Magic Blaze: an Urban Fantasy Novel (Shifting Magic Book 3)

by Catherine Vale

  A gentle tap on my shoulder had me turning around. I dropped my gaze to the sweetly smiling face of Marie, of all people. She had a bouquet of wild flowers in hand, and appeared to be in perfect health. My smile brightened. “Marie!”

  In all honesty, I hadn’t expected to see Aden again, but there he was, standing at a safe distance with a proud papa djinn smile on his face as his daughter gave me the bouquet. Unfortunately, the alpha hall was the last place a child should be right now, given the level of debauched celebrating in effect, so I took her hand and asked if she could escort me outside. The little hybrid nodded, and I met Aden’s dark eyes as we walked by. The djinn fell in line behind me, and within seconds we were outside. I inhaled deeply, savoring the scent of fresh, clean air—the inside of Darius’s alpha hall smelled like a club on a Saturday night.

  “These are so beautiful,” I gushed when we finally found a spot away from the inebriated victory-partiers. I took a seat on a boulder near Darius’s bedroom hall, admiring each flower individually as Marie stood by, grinning and blushing. “Can you tell me the names?”

  Much to my surprise, the girl named every flower in the batch, offering up their scientific classification too—as if she wasn’t impressive enough. While I detected the djinn within her, whatever she was crossed with, whatever her mother had been, was a little less clear.

  “Marie wanted to thank you for everything you did for us,” Aden said after a long, contemplative pause had passed. I looked up, clutching the flowers tightly, and noted the strain on his features—as though holding back a tidal wave of emotion. “I wanted to thank you. You saved my daughter’s life.”

  “I just did what anyone would have done—”

  “I won’t forget it,” he assured me, moving closer and setting a hand on Marie’s shoulder. His fingertips shimmered blue, and she quickly became distracted with them, laughing softly as her father conjured stars inside the mist. It was like looking at the night’s sky, but in the palm of Aden’s hand. When I met the djinn’s eye again, I offered a small nod of understanding.

  “You saved my mate,” I told him, “and that’s something I won’t forget either.”

  “I’d say we were even, but that might sever our salacious bond,” Aden mused, his eyes sparkling with mischief. “Let’s just agree to part today as friends. Anytime you need me, you can summon me with a thought. I’ll keep you on my radar.”

  “Maybe…” I swallowed hard, my smile softening as I studied Marie for a moment. “Maybe you could tell me a little more about hybrid lore. You seem to be an expert on it.”

  “I have a pretty hefty stake in the community, I suppose,” he murmured as he leaned down and pressed a kiss to Marie’s temple. She squirmed out of the way, her face pinched in a yuck, Dad! sort of way. “What would you like to know?”

  I shrugged. “Is everything too much?”

  The djinn chuckled, twirling a bit of Marie’s dark hair around his fingers. “No, I suppose not. It’s my understanding that there are, in fact, some hybrid communities in hiding today.” He raised an eyebrow, as though feeling my excitement. “It’s only a rumor, of course, but perhaps one worth exploring. After all, the artifacts were only rumors…”

  “Yes, please.” The thought of finding more hybrids like myself, of learning my actual culture rather than just guessing at it, was incredibly appealing. “When can we start?”

  “How about tomorrow?” Darius interjected, and I stood, my cheeks reddening as he strolled toward us. I’d been so wrapped up in the idea of hybrids that I hadn’t even noticed him approaching, but my inner dragon—because that’s what she was, no longer just a voice—made little growl-like whimpering noises in my head, like the ones dogs made when their humans came home, at the sight of him. I shared her sentiment. Even though we’d been working together for hours at this point, I felt as though I’d hardly seen him.

  Aden and Darius exchanged a few words, all pleasant, before my dragon grabbed my hand and excused us. I waved goodbye to both Aden and Marie, and although I was desperate for more intel about hybrids, I had no qualms turning my back on the festivities and following Darius into the mountains.

  We walked in a companionable silence, the kind steeped with an unspoken desire for closeness, for what felt like hour. To the end of the range. To the end of the earth, it seemed. Darius and I, together at last with no one to interrupt or threaten or dampen our spirits. I held Marie’s gift loosely in one hand, but clung tightly to him with my other. When we finally did stop, we stood with our toes at the edge of a steep cliff, a valley of late summer green flourishing before us. On the other side of the range, we would’ve seen blood, mud, and charred earth. The natural world would recover from yesterday’s battle, but I knew there were supernaturals and shifters alike who might not ever.

