Page 16 of Fight Fire With Fire
Ember
So much had happened in such a short time. My entire life felt as though it had changed in the blink of an eye. My mind was whirling as Dawson led me into the woods, and it took longer than it should have before I wondered where he was taking me. “Are you going to shift into your dragon form and give me a ride to your home?”
“Not this time, baby.” Flames swirled in his eyes. “My dragon is dying to get some time with you too, but I have an easier way to get us on my hold’s land.”
My brow wrinkled as I scanned our surroundings and saw wilderness as far as I could see. “You do?”
“Ready to learn about one of the world’s best-kept secrets?” I nodded, and he pointed at the entrance to a cave as we approached it. “There are windows to other places and realms hidden throughout the world that can only be used by those who know where to find them. We can travel almost anywhere in the blink of an eye, as long as there’s another portal near where you want to go.”
I was used to magic, but what the portals could do was beyond my imagination. After he led me through the cave system, I stared in awe at the glittering curtain we stopped in front of. “This can take us to your home?”
“Yes, and it’ll only take a few seconds to get there.”
I wondered how the portal’s magic worked. “Will it hurt?”
“Not even a little bit,” he assured me, tugging me closer to the shimmering space. “I’d never have brought you here if it did.”
I held his hand for dear life as we stepped through the portal, only to learn that it hadn’t been necessary. I could have easily made the journey by myself since it was as simple as walking from one side of a room to another. Only in this case, we’d traveled a great distance with the same amount of ease and in as little time. The wilderness on the other side of the portal was denser, and it took about twenty minutes for Dawson to lead me down a small trail to an opening. “Home sweet home.”
The three-story log house about fifty yards in front of us was huge. “You live here?”
“Sorry, I meant that figuratively since we’re safely on Veles land.” He jerked his chin toward the left. “We’ll need to backtrack a little to get to our house.”
My brows drew together. “Oh.”
“We need to stop off at my aunt and uncle’s house before we go home.” Dawson flashed me an apologetic smile. “He’s going to want to hear about what happened even though I wasn’t at The Abyss for anything related to our hold. He’s my alpha.”
I wasn’t a shifter, but I understood how their hierarchy worked. It wasn’t that much different than my coven. “I get it.”
“We don’t have to stay long.” He squeezed my hand.
I bumped my shoulder against his. “Stop worrying. I’m fine.”
Or at least I had thought I was…until we got close enough to the house to spot the small crowd waiting for us on the porch. “Fuck, I should’ve known they wouldn’t wait to do this until after you had the chance to get settled in.”
“Did you call to let them know you found me?” I whispered.
“No, but my uncle is a strong alpha. He would have sensed your new tie to our hold when I mated and marked you.” My cheeks filled with heat as I thought about exactly how he’d done that. Dawson bent his head to murmur, “He didn’t get any details, baby. Just the knowledge that our mating bond had formed.”
“Thank the goddess for that,” I mumbled as he led me up the steps toward his family. It had been so long since I had one of my own that I felt a little awkward meeting Dawson’s. But they were all so welcoming that my nerves quickly passed.
Although his uncle was the alpha, his dad was the first to step forward and greet us. “Welcome home, son.”
“Dad, this is Ember. My mate.”
The pride in Dawson’s voice brought tears to my eyes, and every other woman’s. His mom rushed forward and introduced herself. “I’m so happy to meet you, Ember. I’m Adira, and Dale is my mate.”
The other older couple waved, and the man said, “I’m Dean, Dawson’s uncle. And this is my mate, Demi.”
My gaze landed on the only familiar face. “Hey, Damien. Long time no see.”
His mate’s eyes widened. “You know each other?”
“Not really. I met him once when he was visiting Blake many years ago,” I explained.
“If I’d known that you belonged to my cousin, I would’ve kept in closer contact with your coven.” He shot an apologetic smile at Dawson. “Then you might have found her sooner.”
“I doubt it since I think that was around the time your search for Soleil began.” My consort sighed. “And as wild as the past day has been, I have no doubt that things turned out exactly as fate intended.”
