Edge Of Tomorrow (Eternal Flames Maddox Book 6) Read online

  Ollie stopped talking and moved across the room and dropped down on the couch. Wyn joined him and sat next to him, their legs just about touching. “So what happened?” Wyn asked.

  “Everyone started yelling and I kept bitching, then I started on not even being able to have a fucking hot dog. Nelson got up and stormed out of the house yelling he was going to get me my damn hot dogs even if he had to steal them. We never heard from him again until now when we rescued him. At first, we thought he may have gotten arrested and checked the police, but he wasn’t there. Then we used our powers and followed his trail. It led us to a fairy portal. We knew what fairies did to others of our kind. They drained our powers, then killed us. I wanted to go into the portal after him, but Toby and Pas said it was a bad idea. If the fairies had gotten ahold of Nelson then it was already too late for him,” Ollie explained through his tears.

  “Oh no, sweetness,” Wyn said softly and moved closer. He slid his hands under Ollie, lifted him up, and placed him on his lap.

  Ollie started to cry uncontrollably and pressed his face against Wyn’s chest. “It was all my fault. If I hadn’t kept bitching and whining, Nelson never would have gone out that night and the fairies never would have gotten their hands on him. It was my fault my brother was dead and even though Toby and Pas never said it, I know they blamed me. Then we found out that Nelson was alive, and we went and got him out of there, and Toby’s off with a mate, Pas has found his mate, and Nelson has hardly said anything to me since he was rescued from Fallon. Everything he suffered is because of me.”

  CHAPTER 15

  Wyn wrapped his arms around Ollie and rubbed his back in comfort. “Shh, it’s okay, mate. It wasn’t your fault. It was just bad timing. You had no idea the fairies would be there to take your brother. And maybe Nelson hasn’t said much because of what he’s been through? Maybe it’s too much for him to talk about right now. And from what I heard, Toby and Nash were dancing around each other for years before they finally mated. And Pascal didn’t have any control over when he would find his mate, just like you don’t. They just went to live their lives, Ollie. They’re not running from you, or pushing you away.”

  Ollie sat up and wiped his eyes, then sniffled. “Gods, I probably look like the ass end of a baboon right now,” he stated, then tried to move off Wyn’s lap, but Wyn only held him closer. Ollie placed his palms on Wyn’s chest and met his gaze. “I need a tissue before I snot all over the both of us.”

  Wyn chuckled, then looked around. Suddenly, his eyes lit up and he moved one hand off Ollie and held it out. His arm shifted to his air dragon and was almost invisible. You could only see it because of the shimmer of movement. The arm lengthened toward the desk a few feet away and swirled around a box of tissues that sat there. The wind picked it up and moved the box closer, depositing it on Ollie’s lap, then Wyn’s arm was back.

  “That’s one hell of a trick you got up your sleeve there,” Ollie teased with a small smile, making Wyn chuckle again.

  Wyn reached up and smoothed a lock of hair from Ollie’s face. “You look as handsome as ever, my mate.”

  Ollie gave him a little wicked grin. “Smooth talker. Why are you being so nice to me?” he whispered.

  “Why wouldn’t I be?”

  “Come on, Wyn. The way I denied you. And I saw the way you were looking at me in the council meeting before we came here, and I heard the bite in your voice.”

  “I’m sorry for that, Oliver. Anger was the only way I knew how to deal with your rejection. And I wasn’t trying to be short with you. I was trying to keep myself together. Keep myself calm. You’re not the only one who suffers great guilt, mate,” Wyn said solemnly.

  “What do you mean? Please tell me.”

  Wyn closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath, then released it slowly. He opened his eyes and Ollie gasped from how haunted they looked. “Back during the great Shuite War. Illan sent me to go guard his mother. The two kings were meeting, Illan’s father and Justice’s father. They were trying to find a way for their two sides to stop fighting and come together again for the greater good. I was to guard our queen. My family had been sent to the king’s castle earlier that day so that my mother and younger siblings would be protected.” Wyn stopped and took another deep breath as tears built in his eyes.

