Samantha
I really thought I was going to die at the hands of that mermaid lady, and then Kaerius arrived, and I still thought I was going to die.
He looked so fantastically good and alien at the same time—but dangerous, too.
I didn’t know he could rise from the water in his other shape, the one with the tail and gills, but he could.
Clearly, he used that form to intimidate, and it worked.
I’d never seen someone flee a scene as quickly as that Ondrithar woman.
And then he’d caught me completely by surprise by saying my name.
He did know it—he hadn’t asked because he already knew, not because he didn’t want to know me as a person.
My heart had fluttered in my chest, my pulse had begun pounding, and that dang arousal that plagued me each time he was near flooded my system.
I was a goner—the secret romantic in me swooning—when he said the rest of those crazy, possessive, and impactful words.
I know you, he’d declared in so many ways.
Diplomatic training?
What was that?
Ten years of studying my ass off to be a xeno- botanist?
Forget it.
I was all woman and instinct when he claimed my mouth and swept me into his arms.
I never thought I’d be the kind who would let a man rule me the way he did.
Passion had always been cerebral rather than physical—so much so that I had been called a cold fish by more than one ex.
It was different with Kaerius.
So different.
The kiss had shaken me to my core, but it was over too soon.
Kaerius pulled back, his breath warm against my lips, his silver-blue eyes dark with something I couldn’t name—desire?
Possession?
Something else entirely?
I barely had time to catch my breath before he set me back on my feet, his hands lingering at my waist, strong and firm.
The silence stretched between us, thick and humming with an energy I didn’t know how to handle.
My body still thrummed from his touch, but my mind—oh, my mind—was screaming at me to process what had just happened.
The words he had spoken before he kissed me replayed in a loop, each time making less sense than before.
I know you, human.
I know your occupation, scientist.
I know you are mine.
Mate.
Had he really said that?
Had I misheard him?
My heart pounded in my chest, and for the first time since waking up in this underwater palace, I wished for the sterile certainty of a lab where things made sense and could be studied.
This…
this was too much, too sudden.
Kaerius straightened, a flicker of something unreadable crossing his features before his expression hardened once more.
He stepped back, giving me space—though it didn’t feel like much when his presence still dominated the room.
He was simply too much: large, muscular, a warrior through and through.
Even when he was unarmed, I knew he was formidable.
It was very confusing to have all that power contained in one man, focused on little ol’ me, as if I were the special one.
He was the king, for God’s sake—why did he think I was his mate?
I had to be mistaken.
I had to misunderstand what he meant.
Mate—that was a word from the animal kingdom.
It was foreign to me.
“Come,” he said, his voice gruff and edged with something rough, as if he were battling fierce emotions within himself.
“You will tour the palace with me.” It was a command, not a request, and my stupid body thought that was sexy instead of offensive, as it should have.
I swallowed, trying to find my footing in this strange, shifting dynamic.
“Why?” My voice was steadier than I expected, but my fingers curled into the soft fabric of the dress I still wasn’t convinced I should be wearing.
“Are you showing me my prison?” I dared to say words past me would never have spoken, but I felt oddly empowered despite all the seesawing feelings in my chest.
I couldn’t wrap my head around that, but it was true: King Kaerius made me feel like a stronger version of myself.
His gaze sharpened, and for a brief moment, I thought I saw the corner of his mouth twitch as if my defiance amused him.
But just as quickly, the moment was gone.
“You are not a prisoner, Samantha,” he said, my name rolling off his tongue like a promise—or a warning.
“But you are mine.”
That word again.
Mine.
It still felt like it implied I was a prisoner somehow.
I wanted to push back, to demand exactly what he meant by that.
But he was already turning toward the water- filled tunnel at the edge of the chamber, the muscles in his back rippling beneath smooth, blue-scaled skin.
Doubt gnawed at the edges of my thoughts.
Had he really called me his mate?
Maybe I had misheard.
Maybe it was some kind of translation error.
Or maybe—maybe I was already in too deep.
