Flashfire (5 page)

It was enough to tempt Lorenzo to take a real risk. He wanted to provoke a reaction from her.

Any reaction would do. Lorenzo was sure that it was her composure that grated upon him. He was consumed with her and she was completely indifferent to him.

The part of his mind that remained rational—instead of rapturous—recognized that this was a problem. He knew that a distraction could completely condemn his scheduled feat at the end of this week. If the firestorm continued to burn hotter with every passing moment, he’d be a disaster by the next morning.

When Lorenzo invited questions with his usual aplomb, he knew with sudden conviction what he had to do. He had to satisfy the firestorm. Immediately. If not sooner. He couldn’t afford to make a mistake with this upcoming spectacle, the planned pinnacle of his career. He couldn’t afford to lose control of the variables at this precise moment in time.

Perfection demanded the elimination of distractions.

If Lorenzo was to be cursed with a firestorm, he wasn’t going to waste any more time than was necessary in seeing it satisfied. He knew all the stories. He knew that the firestorm only burned hotter and hotter the longer it remained unsated. He knew that it was supposed to be the mark of a
Pyr
meeting his destined mate. He knew that Erik argued in favor of creating a lasting partnership with the woman in question.

Lorenzo didn’t care about any of that. His firestorm was an obstacle and a problem. The sooner it was satisfied, the better. It wasn’t as if he believed that this woman would go home from vacation pregnant with a baby dragon shifter. That was just
Pyr
superstition, perpetuated and buttressed by romantic idiots like Erik, leader of the
Pyr,
who encouraged the
Pyr
to make permanent relationships.

He worked alone and always would.

Lorenzo knew he would have been kinder if his apparent mate hadn’t been so determined to believe him a fraud. If she had been softer, more feminine, more alluring, more his type of woman—well, he might have been more inclined to seduce her and savor a few weeks together.

But this one, this one could undoubtedly deal with anything life dealt her and could do it all by herself.

Maybe she preferred it that way. Her hands were devoid of rings and she wasn’t with a partner.

Lorenzo eyed the woman and smiled at her, just as he launched another firestorm spark in her direction. Those sparks annoyed her and he liked ensuring that he wasn’t the only one annoyed. The crowd oohed and aahed at what they thought was an effect.

Lorenzo watched his mate. He saw the quick tightening of her lips, saw her irritation rise. She glanced around herself, assessing perhaps whether other people thought she was in his employ. The notion didn’t seem to please her. He saw her jaw set and knew that she had made a choice, as well.

He doubted it would be very interesting. Humans were terribly predictable. But no matter what she did, this woman—his destined mate—was going to get more than she anticipated.

And she was going to get it within the hour.

Lorenzo didn’t have time to mess around with a firestorm. It would be sated, and it would be sated ASAP.

After Lorenzo had answered the second question from the audience, Cassie raised her hand and rose smoothly to her feet.

Cassie wasn’t the only one who had a question. Stacy waved hard enough to bring the house down. But Cassie knew that Lorenzo was watching her. She could tell by the way the hair was prickling on the back of her neck.

He was good. Most people wouldn’t have noticed the focus of his attention, but Cassie was keenly observant. Her ability to interpret small signs and guess what any given person would do—or where he or she would go—had contributed to her success.

And she knew Lorenzo would take this bait.

He did. He turned to her with a dazzling smile. His gaze locked on hers and she suppressed a shiver. She couldn’t stop herself from standing taller beneath his attention, or from licking her lips.

He smiled slowly at that, his eyes gleaming with intent.

It was really hot in the theater and it seemed to get hotter just because Lorenzo was looking at her.

Cassie held her ground and smiled back at him.

“Our third question, from the lady who sparks the flame,” Lorenzo said, as smooth as butter. The audience cheered.

“Ask him about me,” Stacy insisted in a whisper.

Cassie couldn’t say a thing. She was staring at Lorenzo, her mouth dry.

He spread his hands as he walked toward her, all masculine grace, then dropped to one knee at the closest point on the stage. His gaze locked on her and he arched his brow, inviting her question.