  I inhaled deeply, breathing in the cool gust of wind barreling over us, deciding right then and there to put all that out of my mind. Darius and I had earned a few hours to ourselves, unfettered by all the problems and stress waiting back at the village.

  “You know, Aden said there are rumors of hybrid clans out there,” I admitted, my gaze on the horizon. Darius gave my hand a little squeeze, and I smiled. “I’d like to see if that’s true.”

  “Whenever you’re ready to go, just tell me,” he said. “I’ll be right by your side.”

  I closed my eyes for a moment, letting the weight of his words wash over me, exhaling all the negativity and darkness that had clung to me for so long.

  “Thank you.”

  “Of course. Together, or—”

  “Not at all,” I finished for him, and we smiled at one another. Our gazes locked, and my breath quickened, heart fluttered, at the dark longing in his stormy grays. Slowly, carefully, Darius freed the bouquet from my grasp and set it aside somewhere safe where the wind couldn’t take it. He then stood before me, towering over me as he always did, and cocked his head to the side.

  “Now, Kaye my fae,” he started, his voice gravelly and lips twitching into a sinful smirk that sent tingles straight to my core, “I am so proud of you for shifting, but I can’t believe I missed your first time.”

  “Yeah, you were off in the lap of luxury getting healed,” I teased. My hand found its way to the center of his chest, pushing slightly against the muscular surface as I searched for his heartbeat. Steady. Ever-constant and firm. It might just be the only thing that would help me fall asleep tonight.

  His lips parted, as though about to say something, and I tensed, waiting. However, rather than saying a word, Darius swooped down and kissed me instead. My eyes fluttered closed as his lips claimed mine, a rush of white hot excitement shooting down from where we joined to the crux of my thighs.

  All I wanted was him—more of him, more of what we had the night of that huge summer storm. As our lips parted, he slipped his tongue into my mouth, coaxing mine, teasing me into a little game of cat and mouse as my hands wandered his body’s hardness. I giggled, the sound trapped between us, when he nipped at my lower lip, then darted back, forcing me to pursue. My hands fisted in the warm fabric of his gray T-shirt, and before I realized what I was doing, I had dragged it up and over his head. Our mouths hovered near one another, a breath away from contact, the heat of his bare torso radiating toward me. Slowly, I let my fingers wander the expansive plains of his sculpted chest, grinning at the way he twitched when I skimmed over a ticklish spot.

  “I want to see you, now,” he growled, stealing himself away when I tried to stand up on my tip-toes, throw my arms around his neck, and kiss him well into the next century. I bit my lower lip, my body humming with desire, and shook my head.

  “Get back here, you.”

  “It’s the perfect day for flying,” he reasoned, and when I lunged forward, Darius caught me around the waist, hoisted me up, and pressed me back against a nearby rock. I arched against him, pleased with the change of positions, but rather than meet me halfway, my lips aching for the dangerous caress of his, my dragon snagged my shirt and
yanked it off too. I steadied myself, allowing him to undress me, and watched as he took his time. There were no torn panties, no ripped jeans. He handled each item of clothing with care—that is, until it came to his own.

  As I stood there, totally naked, the wind whispering over my exposed skin, Darius took a few steps back and all but shredded the rest of his clothes in an effort to get them off. They landed next to mine in a disorganized pile, and I bit my cheeks to keep from blushing at the sight of his very prominent… interest in our activities. He held out his hand, inching toward the edge of the cliff with a smile. “Come on, sweetheart. Show me your wings.”

  I swallowed hard, knowing he understood the impact of me finally having my own wings. I’d always wanted to be able to fly, but only a few faes were blessed with the ability. Now, in theory, I could fly anywhere I wanted.

  So why did the idea make my stomach flip-flop and my palms sweat?

  “I… I don’t know if I can fly,” I told him shyly. “I mean, I sort of just chased Jasmine around. I know they work, I just don’t know if I can… do it.”

  How depressing would that be? I’d waited all this time, and then my wings don’t work? Or I just couldn’t figure out how to manage them?

  “Put some faith in yourself, Kaye,” Darius insisted, and I suddenly noticed he was all but hanging off the edge of the cliff, his heels creeping over the side. “She won’t let you fall…”

  “She?”