I took a hesitant step toward the water’s edge, the surface rippling gently under the soft glow of the room’s lighting.
My throat tightened.
“I can’t breathe underwater, Kaerius.” Ah, damn it—was that even how I was supposed to address him?
He was royalty, but at this moment, I had absolutely forgotten every single thing I knew about how to act around these people whom my people wanted a treaty with.
He didn’t turn to look at me, only inclined his head slightly.
“You will be fine.” His voice was still gruff, but there was no mockery in it.
No teasing.
Just certainty.
I believed him; there was no other option.
I exhaled slowly.
Trust wasn’t something I gave easily, and I wasn’t sure if he’d earned it yet.
But he had brought me here, carried me through the depths of the ocean before.
I hadn’t drowned then.
Would I now?
Why would he do that if he’d gone through all that trouble to bring me here?
Steeling myself, I slid a foot into the water.
It was cooler than I expected, sending a shiver up my spine.
Another step, then another.
Each stair was made of textured metal that brushed against my bare toes, designed to prevent a fatal slip—very practical.
The dress clung to my legs as I waded deeper.
The moment the water lapped at my thighs, Kaerius turned, reaching for me.
His hands found my waist, fingers pressing firmly into my skin as he guided me further.
The contact sent a hot jolt through my stomach, something warm and forbidden curling in my core.
I gasped as my balance wavered, and before I could react, he pulled me fully into the water.
My body was weightless, floating between his arms, and I instinctively clutched at his shoulders.
His skin was slick—warm despite the water—the texture shifting beneath my fingertips as scales threatened to emerge.
His eyes locked onto mine, dark and unreadable.
“I already gave you what you need.” Again with that growly tone, as if he were always on the verge of something huge and passionate.
It twisted my abdomen with more heat, and I could see in his eyes that he knew it.
I blinked.
“What?” The word bubbled from my mouth, and I realized I was already fully submerged, but this time, my lungs weren’t aching.
I recalled the last time he’d taken me under, how I’d panicked and gasped.
This time, I’d been so focused on him, on all the sexual tension between us, that I hadn’t noticed—not right away.
His grip on me tightened for just a fraction of a second before he exhaled, bubbles slipping between his lips.
“When we first entered the ocean to travel to the Ondrithar territory, I injected you with a bio-adaptive serum. It will allow you to breathe underwater.” He explained it curtly, but they were still the most words he’d strung together into one sentence.
It took me a moment to process it all.
When I did, I stiffened.
“You did what?” I demanded.
Inject me with bio-adaptive serum?
What the flying monkeys was he talking about?
But I could not deny that I was floating in his arms, my hands clutching his wide shoulders, inches beneath the surface of the water, and I had yet to surface to breathe.
His expression remained impassive, unapologetic.
“You are in my world now. You must survive in it.” Survive in it?
That made it sound like he intended to keep me.
I should have been furious.
I should have demanded more answers, railed against the violation of my body without my consent.
But as I took a deep, hesitant breath, expecting to choke, the strangest thing happened.
I didn’t.
Cool water filled my lungs without pain, without suffocation.
It was like breathing air, only richer, fuller, as though I was drawing in the very essence of the sea itself.
I tore my gaze from him, looking down at my own hands, watching the way the water moved around me.
That was incredible.
He must have seen the change in my expression because something flickered in his eyes—something softer.
“Come.” He released me, and for a heartbeat, I panicked.
But then he held out his hand, and I curled my fingers against his.
Safety—he wouldn’t let me flounder now.
I kicked, uncertain at first, then with growing confidence.
He drifted backward, watching, waiting.
And then we moved together.
He led me through the water with effortless grace, his body sleek and powerful as he guided me through the tunnels of the palace.
I followed, swimming with a freedom I’d never known, the sheer exhilaration of it making me laugh, the sound muffled into bubbles that drifted toward the ceiling.
Kaerius turned at the sound, his lips parting slightly, and, for the first time since I’d met him, I saw it—a smile.
Not a smirk.
Not a sneer.
A real, genuine smile.
And it was beautiful.