Flame and Fury
Merlin’s Legacy Book 1
Lisa Gail Green
© 2017 Lisa Gail Green
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without express permission from the publisher, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law. For permissions contact:
[email protected]
Visit the author’s website at LisaGailGreen.com
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Contents
I. Part One
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
II. Part Two
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
III. Part Three
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Untitled
About the Author
Acknowledgments
Part One
Search and Discovery
Chapter One
Aedan
There was nothing more dangerous to Aedan than a wet dream. He’d set the bed on fire a grand total of thirty-eight times, though most of those were years ago. After the first time, he’d tried staying awake, but it turned out Mountain Dew and Snickers only took you so far, and falling asleep during school was just a different kind of hazardous. So flame retardant pajamas and sheets, four fire extinguishers, and a metal bed-frame was the best Sam and Edy could come up with.
He was a lucky guy, and he knew it. Of course, it was possible that Sam and Edy hadn’t known about his “special talent” when they’d adopted him. But since he was pretty sure that’s what got him abandoned in the first place, they could’ve – and probably should have – ditched him long ago. He tried hard to be the model kid because of it.
Still, regularly waking up to fire alarms blazing at five in the morning could cause major conflict with most people. Sam and Edy though? They took it all in stride. And for that, he was incredibly grateful.
Aedan hoped that being done with high school meant he was done with the dreams, but much to his dismay, they were becoming more and more frequent again in the last couple of months. He knew why. It was because of Maya, the “new” girl who showed up halfway through senior year. Luckily, for the most part, he’d been lucid enough to wake himself before it became too heated. Even so, twice in as many months was a bit much when your neighbors were practically on top of you.
Thank God for summer. Tucson wasn’t exactly ideal in summer, but the heat never bothered Aedan. Besides, he could breathe a lot easier without the pressure of finding creative ways to avoid Maya and everyone else. And college promised to be easier – he could go to class and leave, losing himself in the multitudes. University of Arizona would be a relief.
“Good morning, Aedan.” Edy’s small eyes lit with warmth the moment he stepped into the kitchen. Of course, she thought she knew the worst about him. But some things weren’t meant to be shared. Even with parents like Sam and Edy.
Edy took in his expression, and her plump face fell like she’d been doused with a bucket of cold water. “What happened?”
At least he didn’t have to find the right way to bring it up.
“One of the extinguishers is going to need refilling.” Aedan did his best to ignore the heat rising up the back of his neck since it wasn’t the dangerous kind, slid into his seat at the breakfast bar, and began picking at his eggs and bacon. It was bad enough he’d spontaneously combusted while dreaming about Maya. Having to tell his mother was unbearable. Normal guys could just stuff the sheets in the washer. He had to throw them out. Forget ever being able to live on his own, either.
Baby steps.
“Oh well,” Edy said in that light voice that was so obviously forced it made him cringe. “I didn’t like that bedspread anyway. Dry clean only. Now finish up, you’ll be late.”
“Late?” Aedan was sufficiently distracted to look Edy in the face. “It’s my first day of being an official graduate.”
“You have a job this summer, Aedan.” Edy pulled the oven mitt off her hand and leaned across the counter to face him.
Aedan paused with the fork halfway to his mouth. “Job?”
“Surprise!” Sam slapped him across the back so hard he had to drop the fork to catch himself before flying off the stool. It clattered against the plate before coming to rest on the counter.
“Sam,” Edy said in her scolding tone. “Take it easy. We don’t want Aedan choking to death before he starts.”
“Starts what?” Aedan asked, looking from one to the other. “I don’t remember saying I wanted a summer job.”
“Well, you didn’t. Not in so many words,” Edy said, serving up a heaping plate of eggs and bacon for her husband. “But I couldn’t stand to see you moping around the house for another whole summer. You’ve always been shy, and I blame myself for not pushing you more to make friends.”
This couldn’t be happening. In all his nearly sixteen years with them, Sam and Edy had never once interfered in his personal life. Aedan chugged down the entire glass of OJ in front of him, watching Edy for any sign that she might really be an alien replacement of his mother. But no one could fake the heavenly smell of her cooking that could make his stomach grumble even minutes after he’d finished stuffing his face.
