Page 14 of Taken By the Crab King of Atlantis

“Thank you,” she murmurs.

I’m irritated at my staff, and myself, for making her uncomfortable. Perhaps it’s too much, too soon. In her photos she was composed and happy. In real life, she is more vulnerable. More real.

From what I have read in her profile and found online, circumstances have forced her into this situation with me. She is here to protect her family, and I am here to ensure Atlantis survives and Marina has a home. We are not so different.

I stand and pace the room, crossing between her and the window and back towards my desk. She remains silent, eyes downcast. The silence mounts. What words would convince Yen to commit to me and my city in such a short time?

“This city was the dream of my late wife.” It spills out like a confession. I dare not look at her. My gaze fixes out the window, to the city, and I rub a hand absently into my sore shoulder. “It’s difficult to run a city of this size, but it was a duty I accepted for my family. And then it became the home of my granddaughter, my only remaining living relative.”

I look back at her. Her hands are folded neatly in her lap, her spine ramrod straight, eyes downcast. If it weren’t for the red flush that rises in her cheeks again, I would think her utterly composed. She nods without hesitation. “I understand.”

“I cannot ask you to stay beyond your sacrifice. You have your own life. But I will try my best to seduce you so you want to.”

She flushes bright red, eyes meeting mine as she says breathlessly, “Yes, my lord.”

YEN

The words slip out without conscious thought.

Something raw stirs my body, quickening my breath with a foreign mix of fear and desire as Karkinos paces near me. When he looks at me, his alien black eyes fill the frame of his eyelids, and I can’t look away. Heat floods my face.

There’s pure power in Karkinos’ monstrous form. He is huge and undeniably inhuman, with expressive antennae and chest armor that looks like it’s growing from his skin. But it’s not only his inhuman nature or size that scream power. There’s something in the lines of his no-nonsense face and his unblinking gaze. The quiet way he talks, without force, as if he’s used to people listening. Although he looks no older than 30, his presence is far older.

He’s close now, and he smells like driftwood and open fires, salt water and fresh air. Complex and irresistible.

My core zings as if I’m using my vibrator while he watches me. All the parts of me I keep hidden are flying to the surface.

Shame fills every pore of my being. My breath quickens in a rising panic as I hold his gaze, and black dots float in front of my eyes. I’ve never had a panic attack before, but my chest hurts and the world feels far away, so I think that’s what this is.

“Yen, breathe slowly,” Karkinos says, and his big hands rest on the sides of the couch, closing me in. His fingers are long and shapely, like a pianist’s. What will they feel like when they touch me? His mouth-watering scent rolls over me, and I clench my fists in my lap. Every other muscle in my body is tight already.

“Look at me,” he says sternly. He puts a finger and thumb to my chin, soft but strong, tipping my face until I meet his eyes. I don’t resist. I couldn’t.

The command works where concern didn’t. He fills the frame of my vision, his black eyes hypnotizing. “Take a deep breath. Let it out slowly with me.” He counts to three at a measured pace. I follow his instructions, and my heart rate slows.

“Good.” His voice comes out in a whisper, hoarse with something dark. “Will you continue to be good for me, Yen?” He lets my chin go and I nod. “We shall dine together this evening. You will see the city tomorrow. Then you will be my consort at a ball tomorrow night. After that, I will worship your body in ways that will make you forget your own name.”

I blink, my mind catching up to the incongruity of his polite manner and his dirty words.

My body has no problem processing, however. Moisture leaks into my underwear, and I squeeze my legs together tightly.

He leans in, and his breath is hot on my face, a waft of heat and coffee. The antennae in his hair crane towards me as he breathes in deeply. “Your scent tells me you’ll enjoy that,” he says. “But I’d like to hear you say it aloud, Yen. Do you look forward to taking my cocks?”

I lick my lips, readying myself to speak. Did he say cocks, plural? I breathe out a small, “Yes, my lord.” It sounds shamefully wanton and not like me, but if I were in control, I would have kept silent this whole time.

He steps back and turns away from me, walking back to his desk. “You may go.”

It takes a moment for my body to switch back on, but I don’t wait for him to reach his desk before I scamper out of the room.

5

YEN

My knees are weak as I leave the room, but I pull it together to greet a smiling Nerissa waiting for me outside the office.

I give her and the secretary a tight, shaky smile before getting into the elevator. I stare at the numbers in the elevator as they go down, willing my heart to slow.

We go down two floors before exiting. I’m shown to a room with an adjoining bathroom, and Nerissa tells me someone will be with me shortly to get me ready for tonight.