A Kiss of Flame (Shadows Eternal #3)

Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

B arith breathed Levian’s jasmine scent deep into his lungs, causing fire to rise within him. When he opened his eyes to peer down at her, a wave of emotions smashed into him, so many he struggled to focus. Underneath it all, he felt an ease with Levian in his arms, a comfort he’d nearly forgotten but had desperately missed.

She tangled her fingers in his hair and arched herself closer. Barith didn’t know why she’d pulled away from him in the pool at Kamár, except that maybe she’d gotten too lost in the moment and their bet. But this moment— this was different. There was no bet, no act, no end game. It was simply her and him standing in the library of Ember Hall before the fire.

Barith was already lost before they’d even begun.

He held the side of her slim neck firmly in his hand, his other pressing at the middle of her back. Their breaths grew shallower with each intake as they hovered just at the precipice. Her soft, delicate lips ever so lightly grazed his. Barith teased at hers—as if each was challenging the other until one gave in. Levian ran her nails along the back of his scalp, sending a little skitter of magick washing over him like water.

With a growl, he broke and took her lips in a searing kiss. His ears crackled with her magick, and his skin burned from his own. Levian moaned softly into his mouth, digging her fingers further into his hair. Minutes or hours could have passed as they stood in their embrace.

Levian pulled away from their kiss first, leaving both of them panting, and looked up into his eyes. She backed away from him slowly, and he let her go, though each of her soft steps filled him with agony. “Step back,” she told him, a touch breathless. He did as she asked.

The mage waved her hands, and a collection of blankets appeared—a blend of vibrant colors and silken fabric. She turned her attention from him to the floor. She laid them out in great layers before the crackling hearth, adding plush pillows to the edges. When she was satisfied with her creation, she stood in the middle and turned to look at him. “I am a creature of comfort,” she reminded him with a coy smirk.

“I cannot say I mind in this instance,” he grumbled with a soft smile of his own.

Levian’s gaze darkened as she examined him. Barith bent over to remove his boots before stepping onto her little love nest. The fabric was lush and soft against his feet. He reached out for her, but she held her hand up to still him. “Kneel,” she told him, pointing down at her feet.

Barith couldn’t help but cock his head at the request. The mage smiled as if she knew he would argue or at least be confused. She took his large hand in both hers, raising it to her lips. She kissed his fingers delicately before she nipped at the middle one with her teeth. He growled, and she pulled him forward. “I want to touch you,” she told him.

Gods above and below, he wanted her to touch him. He knelt before her without a word. One knee. Then the other. He glamoured his wings away long enough to pull his shirt over his head, then looked up at her. Her eyes flared violet; her breath stuttered with anticipation when his wings reappeared. Levian let go of his hand and came closer. She ran fingers along his shoulder, neck, and beard until she wove them into his hair. Barith closed his eyes and growled softly. Her touch was heavenly. She stroked his scalp with her nails until he was lulled into a heady fog, little grunts of satisfaction seeping out.

In time, the mage slid her hands from his hair and ran a few fingers down his left shoulder as she shifted around him. Barith cracked open his eyes, a touch dizzy from the spell of her touch. His wings were slightly tucked but still took up a great deal of space. Barith felt her come up behind him, parts of her body lightly grazing his wings as she slid between them. When her fingers wove back into his hair from behind, he closed his eyes again and grunted, leaning his head back into her touch. Her fingers worked down the back of his neck to the ridge of his shoulders. Down and down until he was holding his breath and waiting for what would come next. He was already hard, but the moment her delicate fingers brushed where his wings and back met, his cock stiffened, and a primal moan vibrated through him. Barith leaned his head back to the heavens and kept his eyes shut, relishing the dark pleasure she sent crashing over him.

A soft kiss fell between his shoulders, then between his wings. His breath held. When her tongue ran along the top of his spine, he hissed, arching forward. Then her magick came. Soft skitters spread over his skin and along his wings. Barith shuddered and gasped, his muscles spasming as he tried to keep himself under control. “Levian,” he growled, his fists clenched at his sides.

She kissed him at the base of his neck. “Hmm?” she mumbled back softly.

It was so lush and tender. Her touch. Her soft kisses. When her teeth grazed over his skin, Barith lost it. In a flash, he arched his wing up, twisted himself around to the right, reached back, and got ahold of her hips. He yanked her around until she was splayed out on her back next to him on the pillows.

