by Lexi Ander
He hadn’t had a chance to see Sūnder before, so now Gabe took the time to examine him, measuring the weight of his length in his hand. Of course, as a nurse on the Chándariān floor of the hospital he knew Panthrÿn and Faelÿn anatomy, but he’d never had a Panthrÿn in his bed before, and Sūnder was a halfling. There were differences between Panthrÿn and L’fÿn sexual organs.
Below the belt, Sūnder looked all Panthrÿn, with no external testes. The sacs that produced their semen were located in dual tubes along the underside of the shaft. Because of this, Sūnder’s length was the same flaccid as when aroused, but it also meant he was thicker than average when hard. Below the tip that was similar in shape to Gabe’s, the girth flared to a width larger than the head. When Sūnder’s seed was squeezed down the shaft, that two-inch section would thicken until Sūnder spilled, which was perfectly fine by Gabe. Each thrust had unerringly pegged Gabe’s prostate, making his orgasm stronger and longer lasting than Gabe had ever experienced.
He swiped his tongue across the head, tasting the beads of precum gathered there, and moaned at the sweetness that burst across his tongue. He enjoyed the feeling of Sūnder’s hands carding through his hair as Gabe slid the heft across his tongue, memorizing the silky texture of the steel hard rod. Sūnder’s grip, combined with the cock hitting the back of his mouth, had Gabe’s dick aching with need. Fumbling with his jeans he pushed them down his thighs, relieving some of the torturous pressure.
Sūnder alternated between hissing and purring, “Gabe, please.”
Looking up Sūnder’s body, Gabe drew off the length. “You want to fuck my mouth? Do it. I want you to come on my tongue.”
He swallowed Sūnder down again, holding the base in his fist and applying pressure to the tubes on the underside when he squeezed. Sūnder’s low rumble was followed by his cock swelling, stretching Gabe’s lips wide right before Sūnder arched his back and spilled into Gabe’s mouth. In the throes of his orgasm, Sūnder was somehow both wild and beautiful.
When the girth returned to normal, Gabe released Sūnder then wrestled his own pants off one leg so he could straddle Sūnder’s waist. He licked his palm and thrust into his fist while he took in Sūnder’s wrecked appearance, reveling in the fact he’d done that to Sūnder. When Sūnder began to purr, something prodded Gabe’s asshole. Glancing back, he shuddered with secret delight to see Sūnder’s tail. Like the rest of Sūnder’s body, his tail was hairless, the skin smooth to the touch and the tip’s width equal to three of Gabe’s fingers held together. He thrust back, realizing Sūnder had slicked up the end when it slid easily in. Sūnder’s pleased expression told him everything.
“That was sly,” Gabe panted, his eyelids fluttering closed as Sūnder fucked him with his tail. “Two can play that game.”
With his free hand, Gabe massaged the stripes above Sūnder’s hips, grinning at the growling hiss Sūnder released. Muscles contracted under his touch. Sūnder gasped and arched again, as if Gabe stroked an erogenous zone. He was so fucking close. Then Sūnder’s tail nudged his prostate and Gabe cried out, coming so hard he lost his breath. Ropes of silky essence spilled over Sūnder’s stomach. Something dark and fierce moved within Gabe, a primal urge at the sight of his seed painting Sūnder’s skin. With both hands he spread his spend, rubbing it over the stripes, the slits normally camouflaged by the dark markings gaping slightly as Gabe kneaded them. Sūnder writhed under him almost uncontrollably as Gabe’s seed disappeared between the tight folds.
“You don’t think I know you’ve been scent marking me?” Gabe met Sūnder’s gaze as he rubbed the last traces in. “Now I’ve marked you. Those who come sniffing around you will know you’re taken. They can fucking go away.” Gabe ducked his head to hide his frown. He had to keep reminding himself Sūnder was only his for a couple of weeks.
“Be careful, Gabriel St. Baptista, others might believe you’ve claimed me permanently,” Sūnder rumbled, looking far too pleased.
