Page 151 of Golden Queen
He raised a brow. "There is no doubt that you are a blood mage, Sera. Not after what happened when you drank the necromancer's blood."
"Oh," I said, and then, "Oh," as realization dawned. I considered the blood-fueled rampage I had gone on in the dungeon beneath Albiyn castle, and I was surprised I hadn’t made the connection myself.
“Is that all of them, then?” I asked. My mind was still trying to envision what blood magic between two blood mages would entail.
“That leaves only the other fire,” he answered. He snapped his fingers together and a little flame floated above them. It was orange and yellow—mundane, ordinary flame.
"This is easy to control. I don't even need to think about it. And it can be a profound ability in itself—a powerful weapon. But this—" He let the golden flames erupt from his hand. The difference between the two was stark.
The little fire had been bright—as fire always was, but the golden flames were blindingly beautiful.
They drew me in like a beacon—exerting some pull on me, some urge to be absolutely surrounded by them.
"Wait," I said as a question formed in my mind. "Bring back the other fire."
He obeyed, eyeing me warily.
I reached out my hand, hovering gently over the flame. It was hot. I lowered it, holding it close until I felt the familiar stinging pain of a burn.
Io jerked his hand back, extinguishing the fire as he muttered, "Well that's…something.”
"And the darker fire?" I asked, cautiously. I was loath to ask him about it even though I didn't get the sense that he was ashamed of it.
"It’s not another distinct magic,” he said easily, letting the dark flames cover his hand. “It's somehow born of the gold fire and the shadows together, which shouldn’t be possible with such oppositional forces.”
I watched the fire crawling over his hand. It was brilliant, but also muted, as though a shadow had simply fallen across fire. I could see occasional licks of bright gold shooting through the darkness, and once I thought I saw the flicker of an inky black tendril darting up through the swirling flames.
“I suppose that’s why it also doesn’t hurt me,” I said, laying my hand on his. I felt the slow, sliding warmth of his magic. It was the same wonderful sense of rightness and bliss that I always felt from the gold fire, but therewas more— something delicious and exciting. It made my heart beat faster and sent a breathlessness through my chest.
I abruptly wished the flames covered my entire body. It sent a sharp pulse of desire straight through me as my imagination rolled through images of him inside me, fucking me in the middle of all that dark fire.
He flinched, sucking in a breath. "Fuck, Sera. What are you thinking about?"
The question startled me. My cheeks grew warm, despite the fact that we were both completely naked and my bare breasts were directly beneath his gaze. "Nothing," I said.
He shook his head slowly, and a half grin curled his lips. "Liar," he accused.
He moved his hand straight down to the dark curls between my thighs. He casually slid his finger along the center through the tell-tale wetness.
"I told you, I can taste it," he breathed.
He lifted his finger and I saw wetness glistening on the tip. And then he put his finger into his mouth, closing his eyes as though savoring the taste of me. He groaned. "Your desire—It tastes just like that."
"It does?" I asked, breathless.
He opened his eyes and I saw the fire in them for only an instant—gold and bright, just like his hands. And then it was gone, and those beautiful black eyes raked over my body. "What were you thinking of, you wicked, beautiful girl?"
"That's none of your business," I replied mischievously.
"Oh?" he asked, arching a brow. "If you don't tell me, I can't give it to you, now can I?" He trailed his hand over my breast, cupping the round weight that fit nicely in his big hand.
"You can't give this to me anyway," I said, being purposely coy to frustrate him.
"I can," he insisted. "I will give you anything, Sera." He pushed me back until I was lying on the mattress under him. He lowered his head to my nipple and flicked his tongue against the taut peaked flesh, making me moan. “Tell me what you want, my love. Let me give it to you.”
"We would burn the entire brothel down around us if you gave me what I want right now."
He raised his eyes to mine as a slow grin of understanding spread across his face.
