Lady (4 page)

With the trident in her hand, she was definitely an impressive and nearly naked figure. When she activated the trident, those around had better bundle up.

Fitted with an ear and collar com, she hung onto Fire Fall and listened to her first mission briefing.

“The research station we are going to is working on an experimental high-yield, oil-heavy grain. It is far too combustible to be near a flame or spark, but their vehicle is lacking in regular maintenance. It sparked this morning before I was called to the spaceport. Apparently, it just did it again.”

She held on with her left hand this time, her right was working on the trident to find the correct grip.

“Do you want to try or should I draw off the flames first?”

Rox blinked. “I suppose I can give it a whirl.”

She regretted those words when she saw the five acres of flames spreading rapidly. He put them down nearby and dismounted as she did.

Rox walked toward the flames and the spines of her trident separated and started to spin. She extended her arm and pulled in the heat.

The sheer expanse of the flames fought her, but when she opened her mind and let the cold have its way, the fire dimmed and flickered, going out in a spreading wave.

The whirring of her weapon of focus slowed as she brought the field down to just above freezing.

Her wristbands and the links around her boots helped her to absorb the heat in a more efficient manner than her body could normally manage. When the fire was deprived of its ignition source, it simply died.

“Well done, Roxelena.”

“Rox, please.” She wrinkled her nose.

“That won’t do. Lady, then.” He removed his helmet and turned her to face him. “Could you bear being called Lady?”

She looked into his eyes, and there was heat flaring there. She leaned up and kissed him, wrapping her hand around the back of his neck.

Heat flowed between them, and her normally cool abdomen warmed and she felt her blood running through her veins.

He parted his lips and fed the ice inside her. A light nearby broke the kiss.

Rox moved out of his embrace and lowered her trident.

“It is just the local press, Lady. They always enjoy an image of the new Guardians.” He put his left arm around her waist and held her against him.

She thought he was being protective, but when she felt the erection, she realised it was for his own sense of decorum.

The light approached, and an interviewer with a vid camera and a crew came toward her.

“Fire Fall! Is this the new Guardian who had the spaceport in a riot?”

He snorted, “There was hardly a riot, Dionic. Her transport was mishandled and things got a little carried away.”

The elegant woman sneered, “I hear that her pilot is still in the infirmary.”

Fire Fall snorted. “It served him right. He had his directions, and he chose to act for his own comfort instead of that of his cargo. The recording indicates he sealed her in against instructions.”

Rox bit her lip. She hadn’t realised that the pilot was that unwell.

“What is your name, Guardian?”

She frowned and then shrugged. “Lady.”

She heard the cough at her side.

Fire Fall agreed. “Her designation is Lady.”

“Lady, why is your clothing so minimal?”

Smiling, Rox extended her trident and summoned the humidity in the plants to form a tower of ice on which a globe sat.

“I am naturally cold, so I am wearing as little as possible to keep myself warm.”

The vid recorder swung from her structure back to her.

Dionic suddenly seemed to realise something. “Fire Fall, congratulations on your marriage.”

Rox returned her trident to the upright position.

“Thank you. It is a relief not to wear the helmet at all times.”

“How does your family feel about your wedding one of the new aliens?”

Rox realised that she was in the middle of a conversation that had nothing to do with her.

“I do not know, nor do I truly concern myself with their opinion. I serve Irudan, Lady serves Irudan, and as fire and ice, we are an excellent match.” He threaded his left hand through Rox’s and lifted it to his lips. He burst into flame and her body absorbed it.

Dionic flinched back. “Right. That is enough. We have what we need.”

Her vid handler turned off the light and the flames of Fire Fall were all that was visible.

“Make sure you keep to the facts, Dionic. You skate a little too close to scandal.”

She paused and nodded before she turned around to walk with her crewmember in the direction they had come from.

Rox turned and asked. “Where are they going?”