How many times had something in Gabe urged him to run, to kick Sūnder out of his bed? The longer he spent in Sūnder’s company, the more dangerous it was to his heart. He really liked Sūnder. The Panthrÿn was easy to talk to and be around. He also looked fantastic in Gabe’s bed. But each time Gabe started to tell Sūnder to go, Sūnder would smile and Gabe would find he couldn’t oust Sūnder from his home. Fuck. When they finally parted, it might end up breaking Gabe.
Don’t think about it. I can’t keep him. But damn if he didn’t imagine what it would be like if he did claim Sūnder, become Sūnder’s mate, and never need to worry about being abandoned again.
8
SŪNDER WANDERED around the living room, going from plant to plant. Whenever he caressed the leaves, they probed his magick curiously. He still hadn’t ascertained how they came to be so awake. They reached out to him, eagerly whispering about their belovèd guardian. Apparently Gabe played their favorite music, and left the player on if gone for hours. They held great affection for him, which only proved his chosen mate was perfect for him, even if Sūnder hadn’t puzzled out why the plants responded to Gabe as they did.
Over the last five days, Sūnder hadn’t left Gabe’s side, making love as often as they could. Gabe was still self-conscious in front of the knights, but once that bedroom door closed Gabe became a ravenous tiger. Sūnder watched as Gabe bloomed, his confidence growing the longer they spent together, taking charge in a way that heated Sūnder’s blood.
As much as Sūnder loved spending time with Gabe, he itched to leave the loft and explore the city with him. Considering how alive Gabe’s plants were, Sūnder had decided he would show Gabe what he could do as a faeborn. Perhaps, with his magick roaming free, Sūnder would discover how Gabe had breathed such awareness into his houseplants. Gabe had said humans didn’t have magick, yet his home held evidence that humans, and Gabe in particular, likely had something similar. Sūnder would love to help Gabe explore that hidden part of himself, once Sūnder found where Gabe had buried his talent.
Although he and Gabe should be at the park right now, Ronan had called before they could leave. Not wishing to intrude, Sūnder only listened with half an ear, but it was hard when he could hear both sides of the conversation clearly. It seemed Ronan was attending the Festival, and Gabe was too. Sūnder was both pleased and upset, until he realized Gabe was only going to support Ronan as his “wing man”, whatever that meant. He was overjoyed Gabe wouldn’t be looking at the other Chándariāns as mate material and yet, at the same time hopeful he could change Gabe’s mind.
Inspecting the plants brought Sūnder close to Paulo. He ignored the knight, still annoyed with his interference the other day. Although humans apparently viewed such open sexuality differently than Chándariāns, somehow, instead of rejecting him, Gabe had accepted the information in stride without pity or scorn. Were the pamphlets wrong about humans, or was Gabe different? Either way, Sūnder would have preferred Paulo not interfere in the first place.
“Commander,” Paulo began, but quickly hushed when Sūnder shot him a scathing look.
“What was your purpose in speaking to Gabe so?” Sūnder hissed, moving into Paulo’s space.
The knight didn’t flinch or turn his gaze away. “He’s human and unaware of what his actions mean to us. He’s blind to our ways, and ignorant of the fact you are courting him. Are you sure he’s different from the others, who gave no thought to how they’d hurt you when they walked away? Someone needed to say something to be sure he understood at least some part of what is happening between you both.” Paulo’s ears twitched, the only outward evidence of how upset he was.
Stepping away, Sūnder caressed the long green leaves of the plant near Paulo. He’d thought Gabe was being generous when he said Paulo only looked out for his interests.
“What Gabe will do in the future has yet to come to pass, Captain. Don’t judge him by what you think he might do. He may well surprise you.” And me.
“Are you ready?”
Sūnder turned. Gabe stood
across the room, tucking his phone in his pocket, his head tilted in a very Faelÿneän manner. Did he overhear their conversation? If so, he gave no indication of it, taking Sūnder’s hand when he crossed the room.
“Is everything all right with your friend?” Sūnder led Gabe out of the loft and waited for him to lock up.
“He’s fine, just nervous. Yesterday he attended his first gala associated with the Festival.” Gabe chuckled, the sound low and dark. “He’s always had an easy time seducing people into his bed, and this time he feels like he’s competing for the attention of others. I had to remind him that the Chándariān participants were required to wait for him to make the first move. I guess there are crowds around the Chándariāns, and people are talking over each other to be heard. He’s not happy with the process.”
