The Tempting Touch Of Fire (Elemental Awakening, Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

recognise it, but I'd always been fascinated by trees, and the Moreton Bay had featured in my childhood discoveries. Not to mention in a book on fauna and flora my grandfather had gifted me when I turned sixteen.
    "Why are you here?" I asked at length.
    "Because it's started, sweetheart," he replied reasonably.
    "What's started?" I said, feeling my stomach contract with the certainty that this had something to do with the pit of dirt and the green that flashed in my eyes.
    "Your Awakening," he said softly. "How old are you now?" he asked suddenly. "Twenty-three?"
    I nodded.
    "Hmm," he mused. "I would have thought sooner," - he shrugged his shoulders then - "but we were never certain what would trigger it. What's happened, Casey? Are you safe?"
    Safe. Was I? I reached up distractedly to touch my neck where Theo had burned me, surprised to find the blisters gone. Had I dreamed that encounter? Was this reality and what happened with Theo the fantasy? I shook my head and stared at the ground for inspiration. The only answer it gave me was that my feet were bare and I was still dressed in my PJs.
    I glanced back up at my grandfather. Understanding etched soft lines on his face. I had the distinct impression that he understood more of what was going on than I did. Maybe than I ever would.
    "What's happening to me?" I demanded, vaguely aware I was interacting with the memory of a dead man and believing it was real.
    "What calling manifested first?" he asked, not answering my question at all.
    "What do you mean?"
    He turned slightly to look at the Moreton Bay and then flicked amused eyes back towards me.
    "You always did like trees. Even when you were so young. I'm not surprised it started with Earth."
    I felt my head shaking back and forth on my shoulders, confusion embedding itself deep inside my mind. What the freaking hell was all of this? As far as dreams went, this one was surreal. It felt like I was actually here, that my grandfather was alive standing before me. But the topic made absolutely no sense to me at all. Surreal.
    "Gramps," I started. "You're freaking me out. Is this real?"
    "Of course it's real, sweetheart," he replied smoothly. "Can't you feel that it's real?"
    I looked around the field we stood in, listened to the leaves rustling on the tree, the swish of the grass as it swayed together. Felt the tickle of each blade as it caressed my ankles, the dwindling heat of the setting sun. Saw the vibrancy and realism in the colours of the sunset. Smelt the crisp green aroma of cut grass. So potent I could almost taste it.
    Dreams were never this real.
    I nodded back towards him.
    "Well then," he said with a chuckle, "that's the hard part over with. Now on to what's important right now."
    "Which is?"
    "Believe," he whispered. "Trust your instinct. If there is one thing I have taught you, remember this. Belief is a tangible thing, Casey. If there is a part of you that recognises the truth in a thing, believe in yourself. Trust that belief."
    Well hell. That didn't help much, did it?
    The dreamscape flickered slightly, Gramps wavered as though he was an image on an old cinema screen. A distant, incongruous sound echoed inside my mind. My grandfather took a step towards me.
    "We won't see each other until the next Awakening, Casey," he said urgently. "I thought we'd have more time."
    My head swung from side to side as I took in blurry distortions at various locations around the meadow. The Moreton Bay Fig seemed to shimmer slightly behind Gramps.
    "Sweetheart," he murmured, bringing my focus back to the man who had shown such patience with my inquisitive mind and constant questions when I was young. "When you wake up, remember that this is real. This is happening. You are special, Casey. Important to us all. Keep safe. Hone your skills and one day we will meet again."
    The pain at those impossible words tore through me, just as the dream was torn apart.
    I woke panting, sweating and in that moment, slightly delirious. My