Hey Everyone, Ever have one of those weeks? You know, one when if something can go wrong, it does. *Groan* Well, I had hoped to get this chapter up earlier...but I guess as the saying goes, it's better late than never. As always, please message me about edits.(Thank-you for your patience and support!)

(JAXON SPEAKING)

The door closed behind me as I got out of the car already knowing this wasn't the brightest idea I had all day, but I didn't care. "Kellan!" No response. "Kellan! You wanted your little war. Fine, here I am. Come out and I'll be happy to oblige!" I yelled, walking closer toward the cabin. The image of him sauntering down the stairs into the kitchen invaded my thoughts again. In fact, that disturbing image had played in my head the entire drive over here. I couldn't help but think he had been in her bedroom with her. No, I was sure he had. "Kellan! Get out here and face me, you coward!" I hollered, wanting to rip him to shreds. Finally, the door opened, and he walked out onto the porch.

"What? Still festering?" He laughed dusting his hands off.

"No, I don't think so. I'm way past that. Try this is me ready to rip your head clean off your shoulders," I spat. I could feel my heart start to race, and my hands heat up in response.

"Definitely, still festering. Come to think about it, you've always had a problem letting your emotions get the better of you, even when you were little. I see some things never change," Kellan mocked, spinning the globe of water he had in his hands. "Tsk, tsk, tsk," he taunted. "Your father isn't here to remind you how to retain your emotions."

Yup, I was mad before, but now? I was pissed. I pulled a hot molten thread from the fire core letting it roll over in my hand. "Stay. Away from. Wren." I chucked the dripping ball of fire at his feet. As quickly as stairs burst into flames in front of him, he had dropped the circular swell of water over the wooden treads, and the firebomb went out leaving behind a blackened scorch mark.

"Yeah, I don't think that's going to happen," he said stepping off the last stair onto the ground. "What? Didn't you see what she just did to that kitchen? She channeled that from me, not you, ring boy."

That was it. I took a running leap at him letting the flames burst over my fist just before I attempted to land a hard cross punch on his face. Almost at the same moment, a layer of water ran over him as he weaved his head left, leaving my fist hitting nothing but air. He held out a frozen hand against my chest forcing a harsh cold to bite intensely into my skin. I instantly countered the iciness by letting a searing flame run over me, relieving the frosty sting, and that frost would no doubt have left a mark. With any luck, I scorched his fingers in the process.

Just as I felt relief, I could feel his right elbow connect hard against my jaw throwing me backward off balance onto the ground. I threw up a wall of flames toward him and hooked my foot behind his leg, then pulled hard knocking him to the ground. He hit one of the stairs behind him. I quickly rolled over onto my hands and knees, then jumped to my feet. Kellan had pushed back with his hands and sprung up to standing. I wiped my mouth on my sleeve, leaving a red crimson mark from my split lip. I could taste the tang of blood as I licked it. "That's impossible. She's with me. There's no way she can channel you!"

"You're right, I could be making it up," he said with a smirked. "But hey, this is Wren we're talking about. By the way, I do love her new water flourish. Don't you?" He taunted as he tossed a stream of water back and forth between his hands.

Yeah, I saw it. Sort of hard to miss the gigantic billboard he had tattooed across the front of her, screaming Water Circle in my face. What I was most interested in knowing was what he had pledged. There was no point in asking. It wasn't like he'd ever tell me.

If Kellan didn't remove his watery mess from Wren before we left for Acklemar, I'm sure my father would have something to say when he saw it on his daughter-in-law as she roamed around the Keep. Great, add that to the pile of things I'd needed to deal with. Truthfully, I didn't care what my father thought, but if there was a way of getting rid of it so I didn't need to be constantly reminded of Kellan, that was more than something I was interested in hearing about. "Yeah, that, when exactly are you planning on removing your graffiti mess?"

He crossed his arms and smiled. "Ah, but there's still the little matter of fulfilling the pledge isn't there? Oh, and I know you're aware that flourish was sealed and accepted too."

In other words, not anytime soon. I had no idea what he pledged to her, but whatever it was, I was sure it wasn't going to make me happy, so it was probably a good thing I didn't know. My hands began to shake with the thought of the two of them kissing sealing his pledge. "I'm going to kill you."

I could feel the strength of the stones on my leather rapidly stir drawing power from the Circle into me. The ground beneath us began to shake as I pulled a hot lava flow through me launching it at him full force. The intense hot magma landed missing him, hitting the porch behind him. Its heat dissolved a good chunk of the stairs and railing within seconds of making contact with the wood.

"Ugh. You know Jaxon. You are such an ass." Good. I finally pissed him off. I couldn't help but grin at that. "I have to sleep here, you..." he lifted his hand and spun a large looking ice spear, then chucked it forcefully. To my surprise, he didn't throw it at me, but through the windshield of my new car, shattering the glass all over the ground. My Ferrari sat there wounded and broken. "How about just calling it quits, and let Wren be with who she truly wants," he demanded, wiping his hands on his jeans.

It's just a car, it's just a car, it's just a car, I told myself trying not to let him distract me any more than he had already. "Newsflash, idiot. She already has, so butt out already and leave us be."

"She wouldn't even entertain the thought of being with you if she wasn't trying to protect her mother from your family's twisted wrath. You know, your approach is original. I'm not sure I've heard the, I sentenced your Mother to death, being used as a tactic to get a girl to enter into a ring contract before. You're so pathetic, trying to manipulate her into agreeing to be your mate, just so that you can measure up to your father's standards."

Yeah, if I was honest, that last insult stung a little. While the power Wren had was a bonus in our union, it certainly wasn't the only reason I was interested in her. "Whatever you need to tell yourself so you can sleep at night Kellan. Why don't you wake up and face it? Undertow, you missed your chance when she picked me. Honestly, after the Fall equinox, your running inference in our relationship won't be a problem anymore."

I threw my hands up creating a thick layer of smoke to screen his view of where I was standing, then walked back to my car. Leaving him planted next to the flaming porch to ponder that thought, I could hear him cough on the smoke I left hovering around him. I opened the car and brushed the chunks of glass off the seat onto the floor. I gave the massive icicle a shove out of the way and watched it quickly slide out the remainder of the window and down the hood of the car. I didn't even want to know what the bill for the damage was going to be on this.

If I ever came back here, I was bringing my wing man Robin and a huge house crushing tank if I could find one. Kellan would be lucky if I left him a splinter of his porch to pick his teeth with when I was done with his cabin. I peeled the car backward down the gravel driveway adding a pile of dust to the already smoky air. I hope he choked on it.

Well, even with the bleeding lip and frost bitten chest, that felt good. I couldn't help but smile knowing what I had planned for the date with Wren tonight.

Question of the week: WHAT do you think Jaxon has planned? Where do you think he'll take her for their date?

Hey, please show your support and maybe hit the little STAR and VOTE? Possibly add the book to your library? LOL. Thank-you for reading!  :)