Levian grumbled at the forcefulness, but Barith had every intention of making up for it. He planted his hands into the pillows at either side of her face and hovered over her. The mage’s breath hitched, her eyes deep pools of desire as she looked up at him. He’d meant to draw out his touches until he left her drunk with desire as she’d just done to him, but as she gazed up into his eyes, her breaths grew shallow. Each one making his blood quicken.

Before he could even lower himself to her, she’d wrapped her hands around his neck and arched herself up to meet him. The kiss was explosive. There was no tenderness or teasing, just a consuming passion that slaked over them. Barith lowered his hips down over her, and the satisfying friction of her thigh against his hard cock made him growl into her mouth. Levian moaned, twisting her hips so that he better pressed against her core. Barith rocked against her the way she wanted, and their kiss ended in a shared groan of pleasure.

When he leaned back, his mouth watered as he admired her raw beauty. She still wore the slinky dress from Kamár, but he could see the hard tips of her nipples beneath the silken fabric. Levian had lamented from time to time over their long friendship about the size of her breasts but had never taken any action to alter them with magick. He was glad of it. They were perfect just as they were.

Barith ran his rough hands over her soft skin, over the silky fabric down her chest, and between her breasts. Levian arched into his touch, her breath faltering when he caressed the edge of one of her nipples. He leaned down over it, and her breath held.

He’d not forgotten what she liked even after all this time. Or how much he’d enjoyed worshipping her body that night they lay under the summer moon of Beltane. When he flicked his tongue out and slowly licked over the fabric that separated him and her hard nipple, she groaned lusciously low, arching herself into him, gripping hold of the blankets around her. Barith delicately took the strap of her dress and slid it down her slight shoulder, lower and lower, her breaths growing more raged with each inch. When her dark nipple appeared at the edge of the dress, he growled.

The mage reached up and pulled him closer; it was all the permission he needed. Barith let the fabric fall and took her breast into his mouth and sucked.

The sound Levian made nearly drove him to the edge, but Barith managed to keep himself together while trying to break her apart. He sucked, licked, kissed, and ravaged her until the mage was panting and writhing beneath him. When she groaned his name, Barith could hear the plea that it was.

He lifted his mouth from her breasts and pressed her back against the pillows with a hot kiss that made both of them shudder. He rocked his length against her again, and she wrapped her legs around him to hold him steady. Barith growled, and she moaned. Levian pushed his shoulders back just enough to slide her fingers down the front of his stomach to the top of his pants. She made quick work of the buttons there before she hooked her fingers into the edge and began yanking them down. He groaned at her impatience, kissing her until she was pressed back into the blankets, stilling her progress.

Barith dealt with his pants while Levian tore her dress over her head until they were both bare and naked, and he was hovering over her, propped up on his elbows.

He looked down into her face, their breaths short. He brushed a few stray pink curls from her face and brushed his nose against hers. “Gods yer beautiful,” he told her, keen to savor her and this moment. Her face flushed, and he brushed her lips with a kiss.

His heart swelled with emotions he couldn’t comprehend as she tenderly stroked her fingers along his back. A few words nearly spilled out of him in the heat of the moment but were stifled when she sent a wave of magick skittering down his wings. Instead, all he could do was groan into the pillow beside her head.

Levian wrapped her slim legs around his muscled trunk, his hard length pressing against her thigh. Her body fluttered with waves of pleasure and anticipation. Barith was so wildly handsome and consuming it nearly stole her breath. She wanted this. Wanted him. It wasn’t just desire and the need for release but something more profound. She wanted this moment with him more than anything.

He kissed her neck, nipping along her ear. Levian responded by reaching down and taking his silky length into her hand. Barith gave a raw, luscious groan against her skin as she stroked him. Levian loved making those sounds of pleasure spill out of him. She loved how unbridled he was with his passion and how he was fed by her pleasure as well.

He kissed her, his tongue sliding into her mouth with possessiveness. Levian let him go to dig her fingers into his hair and slid further down into the pillows. Barith slid his hand down her front between them until his fingers reached the groomed bit of curls at her sex. He pressed two fingers against her wet core, and Levian gasped into his mouth. She moaned his name when he stroked her again, breaking their kiss.

He nipped at her jaw and her neck, pulling his hand away and lowering further against her. His chest hair tickled her peaked nipples as the tip of him pressed at her entrance. Levian dug her nails into his shoulders and wrapped her hips tighter around his thick thighs, her body humming with raw anticipation and need.