Sūnder could not suppress a shudder. “I cannot fathom being in the middle of so much attention.”
“You and me both. I’m terrible in social situations. I can’t imagine how much worse it would become if I was forced to endure so much attention, although my no-filter mouth would probably chase away those with only an idle curiosity.”
Growling, Sūnder tugged Gabe closer. He laughed and shoved Sūnder away to walk into the rickety elevator. When Sūnder and his five guards didn’t follow, Gabe stepped back out.
“Taking the stairs is safer,” Paulo explained, opening the door to the stairwell.
“For the love of…” With an exasperated sigh, Gabe snagged Sūnder’s hand again and pulled him to the exit.
Sūnder was tremendously pleased that Gabe continued to hold onto him as they traipsed down to the first floor.
When they exited the building, a dozen more knights immediately surrounded them. The hoverlimo sat waiting, the Panthrÿn driver ready to open the rear door. Two more dark hovercraft, the security detail, sat in front of and behind the luxury car.
“Sūnder, are you sure you want to go out? If you’re in enough danger to need this many people to guard you, we can stay in. You don’t have to show me anything.”
“Some of this is because of the change in my status. There is nothing to worry about. We will be safe.” Despite Sūnder’s assurances, Gabe kept glancing at the armed knights, with their stiff matte-black armor and swords on their hips and backs, until Sūnder cupped his face, forcing Gabe to look at him. “I promise, you shall be safe.”
“I’m not worried about my safety,” he whispered.
Warmth flooded Sūnder, and he leaned down to give Gabe a light kiss. “Thank you for your concern.”
“Well, someone should worry over you if you’re this reckless. I haven’t forgotten that Captain Paulo mentioned darkhunters,” Gabe griped as Sūnder allowed himself to be pulled into the backseat. “You’re no better than your cousin, A’yrē. And here I thought you were the responsible one.”
Paulo coughed suspiciously into his fist, and the nearest knights studiously looked away, grins turning up the corners of their mouths. Two guards slid in behind them while Paulo took the front passenger seat.
“About my cousin…” Sūnder grimaced. He really should have talked to Gabe about all this instead of letting it slide in favor of wooing his mate.
“I’ve been meaning to ask you about Captain Paulo calling you ‘prince’, but my mind was on other things,” Gabe’s grin was wicked as he glanced down Sūnder’s frame and then bit his bottom lip. “I’m pretty sure you weren’t a prince when I met you. And your online bio only gives your title as commander.”
If they were back in the loft, Sūnder would have lunged for Gabe and carried him over his shoulder back into the bedroom at that look. What a pity. Instead, he carefully picked over what he could tell Gabe, trying to keep it simple. “We spoke earlier about my being a halfling. My birth mother is L’fÿn, the Keeper of the Jade Forest, actually.”
When Sūnder’s silence stretched, Gabe said, “The one King Valiant took you away from? The one who was going to kill you? But if your birth mother lived in the Jade Forest, why would King Valiant be at your birth?” Gabe’s eyes widened. “Oh. King Valiant is your father.” He frowned. “Wait a minute, you said your father wasn’t allowed to keep you.”
“Correct. The L’fÿns threatened war if my father claimed me.” Sūnder was extremely pleased Gabe put the puzzle together so quickly, partly because it kept Sūnder from tripping over his tongue while working around what he could and couldn’t reveal to Gabe.
“Because of this ‘darksoul’ business?”
Sūnder nodded.
“So you’ve lived all your life close to your father and brother as the adopted son of Princess Válora, but unacknowledged as blood kin. She’s his twin sister, right? And I thought being abandoned by my parents as a teenager was bad. You knew, didn’t you? You’re not acting as if this is new information to you.”
Sūnder smiled sadly. “When I was a cub, I could smell that Valiant, Válora, and then A’yrē were my blood relatives. Mother, Princess Válora, took me aside and explained what would happen were I to say something, even accidentally, and how dangerous it was to speak of it, in public or private. Security was always removing unauthorized surveillance equipment from the palace, so privacy could never be guaranteed. To be on the safe side Mother and I stayed at her estate, where I was tutored until I was older. Once I came of age, I joined the armed forces and worked my way up to commander.”
