Forgotten Elements
Chapter 19

As I felt the wave form, I dove toward the edge, pressing one hand to the dirt and the other to a wooden plank on the bridge. I sent my magic deep into the earth, focusing on the walls of the chasm, seeking out any loose pieces. I broke off several boulder-sized chunks from the chasm wall and launched them at the creature as he easily broke through the spell Parker had previously cast. With that small distraction, I connected to the bridge, which was so barren of magic that it greedily sucked down mine, not wanting to listen to my commands. Gritting my teeth, I poured more magic, sending a sharp wave through the ropes so the bridge snapped up and sent Parker flying the remaining feet.

Luckily, he’d been within fifteen feet, so aiming wasn’t necessary. His landing looked painful, but at least he was no longer on the bridge or in danger. The lava was still chaotic, and the air was filled with the wailing growls from the creature, but that was no longer our problem.

I half crawled over to Parker once he rolled to a stop. My limbs were shaking from how much energy the bridge pulled from me, but at the time, I hadn’t cared, not when Parker was in danger. “Are you alright?”

He grunted as he sat up, rubbing his shoulder. “That was some move, Firecracker,” he said with a rough chuckle.

Now that I was confident he wasn’t injured, I smacked his arm. “What the hell is wrong with you?”

“Ouch, that hurt,” he muttered, but I seriously doubted I hurt him. His forehead was scrunched up as he looked at me, seeming baffled as to why I was upset. “What the fuck was that for?”

“Don’t you ever pull a stunt like that again,” I whispered, struggling to rein in the emotion clogging my throat. When I had landed on the solid ground and looked up to see him still in danger, I thought my heart had stopped beating for a moment.

Parker’s expression softened as he grabbed my hips and lifted me so I was sitting on his lap. My heart was still hammering in my chest from the possible near-death, but also the close proximity to him. I placed my hands on his shoulders to steady myself as I felt his hard length pressed against my core.

“I can’t promise that, not when you’re in danger.”

I opened my mouth to protest, but he cut me off by slamming his lips against mine in a hard kiss that was way too brief.

When I glanced up at him, I was ensnared by his gaze. My lips tingled from the kiss, and I so desperately wanted more. The combination of the kiss and feeling his cock against my soaked center had desire pounding through my body and settling in between my thighs. I couldn’t help myself and shifted against him, which had both of us groaning. I repeated my actions several more times before he tightened his hold on my hips, halting my movements.

Parker groaned again as he dropped his face against my neck, placing a deep kiss on my shoulder. “We should probably get moving,” he murmured, flexing his hands on my hips. Despite his words, he didn’t attempt to move me off his lap.

He was right, we shouldn’t do anything here, but I didn’t give a shit about logic right now.

Giving him the sweetest smile I could manage, I pressed down on his shoulders, acting like I was about to stand, but instead, I shifted my hips against his. Parker grunted against my neck. “Nice try,” he said as he chuckled, tightening his grip on my hips.

Annoyance broke through my lusty haze, but it only strengthened my resolve. I reached down between us and brushed my hand over his cock, a smile lifting my lips at the way his hips jerked, and his grip tightened.

Unbuttoning his pants, I reach a hand down into his pants until my fingers brushed over his cock.

Holy shit, he was fucking huge. I figured it was the case based on what I felt against me, but I was still surprised nonetheless. As I wrapped my hand around him, my fingers were unable to meet.

I almost wanted to pull back so I could get a look at his cock and fully gauge size, but that would have to wait for another time.

The angle wasn’t great, but I still managed to pump my hand up and down his shaft a couple of times before he caught my wrist and pulled my hand away. “Ah, that’s my girl, showing your fire for me.”

I wasn’t done. With his hand on my wrist, I was able to roll my hips again, my action quicker and more out of control. My core continued tightening as I kept on grinding against him until he stopped me once again.

I whimpered at the thought of being denied again and dropped my face against his neck. I waited for him to tell me that we should leave, but he didn’t. He let go of my wrist and stuck his hand down my pants and panties, brushing his fingers over my clit. My hips shifted against his hand as he rubbed up and down. His movements were fast and hard, giving me exactly what I needed at the moment.