  “You know who I’m talking about.” And then, grinning like a fool, he held his arms out and fell backward over the edge. My first instinct was to panic; shrieking, I screamed his name and raced to the edge—only to stumble backward as Darius’s dragon form raced by me. I laughed, a blend of relief and anger rushing through my system, as I watched him soar above, his sunset red and orange scales exquisite against the baby blue backdrop. He issued a low, long roar, as though beckoning me to join him. That feeling returned, the sensation of my insides fluttering about, shifting beneath my skin. Although I couldn’t hear her, I knew my inner dragon was still there, waiting in the magical recesses of my body—eager to stretch her wings.

  Swallowing hard, I sidled over to the edge and peered down. It was a long, steep drop, with nothing but boulders and jagged rocks at the bottom.

  “Don’t let me splat, okay?” My voice shook as I turned and mirrored Darius’s stance, my heels creeping over the edge. Adrenaline pounded through me, spiking hard as I closed my eyes, held out my arms, and threw caution to the wind.

  I let myself fall.

  For a moment, the freefall forced my heart into my throat, and the scream that slipped free did so of its own accord. It felt like hours of falling, but it couldn’t have been more than a few seconds before my human-esque features started to elongate, my skin turning coarse and green. This time, there was no popping of joints and cracking of bones. In a blink, my vision went from ordinary to extraordinary, the sharpness of my dragon’s view coming into swift focus.

  And I didn’t have to think. I reacted to the moment, rolling my unfamiliar—yet distinctly comfortable—dragon’s body over in midair. My wings snapped into motion, stretching out and instantly slowing my descent. I sailed through the air, far above the ground, and with a slight roll of my shoulders, my wings flapped.

  My excited cry echoed across the valley, and I looked up as a shadow passed overhead. Darius. Seeing him in my dragon form, the bond between us was glaringly obvious. I’d never felt more comfortable, more familiar, and more at home with anyone, in any form, in all my life. Somehow, it was like I knew him more in this form, like we had been mates a thousand times over, in a thousand different lives. Nostalgia bubbled through me—nostalgia and love, as though seeing him now was like happening upon a long-lost lover who I’d been searching for across time.

  He soared above me, then cut down sharply and looped around me. I hazarded a dive myself, closing my eyes for a moment when my wings snapped out and sent me arcing upward again.

  We carried on like that for some time, exploring one another as best we could in the air. Chasing each other. Soaring over the mountain range. Looping around one another, snapping at tails as they passed, our roars a single song carrying over the landscape. Finally, we turned outward, away from the village and its mountain home. Side by side, we climbed higher and higher, dipping in and out of clouds, and flew with no purpose, no real destination in mind. We sought out the infinite horizon, with its endless possibilities and its hope for a better, brighter tomorrow.

  One that we would seek out together…

  Or not at all.

  Thanks For Reading!

  Thank you so much for reading my book. If you enjoyed it, please consider leaving an honest review at your point of sale outlet. Your feedback is invaluable to me, as it helps me grow as an author. It also helps me figure out what to write next, based on what my readers are most interested in! If you’d like to leave a review, please click here.

  * * *

  I look forward to connecting with you!

  * * *

  Catherine Vale

  http://www.CatherineVale.com

  About the Author

  NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY Bestselling Canadian author Catherine Vale loves to write urban fantasy tales of magic and mayhem, and paranormal romance, where guys sprout fur, and gals aren't afraid to bite.

  * * *

  Girls with curves, and guys with growl. What more could you want?

  * * *

  When she isn't lost in one of her fictional worlds of magic and shifters, you can find her watching thrillers, spending time with her friends and family, and dancing to 80's rock.

  * * *

  If you love reading about kick-ass heroines, powerful heroes, and their magical adventures, check out Catherine’s website for a full listing of books: http://www.CatherineVale.com

  * * *

  You can follow her on twitter @ValeRomance or on Facebook at facebook.com/CatherineValeBooks

  Other Books by Catherine Vale

  Shades of Dragon

  Broken Moon

  Kiss of Fire

  Darkest Days

  Wild Things

  Run Fur Love

  Bearly Magic

  Dark Side of the Moon

  Murder by Magic

  Shifting Magic Series:

  Magic Fire, Magic Burn, Magic Blaze

  Broken Magic

  Have you read any of Catherine’s books? Please consider leaving an honest review at your point of sale outlet.

  Copyright

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations, brands, incidents, and places are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  Copyright © 2017 Catherine Vale

  Edited by Charlotte Stanley

  * * *

  All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form, except in instances of quotation used in critical articles or book reviews.

  Inquiries may be sent directly to: contact@catherinevale.com