When he pressed the tip of himself inside her, they both moaned. He slid deeper, and she bit her lip, burying her face into his hair as he growled against the base of her neck. Barith was gentle, rocking out and slowly in, pushing himself deeper and deeper with each stroke to let her adjust to him. When he settled himself fully inside her, Levian gasped his name.

Barith kissed her, letting his thick length linger inside her as her body grew accustomed to him. When he pulled out slowly and thrust back in, Levian arched her back with a feral groan at how good he felt. She’d not forgotten how much he set her body aflame. She’d loved it so much that she’d worried after their glorious night during Beltane that if she ever let herself have him again, she may never be able to let him go.

The dragon rocked in and out of her in slow, decadent strokes until they were both groaning and panting. Levian’s body began to vibrate, already so close to climax, her vision spotted with sparks of violet. She cried out as she came apart, trembling beneath him, digging her nails into his skin. Barith growled her name, keeping his pace as she tipped over the edge and long past to draw out her pleasure.

Barith brushed a kiss against her lips, which was meant to be tender, but Levian deepened. When he began to pull away, he breathed, “Vi.”The way he did it made her heart hurt. Hurt so much she didn’t want to begin to unravel why. Instead, she just wanted to feel him. To cherish him. To be lost together one last time. She dug her fingers into his round muscled butt and pressed him back inside her, wanting him deeper. They both groaned in tandem.

He raised one of his hands to caress her breast, pinching her nipple as he pulled out all the way and slammed harder into her. She arched up with a moan. “Fuck, I love the sounds you make,” he snarled at her ear.

Barith leaned back on his knees and dipped one arm beneath the base of her back while he held her hip steady with the other, pulling her up to straddle him. He took her nipple in his mouth and sucked. At the same time, he thrust his hips and pulled her down harder over him. She groaned a sound of utter ecstasy, the pleasure so consuming she lost her vision for a moment.

Levian bucked her hips as he remained buried inside her. Barith snarled against her breast, releasing her nipple. She did it again, grabbing his shoulders to steady herself as she rode him. The dragon growled, leaning back to hold her hips with both hands and pull her harder against him like she wanted.

Lost in her passion, Levian threw her head back and felt herself growing close to the edge again. Her skin tingled with magick, filling her until it tipped over the brim. Her entire being felt as if it had exploded in ecstasy, skitters of magick washing over her, through her, and into Barith. The dragon gripped her hips harder; his wings shivered and spread taught at his back, sparks of fire slipping off them. His eyes burned with flames as he looked down at her. Barith growled, smoke and fire burning in his throat. He looked primal. Archaic. A male sun dragon flowing with her magick and his own.

Barith tipped back, pulling Levian entirely into his lap. She hovered over him, his eyes still glowing with fire. Another wave of magick washed over them as she bent down and kissed him, the sounds of their wet coupling adding to the intensity of her pleasure. He growled, sliding his hands up her back as she moved over him, taking his hard length fully with each rise and fall of her body. She moaned when he brushed a hand over her breast. His wings wrapped around them, cocooning them in the heat of his fire and the sparks of her magick until it was a swirl of violet and orange.

It felt so good this way—like it was where she should be—like this moment had always been destined between them. Levian looked down into Barith’s glowing eyes, and her heart swelled. He looked captivated. Enthralled. The sexy, charming, hulking sun dragon that drove her up the wall was enthralled by her . And she was enthralled by him. Her dearest friend. Her lover.

On the night of Beltane, they had gotten lost in each other, but Levian knew the limits of her heart. As much as she loved Barith, she’d known better than to give in beyond that one moment. As she looked into his face, she realized how foolish she’d been. Levian had always known she loved Barith, but she’d never realized how deeply until that moment. Her heart ached, knowing she would lose him. Her body trembled, and tears threatened, her pace slowing as raw emotions cut through her pleasure.

Suddenly, she was on her back against the soft, silken blankets with Barith over her. Their limbs tangled together, and his wings spread wide over them as he pressed himself into her, harder and harder, their moans and pants filling the library. Levian didn’t want to think; for once, she just wanted to feel. She wanted to feel him .

