Secrets of the Sea Lord
Page 31
“Yes.” Faier waved his free hand at them. “We will see them again.”
“You want to go with them, don’t you?”
“Why?” He gazed on her, lavender and mauve threads gleaming, calm and sweet and male. “Aiycaya is your home.”
Her heart squeezed. “But you couldn’t accept my Life Tree.”
“Look at my tattoos, Harmony.”
Light lavender shimmered and entwined with the older mauve. And in his eyes too, the threads of mauve joined with bright lavender.
She gaped. “You healed. But how?”
“Sacred brides gain the power of their husband’s Life Tree.”
“But I never went to Atlantis. I didn’t even see your Life Tree.”
“You are mer.” His amused smile deepened. Kindness twinkled in his eyes and brightened his soul. “So, it seems, I am your sacred bride.”
“You? Are my sacred bride?” She burst out laughing. Joy filled with relief. “Will you marry me?”
“Of course.” He brought her to the opposite side of the Life Tree from King Kayo, where it was quiet and private, and knelt at its base. “I, Faier of Atlantis and Dragao Azul, marry my queen Harmony. Shower your blessing and healing on our union so our joining will produce a healthy young fry.”
She touched the warm wood. “It’s not going to hurt my brother, is it?”
“It will heal him,” Faier assured her, nuzzling her neck. “The Life Tree grows more powerful in response to joy.”
“I, Harmony of Aiycaya, marry Faier. Shower your blessing and healing on our union so our joining will produce a healthy young fry. And heal King Kayo.”
The Life Tree glowed and tinkled radiating holiness across the sea.
Faier was right.
And now he was her husband.
Harmony twined her arms around her husband’s powerful shoulders. Once she’d been terrified to look at him. Now she couldn’t look at him enough. Her heart filled with so much hope for the future. Today was a new beginning for all of them.
He twirled her in the circle of the Life Tree, away from her brother and the other warriors, in a close circle of their own. “Now we are married.”
“Don’t worry.” She recovered her amusement. “We’re not traditional in Aiycaya. I won’t force you to stay shut up in my castle and ‘gestate my young fry.’”
“This is good.” Faier teased her lips with a sweet kiss. “Such duties might challenge me.”
“I’d rescue you.” She squeezed his fingers. “It’s hard to believe only a short while ago, I was alone, but now I have you, and my brother, and a whole city of warriors on my side.”
He rubbed her back while the magnitude of her blessings sprinkled over her like starlight.
But of course, things were not perfect. Her brother was still recovering. The city was still vulnerable.
And above the city—above the surface—she had things left to do.
“I am a citizen of three cities. The first in a thousand years.” He sobered, reading her mind and matching her mood. “There will be difficulties.”
“You do get around,” she agreed. “A real citizen of the undersea world. I think we’re going to benefit a lot from your experience.”
“I suppose it is only fitting that the first mer to join three cities is united to the first female mer born in a thousand years.”
“Yeah, we’re both rare.” But just acknowledging that allowed her to ask the questions she’d been wanting and dreading. “Okay. Tell me what to do now.”
He teased her lips with another sweet kiss. “You tell me, my queen.”
“Do you think I could get help? On the surface?”
He pulled back. “What kind of help?”
“Lifet and Jean-Baptiste are in jail now. And Evens is free, thank goodness. I still want to help them. Evens should come to America so he can study oceanography. Monsieur Joseph needs the best medical attention for his knees. And I’m worried about Fab’s job. My birth certificate’s still lost. And my tribe is counting on me to reunite them with the warriors of Aiycaya.”
“Anything else?”
“I know it’s a lot to ask.”
“You now have ‘a lot’ of resources.” His soul and his dark eyes twinkled. He kicked to twirl them again. “Queen Aya knows many intimidating people you call lawyers. You possess the wealth of Aiycaya’s Sea Opals. And you may order your warriors to seek brides at any sacred island—or mainland—you choose.”
The plethora of resources buoyed her to new hopes. Imagine a team of lawyers on her side. Money to invest. Three whole mer cities full of warriors dedicated to helping. And one gorgeous, steady, healed warrior who had her back from her darkest hour to now, stepping together into a new dawn.
What couldn’t they achieve together?
“Yes,” he agreed, as though he heard her silent words. “We can achieve many, many things together.”
