Eight

It was dark. It was dark all the time.

There were no windows in this place, not the slightest hint of light peeking into the room from anywhere. I wasn"t sure how long I"d been stuck in the pitch dark, but I was terrified I"d never see sunlight again.

I shifted my arm, making the shackle around my wrist clack. Sometimes, I did it just to break the oppressive quiet that filled this room. It had to be soundproofed. Either that, or there was no one around. That was the only explanation for why no one heard my screams. No one ever heard my screams.

The door at the top of the stairs unlatched, and I froze. Shit. He was coming.

The door slid open, and yet no light spilled inside. But I knew he was there. I could feel his presence, his oily, dark presence that brought with it unimaginable pain. I didn"t know how much longer I"d be able to take it.

I"d tried fighting him off, in the very beginning. Then, I"d realized he was much, much stronger than me. I"d been more careful after that, but there was no way to escape this place except that door, and I had no way to get out of my shackles.

Footsteps thudded down the stairs, and I scrambled to press my back against the wall, curling in on myself as if that would keep me safe. My bare skin rubbed against the concrete of the wall, the chill seeping into my skin, and I squeezed my eyes shut, knowing it was no use and yet unable to resist trying to hide.

The footsteps drew closer. Thud. Thud. Thud.

I"d never seen his face, or any other part of him. All I knew was that he used some device to distort his voice until it sounded like something out of a horror movie. I huffed. Everything about this situation was out of a horror movie.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

My heart picked up pace, racing so fast it felt like it would leap right out of my chest.

Someone, anyone, please. Save me.

"Hobie!"

I jerked upright, my thundering heart loud in my ears as I tried to breathe. I was shaking hard, and I felt like I"d break apart into a million pieces at any moment.

A sharp, keening sound slipped past my lips as I bowed forward, wishing I could curl up into a ball but unable to because of my hurt leg.

"It"s okay," Eben murmured beside me, and then his tentacles wrapped around me, warm and secure. He held me tight, sitting on the edge of my bed, and I threw my arms around him, burying my face in his neck. I didn"t cry. I didn"t think I had any tears left. But I clung to him as my body trembled, as my heart continued beating erratically, and he secured me in his hold, wrapping himself around me like I was the most precious thing in the world to him.

"You"re safe, Hobie. You"re safe," he murmured into my hair again and again as he held me. One day, I hoped I"d be able to truly believe those words. For now, it was enough to be wrapped in Eben, to know that even if I wasn"t safe, Eben would protect me. No one could hurt me with my big, scary kraken mate around.

"Don"t leave," I mumbled into his neck, and his hold on me tightened.

"I won"t. I promise. May I... join you on the bed?"

I refrained from pointing out that I"d been asking him to do that for a while now. Instead, I simply nodded against his skin, and he rearranged us so he was spread out on his side with me tucked into him, his tentacles wrapping protectively around me like a particularly warm heated blanket.

I snuggled into him, resting my head on his upper arm and breathing in his briney scent as I sighed softly, sleepiness returning now that Eben had pushed away the remnants of the nightmare.

"Sleep, sweet human. I won"t let anyone harm you," Eben murmured in a low, soothing voice, and I let myself drift off, secure in the knowledge that the monster would never be able to touch me again, let alone hurt me.

I woke up feeling refreshed and more rested than I"d felt in, hell, years. Living on the streets wasn"t conducive to a good night"s sleep, and I surely hadn"t slept well when I was being held captive. Snuggling in Eben"s hold, though? It"d put me right into the deepest, most dreamless sleep of my life. I didn"t think I"d ever slept that soundly before. Maybe when I lived with my grandma…

Blinking blearily, I smiled when I felt the familiar weight of Eben"s tentacles above me. Then the warmth under me registered, and I leaned up on my elbows to realize that sometime during the night I"d crawled on top of Eben, using his big, firm torso and slightly squishy belly as a mattress. The position couldn"t be very comfortable for Eben considering his tentacles came out of his lower back. Had he slept like this all night? Did krakens get sore?

While I was lost in thought, Eben must"ve woken up, because when I came back to myself, I found eyes of gold watching me, with his plush pink lips curled up in a soft, fond smile.

Since the day I"d gotten here, I"d woken Eben up with my nightmares every single night. Even I had grown tired of myself, and yet he didn"t look the least bit annoyed or frustrated. He consoled me every night, holding me to him as he assured me again and again that I was safe, that he wouldn"t let anyone hurt me. He"d say those words until I calmed down, and then he"d hold me until I fell asleep.

Last night wasn"t the first time I"d asked him to sleep beside me, but he"d always said no before since he was such a gentleman. I wasn"t going to let him go back to the way things were, not after how good he felt beside me, and how well I"d dozed. Unless he said he wasn"t comfortable with it, of course.

"We"re sleeping together from now on," I informed him, and his smile widened a little.

"Is that so?" A lock of his red hair fell over his forehead, and I reached up, pushing it away from his face, and smiling down at him.

"Yes, it is. I slept like a baby when you held me, and if you don"t mind, I"d like to continue doing that."

Eben gazed into my eyes as the lightest blush stole across his cheeks. "I don"t mind."