  “When I arrived, I saw a few phoenix warriors attacking the castle and I ran inside to get to my queen, but when I walked in…My family…” Tears began to roll down his cheeks. Ollie’s bottom lips trembled as new tears came to his eyes. He wrapped his arms around Wyndingo and held him tight.

  “My mother lay dead on the floor, and my two sisters who were only fifteen and eleven at the time, lay bloody on the stairs. My little brother Colm, who was fourteen, lay across their bodies like he had been trying to shield them. They were all dead. I stood there frozen, not knowing what to do. Then I heard a scream come from above and just as I looked up, my father’s head came rolling down the stairs.”

  “Oh gods no!” Ollie cried.

  “I stood there completely numb as I stared in his lifeless eyes, then the pain and anger built up in me so fast I didn’t have any control over it. Suddenly, there was crashing all around me and I heard the queen scream. She came running down the stairs and right to me, but it was too late. The anger inside me grew so large and I had no control over it and I released it all into the room. A large explosion pulsed out of me, killing everything in its path and I just stood there. Finally, when the anger was gone, and I looked around, the queen lay dead at my feet. My king, Illan’s father, was one of the beings that had entered the castle and was fighting, along with his guards, and I killed them too. I was responsible for killing Illan’s parents.” Wyndingo buried his face in Ollie’s throat and sobbed as he let the memories assault him.

  Ollie ran his finger through Wyn’s hair and kissed the top of his head as he tried to comfort his mate. “It wasn’t your fault, mate. You were in shock. You were standing there with your family slaughtered around you. You were grieving and in so much pain, babe.”

  Wyn pulled back and met Ollie’s gaze. “But I lost control of my powers and killed them, Ollie. It is because of that I swore I would never lose control of myself again. I took off. I ran. A few months later, Savage found me, and he spent years teaching me how to control my emotions and powers so that it would never happen again. I have spent my whole life since then making sure I never lose control again. And now I find out I did, and because of that I started this new war. This is all because of me.”

  Ollie shook his head as he pleaded, “No, Wyn, no. It wasn’t your fault, it was all mine. If I had only been honest with you, then this never would have happened. If I never tripped and Pelt caught me, so you thought I was kissing him, then you never would have gone postal.”

  “Wait, what? When did that happen?”

  Ollie swallowed. “The future me told me what happened on Founders Day. He said I was angry and hurt because I, he, thought Dain, Rune, and Kerrick were meddling in our mating when I saw you all coming out of their place and Rune didn’t look happy. He said I, he, felt betrayed by them. They have become like fathers to me and I felt so hurt that I couldn’t look at them or be near them. Other Ollie said that I, he, turned, but when I did, I bumped into Pelt and started to fall and Pelt caught me. He had his arms wrapped around me and I guess from your point of view it looked like we were together. Other Ollie said you were furious and came after us, knocking both of us to the ground, then things got ugly. Something about Rune started yelling, then he said all hell broke loose and that’s when you exploded. So it was all my fault, not yours, that all of this happened and everyone is gone and all the others are the way they are, and Gods I wish I could turn everything back and do it right. I should have been honest with you.”

  Wyn cupped Ollie’s cheek and looked into his eyes deeply. “No matter what your reason, mate, you had every right to say you weren’t ready for our mating yet. We don’t force people to mate in our world. My pain over
your rejection was too much for me to bear and suddenly I felt that anger building inside me again, so I needed to push it down and control it. I guess with what you just said this time’s Ollie says, I didn’t do a very good job at it. So this is all on me, mate, not you. I lost control and I did this.”

  “But it was an accident, Wyn. You would never choose to do something like this, and now knowing what happened back during the Shuite War I know you would never purposely do it, like you didn’t purposely do it then. They were both horrible accidents. That’s it. And from everything else that we learned here, I think I changed my mind. This wasn’t your fault and it wasn’t my fault. I would say most of this shit is all of their faults. I know the pain they must have been in over what happened, but they all lost someone. We were family, friends, and brothers. How could they turn on each other?”

