Blaze by Kaitlyn Davis Read Free Book Online Page A

who does
the seducing.”
    Kira continued to play with the little hairs
at the base of his neck, moving her face slowly closer to his but
waiting for him to make the final move.
    He turned his face back to her and Kira
could see his resistance fading away. The moment hung between them
and a stillness rested in the air. But an instant later, Kira’s
lips curved into a smile because Tristan gave in. His eyes clouded
over and his face sank closer, until they were finally kissing.
    A sudden whoosh of air made Kira pull away
from Tristan and she realized the pod had opened. They had reached
the end of their half hour ride and the same suspicious employee
from before was waving them toward the exit.
    Kira ran to the bathroom, leaving Tristan
alone to decide where their next stop should be. Had she been with
Luke, Kira was almost certain they would be headed for Madame
Tussauds, the famous wax figure museum. She could easily imagine an
afternoon spent making funny faces next to celebrity figures and
posing for pictures. Next, Luke would drag to her the famous
Queen’s Guards and he would tell jokes, swearing he could make one
of the them break face and laugh.
    With Tristan, something slightly more mature
would probably be involved. He would want to see some paintings for
sure, maybe visit the palace. But he had seen all of the city
before, so Kira wasn’t totally sure what he would decide, which was
why she was floored by his choice.
    “You want to go to a park?” Kira asked when
Tristan said he thought they should spend the rest of the slowly
fading afternoon in Hyde Park, the biggest park in London and one
of the biggest urban parks in the world.
    “Just trust me,” he said. Kira shrugged and
followed Tristan back to the rental car. He drove through the
streets, taking the scenic route to show her Buckingham Palace up
close, before pulling over and parking street-side next to the
park.
    Tristan led her past lawns of crisp green
grass, bright and healthy from London’s frequent rains. Further in
the distance, Kira spotted a large, sparkling lake speckled with
rowboats. For a moment, Kira thought that was their destination,
but Tristan turned right instead of left, leaving the water behind
them. They walked under a canopy of vines, a romantic enclave free
of watching eyes, but Tristan didn’t pause to steal a kiss like he
normally would.
    Eventually, his steps slowed as they neared
a row of emerald hedges. This is what he wanted to show me? Kira
asked herself, eyeing the small wooden gate Tristan had just opened
for her. But his face read of anticipation—slightly wide eyes
brimming with excitement and a knowing smile ready to spread even
larger at her response.
    Looking at him strangely, Kira stepped
through the gate and gasped.
    “Gorgeous, right?” Tristan whispered into
her ear, but Kira was speechless.
    For a moment, Kira thought she had left
reality and had instead stepped into the pages of The Secret
Garden . All she could see were roses—everywhere she looked,
there were fully-bloomed roses of every color she could imagine:
red roses lining the path, yellow buds extending over them, pink
floral twining high into the hedges and almost hiding the sky. And
the smell, the smell was unbelievable. A sweet, almost vanilla
scent filled her senses, enticing Kira further and further into the
garden towards a cascading fountain in the center of the
pathway.
    “Tristan, this place is beautiful,” Kira
sighed, taking his hand and pulling him down to sit next to her on
the edge of the stone fountain.
    “I got something for you,” he said while
reaching into his pocket.
    “When?”
    “While you were in the bathroom.” He smirked
and she rolled her eyes. Kira had heard too many times before—from
both Luke and Tristan—that she took forever in the bathroom.
    He opened his palm to reveal a keychain with
a cartoon drawing of the London Eye. Kira took it and flipped it
over to reveal a photo of her and Tristan on the other