Sea Dragon's Hunger: BAD Alpha Dads (The Fada Shapeshifter Series)

by Rebecca Rivard

  The hell with negotiating. Nic jerked Cassidy away and thrust her behind him.

  Her breath wheezed in. He sensed her sinking onto the seat as if her legs wouldn’t hold her, but his gaze was on Blaer.

  Joe had a knife to her carotid now.

  Unafraid, Blaer stared past him at Nic. “Kill me, and you’ll never know what happened to Ula and Nisio.”

  “I can live with that.”

  “Even if your parents are alive?”

  His heart thumped. “What do you know?”

  She ignored him to stroke a long finger down Joe’s cheek. “Drop the dagger, love. I know who you are. I could use a man like you.”

  The mako’s expression didn’t change. “Then you know I’d as soon kill you as look at you.”

  Her mouth twisted. “You’d die for him?”

  “He’s clan.”

  “It’s your funeral.” Blaer shrugged and removed her hand. “I’ll never understand you animals.”

  Cassidy pushed herself back to standing. Nic wrapped an arm around her, shocked at how hard she trembled. “Are you all right?” he asked without taking his gaze from Blaer.

  “I’ve been better.” She burrowed against him, teeth chattering. “B-but you can’t let J-joe kill her. Not if she t-truly knows something about your p-parents.”

  “They’d understand.” But he hesitated, his stomach roiling at such an impossible choice.

  “Make her s-swear an oath: she g-gives us information about y-your parents and g-guarantees our safety in return for her life. You know she c-can’t break an oath without g-great harm to herself.”

  Blaer raised a brow. “Your mate is smarter than she looks.”

  Nic ground his teeth. They had her. A word from him, and Joe would slit her throat, ensuring Rianna and Cassidy’s safety. And he was expected to let her go?

  But how could he leave his parents trapped in a living hell?

  Cassidy said nothing, simply set a hand on his chest, silently offering support. Joe and Ben waited unmoving. Everyone knew it was his call.

  He growled and gave in. “Swear it,” he gritted at Blaer. “Swear that you’ll leave California and never come near the island again. Swear that Rianna and all the other fada in this den will be safe from you forever. You’ll tell no one that the two of us are sea dragons.”

  “I so swear.” Blaer repeated the words.

  “And take off the bloody collar,” Cassidy said.

  The fae set her jaw.

  “Do it.” Joe pressed the dagger deeper. A drop of blood welled on Blaer’s white throat.

  She snarled and flicked her fingers, and the collar expanded. Nic flung it into the water.

  “I’ll have the same oath from you,” said Blaer. “I don’t want you hunting me down.”

  “Done.” Nic said the words, adding, “Unless you break your oath to us.”

  “And your men.”

  Nic jerked his chin, and Joe swore the same oath. Ben-the-cougar merely nodded his big head, but they all knew he’d be bound by the oath as well.

  “Now tell me,” Nic demanded. “What do you know about my parents?”

  “First, have your man get that damned dagger away from my throat.” It was the first sign the mixed-blood wasn’t as calm as she appeared.

  Nic nodded, and Joe stepped back.

  Her mouth twitched in a tiny smile. “They’re adorning the ice fae court. You didn’t see them at the May Day ritual?” The air around her shimmered.

  Nic’s mouth slackened. “Wait. What the fuck do you mean?” He lunged at her, but the air twisted and his hands closed on nothing.

  The tall blond fae was gone.

  They gazed around at each other.

  “Holy mother.” Cassidy shook her head. “Adorning the ice fae court? Figures a fae would answer with a feckin’ riddle.”

  “They’re alive.” Tears pricked Nic’s eyes. He squeezed Cassidy’s shoulders. “She admitted it. The king has always refused to discuss it. I have to tell my brothers and sister. They’re alive,” he repeated thickly. “I knew it.”

  “And it’s a clue.” Cassidy hugged him. “We’ll figure it out.”

  Nic shook his head, still dazed at the knowledge that his mom and dad were alive. They’d all but given up hope.

  But the fae couldn’t lie.

  “And now that we know for sure,” he said, “we can focus our search on Iceland.”

  Joe stroked the steering wheel of the powerboat. “And we got a sweet boat out of the deal.”