  “It sounds like Day and Ethan stepped up to the plate and became good leaders trying to bring everyone together and find a way for their group to survive off what was left,” Wyn replied.

  “Yeah, but it sounds like Jewel was the little hellfire ring leader of the other side and just fed the beast of their pain and help their anger grow.”

  They sat silently for a moment, both lost in their own thoughts as they held each other close. Finally, after about ten minutes, Ollie pulled back and looked into Wyn’s eyes. “You know, we may be able to change all of this. That’s why they went through so much trouble to come back into the past to get us.”

  “You’re right, mate, but I don’t want you to mate me just to save them from this future. I know it sounds selfish, but I want my mate to want me for me, not because he feels he has an obligation.”

  Ollie grabbed Wyn’s face between his hands as his eyes went wide. “But that’s just it, Wyn. I do want you. I did want you even when I was telling you no. I wanted you to fight for me and claim me. I wanted you to tell me how much you wanted me, but when those words came out of my mouth, I was just as surprised as you were. Then when I saw the pain I had caused you, I just couldn’t take it. The guilt started to grow again. Then the memories from the fire earlier in the day came back to me and I remembered the feeling of terror I had while I stood there and watched, thinking something had happened to you. Thinking you were hurt or worse. Then I thought about if we mated and you died in a fire, what would I do? How would I handle that loss, and I got really scared. If I never let you claim me, would it be easier to let you go than if we did mate? If we mated and you died, then you would surely be leaving me just like everyone else. The thing is, mated or not, your death would be devastating to me, and by doing what I did, you were definitely leaving me.” A fresh wave of tears came as Ollie began to cry again.

  He pulled back from Wyn and furiously wiped his eyes and face. “What the hell is wrong with me? I don’t cry. I don’t do this vulnerable shit. Vulnerable makes you weak,” Ollie announced as he tried to stand, but Wyn wouldn’t let him go.

  Now Wyn grabbed Ollie’s face between his hands and drew his gaze. “You were just trying to protect your heart, mate, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I’m sorry I immediately threw up my own walls at what I perceived was just a rejection, instead of really seeing you and what you were saying. If I had stopped for just one moment and thought of you instead of myself, then maybe I would have seen the truth in your eyes. And vulnerability doesn’t make you weak, mate. Especially not with your mate. It makes you stronger. Being able to voice what’s inside you and show that vulnerability proves how strong you actually are. I want you, Oliver. I want you as my mate to walk beside me for the rest of our days. I know I can’t promise you for how long that will be, just like you can’t promise me, but no one can. No one can predict the future like that, whether they be paranormal or human. One of us could be hit by a bus tomorrow. But I can promise you that if given the choice, I would never leave you, mate. Never.”

  Ollie opened his mouth to protest, but Wyn covered it with his hand. “No. I know I. Will. Never. Leave. You. If given the choice. I don’t care how you dress, or what color hair you have, or how sharp your tongue is, or even how over-the-top you can be. I will never try to change you or look at you as less than me. You are my mate, which makes us equals in this relationship. We will walk side-by-side through this life, sharing everything and standing to face whatever we must together. And if it makes you feel any better, I won’t go into a fire anymore unless it is absolutely necessary. I’m the Battalion Chief for the region now and it’s not something I would have to do very often anyway. Maddox and Crystal both have good, strong fire teams. That day was a fluke because of the new recruits and the training. And honestly, that was my being stubborn. Day could have taken lead. But I promise you that I will only do it when I have no other choice, and I will do my damndest to come back to you. Now that I have something worth coming home to, I don’t want to take any unnecessary risks either.”

  Ollie gently pulled Wyn’s hand from his mouth. “I don’t want to change you either, Wyn. That would only make you resent me.”

  “You wouldn’t be changing me, sweetness. I have worked for hundreds of years doing this. I think I have done my time. And I won’t be giving it up. I’ll let you in on a little secret, that paperwork you came for that day, was for promotions. Including my own. Illan, Justice, and Destrain got together and worked out a proposal for me, as well as recommendations for Nick, Day, and a few others. They want to appoint Nick Battalion Chief―”

  Ollie’s eyes went wide and filled with anger as he cut Wyn off. “What? How could they do that to you? You have dedicated your life to this work and gave up your job and home to come here to lead.”

