Page 32 of Flame it Up

MAZIE

The first thing Mazie thought about when she woke up was Pyrus. The feel of his mouth and body pressing against hers and the taste of his lips. She hadn’t ever been with anyone who made her feel that way so quickly. She felt like she wanted to know every inch of him and that she would let him know every inch of her.

She found herself sweating as she sat up in the tent, and it wasn’t just from the heat. “Jeez,” she whispered. Mazie quickly pushed those naughty thoughts out of her mind, knowing she had an important day ahead of her.

It was the last day that the corps team would be at the sanctuary. They would then disband and go their separate ways. It was a pattern that Mazie was used to. The goodbyes were always difficult because she’d made friends along the way. But inevitably, they’d lose touch and move on with their lives.

Mazie wasn’t great at moving on. She held onto people, often without them knowing and often without her ever having informed them of how much she’d ached to get close to them. She had lost out on close relationships with both men and women because of the pattern, but it was something she had to work out in her mind.

She tried to let go of that sorrowful feeling that came over her on the last day at the places she’d volunteered. She showered, once again trying to avoid thoughts about Pyrus being in the shower with her, his hands moving tenderly over her naked body.

It was confusing, to say the least, to feel both sad about leaving potential friends and meaningful work while also being aroused by the thought of some strange dragon-man moving his fingers in her most intimate spots.

She huffed out a breath and turned the shower off, forcing herself to face the present moment. She would have lots of time for brooding later.

Mazie placed her things into the corps’ jeep they would take back to the sanctuary and then headed to breakfast with the group. She went to a table and sat with Emilia, as she always did, along with a few other friends she had garnered over the months of working together.

“Aren’t you riveted?” Emilia said, sliding eggs into her mouth.

Mazie smiled, taking a long sip of her coffee. “Not exactly the word I would use,” she muttered.

“I just can’t wait to take a hot shower and sleep in a real bed,” Emilia said, emphasizing the wordbed. “I think I might take a mini-vacation and just fucking sleep in an air-conditioned hotel for a week. And eat. That’s it.”

Mazie sighed, trying to conceal her resignation. Before Emilia could take notice of it, she nodded at something behind Mazie.

“I think someone is trying to get your attention,” Emilia said with a wink.

Mazie raised an eyebrow, then turned.

Standing there and towering over everyone like the Empire State Building was Pyrus. He was dashingly handsome, even in a sea of sweat and dirt that the corps had all grown used to. The sight of him and his golden eyes shining in the morning light made Mazie feel like grunting.

He lifted a hand and gave her a little wave.

“Lord,” Emilia said. “You better climb that like a tree, or I will.”

Mazie snorted with laughter, then lightly pushed at her friend’s shoulder. It was that kind of connection and camaraderie she was going to miss. She hadn’t attained it with many people in her life, and she longed for it, especially with women.

“Don’t drink my coffee,” Mazie said, rising from her seat.

She felt her hands starting to shake as she walked over to Pyrus. She was having difficulty raising her eyes to meet his. So she folded her arms over her chest and did her best to look him in the eye without fumbling her words.

“Hi,” she managed to say.

His smile was glistening and made her knees weak. “Good morning,” he said. “Did you get to sleep okay last night?”

The truth was that she was close to touching herself the night before but felt it was a bit awkward to do in the tent. So she held back, perhaps, making herself hold out for a bit more.

“It was fine, thank you,” she said, grinning up at him. “I didn’t think I’d see you here this morning.”

“I wanted to see if you could hang out today?” he asked, voice drifting away a bit in the wind.

Mazie would have loved that, but it was their last day. She wasn’t going to bow out of that. She shook her head while she spoke. “I can’t right now, unfortunately. It’s the group's last day at the sanctuary,” Mazie said. “Maybe later?”

Mazie had subconsciously moved a hand up her own neck and found a strand of hair that had come loose from her bun. She was twirling it like some sixteen-year-old smitten with the high school quarterback.

She immediately shot her hand back to her chest, hoping Pyrus hadn’t noticed.

“Why don’t I come with you?” he said softly. “I don’t mind helping out.”

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