Page 18 of Blazing Reactions

Levi made a strategic retreat, though Talon caught his muttered “Eight centuries of control undone by one scientist” before the door closed.

“Did you sleep?” Talon moved closer, drawn by the mix of lightning and jasmine that was uniquely her.

“Some. When my dragon wasn’t listing all the reasons we should break into your penthouse.” She flushed slightly. “I didn’t say that out loud.”

“You did.” His own dragon rumbled in satisfaction. “My dragon had similar suggestions.”

The air between them crackled with more than just her electrical energy. Talon fought the urge to close the remaining distance, to show her exactly how many times he’d imagined her in his office over the past six months.

“We should...” Asher swallowed hard as his scent wrapped around her. “Training. We should focus on training. And control. And not how good you look in that suit.”

“The suit is tactical,” Talon said, echoing their conversation from yesterday. His control slipped further as she bit her lip to hide a smile.

“Like how you conveniently had meetings near my lab? Very tactical CEO behavior.” Her eyes sparked with mischief even as static crackled in her hair. “Though not as tactical as how you’d loosen your tie whenever I proved your projections wrong.”

His dragon preened at her attention. “You noticed that?”

“I noticed everything.” She repeated his words from yesterday and took a step closer, then caught herself. “Which I probably shouldn’t admit to my boss. Even if he is my magically destined mate who smells like my favorite storm.”

The last part slipped out unbidden, making her cheeks flush. Her mix of embarrassment and attraction—along with a deeper warmth made his dragon strain toward her.

“We should train,” Talon managed, though moving away from her took every ounce of his centuries-old control.

“Right. Training.” Asher nodded quickly, sparks literally flying from her hair. “Very important. Much more important than how you’re looking at me right now.”

The training arena hummed with protective wards—all recently reinforced after yesterday’s electrical incidents. Talon positioned himself behind her, ostensibly to guide her movements. His dragon rumbled in satisfaction at their proximity.

“Focus on your breathing,” he instructed, voice rough. “Control starts with?—”

“With not getting distracted by how warm you are?” She tilted her head back to look at him. “Because that seems like a design flaw in this training setup.”

Before he could respond, Mallory entered with a stack of ancient texts. “The council called an emergency meeting in our boardroom,” she said apologetically. “And Dimitri’s forces are moving again.”

EIGHTEEN

Talon felt Asher’s immediate shift from playful to focused. Power crackled around her hands as her dragon responded to the threat.

“Let’s go,” she demanded, all traces of flirtation gone. The sudden intensity in her eyes made his dragon surge with pride.

The boardroom’s massive screens displayed surveillance feeds and energy signatures. Levi stood at attention, carefully not looking at where Lori was dismantling their security protocols while improving them.

“His patterns have changed,” Eldric noted, studying the data. “He’s not just watching anymore.”

“He’s testing our responses,” Asher said suddenly. Static danced between her fingers as she approached the displays. “Look at the intervals. He’s probing for weaknesses.”

Talon moved to stand beside her, close enough to feel the energy radiating from her skin. “You see something.”

“I see...” She bit her lip in concentration, the gesture nearly derailing his thoughts. “I see someone who wants attention more than victory. These attacks aren’t strategic—they’re performative. Like he’s trying to prove something.”

“He’s always been theatrical,” Harlynn confirmed, though her usual humor was absent. “Even as a child, everything had to be a production.”

“Because attention meant belonging,” Mom said softly. “We tried so hard to show him he already belonged...”

Asher’s hand found Talon’s instinctively. He felt her genuine empathy for his family’s pain mixed with fierce protectiveness. His dragon practically purred at her desire to defend their clan.

“The northern wing of our building is the most vulnerable,” Levi reported, managing to sound professional despite Lori’s presence at the security console. “Our wards there are?—”

“Outdated,” Lori cut in, fingers tapping on her tablet. “But nothing we can’t fix. Especially if we combine them with Asher’s electrical abilities.”

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