Craving His Innocent Mate (Badlands Territory Book 3) Read online

  “Will you marry us?” Calder asks my father.

  “When?”

  “Now.”

  My father chuckles, shaking his head, looking at me. “You want to marry this man right now?”

  I look at Calder, knowing little about him. I don’t know his favorite ice cream or movie or national park. I don’t know if he’s good at math or hates to clean.

  But I know he was made for me. Brought here to the Badlands for me.

  And there is no way I want to leave this beach unless it is as his wife.

  “It’s all I want.”

  “And you will forfeit the throne in the sea, you understand this, daughter.”

  Calder turns to me. “Are you sure you want to make that sacrifice for me?”

  I smile brightly at the man I love, the sun setting behind us, the tide rolling out. “It’s not a sacrifice when it’s my heart’s only desire.”

  “Then I will summon the sea.” Father lifts his trident high in the air, then dips it into the water’s edge. Soon, the water rolls in, taking Fjord’s body with it, and in its place, seals and dolphins begin to jump from the water. An orca whale lifts its body, blowing water into the sky. Seagulls fly low, skimming the shore. And mermaids swim to the rocks, basking in the sunlight.

  Overhead, on the cliffs above, bears from the land run to greet us, looking down at us with pride in their eyes. Golden eyes piercing us with grace. Promising to protect us as we walk into the unknown: our marriage.

  Emotion spills from my eyes as the mermaid sisters of Alessandra draw me close. I step toward them and lean down as they spin me in a circle, dressing me in shimmering shells and my soft fur coat, a crown of pearls on my head. An eagle flies low to the beach and delivers Calder a cloak of deep brown fur, and when he wraps himself in it, he looks like the king of the forest, and I look like the queen of the sea.

  “God, you look fucking beautiful,” he says, reaching for me, wrapping an arm around me as my father prepares his words. “Are you ready for this?” he asks, searching my eyes.

  “I’m ready for our life to begin.”

  My father welcomes the land and the sea to the ceremony and we recite vows, take oaths, and promise to love, honor, cherish and protect one another all the days of our lives.

  My father seals our union by using his trident to tattoo rings on our fingers, and I gasp at the beauty of the cursive C on my ring finger. Calder smiles, taking my hand in his.

  “You may kiss your bride,” my father declares, and Calder doesn’t hesitate. He pulls me into a kiss that feels as if it were written before the beginning of time. A kiss for us alone, a kiss that could last forever.

  “I love you,” I whisper, not knowing what comes next. But knowing without a doubt it will be an adventure.

  “And I love you,” he whispers in my ear.

  The noise of the creatures celebrating our wedding drowns out any fear we might have.

  “Now what?” I ask.

  “Now I take my bride home, and to bed. How does that sound?”

  “As your mate,” I tell him, as he lifts me into his arms, “it’s all I crave.”

  Epilogue 1

  Cordelia

  One year later…

  The cabin is warm. Calder must have built a fire when he woke, and I smell coffee and eggs and a smile spreads across my face.

  When we married, we were practically strangers, but now we are best friends, lovers, and soon-to-be parents.

  Only he doesn’t know that part yet.

  He comes into the bedroom carrying a tray with mugs of coffee and plates of food. I sit up in bed, smiling.

  “Someone woke up happy,” Calder says, setting the tray on top of the blankets.

  “How could I not be happy?” I ask. “It’s our one-year anniversary, and you brought me food. I couldn’t be in a better mood.”

  He smirks, looking me over. “You sure about that?”

  I lick my lips, reaching for the coffee. I’m naked in our bed, and very aware of how that turns my husband on. “Mmmm, pretty sure. But I’m open-minded. I might be swayed.”

  I set the coffee down and take a big bite of eggs. Then another. I have a bigger than normal appetite. Thankfully I don’t have any morning sickness yet, though the herbal tea I take at night must be what is helping with the nausea.

  “You’re happy and hungry,” Calder says as I take a final bite of the eggs.

  Then I get out of the bed and carry the tray to the desk in the corner, making sure I sway my hips a little more than necessary.

  “You forgot one more H. Happy, hungry and horny,” I say, crawling into bed and straddling my beast of a husband. I shove down his sweats and take hold of his thickness.

  “Damn, I thought we’d have a fun day, but this is next-level, Cordelia.”

  I begin to stroke his length, loving how firm he is, how hard he gets for me. “You like that, husband?” I ask, already knowing the answer.

  He groans in pleasure. “Hell, love, you know I’m wild for you.”

  I lift my hips, taking him inside of me, whimpering as I sink down on his cock, loving the way he fills me up so completely. “Oh, Calder,” I moan, pressing my hands to his chest. “You feel so good.”

  “And you feel so fucking tight,” he says, hands on my hips. “My innocent little shifter loves it nice and hard, doesn’t she?”

  I bounce on his cock, wanting him nice and deep, and he thrusts against me, giving me what I crave. All of him.

  He rolls me on my back, taking control. Pinning my hands over my head and taking me hard, the way I need. “Yes,” I moan, panting in desire as he moves harder. Harder. I’m coming against him, my pussy wet as he fires his come deep inside me.

  “Oh baby,” he grunts as he takes me to the edge, and I thread my fingers through his thick hair as we finish, the pleasure rolling over us, head to toe.

