Chapter 6 Blaze
Blaze
Iforgot how cold it is outside.
“Damn that feels good,” Juniper says as she hangs her head back and closes her eyes.
“You like the cold?” I ask.
“I love the cold.” She takes a seat at the picnic table furthest away from the door. “It makes things so much more bearable than the humidity in the summer.”
I straddle the bench at her side, and she bends her knee in the seat, tucking her foot under her opposite thigh so she’s facing me. She slides the basket of fries my way, and I take one without looking away from her.
“Has anyone ever told you that your eyes are really intense?” she asks.
“Only you.”
She returns the smile as she takes her phone from her pocket and begins to tap on the screen, taking her time chewing on some fries. “I have to set a couple of timers, otherwise I’ll be out here all night. I have time-blindness.”
“What’s that?” I ask, taking another fry.
“It’s when you lose track of time. When you’re sure it’s only been five minutes, but it’s been an hour, and now you’re late. It usually gets me in trouble when I start thinking I have time to do a project that should take two hours, and I try to get it done in fifteen minutes,” she explains.
“But does it get done in fifteen minutes?” I ask.
“Sometimes. Not usually. A lot of the time, I end up cancelling or forgetting whatever I was supposed to do instead.”
“That sounds like an issue,” I say.
She tears apart the chocolate croissant and nods. “It really is. Hence the timers.”
“Because you think you’re going to lose track of time with me?”
She glances sideways, her gaze dragging over me so intensely that my mouth dries. “Definitely.” She plops a bite of pastry into her mouth, and her face contorts into one of satisfaction. “Damn, that’s good,” she says happily. “Thank you. I was really craving this this morning.”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t here earlier,” I tell her.
“No, it’s amazing. Definitely needed now. The rest of the night is going to include every regular, including the ones who will likely look at some of the tourists and tell them to get out of their seats.”
“People will do that?”
“Oh, yeah. Some of them are really territorial. We had two men who got mad at us last year when we sponsored the Rumpus parade. Said we shouldn’t advertise because it meant there would be more people in there.”
“Isn’t that kind of the point?” I ask.
“That’s what we explained,” she says with a shrug. “Is this your first time in town for the festival?”
No.
“I’m usually here a few weeks every winter. Which is concerning,” I reply.
“Why’s that?”
“Because I don’t understand how I’ve been coming here all these years and never met you.”
“That does seem like an issue,” she teases me. “What do you usually do when you’re here?”
Toy with people.
Cause mischief and try to keep my brother in line—a full-time job, really.
“Last year, I painted the mural at the lighthouse. They let me stay on the grounds in exchange,” I decide to tell her.
“That was you?” she asks, brows raised. “The mural is beautiful.”
“It was a nice gig. I liked living in the lighthouse. The view was really amazing to wake up to.”
“Where are you staying this year?”
“Ah… it’s a little bungalow down on Third. Not far. I’m usually on the other side of the island. Maybe that’s why we haven’t crossed paths.”
“Shame,” she says, smiling. “Seems like a lot of time we have to make up for.”
“Seems like.” The corner of my lips lift as I watch her take another bite of croissant.
“What do you do when you’re not on the island?” she asks.
Live in another realm.
Prepare for the winter. Draw up plans and strike deals with the other elemental demons, demigods, and nature sprites.
Dodge our mother and her punishments.
“Traveling, mostly,” I say.
“Anywhere in particular? Or do you just… wander wherever the road takes you?”
I smile wider. “The latter.”
“Care to elaborate, or do you do something so terrible for a living that you don’t want to tell me?”
The delightful tease on her face almost has me wanting to tell her who I really am just to see the look on her face.
“It’s better you don’t know,” I tell her.
Because you’d run.
You already don’t believe in magic. I’d never see you again if you knew.
At least not yet.
Juniper deliberately chews on a fry for a few long seconds, staring at me as if she’s trying to figure me out. “Fine. That’s acceptable. For now. Later, you’re going to let me guess, and you have to tell me if I get it right.”
A quiet huff leaves me. “Okay.”
Juniper grins wide and pushes the basket in my direction so I can have the last fry. I take it, and as I’m chewing, she gathers up all of the trash and moves it to the end of the table.
“So… did you decide?” I ask.
“On what?”
“Where you want to go on our date.”
“Ah…” There’s a nervous smile on her lips as if she can’t contain her giddiness. It’s really fucking adorable, and I take the opportunity to scoot closer to her.
“You’re hesitating.” My fingers graze her elbow, making her flinch.
“I…” She shakes her head and finally looks at me, hand landing on my thigh when she turns toward me. “Sorry, I’m just still wrapping my head around the fact that you’re interested in me.”
“Juniper, I haven’t stopped thinking about you. Since I walked into Hudson’s yesterday, I can’t bring myself to think of anything else,” I admit.
“That seems like a real issue,” she taunts.
“It really is,” I say, chuckling.
She smiles softly and considers me for a beat, lip drawing licentiously behind her teeth. “What’s the solution for that?”
“I don’t want a solution.” I reach out and push away the curl lying on her cheek, fingertips brushing against the freckles on her skin. “I want…”
My gaze flickers to her lips. That little pout, the dilation in her eyes…
“How long do we have before you have to go back?” I ask.
Her eyes do a little flutter, chest rising. “Sooner than I want to.”