The mage arched her hips, wrapping her legs fully around his middle to take him deeper. He growled and plunged into her like she wanted. She whimpered his name. He groaned hers, his body working inside her, as she began to see sparkles of violet again. When Levian gasped, he stole her breath in a deep kiss, shifting his hips just right until she spilled over the edge. She moaned into his mouth as she came apart beneath him, her body violently shaking from the force, the magick washing over her in luscious waves, enhancing her pleasure.

Barith growled her name like an oath to the gods as the magick rushed over him, too, and he came apart with her. Flames filled his eyes as he found his release and growled with primal abandon. He drew out both of their pleasures with a few last long, lush strokes until he fell forward onto his elbows and his head dipped into the crook of her neck.

His skin was hot, and his breaths labored as he held himself up just enough not to crush her. Levian was delirious with pleasure and lay happily sated beneath him, stroking her hands along his damp lower back.

When Barith collected himself enough, he pulled out of her and rolled over to his side, one of his wings haphazardly folding over them.

They lay panting for a long while, savoring their pleasure, until their breaths began to steady, and the sounds of the crackling fire came back into focus. Barith brushed his hand along Levian’s stomach, then pulled her against his front. He nuzzled her neck and kissed her softly.

Barith was barely awake, she knew. His wing slid further over her like a blanket, and his tail slid through his legs and nestled over her thigh. Barith grumbled as he cuddled closer.

Levian swallowed, the emotions she’d held back during their lovemaking bubbling up into her throat. She hesitantly turned to look at Barith. He was already slumbering softly, his face slack and vulnerable with sleep. Her heart ached as she gazed upon him. His tail shifted to rub down her leg and curl along the edge. Levian’s breath held. She didn’t know how to describe it other than she felt— claimed .

Her heart began to beat faster even though her body protested with exhaustion and the desire to hold onto the sated pleasure that had just rioted through her. Memories flooded, years of friendship and adventure, fighting, betting, and squabbling over everything under the sun. There were times when she would have happily run Barith over with a horse cart but would’ve also turned any other creature that had tried to hurt him into a slug.

Levian knew she loved him. She’d always loved him in some way. As her dearest friend. Her closest companion. The most consistent, reliable man she’d ever had in her life. Tears welled in her eyes as she looked at Barith’s sun-kissed nose. His thick brows. His peach lips, underneath his thick beard. She reached over and tucked a strand of his hair that had fallen over his forehead back like he’d done for her countless times. Her fingers lingered, brushing down the side of his face and along his jaw. Barith grumbled, kissing her hand in his sleep before pulling her closer and nestling his head into the pillows.

The tears welled, blurring him, and her heart began to break. She had forced herself not to overthink it while they’d been in the throes of their passion, but there was no stopping her now. She already knew how this would unfold. In a few hours, he would wake, and they would snuggle, make love again, and then be forced to deal with the stark, bitter reality of their circumstance.

Levian’s throat grew tight. She hadn’t thought one last night would do any harm, but it had. It had harmed her. As beautiful as it had been and as much as she knew she could never bring herself to regret what they’d shared this night, she felt an ache that struck too close to an ache she’d felt a long time ago. An ache she swore no man would ever make her feel ever again, as long as she drew breath.

Barith would leave. He had to. That was the hard truth that she’d already known. Falling in love with him would only break her heart, and she wouldn’t do it. She couldn’t.

This night had been perfect. He had been perfect. But the Fates had never meant it to be any more than this. Levian steeled herself, blinking away the tears that threatened, and very slowly slid away from his hold, careful not to wake him. When she stood naked at the edge of the love nest that she’d made for them, looking down at his beautiful dragon body, her heart hurt so badly she knew there was no other way. Levian took in a few steadying breaths and quietly collected her things.

She was doing them both a favor. He could return home mad at her, try to put all this behind him, and focus on his future and his horde. At the same time, she could slip away, back to her life, with her heart and her pride thoroughly intact. She knew better than anyone that it wouldn’t be enough even if she did love Barith and he loved her. Love was never enough when it came to two creatures from such different worlds. Her parents had been direct proof of that, and she would be skewered through before she let her heart be shattered like her mother’s.

Barith stirred, his hand reaching out over the space where she’d laid beside him. As she tiptoed out of the library, the sun began to rise in earnest. Levian’s heart thrummed in protest as she glided down the steps and cursed at it to stop making this so difficult. When she reached the base of the stairs, the tears she’d been holding back began to fall; this time, she didn’t fight them.