Ashes to Flames

by Gregory, Nichelle

  The cash had afforded him the opportunity to construct a life. People didn’t ask too many questions when you flashed the green and kept things simple. He had enough money to buy the building he was in, but he simply rented the apartment. Telling people he was a ghostwriter squelched curious questions about his employment and financial means.

  Jai sat the lockbox down on his bed to reach back into his safe and pull out a leather-bound notebook that had been buried alongside the cash. He opened the worn book and flipped through it. There were pages and pages of his handwriting, but Jai didn’t understand the foreign language. He’d spent hours at the library looking up dialects and still hadn’t found any that would decipher what might as well be gibberish.

  Jai cursed, turning the pages faster as his frustration grew. He hardly flipped through the pages anymore because doing so always left him feeling on edge.

  What does it mean?

  Something caught his eye just as he started to close the journal. Jai thumbed back to the page that had caught his attention, his eyes widening as he recognized a set of letters within the unidentifiable script.

  “Holy hell.”

  Time stood still as Jai stared in wonder at the name he hadn’t noticed before.

  Sabria.

  Chapter Two

  Sabria sighed with relief when Melanie finally left the apartment complex she’d been staking out all night. The woman walked away, yoga mat strapped to her back, workout gear visible beneath the purple shawl around her shoulders. All Sabria had to do was get out of her car, enter the building and find Jai.

  The moment Jai and Melanie had left, she’d rushed from the coffee shop and discreetly followed them, only to discover either he or Melanie lived just a few blocks away from the café.

  There was no way she’d chance losing him after searching for the better part of a lonely year. Decision made, she’d gone back to her car and parked outside the apartment complex to wait for a moment to talk to Jai alone.

  Sabria closed her eyes and groaned as her mind conjured up images of him and Melanie entangled, sweaty, blissfully happy.

  He’d spent the entire night with her. And why wouldn’t he? He and Melanie were engaged.

  Sabria drew in a shuddering breath, trying to push more illicit images of Melanie moaning beneath Jai out of her thoughts. She craved him so badly it had taken all her concentration not to reach out to him. The thought of him touching another woman was driving her crazy.

  He was hers.

  It wasn’t his fault he currently didn’t know her, or Melanie’s that she’d gotten involved with him, but Sabria would be damned if she’d let her mate marry another.

  Not this lifetime.

  She’d been through thousands of years with Jai. Together, they’d weathered more joy, passion and adversity than the human mind could comprehend.

  Sabria’s hands trembled as she reached for a bottle of water and drank, shivering with delight as the cool drink coursed down her parched throat. Her thirst was growing and with it her need for Jai.

  Desire curled in her stomach, dropped lower, and Sabria squeezed her inner thighs together. Her body hungered for his touch, his kiss, the way he whispered her name when he moved deep inside her. She hadn’t taken a lover in the time she’d been searching for Jai. There had been plenty of opportunities, but no mortal man could truly assuage the building hunger within her. She’d saved herself the frustration.

  Sabria recalled the way Melanie had looked so tenderly at Jai, her hand possessively touching his as he’d stared at Sabria in total confusion. Finding him had been all she’d thought about, and seeing him with another woman had completely thrown her. It had never occurred to her he’d find someone else to share his bed…someone else to love.

  Did he love Melanie?

  Sabria clenched the steering wheel in one hand and the water bottle in the other, wishing she could stop the tortuous question from repeating in her head. This had never happened before. She couldn’t fault him for creating a life when it appeared he didn’t remember the one he’d had with her, but it still hurt like hell to look into his eyes—those beautiful brown eyes—and not see even a flicker of recognition. Sabria felt some small measure of comfort about the way Jai had reacted when she’d said his name. He’d felt something then, she’d bet her life on it.

  And you will.

  She had no choice.

  Jai needed to remember everything. The faster the better. Her lover, her best friend, her soulmate was within feet of her and it had killed her not to rush the building the moment he’d walked inside with Melanie yesterday.

  Sabria angled the rear-view mirror toward her and assessed her appearance. Her hair was a little mussed. She smoothed it with her hands, took out some gloss from her purse and applied it to her lips. She wondered if Jai sensed her presence nearby even though he probably didn’t understand what he was feeling.