Cassie thought she might spontaneously combust. There was a trickle of perspiration running down her back, but the more disconcerting heat was the one that simmered beneath her skin. Proximity only made him more alluring. She noticed the even tone of his tan, the muscled strength of his thighs, the grace of those strong hands. She saw the taut muscles of his chest—and the quirk of his smile just about dissolved her knees.

She wondered again how he’d kiss.

She wondered whether his skin was as warm as hers.

She wondered how those hands would feel, sliding over her naked body.

She wondered just how she had managed to lose her mind in an hour and a half.

Then that spark leapt between his hands, seeming brighter than ever, blazing an arc from one palm to the other. Its golden light only made him look more handsome, dancing over the planes of his face and glinting in his dark hair. His eyes shone gold in the light of the flames and she had the sudden sensation that she was his prey.

And that she didn’t care.

He lifted his hands and the spark shot toward her in a massive arc of orange flame.

The other flames in the theater leapt for the ceiling, blazing in unison. The entire theater was filled with the crackle of flames, the brilliant light of fire, while Cassie was filled with a simmering throb of desire.

She had no idea how he did it, but it was impressive.

The spark was hotter than it had been before, more sensual, and its impact nearly melted Cassie.

Or was that the effect of having Lorenzo’s undivided attention?

She halfway wished he’d put on some more clothes.

The other half of her liked the view just fine.

“And so, we have our third and final question,” he said in that dark chocolate voice. “From the lady who has lit my fire this afternoon.”

The audience chuckled and Cassie felt herself flush.

She could lose herself in those eyes. He watched her, unblinking, just his gaze making her mind turn in very basic directions. The reflection of the flames in his eyes would have made for a great photograph.

“My question is this,” she said, speaking clearly and slowly. “Where would I find one of those dragon shape shifter guys, the
Pyr
, the ones Melissa Smith has been profiling on her television show?”

There was one beat of silence.

She heard Lorenzo catch his breath.

Then his smile broadened.

There was something calculating about that smile, something that might have worried Cassie if she’d been anywhere else in the world than in front of two thousand witnesses. A light dawned in Lorenzo’s eyes that was both wild and unpredictable, one that made her catch her breath at his raw sexuality. She sensed that he was about to surprise her.

And she was excited by the prospect.

Then he threw up his hands. The stage erupted in flames, as it had at the beginning of the show. This time, though, the flames burned as high as his shoulders.

He repeated her question in his deep voice.

Cassie was sure Lorenzo was stalling. She stared at him, not willing to back down. When he smiled at her again, she held his gaze, silently daring him.

She expected him to come up with some palatable story.

She expected him to try to fake out the audience.

She expected him to do pretty much anything other than what he did do.

Lorenzo’s eyes flashed. There was a strange shimmer of blue light around his body. The flames on the stage leapt even higher, as tall as him. He was obscured, except for that blue light. The shimmer became a glow, like a brilliant pale blue aura.

“Right here at the
Trial by Fire
!” he cried, then leapt into the air.

And disappeared.

In the blink of an eye, a massive gold dragon appeared above the audience. Cassie gasped. The dragon’s scales could have been made of hammered gold, each embellished with cabochon gems. It looked as if the dragon had been made of medieval reliquaries.

But it wasn’t mechanical. It moved with a lithe grace, a sinuous power that reminded Cassie of the swing of Lorenzo’s hips. And it was more than smoke and mirrors. Its golden wings flapped, ensuring that it hovered above the crowd, and Cassie felt the wind they created. The dragon breathed a plume of fire that crackled over the heads of the assembled crowd and Cassie felt its heat.

“Amazing,” Stacy whispered.

To Cassie’s surprise, the dragon even flew out over the astonished audience. She couldn’t see wires or mirrors anywhere, although there had to be some. She couldn’t see an image being projected from anywhere, either. She turned with everyone else, and watched the dragon in wonder.

She felt its gaze lock upon her, as if it were real, as if it were a conscious creature, and her heart leapt. She was reminded of the way she’d felt when Lorenzo looked at her.

