Page 28 of Consumed By Fire

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Trinity

It took me forever to fall asleep last night.

All I could think about was the man lying against my back, spooning me. The one wrapped around me, holding me tight. I didn’t want to react to him, but I did.

It seems I have no control over my body at the moment, and it is infuriating.

Even now, I watch every move he makes with utter fascination.

Octane is partially shifted. He has a smattering of scales over his body. His muscles are pumped and roped. He looks taller and bigger than normal, which is saying something since he is massive on a normal day. His eyes seem to glow as he hoists the deer carcass over his shoulder. Spatters of blood drip down his chest. It’s a turn-on. The way he hunted the animal. The way he killed it swiftly with his bare hands. I’ve never seen anything like it.

“You did it.” I’m winded from keeping up with him. My own scales pull back quicker than they appeared. “That was amazing.”

“Did you feel the bloodlust?”

“Yes, it was exhilarating.” I’m breathing heavily, trying to catch my breath.

“You’ve never hunted before?” He narrows his eyes.

I shake my head.

“Not even in your dragon form?” He looks shocked.

I shake my head again.

“You’re missing out. Moreover, your dragon is missing out. You Reds live very different lives from what I ever imagined. You spoke of a city. Do you have buildings and vehicles, the whole nine yards?”

“Of course.” I laugh. “Did you think we lived under a rock?”

“Pretty much. All this time, we saw your kind as feral. We thought you preferred being in your scales. That you were all more dragon than human.”

“What gave you that impression?” We walk back to where we set up for the night. Octane insisted that I sit and rest while he looked for firewood earlier. It’s all ready to be lit when we get back there.

I’m salivating at the thought of meat.

“The Reds chose to leave all those years ago. You didn’t want riders. The Sky Wardens are what keep us sane in our dragon forms. You didn’t want to stick to the boundaries the humans gave us. You wanted free rein of the skies. You left for Mistveil, where you chose to differentiate yourselves from us by getting red markings at birth. You became the Reds, and we the Draigers. You all turned feral.”

“No, we didn’t. It’s what you wrongly assumed. We were sick of being dictated to by humans. Sick of being controlled. We didn’t turn feral. We’re perfectly controlled in our dragon forms. More controlled than we ever were living on Draig.”

“That can’t be, and yet…it’s true. I’ve seen it firsthand. It doesn’t make any sense.” He rubs his chin, leaving streaks of blood on his face.

“It’s a good thing we’re close to water.” I smile. He looks terrible…and beautiful, even covered in blood.

“What?” He starts wiping his face, making it worse.

I laugh. “You’re covered in blood and gore.”

Octane smiles, and I feel that familiar fluttering in my stomach. It isn’t the baby. It’s my reaction to him. It’s annoying. I look away before he can see anything in my eyes. He’s far too observant. I don’t like that, either.

“It’s one of the perks of hunting.” He sounds like he’s still smiling. “I’ll get cleaned up after I get the meat ready for the open flame.”

I groan. “I can practically taste it already.” I have to say that even the coppery scent of the blood is making me hungry. I guess I haven’t lost my dragon quite yet.

“It won’t be long.” His words hang between us as we walk the rest of the way in silence.

We get back to where we set up camp. I watch as Octane starts a fire. He rubs two sticks together really fast. He’s so fast, I can barely see his hands at all. They’re just a blur. In no time, the sticks start to smolder where they are rubbing together. The dried-up moss below starts smoking and then catches with one tiny flame.

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