by P. Jameson
She nodded, her eyes so wide they looked like they could pop from her face.
Fuck. He needed to get her out of the water before she went into shock.
Scooping her up, he swam with her to the shore, shifting to human form when his fin touched earth. He kept his eyes averted as he walked with her out of the lake. He didn’t want to see the shock there, or the horror, or whatever she might feel about him now that she knew what he was.
The lights of the sheriff’s car lit the night as it approached and reminded him of when he pulled her from the water the first time. Three cars stopped along the bank and deputies emerged, carrying flashlights. They scattered along the shore searching for the stalker.
They wouldn’t find him.
He might as well have not even existed.
“Mansen?” Doe clung to him and the action made him suck in a hard breath. What was she thinking right now?
“Yes.”
“What does elska mean?”
Mansen swallowed hard, setting Doe on her feet but not letting go. He couldn’t. Not yet.
He found her gaze, drumming up the courage to say the truth. How was war easier than telling a female how he felt? “It means love in the language of my people.”
Her blue eyes went soft, losing some of the worry behind them. “It does?”
“Yes.”
Sheriff Holmes approached, carrying blankets. “What the hell did you do, son,” he muttered under his breath. “Never mind. Tell me later. For now, let’s get you two home.”
Home. Would he have one with Doe? Or was it back to the lake, to his watery cave, to his weeks of sleep, only to wake again in the deep, lonely and empty inside?
He didn’t know. But he was going to find out.
Chapter 13
Doe couldn’t take her eyes off Mansen as he pushed open the door to his cabin and urged her inside. He locked the door behind them and she breathed a sigh of relief.
Her ordeal with the dark-eyed man was over. For good.
Hours later, she still shivered at the thought of what happened at the lake. It would be a long time before she got the image of the serpent eating him out of her mind. Probably an eternity, actually. But she couldn’t deny that she was relieved to be free of the cruel man.
There had been lots of questions to answer. Mansen had done most of the talking, giving Sheriff Holmes a believable story to tell the town. She now knew the sheriff was privy to the secret happenings beneath Sapphire Lake. Three generations of his family had helped the warriors throughout the years, and someday, he would pass the job on to someone new.
And there had been lots to explain now that she remembered all the broken pieces of her past. She’d been on the run so long and relied on so many different aliases, that her name hardly mattered anymore. It didn’t represent her in any meaningful way, and she was a different person than when she first started running.
Now was Doe.
She had no family to call her own, having been abandoned to the system when she was young. Her slight powers scared people. She couldn’t blame them. She’d just needed to find her place in the world.
Superstitious Aurora Falls, with its magical Sapphire Lake, was her place.
She turned to find Mansen staring hard at her. Like he had in the hospital before. Like he was trying to read her.
Elska meant love.
Did he love her?
“What happens now?” she asked.
He seemed surprised by her question.
“I have to go back tomorrow. Unless…” He shook his head, giving up whatever he was going to say.
“Unless what?”
He looked away. “It’s too much right now. We’ll talk about it next land-cycle.”
“Next month?” The thought left her feeling empty inside. She didn’t want to stay here without him for an entire month. Not when she was finally free and where she belonged. She wanted to start her life, start living. Wanted to revel in it.
“Unless what?” she demanded this time, stepping up to him so their chests brushed together.
He stared down at her, his expression so intense, it gave her shivers. Delicious shivers that rolled down her spine and settled in her center, warm and wet.
“Unless… damn it, elska. It’s too soon.”
“Let me decide that. I want the choice to decide, for once.”
Her palm landed on his chest and a low rumble eased from him. “The moon will call me back to the water tomorrow, unless you choose me.”
“Choose you? That’s it? Well then, I choose you.”
His eyes went hungry. Like he wanted to devour her. She liked the idea.
“No, elska. Choose me as your mate. Your forever. Give me your future, all of you. That’s how this works. I must always return to the water, unless you choose me. But no matter what, I will always return to you. Understand? There will be no other for me.”
Doe swallowed hard. “Oh.”
Forever.
Shadows fell over his features, and he pulled away.
But she wasn’t saying no. Not even close.
“You want me forever?” she asked. She needed to make sure. If she was going to commit to him, if she was going to give her heart to him, she had to know he wasn’t going anywhere.
Mansen stared into her eyes, fierce emotion rolling off of him. “I want that more than fucking anything, woman.”
“You do?” she breathed, having gone practically numb from the way he looked at her.
“I want to take you now, under me, and make you mine for good. I want to see you look at me in that way you did at the lake, with love in your eyes. I want to show you with my body and my devotion that you are my everything. My treasure.”
“You… you do?”
He nodded, stepping closer, practically stalking her. “Yes, elska. And if you keep looking at me like that, I won’t be able to keep my hands off of you.”
Doe went still, her mind made up. She was doing this. She would become his tonight with her next words, and it was the most liberating feeling she’d ever experienced.
“Then don’t,” she whispered.
“Be very sure,” he warned, fists clenching like he could barely keep from her. But he would, if she demanded it. And that was all the difference. She knew if she said no right now, he would honor it. In that moment, she felt so powerful.
