“Goddess,” she said between clenched teeth. “I don’t understand you.”
“And you?” He had no right to ask—and it wouldn’t make a difference even if she had—but he couldn’t help himself. He had to know. “Have you been with another man?”
“Me?” Her chin jerked up as if he’d struck her. “What do you think, you bloody arse?” She whipped around and swam for the steps, calling to Rianna. “Come on, love. Let’s wash our hair and then go back to the dining hall.”
The little blue dragon looked from him to her mother and then shifted back to a girl. Cassidy got a bar of soap from the rucksack. They washed in the freshwater pool and then Cassidy toweled them both off. She pulled on a T-shirt and jeans, dressed Rianna in a miniature version of the same outfit, and with a stiff nod in Nic’s direction, gathered up their things and disappeared with Rianna into the tunnel.
He growled under his breath in Portuguese. “You ass.”
What devil had made him ask such a stupid question? He knew damn well Cassidy hadn’t been with another man. A mate could sense these things. Even thousands of miles away, he’d have known if Cassidy had taken a lover.
Which meant she was his. He just had to woo her.
He’d done it once—surely he could do it again.
Getting out of the pool, he grabbed his clothes and followed them back to the dining hall. Cassidy, Marlin and Joe were playing cards. In the kitchen, Ben was searing striped bass in an iron skillet.
He returned the firepit to its place at the center of the four black lava stools and realized Cassidy and Rianna needed their own seats. Happy to do something for them, he faded back into the tunnels and shifted to his dragon. As he formed the stools, the patter of small feet made him turn his head.
Rianna looked up at him fearlessly. “You’re big.”
“Mm,” he rumbled.
“Wow.” She touched the smaller of the stools, her mouth round with awe. “How’d you do that?”
He shifted back to man and pulled on his shorts. “Only big sea dragons can breathe lava.”
“Will I be able to when I’m all growed up?”
“Probably. I only know one other sea dragon, but he could do it.”
She nodded sagely. “Mam says dragons are special.”
“Yeah, we are.” He crouched in front of her and took her hands. “Don’t let anyone tell you different.”
Wiry arms wrapped around his neck. “I like you, Mister Nic.”
He stilled. A shock of emotion swept over him. “I like you, too,” he managed to say. “Very much.”
Cassidy appeared in the tunnel. Their eyes met over Rianna’s head. At the yearning on her face, his heart punched in his chest.
Then her eyes shuttered.
Rianna released him to run to her mother. “Look what Mister Nic made.” She tugged Cassidy over to admire the stools.
“Very nice,” she said.
“They’re for you and Rianna.”
“Thank you,” she said in a polite tone that made him want to shake her. “Ben says it’s almost time for dinner. I wondered where we should put our things.”
“In my quarters.”
Her chin raised. “I’m thinking that’s a bad idea.”
Nic hefted the stools in his arms and tried not to growl. Patience. Don’t rush her.
But it was damn hard not to.
“We don’t have any spare beds. You two can have my bed. I’ll sleep on the futon in the outer room.” Before Cassidy could object, he added, “You’ll have your privacy, but I’m not letting you two out of my sight.”
Her mouth compressed, but she said, “Okay. I suppose it’s for the best.”
9
Dinner was oddly festive. The storm had slackened to an intermittent rain, but the ocean still heaved wildly. No one but another water fada would come out in this weather, and Nic’s dragon could handle anyone who dared invade his caverns. With Cassidy and Rianna safe for now, he could relax. Cassidy was coolly polite, but he could tell her fear had eased as well.
The other three men clearly enjoyed having the females around. In fact, Nic wasn’t sure who they enjoyed more—Cassidy or Rianna. Now that the pup’s shyness had worn off, she chattered happily to whoever would listen.
Ben had prepared a big meal to welcome their guests. Marlin handed out cups of wine to the adults, with water for Rianna; and they sat on stools around the firepit, gorging themselves on striped bass, biscuits still warm from the pan, and salad tossed with walnuts and goat cheese.