“I always wanted to help.” She rested her forehead against his as they twirled. “One person trying to change things is like screaming at a wall. Like my brother attacking the All-Council representative on his own. But your faith made me carry on. And now the whole world has changed.”
“You are my mate. My soul. My wife.” He nuzzled her. “I will always believe in you.”
Sweet arousal filled her. She was his wife, and he was her husband. They’d been through an incredible journey. And it had been a hundred years since she’d last slept. Time dilation or not, she was tired.
But before she fell asleep, she had things to do. With Faier. In private.
Naked things.
She tugged him toward her temporary castle. “Will you follow me in?”
“Yes, Harmony. You are my home.” Faier linked their hands. “Wherever you go and whatever you do, I will always follow you.”
Dear Reader,
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Seduced by the Sea Lord ~ Brief Excerpt
The adventure begins…
Buy at Amazon.
Determined warlord Torun cannot wait to claim Lucy, who mistook him for a shipwreck survivor and pulled his injured body from the ocean. All his instincts tell him she is his soul mate. Now she must join with him and give him a child.
Lucy can’t believe the words coming out of this dominant male. He insists her destiny is to become a mermaid queen and mother to his future children. The one thing “destiny” forgot to mention was that Lucy’s a broke divorcee who can’t even have a child. It’s really too bad, because his gorgeous lips are all too kissable, and she’d love to see his iridescent gold tattoos moving as he flexed those broad, hard pectorals under the water…
But Torun’s in more immediate danger than a bad bump to the head, and Lucy is the only one who can save him. Their choices will either save the entire race of mermen, or destroy it forever.
This is a complete novel with a happy ending! Also, it features steamy mer-shifter love scenes, underwater gun fights, and a giant female octopus named Mr. Huggles. Fall in love with these men of the sea!
Enjoy this brief excerpt!
A dead body.
That was what had fouled her anchor line. Lucy broke the surface, spat out her snorkel, and rubbed the fog from her mask. The bright sun set the ocean on orange fire as it sank b
eneath the waves, and there was a dead body tangled on her chain.
She had sailed to this isolated atoll three times now. Each time, she found something amazing that turned out to be cursed.
Her first trip, she discovered the largest Sea Opal in the world. Her second trip, she got engaged to her now ex-husband, who made off with her Sea Opal.
The third time was the charm. The atoll was skipping the “seems-amazing” part and going straight for the curse.
Only ten minutes ago she’d stood in the water-logged trawler engine room and trained her cell phone on herself for what was going to be her final Facebook Live expedition broadcast.
“Mel, as you can see, the leak’s gotten worse. I’m heading back to port tonight. I’ve got time for one last dive.”
And that would be it. Her last chance to find a Sea Opal. Mel had double-mortgaged her family house to get Lucy this far. There would be no second expedition.
Lucy squared her shoulders, made the victory sign, and grinned. Her grease-smeared cheeks ached. “This is it. I know I’m going to get lucky.”
And now…
Now her last chance was fouled by a dead body on her anchor line.
She could pretend she’d never seen him and search for her Sea Opal. But…she just couldn’t. He had relatives. Friends. Maybe he even had kids. Worse than a tragic closure was the unfinished, senseless ache of never knowing for sure what was in store.
Lucy replaced her mask, took several deep breaths, chomped her snorkel, and dove.
Her magenta plastic fins propelled her quickly below the thermocline, into colder water, and her ears squeezed. She moved her jaw. Her ears popped.
The anchor line cut into the man’s midsection. His arms and legs hung off either side, floating straight out in the current.
She grabbed his bicep. It was huge with muscles, and his skin was slick, like trying to grab a fish. Her hand slid off.
Ew.
She grabbed the bicep with both hands and yanked.
The body rotated around the anchor line and started to come free. It was slow going. And she really needed to breathe.
His feet hooked the anchor line.
Son of a sea biscuit.
She tugged. Almost free…
Her lungs convulsed.
Air!
Lucy raced for the surface. Her lips cleared the water. She spat her snorkel and gasped.
The body was at her limit. Could she haul him up with the anchor? He didn’t seem that securely attached. If she changed to scuba gear, he might float away. Also, the sun had disappeared below the horizon. Soon it would be too dark to see. No, she had to bring him up now or lose him forever.
She dove again.
