Fire's Ice Read Online Free PDF Page B

“Miss yooouuu.” And she kissed his cheek, leaving cherry Popsicle goo behind. Her face was flushed. Aiden grabbed a fistful of his shirt and latched on as Devin made his way toward Liv with a child on each hip.
    She peeled her son off his shoulder, set him on the ground, and ruffled Aiden’s hair. “Run tell Da we’ve company, sweetie. Go on.” The child took off across the yard. Raine squirmed down out of his arms and was off and running after her twin.
    Liv kissed his other cheek lightly in greeting. “Welcome home, Devin. Sorry they waylaid you. Seems they only have two speeds these days. Sleep and run .”
    “I missed them too. They’ve gotten so big since the last time I was here. How did that happen?”
    “Children grow up too fast. You have a way with them. You’d make an excellent father, Devin.” As Rhiannon had, Liv linked her arm through his.
    “Someday, maybe.”
    “We’ve all missed you. It's been awhile. Did you finish your castle, then?”
    “I did, yes. Enough space for everyone to come visit all at once and have plenty of room. Kate said Raine wasn’t well.”
    “A fever, yes, but she doesn’t seem sick.”
    “She felt hot to touch.” He opened the door for Liv and followed her inside.
    Jack was sitting on the couch with his laptop. Aiden and Raine bouncing on either side of him. He closed the lid and set the device on the coffee table before walking over to clap Devin on the back.
    “Welcome home, Dev. What’s the occasion?”
    “Glen McLoch is finished.” Devin grinned when Aiden grabbed one end of Jack’s laptop and started trying to pull it into his lap. “Looks like someone takes after his dad.”
    Jack lifted the machine and set it out of arms’ reach. “Sorry pal, you’re busted. Da’s toy. Where is yours?”
    “Under dee bed.”
    “Da’s toy breaks easy. Okay? Da needs his for work.”
    “Waine broke my towee.” The child looked at Devin with pitiful eyes full of tears and wailed.
    He ruffled his hair and took Aiden’s hand. “Hmm. Let’s go get it and we’ll see if I can fix it for you.”
    Walking into the nursery, Devin watched the boy scramble under the bed and pull out a melted piece of plastic. He took the child-size computerized toy laptop and turned it over in his hands trying to find anything recognizable of the scorched red and yellow plastic.
    “Raine did this?”
    “Mine. Uh, huh.”
    “How? Never mind. I need to show your Da. Then I promise to fix it. Okay?”
    “’Kay.”
    * * * *
    Devin laid the ruined toy on the coffee table while Liv put the kids down for their afternoon nap.
    “What is that?”
    “His toy laptop. Let’s have a look. Shall we?” Hovering his hands over the object, Devin began to reverse the damage. Not exactly a healing, but much the same. With the magic came the memory of destruction. Raine pulling the toy out of Aiden’s hands, crying, overwhelming heat and tossing a melted lump of plastic onto the grass. Fear was the most forefront emotion. “She lost her temper and lashed out with heat, melting the toy. It’s a wonder she didn’t set something on fire. Her magic is out of control. Allie’s binds have been broken.”
    “But how? She’s just a little girl, Dev, my little girl.”
    “Not just. You’ve always known your daughter is special, Jack. Allie has been binding Raine’s gifts since she was two.”
    “Yes, but I thought she might be a touch psychic or something. Not like, what do you even call that?”
    “Raine is a hereditary witch. Fire is her element.”
    “Like you. Then can she do all the things you can?”
    “Yes, eventually. We share the same type of magic.”
    “Good. Then you can tell us–”
    “She’s a phoenix, Jack. Do you understand what that means?”
    “Like the bird?” Liv had rejoined them. He saw the question, the realization, sink in. Her child’s life was in danger. Slowly shaking her head, she moved around the sofa to sit beside Jack and clutched his hand.
    Should he lie