The Bride Hunt Box Set Books 1 - 3

by Hartnady, Charlene

  “There’s nothing to talk about.” He was pleased with how calm and understandable his words were even though they came out in a deep rasp.

  “There’s a ton to talk about. I put it all out there and I can see that you are not taking it well.”

  “I didn’t come to talk.” He closed the distance between them and clasped an arm around her waist.

  “Torrent, wait,” Candy pleaded. She pushed against his chest.

  “Don’t you want me?” He narrowed his eyes. He didn’t know what he would do if she denied him. He wasn’t sure that he could control his beast for much longer.

  Rut.

  Take.

  Claim.

  “You know I do.”

  “Well then.” He lowered his head and buried it into her neck, nipping at her flesh. The scent of her arousal met his nostrils and he growled deeply.

  With a hard rip, he shredded her sweater, curling his hand around her lush flesh. Her nipple tightened. Candy gave him another hard shove. “Wait.” It came out sounding breathless. “We can’t.”

  “No more waiting. You are mine. Do you hear me?” His free hand cupped her mound and she made a whimpering noise.

  “Yes … no.”

  “You. Are. Mine.” It ended on a snarl. Shit, if he carried on like this he was going to scare her. “I need you,” a rough whisper.

  “No!” More forceful this time. She slapped the side of his arm. “Stop!”

  “Candy.” His voice sounded pleading, so close to begging it scared him. “I need to claim you now. I need to make you mine. Need to have you.” He pushed a hand past the elastic of her pants. “Stop denying me.”

  She shoved at him some more. “We need to talk first.” She squirmed.

  “Fuck!” he swore, pulling away from her.

  “I do want you.” She sniffed, she was crying. “I want for us to be together but not like this. You’re angry. You hate the idea that I was a call girl, a high-priced hooker. A whore.” She was openly sobbing now but her hands were fisted as well. She pulled her clothes together in a hard tug.

  “Don’t call yourself those things.” Anger rose up in him. A lump formed in his throat.

  “I had sex for money. It’s who I was. Was!” She practically shouted the word. “It’s in my past. It is a part of who I am but it doesn’t define me.”

  He could hear what she was saying. Torrent could sympathize and empathize but it didn’t make him feel any better. His dragon prowled and growled. Hearing her say those things didn’t calm him. “You’ve told me. I will come to terms with it. I need you … now. Don’t deny me. Don’t deny us.”

  She shook her head. “We’re not ready to take that step. I thought that we were but I was wrong.”

  “What will it take?” he demanded. The sense of urgency rose even higher and along with it a feeling that he was losing her. Candy. She was his.

  She shrugged. “ I don’t know.” Candy shook her head. “You need to come to terms with what I used to do. You need to get the hell over it or let me go … one or the other.”

  “I’m never letting you go,” he growled. “You are mine.”

  “Stop saying that.” She poked her finger into his chest. “You’re acting like a complete jerk. I did what I had to do. Something that I have to live with, that I have to deal with. You are the one who needs to get over it though.” She turned and paced away from him. Candy opened the closet and grabbed a shirt. Then she changed out of the ripped sweater and pulled on the fresh shirt. Her movements were jerky and angry.

  Torrent ran a hand through his hair. He was losing her. What was wrong with her? He didn’t understand it. He was offering her everything. A whole new life. An opportunity to be a queen, to be his mate … and it didn’t seem like she wanted it.

  Maybe she didn’t want him.

  A king.

  Why didn’t she want him? She allowed human males to pay her money to rut with her and yet she refused him at every turn. White hot anger surged through him. It was unacceptable. Did she not realize that she was lucky to even be here? It was she who should be begging him and not the other way around.

  Torrent went to his side of the closet and yanked open the door. He opened the golden chest in the far corner and and chose a couple of items.

  Candy was at the far end of the chamber. She was staring out at the view, deep in thought.

  Torrent swallowed thickly. Something gave him pause. A voice maybe. Something that told him not to do it but he ignored it. Candy was his female. She’d had sex with others for far less. Rutting her was his right. She was his dammit. Why was she being so stubborn?

