“But I haven’t beenwithyou since the train.” Tanner suddenly flips himself over and, as if he’s doing some kind of fancy press-up, positions himself in front of me. His hands are on either side of my legs, his feet balanced precariously on a lower step. “I meant what I said about that dress.” He wiggles his eyebrows at me. “Don’t suppose you brought it back with you?”
“’Fraid not.” I laugh and use my knees to pull him farther up my body. I arch back uncomfortably, trapped between Tanner’s heavy chest and the wooden step behind my back.
“When all of this is over, remind me to take you shopping again.” He plants a row of kisses down my jawline, the contact with his warm mouth making me sigh.
But then a heaviness settles inside me. “Will it be over?” I ask. “Will there be anafterwardsor is this it? Can we actually do this, Tanner? Can we win against Ragnor?” I can’t bring myself to say any more. Nico might be able to speak the devil’s name, but it burns like hot coals in my mouth.
Tanner stiffens against me, but not in an erotic way. When he meets my eyes, his shoulders drop and he moves back to where he was before, sitting next to me instead of on top of me. “The prophecy says we can.” He cocks his head in my direction. “We have to believe that.”
I nod slowly. I want to believe it. Before we visited Kole’s commune, I did believe it. But after the vision that caused Kole to black out, and whatever else he saw that he can’t share with us, I’m not so certain anymore. I’m not so certain that my destiny is to triumph over evil.
What if my destiny is to lose?
36
SAM
The others are washing up—a strangely normal activity considering what we’ve just been through—when I see Nova and Luther at the end of the jetty. They disappeared sometime after we finished eating, and curiosity made me follow.
He’s holding out his hands. Flames are in them. She tips her head back as he traces her silhouette with his fire barely a whisker away from her pale skin.
A knot tightens in my chest. Darkness clouds my vision. Sprinting down the steps, I hurtle toward them and grab him by the shoulders. He’s bigger than me, but I can take him.
When I throw him to the ground, he looks up, startled, but doesn’t fight back.
Nova tugs my arm. “Sam? What are you doing?”
I’m shaking. I’ve been in the fire playroom inSpineenough times to know what some fire mages find sexy. Scarred flesh. The smell of burning. “Are you alright?” I pull her in front of me, examine her arms, study her face.
“I’m fine,” she says, easing away from me and helping Luther up from the floor. “We were just… playing.”
“It’s dangerous.” I fix my eyes on hers. “He could hurt you—even if he doesn’t mean to.”
“He can’t hurt me.” Nova shakes her head. “It’s hard to explain.”
“Show him.” Luther is behind Nova, scowling at me. He blinks the flames back into his hands, and she closes her eyes as he begins to move them close to her. It takes every ounce of willpower inside me not to wrench her away from him, but then I realize what’s happening; the flames don’t touch her. As if an invisible forcefield surrounds her, they curve backward, away from her skin.
Luther clenches his fists, and the fire disappears.
“I still don’t like it,” I tell her.
“Then don’t watch.” Luther cocks an eyebrow at me, but Nova moves between us.
“I don’t want him to watch,” she says softly, staring up into Luther’s face.
Luther’s lips twitch into a smile, then he looks me up and down. “Whatever you say, Little Star. Just tell us where you want us.”
Nova bites her lower lip for a moment, studying the two of us as though she’s genuinely running through different scenarios in her head.
“Undress me,” she says, positioning herself between us.
Luther doesn’t hesitate, he pulls her sweater up over her head then crouches down and peels her jeans over her voluptuous thighs.
Behind her, still fizzing with annoyance at Luther, I try to focus only on Nova, which is hard because his hands are all over her and watching his mouth land on her stomach makes my dick twitch uncomfortably.
While he swirls his fierce tongue past her belly button and up over her sides, I unhook her bra and replace it with my hands, holding her breasts, rubbing my thumbs over her nipples.
Instantly, I’m hard. Noticing, she presses her ass against my groin. Then she sinks to her knees and gives Luther’s jeans a little tug. He kneels in front of her, and she fumbles with his buttons. When they’re open, as she nips his lower lip with her teeth, she rubs the palm of her hand over the imprint of his erection. It’s still hidden inside his black boxers, so I wait with anticipation for her to tug it free.