“Now, don’t look at me like that,” Edy said, grabbing the glass, and rummaging in the fridge for the juice to refill it. “You haven’t been the same since… well, since last summer.”
Aedan’s chest grew tight. He balled his hands into fists in his lap to stop the shaking. It was another unspoken rule that they wouldn’t talk about it. What bizarre alternate dimension had he woken up in? Maybe he finally died in one of his fires, and now he was in Hell. That made sense.
“What’s this job?” he whispered.
Edy relaxed at once, her shoulders lowering at least an inch. “You’re going to be tutoring.”
“Excuse me?” Aedan turned to Sam to see if it was some kind of a joke.
“Math,” was all he would say. But Aedan noticed Sam wore the same grin he did whenever he opened his gifts at Christmas. It was brighter than the orange Hawaiian shirt covered in trout that he was currently sporting.
Aedan turned back to Edy. “Who am I supposed to be tutoring?”
“Only one person. I didn’t want to eat up your whole vacation, but a little… interaction might be just what the doctor ordered. Besides, the poor thing has to get good grades in community college if she wants to go to university.” Edy busied herself with washing the frying pan.
“Who?” Aedan pressed.
“Maya Sloan,” Sam said, clearly unable to contain the “good news” a moment longer.
The blood rushed from Aedan’s face, and he felt suddenly dizzy. He gripped the edge of the granite counter to keep from falling off the stool for the second time in the last ten minutes.
“It’s been almost a year since Megan, Aedan. You can’t keep blaming yourself, and you have to move on. Take it from me, you have your whole life ahead of you.” Edy’s voice was gentle as she came over to pat him on the hand.
“So you’re trying to fix me up now?” Aedan choked out. He was trying really hard not to lose his temper. Losing his temper was bad. More than bad, it was dangerous. Any uncontrollable emotion was. Plus, he never yelled at Edy.
“The real thing’s a lot better than setting fire to your pajamas,” said Sam wiggling his bushy brown eyebrows.
Edy pursed her lips and glared before setting her attention back on Aedan. “You’re expected at the library at ten, and I’m sure you want to get some materials together if you’re tutoring Trig.” She winked.
Aedan opened his mouth and then shut it. Sam smacked him on the back again. Definitely Hell, he decided. About time, really. Though he was surprised that Edy’s breakfast was still part of the deal. Looking down at it, he realized he had no more appetite.
Yep. Hell.
Chapter Two
Aedan
Aedan hoped that Maya wouldn’t show. She had to be just as upset about her freedom being usurped as he was. Though for different reasons, he was sure. He spotted her the minute he walked in the door.
He considered turning around and walking right back outside into the heat. But he knew Edy wouldn’t leave it alone. She would be calling Mrs. Sloan later to check on his performance. If Edie was one thing, it was thorough.
So, drawing a deep breath, he hiked his backpack up on his shoulder and walked over to meet her. Maya glanced up as though she sensed his approach. Her catlike eyes seemed to sparkle, but it could have been the sunlight streaming in the window to her left, and otherwise, her expression was unreadable. She tucked her long auburn hair behind one ear and straightened in her chair. Damn, she was hot.
Aedan pulled out the chair next to her and dumped his bag on the table. Maybe if he did a terrible job tutoring, they’d fire him. Maya smiled in a kind of mischievous way, and he did his best not to smile back.
“So, Sparks, you’re going to tutor me, huh?” she said after a minute.
Aedan hated his last name. It was an obnoxious coincidence. “Call me Aedan. Please. And yes, apparently I am.” He unzipped his bag and began pulling out supplies. Paper, pencils, and ruler.
Maya slammed a hand down on the table, making him jump. “I was kind of hoping we could skip the actual working part,” she said when he looked up.
“Skip it?” he repeated.
“Yeah well, everyone says the community college version is way easier, and I’m not really that bad at it. I was just kind of… busy, so I didn’t do a lot of the homework.”
“Then what do you need me for?” Aedan asked.
“I don’t.”
Great news. So why did his heart just sink into his stomach?
“You okay, Sparks?” She picked up a pencil and tapped the table in front of him.
Aedan considered correcting her again. But if he wasn’t actually going to have to hang out with her, what was the point? “Yeah. Just wish I hadn’t wasted my first morning of summer.” No need to be nice either. Not now that it wouldn’t get back to Edy and hurt her feelings.