  Wyn chuckled as he covered Ollie’s mouth again. “Yes, I did, mate, and thank you for getting protective of me. I did come here to be Battalion Chief to help get the Maddox fire system back on its feet. With Nick and Day’s help, we’ve done that. So now our fearless leaders want to restructure, and those papers were for my recommendations for promotions, but first they wanted to offer me my new title. Once I accept, Nick will be promoted to Battalion Chief, Day to Assistant Chief, and I will be the new Fire Chief. Which makes me the top rank and the least amount of time out in the field. I recommended Morgan to take Day’s position as new Captain in Crystal, Nick has suggested Devonte as new Captain in his department, and I am bringing someone in to be Captain in my station. So now I will be in charge, Day is next in line, then Nick, then the captains. Which means that my chances of having to actually fight a fire is slim to none. And now having a mate to share my life with, I don’t want to work so many hours anymore. Regular office hours sound perfect to me, so that I have more time with my beautiful mate.”

  Ollie smiled wide as his eyes filled with happiness and he vaulted himself at Wyn, wrapping his arms around his neck and pressing his lips to Wyn’s in all his excitement. He couldn’t believe it. Wyn was being promoted to Fire Chief. Okay, so he really didn’t know what all those ranks meant, but from what Wyn said, that meant he was top dog and he wouldn’t have to fight fires anymore. Well, almost never. Ollie could live with that if it was okay with Wyn.

  Suddenly he realized what he had done, and he was now pressed against his mates strong, wide chest, with Wyn’s thick arms wrapped around him, and their lips together, and Ollie never felt so safe or right before in his life. This is where he belonged. Ollie pulled back a little and looked in Wyn’s eyes and saw the glow of his dragon inside. Wyn was just as affected as he was, and Ollie could see how much his mate truly wanted him.

  CHAPTER 16

  Wyn could see the heat in his Ollie’s eyes. The need and want. He could see the truth of Ollie’s intentions and how much his mate really did want him then, and it made Wyndingo happier than he had been in more years than he could remember. “I want you, mate. I want to claim you and make you mine. I want to live the rest of my life with you and never let you go, but I will wait for you for as long as you need. Just tell me that you won’t walk away. Tell me that we can spend time together and get to
know one another more while you take the time you need. That’s all I ask.”

  Something flashed across Ollie’s eyes and filled Wyn with hope. He could see that Ollie had just let go of all his fears. He could see acceptance in his mate’s stunning chocolate brown eyes. “Claim me, Wyndingo. Make me yours.”

  “Are you sure?” Wyn didn’t want to change his mate’s mind, but he needed to make sure that this is what Oliver really wanted.

  “Yes. I want to feel you inside me. I want us to claim each other, and I want to belong to you. I always have, but I was so scared.”

  Wyn raised a brow as he ran his hands up and down Ollie’s back. “And now?”

  Ollie gave him a beautiful, bright smile. “And now, I’m not anymore. Not of you leaving me, or giving you my heart. I know we’re not ready to declare our love for each other yet, but I know I’m going to fall so hard for you. Since the first time I saw you, I knew I wanted you. I’ve had a mad crush on you. And now I know my heart will be safe with you. Please claim me, mate. If you still want me, that is?”

  “I will always want you, Oliver. Always,” Wyn promised, then leaned in and captured Ollie’s lips.

  It started off slow and gentle, but quickly grew and became more needy and passionate as Ollie opened for him and Wyn slid his tongue deep inside Ollie’s mouth, claiming him with his tongue. The first taste of his mate had Wyn’s dragon growling with need. Ollie always smelled of wildflowers and it was such an intoxicating scent, but now, tasting his mate, it was all consuming. There was still the hint of wildflowers but also something like butterscotch and man. Wyn wanted more. He wrapped his arms around Ollie tighter, pulling their bodies closer, and devoured his mate.