14. Eve
EVE
The gardens are lovely.
Large, gleaming planter boxes of silver, bearing the royal trident crest, fan out around the spacious room. Pale blue light pools under each structure. Hazy darkness from the large windows makes it seem like the king and I are in our own world.
Each box contains a unique variety of aquatic plants. Large variations of coral and algae are suspended in floating spheres of salt water. Some pulse with light, while others are as dull and pale as bleached bones.
Some move like living beings. My eyes can hardly take in all the wonder.
The air is humid to keep the plants alive.
My skirt clings to my legs. I bend down at the waist to take in a pool of glittering algae. Silver starfish lay atop jewel-tone rocks. The water swirls with glitter like a pool of starlight.
I dip my finger in, surprised to find the temperature warm. A slender tentacle glides along my wrist, scar glinting in the water’s reflection.
I shiver at the touch—at the overwhelming feeling of Harven being so close.
I dare a look at him over my shoulder. The run-in with Nixie had rattled him in the hall. He looks like a male dangerously close to snapping. The weight of the kingdom rests atop his shoulders.
I can see it in the lines of his face and the way he clenches his strong jaw.
Nixie and the other Pearls don’t need to be adding to his stress. I suppose that’s unfair of me. I’m sure I've caused him more stress than anyone.
It’s also unfair how much I liked the way he held me in front of the siren, dismissing her with barely a glance.
I hadn’t known what to say to him after. I figured silence was better than demanding he relinquish his lovers and be solely mine. I can’t ask him to do that. Not yet.
Hyra informed me of just what a primal creature King Harven is.
In no uncertain terms, she had let me know that her uncle needs to fuck. Daily—multiple times a day.
Could I really satisfy that? My pussy clenches at the thought of being taken so thoroughly by a male as powerful as Harven. She would be more than willing to try, but my mind isn’t on board.
The small voice in my head reminds me that once he has me, this could all be over.
No more private dinners, no more dates—once I get pregnant, he could toss me aside without a second thought. The idea that I’m expendable to him beyond my womb makes me sick.
Regardless, I can’t deny that I still want to push him. To tease and tempt him to take me before pulling back. I want to test just how far I can take this game.
If he snaps, well…I’m not sure what I’ll do.
Deep down, I know the answer. I’ve buried it far below the surface for so many years I’m surprised the desire is still there. It hums in my chest, glowing softly against my racing heart. It’s a wicked truth, one I hope won’t have to be acknowledged.
Before they had all settled, I used to share this desire to be dominated by a man with my friends.
They all informed me that kind of perverse desire would either land me in a bad situation or leave me disappointed. There was some truth to the latter. No manner of half-assed bondage with a boyfriend ever satisfied me. I craved to be overpowered. Mastered.
I couldn’t voice that desire to Harven.
At least not until I was certain of his affection for me. To relinquish my power to him in that way would spell disaster if he did eventually turn from my bed.
I wouldn’t submit to a male who hadn’t earned it, no matter how much I was beginning to desire him.
Besides, I haven’t tested the limits of my fantasy. I could hate it. The thought of being held down is appealing. What if, in the moment, it’s more frightening than arousing?
If I needed Harven to stop, would he? Could he?
It would be incredibly risky to partake in such an act with a kraken for the first time.
“What are you thinking about?”
I nearly jump out of my skin as his lips tickle my ear.
I hadn’t heard him approach, too absorbed in my wanton thoughts. A tentacle wraps around my waist while another draws lazy circles on my back.
“The past,” I say.
Harven’s fingers trail over my cheek and along my jaw. I love that he can’t seem to stop touching me. Some part of him always has to be on my skin whenever we’re together.
“I want to know more about yours,” he says.
I huff a laugh.
“Not much to tell, I’m afraid. I was born and raised in a small town. I moved to Chicago for art school at twenty, shortly after my father passed away. My mother died when I was a baby, and both of them were only children with no living parents. With them gone, I was all alone.”
My fingers skim over the harsh contours of his abs.
“I used my father’s life insurance to go to school. I met friends there, but most fizzled out after school. I realized the foundation of our friendship was that we were all at similar stages in our lives. Once things for them began to change—marriage, kids—we no longer had anything in common.”
I shrug. It was a sad truth, but an honest one.
“I was still in the city. Still painting, still alone. In their eyes I must’ve seemed lost.” My lips quirk. “Then you kidnapped me, and now I’m here.”
