Wild Flame by Donna Grant

Author:Donna Grant [Grant, Donna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: DL Grant, LLC
Published: 2015-05-17T23:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TEN

Christian had known it was a mistake to pull her against him, but he hadn’t been able to stop himself. He’d needed Ivy, like she was a basic ingredient to his survival.

The tightness in his chest loosened when her arms snaked around his neck. He deepened the kiss, his body responding instantly to the heady feel of her.

By the time he ended the kiss, they were both breathing heavily. Christian leaned his forehead against hers.

“Don’t give up,” he urged.

Ivy smiled and traced his lip with her finger. “I’m not. But you need to be realistic. I might die.”

“There’s a chance I might die every night I go out hunting,” he argued.

She kissed his jaw before she rested her head on his chest. “If the worst happens, it won’t be because you didn’t do all that you could.”

Christian tightened his arms around her. There was a way to save Ivy. There was always a way. He just had to find it.

“I should get back inside and do more research.”

Christian didn’t let her move. “Not yet. You need to have a bit of downtime.”

“You’re probably right. I really don’t want my last day to be filled with books and computers.”

He hated that she was able to be so flippant. It was Ivy’s way of coping, but Christian didn’t have to like it.

Neither of them spoke about the kiss or the fact they were embracing. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, Ivy didn’t want to be alone. Since Christian only wanted to be with her, it worked out perfectly.

Every time he thought about her dying, there was an ache in his chest. It had started small, but it was growing rapidly.

“Do you really never want to fall in love?” she asked into the silence.

Christian wrapped one of her curls around his finger. “My parents were deeply in love. They did everything together. There were many nights I’d wake to hear music downstairs. I’d go to the railing and look down to find them dancing.”

“What a beautiful memory.”

“It was. I remember barely being able to wait until I could find such love. Then my mother was killed. I can still hear the bellow that echoed through the bayou when my father found her body. That sound...” he paused and swallowed. “It haunts me to this day. It was like his heart had been ripped from his chest. The desolation, the anguish of that sound was horrible.”

Her arms tightened. “I can’t even imagine.”

“Later that night, he died. He wanted revenge. My father normally had such a cool head when he went hunting. He taught us patience and control, but he had neither after my mother’s death.”

“You fear you’ll be the same.”

“I know I will.” He kissed the top of Ivy’s head. “I know if I ever fall in love it’ll be deep. It’ll be the kind of love my parents had. I’ve always known that.”

“So you’ve protected yourself.”

He rested his chin atop her head. “I have. Even as I watched my brothers fall in love.

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