Draechen's Mate [Chronicles of the Shifter Directive 2] (Siren Publishing Epic Romance, ManLove) (16 page)

“It’s nothing compared to you.”

Karein reached for him, lust burning in his gaze. Oh, yes, this was what Sari had been waiting for. Sadly, his bladder chose this exact moment to notify him that it wouldn’t be a good idea to have sex. “Hold that thought,” he whispered. “I’ll be right back.”

Sari ran toward the bathroom, where he was presented with another problem. It would take forever for him to unpin everything, and he wanted to get back to Karein already. Making Karein wait because he needed to take a piss was definitely not the sexy beginning he had imagined for his wedding night.

“Need help?” Karein asked from outside.

Sari honestly didn’t know if he could have felt more mortified. “No,” he called out. “I’m fine.”

Biting his lip, he started to unpin his robe. Predictably, he couldn’t reach some of it, and he almost fell over as the material seemed to tangle around him further. Frustrated, Sari just wanted to rip it off, except it was essentially his wedding garb. He wanted to save it, as a memory.

“Are you all right?” Karein inquired, now sounding concerned.

Sari gave up and finally opened the door. “I’m having trouble with this damn garment. Help me?”

Karein gave him one look, and his lips twitched in a small, affectionate smile. “My poor love. You’re exhausted, aren’t you?”

As Karein slid into the bathroom as well, Sari instinctively reached for his hair, aiming to arrange it, before he realized what he was doing. Yes, he was tired, but largely, the fatigue stemmed the onslaught of hostility in this place. Sari had dealt with Onyerre’s hatred all his life, but now, he had an entire palace of draechen glowering when they thought he wasn’t looking, on top of his stepmother and her kids. If not for Karein, he didn’t know how he could have handled it.

“I’m sorry,” he replied. “I’m messing things up.”

“Don’t be silly,” Karein said as he started to undo Sari’s clothing and hair. “You’re giving me the chance to do what I’ve craved for a while now. Spoil you.”

Sari was too tired to protest, and really, who could blame him? In the end, embarrassment had no place between two mates. And Karein seemed to genuinely want to do this. They might not have completed their bond, but Sari could still tell.

Karein was quick and efficient in freeing Sari from his clothing. As the pins fell, Sari’s garment finally yielded to Karein’s ministrations, leaving Sari in only his undergarments. Karein’s eyes were dark with desire, but he made no move to pursue Sari in any way. Instead, he stepped back and said, “I’ll run the water in the tub.”

Sari appreciated Karein giving him a little space and independence to do his private business. While he finished, Karein busied himself by the huge tub. Just the idea of taking a warm bath with Karein made Sari tingle inside, but he didn’t really know how to approach his mate. As he washed his hands, Sari mentally cursed. He was so frustrated with his own inexperience. This could have gone so much better.

Before he could continue to berate himself, strong arms wrapped around his waist, pulling him against Karein’s powerful chest. “You’re so beautiful,” Karein whispered huskily, “just like I knew you’d be. Let me take care of you.”

Sari turned in Karein’s embrace and cupped the other man’s cheek. He wanted to say that Karein was the beautiful one. In fact, there were so many things on the tip of his tongue, just waiting to be uttered. But for some reason, his vocal chords refused to obey, and he simply nodded.

Grinning, Karein took Sari into his arms. He didn’t even bother to take his clothes off. He just climbed with Sari into the tub, seating them both in the water. Sari couldn’t help it. He laughed. “Karein, your clothes!”

“Ah, yes.” Karein smirked. “How could I have forgotten? They’re quite an impediment, aren’t they?”

That was the only warning Sari got before Karein took off his uniform with striking elegance. His entire body was taut with sensual tension, and yet, he somehow managed to slide out of his elegant uniform without ripping it. As it seemed, Karein didn’t want to destroy the clothing they’d worn for their wedding day either.

Of course, any thought of the value of those garments vanished when Sari was finally granted access to his mate’s naked body. He hadn’t realized it before, but Karein had created another tattoo to match the one on Sari’s own arm. Karein’s was clearly a depiction of Sari, although not an in-your-face way. Rather, Sari’s body and the fall of his hair had been branded onto Karein’s arm in a wave of sinuous curves that almost seemed to glow. Sari distantly wondered if this was what his mate saw when he looked at him.

As much as the tattoo attracted him, though, he had to admit there were other, even more interesting perks to Karein’s new disrobed state. In spite of Sari’s exhaustion, his dick twitched when he realized that Karein wasn’t wearing underwear. Karein’s cock was right there, within his reach, and Sari wanted to lick it, touch it, suck it in his mouth, and feel it in his body.

Sari reached into the water, fully intending to grasp his mate’s member. Sadly, Karein had other ideas. He grabbed Sari’s hand, stopping him from achieving his goal. “Ah, ah, ah.” He tsked and shook his head. “Remember what we agreed upon. I’m spoiling you.”

