Chapter 35
CHAPTER
After a couple of hours, we had successfully saved a handful of people and set up camp to let them rest while the medics took care of their wounds.
I had helped Michlael and others with my flames as best as I could, but that wasn’t any guarantee. Michlael had lost a lot of blood, the branch cutting off blood-supply to his arm for a while. It was unclear if it would regain its health… Perhaps he’d lose the entire thing—only time would tell.
Using this much magic exhausted me, I felt dizzy and the smell of blood around camp wasn’t helping in the slightest. I wandered off a little bit, found a small lake close to the camp, as darkness had already begun to claim the skies.
Moonlight snuck out from behind some clouds, mirroring its light beautifully across the lake’s surface.
I cupped up some of the water between my hands and splashed it on my face. It felt refreshing, as if the tension in my body was washed off with it.
“Figured I’d find you here.”
I stiffened. His voice was low, velvet smooth, but carried that unshakable amusement, like he’d been watching me this whole time.
I turned my head slightly, and there he was, Malakai, leaning lazily against a tree, arms crossed, with a wicked grin tugging at his lips. He was the picture of calm, like this was nothing but another game to him.
“You shouldn’t sneak up on people like that,” I muttered, more to cover how my heart jumped than anything else.
“Then stop being so easy to sneak up on.” He pushed off the tree and walked towards me, slow and unhurried, like he had all the time in the world. His eyes gleamed faintly in the moonlight, catching every thought racing through my head.
I swallowed. “About earlier…”
“Mm?” He stopped close enough that I could feel the static in the air between us. “You mean the part where I told you I’d wait for you until the stars burn out?”
Heat flared in my cheeks. “Yes. That.”
He tilted his head, that grin softening enough to show he wasn’t just teasing anymore. “What about it?”
“I don’t understand you.” The words tumbled out before I could stop them. “I don’t understand why you stay, why you care. You could have anyone, someone less… complicated. So why me?”
The grin faded entirely, leaving something sharper, more vulnerable in its place. He took another step closer, I could feel the warmth radiating from him despite the night chill.
“At first?” he said, voice lower now, deliberate. “I hated you.”
I pressed my lips together firmly, but he didn’t look away.
“You were loud, stubborn, reckless. Always so sure you could handle everything yourself.” His mouth twisted faintly, but not unkindly.
“You reminded me too much of myself. And I hated that, hated that you hid your fire as if you were normal, the same way I hid my true nature. You were like a constant reminder that I didn’t belong, both of us pretending we weren’t ashamed of what the world made us. ”
I stared at him, words failing me.
“But then,” he went on, softer now. “You changed. Or maybe you just stopped caring. You started letting me see it. The real you. Even when it hurt, even when it terrified you, and I—” His throat worked, like saying it cost him something. “I couldn’t look away after that, I didn’t want to.”
The world went still. My chest felt too tight, like the air had become too thin to breathe.
“You mean something to me,” he said, quiet but unflinching. “Because you’re the first person who made me want to stop pretending… you chose to save me, despite what I am.”
Something inside me broke open at that.
Before I could talk myself out of it, I grabbed the front of his shirt, shoving him back until his shoulders hit the nearest tree. His brows shot up in surprise, for barely a heartbeat.
And then I kissed him.
He met me halfway, one hand sliding up to cradle the back of my neck, careful but possessive, his other hand at my lower back, forcing me closer, or rather keeping me in place.
The world narrowed to the heat of his mouth, the press of him against me, the way he kissed as though he’d been holding back for far too long.
When I finally broke away, breathless, his forehead rested against mine, his grin softer now, almost boyish.
“You have no idea,” he murmured, “how long I’ve wanted you to do that… Now what, kitten?”
Slowly, he brushed his hand along my wrist, towards my hand as he gently pushed it open, braiding his fingers with mine and muffling the flames that had started to flare. “Stay focused.”
Then he kissed me again, like he was starving—deep and devouring. He spun us around, slamming our joined hands above my head into the tree, his body pinning me against the trunk without once touching me anywhere I ached for him to.
“We shouldn’t be doing this,” I whispered, hesitant.
“Then tell me to stop.” His glowing eyes searched mine, waiting for my decision.