I’m sure news of Love on the High Seas has reached them. I hope Jen doesn’t blame herself.
Melancholy sweeps in, but I ignore it.
My old life is gone. The Eve they may mourn no longer exists. I can’t think about them. I have to give my new life a fair chance without letting the past ruin it.
“Much to my good fortune,” he breathes, lifting my chin. “And you’re not alone, Eve. You never will be again.”
The tentacle around my waist squeezes in reassurance. His mouth looms closer, daring me to take it. Instead, I wrap my arms around his strong back and let him hold me. I want to know we can have tenderness in addition to lust.
Harven’s strong arms encircle me, rubbing soothing circles on my back.
We stay locked together for a moment. I’m glad he doesn’t offer me pity, but rather quiet understanding. We’re more alike than I initially thought.
He presses a kiss to the top of my head.
“Did you enjoy the gardens?”
I smile.
“Very much. I’ve never seen so many beautiful things.”
“You are more beautiful than all of them combined, Eve.”
My face heats as I nuzzle into his chest.
“Come,” he orders. “There’s more I wish to show you.”
Lifting me into his arms, I giggle as he holds me close.
We glide from the room and into the illustrious hall. Harven’s tentacles skim over my arms and legs. They suction lightly to my flesh, leaving behind faint pink marks.
Another set of marble doors pull open, and we slip inside.
My eyes widen at the grand space. It sparkles like a polished pearl.
The white marble floor is veined with gold and silver. Large pillars support the library's three levels. The floor we are on opens into an atrium. At the center is a statue of a sea god that looks remarkably like Harven, with his powerful tentacles and dark eyes.
Beneath it is a shallow pool of gleaming blue water.
Silver bookshelves are laden with all manner of tomes and scrolls. The room's sheer size steals my breath. There must be thousands—hundreds of thousands—of books in here.
Harven carries me deeper into the room.
A long work table sits in the corner. On the other side is another grand window. Seaweed and schools of glittering fish cut through the dark water. That’s not what catches my eye, though, as Harven sets me down and whirls towards him.
Deep blue darkens the highest points of his cheeks.
“I’d love to watch you paint, Eve. If you’d allow it.”
Biting my lip to keep from smiling too big, I nod.
I settle onto the bench and instruct Harven to sit on the other side of me. He pouts at the distance, but listens to my instructions. I take in the new tins of paint cakes and fresh canvases. I select a slender paintbrush and dip it in the water bowl to activate the pigments.
My eyes trace over Harven’s regal posture, eager to commit his profile to paper. It’s been a long time since I did portraits. The challenge of something new is exciting.
I swirl colors together to get the right hue.
“Your turn,” I muse, coating the canvas in a thin layer of blue. “I told you about my past. Hyra told me a lot about yours, but I’d rather hear more directly from you.”
His muscles tighten. I commit the harsh set of his brow to memory to add to the portrait later. He rolls his impressive neck and sighs.
“The worst of it, you know. I had to kill my brothers to claim the throne. I’ve had to do many things to ensure stability.
To make sure that when I found you—you’d be safe.
It hasn’t always made me popular. Neither did the fact that I was illegitimate.
In the end, it didn't matter. My power can’t be denied no matter how many times traitors force me to demonstrate just how deadly I can be.
” The feral gleam in his eyes makes me shiver.
“The deaths of the human women I feel remorse over, but the others—I can’t bring myself to care. ”
My brush pauses on the canvas. A tear of dark green seeps down the front.
“What others?”
Harven takes a deep, calming breath. I can feel the rage coming off him in waves. His fingers curl into the lip of the table.
“You didn’t arrive with the rest of the humans, Eve. A sharkin guard took you from the ship and stole you away. Entranced by your beauty, he meant to keep you from me.”
Unease makes my stomach turn. My hands tremble, distorting the outline of Harven’s painted face. The king notes my alarm and shakes his head.
“The Sea Witch found you before he could do anything.” He curls his fingers into a fist. “I killed him, Eve. With my tentacles. I tore him apart for daring to touch you. I thought he was acting alone—a greedy male seeking a companion—but I’ve since learned he’s part of a bigger plot.
With you being my mate, many seek to take you in order to weaken me. ”
“Jesus Christ,” I breathe.
My mind whirls. Never have I been important enough to kidnap—or want dead. If I needed a reminder that I was in this treacherous world, this was it.
Paint drips onto my dress. I brush it away with a trembling hand.