Playing with Fire Read Online Free PDF

wrong?”
    He hitched his pants and sat on her sagging couch, one long arm extended over the back of the fraying brown upholstery, offering a glimpse of an eagle tattoo leading up from his wrist. It had a fish caught in its talons. Gross.
    “Is that why you’re being so stubborn? Fine. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have left you adrift like that.”
    “Adrift?” That was an awfully eloquent way of saying he’d left her, penniless, friendless, and jobless in a Florida beach house he’d only paid for through the end of the week. “Do you have any idea what I went through those first few months?”
    “I received the bill for the house a few days later, Fiona. So yes. I have an idea.”
    She grinned. That, at least, had been one advantage of those early days. When she hadn’t been able to control her sudden gift and wayward emotions, the beach house had quickly gone the way of the barbeque.
    “You deserved it.”
    Patrick nodded. “I did. Which is why I want to make it up to you now. I’m a changed man. Maybe you’ve heard?”
    “I saw your little show yesterday, if that’s what you mean.”
    He puffed up proudly. “You did? What did you think?”
    Oh, she had quite a list of opinions, most of which centered around a strong belief he was up to no good. “That depends…what do you want from me?”
    “There was an interesting article in the newspaper this morning. Did you happen to read it?”
    She breathed deep to keep her temperature from spiking beyond control. She’d read it, all right. A fire at a local elementary school had done almost a million dollars in damage, and a dozen kids had been hospitalized for smoke inhalation. The cause was still unknown, but indicated a high concentration of heat targeted at the most combustible areas. She knew what Patrick was thinking.
    “I didn’t do that,” she said through her teeth. “I might be a freak, but I’m not a monster.”
    That thin distinction was the only thing that let Fiona sleep at night.
    But Patrick wasn’t fazed. In fact, the words seemed to energize him. As he sat up, blood rushed to his face and gave him a distinctly ruddy glow. “Are you sure about that? I checked the Converted databases, and you’re unlisted. I don’t see how that’s possible…unless you were the one who burned down that facility eight years ago. You remember? That one in Florida? The one where that poor, innocent man lost his arm and almost died?”
    Fiona flushed, and sparks crackled on the surfaces of her palms. “You can’t prove anything. You’re bluffing.”
    She focused on her breathing. His name had been Daryl Morrow. She could still picture the way he’d stared, with more horror than pain, as his jacket went up in flames. It had been an accident. She remembered it well—that feeling of being so out of control, the situation so overwhelming she could hardly keep standing.
    She’d intended to comply with their registration process. She really had. But when she’d barely even hinted at her ability, the men with the guns had shown up. And she’d panicked.
    She’d never asked for this. Sure, she made mistakes—most of them involving men. Patrick. Before him, Jack. Before him, practically the whole football team. Before him…Ian.
    Ian.
    Still capable of turning her insides to mush, still looking so far down on her she might as well be circling the lowest levels of hell. Why couldn’t she be attracted to the nice guy for once? The one who saw beyond her flaws and reputation and treated her like an actual human being?
    Patrick steepled his fingers and sat back, watching her, definitely not the nice guy in this scenario. “I think I’m impressed,” he murmured. “No fire. No fury. You have restraint—that’s new. Just how well are you able to control your powers these days?”
    Her eye twitched. “Enough.”
    “No, Fiona. I want the truth.” He lifted his arm and brushed his fingers through his hair, but Fiona didn’t miss the message in the huge,