Touch of Flame

What did he mean? What were they doing? And how were they naked?

She looked at him questioningly. It couldn’t be what she thought he meant. Who was at the door?

His eyes looked to the side and he continued to listen. Could he hear all the way outside and know who it was? Then it meant whoever was outside could also hear them all the way in. Why would he tell her to be quiet otherwise?

“Who?” She mouthed, without making a sound.

“Zoila. Saul.” He mouthed back just when another knock came. Ugh.

“Malachi behave!” She told him now louder.

He was surprised for a moment but was quick to play along. “Why? Are not enjoying my misbehavior?”

Her face burned. “No…”

“Your body says something else.”

Huh? Now her cheeks were in flames. She grasped the spoon harder. This kind of talking wasn’t for her. Her mind scrolled through the pages of the erotic books she had read.

“What does my body say?” She asked, making her face melt away.

Now he was the one speechless. She could see his muscles flex and his jaw tighten. His smoldering eyes looked into hers and she gazed down at her plate, pretending that she was fine and wanted to continue eating her meal.  Did she really think she could speak like the women in those books and be fine? Who was she fooling?

“Your body…” he began his tone changing. Her heart skipped and she glanced up without meaning to. “Feels perfect in my arms. Hot. Soft. Trembling.”

Her breath trembled.

“Now I want to taste you,” he subtly smiled as he picked a piece of chicken and chewed on it. “Mhmm…sweet.”

Ravina didn’t know whether to wither away with embarrassment or laugh. “Oh stop,” she breathed but even that sounded wrong and now she truly wanted to wilt and die. She fumbled nervously with her food.

Did they leave yet? There was no more knocking on the door. She picked a piece of potato and chewed on it avoiding Malachi’s gaze. She picked chewed, picked chewed.

“Do you want more?”

More?

She looked up at him and he smiled knowingly. “You seem to enjoy it. The food.”

Oh. She almost emptied her plate, feeling her tongue and insides burn.

Without waiting for a reply he took her plate and refilled it.

“I am full,” she said.

“You need to eat well to heal,” he told her placing her filled plate in front of her.

“I won’t be able to eat all of this.” Her shoulder began to pain her more as well.

“It is easy to eat a lot when the food is spicy. Let’s finish it so it doesn’t go to waste.” He took some more as well and then they sat and ate in silence.

Ravina was surprised she could finish. Now even her lips tingled. Probably swelled as well. She took her cup of water to cool her throat.  Oh, she was so full she felt drowsy.

“I really ate a lot,” she said.

“Well, you need some flesh on your bones.”

“I am not too thin for a human,” she said. No man had ever complained about her looks. In fact, she was used to men ogling her, trying to get gather their courage only to greet her.

He said nothing and began to clean after them instead. Ravina wanted to help but she was restricted but her bloody broken leg. Her whole life was a battlefield with accidents and injuries.

A burning sensation settled in her chest. She reached for more water. “Are you having heartburn?” He asked.

Heartburn?

“Sweets is the best cure for it,” he said walking over. He pulled her chair back to carry her again.

“Wait! You can just lend me your arm.”

“And wait while you limp forward? I don’t have the patience for that,” he said pulling the chair and lifting her up.

He carried her upstairs and as he headed toward his room, “where are you taking me?” She asked.

“You will sleep in my room,” he told her.

“My leg is injured. Not my brain. You don’t need to supervise me all the time.”

“I do. You are a danger to yourself. With your fleshless bones, that shelf could have killed you.”

Was he serious?

“That is extreme and this seems like an excuse,” she said.

“Trust me, if I decided something I wouldn’t need an excuse.”

“What does that mean?” her heart flipped.

He placed her carefully on his bed and she pushed herself up to sit, her eyes glued on him. He grinned. “Sometimes you are like a lioness and others like a rabbit. I don’t know which one I like more.”

Now he was just teasing her.

“I will leave to get some sweets. Stay in bed or you won’t get any?”

“Where are you leaving?”

“The shop.”

“You don’t need to. I am fine.”

“But I am not. I need my sweets to control my urges for something sweeter.” Urges? The way he looked at her… She was no meal. “Stay in bed,” he told her and left.

Ravina knew she shouldn’t conflate lust and love. As his breedmate and with his instinct, there was no question that he lusted for her. According to professor Ward’s research, the urge to breed was very strong. She remembered Georgia, Kayla, and Brenna’s words. Was breeding done differently? Even Kayla told her to eat more. Why?

Reaching for her pained shoulder, she massaged it. Soon she heard the sound of footsteps climbing the stairs. Malachi was already back. She guessed he flew back and forth, there was no other way to explain the speed in which he returned otherwise.

“Sweets,” he said holding a box.

He walked over and sat at her feet. He opened the box and held it out. She leaned forward to look inside. She recognized a few of them and took the one she remembered to taste the best. One that tasted like sweet peanuts.

“How does it taste?”

、 “Mmm…” she nodded as it melted in her mouth. She could not speak yet. “Good.” She said when she swallowed it. He put the box in front of her. She took another one and since it made her fingers sticky, she licked the sugar away.

“Don’t do that.” His dark voice startled her.