“I was halfway home when you rang,” Saber said, his eyes glittering with unshed tears. “I had a bad feeling and left Leo to deal with the meeting.” Saber took the whiskey Gavin handed him and turned to Kiran. “I want to know why they were here. Talk quick so I can go back and sit with Emily.”
Fear compressed Kiran’s throat and weighted his chest. A sliver of panic shot through him. They’d never look at him the same after hearing about his sordid past.
“Kiran.” Rohan pulled up a chair and sat beside Kiran, wincing a little and shifting to find a comfortable spot. Rohan took his hand and gripped it tight.
It was Rohan’s silent comfort that gave Kiran the impetus he needed to start.
“I lived on the streets in Mumbai. A lot of kids do. I never knew who my father was but my mother worked as an extra in films. She died when I was about eight. When I turned ten, the local authorities cleared the derelict buildings we lived in to make way for new luxury housing. I was bigger than the others and attracted attention. David came to see the kids they’d captured and took me and several others to his house. He keeps a…I guess you could call it a harem. He educates and grooms children. Some of them he chooses to take to his bed once they turn eighteen. I was his favorite sexual slave.” Kiran paused, looked down at his hands, unable to meet the gazes of the men he’d come to view as friends. He didn’t want to see their expressions of disgust. Distaste. His throat and mouth felt dry and he took a quick sip of whiskey. “David was into kinky stuff. We called him the master and anyone who crossed him died. We all became used to seeing slaves die, seeing the blood. It was a powerful incentive to do whatever he asked. If he asked us to fuck someone, we did it. They used to drug us to keep us in line and make us easier to manage.”
“But I don’t understand. You’re a tiger shifter,” Charlie said. “Couldn’t you have escaped?”
“I didn’t know I was a shifter,” Kiran said. “Remember, I didn’t know my father, and my mother never said anything. David used to go away on frequent business trips. He had several brothers. They were lazy drunkards who didn’t work, apart from Nando, the youngest. David went away on business and Nando had friends over. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and overheard them talking. They wanted to get rid of David, and Nando would take over the family business. They caught me eavesdropping and set me up. I woke up in a room with three dead servants.
He shivered as he remembered the scene. “There was blood everywhere. A knife with my fingerprints on the handle. Nando accused me of murder, and they locked me up. I was scared and angry. I’m not sure what happened, but I guess it pushed my feline to the surface because I knew I was going to die. I shifted, and when Nando’s men opened the room they found a tiger. Nando didn’t know what was going on, but his men sold me in tiger form, and I ended up in the Auckland Zoo. I don’t know what happened between the house in Mumbai and the zoo, but I woke up with no memory of my past.”
“Probably a mixture of drugs,” Gavin said.
“They must have fit you with the tracking device at that stage,” Saber said.
“No, the master fit all the slaves with tracking devices when he took them into his house. I’ve always had it, and obviously the shifting aggravated the site, which is why I noticed it.”
“Nando must have worried when the tiger disappeared,” Rohan added.
“He didn’t know his men had sold me at first. When he found out he came to kill me. Clean up the mess, he said.” Kiran pushed his whiskey away and stood, releasing Rohan’s hand. “That’s the highlights. I’ll go now.”
“Where?” Saber said, standing to face him. “More importantly why?”
“But don’t you want me to go? I keep telling you this is my fault. You’ve all made me feel so welcome. I don’t want to cause more trouble.”
“We’re mates,” Rohan said in a taut voice, a sense of betrayal flashing in his eyes. “You’d walk away and consign us both to hell?”
Kiran literally felt a physical wrench at the thought of parting from Rohan. He couldn’t look at his mate. “I knew this was a bad idea.” He walked toward the door, forcing his legs to move.
“Fuck you,” Rohan snapped. “I’m not letting you walk away from something good. I love you. We’re mates.”
“Kiran.” Saber’s voice held command.
Slowly Kiran turned back. He saw determination. Friendship. Acceptance and love on their faces. Not a shred of the contempt he’d feared was in evidence.
“We all have things in our past we regret,” Rohan said. “You were a kid. You had your choices taken from you and did what you needed to do to survive. I think you’ve turned out well. Stay. I can’t face the thought of a life without you.”
