Extraction: An MM Kraken x Human Monster Romance

Six

Ebenezer couldn”t possibly be real.

In the past four days since I”d woken up in a house on a private fucking island owned by my kraken mate, Eben had been there with a helping tentacle whenever I”d needed him.

I”d told him more than once that he didn”t always need to be at my side—even though I really liked having him near, and even the shadows scared the shit out of me when he wasn”t around—but he”d stuck close anyway. I hadn”t pushed because I didn”t truly want him to leave me alone, so we”d spent the last three days attached, at least one of his tentacles touching me at all times.

Today, a doctor was visiting to check on me. Tarika and Nala—who also seemed to always stick together—had gone to the mainland to pick him up, while Eben perched at the edge of my bed, his tentacles put away for the first time in days. He couldn”t exactly let the very human doctor see them, after all.

”Are you okay?” Eben asked in a low voice, and I wondered what the look on my face was like.

”I”m fine. Just... nervous about meeting a stranger.” For someone who”d lived on the streets half his life, I shouldn”t be so terrified of meeting new people. But my mind was convinced that since I didn”t remember what the man who”d hurt me looked like, any man could be him. I trusted Eben, and even Tarika and Nala, but a human doctor...

”It”ll be okay. I”ll keep you safe.”

I smiled as I met his gold gaze. He truly would, wouldn”t be? I knew without a doubt that anyone who tried to hurt me would be making the biggest—and last—mistake of their life. It was a dark thought, but at the same time it comforted me, knowing Eben had my back and wouldn”t let anyone get away with causing me pain.

”I know,” I whispered softly, smiling at him as I reached out and took his hand in mine. He glanced down at our joined hands with something akin to wonder on his face, and I took a moment to ponder over the fact that someone as old, as experienced as him could make an expression like that over something so simple. It gave me a clue about just how important this mate-bond thing was to Eben, and it made me want to make him happy, to make him look like that again and again.

”Oh, they”re here,” Eben said, cocking his head to the side and—I assumed—listening to them approach.

The door to the room opened, and Nala stuck his head inside, a smile on his face. ”Hey, you two! The doctor”s here.”

Eben glanced at me with questioning eyes, and I gave him a small nod.

”Bring him in,” Eben said, and Nala nodded before opening the door wider.

The doctor was a short man, even shorter than my 5”8”, and he shot Eben a wary look as he approached the other side of my bed, putting it between himself and Eben. I wondered if Eben had scared him on his first visit, and then wondered why that thought pleased me. Had the man who”d hurt me fucked with my head? Or had I always been like this?

”Hello, dear,” the doctor said, adjusting his white coat as he settled in a chair Eben had brought over for him earlier. He was an older man, probably in his sixties, with graying hair, kind blue eyes, and an easy smile.

A smile that disappeared when Eben spoke in a deceptively soft voice.

”His name is Hobie.”

I shot Eben a glance, shaking my head, though I couldn”t quite hide my smile. He didn”t act this way around Tarika and Nala, but I guessed that was because he trusted them.

Why he was acting all possessive in front of a sixty-year-old man was anyone”s guess. Then again, even if he looked like a man in his mid-thirties, Eben was much, much older than the doctor. He probably didn”t realize that the likelihood of this doctor being at all interested in me was very low, and pretty much nonexistent now that he”d put the fear of God in him.

”Hello, Mr. Hobie,” the doctor corrected, shooting Eben another wary glance before his full focus turned on me. ”I”m Dr. Jared Smith. I was the one who treated you when Mr. Nezer first rescued you.”

I quirked a brow at the utterly creative name Eben had given him before dipping my head in a nod.

”Thank you for taking care of me, Dr. Smith.”

Accepting my gratitude with a smile, Dr. Smith asked me a bunch of questions about my appetite, pain levels, and difficulty moving around. He checked the wound on my thigh, complimenting the perfectly wrapped bandage, which made Eben loosen up a little, though he still hovered too close as the doctor examined me.

Once he”d checked, he sat back with a satisfied sound. ”Everything looks good, Mr. Hobie. Your wounds are healing fast, and since you have a good appetite and are consuming plenty of fluids, you won”t need the IV anymore. I”m going to prescribe you some supplements for the next two months, but after that, as long as your wounds continue healing, you”ll be just fine.”

”Oh, that”s good,” I said, absolutely ready to get rid of the needle in my arm.

I had to grit my teeth to keep from making a sound when Dr. Smith carefully removed the needle. I also had to clutch hard at Eben”s hand so he wouldn”t attack the poor doctor for causing me pain.

After patching up my hand, the doctor took his leave, accompanied by Tarika and Nala, who”d drop him off and pick up my supplements. They”d been so helpful too, and I was glad Eben had such great friends, though I wanted to thank them personally too.

”So, I”m finally free of my tether,” I said with a grin, waving my free arm, and Eben returned it.

”Yes, you are. Anything special you want to do with your newfound freedom?”

”Hmm, I”ll think of something.”

Eben smiled a touch indulgently. ”Sure. Whatever you”d like, I”ll help you with it.”

Happiness surged through me at the fond look on his face, and I squeezed his hand tightly. ”I know you will.”

