Page 66 of Krammin’ With A Kraken

Mine.

I wasn’t willing to walk away from him.

Not today, not next year, notever.

“Yes.” Jumping from the bed, I threw myself into his arms.

Deus held me for several minutes without speaking. “Seta, may I make you brunch? To apologize for being an idiot?”

I looked at Ayla. She threw her hands in the air. “I’ve been waiting for you to kiss him for five minutes. Go! Have a good time.And text meif you bring him home this time, okay?”

“No need. If Seta forgives me, my dorm room is empty.” Deus winked down at me.

“Get your cute butt out of here.” Kissing Deus on the cheek, I gently pushed him out the door. “Come back in thirty minutes and I’ll be ready.”

I watched him walk down the hall.

He really did have a great butt.

Deus showed back up exactly thirty minutes later, and Ayla practically shoved me into his arms.

We walked out into the brilliant late morning sunshine. Deus kept his arm around me as he led me to his dormitory building.

When he opened the door, I realized that as much as Ayla was growing on me, I was low-key jealous of Deus’ dorm room. He had a bed, a bath, a table, and a kitchenette all to himself.

His bed was hidden behind a bookcase stuffed with vases, photos, and even a few textbooks. The walls were hung with pictures of the Greek island he’d called home for most of his life, as well as photos of sun-kissed, stunning people. He caught me staring at them.

“Those are my family members. I have, like, forty half-siblings. Honestly, it’s exhausting.” He ducked into his mini fridge. “My dad is the worst, though.”

“Probably not worse than Ezric’s dad,” I pointed out.

I regretted the snide remark immediately, but Deus laughed. “You’re right. My dad never disowned me or told me to risk certain death before I could become a real member of the family. It does put things into perspective.”

Deus pulled a bowl from the fridge and poured its contents into a nonstick pan. “Marinated filet of salmon. Ready in…”

He splayed his hand six inches above the pan and concentrated. A few seconds later, two miniature lightning bolts hit the fish, searing the sauce and blackening the surface. The smell of cooked fish, burned garlic and miso filled the air.

“It’s ready now,” he said with a flourish, and grabbed two plates from the cabinet.

The fish was overcooked, but I didn’t say anything. As a kraken, I was used to eating my food raw. One of my first land etiquette rules had been how to eat what land-dwellers ate. And even if I was inexperienced at dating, I knew enough not to criticize his cooking.

“I need to tell you something,” Deus said as I dipped my spoon in the miso sauce.

It was delicious, and I hummed in appreciation. “Go ahead, I’m listening.”

“I think you might be my fated mate,” Deus blurted.

I almost dropped my spoon.

“What?” I asked, my voice hitting a note that could crack glass.

Deus laughed nervously. “From the moment I saw you pull up to Slaymore, I’ve been drawn to you like lightning to metal. I can feel your heightened emotions even when we aren’t near each other. And I feel lost when I’m not around you.”

Mine.

Could he be right? I’d been so worried about being forced to take a mate, I hadn’t ever considered the possibility that I might meet a fated mate. I’d never heard of a kraken finding a mate, but maybe our mates weren’t in the sea?

I knew that was the moment where I should tell him what I felt, but my body was frozen. Yesterday, I’d refused to consider him as more than a fling. Was I ready to make the massive leap to being mates? Even if we were fated mates?

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