Page 54 of Blaze

“No!” My voice breaks, and I reach out for him, not caring if he’s in demon form. If being burned is the price of loving Blaze, I’ll pay it. Gladly. “Don’t leave me.”

“I can get Syd—”

Somewhere I find the ability to sit up, fighting back the dizziness. Then I see him. My glorious, gorgeous demon.

He’s made of flames and lava and skin stretched over bone. He looks like the end of the world. And I love him.

I fling myself towards him, uncoordinated and weak. I won’t make it, but just like I knew he would, Blaze surges forward and catches me.

“Kennedy!” Fear saturates his voice. “I’ll hurt you.”

I shake my head. “Never, Blaze,” I tell him. “You can never hurt me. I love you too much.”

I’m right. His flames don’t burn me. They lick and dance across my skin, soothing my aches, and comfort sinks into my bones. His flames are the peace of a warm fire on a winter night, the comfort of a loving embrace, the healing of love.

He looks down at me, his flaming eyes cutting through my blurry vision. He cups the side of my face, his hand—larger than its usual large—is big enough that my entire head fits in his palm.

“I love you, Kennedy,” he tells me. The flames slowly retreat into his skin. “I think I loved you the moment I first saw you glaring at me.”

I grin, probably looking foolish and not even caring. I cover his hand with mine, turning to press a kiss into his palm. “I want you to have my soul, Blaze. My heart is yours, forever, and I want to give you my soul, too. So we can have forever.”

Blaze drops his forehead against mine, a shudder racking his body. “Forever,” he gasps out and inhales.

My chest bubbles, like I’m full of carbonation, and I’ve just been shaken like crazy. Blaze lowers his lips, so close to kissing me. I want to pull away, embarrassed at the strange sensation like I’m going to burp or something. He breathes in again, and the bubbles seem to ease from me. A soft blue light glows enough that I try to look at my own mouth.

Blaze breathes it in. His eyes fly open, the blue light shining through the black of now-human pupils. “Forever, my love. My mate.”

He crushes his lips to mine. I submit to him, feeling him inside of me. Feeling myself inside of him.

I break the kiss. “Did we just bond?” I gasp with wonder against his lips.

“Yes,” he answers, nipping at my lips before grinning.

I want to laugh. Then I freeze. “Oh, shit, don’t tell Lacy and Cinder.”

Blaze throws his head back and laughs. It’s the most beautiful sound in the world.

He shifts, sliding an arm under my knees and the other around my back. He stands, cradling me to his chest, his warm eyes meeting mine.

“Let’s go home.”

I sigh and rest my head against his chest. “Home,” I murmur. “I like the sound of that.”

EPILOGUE

KENNEDY

One Month Later

The Styx Bar looks incredibly romantic, despite being what most would call a dive bar. But the sight has me smiling.

Lacy looks adorable in the flowy, white dress that reminds me of a fairy from children’s stories. In fact, she looks so adorable, she even manages to make Cinder look cute as she stares dreamily up into his eyes as they sway to a cover of “A Thousand Years.”

Adorable isn’t the word one would usually associate with the brooding, scarred demon, but tonight it fits. A hungry wail splits the air, louder than the gentle crooning of the cover artist and the buzzing conversation of the packed bar. Lacy and Cinder’s eyes go right to Sydney, who’s frowning while holding the infant out towards them as she crosses the dance floor.

Sydney is absolutely not a baby person.

Lacy had gone into labor early, though the shifter midwife assured the new parents that their new son was fully developed. It seems Lacy actually delivered right on time, not that the easy delivery had calmed Cinder down at all that day.

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