From how he kept building me up today and how I hadn’t had an orgasm since the night before I left, I was coming within a minute. The build-up from being denied over and over made the release more intense than I’d ever experienced. My breaths were harsh, and my body shook as I lay my cheek against his shoulder.

“You are so stunning when you come,” Parker murmured as he stroked my back.

Warmth filled my chest at his words and how he kissed the top of my head.

“As much as I would like to fuck you, I would prefer to do so in a realm that isn’t getting ready to implode. I want to take my time with you.” My pussy throbbed at the thought of what he had planned for me.

Using all of my willpower, I placed my hands on his shoulders and climbed off his lap, even though my body was begging me to stay. His hands slid down my body as I stood, and based on the cocky smirk, he’d done this on purpose. “Jackass.”

He shrugged as he climbed to his feet, towering over me as he invaded my space. All rational thoughts fled from my brain as I stared up at him, and he dipped his head close to mine. “Can you pick up the trail again?”

It took me several long seconds to remember why we were here and had crossed that damn bridge in the first place. Shaking my head, I took a couple of steps back, hoping it would help me think clearly.

This was some serious bullshit, how was I supposed to come up with witty comebacks when he scrambled my brain. That fucking grin spreading across his face wasn’t helping matters. I both wanted to kiss and slap him.

Closing my eyes, I connected with the elements and easily found the ley line. Dammit.

The energy funneling into the ley line was faster than before, which wasn’t great. Not only would it mess with the weather and magic of the realm, but it affected the creatures that called this realm home. It made sense they felt the imbalance of power and were reacting to it.

“Follow me.” I spared the chasm one last glance before following the trail.

If we were lucky, we wouldn’t come across any more crazed creatures.

* * * * * * * *

Spoiler alert: we came across more crazed creatures.

The next one made an appearance at the river we had to cross, and unfortunately, there wasn’t a bridge this time.

I wasn’t thrilled at the prospect of crossing the river that was unrelenting with the turbulent waters. It crashed onto the riverbank, splashing over my feet. The energy of water could go two ways: calm and serene, or turbulent and unyielding. This river was closer to the latter, which wasn’t great when you were about to swim through it.

The only thing that made me feel a little better was that the river was a little over thirty feet wide, and wasn’t more than a few feet deep. It was more like a creek than a river in that regard but the tumultuous and unpredictable waters reminded me more of a raging river.

“I don’t think we need to risk attempting to make a portal,” Parker said as he considered the river. “If it’s only a few feet deep, then that rules out the possibility of a giant creature hiding in its depths.”

I pursed my lips as I considered his reasoning. While he was right about the creature, it didn’t completely reassure me. “Creatures aren’t the only things we have to worry about. I don’t like the energy coming from the river. It’s too out of control.

After a back and forth on the pros and cons of going straight across, I stepped into the river. It came up to the middle of my stomach and tugged at my legs, attempting to knock me over and drag me down into its treacherous currents.

Even though tapping into the elements pulled more energy from me than normal, I still connected to the river, attempting to tame the waters. Maybe if I was able to put all of my focus into taming the waters and not half on staying upright, I’d have a better shot at getting the element to listen to me. The pushback I kept feeling, reminded me of when I fought for control of the tree roots when I was fighting Heath.

Was this due to someone draining the magic from the realm or something else?

I got my answer less than a minute later when a sudden surge in the water nearly swept me off my feet. Parker moved closer to me, wrapping his arm around my waist, both to stabilize me and to ensure we weren’t separated.

The water began swirling, going against the currents of the river. Within the magic of the water, I sensed another presence, something that wasn’t an elemental but was more powerful. Unlike the thing killing the other elementals, their magic didn’t throw off the natural balance—it was a part of it.

I sensed their intentions a second too late as the circling water picked up strength and tugged at my feet and pulled me under, ripping my hand from Parker’s. The water may not have been deep, but it was deep enough that I was unable to replace my way to the surface through the unforgiving currents.