Fighting the Flames (Firefighter Romance #1)(80)

The bolt of energy hit Derek in his chest, and as Toby and Jacqueline took cover behind the bar, they watched on as he writhed in pain, a look of shock frozen on his face. But Gabe's power was no match for anything Derek could have mustered.

Within a moment, Derek Spark exploded, nothing left but ashes left behind.

Everything in the room quaked. Bottles crashed to the floor, and pieces of the building plummeted, crumbling around them. Toby covered her body with his.

When the dust settled, he eased from her form, and his eyes scanned her for injury. Particles of dust lay in his hair, and he sneezed. Jacqueline peeked out from behind the bar; her heart hammered and squeezed inside her chest.

“And you were worried about my powers going crazy?” she said.

Together they stood, brushing each other off.

Gabe lay on the floor.

“No.” Toby ran to his son, kneeling next to him. He breathed a sigh of relief. “He's alive. I don't want to lose him all over again.”

“He's going to need some help controlling his powers,” Jacqueline said leaning over the men. Glad he survived but she wasn’t oozing with forgiveness.

Toby looked up at her. “Speaking of control, do you realize that you broke a command spell on your own? That takes incredible willpower,” he said. “How did you break it?”

“I just thought about you.” Jacqueline smiled. “I could never hurt someone I love.”

The wide smile Toby returned made her feel as light as air. He rose from the ground and cupped her cheek, drawing her closer. Leaning in, his nose brushed hers, and the faintest tickle sparked on her lips. Jacqueline yanked his shirt, deepening the kiss as the ground disappeared beneath her feet and she found herself literally floating.

“Now that's my kind of magic,” she said rubbing his chest as Toby’s heart fluttered as fast as hers.

“Do you realize that none of the wizards can hurt you now? They can't control you,” Toby pointed out. “I always thought death would be your only escape. Once you were a full-blooded banshee, no one would want to hurt you since all you could take then were dead spirits.”


“I don't want to die,” Jacqueline whispered. “I want to be with you.”

She thought about all the things that she would need to take care of.

Explaining what had taken place in the bar to the tied up Angela and Matilda in the office was going to be interesting. Persuading Gabe to control his powers would probably be another hard task—not to mention figuring out how to get past the fact that he had murdered Eric. Learning about the best way to use her newfound skills was going to take time, too.

Hell, discovering everything about the supernatural world was going to be a challenge. Then there was the Brotherhood.

But as she stared into Toby's eyes, she found herself ready for anything. The future didn't seem so daunting in his arms.

However, this was only their beginning. The future lay before them, weaving a road of danger and intrigue. “I love you,” she said as Gabe stirred on the floor below.

Toby floated them to the ground, his eyes never leaving her. “I love you too.”