The Bride Hunt Box Set Books 1 - 3

by Hartnady, Charlene

  The next day …

  Torrent was on the floor. The blanket covered him from about mid-calf to mid-chest. He was sleeping soundly even though the floor in question was hard and cold.

  His bed was soft and comfortable. Candy felt another momentary spark of guilt. She pushed it down. It was his own damned fault. She carefully dressed, sure to keep the covers over her. She worked not to make any noise.

  Just as in her previous room, this one had a coffee maker ‒ she’d spotted it the evening before. She tiptoed to the kitchenette and after opening and closing a few cupboards, she found the ground coffee.

  Candy got to work making the brew and finding cups and the rest of the things she needed. She glanced at Torrent and sucked in a breath. He was back on the couch, on his back. One of his hands rested on the floor to keep himself from falling off the large three-seater. It looked like a tiny love seat with him on it. His other hand was folded behind his head like a make-shift pillow.

  The blanket was scrunched in a heap over his lap but his legs and chest were bare. His hair was mussed, his eyes had that clouded barely awake look and his lids hung at half-mast. Her heart-rate picked up and her breathing did the same. It was like all of the oxygen had fled the room. Like she needed to breathe more deeply to get in the same amount of air.

  “Good morning.” He gave her a smile. It was beautiful, disarming. If he crooked a finger right now, she might just go to him. “Did you sleep well?” His voice had that deep, raspy, just-woken-up sound.

  “Um …” She licked her lips. The smell of freshly brewed coffee permeated across the room. “I slept really well.” She pulled a pained face. “You?” She whispered the word, feeling the guilt return with a vengeance.

  Torrent’s smile grew. “I slept like a baby. I woke up often and longed for a breast to suckle on.” He choked out a laugh.

  A laugh forced its way out of her throat as well. She couldn’t help it. “You’re too much, you know that? A baby huh?”

  Torrent nodded. He bobbed his eyebrows.

  Candy laughed some more. “Next, you’ll be telling me that you are wearing a diaper under there and that you wet your bed.”

  “No diaper but there is a wet spot …” he narrowed his eyes at her, “it’s not pee though.” He winked at her.

  Heat suffused her cheeks and she looked back down at what she was doing.

  “I’m only joking,” he said. Candy could hear him move and when she glanced up, he was in a sitting position.

  “Would you like some coffee?”

  Torrent nodded. “That would be nice. Two sugars, no milk.”

  Candy nodded. This was so damned weird. Her hands shook a little and she spilled the milk trying to open it. “Shit!” She set the carton down and went to grab a cloth.

  “Are you nervous, Candy?”

  She cleaned up the mess and, after taking a deep breath, poured some milk into her cup and then into his. “Shit!” she swore as she poured the milk from his cup down the drain and rinsed the mug. Candy put her hands on her hips. “I guess I am.”

  “Why?” He leaned against the back of the couch and folded both hands behind his head. His chest was a thing of utter beauty. Sculpted. Wide shoulders, pecs made for biting and abs the likes of which she’d never seen before. The blanket was still bunched over his lap. Thank god!

  “Um …” She realized she was staring and got to work finishing making their coffee. “I’ve never spent the night with a guy before, that’s all.”

  He sat forward and folded his arms across his legs, clasping his hands somewhere in the middle. “You mean you’ve never spent the night with a male you haven’t had sex with before?”

  “No.” She picked up his mug, and walked over and handed it to Torrent. “I’ve never spent the night with a guy before … ever.”

  His eyes narrowed. “Never?”

  She nodded. “I’ve had sex with quite a few guys so I’m not a virgin or anything … far from it,” she added. “But I’ve only ever had one boyfriend. I was still in school so sleepovers would’ve been frowned upon. We broke up when Evan went to college. He received a scholarship out of state. Long distance relationships don’t work and we were really young.” She paused. “It didn’t suit my lifestyle to have a boyfriend after that.” No sleepovers were a part of her rules so she’d never stayed over with any of them either.

  “Why not? You are a highly desirable female.”

