Page 17 of Heartflame

“Let me go,” he wheezed, but his hands had curled into my tank top, gripping the fabric like a lifeline.

“Not a chance,” I murmured, and I couldn’t resist lowering my head to breathe in the scent of him. Sweat and exertion and that musk. It was intoxicating. “Don’t worry,” I added, seeing the fear in his eyes. “I’m not going to hurt you. But you can barely stand on your own right now.”

I let him lean against me, feeling the rapid rise and fall of his chest against mine. His heart was hammering so fast I thought it might burst right out of his ribs. I could feel the tremors running through his muscles, the way his legs had basically turned to jelly beneath him.

“Just breathe,” I said softly, keeping one arm wrapped around his waist while the other came up to push his sweat-dampened hair out of his face. “In through your nose, out through your mouth. You pushed yourself too hard.”

“Fuck... you,” he managed between gasps, but there was no real anger in it anymore. Just exhaustion and something else. Something that made my cock throb against his hip.

“You already tried that approach,” I murmured, unable to resist the urge to press my lips to his temple. “Didn’t work out so well for you.”

He made a noise that might have been a laugh or might have been a sob. I honestly couldn’t tell. His hands were still gripping my tank top, and I could feel his nails digging into my scaled chest through the thin fabric. The slight sting of it only turned me on more.

“Why are you doing this?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. “Why won’t you just leave me alone?”

I pulled back just enough to look at his face. His green eyes were glazed, his lips parted as he fought to catch his breath. A bead of sweat dripped down his temple, and I had to resist the urge to lick it away.

“Because,” I said slowly, “I think you’re the most interesting person I’ve met since I got to Widdershins. Everyone else just wants to be near me because of who I am. But you? You despise me so much you don’t even want to be in the same room with me. And somehow, that just makes me want you even more.”

He stared at me for a long moment, his breathing gradually slowing as his body began to recover from the exertion. I could see the war playing out behind his eyes, the constant battle between what he wanted and what he thought he should want.

“You’re insane,” he finally said.

“Maybe,” I agreed. “But I want you anyway.”

I adjusted my grip on him, making sure he was steady enough to stand on his own before I released him. He immediately took a step back, but not far. We were still close enough that I could feel the heat radiating off him, could smell the intoxicating musk of his sweat.

“You should head back,” he said, but he made no move to start running again. “I need to cool down with a walk.”

“You need to sit down before you pass out,” I corrected, gesturing toward a fallen log just off the side of the trail. “Come on. Five minutes. That’s all I’m asking.”

He looked like he wanted to argue, but his body was already making the decision for him. His legs were shaking too badly to run anymore, and he knew it. With a resigned sigh, he limped over to the log and sat down heavily, his head hanging between his knees as he continued to work on catching his breath.

I sat down beside him, keeping a respectful distance, though it took every ounce of willpower I possessed not to touch him. The setting sun filtered through the pine trees in golden shafts, casting long shadows across the forest floor. It was peaceful out here, quiet except for the sound of his breathing and the distant call of birds settling in for the night. A quick glance down revealed that the tip of my dick was hanging out of my shorts, but I did nothing to conceal it. The shorts weren’t long enough to tuck it away, anyway.

“The assignment,” he said after a few minutes of silence. He glanced over, his eyes immediately going to my cock before they widened with shock. Then he looked away fast, avoiding me altogether. “W-We’ll have to work on it at some point.”

“I know,” I replied. “We can do it tomorrow. You’re clearly in no shape to do anything productive tonight.”

“Fuck off.”

I just laughed, leaning back on my elbows. “You’re so defensive, Red. What do you have against having a good time?”

“Oh, so you think you’re a good time?” he scoffed.

“I know I am.”

“God, you are a fucking prick, you know that?”

“And you’re a stuck up little witch,” I said. He glared at me and I just shrugged. “It’s true. You think you’re better than everyone else too, just like me.”

“I do not!”

“Yeah, you do,” I sighed, not breaking eye contact. “Quill Aster is too good for parties, too good for fun outside of class, and clearly too good for a well-connected dragon who just wants to show him a good time.” I flashed him a toothy smile. “You’re kind of a stuck up cunt, Red.”

He flinched at the word, his jaw tightening, and I watched as a flush crept up his neck. I’d hit a nerve, and we both knew it.

“You don’t know anything about me,” he said quietly, his voice tight with barely controlled anger.