Page 30 of Rising from the Depths

Kronus’s physical differences, while impossible to ignore, had almost become familiar to her. She didn’t fear his claws or sharp teeth and was fascinated by his tentacles and their movement, which also changed subtly based on his mood…and she never forgot the way they felt against her bare skin.

She found herself often thinking back to their near-kiss, recalling the way he’d held her chin, the way he’d looked at her as though she were all he could see, and the little kisses from his suction cups as his tentacle had caressed her leg.

Though she had imagined his mouth meeting hers many times since then, she couldn’t begin to guess how his lips would feel. Kronus seemed comprised of unpredictable contrasts. His skin was soft but the muscle beneath was rock-solid; his demeanor was gruff and irritable, but his actions were considerate; and he was large and almost brutish in appearance but moved with grace and confidence, handling her with the utmost gentleness. His lips looked soft and yielding, but would they prove firm and unforgiving instead?

She finally pried her eyes from his lips, raised a spoonful of stew to her mouth, and ate. As she chewed, she watched him. His attention was on the piece of wood in his left hand. His right hand moved a knife along the wood, shaving off bits and pieces to slowly shape something new. It was the third time she’d seen him at the task.

“My father used to carve like that,” she said after swallowing her food.

“Poorly?” he asked without looking up. There was a small pile of wood shavings on the floor beneath him; Aymee’s admonishments had yet to deter him.

“Why do you say that?”

Grasping the carving between two fingers, he held it up as though it supported his statement without further comment. It was a four-legged creature with a long neck and little horns that looked like they’d snap off at the most delicate touch.

“Oh, it’s a perfectly good sheep,” she said, barely keeping a straight face.

His jaw clenched for a moment. “It is akrull,” he replied.

An amused sound escaped Eva. She returned her attention to the stew, hurriedly scooping another spoonful into her mouth to stifle her laughter. Kronus glared at her with low brows from the corner of her eye. To her surprise, one corner of his mouth tipped up slightly before he lowered his head and resumed his carving.

She chewed silently, watching his hands move. And they were nice hands.Reallynice. Large, strong, with long lean fingers, and…

Eva swallowed and cleared her throat. “He used to carve little animals and people for me and my siblings when we were kids. We had an entire farm with enough people to make a village.” She looked down into her half-empty bowl. “He’s a trapper, so he spent a lot of time in the jungle. He’d bring home chunks of wood, and we’d all gather around him and watch him doing what you’re doing now. My elder brother picked up the talent, but I didn’t. I was never really any good with my hands when it came to small, detailed things. Probably because I always had trouble sitting still long enough to get anything done.”

He was quiet for a time, and in that silence, she thought she could almost hear the faint sound of the knife moving over the wood.

“Your home is far from here, is it not?” he finally asked.

Eva frowned, set the spoon in the bowl, and absently rubbed her arm. Did she have a home anymore? She’d given up her childhood home to be with Blake, and the home she’d made with him was gone now.

But she hadn’t left her family on bad terms; however hard it had been to move on, Eva’s relationship with her parents and siblings remained intact.

“Yeah, it is,” she said.

He exhaled heavily. “I know how difficult that can be. Your family may not be here, but I am sure they care for you very much.”

His words helped a little. She missed her family terribly, and the reminder that they cared provided some comfort.

“What about you?” Eva looked up at him. “Do you have family?”

“Kraken do not…didnot have family the way humans do.”

She furrowed her brow. “I know you said kraken prefer solitude, but…surely you had a mother? A father?”

“I never knew my sire and was only with my mother until I was of age to hunt with the males,” he replied. His hands stilled, and he lifted his face to meet her gaze. “Things are…different now for some of my people.”

“Because of…us? The humans who joined with kraken here in The Watch?”

“Because of both your people and mine.” He looked at the carving again, which he turned slowly in his hand. “Not all kraken welcomed those changes, just as they have not been welcomed by all humans.”

“Well, it’s a good thing you’re not one of them, isn’t it?”

His shoulders rose and fell with a deep inhalation. His color darkened, but the change was subtle enough that italmostseemed a trick of her eyes. “I was.”

Eva stared at him while idly tracing the edge of the spoon handle with the tip of a finger. “Why are you here then, Kronus?”

“Why do you insist on knowing?” he growled. “Why is it so important for you to have an answer for that?”

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