Prey.

Or treasure.

The dragon swooped down over Cassie and snatched her off her feet in one great claw. She cried out in shock as she was swept into the air. It had to be a trick, but she couldn’t imagine how it worked. Dragons weren’t real.

But this one felt real. She fingered its talons, the ones locked around her waist, and they felt solid. The dragon wasn’t cold either, but warm.

And his eyes were a rich hazel, filled with humor.

She looked down and she was definitely flying above the enraptured audience.

When she touched the dragon’s nails, just to check, he laughed a deep dragon laugh.

She saw his array of sharp white teeth and the dark hole of his gullet. She had an instant to dread the direction of this trick, and to fear that she might be a disappearing lady.

Then there was another blinding shimmer of blue.

Cassie opened her eyes when she felt something solid beneath her feet. She was standing on the stage. Lorenzo, the nearly naked sexy guy, had his arm around her shoulders. The flames had died down to nothing again. His grip was firm and possessive, a clear message that she shouldn’t move.

Not that she wanted to. It wasn’t all bad being pressed against his strength. That simmering heat was rolling through Cassie, weakening her knees and making her keenly aware of the man who had her locked against his side. She could even see orange sparks dancing between them, vivid orange flames that seemed only to make her burn with lust.

It looked as if her skin were on fire.

Apparently, she was becoming delusional as well.

Of course, it had been a while since she’d been caught against the chest of an incredibly hot and charismatic man. Her awareness of him was a natural reaction.

Even though she’d never burned with a desire like this before.

His thumb was tracing a hypnotic circle against her shoulder, one that seemed to sear through her shirt. She was tempted to wrap herself around him, or rub herself against him, or otherwise surrender to a temptation that she wasn’t used to feeling.

She had to get out of this theater before she did something she’d regret.

Lorenzo smiled at the audience, and his appeal was even more powerful at close range. Cassie wiggled a little to extricate herself from his embrace, but his grip tightened slightly.

Then Lorenzo looked down at Cassie and she saw the reflection of flames in his eyes. At least, it had to be a reflection, because otherwise there would have been flames burning in his pupils.

It had to be an illusion.

Cassie looked closer, trying to discern the trick.

“A man can wait a lifetime to meet a woman who kindles his desire,” he murmured with a smile. His voice was rich and melodic, the kind of voice a woman could listen to all night long. “Surely love is the true trial by fire.”

“Love is the true trial by fire,” Cassie heard herself say. A part of her mind was incredulous that she had uttered any such garbage aloud.

On the other hand, it seemed inevitable.

Right.

Uh-oh.

The flames in Lorenzo’s pupils danced higher. Another trick. One she could surely figure out. She leaned closer and he lifted his other hand, his fingertips touching her chin. His hand was warm, his caress gentle.

Cassie wanted more.

No, she burned for more.

“To surrender to the heat of the moment,” Lorenzo said.

“To surrender to the heat of the moment,” Cassie said, her gaze falling to his firm lips, then back to those amazing eyes again.

“Without regret.”

“Without regret.” These words left Cassie’s lips like a sigh, a concession, a surrender to whatever he was going to do.

Lorenzo’s eyes gleamed with mischief and the heat of desire redoubled, rolling through her body with urgent demand.

Then Lorenzo pulled her to her toes and kissed her.

Cassie heard the audience go wild. She heard the music soar and felt the curtain shut. She was sure she heard Stacy squeal.

But she was too busy returning Lorenzo’s kiss to care. Pragmatic Cassie Redmond was overwhelmed by sensation for the first time in her life, and she didn’t want to change one thing. Lorenzo’s kiss was potent, both enticing and demanding, the kind of kiss that should close a show.

Or bring down the house.

Cassie slid her arms around Lorenzo’s neck and kissed him back. She twined her fingers into his hair and pulled him closer, crushing herself against him. She heard Lorenzo’s possessive growl, and she felt his reaction against her hip. His arm locked around her waist and his mouth slanted over hers to deepen the kiss. The sparks leapt high all around them and the audience seemed very, very far away.