My mind and heart warred with each other as my free hand slid under his shirt, desperate to feel the solid heat of him. His sharp inhale against my lips sent a thrill through me, as he received my answer.
“You drive me insane,” he muttered, his lips brushing along my jaw, his voice turning desperate. “Let me return the favor; I’ll cherish you, even as I ruin you.”
My breath hitched, the heat coiling low in my stomach at his words.
“You’ve already ruined me,” I whispered back, softly.
The next kiss was brutal, intoxicating, his teeth catching my bottom lip before his tongue soothed the sting.
One of his hands slid down, gripping my thigh and hitching it up around his hip, forcing me to balance against him.
The tree bark was rough against my back, but I barely noticed, too lost in the heat sparking everywhere he touched me.
My flames flared again, wild and uncontained this time, the air shimmering with heat. He didn’t shy away, if anything, he pressed closer, like he wanted to drown in fire.
To get burned.
He kissed a trail along my jaw and down my neck until he reached that sweet spot between my neck and collarbone, nibbling against it.
“It’s okay,” I whispered, my arms slithering around his neck, pressing him closer, inviting him to continue.
I felt a slow smile against my skin, before his teeth sank into my skin, earning a gasp from me. The pain was only momentary, as he withdrew his teeth quickly. He groaned in reply, licking against the wound while pressing himself against me, making me fully aware of the effect I was having on him.
Shamelessly, I slid my hand across his skin, slowly trailing down on top of his clothes, until I reached his hardened crotch, curving my fingers along the shape of him, stroking.
He groaned against my ear, as he pulled his head back, his hungry gaze locking on mine, my burning fire reflected in his eyes.
Something dark and hungry flickered in them, and then he moved, scooping me up as though I weighed nothing. I let out a startled sound that turned into a laugh as he carried me towards the lake.
“Malakai… what are you—”
“You’re overheated,” he said with a grin that was entirely too wicked. “I should probably cool you down before you incinerate the entire forest.”
I gasped as the cold water closed around my calves when he waded straight in, still holding me against him. The moonlight painted silver across the rippling surface, reflecting in his red, glowing eyes.
“Put me down,” I protested, but it came out breathless.
“Gladly.”
He let go, and I squealed as I splashed into the lake, the chill shocking against my fever-hot skin. I surfaced and stumbled for balance, just in time for him to stalk closer to me, water lapping around his thighs, his grin all sharp edges and promise.
“You’re infuriating,” I told him, even as my heart hammered with anticipation.
“And you like me that way.” He kept moving towards me, driving me back until my shoulders hit the smooth curve of a half-submerged rock. “Let’s not pretend you don’t.”
The water clung to his shirt, turning it nearly see-through, and I couldn’t tear my eyes away. My pulse skyrocketed as he cornered me, his grin carved from pure mischief.
“You’re staring.” His voice was low, amused. “Do I need to take the rest of my clothes off to make it easier for you?”
Heat flushed up my neck, but I tilted my chin up anyway. “Maybe I should be the one giving orders tonight.”
That earned me a sharp-toothed grin, his fangs flashing in the moonlight.
“Oh?” he drawled, closing the space between us until the water rippled around our legs. “You think you could handle me, kitten?”
“Yes,” I said, bolder than I felt, only to see what he’d do.
He chuckled darkly, the sound sending a shiver straight through me.
“Then by all means,” he said, spreading his hands mockingly, “try taming me, sweetie.”
And I did. Surging up to kiss him, shoving at his chest enough to make him stumble back a step into the deeper water. My fingers tugged at his harness, ripping the buckles open, and flung it backwards. For a moment, he let me lead, let me set the pace, and I felt a rush of triumph.
Right when I thought I had him, he caught my wrists, spinning us around with inhuman ease until I was pressed against the smooth rock that lingered in the lake once again.
“Cute,” he murmured against my lips, his grin wicked. “But you like it better when I’m the one in control.”
I opened my mouth to argue, only to gasp as his hands slid down, gripping my hips hard enough to drag me flush against him.
“See?” His voice was dark velvet, his gaze locked on mine as if daring me to deny it. “You melt the second I touch you.”
“I—” My protest died as he kissed me again, deep and slow, pulling the air from my lungs until I was clinging to him, my fingers digging into his shoulders.
“Mm.” His grin curved against my mouth. “You’re all mine.”