It didn’t feel like he was doing anything at first, and then a swell of movement behind me rocked against my back, a soft bulge and then a long, beautiful purple tentacle slipped out from under Erik’s shirt and wound round me loosely, resting on my thighs.
I stroked a hand along it, not wanting to make a big thing about it, but I also was far, far too nosey to not actually take alook at what I’d been seeing – or wondering if I’d been seeing – for days.
I lifted the tentacle and studied it, running my fingers over the skin and along the underside, around the suckers that winked like stars and made me wonder what they would feel like latching onto my skin like a love bite.
The bathroom door opened behind us and I grabbed the blanket to make sure it covered my crotch because I’d accidentally got hard while Eric wrapped me up in his many arms.
I peered round at Declan and saw he’d put his jeans on, but he hadn’t bothered with his prosthetic.
He saw me look and gave an awkward chuckle. “I’m going to have to put it on again soon or I’m going to undo all Erik’s hard work of getting me to stand on it properly.”
“You can put it on later. Come and sit with us first.”
He came over to the couch and looked at where I’d spread out, practically laying against Eric.
Eric’s voice was tight as he asked, “How do you feel about this?”
Instead of answering straight away, Declan went to the fireplace and held on with one hand while he used the crutch to nudge a little wooden stool into position before lowering himself down onto it.
Only when he was seated and his crutch was neatly stowed beside him did he answer. I was guessing he’d been buying time to think.
“I don’t know how I feel about it yet. You look beautiful together and I’m not going to lie, it’s kind of hot. I like that you’re spending time together and you’re comfortable with each other.” He took a deep breath. “I guess I’m a bit afraid that you’ll want each other more than me and I’ll be surplus to requirements.”
I made a noise of protest and sat up, reaching for him. He waved me aside.
“I know you don’t think it now, Sonny, but I’m afraid you’ll think it later. When you and Eric are together and-and whole and—”
He stopped talking and I waited, but that was all he was going to say.
Eric stretched out a long limb and brushed it against Declan’s hand. “Thank you for telling us. It helps, you know. To understand. I didn’t realise you’d feel that way. I thoughtIwas the odd one out.”
I gasped and twisted round to face Erik. “You’re not the odd one out! Declan’s been falling for you for months, and he took you on adate.”
Erik’s limbs slid over me, soothing me. “He took you on a date, too, only I crashed it and then, well, it ended badly.”
Declan said, “Thank God you were there.”
“Yeah,” said Erik. His tentacles tightened around me, as though they reflexively wanted to hold me tighter.
I had such confused memories of the lake. Of the sudden stab of cold, the pressure of the water pushing in on me from all sides, the blackness. I couldn’t really make sense of it. All I knew was that I’d thought I was going to die, and then I’d felt those tentacles around me, a drag through the water and then fresh, life-giving air.
I lifted one and pressed a kiss to it. Erik gasped.
“I-I meant how do you feel aboutthis,” he said, and waved the tentacle in the air. “Now you can see them properly and you know what I am.”
“Oh.” Declan’s face was a picture, looking like he wished he’d never replied to that question.
I chuckled. “I don’t think Declan cares either way.”
He looked rueful. “I know that’s probably not what you want to hear. I-I don’t know how I feel about them yet, other than they’re there and I… Sonny’s right, I don’t care. They’re part of you, that’s okay. They feel nice, that’s great. Sonny loves them—”
“Hey, I don’t love them,” I protested.
Declan’s eyes dropped down to my dick, which was tenting the blanket. Apparently I hadn’t done as good a job as I thought covering it up.
“Really?”
“Half of this hard-on is for you, I’ll have you know. And it’s not just Erik’stentaclesI like. I thought he was hot the first time I met him, which also I hated about him, and I thought he was pretty when he arrived at the lake and then he gave me his scarf which was sweet and annoyingly kind, and I thought you’d go off with him and marry him and live happily ever after and I’d have to smile all day on your wedding day and pretend it was okay because ofcourseI’d be your best man.”