“You’re a valuable part of our community,” Saber said. “It’s your choice to leave if you wish, but we’d like you to stay. We’ll help you get papers and get through the official hurdles. Charlie and Laura will take care of the statement. All you need to do is sign it. You are not responsible for the actions of these two men.”
“No problem,” Charlie said. “It looks to me like a straightforward family squabble. The older brother keeps babbling about seeing a tiger. They’ll want a report as to his state of mind.”
The tight bands of tension inside Kiran released and his shoulders relaxed. He didn’t want to leave Middlemarch or Rohan. This really was home. Hearing Saber and Charlie’s easy acceptance went a long way to easing his guilt. And Rohan—Rohan loved him. “I guess I’m staying then.”
“Great,” Gavin said, his smile flashing as he winked at Charlie. “We might get that belated honeymoon in Samoa if I can train Kiran fast enough.”
They all chuckled before Saber returned to Emily and Gavin went with him to check on her before leaving with Charlie.
“You ready to go home,” Rohan asked.
Kiran nodded, and they walked out to the SUV together.
“Hell of a day,” Rohan said.
An understatement. He felt as if he’d gone a few rounds in a boxing ring. “Yeah.”
Rohan’s eyes gleamed when he glanced at Kiran. “I vote we forget about eating and head straight to bed.”
Fifteen minutes later they entered their bedroom, closing the door on the rest of the world.
“Ambar’s not home. Do you think things are serious between her and Jake?” Kiran asked.
“I’m more worried about us,” Rohan answered. “Are we okay? You’re not gonna leave?”
Kiran turned to face Rohan. “Only if you want me to.”
“I can’t see that happening. You’re my mate. I can’t imagine my life without you in it. I know things happened quickly between us, but I do love you.”
“Show me.”
“Strip.” The harsh order in Rohan’s voice sent a ripple of excitement through Kiran. He paused to wonder about the strangeness of that, how he could enjoy Rohan ordering him around in the bedroom yet hate it so much with David. He pushed aside the thought and concentrated on getting out of his clothes as quickly as possible.
“How is your butt?”
“You tell me.” Fully naked, Rohan turned and flashed his ass in Kiran’s direction.
“Nice,” Kiran purred. “Very sexy.”
“That’s a given.” Rohan grinned over his shoulder. “I’m talking about the bullet hole.”
“It’s healing well. I guess the shifting helped. It looks red but all the edges have knit together. You’ll probably have a bit of a scar. Sexy.”
“By tomorrow it should feel better. Maybe we could fit in a run tomorrow night after work. Gavin said shifting will speed the healing process. But meantime I have other things on my mind. On the bed. On your hands and knees.”
Excitement filled Kiran as he hurried to obey. His cock stirred, his heart pumping with a rush of joy. Rohan was right. Them. Together. It was kismet.
“I love you, Kiran,” Rohan said, moving on the bed behind him. His hands reached around to stroke Kiran’s cock.
“Damn i
t feels good when you touch me.”
“Remember that. I like to touch you. The sex is great, but most of all, I love spending time with you. I love you, the good and bad.” Rohan dropped a kiss on his shoulder and licked across an old scar. He stroked and used his thumb to tease the head of Kiran’s cock. His left hand cupped his balls, gently rolling them while his mouth and tongue licked closer and closer to Kiran’s mark. He started to tremble. “Hold on. Don’t come yet.”
Kiran groaned. “You need to move faster if you expect me to hold back.”
Rohan released his cock and balls and started to grope his ass. Kiran widened his stance, biting his bottom lip to hold back his pleas for speed. He knew from experience Rohan loved to tease him. If he knew how desperate Kiran was to fuck, he’d take even longer to get to the good stuff. A finger stroked his pucker, wakening sensitive nerve endings and making them sing with jolts of pleasure. Rohan kissed one butt cheek and started to prepare him. Kiran knew it wouldn’t take long. He shivered, his body jerking, emotions soaring. He loved Rohan so much, loved everything about the man.
Kiran’s breath caught. It could have been the sharp jolt of pleasure when Rohan stroked across his gland or the chill of lube but Kiran knew better. He’d allowed himself to freely acknowledge what he felt for Rohan. The words trembled at the tip of his tongue ready to spill free.
Rohan moved again and Kiran felt the pressure of Rohan’s cock tunneling into his ass. He groaned at the intrusion, savoring the faint bite of pain and the sweet swell of pleasure. Kiran pushed back against Rohan. He felt Rohan’s breath caress his shoulder, felt warmed both inside and out. They rocked together, gradually increasing in speed until the scent of sex filled the air and their harsh breaths echoed through the room.
