15. Eve #2
“Eve is mine. Mine,” he growls. “Through fate—through curse—it matters not. I get to have her. Touch her, breed her. No one else. Never. I will fill her womb with my heirs while your bones rot beneath us.”
His tentacles fan out further, eliciting a sickening snap of the lord’s bones. The male screams as much as he can with his depleting oxygen.
Harven’s primal possession washes over me. Fear crowds my chest at the scene's brutality. It’s in sharp contrast to the blooming ache awakening between my thighs.
What is wrong with me?
I should be fleeing. Harven’s worries have come true. Part of me fears him now. I would be a fool not to, when he is capable of such cruelty.
The terror also excites me. It’s wrong in so many different ways.
On land, the decision to leave would be easy. If I had a boyfriend threatening to kill anyone who looked at me, I’d be running for the hills. I’m not on the surface anymore. These seafolk don’t just want me dead. They want to impregnate me against my will to claim the throne.
I can’t be a pawn in their schemes. The only one I can turn to who has offered me any semblance of a future is Harven. If I wish to survive, I’ll need him to keep desiring me.
Do I want him now that I’ve seen what he’s capable of?
Blood seeps from between Lord Quilton's shoulders as Harven’s tentacles slowly rip him apart. It’s torture in its truest form. For his crimes, death won’t be swift. Harven means to see him suffer.
The darkness in my heart loves it.
My emotions swirl together in one conflicting blur. Fear and pleasure trickle into my stomach. Harven scares me, but I want him all the same. These desires are two sides of the same coin.
Yes and no. Fear and love. Wrong and right.
In this world, they mean the same things. What is primal isn’t always palatable, but it can't be denied.
A guttural scream tears through the room.
My mouth drops open as Harven cleaves Lord Quilton apart. Torn flesh and blue blood splatter onto the marble. Four sets of limbs fall into the water. The merman’s glowing eyes are milky. His purple face is frozen in fear.
The sharkin meets a similar, if quicker, fate. Their corpses float beside the lord’s. The pool turns murky from the blood. Sparkling fish swim to the surface and begin biting at their skin.
My stomach rolls. Sweat coats my palms. The violence—the desire. It’s all too much for me to withstand. I have to get out of here. I need to ground myself and remember who I am. What I want.
The oppressive stench of death punches through my lungs.
Rising on shaking knees, my self-preservation finally kicks in. My muscles feel like mush, but I have to push through. Ignoring the gore, I retreat a step from the throne. Harven hears my foot slap on the tile and goes rigid.
Whirling towards me, the breath knocks from my lungs.
This isn’t the male who feeds me bowls of stew. Who brought me painting supplies and the loveliest jewels. He isn’t the one who calls me beautiful and touches me with soft strokes of his tentacles. He isn’t the male I’ve been teasing to test his restraint.
Harven’s self-control is shattered.
His golden eyes have gone wholly black. His massive chest rises and falls. Blue blood coats his tentacles. Stalking towards me, instinct forces me to retreat a step.
The king is a monster—a predator. He’s looking at me like I’m the ultimate prey.
“Harven,” I whimper.
My hands shake as I clutch the sides of my dress. The need to run pounds through me.
“They want to take you from me, Eve. They know I haven’t claimed you yet and feel they can steal you away.”
I swallow, trying my best to keep my voice calm.
“I’m here. I’m with you, Harven.”
I take another step. A tentacle shoots out to trap my ankle. I manage to avoid it with a gasp. Moisture beads in my eyes.
Terror and want. Uncertainty and finality. It swirls inside me, overwhelming my mind until I can’t see straight.
“Please. You’re scaring me,” I whisper.
Harven goes rigid, pausing for only a moment before reaching for me again. No trace of kindness rests on his face. Only a male focused entirely on claiming his prize.
“I can’t help it, Eve. The primal rage comes from the thought of someone else touching you. Claiming what’s mine. You are mine.” Each word is a snarl. “Open your legs, and I’ll prove it to you.”
“No, Harven.” I shake my head. “I’m not ready. It’s too soon.”
“Your pathetic human need to wait won’t stop me. They know you’re unclaimed, Eve. If they can smell me on your skin, and you are round with my heir, they’ll keep away.”
The word pathetic sparks my ire. It cuts through the fear as I narrow my eyes.
“And what if it doesn’t? What if you get me pregnant and the kidnapping attempts continue?”
Harven bays like a broken beast.
“Then I’ll slaughter my entire court to keep you safe. I’ll rule over rotting flesh and bones if it means you are all mine.”
“Spare me the dramatics,” I hiss, but I know he means every word. “I’m not ready, Harven. You can’t have me just because you’re angry over what Lord Quilton tried to do.”
Harven surges forward. His tentacles lick at my feet. The storm raging in his eyes darkens.
“I will have you, Eve.” His smile is as cold as the deep sea. “You think I can’t tell you want me just as much. When you kiss me, I taste your need. When you rub your little pussy all over my lap, I feel it soaking me.”
Indignation flames my cheeks.
“How dare you—”
“Speak the truth. You can lie to yourself, Eve, but never to me.” His tentacle teases the hem of my dress. “I could take you amongst these corpses. You want to be fucked by me—owned. Stop listening to your human mind and give in.”
He’s right. The bastard.
Even before our first date, I had imagined him pinning me down in my bed. Taking me while I fought him off. Pleasuring me against my will and claiming me despite my protests.
Muffling my screams with his palm while he overpowered me. It was a dark desire. I’m still not entirely sure I can give in.
All of this is wrong.
Harven and I didn’t know each other. I was not an object to be claimed in such an animalistic way. Clinging to the fraying tendrils of my pride, I had to demand more from him.
Harven’s smirk deepens as he extends his arms. If he captures me, I’ll have no hope of resisting him.
“Come to me, Eve. Let me inside your perfect cunt. I’ve killed for it.”
The coarse words awaken me. His madness is too great to be overcome. I eye the door to the throne room. It is my one chance at stopping this before it goes too far.
If he means to take me, I won’t surrender without a fight.
My room is the goal. If I can make it back there and lock the door—
I slip from between his tentacles and sprint for the door. Throwing it open, I race through the hallway. Harven’s menacing chuckle follows me into the barren hall, but I don’t stop.
If he wants me, he’ll have to catch me first.