Page 1 of Fate and Flame
Chapter One
Ara
“Ihope you killed her.”
“You don’t mean that,” I told Fenlas as we stood together, hand in hand, staring down the backside of The Mists. Thick gray clouds swirled beyond the invisible barrier, beckoning us forward. “Nealla bound me to keep me safe. She made sure our mating bond couldn’t be severed. She’s fucking twisted, but she’s good. In her own way.”
“Say that part again.” He stared into the depths of my eyes as he brushed a strand of my auburn hair from my face. “Say it a hundred times.” The deep timbre of his voice felt like home.
I wrapped my arms around him. “Our mating bond wasn’t severed.”
“It wouldn’t matter if it was.” He pressed a tender kiss to one cheek and then the other. “It wouldn’t change the way I feel.” His velvet lips brushed my neck, leaving a trace of that icy fire that sat within his soul. Our soul. “I would still choose you. I would follow you to the depths of hell, if only to live eternity in torment, just to be with you.”
I dug my fingers into his thick black hair, tilted my head back, and tried to restrain the pressure of my endless magic as I let him memorize every damn inch of me. I didn’t deserve him—his utter devotion, his fearless nature, or his very deliberate hands. I parted my lips as he pulled my face to his. Sliding my knuckles down the rough stubble along his jaw, I brushed my thumb over his lips, and smiled.
He closed his eyes and took a deep, ragged breath. I felt the seductive possession within him, right down our bond. He meant to claim me. Purely instinctual, the feral beast had yet to mark his mate, so his hard body pressed against me. Still, he took his time and moved as gracefully as a feline hunting its prey.
Again, he kissed my cheeks, my nose, the tips of my long ears, and finally, he held the sides of my face and pulled my lips to his. It wasn’t our first kiss, but it absolutely was. It was the kiss that sealed the gap between my past and his future. I would forever be his, and the deep rumble within his chest as his tongue stroked mine was brutal and greedy.
One careful hand, now tangled in my hair, held me while the other roamed freely, right down my rigid spine. He squeezed my ass and I moaned. If he was a beast, then so was I. All fae were when it came to two things: sex and food.
“Mine.” Fen’s voice was husky against my fevered lips as he continued to meld us into one.
“Yours.” The word left my lips like a promise.
He pulled away, resting his forehead against my own.
The abrupt absence of his muscled body left an ache within me.
“Your eyes . . .” He stared, fixated as he spoke. “They’re silver.”
“We’re going to have to work on your pickup lines, Prince.”
He shook his head. “No. They’ve changed. They aren’t gray anymore.” He took another step away, studying me. “What happened?”
“Nealla happened. She unbound my power and my secret. Everything’s different now.”
He turned his back and hung his head. Not from sorrow, but rage. His broad shoulders rose and fell with each measured breath as he tried carefully to calm himself, to contain that protective nature. “The world can hunt you now,” he whispered.
I stepped behind him and brought my arms around his waist, laying my head on his back. “They could try.”
“We need to get home as fast as possible. You aren’t safe anywhere.” He balled his fists and released them several times.
“Look at me, Fen.” I could feel his hesitation, but eventually, he turned. I saw a shadow of the angry prince from our first meeting. Fen’s desire to protect me always manifested in rage I hadn’t understood before, but now I did. “I’ve trained my entire life. Every single thing my parents, all four of them, did for me was for this moment.”
A bated breath lingered between us as he fought with his self-control. “Together, then?” He forced a smile, though I wasn’t sure if it was for my sake or his own.
“Together.” I kissed him and there was nothing gentle about it. After several minutes, he pulled away, and once again, we turned to face The Mists.
“Do you think you can clear some of it again?”
A nervous laugh escaped. “Yes, but you might want to stand back.”
“I’m not afraid of you, Ara.” He grabbed my hand and squeezed.
“I’m afraid of me,” I whispered.
“Trust yourself. Think about what you want to do and infuse your magic into that desire. Do you know what your core magic is? Is it fire?”