Mansen gave her that power. And she knew he would always make sure she was her strongest.
“Elska…” he warned, breath heaving in this chest.
“I’m sure,” she said. “I’m very, very sure.”
With that, Mansen lunged for her.
In one swift move, Mansen lifted Doe into his arms and carried her the few steps to the bedroom.
He had learned a lot about his mate over the past few hours. That she was alone in the world and had a magic about her that made her know things she shouldn’t know. That she had come to Aurora Falls because of it. And that she had been on the run and moving around for most of her life. Tormented by that crazy asshole who wanted to claim her without her permission.
Mansen stared down at her. She’d never have to worry about anything like that again. He was going to keep her safe all the days of their lives. Because after he claimed her, he would no longer be bound to the lake. He would stay on land and provide for her and make her smile as many times as he could.
He slid her down his body, the delicious feel of her making him grapple for control.
“You will have my body, elska,” he rumbled. But first, he needed to show her his truth. “Touch my mark.”
She frowned, her beautiful lips turning down in confusion. “Your mark?”
“On my hand. The scales. Touch them, and you will see the past.”
“I already saw,” she admitted. “I thought it was because of my abilities.”
“Huran says each mate sees differently. Some slow, others all at once. What did you see?”
“You, on a boat. A fierce warrior. I knew you were s
trong, that you would fight for what was yours, and it made me feel safe. Because…” she swallowed hard, “… you called me ‘mine’.”
Mansen nodded, fingers digging into her hip. “You are mine. My elska. Forever. And I’ve waited hundreds of years to have you. No one else will touch you after this, understand. Only me.”
She agreed. “And you’re mine? That’s how this works, right? Because if anyone touches you, I will want to hurt them.”
Pride thundered in his chest. “Oh, no one will ever take my attention from you, I promise you that. Yes, elska. I am yours completely.”
She took his hand, lifting it carefully to her mouth and kissed his scales. The moment she did, she went stiff, her eyes closing as she pressed the back of his hand to her cheek.
He knew she was seeing the past, way back to the night Tamsin cursed his people. The lightning, the blue and green flames, the magic that twisted his legs into a shimmering tail. The sinking of the ship into the lake and the serpent that was sent to protect it. How he was trapped, how he came to land the first time, desperate to escape. How he almost died, resisting the curse’s pull back to the water.
Doe broke the contact, staring up at him with wide eyes. “It’s really true. All of it. Tamsin, the curse. You’ve been in the lake for so long,” she breathed.
“Yes.” He walked her backward toward the bed. “And now I’m ready to leave it all behind. Start new. With you. I want a family. A home. Me and you and as many babies as you will give me.”
A small grin lifted her cheeks. “You want babies?”
“Of course. Do you?”
“I always did. Just never thought I would have them.”
He gripped her jaw, tilting her head for better access to her mouth, and then kissed her, tasting the sweetness of her lips again before pulling back. “There’s no limit to what we can have, elska. Just watch and see. I will give you the world, because you’ve already given me mine.”
“Sweet talker.”
“Shh. Don’t tell anyone.”
“Our secret.”
That sounded right to him. He planned on having many secrets with her. A lifetime of secrets.
He lifted her shirt over her head, tossing it aside, and then worked to remove her bra. It was a complicated thing, so unlike what the females wore in his day. He let Doe show him how to undo it before he ripped it from her body to get to what was underneath.
When she as finally bared to him, he dragged hungry eyes over her form. Soft sloping shoulders. Round, firm breasts. Curvy body that narrowed at the waist. She was just as beautiful as he remembered. Except this time, all his.
His to touch and lick and kiss and test.
Oh, yes. He would test her body for sure.
Reaching up, he took one breast in his hand and squeezed until she gasped. The weight of it was perfect, creamy flesh spilling out of his grip, hard nipple pressing into his palm. A lightning bolt of pure lust shot to his cock, making him so hard, he could barely breathe.
Her frantic hands pushed his shirt up and he yanked it over his head to save time. “Muscles,” she groaned as her touch went all over his chest.
Mansen growled. His female liked his body too.
She went for his belt, loosening it and then his jeans, while he shoved her panties over her hips and pressed his hand between her legs for his feel of her.
His breath caught at the silky wetness he felt as he pressed a finger inside.
“You’re so wet, female,” he rasped, loving the way she clung to him while he worked his finger deeper.
Her hand snaked its way into his open jeans, searching for his cock and when she found it, she wrapped her soft fingers around the head, causing him to jerk into her touch.
“You’re big,” she breathed, concern in her gaze. “Will this work?”
He could tell she hadn’t been with anyone in a while. She was so sensitive to his touch, and her opening was tight on his finger.
It was time to tell her the truth.
“I don’t know, elska. It’s been five hundred years since I’ve made it work. But my gut tells me we’re a perfect fit.”
“Five hundred years?” she mouthed. “No wonder you’re so…”
“What?”
Her gaze flashed hot and a smile slid up one side of her mouth. “Excited.”