“Underground transport. Irudan’s public transport system is completely underground with the exception of the licenses issued to a few, including the Guardians.”

“Right. Well, this has been an eventful first day.” She smiled and looked up at him. “Shall we return to the base?”

“I believe so. Skorin should have finished dinner by now, we will be lucky if there is anything left over.” He waved toward the flier. “After you.”

She settled on the rear seat and wrapped her arm around him when he settled. He used the com on his suit and reported their completion of the mission.

Rox plastered her thighs against his and pressed her breasts against his back as they lifted off. She idly ran the fingers of her left hand over his abdomen, counting the ridges as the muscles tightened and then moving up and starting again.

He was vibrating with tension when they landed at the base. She scampered off the flier before he could turn and berate her for her teasing. “I am rather peckish, how about you?”

He snarled and lunged for her. She blasted him with cold but he kept coming.

She squealed then mumbled and pounded her hands against his chest while he kissed her ravenously.

Heat poured into her, and she gave up her pretense of disagreeing with the consequences of over an hour’s worth of teasing. Her touch hadn’t chilled him; in fact, it had fired him up. It was a first for her.

Skorin cleared his throat. “We have kept plates warm for you, if you don’t mind.”

Devnin raised his head and snarled at Skorin. “Do I interrupt you when you are with Rowen?”

Rowen piped up. “Twice last week.”

Rox pulled back and pressed her fingers to her lips. “I think a little distraction might be in order. I haven’t eaten since I was on the moon base, so I am overdue.”

That snapped him into motion. “He didn’t feed you on the ship?”

“He didn’t have to. I went into cold sleep, well my version of cold sleep. I don’t need to eat when I have gone dormant.” She let herself be bustled into the base and settled in the dining room.

Rowen carefully removed the trident and said, “I will put it in your room.”

“Thanks.” Rox sat with her hands folded in her lap.

When Rowen returned, she slid a tablet in front of her. “You made the news. You are really impressive in action.”

Rox didn’t reply; she activated the tablet and selected the Irudan nightly news. “Holy crap!”

Before they had turned on the light, the fire had illuminated the area and Rox had glowed in the darkness as she quelled the flames.

Her hair glowed white around her and floated up and out in a halo as she called on the heat to leave the plant life.

She watched Fire Fall behind her, with his arms crossed over his chest and feet spread apart. He was ready for action, but it was not necessary, she cooled the flames and left the remainder of the plants resting quietly.

Her light faded and the spotlight flicked on and approached the couple in the heated clinch.

The rest of the interview she remembered vividly.

Devnin slid a plate in front of her and held his hand over it for a moment. “If it cools, I will heat it again.”

She nodded and started eating, drinking from the cup of water that Rowen brought to her. Without her asking for it, Devnin warmed her food three times during the meal.

Having a hot meal inside her gave her a peculiar satisfaction. She remembered the first time her meal went cold and the confusion it had engendered. Her parents had just died within months of each other and it was her first birthday without a cake or candles.

Julian had no clue what to do with an eight year old. Her aunt and uncle were beginning to deal with having the two Barinova children with them and her birthday had slipped their minds. They had hidden the emergence of her chill with sweaters and increased heat in the house. The doctors could not determine the abnormally low body temperature, and she had simply gotten used to it.

School was tedious and friends were sparse. Dating was even worse. Being an ice queen in high school was even worse when there was actual ice involved.

She finished her meal and brought the empty plate into the kitchen. Rox put her dish in the washer and the odd eating prongs went in the cutlery section.

She returned to the table and sat to watch the final observations of Dionic.

“With this new and very different Guardian in our midst, are we safer or at the whim of a lady who is cold to the bone. I hope Fire Fall’s family is pleased with the match, because our man of fire has found his lady of ice. This is Dionic Niil, signing off.”

Rox opened her mouth, and Devnin closed it with a gentle finger.

“Dionic is my sister. My family is not happy with my talent and even less impressed with my choice of occupation.”