“Come for me now,” Rohan said.
“Need a hand.”
“My pleasure. Anything you want.” Rohan’s hand reached around his thigh and grasped his cock, pumping it vigorously in the exact way he liked while his mouth sought the marking site. At the warm rasp of his tongue, the pleasure spiked suddenly. Rohan drove deep and a white-hot conflagration gripped Kiran. He shuddered, his cock spasming, ecstasy charging through him. Slowly he came down from the high and realized Rohan was still hard. He tensed his backside and heat blossomed in him again. Rohan released his cock and gripped Kiran’s shoulders, bending over him to suck on the mark at his shoulder. Rohan’s hips slammed against Kiran’s ass then stilled. He was vaguely aware of Rohan coming, his own cock twitching after Rohan had sucked on his mark again.
Rohan made a purring sound of approval when he realized. He pulled out of Kiran and rolled them over so they spooned. He gripped Kiran’s cock and stroked until he came again, playing him like a maestro.
Gradually their breathing evened out. They were both a sticky mess and needed to clean up, but there was something Kiran wanted to do first. He turned in Rohan’s arms so they were face-to-face. Kiran cupped Rohan’s face.
Rohan smiled. “What?”
“I love you.”
Rohan’s eyes closed for an instant as if he were holding the thought close to his heart. When he opened his eyes again, his smile widened to flash his white teeth. “About time you realized it.”
“So shoot me. I’m a slow learner.”
“Nothing wrong with being a slow learner,” Rohan said in a gentle voice. “It’s the lesson learned that counts. I love you too, but I think you know that. You want to shower?”
“Yeah.” Kiran rolled off the bed and they walked into the bathroom together. A sense of lightness and freedom filled Kiran. A sense of rightness, of belonging. He was right where he needed to be in Middlemarch with Rohan and the friends he’d made. The boy who’d lived on the streets had found a home, he’d found love. He’d found a mate. Best of all, he had a future to look forward to, and he couldn’t wait to see how it unfolded with his mate at his side.
About the Author
Shelley lives in Auckland, New Zealand, with her husband and a small, bossy dog named Scotty.
Typical New Zealanders, Shelley and her husband left home for their big OE soon after they married (translation of New Zealand-speak: big overseas experience), a year-long adventure lengthened to six years of roaming the world. Enduring memories include being almost sat on by a mountain gorilla in Rwanda, lazing on white sandy beaches in India, whale watching in Alaska, searching for leprechauns in Ireland and dealing with ghosts in an English pub.
While travel is still a big attraction, these days Shelley is most likely found in front of her computer following another love—that of writing stories of romance and adventure. Other interests include watching rugby and rugby league (strictly for research purposes *grin*), being walked by the dog and curling up with a good book.
Shelley welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and e-mail address on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.
Tell Us What You Think
We appreciate hearing reader opinions about our books. You can e-mail us at [email protected].
Also by Shelley Munro
Best Man
Currents Run Deep
Curse of Brandon Lupinus
Ellora’s Cavemen: Dreams of the Oasis III anthology
Fallen Idol
Fancy Free
Fringe Benefits
Issy’s Infatuation
Last Wish
Lovers at Last
Lynx to the Pharaoh
Make That Man Mine
Middlemarch Mates 1: Stray Cat Strut
Middlemarch Mates 2: Peeping Tom
Middlemarch Mates 3: Scarlet Woman
Middlemarch Mates 4: Assassin
Middlemarch Mates 5: Cat and Mouse
Middlemarch Mates 6: Cat Burglar
Middlemarch Mates 7: Leticia’s Lover
Price of Love
Sex Idol
Sex, Spies and Sapphires
Summer in the City of Sails
Talking Dog 1: Talking Dogs, Aliens and Purple People Eaters
Talking Dog 2: Never Send a Dog to Do a Woman’s Job
Talking Dog 3: Romantic Interlude
Unforgettable
Discover for yourself why readers can’t get enough of the multiple award-winning publisher Ellora’s Cave. Whether you prefer e-books or paperbacks, be sure to visit EC on the web at www.ellorascave.com for an erotic reading experience that will leave you breathless.
www.ellorascave.com
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