Kissed by Fire

by Kimber White

  I went into his bedroom and found a similar scene. His mattress was propped against the wall, slashed to ribbons. His dresser and nightstand had been broken into pieces. But, there was nothing inside any of it. All of his clothes were gone. Even in his bathroom, the mirror to his medicine cabinet had been torn loose, but his pill bottles and toiletries were all missing.

  I’d been wrong. So wrong. Those wolves had been looking for something that day. This hadn’t been just about the kill.

  This was wrong. All wrong. Alarm bells rang inside my head. I shouldn’t have come. Some sixth sense told me it was already too late.

  Something pricked between my shoulder blades. The hair at the back of my neck stood on end. I couldn’t breathe. Something moved behind me. I saw it reflected in the jagged shards of mirror glass still hanging from the wall. Two red eyes and massive fangs. Had he been here the whole time?

  Slowly, I turned around and faced the wolf head on.

  Chapter Nine

  Xander

  The first bolt of pain hit me squarely in the heart, knocking me sideways and out of formation. Kian flew at my side, his dragon pulled up, getting in front of me. He flapped his wings and let out a hiss of fire.

  Gideon and Loch came up next, vaulting forward from the rear position. I had been in the lead. Finn took over, scanning the horizon for whatever had hit. I was wild with fear, unable to communicate with them on any level. I only knew one thing. Shae was in danger.

  Lake Michigan loomed large below us, we were still thirty miles out. I dropped my head low and tucked my wings back, switching into dive mode at breakneck speed. Five miles gone. Ten. The air zinged past me, heat bubbled up all around me as I rocketed downward. Loch and Finn let out a screech behind me, warning me. I had no time to listen. No time to explain.

  Instinct fueled me. Fire shot through my veins, circling my heart as I zeroed in on Shae’s location. I didn’t think. Didn’t breathe. I only had enough sense to pull up and cloak myself as I careened over the Chicago skyline. The people below would hear a sonic boom as I picked up speed.

  I pulled up sharply, spreading my wings wide to control my descent. My talons dug into the concrete roof and shook the foundation of the brick two-story on Belmont. I shifted in one breath, then vaulted down the spiraling Chicago fire escape on the side of the building.

  She was on the second floor. Terror bled through her. I burst through the nearest window, landing in a crouch. Instinct guided me to her. Shae had her back against the wall. Two blood-red eyes and a flash of fangs bore down on her.

  I didn’t think. I just acted. I took one great breath, then let it out in a column of fire that hit the wolf full force on his right flank. He spiraled in the air, his fur ignited. He let out a wailing yelp and landed hard against the opposite wall.

  Shae screamed. I went to the wolf. He twitched once, then his eyes went dim as his body burned. I hauled him up, pulling him into a headlock against my chest. Flames swirled around me, but I would never burn. I snapped his neck just to be sure, then smothered him against the wall to put out the fire.

  The second wolf seemed to come from nowhere. He ran into the room in a half-shift. It all happened in an instant. He tore something from his neck as he launched himself at me. Shae shouted a warning, but I already knew. As the second shifter tried to attack me straight on, I raised an arm and deflected his blow. He was a blur of motion. Half-wolf. Half-man. His red eyes blazing. His Alpha couldn’t be far. Did he see through this wolf’s eyes? Did he know what I was? His eyes went in and out of focus. I prayed I was cloaked enough to throw him off. I got him in an armbar and we tumbled into the wall. Again, his fangs tore into my arm, but one lone shifter was no match for me, even in human form. I pulled up, snapping his neck too. His body went limp and he slid down the wall, dead before he hit the ground.

  Where there were two wolves, there had to be more.

  “Xander!” Shae flung herself into my arms. I went rigid, afraid to pull her close. My body would still feel blazing hot and I didn’t want to burn her. It didn’t seem to matter. The instant her skin touched mine, I was lost in her. I lifted her off her feet and buried my face in her hair.

  Electricity crackled between us. My blood rose to the surface and my dragon tore at me. My lips found hers and I stumbled with her, ending up holding her with her back pressed against the wall.

