Touch of Flame

Perfect, Malachi thought when he saw Nazneen arriving. He had been waiting for what felt like forever, so he didn’t mind if Ares got into a little trouble. As long as that woman kept her hands away from Ravina.

The blazing look in her eyes made him rise from his seat. He only thought it would be fun for a moment, but now he just wanted to continue his day peacefully. He wasn’t in the mood for this, and he didn’t want to fight a woman. But to his surprise, none of what he expected happened.

Nazneen’s lips curved up into a smile that managed to look genuine. “Ares. I was looking for you.”

Ares stepped forward as if to meet Nazneen on the way. “I thought we could have lunch.” She told him.

Ares looked back at them and gave them a nod. Then his attention returned to Nazneen. “Yes, we should.” He said as he walked away with her.

Surprising. Malachi could swear he saw the fire in her eyes before she smiled.

Ravina’s hand on his arm brought back his attention. “What is wrong?”

“Nothing. How was your talk?”

She smiled. “It was good. I feel relieved.” She chuckled and then looked at him with wet eyes. “Thank you for making it comfortable. I needed it.”

The way she looked at him at that moment made it all worth it. Humans clearly functioned differently. They preferred patience over possessiveness. A female dragon would question him if he just allowed her to talk to her previous lover alone.

She naturally put her arm through his and they began to walk. He felt strangely calm despite her scent that had been torturing him since morning. Without him asking, she told him what they spoke about. It wasn’t what he expected. They didn’t indulge in any conversation that would be hurtful to him or Nazneen. He respected that. He did not expect that from Ares.

“A half-breed?”

“Yes.”

That would be difficult and now he already had the tournament and Nazneen as a possible queen to deal with. He also wanted to make Ravina his queen so he was going to stir a lot of trouble at once.

“There will be those who would want to challenge him and I am not sure he can survive a tournament being half-breed.”

Ravina nodded. “You are right. That would be dangerous.” She became thoughtful for a while as they arrived at the stable. “Do you think Nazneen will do well in the tournament?”

Being a Katharos was one thing, but fighting skills were also needed. Those wanting the throne probably put a lot of time and effort to hone their skills.

“It depends on whether she can be strategic with her strength.” He replied.

Ravina’s face lit up when she found Darcy. The aggressive stallion was now more obedient than a dog. Ravina stroked him with care and then looked at Malachi.

“Is it… brutal?” She asked.

He smiled. “I thought you liked blood?”

“It depends.” She said and as she kept stroking Darcy, she frowned. “I heard something… about mating.” She began.

Mating?

“What did you hear?”

“That mating would heal my scars.”

As much as he wanted her to heal, he didn’t tell her because he didn’t want it to seem like an excuse to mate with her.

“It is true.”

“How?” She wondered.

“If we mate, we will be bound by blood and the magic in it will help you be physically compatible to be a dragon’s mate. You will live longer, be stronger and heal faster.” He explained.

Malachi could suddenly feel the fire in his blood, singing to him, commanding him to mate with her right now. Despite his resistance, he glanced her way. She was clad in a blue that matched her eyes and paired it with silver jewelry. Her slender neck was hidden behind her golden locks and she wore a necklace that disappeared into the crevice of her top. His gaze swept over the swell of her breasts where some strands of her hair teased her skin.

Now, don’t smell her! But because he thought of it, he did. Her scent was getting stronger and he would die before she reached the peak of fertility, where he would become a crazed beast.

“Malachi?”

His gaze fell lower, to the belly chain right beneath her navel. When he teased it with his tongue, he remembered the sounds she made. He could feel his hot blood rushing to the parts of his body that made him ready to breed. Malachi prayed to whatever spirits were around because he wanted to sink into her right now.

Ravina’s finger came into sight, pointing at her navel and slowly going up, taking his gaze up with it until she reached her chin. A smile curved her lips. “You seem distracted.”

The amused lilt in her voice brought back his attention. He blinked. Was she teasing him?

He knew she could be cunning and unashamed when she wanted to be.

“What if I am?” He asked stepping forward.

“Then you should focus.”

He continued to step forward. “I am VERY focused… on what is distracting me.”

She kept her ground despite his long steps toward her but he could hear the change in her heartbeat. She tore her eyes away from him and turned to Darcy instead, stroking his hair gently.

“I never thought I could be jealous of a horse. I wish your hands could stroke me instead.”

Ravina’s heart skipped, and she turned to him with lips parting. Her hand became still halfway through the stroke and her eyes dropped to his chest before looking up flustered.

“Uh… why jealous of a horse? Here…” she said teasingly. Walking forward, she tiptoed and stroked his hair once before going down on her feet again.

Malachi caught her wrist as she pulled her hand back. He drew her closer and a faint gasp left her lips. “I am very jealous, Ravina. I don’t want you to only stroke me as you do him. I want you to ride me too.”