Mansen pushed her to the bed, shucked his pants, and came down on top of her with a groan, his hard cock pressing into her soft thigh.
“That has nothing to do with it,” he said, spreading her legs and finding her drenched opening. Lining up with her center, he pushed inside slowly, gritting his teeth at the tightness. “Your body is a dream I never want free of, yes. But it’s you. You are what excited me. The future I get to spend, here on dry land, loving you.”
Doe whimpered at the pressure but he watched her eyes. They told him not to stop. And when he was buried to the top, he leaned in to kiss her lips, desperate not to move until she was ready.
Doe pulled her hips back and pushed slowly onto him, and that was the last of his restraint. The only thing that could stop him from taking her hard now was her. And as he stared down at his curvy little seductress, he knew she wasn’t going to want that.
Mansen was a beast as he pounded into her, stealing her breath with every thrust.
Doe moaned.
A passionate, ferocious beast. Arms flexing as he held himself over her. Abs rippling as his waist moved in a sexy undulation. All the while his gaze never faltered from her. His eyes dug into her, piercing her soul in a beautiful way. Turning her into something she’d only dreamed of being…
Loved. Adored. Needed. Respected.
She loved who Mansen made her. Elska.
Her nails dug into his shoulder as each push of his body inched her nearer and nearer to the edge of bliss. This time when she went over the ledge, it wouldn’t be into the cold water of the lake, into danger.
It would be into the strong arms of a man who cared for her. Into safety.
“Mansen,” she groaned, writhing beneath him, and his eyes did that magical thing where they lit from the inside, all green and blue flames.
He dipped his head to her chest pulling an aching nipple between his lips to torture it.
“Yes, yes!”
He sucked hard and her nipple came free from his mouth with a soft pop, before he was blazing a hot trail up her sternum, across her neck, ending at her ear. “Elska. I love the way you sound when I’m inside you. It will be my favorite sound from here on out. I want to hear it every night.”
“Every night?” That seemed like a lot of sex. Which… she wasn’t opposed to.
“I have a lot to make up for,” he rumbled, and then picked up the pace, ramping up the pleasure building at her core.
She was about to come. So close she could scream.
Maybe she should. Maybe it was time to just do whatever felt right instead of what was necessary to survive.
As her man pressed her to the bed, giving her every bit of his strength, Doe let out a scream and came apart beneath him, pleasure wracking every inch of her body.
“Fuck,” Mansen hissed, throwing his head back on a roar. “Elska mine, elska mine…”
My love, my love. His words threaded through her in a way that felt supernatural. Like a piece of him was permanently embedded in her soul. It was a feeling she would never forget, never regret, for the rest of her life.
Mansen slowed above her, but each fading thrust was just as powerful, the warmth of his release flooding her body and spilling out onto the bed. He came to a stop and pressed his forehead to hers, dragging in a trembling breath.
“You break me, elska. You turn me inside out until I’m not the man I used to be.”
Doe frowned. “I… I…” She didn’t want to hurt him.
“No, it’s a good thing.” He curved his rough palm around her cheek. “I was selfish before. We all were. Taking only, and never giving back. I would hate the witch and the gods, the world, all of it,
except… it brought me to you. An eternity in the lake brought me to you, and I can never regret that.”
She brought her hand to his hair, wanting him even closer, but stopped short at what she saw—
“Mansen!” she gasped, unable to look away from the back of her own hand. “Look.”
He leaned back, taking her hand to examine it. And his eyes repeated that same wonder-filled look he’d had in the hospital when she noticed his mark.
There, on the back of her hand, an iridescent set of blue-green scales stretched across her skin, perfectly matching the ones on Mansen.
“A mark,” he breathed. “It was always you, and this proves it. You are mine.”
“Can… can people see it?”
He shook his head. “Only me. The marks are just between us.”
Doe smiled, whispering the truth, “I love it.”
Maybe it should have scared her, a mark appearing on her body like that. But she’d never been normal, had always known she was destined for something out of the ordinary, and instead, the mark made her feel… special.
Mansen dipped his head, brushing his lips over the scales as if worshipping them. And what a sight it was. Her big brutal Viking warrior, her fierce merman who had swam with monsters in the lake, her rough-around-the-edges big-hearted man, bowing his head over her hand like he would never take another breath without breathing her air.
Her man, adoring her. She vowed to give him the same adoration, for the rest of her days. It was an easy decision to make, and one her heart would never falter on.
She knew. The same way she always knew things.
She just knew.
Chapter 14
Doe sat on the small porch steps, staring out at Sapphire Lake. It was calm, and the sort of evening where the sunlight seemed to burn the water as it set over the horizon. She wondered about the other Mer in the lake, and the vicious serpent who watched them. Were they lonely? She thought they were, but Mansen assured her that they were able to sleep through their time in the water if they so chose.
Three weeks had gone by since Doe committed to being Mansen’s elska for the rest of their lives. Which they would live out together, in normal human years, now that his curse was broken. They’d taken one of the clan’s cabins to live in until they needed a bigger space. Which might be soon since Mansen was insatiable and wanted to make love approximately twelve-point-nine times a day.