Page 212 of The Shadow Wand

His tone is so unexpectedly warm, a rush of affection washes over me. I glance appreciatively at him, drawn to the sight of his lean, rune-marked chest in the garnet moonlight, the red glinting off his skin’s deep-green glimmer. A slim, silvery scar from the scorpio attack transverses his chest and shoulder.

He threw off his tunic during this night’s vigorous sparring, much of it a demonstration in how to deflect a physical attack that required quite a few close holds.

Heat simmers along my lines, hot as a brazier, as I take in his handsome form and consider how our nearness affected the two of us as we grappled with each other. Lukas’s fire escaped his tight hold a number of times this evening, his lines heated to a scald by the time we were done.

Feeling brazen, I resheathe my blade and pivot to face him fully, then send out a hot, looping tendril of flame to tease his lines and draw his attention away from the bats.

Lukas’s fire gives a hard flare as his eyes flick toward me, a question in them.

My fierce affinity draw to him rears hotter, overtaking all caution. Because I miss him. Desperately, in this moment. Touching him, being close to him—it’s the only place my power feels free, loosened from the bonds of the trees. And I miss the way he sends fire through his kiss. Through his touch...

My fire pulses toward Lukas, unrestrained, as I reach up and trace a finger down his chest. Across the scar he got protecting me. Then I slide my hand up and over the hard musculature of his taut shoulder, quickly growing dazed with both heat and want.

I meet his eyes and a current of his power ripples through me.

Lukas’s green gaze has gone dark as midnight, feral desire now in it.

Emboldened, I slide my hand up his neck and thread my fingers through his thick black hair. Then I bunch it in my fist.

I want him. Beyond all reason or caution. I want him.

Reckless desire sweeps through me as I pull Lukas toward me and into a deep kiss.

I can feel the curve of his mouth, his lips briefly tightening with amusement that’s soon whisked away by the force of my invisible fire as I blast it into him in a rush, wave after wave of fire, and I don’t stop. I keep filling him with a blazing stream of it, wanting to consume us both as his own fire mounts, his powerful flames spiraling around my sudden inferno.

And then Lukas’s hands are around my wrists, pushing me firmly away as his fire whips toward me with searing force and my own fire surges relentlessly toward him.

“Stop,” he says, all command as he breathes hard, his eyes glazed with passion. “We’ve no Sanjire root.”

My power rushes harder toward him, feeding the flames and whipping them into a frenzy. “I wish we had Sanjire root,” I say, frustrated hunger in the words. I want him so badly that I’m almost ready to be completely reckless.

“If we had Sanjire root,” Lukas says, his eyes burning with desire, “I’d take you right here. Against that wall.”

I smirk at this. “Maybe I’d take you first.”

Lukas’s feral look takes a turn for the darkly amused. He reaches up and brushes a finger along the side of my breast, trailing invisible flame. “Once you gain control over your lines,” he says, his voice deep and velvet smooth, “I’ll be completely at your mercy.”

My smile inches higher. “That’s how I’ll begin my Black Witch reign over both Realms, then. By having you do my bidding.”

Lukas’s answering look of humor drops away as if he’s been suddenly overwhelmed by emotion, his fire raging fitfully now. “We can’t do this,” he says, his tone flinty. “I need to be hard on you and training you like a soldier, not flirting with you.” The harsh edge of his tone softens slightly. “I need to keep some semblance of distance from you.”

I scowl in frustration, all of my fire straining toward him, desperate for release. “Am I truly in the military now?”

The edge of his mouth twitches up. “You’ve been drafted.”

“Really? Into what army?”

Lukas’s even stare doesn’t waver.“Mine.”

I step back slightly from him and take a deep, ragged breath, eyeing him and his handsome form with open want. “What happens when we get to Noi lands, Lukas?” I ask, frustration making my tone harsh. I motion between us. “What happens with us?”

Lukas’s smile is subtle as his eyes flick over me. “We’ll obtain a large supply of Sanjire root.”

“You’re assuming the Noi don’t kill you as soon as you step foot over their border.”

Lukas gives a short laugh. “They won’t kill me. I have information about the Gardnerian military that they sorely need. And I’m powerful. The Vu Trin aren’t fools. They’ll want to make good use of my power.You, on the other hand, they’ll want to kill. You’ll need to remain glamoured for a bit.”

“So, we won’t be living together, I take it.”

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