Blood Flame (The Flame Series Book 1) by Caris Roane

thing she saw was a pit on the bridge about fifteen feet wide. But Connor had been right, her bike was still there, a good ten feet from the edge of the hole. Rubble was everywhere.
    Not surprising, though the bombed-out section was cordoned off, several TPS officers directed traffic around the gaping hole. The reality was simple; the drug lords only made money if humans kept moving through Five Bridges and spending their weekly earnings.
    “You’re body’s grown stiff, Iris. You mad?”
    “It seems so disrespectful to Jason and Sadie. Couldn’t the bridge stay closed for five minutes?”
    “You know what our world is.”
    She sighed and when he began picking up speed, she once more wrapped her arms securely around his neck. “I know, but it really bugs me.”
    “I hear you.”
    Connor zipped her through the air back to Elegance. At least she didn’t have to give him directions, a thought that made her chuckle. Was it only a couple of hours ago that she’d looked up into the night sky, hunting for him?
    “Something funny?”
    “I’m not sure. It’s hard to know how to react to all we’ve been through, and the night’s not over yet.” Absently, she ran a finger along the short shoulder seam of his tank. The hilt of his sword was pressed into her right hip and she could feel his Glock against her left.
    Connor had given her a canvas bag for her belongings, which he now carried in his free hand along with his own travel bag slung over his shoulder. The man was thoughtful.
    When he began his descent toward her house, she suggested he land in the backyard. “I’d rather my neighbors didn’t see us on the front porch.”
    “Good idea.”
    Slowly, he eased past the huge tree to the small patch of lawn she kept in the middle of her jungle-like garden.
    Once she stepped off his boot, she took the canvas bag from his hand, then told him to make himself at home. She headed inside, but left the French doors wide to make sure Connor knew he was welcome to come in.
    She went to her bedroom and after closing the door, she planted a hand between her breasts. She could feel her heart pounding. What was it about Connor that ramped her up so completely?
    She needed some help calming down. She crossed to the bedside table and lit the small candle beneath a miniature cauldron. The flame would be enough to warm up the water and send lavender streaming through the air. For her, nothing eased her like this fragrance.
    The room quickly filled with the edgy floral scent. From her chest of drawers, she withdrew a packet of bay leaves. Taking a small one out, she slipped it under her tongue. Bay had a protective effect and would also support her present need for wisdom. She couldn’t keep the leaf in place for very long, however, or she would easily slide into a vision-state.
    She removed Connor’s shirt, folded it up and set it outside her bedroom door. She’d almost thrown it on the bed, which would have been nothing short of a witchy invitation for the man to hurry in here and take possession of her body.
    The same earlier sensation returned of craving Connor desperately. She almost retrieved his shirt from the hall. After all, would it really be so bad to make use of his incredibly muscular body?
    When her mind began to swirl faintly, she plucked the bay leaf from her mouth, crossed to the brew pot and laid it on top of the small lavender flowers and stems.
    Time to get cleaned up. She slid into a robe, gathered up a fresh set of clothes and crossed the hall to the bathroom, the only one in her small house.
    Once in the shower, she dipped beneath the spray.
    Nothing could have felt better than the stream of hot water hitting her neck and shoulders. She washed her hair as well since the explosion had given her an odd metallic smell.
    She’d always found showers a cleansing experience on more than one level. Given what she’d just been through, she spoke a series of incantations to purify her soul, her body and her home from