  Time to go.

  She had maybe forty-five minutes to an hour tops before Melanie returned from her exercise class, unless Melanie made a stop somewhere else. Sabria just needed enough time to explain things to Jai. She just needed to touch him.

  Sabria took a deep breath and got out of her vehicle. She reached the entrance, checked the names on buzzers and sighed with frustration. Jai had not used a recognizable last name. Sabria lifted her finger to push a bell when the door opened.

  “Oh, hello, can you hold the door for me?”

  “Of course,” Sabria said to the silver-haired woman struggling to get two rambunctious poodles outside.

  The woman gave her a kind smile as she went past, and Sabria stepped inside the entryway with her heart racing. She moved forward to stand in the middle of the hallway facing two possible doors.

  Jai was close. She could feel the sensual aura of his proximity. But which apartment?

  Sabria tried to swallow the lump in her throat. She needed water. Leaving the car without a bottle had been a mistake.

  Sabria froze upon hearing a creaky door open. Her pulse fluttered as she spun around. Jai stepped out into the hallway with a bottle of water in hand, wearing jeans and a long-sleeved white Henley shirt.

  “You,” he said as their gazes locked.

  Sabria stepped toward him, unable to stop the tremulous smile curving her lips. She still couldn’t believe she’d found him. “Jai—”

  “What are you doing here?”

  His harsh tone gave her pause as he walked up to her. He was always tall, but he seemed even taller now, close enough for her to smell his familiar aftershave and cologne. Sabria lifted her gaze from Jai’s unbuttoned shirt to look into his dark brown eyes. He looked nothing like he had before, but her body responded to him as if they were already lovers. She wanted to reach up and run her hand down the strong line of Jai’s jaw and explore the dark chocolate-colored muscles she knew lay beneath his clothes.

  “Sabria, what are you doing here?”

  “Do you know who I am?” Sabria asked, her eyes widening with hope.

  Her breath hitched as he looked at her. His voice was the same as it always had been and hearing him say her name again after so much time had passed was doing crazy things to her heart.

  Jai frowned. “I’m thinking a harmless stalker at the moment.”

  “Stalker?” Sabria repeated, suddenly feeling weak. “Jai, I need to talk to you. Please. I know this doesn’t seem to make any sense, but you have to trust me.”

  “Lady, I don’t know you.”

  His words cut her as effectively as a knife across her skin.

  “Yes, you do. You do. I know you do, Jai.”

  Lack of sleep, stress and sadness warbled her voice. Sabria choked back a sob as tears blurred her vision. A wave of dizziness threw her off balance as she reached out to him and she swayed instead.

  “Whoa,” Jai said, grabbing hold of her by the arms. “Are you okay?”

  Sabria blinked back the tears threatening to fall when he glanced over her head to survey the hallway. She looked dow
n where his hands gripped her arms through her sweater, wishing he were touching her bare flesh. Then maybe he’d remember her. She just needed his kiss.

  “Please, I need some water,” Sabria said, lifting her face once again to Jai’s.

  A look of concern replaced the apprehensive frown marring his handsome features.

  “Of course, come in.”

  Jai led her into his apartment. The entryway of his place opened up to a sparsely decorated living room. The door clicked behind them as Jai walked into the kitchen. She took a few steps forward, taking in the space he’d been living in without her, pleased to find not a single picture of Melanie anywhere.

  “Here you are.” Jai came toward her with another bottle of water in hand.

  Sabria took it from him with a grateful smile, untwisted the cap and took in huge gulps, fully aware of Jai observing her, yet unable to slow down. More than half the water was gone when she drew in a breath.

  Jai lifted one eyebrow and the familiar gesture almost brought tears to Sabria’s eyes again. “Damn. You’re as thirsty as I am.”

  “There’s a reason for that,” Sabria said a little breathlessly.

  “Oh? And what would that be?”

  “Just a few minutes ago, you called me ‘Sabria’, when you only knew me as ‘Bri’. How did you know my full name?”

  Jai frowned. “Lucky guess.”

  Sabria shook her head as he stuffed one hand into his jeans pocket. “I don’t believe you.”

