Destiny's Fire by Trisha Wolfe

was clawing out of my skin with anticipation—wanting to learn everything I could about my power. Not only that, Reese had promised when I mastered at least one power, he’d spar with me. I’d wanted to knock his head in ever since that first night. Of course, now I also wanted to kiss it afterward.
    Reese hid his levibike behind the brush near the trail. If anyone stopped by the falls and saw a funky lightshow, he didn’t want his bike traced back to him.
    “And I thought I was paranoid,” I said as he layered another branch over his bike.
    He raised his eyebrows. “Not taking any chances.” He packed the last branch on, then wandered up beside me, taking my hand and moving us onto the trail. “Besides, I figured you’d be ashamed if you were seen with a Narco.” He smirked.
    I laced my fingers through his. “I’m not ashamed.” I glanced down, sidestepping a boulder. “It’s just too hard to justify to anyone. It would only cause more complications. And we don’t need that kind of attention.” I glared at him.
    “Agreed,” he said. “But it’ll be torture staying away from you at the Academy.”
    My face flushed. How could he be so confident about us? I knew that I liked him, but he talked as if he’d known me forever. Although, I understood he’d probably felt as alone as I did his whole life. Finally having someone to take that away—we fit together like missing pieces of a puzzle. I squeezed his hand, relishing the feel of its warmth.
    Reese glanced around as we neared the second fall. “We need to climb.” He pointed toward the top. “It’s flat ground up there, and we’ll be able to see far around us.”
    “Okay. How do we do that? I’m not the best climber.”
    Reese gave me a wickedly hot grin. Latching my arms around his neck, he scooped me onto his back, and I wrapped my legs around his waist. Then he secured me to him with a leather strap.
    “Don’t let go.” He reached into his leather jacket and pulled out a thin brass tube.
    “What are you doing?” I stared at the device. It had a tiny three-prong hook at its head.
    Reese aimed the brass tube at the fall and turned a small gear. The hook shot out, bringing a clear cord with it, and circled around a rock jutting from the side of the fall. He clipped the tube onto his black leather belt.
    “It’s my grappler,” he explained. “Ready?”
    I tightened my hold. “Where did you learn how to scale cliffs?”
    Reese turned the gear on the device, and we began lifting up as he reached for the first crevice in which to place his hand. “You don’t grow up around airships and not pick up a few tricks,” he said with a grunt, and he began climbing. The pneumatic gears in the brass tube grinded as they helped pull our weight.
    When we reached the top, Reese loosened the strap and clung to the side, allowing me to climb over and pull myself up. I stood hands to hips, viewing the woods. “Wow, you were right. We can pretty much see everything from up here.”
    Reese yanked the tube, reeling the cord in with a loud zip . “But no one can see us.” He winked.
    The river trickled over boulders and rocks, echoing a haunted melody against the trees. Reese led us to a clear spot near the bank, and we sat down cross-legged on the pine straw.
    “Remove your eye lenses,” he said, opening a small, black box. “You can put them in here for now.”
    I hesitantly dipped my head forward, stretching an eyelid open. I’d never shown anyone other than my mom my real eyes. “What’s the first thing I should learn?” I asked, pinching the lens between my finger and thumb before dropping it into the water-filled box. I listened to the river’s song as I removed my other eye lens. It was peaceful. I looked up to see why Reese still hadn’t answered my question.
    He stared at me, searching my eyes with his head inclined. “You’re beautiful,” he said, and my face heated. Then he cleared his throat. Taking my hands in his, he positioned