From the Embers (The Born in Flames Trilogy)

  FENN TWIRLED ME AROUND THE floor for hours, proving to be a very reliable dance partner. We both laughed with ease, stealing kisses and whispering words into each other’s ears. It was a moment in time I wanted to freeze and keep forever.

  He spun me one last time and then disappeared into the crowd, leaving me clueless. I awkwardly looked around, suddenly feeling the chill of the night air. I snapped my fingers and pressed the flames to my shoulders, smiling as they slid down my exposed skin and warmed me, avoiding my dress.

  Zane took it as an opportunity to approach me. “You look beautiful,” he said casually from beside me.

  I looked at him out of the corner of my eye. “You look nice too.”

  He held his hand out. “Care to dance?”

  I hesitated only for a moment before taking his hand, allowing him to spin me around the floor. He pulled me into him, guiding my feet to the next step. Being close to him, in his arms, unsettled me.

  “I didn’t know you could dance,” I said, trying to make small talk. I glanced out into the crowd, trying not to focus on the way our bodies fit together, or the way his rough hand felt wrapped around mine.

  He chuckled, the sound dark and filling my cheeks with warmth. “There is a lot about me that you don’t know…yet.”

  My stomach fluttered in response to his words.

  He dipped me down, his heated gaze falling over my eyes and then lips. I used my core to push him back up and awkwardly laughed, taking a step back from him.

  The subtle stroke of strings on a guitar broke the weird silence between us. I looked over to where the Orchestra sat, sucking in my breath. That warm, fuzzy feeling ignited inside me, rekindling the crimson to my cheeks.

  Fenn cleared his throat on the stage in front of the Orchestra. After running a shaky hand through his hair, he said, “Can I have everyone’s attention, please?”

  I looked over to Zane, but he was gone, so I moved toward the stage in a daze, unsure of what else to do. Fenn’s eyes met mine and for a moment, everything disappeared.

  “I’d like to dedicate a song I wrote to this beautiful lady,” he said, pointing to me. A spotlight created by magic fell onto me, the pearls of my dress catching the light and glimmering. My pulse quickened and my mouth went dry. I refrained from frowning when everyone turned to look at me.

  He laughed effortlessly, and then strummed the guitar to regain the crowd’s attention. The light left me and surrounded him, stealing the breath from my lungs. He was so beautiful and natural behind his guitar.

  His fingers slid and weaved through the strings. His deep, velvet voice tugged at my heart and made my knees melt below me. Everything disappeared when his words rushed over me.

  “The simplest touch to your precious skin, Eases my fears I have hidden within,

  So cold I have been, ‘til I held you again,

  You’re the spark, you’re the spark,

  you’re the spark that makes me.

  Promise you’ll stay,

  make this pain go away,

  ‘Cause I’ve been lost without you.

  I’m so lost without you.

  But if you take my hand,

  take the heart of this man,

  Darling, you hold it all,

  hold it all as we both freefall.

  You’re my reason for being,

  my whole life at its seam,

  And when I close my eyes,

  you are all that I dream.

  When I kiss your lips,

  feel your heart as it skips,

  Baby, it doesn’t get any better than this.

  Promise you’ll stay,

  make this pain go away,

  ‘Cause I’ve been lost without you.

  I’m so lost without you.

  But if you take my hand,

  take the heart of this man,

  Darling, you hold it all,

  hold it all as we both freefall.

  You’re the spark, you’re the spark,

  you’re the spark that makes me.

  You’re the spark, you’re the spark,

  you’re the spark that makes me.

  And I wouldn’t be anything,

  said I wouldn’t be anything,

  If you didn’t…love…me…”

  As the notes ended, the crowd erupted into applause. I jumped from the noise, and then fidgeted under the many hands that urged me forward. He stood up, carefully laying the borrowed guitar next to his chair.

  The beat of my heart pulsed all the way to my fingertips. I could barely breathe by the time I stopped in front of him. He ran a quivering hand through his thick hair, pasting on a smile.

  He had said so much in his song, so much that we had never really discussed. I knew he had fears about his father and about the outcome, but I had been so caught up in my own worries that I didn’t stop to really think about how it was affecting him. Or that I was just as much his rock as he was mine.

  I didn’t realize I could mean that much to one person.

  His eyes searched mine, begging me to say something. I didn’t make him wait. I jumped into his arms, kissing everything he had just professed back into him.

  The kiss was hungry but short-lived. He set me down, his hands gripping my sides. His lips trembled with an earnest smile. “One more thing.” He sucked in a courageous breath, and then dropped to one knee.

  “I’ve loved from the moment I saw you on Mily’s doorstep. Actually, I think my soul has loved you since the beginning of time, waiting for the day our chance would come around.” He paused, so many emotions running through his eyes, and then said, “I’ve never asked anything of you when it comes to us, but there is something, one thing, that I must ask of you now.” With a shaky hand, he reached inside his jacket and pulled out a small, wooden box.

  I gasped, my hand covering my mouth.