  “That was some anniversary present,” he says with a chuckle, pulling me to him, our legs wrapping around one another, and I press my lips to his chest, his heartbeat. Kissing him until I reach his lips.

  “It’s not the only present I have for you,” I tell him.

  His lifts an eyebrow. “No? What else?”

  I take his hand and press it to my tummy. “I’m pregnant,” I say. “We’re having a baby.”

  He may be a bad ass man, but he isn’t afraid of emotion, and I see tears in his eyes as he gazes into mine. “You mean it?”

  I nod, tears slipping from the corners of my eyes too. “Yes. I found out last night.”

  “A baby.” He cups my face with his big hands, kissing softly. “You are the best thing that ever happened to me, Cordelia.”

  “We were meant to be.”

  He takes my hand, pressing it to my stomach, covering my hand with his. “A family.”

  “Our family,” I whisper, the room laced with love, our hearts beating with pride.

  Epilogue 2

  Calder

  10 years later…

  “And they lived happily ever after?” Alessandra asks, looking up into my eyes.

  I kiss my daughter’s forehead. “Yes, they lived happily ever after. A selkie princess and an untamed bear. Now they roam the forest and the sea, but they aren’t looking for true love, they already have it.”

  “Then what are they looking for?” she asks, her brown eyes big with wonder.

  “They aren’t looking for anything. They are merely remembering what it means to be wild and free.”

  “I’m wild and free,” she says. “My best friend is a mermaid and she told me I might be a half-selkie girl who lives on land, but she sees the spirit of the ocean in my eyes.”

  “I bet she does. You sparkle, little one.”

  Alessandra smiles up at me as Cordelia calls us to come down for dinner. We leave the loft where Alessandra and her twin brother Joseph sleep, and are greeted with delicious smells of a homemade meal.

  “It looks so good,” Alessandra tells her mother.

  “I hel
ped,” Joseph says proudly, carrying a loaf of fresh honey and wheat bread to the table. “I showed Mom where there’s wild honey.”

  “How did you know where it was?” Alessandra asks as we sit at the table. Cordelia brings bowls of lentil soup to the table and joins us.

  Joseph smiles, dipping his spoon in his soup. “I was out roaming with Papa. We found it.”

  Alessandra’s eyes shine bright — her best friend is right, she does glimmer. “That’s so cool,” she says. “And I admit, I’m a little jealous.”

  Cordelia and I didn’t know if our children would shift at all, and if they did, what they might become genetically. But the twins each carried a part of us with them into the world. Now we get to discover what it means to shift from their eyes.

  Cordelia smiles. “I understand, Allie. Sometimes I dream of running through the woods too. Smelling the trees and the dirt… but we can’t have it all.”

  Joseph nods, carrying his mother’s wisdom in his every action. When he is grown he will be a tenderhearted man who appreciates nature the way his mother does. I know she loves bringing him into the shop on the weekends, and he loves helping her with her concoctions.

  Alessandra is my sidekick on those Saturdays. I taught her how to chop wood, throw an axe, and she can make a fire in ten seconds flat. She may be a selkie, but she’s my girl, through and through.

  After dinner, the kids get ready for bed and Cordelia sings them a song as they climb under their quilts in the loft. I wonder sometimes if they are getting too big for lullabies, but Cordelia tells me she wants them to stay small for as long as possible. They have their entire lives to be all grown up.

  And I understand her sentiment. You never know when tragedy might strike, when you might lose the ones you love — so when you have them close, hold them tight. Don’t let go. Read the fairy tale before dinner and sing the lullaby as you tuck them into bed.

  And kiss the woman who makes you believe in all sorts of miracles.

  When Cordelia joins me in the kitchen where I am washing the dishes, elbow deep in sudsy water, she wraps her arms around my waist, kissing my neck then resting her cheek against my back.

  “Are you tired?” I ask, turning to pull Cordelia into my arms. Soapy hands be damned. I need to kiss my wife.

  She laughs as the bubbles float in the air, shaking her head as I kiss her perfect neck. “No,” she tells me. “I’m not tired at all.”

  “Should we go for a dip in the hot tub?” I ask, thinking of the wood-fired tub out on the back deck.

  “Sounds divine.” She grabs a dishtowel and swats my ass before walking over to the sliding glass door, her hips swaying as she moves.

  I follow her, finding her undressing in the moonlight, her naked body so pure and innocent even after all these years. I am her one and only lover, and she is mine.

  I’m the one who greets her from behind this time, my cock hard against her ass, my hands cupping her full tits.

  “I love you,” she whispers as I massage her breasts, teasing her nipples, hungry for the woman I crave.

  In the tub, I pull her sweet body to my cock. She sits down on me, moaning as she does, taking me fully as I hold onto her curves, running my hands through her tangled mess of hair.

  “When we met you were so damn innocent,” I say, taking in her beauty, the stars shining above. I’d wish on them, but I don’t need to. I already have everything I want right here in my arms.

  “And what am I now?” she asks, licking her lips. “If I’m not innocent.”

  “You’re my mate,” I growl into her ear. “And I’ve claimed you for life.”

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  About the Author

  Frankie Love writes filthy-sweet stories about bad boys and mountain men.

  As a thirty-something mom who is ridiculously in love with her own bearded hottie, she believes in love-at-first-sight and happily-ever-afters.

  She also believes in the power of a quickie.

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