  “Here.” He held out the jewelry to her. Torrent had tried to speak with her but they had gotten nowhere. Hopefully she would understand this.

  Candy looked from him, to the pieces in his hand and back again. She looked at him like he was mad. “What’s that?”

  “Some pieces that my family has collected over the years. An emerald ring. A diamond and ruby encrusted brooch. This …” he held up the necklace and pendant, “is a two carat diamond.”

  She frowned. “Okay.” Her frown deepened and she took a step back.

  “They’re yours.” It was too late to back out. By now the voice was screaming to him not to do it.

  Fuck it!

  “I want to rut you. I will give you the jewels as payment. This,” he rattled the priceless heirlooms in his hand, “is what you understand. Am I correct?”

  “Fuck you,” a whisper.

  “Yes.” He raised his brows. “I want you to fuck me. You did it with all those humans and for less, I am sure.”

  Her hand lashed out and she slapped him across the face … hard. “No.” Her voice trembled. She cleared her throat. “You misunderstand. Fuck you!” she yelled. “As in take your money, your diamonds, your title … you can take it all and shove it.” Candy sucked in a deep breath.

  Fear gripped him. “I don’t understand. You’ll fuck all of those—”

  “I wouldn’t lower myself to have sex with you if you were the last guy on the planet. Guys like you are the reason I had a whole list of rules in the first place. I’m leaving now. I want nothing to do with you. Don’t you dare try to stop me.” Her eyes shone.

  “Fine,” he snarled. “Whatever! There are other females out there. In fact, I heard something about another hunt in a week or two.” It was a lie. There was a hunt but he wouldn’t be bringing a female back.

  Candy flinched like he’d physically hurt her. “Just take me home, or better yet, get one of your guys to do it. I don’t ever want to see you again.”

  It hurt so much he could hardly breathe. What the fuck had he done?

  No! Wait just a minute.

  Torrent had tried everything. It was Candy’s fault. Her own damned fault. She didn’t want him. He’d tried hard. He would’ve done anything for her. Right now, he was taking his own advice, there were more females out there. Torrent shrugged. He pretended not to care. He tried to get his heart-rate under control and tried to breathe, even though it felt like a mountain was sitting on his chest, squeezing the life out of him. “I renounce you as well. You’ll be back in Walton Springs before nightfall.” Torrent turned and strode from the room. He tripped and almost fell as the door closed behind him. His eyes stung and his throat felt thick.

  It was nothing. She was nothing to him. Less than nothing. A mistake. Once he had another female under him, he’d perk right up. He was weak from lack of sex. That was all. It was a problem that would be easily rectified.

  Chapter 15

  “What are you doing here?” Blaze pushed back from his desk and stood up.

  “Hello,” Torrent said. “It’s good to see you too.” He could feel that he was frowning.

  “Save me the dramatics.” Blaze smiled. “Why aren’t you with your new bride?”

  The male had spent too much time with human females. With one human female in particular. Blaze thought that the others hadn’t noticed just because his vis
its had dried up before they could call him out on it. It was the first time that Torrent wondered what had happened.

  Bride.

  Fuck!

  “The female is not my mate. It was a false rumor. A misunderstanding.” He shifted from one foot to the other. A mistake! His chest tightened just thinking it. A stupid damned mistake.

  His youngest brother, Storm, would be dropping her in Walton Springs right now. Good riddance.

  Blaze raised his brows. “Oh! I had heard that you sealed the deal.”

  He shook his head. “Nope. I sent the female home. We were not compatible.”

  “Oh! That’s a shame.” Blaze looked amused.

  “We didn’t rut.” He felt the need to set the record straight. “We were not compatible as people.”

  “An even bigger shame.”

  “I’m here to enquire about the dark-haired human. I had my sights set on her from the start. It is probably the reason it didn’t work out with Candy.” Liar! The words almost stuck in his throat. They felt hollow. It felt like he was betraying his female.