  “It’s a long story,” she mumbled.

  “We have time. I need to meet with my pinnacle warriors but not until later this morning.”

  She took a sip of her coffee. “So you have time for breakfast? I saw some eggs in the fridge.”

  “Breakfast would be great. I will put on some pants and come and help you.” He looked up at her since she was standing and he was still sitting, looking even better up close.

  She nodded and was just about to turn when he grabbed her hand. His was big, warm and lightly calloused. A real man’s hands. His gaze was soft and compelling. “I don’t have any experience with relationships.”

  She nodded.

  Using his thumb, he stroked the outside of her hand. “I mean it. I’ve had plenty of sex with many different females over the years.”

  Too much info. She didn’t want to hear about his sex life just as she didn’t exactly want to tell him about hers. It was important though if they were going to be together and if they were going to make a go of it. She’d give it a few days and if she still wanted to stay, she’d tell him everything. “Okay.” She didn’t know what else to say.

  “They were only ever one night stands. It was purely sex. All of it.” He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. “I can hear how your heart-rate has increased and not in a good way.” He looked back up at her. “I’m messing this up. What I’m trying to say is that I don’t have much experience in the relationship department.” He seemed to struggle with finding the right words. “We need to talk and to be honest with one another if we are going to make this work. I’ll try hard not to mess it up but I might be a bit clueless, so bear with me ...”

  She had to smile at him. “You may have stumbled here or there in the beginning but you’re doing a great job now. I guess I don’t have much experience either.”

  He smiled and released her hand. “I’m glad I’m doing a better job and, Candy...”

  “Yeah.”

  “You’re also doing a great job. I’m glad we spent the night together. That I was your first in that regard. I look forward to spending the night with you in our bed.”

  Our bed. Crap! Breathe, Candy.

  “Thanks ... um … I wanted to talk to you abo—” There was one thing that had been sitting in the back of her mind. A nagging feeling.

  He nodded for her to speak but she chickened out. “It’s not important.” She tried to walk away but he took back her hand.

  “It must be since it is on your mind.”

  She nodded.

  “Sit.”

  She took a seat next to him. “If we’re going to give this a try … us a try—”

  His eyes blazed. “We are.”

  “If that’s the case then you need to be faithful to me,” she blurted. “We need to be faithful to each other. It is important to me,” she added.

  Torrent frowned. “I’m not sure what you mean.”

  Candy licked her lips. “Sky mentioned that you are within your rights as king to …” she paused. “To have sex with another woman if I am unable to … help you out.” She felt anger rise in her but tried to get a handle on it. “I know that we are different culturally but you need to know that I wouldn’t be able to be with you if you—”

  Torrent pulled her into his lap and she yelped as her thighs connected with his. He smiled at her. No, he was grinning. He was enjoying this. “You think this is funny?” she asked, as the anger bubbled up.

  “You’re jealous.”

  “It’s not a matter of being jealous.” Hell yeah! So what if she was? She wasn
’t admitting it to him though, he was only just getting over his arrogance. “In my culture, if two people decide that they are going to be together, especially if marriage is on the table …” She shivered and Torrent banded his arms a little tighter around her. He was so warm and he smelled so good. “If two people are together, they don’t have sex with other people. It’s considered cheating and I can’t have you cheat on me. Not ever. After my dad and—”

  “I think it is wonderful that you’re jealous.”

  She felt like kicking him in the shin or slapping that cocky, far too good-looking smile off of his face. “You do, do you? How would you like it if I went out and had sex with the first shifter I came across?”

  His whole body tensed. Muscles popped out on either side of his neck. He growled, flashing teeth that looked sharp. “I will kill any male who touches you.”

  “Now look who’s jealous.” She squeezed his bicep. It didn’t give, not even a millimeter.

  The rest of the tension drained from him and he nodded. “Point taken. I don’t plan on taking any of the others to my bed. There is only one female for me, Candy. Only one.”

  She gave a nervous giggle. “Oh, who might the lucky lady be?” she teased, trying to break some of the tension that crackled between them. It was nuts how quickly it had morphed into sexual energy.