  “I don’t care what you believe—”

  “You learned my full name when you thumbed through your leather-bound journal.”

  Jai squeezed the bottle in his hand and the sound of the plastic collapsing almost made Sabria flinch. “What the hell? How could you know that?”

  “It’s true, isn’t?”

  Time seemed to freeze as Jai stared at her. “This is nuts. You’re nuts.”

  “Is it true or not, Jai?” Anger sharpened her tone. “I know it’s true. I can describe the diary to you, if you’d like.”

  Jai held up both hands. “No. Don’t.”

  “Good, because we’re running out of time.”

  “Out of time? Look, I’m not sure what the fuck is going here”—Jai glanced at his watch—“but you’ve gotta go.”

  “I can’t go. Not yet, Jai. There’s so much to tell you…to explain. It would be so much easier if we just…if we just…”

  “If we just what?” Jai asked when she couldn’t finish the sentence.

  Kissed.

  Her gaze dropped from the storm brewing in his eyes to his lips.

  “Look, my fiancée will be back any minute and there is no way I feel like trying to explain how I bumped into you again.”

  “You’re in grave danger and so is Melanie if you don’t start listening to me, Jai.”

  Jai stared into Sabria’s eyes, mesmerized by the sadness and conviction he saw in the shimmering green depths. As much as he hated to admit it, she didn’t look crazy. A little bedraggled, but not nuts.

  “You’re wearing the same clothes you had on yesterday,” Jai said, noticing the hint of color suffusing Sabria’s cheeks.

  Sabria sighed. “You’re not listening to me.”

  “I am. You said I’m in grave danger. What kind of danger, Sabria?” Jai loved the way her eyes widened when he said her name.

  He heard her sharp intake of breath while he held her steady gaze. The fading shock of finding her in his hallway was nothing compared to the overwhelming need to get closer. Jai ignored the voice of reason and leaned in toward Sabria. There were at least six or seven inches between them, but Jai was certain he could feel the heat of her body through his clothes. His cock hardened and he blamed it on the hungry look on her face as she stared back at him.

  Were those flecks of gold gleaming in those gorgeous green eyes?

  Sabria blinked with a tiny shudder. “I said you and Melanie were in grave danger. I know all about you, Jai. You’re wealthy, but you have no idea where or how you got your money. You don’t have any family. No close friends. No past that you can remember.”

  Sabria’s words hit him like a sledgehammer. He lifted his bottle of water as she watched him and cursed when he discovered it was empty.

  “Yeah, and that overwhelming thirst you have? Not exactly normal. Well, as far as it goes for Homo sapiens. How many bottles of water do you go through a day? Fifteen…twenty?”

  “Thirty,” Jai said faintly, lifting his hand to scratch at his five o’ clock shadow. “You’re good.” He wagged his finger at Sabria, ignoring her confused expression.

  “Excuse me?”

  Jai winked at her. “You are an amazing psychic. Is this the part where you ask for money?”

  “How dare you! I don’t want your money.” Sabria waved her hand and spilled some water from the bottle within her grasp.

  The delicate blush on her cheeks deepened and Jai almost felt bad for his sarcastic tone. He watched her take a sip of water from her bottle, noticing the tremor in her hand when she finished swallowing.

  Frustration set Jai on edge. Nothing was making sense and yet somehow he knew he could trust Sabria. She knew things no one could know and there was no discounting the fact she’d told him about her name written in his journal.

  “I’m not a psychic,” Sabria said quietly, averting her gaze.

  “No?”

  She lifted her chin and something twisted inside Jai’s soul when her extraordinary green eyes met his. “No. I’m your mate.” The golden flecks shimmered again, brighter.

  “What the hell are you talking about and what’s up with your eyes?”

  “I know how crazy all of this must sound, but you and I have been together for thousands of years. I am like you. I am your best friend, your lover…your kindred mate.”

  “Thousands of years?” Jai scoffed. “Okay, now you sound crazy, and I know you’re already aware that I’m engaged to Melanie. She’s about to become my future mate.”

  “No.” The ferocity she packed into that one word reverberated inside Jai’s head. “Melanie could never be your mate.”