  “Are you okay?” I asked, breathless. “Did they touch you?”

  “No,” Shae gasped. “How did you...he just...and then you just…”

  “Come on,” I said. “We can sort it all out later. Right now, I need to get you out of here. What are you doing here? I told you to stay put. It’s not safe. The rest of the pack can’t be far.”

  I didn’t wait for her answer. I swooped Shae into my arms and headed for the fire escape. We caught a break. The alley was empty as we stepped onto the platform.

  “Put your arms around my neck and hold on!” I shouted, but Shae already knew what to do. As she pressed her body against my back, I spread my arms and let my wings unfurl. I took one leap and launched into the sky, my dragon tearing out of me.

  I felt every detail of Shae’s body pressed against my back. The strength of her thighs as she squeezed them together, straddling me. I felt the heat between them and shuddered from the pleasure of it. Her breath kissed my neck, sending shivers of desire through me.

  Xander! What the fuck?

  Finn’s voice reached me. I’d nearly forgotten my brothers. Of course they chased after me. I should have warned them. If they tried to follow me back to the bookstore, there might be more wolves lying in wait. I scanned the street below, looking for any trace of the pack. I could only sense Shae’s thundering heart.

  It’s okay. Shae ran into some trouble. Heading back home. Don’t follow.

  I closed my mind to them, not wanting any more questions. I only wanted one thing: Shae all to myself. I needed to know she was truly okay.

  I landed on the Brandhart Building helipad as softly as I could. Shae slid down my back. I waited for her to step back before shifting.

  “Xander…”

  My emotions ran too high to talk. I took Shae by the hand and led her to the stairwell. She had to run to keep up. I charged into the elevator, still gripping Shae’s hand. She opened her mouth to say something, but caught my eye. She must have seen the fire behind them, because she stopped mid-breath and clamped her mouth shut.

  I let her go only when the elevator doors slid open, right into my apartments. I stormed out and whirled on her. A thousand scenarios played in my head. What if I hadn’t sensed the danger? What if I hadn’t been able to get to her in time? I felt the bloodlust coursing through those wolves. Professor Marvin’s crumpled, lifeless body flashed in my mind. For an instant, Shae’s face superimposed with his. Instead of his blood on my hands, it was hers. It could have happened. It had been way too close.

  “Xander,” Shae said, trying for a calmer tone.

  I lost it.

  “What were you thinking?” I shouted. Fire crackled inside my heart. My dragon rose to the surface.

  “Xander…”

  “They were going to kill you. Just like Marvin. If I hadn’t...if you weren’t…”

  She slapped her hands against her thighs in frustration. “If I weren’t what?”

  I charged her, gripping her by the shoulders, I pulled her nearly off her feet and close to me. My grip was firm, not hard. I wouldn’t hurt her. I would never hurt her. Though, the urge to shake some sense into her poured through me.

  “Why did you go there? To the bookstore of all places. You might as well have taken out a billboard ad. They were lying in wait for you and you just waltzed straight into their trap.”

  She went stiff. I loosened my grip and she tore away from me. The freckles across her brow and over her collarbone darkened as her skin flushed. She turned on me, her red hair flying, giving off a fire all her own.

  “I’m not stupid.”

  “Were you trying
to get yourself hurt? Was it a test?”

  Her jaw dropped. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “Did you want to see if I’d come running? If I meant what I said about protecting you?”

  She put a hand to her forehead and shook her head. “You’re nuts. You know that? Certifiable. I barely know you. Since the second you flew into my life, it’s been turned upside down. I lost the only family I ever had. The only person who’s ever looked out for me except for me. I needed to say goodbye. I needed...something of his. I had to see for myself. So no...what I did wasn’t about you, Xander. It was...it was none of your business.”

  She made me want to tear my hair out. I hovered between dragon and man. The urge to fly, to breathe fire and spread my wings blazed through me. But, it was the other urge that tethered me to the ground.

  I straightened my back, rising to my full height. Shae’s eyes went up and up, staying locked with mine. Her breath came short and a tiny nerve jumped in her temple. I felt her heat. I felt her longing. It matched my own.