The body was hanging on the anchor line by one foot. Was the current stronger? She reached him… and her lungs clenched. No! She left him behind and raced for the surface again alone.
Lucy clung to the bobbing ladder on her rusty trawler.
Maybe she couldn’t save the body. She wasn’t the same person who had visited this atoll the other two times. She used to compete in triathlons, and now, she was fat. Her belly was scarred with old injection sites. She could hardly swim ten feet.
Why would I want to stay married to you? Look at yourself. You’re a failure as a woman and a failure as a human being.
Lucy sniffed and cleared her mask. So what if she was weak and fat? Focus on the man. Her problems could wait.
She grabbed the chain and dove. Hand over hand, she pulled herself directly down. This time, she wasn’t coming up alone. No matter what.
The man was no longer entangled! He floated away, face down, and disappeared into the depths.
No.
She let go of the chain and kicked harder. Her lungs screamed. There, his leg. Something was wrong with his feet. They were flat like fins. Ugh, were they disintegrating? Gross. She grabbed the ankle joint. Hopefully, he’d stay together—yes, his ankle was firm, although slippery.
Lucy rotated for the surface and dragged him by the ankle. He was heavy, awkward, and water-logged.
Her lungs convulsed again.
Almost there. The surface glimmered. Almost…
Air now!
She spat her snorkel and gasped.
Seawater hit the back of her throat.
Ack.
The surface broke around her like shattered glass.
She grabbed the ladder and gagged up seawater. She coughed and hacked. Her muscles trembled.
A hundred years later, her throat finally cleared.
She was still gripping the man’s ankle. Success!
Of course, it wasn’t really a success. At the end of the day – which was right now — her expedition was ruined and this man was still dead.
What had happened to him?
He bobbed face-down on the waves. Possibly disintegrating feet aside, his body was in good shape. Hard, thick muscles bulged in every direction like a body builder. Dark hair lay upon firm skin swirled with incredible tattoos. They were an unusual gold color. Possibly tribal. In the setting sun, they almost seemed iridescent.
Long, white scars raked his powerful shoulders. Propeller blades? The wounds looked raw and deep, but they were no longer bleeding.
How bad was his face? Maybe the guys back at the shop could get an identification. Maybe his grieving relatives were rich and would back a second Sea Opal expedition out of gratitude. She could dream. Lucy tightened her gut and rolled him over.
His face wasn’t gross. Just sad.
He had dark brows, high cheeks, an aquiline nose, and a firm chin. His skin was pale from being in the water. And he had more tattoos. Tattoos everywhere.
Also, scratches. Ragged claws had raked his chest. She traced the gashes across his massive pectorals with her wrinkled fingertips. His body was the same temperature as the water.
Once, he had been handsome. Now, he was gone.
The weather had been clear recently. Of course, there were a hundred thousand ways to die at sea. Around Cancun, the most frequent cause was stupidity. Had he power-lifted himself over the side of a cruise ship? Thrown back a fifth of tequila and flipped a jet ski? Or was he actually the victim of—
Wait. What was that she felt? She rested her palm on the center of his chest.
Thub-thub. Thub-thub. Thub-thub.
Was that … a heartbeat?
Impossible. He had been submerged. And face down. No—
The man spasmed. Water splashed her mask.
Lucy shrieked.
His eyes fluttered open. Aquamarine, like the ocean, they struggled to focus on her. His mouth opened and closed.
He was still alive!
… Find out what happens next it Seduced by the Sea Lord!
Also by Starla Night
Lords of Atlantis
Seduced by the Sea Lord
Sacrificed to the Sea Lord
Enslaved by the Sea Lord
Stolen by the Sea Lord
Surrendering to the Sea Lord
Secrets of the Sea Lord
Spellbound by the Sea Lord
Saved by the Sea Lord
Sheltered by the Sea Lord
7 Virgin Brides for 7 Weredragon Billionaires
~ ONYX DRAGONS ~
(Series Novels)
Malachite
Pyrochlore
Kyanite
Amber
Jasper
Alexandrite
Flint
~ CARNELIAN DRAGONS ~
(Linked Novellas)
Syenite
Peridot
About the Author
USA Today bestselling author Starla Night was born on a hot July at midnight. She hikes, scuba dives, and swims naked in the ocean. She writes about smokin’ hot dragons and tattooed mermen at StarlaNight.com.
starlanight.com
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