But it was as fleeting as it was irresistible. As if it had never existed, the fire fizzled out, leaving me with the hollow ache of a failed connection.
The king stepped closer, close enough I could smell his aftershave. ‘You almost had it. Don’t stop now. Feel me, connect to me. We can do this together.’
River let his tornado of flames engulf us like never before, scorching everything in its wake but us. As I reluctantly tookhis outstretched hand, the energy assaulted my every sense, stretching far into the depths of who I was.
No longer fae, witch, nor halfling, I became fire itself. The power grid and life force of the land surged through me like the roots of an ancient tree, swimming through my nervous system, carving me anew, inch by inch.
I never noticed when he let go. Never felt the moment his fire receded. And yet, I stood, still engulfed in it.
The dam on my fire dissolved without a trace, and the sensual awakening drowned everything else until suddenly, I had access to the pure, undiluted rage of a vortex that was mine alone.
He stood before me, mesmerised. Pride marked his face as his eyes, hypnotised and reverent, tracked the direction and patterns of my flame.
Getting closer, our fires responded, eager as ever. They thrashed against each other, battling for dominance in a passionate war of will.
Lips parted, he took a deep breath and allowed our bodies to hover close enough to brush. His fingertips grazed my cheek as he lowered himself to meet the connection I craved. Our lips, millimeters apart…
‘River, child…’ His grandmother’s melodic voice cut through the moment.
We stepped back, hurried, breathless, and undone.
Chapter Thirty-One
The King
The journey back to my family estate in the Volcano Lands was haunted by awkward silence, judgemental glances from my grandmother, and the occasional burst of lava from the surrounding fields, as if the land itself were trying to break the tension.
Allowing myself a few glances at Ava, I found her deep in thought. Our eyes met more than once, and each time a blush crept up her neck and across her cheeks, telling me all I needed to know. She wanted it as much as I did. Perhaps she was embarrassed by how much, or maybe it was her innocence that made her fluster so easily.
Either way, I was determined to find out just how innocent the Princess of Ortensia really was. It would take time, but nothing precious was ever easy.
Was it just desire? No. I was lying to myself. My body longed for her as fiercely as my power did, but my mind fought against it.
Ava was mine, yet she could never be mine. The Gods loved to taunt me; they delighted in showing me fleeting glimpses of what life might look like in an ideal realm.
Me. The little witch. A simple life. It would never happen, and I knew it.
She’d teased that the King of Fogoya was supposed to be fearless, and for the most part, I was. But the vision of a future with her scared me. The thought of a life without her terrified me even more.
How could I ever function without the way she enriched my days? Without that little blush when my words scandalised her?
I couldn’t.
Princess Avari of Ortensia, an enemy witch that cared for my kind. She used her powers to heal instead of maim.
Without even trying, she wrapped me around her little finger, unaware of the chaos that would erupt if she ever chose to pull the strings.
Avari
The sudden energetic resonance left me ravenously hungry. For one, I would happily socialise and accept the pointless chatter if it meant there would be food.
‘Quite the fire you’ve had there, Ava, girly,’ his grandmother said, her assessing gaze lingering on my frame for a moment before returning to her meal of bloody steak. ‘One wouldn’t think so looking at your…stature.’
A mere glimpse at her meal made me feel nauseous, and I looked away quickly.
‘You would never think so,’ River’s grandfather corrected her with a weary air, sipping his third cup of wine.
He looked ready to bolt at any moment, clearly long past his patience with the lady of the house.