  Nic gave a bark of laughter, and then they were all grinning like maniacs, even Ben-the-cougar.

  Cassidy gave a hard shiver, and Nic swore under his breath. “I’m getting you back to the den.”

  “Put me down,” she protested as he swung her into his arms. “You’re not strong enough.”

  “Like hell.” He leapt into the ocean, shifting to his dragon in mid-air.

  Fada healed faster in their animal forms. The magic of the shift healed the worst of his burns immediately, and helped counteract the iron’s poisonous effects. But Cassidy was right, he was too weak to be doing this.

  He set his jaw and with a dozen powerful strokes, swam to the entrance and through the tunnel where he set Cassidy on the dining hall’s stone floor before shifting back to man.

  He climbed out of the water next to her and stood with his hands on his thighs, breathing hard, while Cassidy fussed over him.

  “Men! Didn’t I tell you that you weren’t strong enough?”

  He pushed himself upright and showed her his injured hands. “The shift healed them over, though.” It would take days until the iron worked its way out of his system, but a thin skin had formed over the raw wounds.

  She took one of his hands in hers and placed a careful kiss on his palm. “Oh, Nic. I was afraid I’d never see you again.”

  He dragged her into his arms. “I’m afraid you’re stuck with me, querida. I’m mate-claiming you.”

  Her ocean-colored eyes were bright with joy. “And I accept.”

  He gave her a quick but heartfelt kiss to seal the deal and then looked around. “Where’s Rianna?”

  “In your quarters.”

  He pulled on a pair of shorts and they hurried down the stone corridor. As they entered the bedroom, Cassidy called out Marlin and Rianna’s names. “We’re back! You can come out now.”

  The navy blue water rippled. Marlin surfaced first and shifted. He turned and waited as Rianna scrambled out of the pool behind him, still in her sea dragon form, a handful of jewelry in her right paw.

  He grinned. His little dragon had sniffed out his treasure chest.

  She let out a trumpet of delight at seeing them. Setting her treasure at the pool’s edge, she shifted to human. “Mam! Daddy!” Her little legs churned as she dashed across the floor. “You’re back!”

  Cassidy swung her into her arms. Rianna twined herself around her mother like a human vine and they both burst into tears.

  “Easy there. Calm yourself.” Nic enfolded them both in a hug and pressed a kiss to Rianna’s soft cheek. “Everything’s all right now.”

  Marlin clapped him on the back as Joe and Ben entered the room, everyone back in their human forms, and it turned into a group hug, their animals needing the reassurance of touch.

  Marlin was the first to step back. “When’s the mating ceremony—and where?”

  Nic looked at Cassidy. “You’ll have to ask my mate.”

  “Here, of course.” Her dazzling smile encompassed all four men. “As soon as we can arrange it.”

  23

  The mating ceremony was small but beautiful.

  Rianna wore a green cotton dress embroidered with pink roses that Cassidy and Nic had bought her in Ventura. Her dark curls were crowned by a gold tiara with a single emerald in the center, a gift from her father, and her big eyes glowed with excitement.

  Next to her, Cassidy felt almost plain in her own grass-green dress and the gold choker encircling her neck, her own
gift from Nic. She tightened her grip on Rianna’s hand.

  While in Ventura, Nic had called Rock Run from the fada bar where Marlin used to work. He’d spoken to his brother Dion, passing on the news that their parents were apparently alive and being held prisoner by King Sindre. Cassidy knew Nic wouldn’t rest until he’d tracked Ula and Nisio down and saw them safely returned to Rock Run, but for today, he was all hers.

  Now his river-green eyes darkened when he caught sight of her, telling her he liked what he saw.

  Her throat clutched. She’d come so close to losing him. He’d taken days to recover, the iron in his system slowly working its way out. Salt neutralized it somewhat, as did spending time as his animal, so he’d spent much of the first week in the saltwater pool in his quarters, sleeping as his dragon.

  She gave him a tremulous smile.

  “You’re beautiful,” he mouthed from where he stood with his three men. “Minha linda.” He looked pretty damn good himself in snug black jeans and a white linen shirt, his feet bare, and a smile on his sculpted face.

  His friends formed a semicircle around him, also in jeans but dressed in black linen shirts instead of white. Marlin and Ben grinned like a couple of bloody matchmakers. Joe, of course, looked on unsmiling, but he gave Cassidy a nod of approval.