“We have a herd of goats on the island,” Ben explained to their guests. “They’re wild, but I’ve convinced them to let me milk them in exchange for a few pounds of hay in the winter.”
Rianna bounded off her stool and around the firepit to Ben. “Can I help feed the goats? Please?”
“Sure, honey-bear.” He smiled down at her. “Tomorrow, after the storm passes, I’ll take you up top to show you.”
Cassidy made a small, negative movement, and Ben said, “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure no one is within a mile of the island when I do.”
“Most of the time I have a bit of warning that they’re close,” Cassidy said, “but a couple of times, they were almost on top of us before I sensed anything.”
The men nodded. Magical Gifts could be erratic.
As usual, Joe had said little, but now he rose and headed for his room, returning with a fuzzy white hat with felt horns. “Here.” He handed it to Rianna. “Wear that. If anyone sees you, they’ll think you’re a little goat.”
“Thank you, Mister Joe.” Rianna beamed and clapped it on her head.
Nic quirked a brow. “Where in Hades did that come from?”
Joe shrugged. “Found it on Anacapa.” He named one of the Channel Islands. “Figured it might come in handy someday.”
Rianna dropped on all fours and bleated, to everyone’s amusement. She clowned around until Cassidy took both their plates and set them in the sink.
“Bedtime, alanna.”
“You two go ahead and get ready,” Nic said. “I’ll be in later.”
Cassidy nodded. Rianna gave a big yawn, and then insisted on kissing all of the men. Nic held his breath as she touched petal-soft lips to his cheek.
She chuckled. “You’re whiskery, Mister Nic.”
He rubbed his chin with a rueful grin. “I have to shave.”
Cassidy took her hand and the two headed down the left tunnel to his quarters. He frowned at Cassidy’s limp—why wasn’t the wound healing? But fae-inflicted injuries could be tricky.
Marlin waited until they heard the door to his quarters click shut, and then shook his head. “You left that behind?”
The other two men murmured agreement, even the normally silent Joe.
Nic scowled. “Was I wrong? Now I have a daughter being hunted by the fae.”
“But you left your mate behind to face it. Dude, I know dragons are cold, but you’re fucking ice.”
“Damn it, this wasn’t supposed to happen. I didn’t accept the mate bond.”
“You’re saying she got pregnant with your pup without the bond?”
“Yeah. At least I think so. Hell, I don’t know.” Nic rubbed his chest. He knew he’d screwed up—he didn’t need Marlin to point it out. “Look, let’s talk strategy. I’ll deal with Cassidy.”
“Sure, man.” The dreadlocked shifter smirked. “But you better prepare to grovel.”
They rose to clear the dishes. Joe had rigged up a system where they washed the metal plates and utensils in ocean water and then rinsed them with fresh water before placing them on a dish rack to dry. That done, they took their cups of wine to look out at the dark water sucking in and out of the exit tunnel.
“Fucking fae.” Marlin narrowed his eyes in the direction of the mainland. “No way in hell will they get close enough to hurt that little girl—or Cassidy. We’ll make sure of it.”
“Thank you.” Nic looked round at the other men. Their faces mirrored his determinat
ion, and he knew that they’d die protecting Cassidy and Rianna. “And I’d do the same for you.”
“We know you would,” Marlin replied. “We’re clan.”
Nic shook his head like he had every other time Marlin had said that. Then he dragged his friend into a hug. “We are.”
He gave Ben a hug, too, and he and Joe shook hands.
Marlin grinned. “This calls for a toast. And none of that wine.” He pulled up a twelve-pack of beer dangling in the water to chill, and handed them each a can.
Setting their cups on the cavern floor, they lifted the cans in a toast to each other and then drank.
The four of them turned as one to gaze out at the water swelling in and out of the cavern again. “We could use a fae ward,” Nic said.
Marlin took a thoughtful sip of beer. “Or even a look-away spell.”
Fada couldn’t create their own wards and spells, so had to buy them from the fae. Wards didn’t come cheap—and dealing with the fae was tricky—so Nic hadn’t seen the need. No clan wanted to claim this arid piece of rock so far offshore, and even if they had, one look at Nic’s dragon and they’d have left in a hurry.