  “She’s agreed otherwise. That’s how it works amongst Homo sapiens when you fall in love.”

  “She’s not yours to love.” Tears glistened in Sabria’s eyes. “I am.”

  He was moved by the depth of her emotion and pain. “Sabria, I don’t understand any of this.”

  “Kiss me,” Sabria pleaded, moving closer to him. “Just kiss me and I’m sure you’ll understand.”

  Jai’s gaze dropped from the tumultuous fire in Sabria’s eyes to the tempting, sensuous slant of her full lips. “I can’t.”

  “Please, Jai,” Sabria said, now standing only inches away from him.

  Her request was ludicrous, but what was even crazier was the urgent desire to do as she asked.

  “Kiss me, Jai.”

  The plaintive edge to her voice kicked up his internal temperature. Waves of heat uncoiled within as he reached for Sabria, unable to deny himself the pleasure he knew awaited them both. He grabbed her by the waist before he could further overthink what he wanted and yanked her hard against his body, using more force than he ever would have with Melanie. He wondered if he’d been too rough when Sabria moaned, but then he saw the look of rapture on her face and knew he hadn’t.

  “You need my kiss, Sabria?” Jai asked while winding one hand in her silken tresses. He pulled her hair with just enough tension, exposing the elegant column of her neck as he angled her face upwards. Tear-drenched lashes fluttered as she shuddered, drawing him closer.

  “Yes, I need it. Please.”

  “Shh…” Jai pulled her mouth closer to his. Her beauty and vulnerability made his cock rock hard as he flicked a glance over her heaving chest. He wanted to trace the outline of her full breasts and the nipples he could see through the thin sweater she was wearing. There were probably a hundred reasons he shouldn’t follow through, but at the moment he couldn’t think of a damn one. “You sh
ould never have to beg for a kiss, Sabria.”

  Jai lowered his head and brushed his lips against hers. She wound her arms around his neck as he deepened the kiss, tasting her, drinking her in. Her lips were softer than they looked, warmer and sweeter than he’d dreamt about last night. The coils of heat he’d felt within him unwound further, burned hotter. Every inch of his skin tightened in response to Sabria’s sweet taste. She felt so good in his arms, so incredibly perfect. She slid one hand over his shoulder, down his arm to slip beneath the sleeve of his shirt. Sabria caressed his forearm and he crushed her to him, holding her head in place with a tighter grip in her hair, so he could slake his thirst. He wanted more…needed all of her.

  “Oh my God, Jai!”

  Melanie’s strangled voice brought him back from the brink. He abruptly pulled away from Sabria, who groaned with frustration, to find his fiancée staring at them both, pure horror etched on her face.

  “Melanie—”

  “Jai, how could you kiss her?”

  Sabria slipped something into his jeans pocket as he released his hold on her without replying to Melanie.

  He didn’t have an answer. He also didn’t have any regret about kissing Sabria.

  Chapter Three

  “I’m going to go,” Sabria said, still struggling to regroup from Jai’s kiss.

  Melanie slammed the coffee tray containing two cups of java down on Jai’s dining room table. “Good fucking idea.”

  Sabria understood the other woman’s fury, but she wasn’t sorry. Jai was hers. Melanie just didn’t know that yet. “Time is running out,” Sabria said, moving past Melanie.

  “What the hell is she talking about, Jai?” Melanie asked.

  Sabria stepped out into the hallway just as Jai started talking, but she couldn’t make out what was being said as the door closed behind her. Her entire body still tingled from his kiss and her legs felt wobbly as she made her way out to her car. Once she was inside, she placed her head on the steering wheel.

  Sabria brought her fingers to her lips, still tasting Jai’s fierce kiss. More tears burned her eyes as she lifted her arm, pulled back her sweater to reveal the glowing, intricately designed markings that resembled tattoos. Jai’s kiss had awakened the ancestral blood within her. The markings coursed up from her wrists and ran all over her body. She ran her hand over the raised flesh, tortured by the realization Jai’s markings hadn’t reacted to her touch…to her kiss. She’d rubbed his arm where she knew markings lay and hadn’t felt anything and there had been no telltale glimmering hue that would’ve convinced Jai once and for all she wasn’t crazy.