“Waste?” Her lips stretched into another wicked smile. “What waste? We have a whole hour to do anything other than math.” She grabbed his backpack and started shoving all his stuff back inside.
“Wait a second,” he said. “I thought you said-”
“I said we were going to pretend to be working. What our families don’t know won’t hurt them. And you still get paid. It’s a win-win. We just have to stick together for one hour three times a week.” She shoved his bag back at him, and waited with her hair hanging in her face like she expected him to give her a fist bump.
“Look, Maya, I don’t care about the money. I didn’t really even want the job; it was my mom that set it up. So if you don’t need a tutor-”
“Oh no. No way. You are not ratting me out.” She leaned forward, forcing him back into the chair, his backpack hugged to his chest. “You’re stuck with me, or I’ll make your life miserable. Got it, Sparks?”
Aedan blinked. She was very close, and she smelled like jasmine, which reminded him of Megan’s backyard. His pulse quickened, and his mouth grew very dry. The memory hit him like a steamroller. Her body tangled with his on the porch swing. Her dark hair tickling his face.
“I said, got it, Sparks?” She pressed further into his space, and he could see every bit of green in her eyes. Some dark as a forest in shadow. Some so light it was almost translucent. He cleared his throat and automatically looked down. Big mistake. She was wearing a very low cut white tank, and the tops of her smooth tan breasts were practically in his face. Oh God, it was getting hot. Not good. So not good.
“If I’m not tutoring you, I should go. We don’t actually have to hang out together.” He pushed the chair back, scraping the floor, only then he realized he couldn’t stand up. Or probably shouldn’t if he didn’t want to be completely mortified.
“You’re still here,” she said, propping an elbow on the old brown table. “Don’t tell me you aren’t interested. I’ve seen you watching me, Sparks.”
Aedan decided that Hell was worse than he’d thought. He raised his eyes to the ceiling, and slumped back in the chair, his bag in his lap. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” was the best he could come up with.
She laughed, and it was so loud several other people looked around. Aedan really wanted to melt into the floor. “Look,” he said, and he was impressed with the cool confidence in his voice. “I don’t know you. But so far you’ve ignored my request to call me by my first name, bossed me around, and asked me to lie to both my parents and yours. So sorry, but you could be the hottest girl on the planet, and I wouldn’t be interested in spending three hours a week with you.”
Maya only looked amused. Her eyes danced, and her lips pulled into a devilish grin that made a dimple appear in her cheek. Aedan wondered what it would be like to kiss her. Stop it, he thought. You know it can only end in disaster and death.
The last thought was enough to cool him down. He stood up. His head was pounding. Maya stood too. She was wearing daisy dukes. He averted his eyes, turned, and walked straight toward the parking lot without another word.
“Where are we going?” Maya asked from his side, the minute they’d cleared the sliding doors.
“You’re following me now?” he asked. Unbelievable.
She clasped her hands behind her back and stuck her face in his. “You’re kind of cute up close, Sparks.”
Aedan stopped in the middle of the parking lot. The sun beat down on his back. It was already over 100 degrees, and he’d worn a black t-shirt and long jeans without thinking. He’d been a little preoccupied. This just wasn’t fair. He spent his life trying to avoid exactly this, and yet he’d been too weak to prevent it three times already. Maya was not going to be number four.
“Maya, listen,” he said, taking her by the shoulders. But he never finished the thought because she stood on
tiptoe, smashing her mouth against his.
Aedan froze, overwhelmed by her scent and the feel of her lips, so firm and warm moving against his. Her chest pressed against him as she yanked the backpack from his shoulder, letting it fall to the pavement while she wrapped her arms around his neck. And not five seconds later, he was kissing her back, running his hands along her back.
He was only human, after all.
Chapter Three
Maya
Maya had him right where she wanted him. If he was the one she was searching for, it would be pretty obvious soon enough. If not? Well, she was having a hell of a good time. Honestly, she hoped it wasn’t him. There was something so sweet and innocent about the guy. The Elementals were supposed to be calculating and hardened, trained from birth just like her. She knew they could be really good actors, but her being duped like that would make Aedan Sparks Johnny freaking Depp.
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