The alarm on her phone goes off, and she sighs her head back, groaning.
“Dammit,” she curses under her breath. “Dammit, dammit, dammit.”
She reaches for her trash and stands. A reluctant exhale leaves me watching her move. I’m not ready for her to go back, and I don’t think she wants to go either.
The moment the trash is in the bin nearby, she turns toward me again. “I have to go inside,” she says, her eyes sad.
I reach for her hand and bring her back to me, heart dancing at the touch of her hand in mine. Juniper’s chest rises and stills as if she’s holding her breath. Our fingers entwine, and as she stares down at me, I think I see eternity in her eyes.
My legs move. I’m standing, and when we’re inches apart, I pull her closer and sit her hands on my chest.
“I just want you,” I whisper.
“I want you, too,” she breathes.
Her lips part, eyes closing, and I take a moment to appreciate that look on her face before enclosing the space between us.
And when our lips meet, I am melted entirely.
Dammit. This…
My knees weaken, chest sinking like it’s made of melting ice.
My hand sinks against her neck, fingers entwining in her hair, and I pull her closer by her waist, savoring the taste of her soft lips against mine.
She wraps her arms around my neck when our kiss deepens, lips parting and tongues touching.
Intensifying with every second as if we’re afraid if we pull apart, the other will disappear.
I’m unable to part from this. Forget any sorcery I’ve ever done. She’s the fucking dark magic I’ve chased my whole existence.
I feel her body rolling against mine with every twist of our tongues, every lick and taste and bite. Work? Forgotten. The cold? Not anymore. The longer we go, the more frantic I am. I can’t control it. I want all of her. I need her. I need to crawl inside her and bury myself beneath her skin.
Is that… Gods, am I making it snow?
Fuck.
I know I’m gone now.
I feel flakes melt on my cheek, my neck.
Stop making it snow.
Juniper pulls back suddenly and looks up at the sky, frowning. “Is it raining?” She touches her cheek and swipes away a wet droplet. “That’s weird.”
“Yeah. Weird,” I manage.
I can’t stop staring at her. Honestly, it’s a good thing she pulled away. If I’d lost any more of myself, I’d have turned the entire alley into a blizzard.
Her darkly painted lips are pink and bruised around the still-perfect edges, and it’s fucking magnificent. The Christmas lights hanging up around us have her eyes practically sparkling, her fair skin glowing.
I press my thumb to her bottom lip, prompting her to look up at me once more. “What time does your shift end?” I ask.
“Midnight,” she replies.
Five more fucking hours.
My gaze darts to her mouth again. “I don’t know if I can wait that long to have you alone again.”
A smirk quirks her lips upward. “Tell me why you want me alone again.”
“Because your lips aren’t the only part of you I’m desperate to taste.”
She releases a jagged breath and leans in again. “I want to taste you, too.”
A long “Fuck,” leaves me when I sink my forehead onto hers. She grips the front of my shirt and pulls, nails dragging along my chest. The longer we stand here like this, the more I want to pick her up and fuck her across this picnic table.
My hand threads behind her neck and into her hair, tugging it at the base of her skull as I hold myself back from kissing her again.
“Harder,” she whispers.
“How hard?” I ask.
“Make it hurt.”
Fucking glorious.
I don’t need to touch her to know just how wet she is. I can smell her weeping pussy in the air, and I’m already salivating.
I stretch my fingers up beneath her hat.
The tips of my nails scratch her skin, and watching her eyes close makes me wish I could reveal part of my true self to her already.
I tug her head back and incline my own, breath skimming across her throat.
If she could see my mouth now, my teeth daring to elongate just to leave a scratch…
Shit. Her racing pulse is apparent, and my own dances in response.
I press my lips to her skin, and each kiss up her throat makes her grip my shirt tighter.
If this is the reaction she’s giving me for a few neck kisses, I can’t fucking wait to see her undone later.
She straightens, and I loosen my grasp in her hair. The tension around us has the air steaming. I wrap my arms around her waist and pull her hips flush to mine just so she can feel the state I’m in.
“Oh,” I hear her gasp.
“What happens if you don’t go back?” I rasp.
“I get fired. Which won’t work because even though you’re really hot and I might lose my mind in the next few hours thinking about what you’re going to do to me later, I also have a mortgage to pay.”
The realness makes me scoff. “Does this mean you want me to stay?”
“If you go anywhere after teasing me like this, I’ll hunt you down.”
My head tilts, eyes drifting to her lips again. “Teasing…” I move my left hand down her hip, across her thigh, and beneath her skirt. My digits skim her stocking-covered panties, making me curse under my breath at her warmth. She sucks in a breath, legs tightening around my hand.
“Promise me you’ll clench those beautiful thighs like that on my face later,” I say, lips brushing hers.
“Promise,” she breathes as her eyes close. “If you keep doing that, I’m going to come now.”
It’s a challenge, though I don’t know if I want her going back into this bar satisfied. I want her pulsating when she thinks about me. I want every time she looks my way, she forgets her own name.
My pressure against her pussy intensifies as I move my fingers. She shifts her hips against me, a quiet groan leaving her. I can already feel her wet spot against her panties. Fuck.
And just when I think she’s almost there, I stop.
Her eyes fly open. “I… You’re not…”
A smile lifts my mouth before I lean in to gently kiss her cheek. “I’ll finish you when your shift ends.”