His Human (The New Neighbors #2) - M.A. Innes Page 0,51

it in, but I let that go as soon as it entered my mind. Maverick always made sure everything was locked and plugged in and organized. I knew I didn’t have to worry about anything as I let my body go boneless while he held me in his limbs.

Maverick knew I was falling asleep because his tentacles started stroking over me and he made a low humming noise that always made me feel wonderfully relaxed. “Yes, sleep is what you need, my little human. I will take care of you.”

That sweet order was all I heard before everything faded away.

Chapter 17

Trip

“How long are these walks for my health supposed to last?” Maverick kept changing the routes we were taking, so it was hard to tell, but I was pretty sure they were getting longer each day.

“We are supposed to vary the length so your body does not become accustomed to them.” He said it like it was obvious, but that answer sucked.

“How much longer is this one going to last?” I sent out a prayer of thanks to the universe that we only had to do it three times a week.

I got an indulgent pat on the head like I was a five-year-old that was asking if we were there yet. “Not much longer, my little human.”

No more parenting books for him.

He’d scared the fuck out of me when I’d come home last night to find him curled up on the couch reading about parenting techniques, but after a few questions, I’d relaxed. He liked the psychology behind it but didn’t seem to have a need to raise babies.

From the expression on his face, I’d gotten the idea that he’d thought he had enough on his plate raising me. But being treated like a five-year-old was better than going back to being the rabbit in his science experiment.

My questions had led to an interesting discussion, though. He’d wanted to know what my view of kids and childbirth was.

Weirdest fucking conversation ever.

Evidently, he’d found male pregnancy erotica online—he’d kept spelling out M-P-R-E-G as he’d explained it—and he’d been trying to decide whether or not to include it in his child-rearing research.

A human partner would never be this much fun in a relationship.

I’d made it clear that I was open to playing pretend, but no one was going to implant anything in me. He’d kept saying it wasn’t possible, but I hadn’t liked the look on his face. He was finding the entire thing too fascinating.

“Okay, Master.” It wasn’t the worst exercise he could have come up with, so I was worried about pouting too much. I might just end up pouting my way into Jazzercise or something ridiculous like hot yoga or mountain climbing.

Wandering around the neighborhood while the little old ladies peeked out of their windows was easier.

As he led us down another side street that I was pretty sure would lead us back to my place, I started to ask him about his day but stopped abruptly. “Is that Nolan?”

The tiny community park didn’t have much more than a couple of trees and benches, but Nolan was sitting on one.

I glanced up at Maverick. “Should we go say hi or do you think he needs space?”

Maverick watched him closely. “When we get closer, I shall be able to make a more educated guess.”

He was really good at saying “I don’t know” while still sounding smart.

As we walked, silently watching Nolan sitting and sometimes talking to himself, I decided that no matter what Maverick sensed, we should at least go say hi. Maybe just seeing a friendly face would cheer him up.

A quick glance at Maverick as we moved nearer said we were on the same page. He looked down at me and gave me a nod before shifting our path so we’d walk closer to Nolan.

Maverick nudged my back with his tentacle as we moved in front of Nolan. I took that to mean I was supposed to start the conversation, so I plastered on a surprised face. “Hey, fancy meeting you here.”

Maverick huffed. “That greeting does not make sense. He is not fancy, nor is the meeting.”

That broke the ice better than anything else I could’ve said.

Nolan laughed and the dark cloud that’d been hanging around vanished in a puff. “You’re right. I guess a lot of what we say doesn’t make sense at face value.”

I nodded. “I never realized it either until we started seeing each other.”

Nolan smiled. “I’d never have thought about it.”

Then his grin dimmed.