  No!

  Not his.

  Candy left him. She left. It wasn’t his fault. Not at all. That wasn’t entirely true. The same voice that had tried to stop him earlier began to shout at him. It called him choice names. He pushed it down and drowned out the pesky droning. “I heard that your brother has not yet mated her.”

  “No, but he seems to like her.” The fire king looked thoughtful.

  “I want her,” he blurted. Torrent had called Ocean to his chamber as soon as Candy had left but the female did nothing for him. Absolutely nothing. She’d stood before him naked and his body hadn’t so much as stirred. He’d apologized to her and had sent her away. He’d felt like the biggest prick. No! It wasn’t his fault. It wasn’t.

  It was simple, he needed a human replacement. The dark-haired one. The one he had wanted in the first place. It was simple!

  “I don’t know.” Blaze rubbed at the stubble on his chin, he was deep in thought.

  Interesting, the male was considering it. “Surely they would be mated by now if she was the right one for him? All of the other females are mated. I sent mine back … after all this time, we should have been mated as well but we were not compatible,” he almost stumbled over his words. “It is the same with this human and Coal. They don’t belong together. You know I am right.”

  Blaze nodded. “I must admit that I am concerned. You need to know that she—” the male stopped talking, “you might be right.” His whole demeanor changed. “Why the hell not? Do you agree to forfeit the next hunt if I give her to you?”

  “Yes.” Torrent knew it was rash but he didn’t give a fuck. The dark-haired one was just what he needed to forget Candy. All human females found him attractive. Candy was the first female to ever resist him. He felt his blood boil all over again just thinking about it. She would accept money from mere humans and wouldn’t let him near her. That wasn’t entirely true it—

  Fuck!

  Candy didn’t want him. She didn’t. The human had proven that time and time again.

  “Are you sure?” the fire king asked.

  He paused for a time. Why was he second guessing himself? Fuck that! “Yes,” his voice rang loud and true. Of course it did! The dark-haired one would fall at his feet. She was the one for him. His throat constricted further and his chest felt all the tighter. He needed a female. He would feel better once he was inside of one. Anyone. He would.

  Blaze nodded. “It is done.” They both touched their markings as a show of faith. Torrent pushed his hand deeper into his chest, trying to still the emotion swirling beneath the surface.

  “Coal should be on his way now. I will inform him of my decision.”

  “I will wait.”

  “Come back in the morning.”

  Torrent shook his head. “I will take the female today.”

  “What is the rush? I will inform Coal and allow him to break the news to the female. You can come b—”

  “I will wait.” The thought of leaving empty-handed was appalling to him.

  Blaze narrowed his eyes on Torrent for a long while. Torrent could feel his heart beating out of his chest. The male finally nodded.

  Something inside of him released but the weight on his shoulders felt like it increased tenfold. What was he doing?

  Torrent breathed out. Things would be fine once the dark-haired female was his.

  “I will inform Coal and then you can take her soon after. Stay out of sight until she has been informed.” He paused. “She is a difficult female.” Blaze shook his head.

  “They are all difficult.” Torrent forced a smile.

  “Indeed they are. Please wait in the great hall until one of my males calls you.”

  “I will do that.” Torrent gripped Blaze’s wrist. “Do not back out.”

  Blaze frowned. “Go and wait in the hall.” His voice had a steely edge.

  Torrent was going to stay close. He was going to do everything in his power to ensure that the fire king kept his word.

  It wasn’t long before Coal arrived. The fire prince disappeared into Blaze’s work chamber.

  Within ten minutes of the male’s arrival, the dark-haired beauty appeared and rushed into the chamber as well. She looked upset. Good!

  The female was just as he remembered. She was to his taste. Taller, more robust. There were more hips and thighs to her. At least as much breast. Her cheeks were flushed and her skin had more of a honey tinge as opposed to pure milky white. She was perfect!

  He waited to become aroused by the sight of her. By her scent.

  Nothing.

