Page 32 of Burning Truth

Severn’s eyes held hers, a warmth spreading through him that he hadn’t felt in a long time. “I like being around, too.”

They stood there for a moment, the air between them charged with unspoken emotions. Addie felt a sense of connection and understanding, a bond that went beyond their roles in this dangerous game.

Her phone tinkled a notification, and Addie stiffened, panic racing through her. Before she could pull away, Severn pulled her to him and wrapped her in a big hug. “Just breathe for a minute. We were having fun, and you don’t need to jump to attention every time you hear that thing.”

Sagging into him, she nodded against his neck. “I know. I’m actually afraid to look.”

He leaned back enough to peer into her eyes. “Then just wait a minute. He sees when you check the message, right? Let’s let him stew a little.”

Snorting, she wrapped her arms around him again. “Sounds fine to me. I’d much rather be doing this.”

She nibbled kisses along the scarred edge of his neck. “Do you feel me kissing you here?”

He snorted. “Well, I feel pressure more than anything right there. Scarring is weird because sometimes the skin is hyper-sensitive. If you’ve burned away the dermis to expose the nerve endings, any kind of touch can be painful. Or the nerve ending can be completely burned away and you don’t feel anything. Most of my chest is extra sensitive. My neck, not so much.”

She drew back. “Why did you have such a huge tattoo put on your chest then, if it hurts so bad?”

“Because I wanted to be able to look at something other than pain.”

Her throat was suddenly tight with compassion, and she wrapped her arms around him again so that he couldn’t see what was in her face. She didn’t pity him, by any means, but her heart ached for what he’d been through, and what he was obviously still struggling with. “I can understand that,” she murmured. “It had to be excruciating.”

“I’m not talking about the physical pain,” he said, and she drew back again.

“What do you mean, then?”

“I didn’t care that I got blown up and burned. I cared that I lost my entire team.”

10

The night kind of fizzled after he told her about losing his team, and the reporter in her jumped up with a list of questions a mile long. Severn seemed to close down, though. His face had slipped into that cold mask and he suddenly felt miles away rather than inches. Addie knew, instinctively, that she was going to have to let him tell her everything in his own time. Questions would only piss him off and make him withdraw further.

Daring to reach out, she’d given him a kiss on his hard mouth, grabbed her phone and headed upstairs to bed.

There was no more cuddle time for them that night.

Incredibly, the instant message hadn’t been from the arsonist. Just a rambling note from another fan. Showering quickly to wash off the grease and smoke smell from the festival, she dried off, pulled on a long t-shirt and headed to bed.

Very deliberately, she turned off her phone before plugging it in. She would make him stew, like Severn said.

The next morningcame far too soon. Addie woke to bright light streaming through her window. She’d spent half the night planning upcoming social media posts, and when she’d fallen asleep, she’d dreamed of Severn, and his touch that set her on fire. Then that had morphed into real fire, and she’d woken several times with her heart racing, thinking her house or her bed were on fire.

Pushing off the heavy blankets, she swung her legs over the edge of the bed and took a deep, cleansing breath, steeling herself as she stared into the reflection in the mirror. She’d decided last night that no matter what, she was going to find this guy. Even if it meant risking her own life.

Addie moved through her morning routine in a purposeful rhythm, mentally affirming to herself that she could face whatever awaited her. Among the chaos, she couldn’t help but feel a flutter of excitement about her growing closeness with Severn—it provided a peculiar mix of optimism despite the looming threat.

She hadn’t seen him yet this morning, though, so it was hard to tell what kind of reception she would receive. When she’d left, he’d been staring out the dark windows to the back yard, seeing memories she didn’t have a right to.

Dressed in her favorite fitted jean shorts and a bold, sleeveless red blouse, she headed into the kitchen to whip up a quick breakfast. Severn was already up, pouring himself a cup of steaming coffee and looking as ruggedly handsome as ever, which didn’t help the fluttering in her stomach. He made her kitchen feel small.

“Morning,” he greeted, a warm smile breaking across his face. “You look ready to take on the world.”

Addie grinned back, though the nerves edged under her excitement. “I’m ready to take out a stalker, that’s for sure.”

So, apparently they were on the ignore-and-go train. He wasn’t going to even acknowledge last night.

That was fine. For now.

In the depths of the early morning, she’d made another decision about her life. She decided to pursue Severn. The man challenged her mind, made her heart race and her body slick with need. That was a combination no other man had ever done for her and she had a feeling, if they let themselves, they could be magical together.

---