  Somehow, I managed to stay calm enough to gently slide my fingers through her hair, tilting her face to mine.

  “You’re my business now,” I said. “Everything you do, everything about you. Don’t you get that? Don’t you understand?”

  Her lashes fluttered as she blinked wildly. I felt the soft caress of her breath against my wrist and it nearly undid me.

  “Tell me,” she said.

  I meant to say it another way. Hell, I don’t know what I meant to say. My words tore out of me, driven by the thundering beat of my heart.

  “Because you’re mine, Shae.”

  One heartbeat. Two. Shae’s breath caught. Her breasts heaved as she drew in another. I drank in everything about her. The blush of her cheeks, the wisp of fire-red hair that fell across her brow, the outline of her nipples as they peaked beneath her thin pink t-shirt. She smelled sweet as cinnamon. I wanted to taste her too. My body shook with the effort to keep from devouring her then and there.

  “You’re mine,” I whispered again. There was no denying it.

  “Xander.”

  I had no more words. My heart beat so loud, I knew she could hear it. She could feel it. Fire crackled at the edges of my vision. It was almost as if I could see myself through her eyes. She saw the green flames swirling where my pupils used to be.

  I’d lived for three hundred years, but at that moment, I felt alive for the very first time.

  She moved first, going up on her tiptoes. A primal growl erupted from me. I should have pulled away. I should have locked her in her rooms and kept her there. I might be one of the strongest creatures to ever walk the earth, but this woman brought me to my knees.

  Finally, I had no more strength to fight it. The hellfires might engulf us both. I didn’t care. I wanted. I needed. So, I took what was mine.

  Shae shivered with pleasure as I pressed my lips to hers and pulled her down to the ground.

  Chapter Ten

  Shae

  This had been coming on for days. Weeks. On some instinctive level, maybe my whole life. At that moment, there was nothing else but Xander. Xander and me and a need so powerful it consumed us both.

  He whispered my name as he tore at my clothes. I tried to help him. My moves were clunky, awkward. Xander growled with frustration as my jeans caught. He let out a quick breath and warmth spread over me. Dragon magic. I gasped with wonder as my clothes burned quickly away even though the fire never touched my skin.

  “How did you…” I whispered, then thought, fuck it. I wrapped my legs around Xander’s waist. I had fire of my own flaring between my legs. I ran my fingers down Xander’s back, feeling every rippling inch of him.

  He was so big. So strong. And yet, his touch was gentle. He worshiped me, lavishing me with kisses that left a heated trail down my neck.

  “Shae...we can’t…”

  “Shut up,” I whispered, threading my fingers through his hair. “I want you. Oh, God. I need you.”

  I spread my legs wider offering myself to him. I was wet. Dripping. I’d never wanted anything so much in my life. I could worry later about what it meant or why this might be a terrible idea. Just then, it felt so right. Xander’s words thrummed through me like a second pulse.

  Because you’re mine. You’re mine!

  I was. God help me. I was. I felt the truth of it in the marrow of my bones. This was right. This had to happen. Here. Now.

  “Please!” Oh, yes. I would beg him. I would go on my knees for him. I wanted to do just that. Fresh from his shift, Xander was already naked. He rose up. I wriggled beneath him, still trying to spread myself wider.

  Oh, God. He was beautiful. I’d known that all along. But he was also huge and rock hard. I worried he might not fit, but lust flared through me. Lord, I was game to try.

  I held myself up on my elbows and Xander stroked himself. I reached for him. “Please,” I whispered again. I tried to pull him toward me, guiding him into me. He growled and the fire flared behind his eyes. Oh, God. His dragon. He was mine. Just as Xander said it, I knew it was true for me too.

  Xander took me by the ankles and spread my legs as wide as they would go. He drew them up into a wide vee. I arched my back. Oh, God. I caught my reflection in the mirrored glass of the elevator. It was erotic as hell. Wild with lust, I arched my back.

  Xander leaned forward and brought his lips to my most sensitive core. I bucked at the shock of pleasure. Xander ran his tongue along my slick folds. Just that tiny flick of the tip and he nearly made me come. It was as if he’d trained my body to respond to his.