  She lacked the exotic edge to her scent like Candy— Stop! Perhaps she had arrived and disappeared into the chamber too quickly. He needed her up close and personal. Yes, that was it. She was exactly his type. To a fault. Blaze had given the female to him and he would make sure that the male made good on his promise.

  This dark-haired one would work for him. She would want him. He was sure of it. It wouldn’t be long before Candy was a distant memory.

  Candy.

  The pain that coursed through him as he pictured her sweet smile, her beautiful blue eyes, her— No! He needed to forget the human.

  Shouting interrupted his chain of thought. It was coming from Blaze’s work chamber. The dark-haired human was angry.

  Good! It would make this easier. One night with this female and Candy would be a distant memory. He swallowed hard. Fuck!

  “Save it!” she yelled. The dark-haired one walked out the door. Her cheeks were flushed and her jaw was set. She looked pissed.

  “Wait. Let me explain. We need to talk!” Coal followed the female. His voice was pleading. His whole demeanor was pitiful. The male looked like he was on the verge of groveling.

  “Let her go,” Blaze said, as he followed behind his brother.

  “No!” Coal shouted. “I’ve listened to you enough. I need to …” The male growled, he was just behind the female. Following in her footsteps like a puppy.

  “Let her calm down first,” Blaze called after his brother. “Save it for behind closed doors.”

  “Julie!” Coal shouted.

  Torrent felt like laughing. This male was so far fucking gone that it was both amusing and nauseating to watch. “We belong together. Please let me explain.”

  “There is no we!” the human shouted. Julie. Her name was Julie. A bit on the boring side. It wasn’t like she was named after sweet treats, named after anything for that matter. The female didn’t turn back, she kept on walking. The pitiful prince on her heels.

  “Don’t say that,” Coal said. The male paused and looked around the room locking eyes with Torrent.

  The male visibly blanched. He even stumbled over his own feet. Torrent could see that his mind was racing at a mile a minute. Coal roared and his hands fisted.

  The female was still oblivious. She turned sharply, Coal almost walked into her. “Let me just tell you something …” She
pointed a finger at the male.

  This was going to be easier than he thought. Coal might be head over heels over her but she felt nothing for him. That stupid voice disagreed with him but he ignored it.

  “Not now,” Coal ground out, his eyes darted to Torrent.

  “Oh, I’m only permitted to talk when it suits you?” She stabbed the poor bastard with her finger. Torrent knew exactly how that felt. “Well sorry for you. It doesn’t work like that.”

  “Julie, listen to me—”

  “No damned way am I listening to you. I’ve listened to you enough, don’t you think?” The human didn’t wait for a reply.

  Coal glanced at him again. His eyes were wide and held fear the likes of which Torrent had never seen. What a complete pussy. For the first time since Candy had left he felt thankful that he was no longer with the female. Truly thankful.

  The human, Julie, put her hands on her hips. “You are an asshole. A jerk of the highest order. I’m done listening to you. All you seem to be able to do is talk a bunch of bullshit.”

  “There were a couple of things I kept from you, but they—”

  “No!” the human yelled, cutting him off. Torrent felt bad for the fire prince He would be helping the male by taking this female. “There were more than just a couple of things,” the female continued. He didn’t know what they were on about and quite frankly, he didn’t give a shit.

  “I have never lied to you about the things that truly mattered. I swear. Please.” He tried to touch her but she pulled away with a sharp jerk. “Let’s go back to my chamber, we can discuss it.” Once again, Coal’s eyes flashed to Torrent. He almost felt sorry for the bastard. Almost!

  “There is nothing to discuss. I want to leave. I’ve already packed, although the stuff isn’t mine. Where is my backpack? I’m leaving.” Her eyes welled. For just a second he considered walking away. The female had feelings for the fire prince even if she wouldn’t admit it.

  Fuck it!

  He wanted the female. The water fucking king. Blaze had given her to him. Moreover, the human had just renounced her bond with Coal. She was free for another male to claim. The fire prince could step aside.