  Rianna took a few solemn steps into the dining hall and then broke into a run. “Hey, men! We’re getting mated!”

  Everyone but Joe grinned.

  “Good for you,” said Ben.

  “Come here, princesa.” Marlin swung Rianna up on his shoulders as Nic held out his hands to Cassidy.

  She took them, her mouth dry and an entire swarm of butterflies fluttering in her stomach, but completely sure this was what she wanted.

  Nic squeezed her fingers and, without taking his gaze from hers, called down a blessing from the God and Goddess. Usually that would be the task of the alpha pair, but in this case, Cassidy and Nic were it.

  Cassidy opened her mouth to say her part—and then froze as the air nearby shimmered and twisted.

  Joe’s knife jumped into his hand. Nic and the other men went clawed.

  But it was a beautiful fae with amber eyes and hair the color of sunlight, her arm around the waist of a big man with shoulder-length black hair and startling silver-blue eyes.

  “Dion.” Nic broke into a smile and retracted his claws. “So that’s why you wanted the coordinates of the island. How the hell are you, irmão?” They gave each other a hard hug.

  Nic turned to her. “Cassidy, I’d like you to meet my brother Dion and his mate Cleia,” he said, but the fae had ’ported out, to reappear a minute later with a twenty-something woman who had to be Nic’s younger sister. She shared the family’s good looks, with shiny black curls that tumbled down her back and deep blue eyes.

  “Rosana.” Nic’s eyes teared up. He reached for her but she folded her arms over her chest, her fine black brows drawn into a scowl.

  “Seriously, Nic? You were going to have a mating ceremony without me?”

  “Descuple-me.” His smile was a bit ashamed. “I intended to bring Cassidy and Rianna to meet you in a few weeks. Now give me a hug.”

  He opened his arms and she flew into them. They kissed each other on both cheeks and Rosana clung to him for a long moment before grinning at Cassidy. “Hope you don’t mind us crashing your ceremony.”

  “Of course not. Family just makes it better.”

  They embraced and then Rosana turned to Rianna, still on Marlin’s shoulders. “You must be my niece.”

  Rianna put her thumb in her mouth and shot Cassidy a round-eyed look.

  “I’m your Tia Rosana. Your aunt.”

  Cassidy nodded. “She is, love.”

  Rosana reached up to finger the gold tiara. “Wow, that’s beautiful.”

  Rianna removed the thumb. “Thank you. I like your dress, Auntie Rosana.”

  “Really? I made it myself.” The river fada glanced down at her purple dress. The fitted bodice flowed into a short skirt with pleats that alternated between sky blue and lavender. She beamed at her niece. “We’ll play after the ceremony, okay?”

  Rianna beamed back. “Okay.”

  Meanwhile, Cleia had ’ported out a third time, to return with a tawny-haired woman in leggings and a flowered tunic and a young man who was clearly another do Rio.

  “Tiago.” Nic thumped him on the back. They hugged and then Nic introduced them to Cassidy. “This is my younger brother Tiago, and his mate, the dryad Alesia.”

  The dryad dipped her head shyly at Cassidy. Her mass of curly hair slid forward, revealing a fae’s pointed ears. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  “And you.” Cassidy held out her hands and Alesia squeezed them.

  Cassidy turned to welcome Tiago, a younger version of Dion with the same wavy black hair and silvery eyes.

  And then all the newcomers converged on her. Nic shouldered his way back to her side to set a possessive hand on the small of her back, and she gave him a grateful smile. It took fifteen minutes for things to settle down as they exchanged a flurry of greetings and hugs.

  From her perch on Marlin’s shoulders, Rianna watched everything with wide eyes.

  The mating ceremony began again, this time with Dion speaking the blessing with a smiling Cleia at his side. Cassidy about swallowed her tongue when it occurred to her that the sun fae queen—one of the most powerful fae in the world—was attending her mating ceremony. But Cleia was warm and friendly, and clearly madly in love with her river fada mate.

  When Dion finished, Cleia called down a blessing from the sun. She wore a short peach-colored gown and diamonds glittered in her hair, around her neck, and on her right wrist. As she turned her face up, all the light in the room seemed to gather around her—both fae lights and the sunlight streaming through the ceiling slits—so that she sparkled as if dipped in fairy dust.