Rox grappled with that for a moment. “It does explain her fascination with my clothing choice.”

She covered her mouth for a yawn. “You would think that after sleeping for days I would be better rested.”

“You did extinguish five acres of flame. That has to make you a little sleepy.”

She chuckled. “Probably. Is there something else I need to do tonight?”

Devnin smiled. “No. Make yourself comfortable in your quarters, and if you need anything, I am just next door.”

She got to her feet, kissed him on the cheek and made her way to her rooms. The door didn’t lock but that wasn’t an issue, she could freeze it shut if she had to.

Rox engaged in the laborious process of removing her clothing and then she crawled onto the bed. Her trident was nearby and she moved it so it would be next to her while she slept.

It had been a very eventful first day. She could hardly wait to see what the next would bring.

Rox woke with ice in her veins. She went to the shower and set it for solar, absorbing as much heat as it would give her. It wasn’t enough.

She bit her lip at the options and left the lav, heading for the connecting door before she could change her mind.

Rox swung the door open as quietly as she could and looked for Devnin in the predawn dimness.

She caught the gleam of his shoulder on the bed and moved toward him, her body reaching out to capture the heat coming from his skin.

Rox whispered, “Devnin?”

He grunted and rolled over.

“Devnin.” She reached out and stroked his cheek.

He reached up and caught her wrist. “Lady, is something wrong?”

She smiled and laughed helplessly. “I am cold.”

He rolled to one side and invited her into his bed. She hesitated for a moment and then gave in to temptation. Rox lay next to him and let her body pull heat from his.

He rested his hand on her hip and eased her into full contact with him.

She moved suddenly, wrapping her arm around him and draping one thigh over his. She flattened herself to him and shuddered as the heat seeped into her.

“I believe that things would progress faster if I did this.” He rolled her to her back and pressed his lips to hers, breathing fire into her lungs.

She groaned and wrapped her legs around him, pressing against him with rhythmic invitation. She didn’t just want to play with fire, she wanted to invite it inside to stay.

His tongue teased hers, twisting and taunting her, bringing her moans to his mouth in quick succession.

Rox rocked against him, shifting until his erection was lodged between her thighs. She threaded her hands in his hair and took all that he had to give her. When he shifted and pressed the head of his cock into her, she arched her back and tilted her hips to take him in.

Heat filled her channel, filled her lungs, surrounded her, and she held tight as he began to move. The thick column of his cock provided a delightful friction as he withdrew almost to the edge and then thrust back into her. He lay on her so tightly that his motions moved her breasts and caressed her torso.

His position also put pressure on her clit as he crushed her under him. She held tightly to him, varying her grip from his head, to clawing at his back and down to his buttocks as he pumped into her.

Her body was on fire, heat was in every pore, and she surrendered to it as it built with every motion. She clawed at him frantically and locked her ankles around his thighs as her body fought for release.

When her orgasm ripped through her, fire tore her apart and cold surrendered to the moment. At the moment that he spilled into her, the fire flared again.

Devnin rested on her for a moment before he glowed with heat and levered up to look into her eyes. “Are you all right?”

Still enjoying the sensation of being warm, she smiled. “I am wonderful. How do you feel?”

“Surprisingly normal and very relaxed.” He kissed her softly.

Her lips felt swollen, but she returned the kiss with interest. “I feel warm.”

He chuckled. “Yes, you do. Not the normal heat from having sex but rather a nice, average temperature.”

She smiled shyly. “That is a first for me as an adult. The heat, not the sex. The sex usually leaves me cold.”

He laughed at her little joke.

He nuzzled at her neck and kissed it. “I am glad that I could fan the flames.”

She laughed. “Perhaps I can let you get some rest now.”

He groaned and shifted his hands under her, rolling her until she was on him, flattened by his grip on her back.

“I think I can rest now if you can.” His gleaming eyes were giving off a challenge.