Chapter 14: Octavius
IN THE LAST MONTH and a half, everything had changed, leading my life down a path I hadn’t even known I wanted to walk, and now I was practically sprinting down it.
It had started simply enough. A stubborn woman in a crumbling cottage, leaving me with a strange mix of obligation and suspicion. And yet, somewhere along the way, it had turned into something else entirely, something I had never imagined for myself. I had been content in my solitude, resigned to it even, but then she came barreling in like the storm that tore through her cottage that night, and before I realized it, she had become my entire world. I had been drawn to Kara like the tide, at first with the need to protect her from her own home... but now that had shifted into something stronger. A need and want, to protect her from her past.
I rolled my shoulders slightly, tension settling there as my thoughts drifted, as they always inevitably did, back to what she had told me that night in the cove. Even after all the days and evenings we had spent together, days filled with so much happiness and genuine joy, I could still feel the hesitation from Kara even without touching her. That fear always lingered beneath the surface, because somehow everything always circled back to the reality of where she had come from and that fucking contractwith Zavier.
Zavier.
The name alone was enough to make my jaw tighten. The idea that there was someone out there, someman, who thought he had any kind of claim over her made something in my chest burn.
I could still hear it, the shame in her voice when she said “my owner.” My hands curled into fists at my sides, and my tentacles vibrated behind me with rage as my thoughts circled back to it again, refusing to let it go. Because she wasn’t owned, and she sure as fuck wasn’t something to be bought, traded, used, or controlled.
The thought of what I would do to Zavier if he ever tried to take her away played out in my mind, my tentacles tightening around his throat, watching the fear set in, feeling it grow until it was all-consuming. Only I wouldn’t take it from him. I wouldn’t absorb a single bit of it. I would let it linger beneath his skin, let it fester until the light in his eyes finally went out. I would make sure he knew exactly what it felt like to be helpless, unable to fight and unable to even draw breath.
I pushed the image away before it could take hold. I knew how quickly I could spiral, and right now that fucker didn’t deserve any space in my mind to poison my thoughts, not when I was on my way to see her. The woman who was so easy to care about and so talented with her hands, and yet somehow still terrible with a power tool.
Though she never improved on her handyman skills, there were other things that had shifted in her over the past month. She was still just as challenging as ever, but it felt different now. The tension in her shoulders had eased, and her laughter came more easily, no longer sounding so forced or guarded. Before, it had always felt like she needed to soften everything with sarcasm and wit, like she had to keep things light just to keep herself from slipping under. Irealized now that had been her shield, just a way to protect herself, but now she was safe with me and no longer needed to hide.
I was pulled from my thoughts by the familiar flash of silver hair appearing in my doorway. Mina, of course, already barging in, becausewhy bother knocking?She never did.
“You have a visitor,” she practically sang, leaning casually against the frame of my office with her arms crossed and a knowing look already forming on her face.
“I’ll be out in a minute,” I said, trying to hide the smile in my voice. I knew exactly who my visitor was, but I didn’t need to give Mina any more reason to tease me over it, though I doubted it would deter her.
“Oh wow,” she said, her tone dripping with amusement, and I knew my efforts had failed. “Is that a smile? Should I start printing wedding invitations, or do you want to keep pretending you’re not completely gone for her?”
I glanced up at her, unimpressed.Of course she could read me.Then again, I hadn’t done a particularly good job of hiding just how much Kara affected me since the first day she walked into my parlor.
“Mina,” I chided, but she only grinned wider.
“I’m serious,” she continued, pushing off the doorframe and stepping fully into the room. “Do we want something small and intimate? Or are we inviting the entire Cove? Because I feel like people woulddefinitelyshow up for a human and shifter wedding.”
I had told Mina about Kara’s very human nature, or rather, Kara had. She had needed one more person to know, someone to help ease the weight of that secret just a little more, and I knew Mina would be the perfect one to hear it. Mina didn’t care about things like that. She saw theperson before anything else, sawwhothey were beforewhatthey were. And honestly, Kara needed more people like that, more friends in general after being alone for so long. And Mina... well, Mina needed someone new to talk to for a change. Maybe it was a selfish kind of relief on both sides, but it had worked out for them all the same.
“Mina, why must you be so insufferable?” I muttered.
“What?” she shrugged, entirely unbothered. “I like her, and I think she’s good for you. Plus,” she added with a smirk, “if you’re married, there’s no way the town could legally kick her out.”
That was true, but alsofartoo soon. Even though Kara brought out something impulsive in me, maybe we could save talks of wedding invitations until at least three months in.
“You’re actually considering it,” Mina teased, clearly catching that shift in my expression. “Well, just let me know the details and I’ll plan it all out. I’m sure we could have The Salty Siren cater the meal, and I already know the perfect dessert we can get for the reception from The Driftwood Café.” She turned toward the door. “Have fun,” she tossed over her shoulder with a wink before heading out for the evening.
I just rolled my eyes, though I couldn’t entirely deny the truth in her words, even if I wanted to. Pushing the thought aside, I made my way into the lobby, only for my chest to tighten the second I saw her.