  “May the Goddess and the God consecrate this mating,” she said in a low, carrying voice, “bestowing a long, happy life on you both. And may your union be fruitful.” Her gaze shot to Rianna and her mouth curved.

  Then it was Cassidy’s turn. The words she’d prepared had flown out of her head, so she spoke from the heart.

  “I claim you, Nicolau do Rio, as my true mate, the mate of my heart and the man I want to spend the rest of my life with. I love you”—her voice broke, but she swallowed and continued—“more than I can say.”

  Nic’s strong throat worked. “And I claim you, Cassidy O’Byrne, as my true mate. I will cherish you and our daughter for the rest of my days.” He leaned closer to whisper for her ears alone, “My dragon knows treasure when he sees it, and you are mine. Eu te amo.”

  He clasped a gold chain around her wrist. From it dangled two emeralds and a diamond. “To represent our family,” he murmured.

  He winked at their daughter. “And you, Princesa Rianna. I claim you as mine, to love forever. Eu te amo.”

  She held out her arms, her small face wreathed in smiles.

  Marlin handed her over, and Nic settled her on his hip as if he’d been doing it for years. Cassidy and Nic kissed, their daughter between them. A long, deep kiss, a promise of what Nic would do with her later.

  A sexy shiver went down Cassidy’s spine. It had been almost two weeks since they’d made love. First Nic had been too sick, and then when he’d felt better, he’d decided to wait so that they’d have a special mate-celebration night. That hadn’t stopped the man from driving her half-mad with teasing touches and hot murmurs whenever he could get her alone.

  She was already planning her revenge.

  Ben had prepared a special dinner, and Nic and Marlin had brought back champagne, wedding cake, and assorted hors d’oeuvres from the mainland. They sat or stood around the firepit, gorging themselves on the treats, so that they barely had room for Ben’s delicious grilled salmon and vegetables, but everyone somehow managed to eat a bit more.

  Marlin had even remembered to buy wine glasses, so they clinked glasses a
s everyone took turns toasting the newly mated pair.

  Cleia was the last to raise her glass. “I’d like to gift you with a ward for the island.”

  Cassidy gulped. Nic had told Dion part of the story—that the fae had tried to kidnap Rianna because she was a sea dragon. But he hadn’t told his brother that he was a dragon, too.

  She glanced uncertainly at Nic. Cleia seemed to be one of the good fae, and she was family now, but after the weeks Cassidy had spent on the run, she wasn’t sure she wanted any favors from a fae. On the other hand, it was never smart to offend a powerful fae.

  Cleia seemed to read her mind. “No tricks,” she murmured. “I have a little one, too, you know.” The sun fae’s striking face was soft with love. She exchanged a private smile with Dion.

  “Nic told me.” Cassidy nodded. The two of them had had plenty of time to talk while he was recovering. He’d opened up about his family, including the fourth brother, Joaquim, whom no one had seen for several years. Now she glanced again at Nic, and at his nod of approval, said, “We’d be honored to accept your gift.”

  “No one will get within a hundred yards without your permission,” Cleia said, “and humans will see a heavy white fog. After a while, they won’t even remember that an island was ever here.”

  She handed her wine glass to Dion and raised her hands to one of the shafts of sunlight that seemed to follow her about the dining hall. Once again, she seemed to sparkle, and her fingertips glowed so brightly that Cassidy had to narrow her eyes against the glare. The sun fae queen spread her fingers and the light streamed out from her in all directions.

  She murmured something unintelligible in fae and brought her hands back to her sides. “It is done.”

  Cassidy impulsively hugged Cleia. “I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

  “As do I,” said Nic.

  Cleia squeezed her back. “It’s my pleasure. Your little girl deserves to grow up undisturbed—but take care with her if you leave the island. Word may have gotten around.”

  “We will,” Nic assured her grimly.

  The party went late. Cassidy was amused to see the interplay between the three brothers. Dion teased Nic and Nic harassed Tiago—and Tiago took it all in stride, clearly used to being the little brother, even though he was an adult himself and a mated man to boot. All three men seemed baffled by Rosana, whose heart-shaped face concealed a sharp wit.