“I can start patrolling now,” Joe offered.
“No. The storm’s still enough to keep them away.” Nic scrubbed a hand over his lower face. “But I wish I knew if they have a fada tracker with them. Cassidy seems to think they’re all fae, but then how come she couldn’t lose them?”
“Good question,” Marlin said.
Joe finished his beer and got his ukulele from a hook on the wall. Taking a seat beside the firepit, he strummed a cheerful Hawaiian song at odds with his grim expression. The three of them drifted over and took seats around the fire again.
When the song was over, Joe spoke as if there had been no interruption. “We should search her and her backpack. They could’ve planted a tracking device on her.”
Cassidy appeared in the dining hall in time to hear him. She was ready for bed in baggy gray sweat shorts, colorful patterned socks on her narrow feet, and Nic’s wool sweater over her T-shirt. He wondered—hoped—that she wanted to be wrapped in his scent.
“I thought of that,” she said. “I’ve gone over everything multiple times—the rucksack, our bodies, even Rianna’s ragdoll. We’re clean.”
“Then how are they following you?” Nic asked.
“I wish I knew.” She rubbed her upper arms. “But they’re still on my trail. I can feel it.”
10
For the past three weeks, Cassidy had been focused on reaching Nic. He was a sea dragon, a fire-and-lava-spewing shifter. Even the fae didn’t mess with an adult dragon.
She hadn’t expected he’d have other men with him. He was a lone wolf. At Shannon, he’d pitched in with anything that needed doing, and he’d contributed fish to the kitchens, but he’d shrugged off the other men’s attempts at friendship until they left him alone. Some weeks, he’d spent more time in the ocean than at the base, exploring Ireland’s wild western coast.
Now her stomach sank as she gazed around at the four men. She’d heard enough to know Nic and his men intended to fight for her and Rianna, and she hated that in coming here, she’d endangered not just Nic, but the other men as well.
But it was the way of their kind; the fada treasured their young. Even her own clan would’ve protected Rianna, but Cassidy would’ve had to explain why the fae were after Rianna, and she’d been afraid to let anyone know that she was a dragon.
Besides, the only way to protect Rianna would have been to keep her behind the base’s wards for decades until she was a full-fledged adult. The fae wouldn’t have given up—Rianna’s heart was worth too much. Cassidy couldn’t condemn her daughter to a childhood hidden in Shannon’s caverns. A pup needed to play in the sunshine.
So she’d taken Rianna and run, but the damn fae had dogged her every step of the way.
“Rianna’s asleep?” Nic asked.
“Yeah.” She jammed her hands in the back pockets of her shorts. “I owe you an apology,” she said to Marlin, Joe and Ben.
They gazed back, clearly mystified.
“For what?” Marlin asked.
“For dragging you into this.”
Marlon grunted. “Hell, we could use some excitement.”
Nic rose from his seat to wrap an arm around her. “You did the right thing,” he said as the other men murmured agreement.
Cassidy stiffened, but Nic pulled her closer. She resisted, but the temptation to lean against him tugged at her. She was so tired, and he felt big and warm and comforting.
He blew out a breath and released her as Joe hung his ukulele on its hook.
“With your permission,” he said, “I’d like to check you for a tracking device anyway.”
“Joe’s a mako,” Nic said. “He can detect things we can’t. It’s worth it to let him check you over.”
She moved a shoulder. “Be my guest.”
“The rest of you step back,” the lean Hawaiian said. “This works by sensing electrical charges in the body. Anyone nearby can cause interference.”
The other men nodded and stepped back to give them space.
Joe approached Cassidy. “Stand with your arms a little away from your body.”
When she obeyed, he raised his hands to her head. Eyes half-closed, he moved them over and around her skull, always keeping them a few inches from her skin, and then continued down her body.
When he reached her injured leg, he drew a sharp breath. “It’s here.” He tapped the jagged starburst on her calf. “I sense something pulsing.”