The hoverlimo pulled up to the curb at the edge of the city park. Gabe stared out the window, and Sūnder couldn’t read his expression. “How did you keep from becoming bitter? Your family was right there and yet you couldn’t do or say anything about it.”
“I was bitter.” Sūnder caught Gabe’s glance, seeing the confusion there. “I still am, a little. I understood why it happened, but being on the outside hurt. I think that was Tālia’s intention when she insisted on that particular clause in the Accords. For some reason it wasn’t enough for her that I was removed from succeeding my father to the throne. I sometimes wonder what life would have been like if I’d grown up in a different household, not knowing who my parents were at all.”
“And?” Gabe prompted, turning back to Sūnder. “Do you still wish you’d never known?”
“It’s hard to imagine not having this life. I love my mother, Válora, beyond measure. She has dedicated her life to me. She never took a mate, and the courtiers have labeled her eccentric for taking on a halfling destined to become a darksoul. The L’fÿns’ murmuring has put fear into some Panthrÿns, yet she’s been very vocal, speaking up not only for me but for all faeborn males. Besides, how can I want another life when this one crossed your path?”
Gabe blushed, deep and dark, even as he scowled. “You’d better watch your silver tongue, Chándariān, or I just might take you seriously.”
Before Sūnder could confess the truth of his intentions, a knight knocked on the window, the signal that guards were in place and detected no threats. Sūnder followed Gabe out of the car. Once on the sidewalk, Gabe took Sūnder’s hand again. Pleased, Sūnder threaded his fingers through Gabe’s, resisting the urge to pull Gabe under his arm. The path they walked along was shaded pleasantly from the heat of the summer sun by a canopy of thick tree branches, so he extended his senses to assess the health and layout of the park.
Finding the perfect spot, Sūnder led the way off the path into a thicket of older trees. The scent of water grew stronger, mixing with the smell of loamy earth and decaying leaves.
“Where are we going?” Gabe asked after several minutes.
“We need a private place for what I’m about to do. I don’t wish to scare any humans, Mantids, or L’fÿns who may be around.”
Gabe grumbled under his breath, but Sūnder only heard a word or two. L’fÿns would not be flattered by the curses Gabe uttered.
Sitting between four trees, Sūnder beckoned for Gabe to join him. Then, holding out his hands with his palms up, he waited for Gabe to place his on top.
“Is this safe?” Gabe asked as he slid his
palms across Sūnder’s.
“I’ve only done this once before, with A’yrē. Neither one of us was in danger from— you’ll see. Are you ready?” Sūnder waited patiently. He wouldn’t pressure Gabe. If Gabe decided he didn’t want to see Sūnder’s magick, they would simply return to the vehicles and Gabe’s loft.
Exhaling loudly, Gabe asked, “Do I close my eyes or something?”
“You can. It might help you to see.” Sūnder felt the slight tremble in Gabe’s hands. His heart swelled at Gabe’s bravery, his trust in Sūnder.
Gabe shut his eyes. “I’m ready.”
Sūnder slowly released his magick. He’d learned at a young age how to bottle the energy within him because others, especially L’fÿns, became alarmed at the way hundred-year-old trees bent and swayed toward him when he didn’t.
The warmth of his magick moved out from his core and flowed over his skin, caressing Gabe before soaking into Gabe as if he were a sponge. Gabe jumped, but didn’t remove his hands. In fact, he gripped Sūnder harder. Not for the first time while touching Gabe, fiery heat bloomed within Sūnder, filling his veins, and Gabe gasped. Somehow his magick intensified around Gabe, the usual glow strengthening to a conflagration that threatened to consume them both. It was almost like Sūnder’s own magick had been asleep until he met Gabe. His human might not believe in fate or love at first sight, but there was no question Sūnder’s magick recognized Gabe.
Whispers floated about them, both greetings and blessings, as the plants and trees began to awaken from their half sleep.
“Majesty, what is your will?”
“We come only to visit,” Sūnder sent back.
“Oh, wow, I heard them. You…. This is fantastic.” The hushed excitement in Gabe’s voice caused Sūnder to open his eyes. Around them, the plants and trees leaned toward them, sun-dappled leaves fluttering on a nonexistent wind.
