Retribution(56)

He flashed a hand toward the spectators, and a pearlescent fire shield enveloped them as he raised his eyebrows at Layla. “Fill me up.”

“Do you want me to give you as much as I can?”

“Sure. I see no reason to hold back.”

She walked around him and placed her palms flat on the small of his back. “Ready?”

“Yep,” he answered, aiming his palms at the sky.

Her lips caressed his spine as her palms slid up his back and shoulders, but then she had to stop kissing so she could hover to his forearms. Once she got to his wrists, she paused, leaving her fingertips touching the back of his hands as she looked down.

His head was nestled between her breasts, and his eyes glinted as he met her stare. “I can’t tell if it’s your fire or your position turning me on.”

“Then it worked?”

“Yes,” he confirmed. “It definitely worked. Are you ready for me to let it go?”

“Whenever you are.”

“Look up.”

She did, and he took several quick breaths before going rigid. Noticing his tension, Layla looked down as their fire exploded from his hands, blotting out the sun and casting a bloody hue across his closed lids and flexed face. The roaring flames expanded, sucking oxygen from the atmosphere, but Layla barely noticed as she shouted Quin’s name and slid down his body.

He went down with her, dropping to his knees in a river of melted snow, and Layla scrambled in front of him, her heart thundering as panic clutched it. Slumping to the ice, she frantically searched him with eyes and hands, looking for injuries, but she knew it was pointless. The pain was on the inside, not the outside, and she didn't have a damn clue how to heal internal injuries.

“Oh god, Quin,” she whispered, tears swelling over her lids. “What can I do? I don't know what to do.”

He popped his head up and opened his eyes. Then his hands were on her cheeks as his thumbs dried her tears. “I'm okay.”

“I know better,” she cried. “You're hurting.”

“Look at me, Layla.”

Her hands stilled as she met his stare, and he ran a thumb across her lips. “I’m okay. I can still feel the burn, but it's no longer unbearable. Now please calm down.”

She burst into sobs and collapsed into his arms. “I'm so sorry.”

“Hey,” he soothed, pulling her onto his lap and kissing away her tears. “It’s okay. Please don’t cry. That hurts far worse than the fire.”

She sucked in a choppy breath while trying to stem the tears and regret. “I'm so sorry.”

“Listen to me, Layla. Your fire didn't burn me. Mine did. You have nothing to be sorry about.”

“I'm sorry you're hurting.”

“I'm fine.” He lifted his hand and flexed his fingers. “I can barely feel it now.”

Their audience approached, most of them smiling and looking toward the sky, but a few watched Quin and Layla with concerned eyes.

“That was incredible,” Grant exclaimed, finally dropping his gaze, and his head bobbed when he found them sitting on the ice.

“Was it?” Quin asked. “We missed it.”

“Unbelievable,” several people mumbled.

Dallas shook his head as he glanced between Quin and the sky. “I've never seen anything like it.”

“And you won't ever see it again,” Layla added, her face buried in Quin’s neck.

“What's going on?” Cordelia asked.

“It burned me,” Quin answered.

Cordelia moved closer. “What do you mean?”

“When I added my fire to hers, it was too much. It burned my insides.”

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I immediately healed myself. I can barely feel it now.”

“And you'll never feel it again,” Layla interjected.

Quin gently pulled her from his neck and found her eyes. “Please don't say that, Layla. I love the way it feels when you summon your fire in me.”

“That's fine, and I'll do it again, but never like that. Never that much. We're never doing that again.”

Her voice rose as she expounded, so he tightened his hug and stroked her hair. “Okay, love. We won't summon that much again.”

“I know,” she shot back.

Brietta laughed and shook her head. “Considering all the things you’ve been through since you got here, Layla, I'm surprised you're freaking out about Quin feeling a little discomfort.”

Layla's gaze shot to her cousin. “I’d do it all again to keep him from burning his insides.”

She meant it, and Quin's jaw tensed as he tightened his hold on her and stood. “Let’s drop it. So the fire was impressive?”

“That's putting it mildly,” Kemble answered. “And you were right about having to repair the ice. That one spell melted about an eighth of an inch off the top, and it's a good thing you had us shielded, or we'd be missing our hair.”