  “Please!” I moaned, carving my fingers through his hair. I pulled him down hard. Xander fastened his lips around me, then plunged his tongue inside me. He worked me with his mouth, keeping my legs spread into that wide vee, my ankles nearly to my ears. I held on for dear life. He gave me an even wilder ride than his dragon had.

  He raised me up, then let me crest down just before crashing over the edge. In and out he worked his tongue. Just when I thought I couldn’t take it another second, he eased up and teased along my folds. Over and over. I pumped my hips and arched my back. He drank me in. My core of heat expanded, my pleasure center started between my legs but soon spread to the roots of my hair. Every nerve, every cell was tuned to Xander. He knew just how to play me.

  I arched my back and let out a scream of pleasure. Xander’s wicked laugh undid me. He swirled his tongue around me then fastened his lips around my most sensitive little bud, drawing me out.

  I came.

  Soaring like I’d done over the Chicago skyline. He brought me up and up. I closed my eyes and heard fire crackle. I thought I imagined it. But, when I opened my eyes again, orange flames swirled all around us. We were in a cone of fire. Delicious heat lapped at my body. I exploded in pleasure. Xander drank it all in. He remade me right there on the floor of his apartment.

  He knew just when I’d reached the apex and could take no more. He gently withdrew his tongue. The flames began to subside. I didn’t want them to. They were part of him. I wanted them to be a part of me. Xander got to his feet.

  I reached for him, closing my fingers around his turgid shaft. I tried to draw him into me. Xander went rigid.

  “We can’t...it’s too dangerous.” I didn’t know what he meant and didn’t want to break this spell to ask. Instinct took over and I went up on my knees.

  Before Xander could protest, I brought him into my mouth. He was so big, he barely fit. But he filled me and fueled me on. The world became the sound of my mouth on him. My tongue. I’d never done this before. I’d only had two other sexual experiences and those had been fumbling, awkward mistakes, over too quickly for me to even find pleasure.

  But this. Xander. The moment I tasted the first drop of him on the tip of my tongue, I knew exactly what to do. I reveled in the feel of his soft skin over his steel shaft. I worked him up and down, mimicking the rhythm he’d chosen for me. He threw his head back and the flames ros
e again, swirling all around.

  In some dark corner of my mind, I wondered if this was what he meant. The danger. If Xander lost control, would the fire start to burn? But, I was too far gone to stop now. We both were.

  My movements had less finesse the longer we went. I was a wild thing. I gave over to it. Xander stood with his hands laced through my hair, driving me down on him. I gripped his hard ass and kept going. I took him so deeply. He tasted so good.

  The fire licked at me, but still, it didn’t burn. I just felt the growing warmth and pleasure. Over and over, his words echoed through me. He was mine. I was his.

  Then, Xander threw his head back and let out a growl. He let go, pouring himself into me. God, he tasted so good. I took it all. I wanted more and more. My sex ached for him. More than anything, I wanted him inside me.

  Finally, the fire died to crackling embers and I let him go. I couldn’t feel my legs. Xander hooked a hand beneath my elbow and gently helped me to my feet. I couldn’t walk. I couldn’t move. I felt weak as jelly as Xander swept me into his strong arms and finally carried me to his bed.

  He set me down gently. I marveled at how someone so big, so powerful could move with such grace. I was spent. Sated. And yet, a small flame still burned deep inside. I wanted him. I wanted more.

  We lay like that, him cradling me in the crook of his arm as I stretched out beside him. I looked at him. Really looked at him. Xander was sculpted marble. Perfection. From his squared shoulders, washboard abs, tapered waist, and powerful thighs. He laced his long fingers with mine. He had only fine, wispy curls on his chest. A day’s worth of stubble darkened his jaw and I ran one finger over it, the rough feel giving me goosebumps.

  “Are you really three hundred years old?” I asked.

  “I am,” he answered, his tone a little distant, a little sad.

  “Where have you been? How have you lived?”

  He smiled and brought my fingers to his lips. A shiver of pleasure went through me. Again, my need for him stirred.