  Instead of answering, Torrent wrapped a hand around her neck and kissed her. He kissed her until her toes curled. Until she pressed herself up against him. He kissed her until she moaned into his mouth. All too soon though, he broke the kiss. Her only conciliation was that he seemed just as affected as she was. His eyes were glazed over, his breathing ragged. Then he set her back on her feet. She felt a bit wobbly.

  Get it together.

  Torrent gave her a panty-wetting smile. “Whenever you’re ready, sweetheart.” He released a loud sigh. “I need to take a long shower now. There might be a loud roar towards the end. Ignore it. Know that I will be thinking of you,” he chuckled as he rose to his feet.

  Candy swallowed hard. After that statement and the kiss, she needed a shower too … desperately. Only hers would be cold.

  Chapter 11

  The next day …

  Her gaze was fixed firmly on his cock. Her tongue slid over her lips and her throat worked. He stretched up and flexed his muscles. His dick twitched and her breathing hitched.

  “It’s all yours, Candy, all you have to do is say the word,” he couldn’t help but goad her. It was so easy to do. He loved watching her cheeks become red.

  Another hitch, sharper this time. She quickly averted her stare. Torrent suppressed a smile since he knew it would piss her off. He didn’t want her pissed, he wanted her happy. He just wanted her, full fucking stop.

  Candy quickly recovered her composure. It was one of the things he liked about her. She wasn’t always readable and she liked to be in control. He couldn’t wait to see her unravel and let loose. Shit! He was getting hard just thinking about it.

  Candy spread out her towel on the white sand. “It’s so beautiful out here.”

  “Yeah it is.” His gaze was on her. How the wind caught her hair. How the summer dress clung to her curves. She was tiny but her legs seemed to go on for miles below the mid-thigh hem.

  “Thank you for bringing me here, it’s so good to be out.”

  Torrent stepped into the pants Candy had handed to him a minute ago. It was stupid. She’d already seen him naked, since he had to shift to get them here, but hey, he knew it would make her feel more comfortable, so he put them on. “I’ll try and sneak you out as often as I can. My brother helped me divert attention.”

  “Lake?”

  Torrent shook his head. “No, Tide.”

  “Oh.” She raised her brows. “You have more than one brother?”

  “I have three. What about you?”

  “I’m an only child.” She shook her head. Candy reached down and pulled her dress over her head.

  By all that was clawed and scaly. His dick sprang to life and with a vengeance. There was nothing he could do to stop it. No amount of thinking about other things, about mundane things, about stupid things. Nothing would make this thing go down. He may or may not have cursed out loud.

  She laughed, so he suspected he had blurted a couple of choice expletives. She was tiny. Narrow hips, a flat belly and really full breasts. They were barely contained in two tiny triangles. Her nipples pushed up against the fabric. Green. The bathing suit was a turquoise green. Her favorite color. The males had managed to find one like he had asked, only they’d picked up the sexiest one they could find. There was another tiny triangle that covered her sex. He could make out her mound. Fuck me! His cock throbbed.

  Candy moved her dress in front of her, covering herself. “It’s too much isn’t it? Maybe too little is a better description.”

  “It’s perfect.” His voice was so guttural he could barely even recognize it as his own. “I don’t think I want you wearing it in front of anyone else, but here and now … fuck … you look so damned sexy.”

  She smiled, relaxing a little. “It leaves so little to the imagination. You should see the back. Actually, you shouldn’t. I’m going to put this back on.” She gave her dress a little shake and blushed scarlet.

  “Don’t.” He couldn’t believe what he was about to say. “You wanted to swim. Go on in.” He looked at the ocean. “I won’t look.” Then he looked down at his hard as rock dick. “I can’t help my reaction though. I’m sorry if it makes you feel uncomfortable, but …” For just a second, he had the unnatural urge to cover himself with his towel but he fought it. Shifters didn’t do such things. His reaction was normal and something his female needed to get used to. If luck was on his side, she’d see a lot more of his engorged member in the not-too-distant future. And up close and personal at that.