Over the next few days, Hobie continued to heal, though his nightmares didn”t seem to be lessening in number or intensity. Every night, he woke up at least once, but sometimes it was twice or thrice in one night.

I”d taken to spending my evenings in his room, and while he”d invited me to share the bed with him, I didn”t want to accidentally trigger him when he was just waking up from a night terror. Instead, I camped out on an armchair by his bed, wrapping him up in my tentacles every time he woke up screaming. He”d remembered a few more things, stray moments of his captivity, but they were always sounds or touches, which made me wonder if he”d been blindfolded or held in the dark.

”Hey, you doing okay?” I asked as he settled on the couch. Now that he didn”t have to worry about the IV pole, Hobie was determined not to spend all day cooped up in his room. We usually spent the morning outside, where Hobie had breakfast with Tarika and Nala while I took a dip in the water, and then we watched TV for a few hours. Hobie had introduced me to all his favorite shows that he”d watched growing up, and I liked getting a peek into the person Hobie had been, into the person he still was beneath his trauma.

The living room had quickly become his favorite room in the house, and in no small part because of the large flatscreen mounted on the wall in front of the comfiest couch in the world. Tarika and Nala had done a phenomenal job furnishing both houses, and I”d thanked them again after Hobie had oohed and aahed his way through the house, loving everything from the airy build of the house with its many, many windows, to the minimalist decor and all the warm-toned wooden furniture. Hobie had said it was great because it gave him plenty of space to add new things, and the knowledge that sometime in the last ten or so days he”d accepted this house as his home had filled my chest with warmth.

”I”m okay.” Hobie pulled me out of my musings as he shot me a barely there smile. His dark circles seemed to have only gotten worse from the sleepless nights, and while he looked healthier than he had when I first found him, I still wished I could do something to make him feel better. If I could, I”d make his dreams disappear, but unfortunately, that wasn”t a power I possessed. I”d heard of some psychics who could do that, erase or modify the dreams people had, but I”d never met one. If I had, I”d have tracked them down and given them anything to help Hobie.

”Would you like to go into the water after lunch today?” I asked, and his eyes widened.

”Really? You”ll take me?”

”Yeah. You won”t have to swim, and you won”t get wet either.”

”I won”t?” he asked, sounding a touch disappointed, and I tilted my head curiously.

”Would you like to?”

”Not exactly, but if I don”t get wet, does that mean I won”t be able to touch the fish and plants and stuff?”

”You”d want to touch the sea creatures?”

He nodded quickly, eyes sparkling with excitement. ”Oh yeah. I used to visit this aquarium in the city whenever I could, and I”d always wish I was in the water with them so I could see if they were as smooth as they looked.” His words tumbled over the one before in his excitement. Then he ducked his head as a deep pink blush stole across his cheeks. ”Sorry, I got a little excited.”

”Why are you apologizing?” Humans could be so strange sometimes.

Hobie shot me a look, then shook his head, a soft smile appearing on his lips. ”Never mind.”

”You can touch the sea creatures.” I gave his hand a squeeze. ”I was going to cover you in an air bubble so you could breathe underwater, but maybe instead I could make something like an air...suit? Only your hands will be bare, so you”ll be able to touch whatever you wish to.”

”You can do that?” His voice was full of wonder, and I smiled, ignoring the urge to duck my head like he did. Every time he talked about something I did with that marvel-filled tone, I felt like I could fly. I wanted to keep doing things that would make him sound like that. It was why I”d spent the last few days secretly reading up on human physiology so I could make sure my magic would keep him perfectly safe underwater.

”Yeah. Some water-supes have really good command of the water, like kelpies, who usually claim a water-body as their own and are able to control water. I can do what I do because of my fae blood. The fae get their magic from nature, and are able to manipulate nature in return. I”m only half-fae, though, so there are limits.”

”What you can do is pretty damn impressive,” Hobie said with a warm smile, then glanced outside. ”Do we really have to wait until lunch?”

”Yes. The doctor said you need three filling meals every day so you can get better.”

”I thought you didn”t like him.”

I huffed at his teasing tone, glancing away. I might”ve acted like a bit of a jackass around the human doctor, and I”d truly thought I had better self-control than that. Mate instincts really could turn the most experienced people into possessive neanderthals.

”Doesn”t mean his advice was bad,” I grumbled, making Hobie laugh. Shifting closer on the couch, he rested his head on my shoulder, and I wrapped an arm and a tentacle around him, pulling him close as he fiddled with the TV remote.

”After lunch, then. Are you going to invite Tarika and Nala too?”

I bit my lower lip, trying to figure out which option he”d prefer. Going with my gut, I slowly ventured, ”I thought it could be just us.”

”Yeah?” he asked, a smile in his voice. ”Like a date?”

I knew enough about human culture to know what a date was, and I couldn”t quite hide my smile at the hope in Hobie”s voice.

”Yes, very much so.”

He tucked his arm across my torso and snuggled deeper into my side, fitting against me flawlessly and proving once again that we were made for each other.

”Perfect,” he said decisively, then flicked the TV on, his attention drawn to the large screen while mine stayed very much stuck on him.