I smiled widely before returning my head to rest on his chest, letting the sound of his steady heartbeat soak into me and balance my own heart that was beating rapidly for a much better reason this time.

Hobie"s birthday was in just under two weeks, and I was at a loss. I"d never celebrated someone"s birthday before. Well, except Nala and Tarika"s, but that just involved going for a long swim and sometimes hunting together. I wanted to do something special for Hobie, but I had absolutely no idea what.

"How about you take him to someplace he wants to visit?" Nala suggested in a low voice, sneaking glances at Hobie and Tarika. They were both in the kitchen where Tarika was cooking and Hobie was observing. I"d stationed him on the countertop and made him promise me he wouldn"t try to get off of it. His thigh was healing well, and I didn"t want him to hurt himself with a moment of ill-advised recklessness.

"That...that is actually a good idea."

It was certainly better than my idea of hunting down the asshole who"d hurt Hobie and presenting his head to him. Nala had vetoed that one instantly, but Tarika had thought it might work. I"d gone with Nala"s opinion simply because out of the three of us, he was the most well-versed in human culture.

"I know." Nala sounded particularly proud of himself, and I bit back a smile. "Just casually ask him if there"s any place he wants to visit or any particular activity he"s always wanted to try. Didn"t you say you were trying to figure out a way to take him to the bottom of the sea? You could do that too."

Nala was right. Taking Hobie on a bottom-of-the-sea date might just be the perfect gift. I remembered how excited Hobie had been at the idea, and I wanted to make that a reality for him.

"Thanks, Nala."

He winked at me, patting my shoulder. "No problem. I"m happy for you. Hobie is just perfect for you, and I love seeing you so happy." His brown eyes were warm and twinkling with joy as he spoke, and I felt lucky to have friends like him and Tarika. "I may not be interested in romance, but I can tell some romance was exactly what you needed to get that surliness out of you."

He jerked back with a laugh when I reached out to smack him with a tentacle, then jumped to his feet and raced into the kitchen shouting, "Tarikaaaa! Eben"s being mean to me!"

"Probably because you were being a brat," his mate replied, completely unbothered.

Hobie, on the other hand, called out, laughter clear in his voice, "Eben! How could you be mean to someone as sweet as Nala?"

"Now, wait a minute," I protested, walking across the room and then peeking my head into the kitchen because it wasn"t large enough to accommodate four people, especially when one of them had tentacles sticking out of his back. "He called me surly first."

"No," Nala said slowly, as if he was talking to a child. I narrowed my eyes at the lack of space between him and my mate, and he was smart enough to take a step back, though he was still too close in my opinion. "I said being with Hobie has gotten rid of your surliness."

"Oh," Hobie mumbled as his cheeks flushed, and I lost the argument instantly. No way I could say anything that would take that sweet smile off his face.

"You, my dear friend," Tarika said in a low voice as she leaned closer, her eyes still on the pot she was stirring, "are utterly and absolutely smitten."

I didn"t even try to deny it because we both knew she was right. How could I not be completely smitten when Hobie was the sweetest person on the planet? When one smile from him could make my day, when nothing seemed better than curling up on the couch with him and watching one of the shows he so adored?

"Yes." I glanced at Hobie as he laughed at something Nala had said, no longer afraid to be touched by him as long as he knew it was coming, which Nala was good at making sure of. "Yes, I am."

"I"m happy for you, Eben. And remember, if you need help, you only need to tell us. You helped me find my happiness," she said, her eyes flicking to Nala. "And I"d be glad to return the favor however I can."

Well, it hadn"t been my intention to do anything of the sort when I"d tracked her down to a lonely little slice of beach after decades of no contact and asked her if she would be willing to look after my island while I was away in exchange for a place to live and any materialistic demands she had. But when I"d brought her back to my island where Nala had already been waiting, I"d somehow played Fate"s lackey and brought the two mates together. Like I"d told Hobie, Tarika and Nala weren"t romantically involved, and yet they were one of the most loving mated pairs I"d ever known.

"All right, kids. Dinner is almost ready," Tarika announced loudly, and Nala snickered.

"I think Hobie is the only one here who qualifies as a "kid.""

Hobie scowled. "Hey! I"ll be twenty-seven soon!"

"And I"m almost two-hundred, so what"s your point?"

"Argh!" Hobie exclaimed, a pout on his face that shouldn"t look so damned cute. "I"m surrounded by the elderly."

"Your mate is the oldest one of us," Tarika reminded him as if he could"ve forgotten, and Hobie"s eyes turned to me, a grin replacing his pout.

"I know! Isn"t that great?"

"Ugh. New mates are so lovey-dovey," Nala said with a shudder, making Hobie"s cheeks flame. Squeezing into the crowded room, I walked over to him and wrapped him up in my tentacles as he hid his heated face in the crook of my neck, and shot Tarika and Nala fiery looks.

"Behave."

Tarika rolled her eyes at me, while Nala, the brat, preemptively jumped out of my range before shouting a sassy, "Yes, Papa!" and racing off toward the living room.

I was tempted to go after him, but the quiet chuckle Hobie let out against my skin kept me rooted to the spot. Damn, I really was smitten.