  She shook her head and smiled. “It’s fine. Thank you. I’m being silly.” She tossed her dress on her towel and turned around.

  Torrent grit his teeth to stop from making a choking sound. The bikini bottom didn’t cover her ass much. It was cut high up on her cheeks. Tight. Her ass was so damned tight. His balls ached.

  “Are you checking out my butt?” He could hear that she was smiling.

  “Maybe.” His voice cracked and he tried to clear it.

  She laughed as she looked back over her shoulder at him. Then she looked a little shocked but seemed to shake it off. It was something he had noticed about her. It was like she didn’t laugh often. He planned on rectifying that as a matter of extreme urgency.

  She dipped her toes in the incoming surf. “Cold.”

  Torrent jogged towards her. “That’s perfect and exactly what we both need.” She squealed when he caught her around the waist and pulled her into the surf with him.

  She sucked in a breath as he dragged her into the water and then screamed and kicked. “You asshole!” He could hear that she was smiling. “It’s freezing.” She laughed. It was a deep sound that resonated from her belly. He loved hearing it.

  Torrent laughed as well. “It’s not so bad.” He tugged her in a little deeper. They bobbed up over the incoming waves.

  “No, it’s worse.” She laughed some more, her lips were turning blue and her teeth chattered.

  “One day ...” He pulled her into his arms and she snuggled into him, looking for warmth. She felt so damned good against him. He kept his hips back so as not to scare her. His erection hadn’t diminished in the least. “Soon you’re going to be mated to me. Your core temperature will go up and you’ll love swimming in our ocean. I want to show you something.” He moved her closer to the shore and dove into the water.

  He stayed under for a good five or six minutes before breaking the surface in the vicinity of where he had gone under.

  Candy was closer to the beach, about knee deep. She had both her hands cupped over her mouth and her eyes were wide. What the fuck? She was crying. Then she screamed his name, her whole body sagged in what looked like relief.
r />   Shit!

  He swam to the shore using hard strokes and ran from the water.

  “Oh my god.” She was still crying even though she still looked relieved. Candy smacked his arm as soon as she reached him. “Don’t ever scare me like that again,” she hiccuped as tears continued to stream down her cheeks. “I thought you had drowned or something. Oh my god!”

  Torrent felt something clench inside of him. “You were worried.” He put his arms around her and she tried to push him away.

  “Of course I was worried,” she sniffed. “You disappeared beneath the waves. After a minute or two I started to panic. What the hell, Torrent? Don’t you ever do that to me again …” She pushed at his chest and clenched her teeth.

  “Oh, sweetheart.” He cupped her cheeks. “I’m a water dragon. We can’t drown.”

  “Bullshit! Enough of that cocky bullshit. You’re the king. Your people need you and care about you … I’m sure. Sky does. She thinks highly of you.” Her cheeks were tear-soaked, her eyes still held remnants of the panic she must have felt.

  He wiped the hair from her face and kissed her eyes. “There was no risk. I can’t drown. Water dragons can breathe underwater.”

  “Really? Seriously? Why didn’t you tell me? I was worried sick about you.”

  He kissed the tip of her nose. “I’m so glad you care so much about me.”

  She cleared her throat. “I was worried for your kingdom, that’s all, I hardly know you.”

  Torrent couldn’t help but to chuckle, he nuzzled into her neck. “If you say so.”

  She melted into him, her breasts mashed up against his chest. He could feel her hard little nipples. His erection came back with a vengeance and he pulled his hips back. “For the record …”

  She made a noise of agreement.

  “The whole breathing under water thing.” He pulled away so that he could look into her beautiful eyes. “I didn’t tell you because I planned on showing you. There’s a really big tub in my chamber and breathing under water comes in handy.”

  Her pupils dilated. Candy licked her lips and squirmed. The scent of her arousal surrounded them like an invisible cloak. He buried his face in her hair and inhaled deeply. Just say the word. Do it! Tell me what you want. Please!