see. There was always a reason for him to speak to the Guardians on their own turf; it was more convincing most times. But he couldn't linger there. It wasn't a power drain or anything; it simply unnerved him not to be in his little home where he could see everything. Being on the world his Word Speakers lived in, his world, it was no different. Power begets power and he'd had it for so long, being without every little piece of his made him twitchy.

  So love was out. Sex was most definitely in and he if didn't get himself laid soon, he was going to wind up even crankier than he already was. Watching so many successful pairings did something to his libido every time. Sex with him was dangerous. He had more power coursing though his body than he could sometimes control when he was distracted. So he limited himself quite often to book characters— because he didn’t really care if he destroyed a fictional world. They weren’t real and they weren’t his to protect. Which made having Ciara Miller, getting married and living in one them, exceedingly difficult because he knew his side was not done with the girl. Not yet.

  He grabbed his trench coat off the rack and turned back to look at the two of them. It was so mundane he snorted. They were in the kitchen and he was actually teaching her to cook. For a brief second he experienced a pang of sadness and quickly shoved it back. He had no time for a relationship, maybe he never would.

  He stepped between the doorway of his home and set foot on his old home; Earth. He was mere footsteps behind the laughing couple. He realized Serena was covered in flour and Julian had eggs cracked on his shirt. He frowned, not understanding how cooking could have taken that turn and cleared his throat.

  The laughter stopped. Serena's eyes dropped to the pan on the stovetop – pancakes he noted. With a flick of his wrist he shut the flame off. Julian stepped out from behind Serena. His hand wrapped protectively around hers. Good, he needed to fight for her. All good Guardian and Word Speaker pairs fought for one another when their bond was tested.

  Julian's eyes narrowed, but no one spoke.

  He sighed, he really had been on edge and briefly wondered if he had been acting like a bigger asshole than his brother. “If no one is going to say it to me I will say it to you. Hello.”

  “Hello.” Serena's voice was quiet and she hadn't looked at him yet.

  Julian gave a nod, but said nothing.

  “I take it from the tension radiating in the room you never mentioned it to her that you did indeed reach out to me about her predicament?” He raised a brow and with how quickly Serena's gaze darted to his it was obvious. He was right.

  “I hadn't no. I was waiting to hear the answer before I got her hopes up.” Anger seeped from Julian, but he couldn't tell if it was at the thought of losing Serena, or him for interrupting.

  “Well then, I'm glad to say I have good news. Sort of. Can we sit?” He motioned at the dining table and they sat. He turned his gaze to Serena and was relieved when she finally made eye contact with him. “Is it true that you wished to return home to your world?” He knew the answer, but the process required the Guardian to answer it.

  She hesitated and he marked another point down for the pair working out. “Yes it is true. I am grateful for the gift you have given me, both of you. But when I arrived I did not wish to stay. I may be some fictional character in your world. But in mine, I'm not. In mine I read books and play make believe, I'm not the creature of make believe.”

  An edge slipped into her voice and he braced himself. Characters never took well to finding out they were nothing more than the invention of someone's mind. She had taken it too well, due to shock he assumed. But now she seemed more than able to comprehend that outside of this world, she was nothing more than a plot waiting to be finished. That she would never have her own thought or live freely in her own world.

  “I have responsibilities. I don't understand how my book could continue on if I'm removed from it. Nor do I really care. I was to be the daughter to be married to a noble that would take over the castle. My father is in poor health and my sister's husbands have land too far from ours. Father doesn't want it commanded by proxy, he wants one of his children there with our mother when he is gone. I need to be there.”

  Julian flinched at the final statement and so did he. She gasped and he wondered if she had even known how fiercely she wanted to be back in her own world.

  “So I gather you still wish to return?”

  Serena nodded and Julian immediately let go of her hand. She turned her head toward him and he held her gaze. Tension radiated from the Word Speaker, but Julian only crossed his arms and said nothing back.

  “It can be done. But at a cost.”

  “To who?” Julian finally joined the conversation.

  He leveled his gaze with his Word Speakers’ gaze. “To you.” He paused to let the idea sink in before continuing on. “Guardians and Word Speakers have been mis-chosen before. Accidents happen, it's life. The process is simple, for me. I can create the doorway and let her leave. However, there is a bond between you. Not a romantic one, not a sexual one. One that linked you together as Word Speaker and Guardian, before the other um, bonds formed.”

  “Why haven't you ever told me about that?” Once more Julian rocked on his chair as if he were going to lean forward and take a swing.

  “Because i
t's not in your best interest to know. It changes nothing.” His eyes flashed and he felt his eye teeth extend into his fangs and he closed his mouth and his eyes to calm himself. “Forgive me. I have a short leash on my temper when I'm questioned about things. The bond works as simply a means to keep you alive together. While it's breakable, it takes the power of the Word Speaker with it once the tether is cut. For strong Word Speakers it's a few weeks before they can connect with a new Guardian.”

  “And the weaker ones?” It was Serena who asked this and Julian flinched, most likely at the idea that his Guardian thought him to be weak.

  “They lose everything.”

  * * *

  Silence settled in the kitchen like a heavy blanket. Julian felt his throat constrict. First Serena stated that she wanted to leave, still. Then he has a bombshell dropped on him that without her, he will no longer be a Word Speaker. He wasn't an idiot. The man had told him before that most Word Speakers pull Guardian’s into the world long before their twenty-seventh birthday. That there were some constantly pulling good and evil from books. Some that had had Guardian's in their lives for years and got to choose to release the one they knew best.

  But Julian? No, he had nothing. No good, no evil, nothing more than words on the page when he had read. Until Serena. If that wasn’t an obvious spell out as to which side of the scale he was on, nothing would be.

  He could hear the running of the toilet in the bathroom down the hall, the seconds ticking on the wall clock and his own breathing. He had known he could still lose Serena. Even in the bliss of the last two days he had thought it was possible she would still leave. That had been a bridge he would fight when it came time. But now his gift was on the line as well?

  He hated failing, ever since his mother. Anger flared through him, but he wasn’t sure who it was at. Serena was a failure in and of itself. But if he lost his powers he would never be able to help. He would know a war was coming and be powerless to do anything except sit and wait for it to happen, if it did during his lifetime. His head throbbed and he kept forcing himself to take deep breaths in and out of his nose. The intoxicating smell of the woman he was falling for filled his nose. He growled low, almost inaudibly.