  He opened it up and there sat exactly what I expected. A dazzling, sparkling diamond ring. “Marry me, Aurora Jay Megalos,” he said passionately as he grabbed my hand and clung to it. “I know everything is crazy right now, but there will be a day when all of it will come to an end. That day will be our new beginning. You are my destiny, Rory. You always have been. I will do everything in my power to give you the life you deserve, if you would just do me this honor. If you could just be mine in every possible way.” He sucked in a breath, waiting for my answer.

  In that moment, every problem seemed so insignificant. Every fear seemed possible to overcome. Fenn was my best friend in all the ways that mattered. He inspired me to be better, stronger, and he knew how to lift me with just a few choice words.

  He was the best person I have ever known.

  “In every lifetime, I will always choose you. Yes!” I said. He picked me up, twirling me around in his arms, and laughed through the many kisses I planted on his lips.

  “She said yes!” he shouted out into the crowd.

  “As if I would say no,” I laughed, tucking my head neatly into his shoulder. “I clearly remember asking you already.”

  He set me down and looked at me. “You did ask, but I wanted to stick with tradition. We deserve a little bit of normalcy,” he said seriously. He slid the ring onto my finger and then brought my hand up to his lips, lightly kissing it.

  “Did you ask my dad?” I remembered what he had said earlier about a congratulations being due. This must have been what he was talking about.

  He perked his brow up at me. “Did I ask your dad? Psh. Please. Like I wouldn—”

  A finger tapped me on the shoulder. I spun around. “Congratulations,” Zane said with a pained smile.

  My smile wavered. “Thank you,” I replied. A tightness wrapped around my heart. A tightness that I should not have felt. Fenn stuck h
is hand out, and the two brothers shook hands.

  Kaede came up behind us, clapping, followed by my grandparents. “Oh to be young and in love again,” he said, placing a hand on both of our shoulders. “You must wed here! We have the most beautiful garden.”

  “That sounds like a lovely idea,” Naveena chimed in, her voice light and bubbly. “You are such a beautiful couple. Your mother would be so proud.”

  My smile faltered, the tightness in my chest crushing the happiness from my heart. How could I allow myself this little bit of happiness when there were so many of my loved ones who weren’t here?

  “This is what she would want for you. You make us proud, Little Flame,” Darien agreed.

  My eyebrows pinched together. I tried to maintain the happiness in smile, but it just didn’t feel real anymore. It didn’t feel right. “Thank you. All of you. This is so…” I looked at Fenn, searching for the right words. He smiled knowingly.

  “She means to say, this is so much to take in at once. I think I was finally able to catch her by surprise,” he joked, wrapping his arm around my shoulder and pulling me into him.

  “You definitely did that,” I said, glad that he knew me so well.

  Kaede tapped his forehead in realization. “Of course,” he said, “take all the time you need. Let us leave the young lovers.” He called to my grandparents, striking up a conversation about how the garden could be transformed into a majestic wedding fit for both Mages and dragons.

  I turned back to Fenn, raising an eyebrow.

  “What?” he said, his shoulders and hands raising in innocence.

  I laughed as I took his hand and pulled him back to the middle of the floor where we could hide amongst the ever-growing number of swaying bodies.

  Chapter 4

  The Coincidental Discovery

  LATE INTO THE NIGHT, MY grandparents bid me goodnight and headed back west to Nymph Island. They left on one condition—my next stop would be where they were currently staying.

  Kaede finally left his perch on the stairs and wormed his way into the crowd, pulling his wife into his arms and taking her around the floor in a whirl.

  My cheeks hurt from smiling so much, and most of my hair had fallen out of its bun. Fenn leaned in and whispered, “Come with me,” causing my heart to skip a beat. I took his hand and followed him out of the heated crowd and back into the cold night air.

  The music grew faint as we walked to the far edge of the island where the streams of water spilled over into the ocean below. Fenn stopped me right near the ledge and pulled me down into the lush grass that fed on the water rushing past us.

  The serene ocean looked like a never-ending piece of sparkling black velvet. As we sat on the cool grass, I laid my head on his shoulder, sighing.

  “Do you feel it?”

  “Feel what?” I asked, still smiling.

  “The change in the air. Winter is right around the corner. Everything is about to change. I can feel it inside. Can’t you?” I felt his head shift to look down at me so I sat up.

  “I guess so,” I admitted, shivering. I hadn’t made it to last winter. “But for me, that feeling has always been there. I just want it all to be over.”

  He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me back into him, warming me. “It will be sooner than later. Your return is proof of that. Once he catches wind of it—”

  I placed my hand on his chest. “Don’t,” I said quietly. “Not tonight. Let’s pretend like none of that is happening…okay? We will get through it, but this time, together.”

  His head jerked in my direction. “You mean that this time?”

  “I can’t do it alone,” I confessed, my eyes locked with his.

  He leaned his forehead against mine, cupping my face. Then he kissed me, softly, as the serene sound of the water fell into the abyss below us. It was a perfect kiss.

