Page 14 of Kael (Monsters & Mates #2)

Silence. Then another ripple. Closer.

I grip my dagger tighter. “Tell me,” I murmur, not taking my eyes off the water. “The creatures that aren’t harmless… what exactly are we talking about here?”

The water ripples again, and before I can ask more questions, Kael’s entire demeanour changes. His bioluminescent markings flicker excitedly, and his nostrils flare as he watches whatever’s lurking beneath the surface.

His next word? Brimming with enthusiasm. “Food.”

I blink. “What?”

Without another word, he’s moving, stripping off his outer gear and stepping towards the water’s edge like a hunter who’s just spotted the perfect prey. And fuck me, I can’t look away.

His physique is something else—not like a human’s, but just as unfairly sexy.

His muscles don’t just sit beneath his skin; they shift with a fluidity that makes it impossible not to stare, like every movement is pure efficiency wrapped in strength.

The markings across his body pulse faintly, tracing over the ridges of his arms, his shoulders, the powerful curve of his back.

He looks even bigger now, practically naked, which makes no sense—he’s wearing less, not more, but somehow, without the extra layers, he seems larger than life.

I swallow. Hard.

And then he continues forwards, oblivious to my absolutely unhinged thoughts.

“Kael,” I say slowly, watching as he crouches, eyes finally trained on the inky depths. “You’re not seriously thinking?—”

He dives.

“Bloody hell.” I clap a hand over my mouth, half in horror, half in amazement, as he vanishes beneath the surface. A second later, there’s a violent splash, then another, and then—pure chaos.

Turns out, Kael? Not a natural fisherman. Or whatever the hell the equivalent of that would be in this situation.

Water explodes around him as he thrashes, lunging after something just out of reach. He makes a grab—misses. Swipes—misses again. It’s fast. Too fast. I can’t see much beyond the flashes of movement beneath the surface, but whatever it is, it’s big, and Kael? Kael is determined.

“You could just give up,” I offer helpfully, watching as he narrowly avoids a faceful of lake-ocean-whatever-the-hell water. “Not everything is meant to be caught, you know.”

He grunts in response, which I think means “fuck off,” and lunges again.

Another splash.

Another struggle.

And then—somehow, miraculously—Kael emerges from the water, victorious.

Dripping, completely soaked—and now more purple than his usual deep blue—but he’s triumphant. His bioluminescent markings are practically dancing with pride as he hefts his prize—a monstrous, writhing, abomination of a creature—out of the water.

And then he beams at me, looking more alive than I’ve ever seen him.

“I have caught it,” he announces, like he’s just won the bloody lotto.

I stare.

It’s… horrible. The creature, not Kael.

The thing has too many eyes, scattered unevenly across its slippery, finned body.

Its skin is a mottled mix of dark grey and something almost translucent, like an eel that got ambitious and decided to evolve into a nightmare.

The fins are jagged, the mouth should not be that wide, and the worst part? It’s still moving.

Kael thrusts it towards me, looking obscenely proud. “Take it,” he says.

“Absolutely not.”

His expression falters, and fuck, he looks wounded.

I sigh. “Fine.” The second I grab it, I regret everything. It’s so much heavier than it looks, and before I can brace myself, my knees buckle. “Shit!”

I go down hard, hitting the damp earth with an oof as the weight of the thing completely overpowers me. For a moment, there’s silence.

Then Kael laughs. Not just a chuckle. A full, chest-rumbling, unrestrained laugh.

“Oh, fuck you,” I wheeze from the ground.

He hovers between laughter and concern, like he wants to keep enjoying my suffering but also maybe realises I’ve actually taken a hit.

Then my amusement fades. A sharp sting flares up my back. I wince.

Kael’s laughter dies immediately. The shift in his demeanour is so fast, it’s jarring. One second, he’s amused. The next, his eyes flash, and a visible tremor runs beneath his skin.

“You’re hurt.” His voice is low. Rough. Like the words physically pain him.

I push myself up, rolling my shoulders as I leave the fish-thing to flop uselessly beside me.

“I’m fine. Just a cut.” I hope. It hurts, but I can’t see it—not without twisting in ways that I definitely was not built for.

The pain is above the waistband of my pants, a sharp sting that’s already making my skin prickle uncomfortably.

Kael’s gaze is locked on me. His nostrils flare again. His bioluminescent markings pulse.

I shift under his scrutiny, suddenly very aware that something about this has rattled him. “Kael?”

No response. Just intensity. The air between us changes, something charged settling in his stance. And I have no idea why.

Then he moves.

Not just moves— stalks .

Every step is measured, predatory, his luminous eyes focused on me with an intensity that should have me backing up, telling him to calm the hell down. Instead, my breath catches, my skin burns, and holy shit, is it hot out here, or is it just me?

My fingers twitch at my sides, my pulse a chaotic drumline in my ears. I swear my throat’s gone dry, but it’s nothing compared to the heat coiling low in my stomach. His movements shouldn’t be this hypnotic, shouldn’t send a thrill down my spine, shouldn’t make my body react.

And yet.

“Turn around,” he rumbles, voice like the start of a storm, “and take off your shirt.”

I blink. “What?”

His eyes flash. “Spin. Now.”

I roll my eyes because fuck that tone, but before I can tell him he’s being dramatic, he lets out a low, guttural growl.

My skin pebbles.

My dick? Hardens.

Oh holy shit.

This is wrong. So wrong. I think I might actually come in my pants from the sound of his voice, which means something is fundamentally broken in me.

But I also do as he asks.

The second my shirt is off, I feel him close. So close. And yet he doesn’t touch me. There’s a moment of absolute silence before a noise rips from his throat—low, raw, pained. It jolts through me, a shock to my already-fried system, and I go to turn towards him.

I don’t get the chance. His three-fingered hand lands hot and solid against my bare waist, stopping me in my tracks.

My breath catches. My brain? Short-circuits. And then—everything tilts.

The world spins, my vision flickers, and suddenly my limbs feel like dead weight.

Kael is immediately there, catching me, holding me close like I might crumble into dust. My fingers curl weakly into his arm as I fight against the dizzy haze clouding my mind.

“The hell just happened?” My voice is sluggish, my tongue heavy. “Why… why do I feel…?”

Kael’s jaw tightens. “You fell on a rock.”

I squint at him. “A rock?”

“A poisonous one.”

Of fucking course. Because why wouldn’t this place have poisonous rocks? Just another exciting new way for Terrafeara to kick me in the balls.

“So, what do we do?” I rasp, blinking against the fog rolling in.

He doesn’t answer. But I feel it—his hesitation, his worry, the sheer reluctance radiating off him like waves.

“Kael.” My tongue is heavy, my limbs going limp. “What’s wrong?”

His grip tightens. “I have to draw the poison out of you.”

I try to focus, try to push past the molasses in my brain. “As in… cut me open?”

Silence. Or… not silence. More like an implication so loud, it might as well be a scream.

My stomach drops. “Or?—”

His next words wreck me. “If I do…”

I struggle to keep my eyes open. “Yeah?”

He exhales, voice tight. “It’ll fully start the bonding process.”

Scratch record. Freeze frame. What?

“The bonding fucking what now?”

Does that mean…?

“You’re my mate,” he says.

It’s the last thing I hear before the darkness swallows me whole.