Page 62 of Kraken the Seal

When he was dressed, he lifted me up and carried me back out to the stern of the boat. He sat down with me on his lap and used his tentacles to start the engine and steer the boat, so he never had to stop snuggling me.

“I need this,” I whispered. I hadn't realized how cold I was until he was holding me.

“Same,” he agreed.

We traveled through the night, only stopping and dropping anchor when pre-dawn light chased away the stars.

We sat out in the morning cold and watched the sun come up. I'd never seen a more beautiful sunrise.

“I love you,” I whispered. “And I love my seal. I never want to be without either of you.”

Delmar let out a long breath, his arms tightening around me. “I love both of you too, and I swear that we'll never be parted again.”

Chapter 21

Six Months Later

Delmar

My beast was so excited about heading out to sea that I was having a hard time keeping my tentacles in check. Even though I was in full view of people wandering around the marina, they kept slipping out of my back to grab things as if they were helping.

Not only were they not helpful, but they were going to get me in trouble.

I pulled the bag of fruit I'd been trying to put away out of the grip of a tentacle.

“If Nina sees you guys out, she'll be upset," I warned them.

That did the trick, and they retreated into my body so quickly it almost hurt. I chuckled and returned to putting the groceries away.

After a long discussion, we'd decided to get an apartment near the water where we lived during the week. On weekends, we headed out to sea in my boat. We often simply sailed until we couldn't see land and dropped anchor. We'd spend the weekend playing in our shifted forms, napping in the sun, and relaxing.

Nina was turning out to be a natural sailor. No one would ever guess that she'd never even been on a boat before Zak's party. Not only did she learn fast, but she had a feel for the wind and water. It wouldn't be long before she was as good as, or better than, me.

She was also getting used to her seal form. The relationship between her and her seal was seamless. She could shift back and forth without hesitation, although it was still exhausting if her shifts happened too close together. She also accepted her new taste for fish, both in her human and seal forms. My seafood stew was one of her current favorites, and albacore and halibut were her seal’s favorites.

It was adorable to watch her seal find something she wanted to show me. She would rush to me, take one of my tentacles in her mouth, and gently lead me to whatever she'd found. Sometimes after she'd eaten her fill, she'd catch an extra one to feed it to me. Her seal was always concerned that I wasn't getting enough to eat.

Her seal also tended to overeat, so we stocked a large container of antacids on the boat for when Nina’s human tummy protested her seal’s feast.

My phone chimed with a text from my mom. It was a picture of her and Dad on a gorgeous white sand beach. After visiting for a few weeks, my parents decided to sail further south. Theywere having a great time in Mexico and Central America. They promised to stop by on their way back north.

They'd gotten along great with Nina and declared her seal the most accomplished harbor seal they'd ever met.

They were absolutely correct!

I told her we looked forward to having them visit again, then finished packing the boat for the weekend. By the time I was done, I heard Nina on the dock.

I rushed out to greet her. Jumping from the boat to the dock, I grabbed her in a hug and lifted her off her feet.

“I haven't seen you in forever!” I cried dramatically.

Laughing, she hugged me back. “We had lunch together a few hours ago.”

“Like I said, forever!”

She laughed again, then patted my shoulder, wanting to be set down. I put her on her feet but stole a kiss before stepping back.

“I thought you wouldn't be done until six,” I said, following her onto the boat.