  I leaned into him, pressing him down against the cushion of grass beneath us. My kisses grew more urgent. It had been so long since I had been with him. I needed him. I needed to feel normal.

  He rolled me over, tucking his hand underneath my hair to prop my head up, kissing my neck and mouth. I moaned, pressing myself against him. “I need you,” I told him, gripping on to his back.

  He pulled back slightly, his eyes dark and hooded. “Not here. Come with me.” He pulled me off the grass and tugged me around the edge of the island.

  “Where are we going?” I asked, keeping up with his quickened pace.

  “Somewhere we won’t be interrupted,” he said earnestly.

  I giggled and kissed his cheek. By the time we made it to his destination, my nerves were on fire. Images of our first time together raced through my mind, igniting a burning passion inside of me.

  “We’re here,” he declared, pulling me inside a wooden structure that was on the other side of the island near the Pavilion. It was built the same as the Lyceum, but on a smaller scale.

  “What is this place?” I asked, fidgeting with my hair. I was suddenly aware of how I looked and wished I had a minute to freshen up.

  He peeked into the first room, checking for any unwanted visitors. “It’s where Kaede’s visitors stay. Underneath it is a secret room I stumbled on one day while I was checking out the island. It holds a bunch of stuff, like ancient artifacts or whatever. No one will find us there.” His eyes glinted with mischief when he looked back at me.

  “Oh, yeah?” I laughed. It felt a little wrong, which only excited me more. “After you then,” I taunted. He kissed me hard, stirring up the tingling butterflies that had taken a momentary break. Then he pulled away and left me reaching through thin air.

  “Come on, slowpoke.” I raced after him, weaving through the sliding doors and down the hall. “Over here,” he called through the next room.

  I came around the corner, laughter gushing out of me, and bumped into a stiff form. “Soothe!” I jumped, holding my hand against my rapidly beating heart. “What are you doing here?”

  He stared at me for a moment, indulging in the embarrassment clearly written on my face. A twitch of a smile appeared as he ran a hand through his tuft of dainty hair, smoothing it down.

  “I should ask you the same thing since these are, after all, my living quarters.” There was no mistaking the humor in his tone.

  I cleared my throat. “Fenn…uh…just wanted to show me something,” I said a little too quickly.

  Soothe smiled. “I bet he did.”

  The burn in my ears traveled all the way to my cheeks.

  “Rory, come on…oh,” Fenn called from behind Soothe, halting as soon as he saw us. “Hey, Soothe,” he slid in without hesitancy. Soothe turned to face him, and I leaned over, glaring at Fenn over Soothe’s shoulder.

  “Alone?” I mouthed at him with narrowed eyes.

  He coolly shrugged. If he was any bit of embarrassed, I couldn’t tell. His face was a mask of composure. I wished I could hide my emotions that well.

  “To what do I owe this honor?” Soothe asked in his usual languid tone.

  Fenn didn’t miss a beat. “I was just showing Rory around. Sorry to have woken you.” He tried to step around him, but Soothe stopped him with a hand.

  “Allow me to leave. You were taking her to the Artifact Chamber, correct?”

  Fenn nodded.

  Soothe quickly turned around, staring down at me. “I believe Aurora will find it intriguing. Maybe even,” he paused for effect, “helpful.” My mind went on high alert.

  He walked past us and stopped in the doorway to say, “Oh, and congratulations on the engagement,” and then stepped out into the night.

  I looked at Fenn, wide-eyed. “Seriously?”

  He hung his head, a small smile lining his lips. “I hadn’t planned for that.” He chuckled, tugging on my hand.
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  My hand covered my heated face. “That was so embarrassing. How much do you think he heard?”

  Fenn stopped and turned to look at me, still laughing. “Rory, I hate to break it to you, but Soothe is a Seer.”

  I immediately threw a hand up, shushing him. “Say no more.” It seemed no matter where I turned, there was no privacy. No chance to drop my guard and let myself go. I didn’t know how much longer I could take it.

  He laughed harder and pulled me into a room lined with bookshelves, reminding me of the Hall of Knowledge. “It’s right over here,” he mumbled, scanning through a row of books. “Not you, not you, ah-ha, there you are,” he called, pulling a book towards him. A portal instantly opened where the last bookshelf was. “Here it is,” he proclaimed.

  “How did you know?”

  “While you were gone, I spent a lot of time…” he paused, his hand covering his mouth, and coughed out, “reading in here.”

  “Reading? You?”

  He looked slightly offended. “Hey, I do know how to read, you know?” He reached for my hand, and I gladly took it, letting him pull me towards the portal. “It made me feel closer to you.”

  I paused to look up at him, feeling nothing but admiration and love for him.

  “What?” He was grinning.

  “Nothing,” I answered with a soft smile as I followed him through the portal.

  It was dark on the other side. I snapped my finger, igniting the flames along my fingertips, and held them out to see.

  “Light this,” Fenn said, holding up a torch.

  I pressed my finger against the bristle and watched as the flame grew. He touched another torch to the fire and then handed it to me.

  “Really?” I held up my flaming hands.