Cassidy twisted her leg so she could see the scab. “Are you sure? It itches sometimes, but I figured it wasn’t healing because I was so stressed.”
“I’m sure.” Joe straightened up. “How did it happen?”
“The bastards hit me with a fae ball. In Ireland.” Her mind churned. “So they’ve been tracking me the whole time? That thing has been in me since Ireland?”
“Looks like it,” he replied.
Her heart pounded in her ears. “Oh my God.” She gulped and met Nic’s eyes. “I led them straight to you. I—”
“Sit down.” He guided her to a stool by the firepit. “You’re white as a sheet.”
“Holy mother.” She sank onto the stool.
“Take it easy.” He sat down beside her and rubbed her back, his big hand making slow circles. “We’ll figure this out.”
“But how? The fae ball—how the bloody hell did they get a tracking device into it?”
Joe took the stool on her other side, while Ben and Marlin hovered worriedly nearby. “Probably a magical dart. They’re similar to fae balls. Same bright light, and they hurt like hell. The tracking device is in the point.”
Nic frowned. “So it was a sun fae then?”
“Could be ice fae.” Joe crossed his arms over his chest. “In fact, they’re more likely to use darts. The sun fae usually stick to fae balls.”
Cassidy examined the starburst wound with a sick disbelief. They’d hit her at an angle, so the injury was to the muscle on the calf’s right side. She felt violated—that the fae had inserted something in her without her knowledge and then used it to track her across the country…
“Get it out,” she gritted at Nic. “I don’t care how you do it. Just get the bloody thing out.”
Sympathy flickered across Joe’s hard face, the first emotion she’d seen him show. “We don’t know how deep it is.”
“I don’t care. Take my damn leg off, then—before they follow me here.”
Nic squeezed her shoulder. “Calm yourself, querida. We’ll figure this out.”
She shook him off. “Don’t you understand? They may already be on their way. You’re all in danger—especially Rianna.” Her voice broke.
“I understand. Now, let me have a look. I have a small Gift for healing, remember?”
She took a deep breath and nodded. Nic was right, she had to calm down. Panicking wouldn’t help. But it made her skin
crawl to think the fae had been tracking her the whole time.
In fact, why had they let her get this far? Were they toying with her—or had they hoped she’d lead them to Nic?
She hissed and grabbed his arm. “What if it’s you they’re after, not Rianna? Or the both of you? And I played right into the bastards’ hands...”
Nic’s face hardened. “Then they’re in for a surprise.”
11
Nic ran his hands over Cassidy’s injured calf, his dragon coldly enraged. The fae had attacked both his mate and his daughter, and inserted some bizarre device into his mate. As far as he was concerned, they’d signed their own death warrants. They had no idea how powerful his dragon had grown.
Cassidy’s too-thin body trembled. “What have I done?” She dragged her fingers through her cropped hair, leaving it sticking up wildly.
“Hey,” Nic said. “I’m an adult dragon. They try and take me, I’ll fucking incinerate them.”
Her throat worked.
“Cassidy.” He cupped her face in his hands. “You came to me for a reason—because you knew I could protect you and Rianna. Right?”
She jerked her chin in assent.
“Then trust me to do the job.”
“All right,” she whispered.
He released her face to look at her calf again. “First, we have to get this dart out of your leg.”
“Please.” She glared at the offending limb, her fine features twisted with revulsion. “I want the bloody thing out—now.”
He hovered his palm over the scabbed-up wound, wishing his Gift was more powerful. A strong healer could probably remove the device by magically manipulating the cells, but he’d have to physically dig it out. He looked at Marlin. “I need a scalpel.”
“Got it.” The dreadlocked shifter retrieved their first-aid kit from a shelf over the kitchen sink and set it next to Nic.
Meanwhile, Ben left the dining hall to get a sleeping mat, which he placed on the floor near the firepit. “You’ll want to lie down,” he told Cassidy.
Sea Dragon's Hunger: BAD Alpha Dads (The Fada Shapeshifter Series) Page 5