Sari didn’t remember agreeing to anything that in any way implied him not having access to his mate’s dick. Before he could utter any protest, though, Karein divested Sari of his last remaining garment, his underclothes. As the draechen dumped the sodden material on the floor, Sari had to admit that they were finally getting somewhere, so he forced himself to relax and trust his mate.

His decision proved to be the correct one. Even if they’d waited for seemingly an age to finally come together, Karein took his time. He found the bottle of shampoo and poured a generous amount in his palm, then spread it onto Sari’s hair. As Karein massaged his scalp and toyed with his hair, Sari melted into his mate’s embrace, a puddle of warm, aroused satisfaction. He’d had people touching his locks hundreds, no, thousands of times, mostly for the purpose of the elaborate hairdos necessary at the fae court. But with them, he’d never felt even the slightest stirring of sexual excitement. Karein turned this seemingly innocent process into a sensual experience, while keeping it all gentle, slow, without putting any sort of pressure on Sari.

And he didn’t stop with just Sari’s hair. Instead, he went on to soap up the whole of Sari’s body. It should have been embarrassing to have Karein touching him like that, literally everywhere. Jenarra above, Karein even went ahead and cleaned Sari’s genitals. He didn’t linger like Sari would have liked, keeping his touch nearly platonic, but since Sari was leaning on Karein’s body, he could tell how much the entire process excited the draechen.

Distantly, Sari knew that he should do something about that, to touch and pleasure Karein. But his bones seemed to have melted and refused to comply. The only sounds he could make were “mmms” and “nnghhs,” whatever that meant. He could practically feel the tension and fatigue of the day seep out of him, leaving behind just lazy contentment.

At last, Karein rinsed Sari’s hair, paying close attention so that the shampoo foam wouldn’t hurt Sari’s eyes. He appeared to like it, too. It was almost humorous, given how much Karein had feared hurting Sari. Sari had never been one to appreciate excessive pampering, but he had to admit that, this time around, he could certainly make an exception.

Finally, the draechen quickly cleaned himself up as well. Again, Sari was awfully tempted to echo Karein’s earlier demonstration on his mate’s own body, but Karein didn’t allow him to do so. He finished with striking expedience and, holding Sari close, climbed out of the tub.

Water dripped all over the place from Sari’s hair, but Karein took care of that problem. He grabbed a towel and started to dry Sari’s hair and body, somehow managing to be both thorough and gentle. It was as if he aimed to avoid tearing even one single hair from Sari’s head. In spite of being in a castle full of enemies, Sari didn’t remember ever feeling so safe.

It wasn’t Karein’s actions themselves that made it so. In the end, Sari was completely capable of drying his own hair. But the protectiveness behind Karein’s behavior mattered to Sari, making the remaining awkwardness disappear.

He didn’t comment at all when Karein finished toweling him and took him in his arms, still nude. Karein deposited him on the large bed, among the rose petals. Completely relaxed, Sari smiled up at his mate. “That was nice.”

It had been more than nice, and so was the view from here. Lying on the pillows, Sari got a great look of his mate’s sculpted physique. From his hard muscles, to his rigid, jutting prick, Karein was all man and all power. Sari wanted to kiss his mate’s luscious mouth, to bury his fingers in Karein’s hair as his mate fucked him into the mattress.

Karein seemed of a similar mind. “Not done yet,” he answered with a slight twist of his full lips.

He gestured for Sari to turn over on his stomach. Sari’s stomach fluttered as he obeyed. The position exposed his ass to Karein’s scrutiny. Finally, Karein would take what was his. And indeed, Karein reached for the nightstand and retrieved a bottle of clear oil. Sari might not have any practical experience in bed, but he knew the mechanics of it, and he realized where it would go. Okay, so he was a little nervous, having clearly seen the size of Karein’s dick. But he had confidence that even if it would hurt at first, his body would adapt. Or so he hoped. The last thing he wanted was to disappoint Karein.

A small part of him was dissatisfied that Karein hadn’t even kissed him. By rights, the intimacy of a kiss paled in front of what they were about to share, but there was something truly drugging about Karein’s kisses. Still, his mate had been so gentle with him so far. Sari couldn’t be so selfish as to demand only what he wanted.

As it turned out, his guess regarding Karein’s intentions proved to be completely incorrect. Instead of reaching for Sari’s opening, Karein poured the oil on Sari’s shoulders and started to knead. At first, Sari was so surprised by this turn of events that he went a little rigid. But Karein didn’t stop his massaging. “Relax,” the draechen purred in his ear. “Close your eyes and just feel.”

Hypnotized by the sound of his mate’s voice, Sari obeyed. When was the last time someone had given him a massage? He couldn’t remember. No one had ever been so intimate to him. The only person he’d have allowed so close was his mother, and such a thing between her and Sari wouldn’t have been in the slightest bit appropriate. But with Karein, it was perfect. The draechen found every knot of lingering tension, weeding it out with almost humbling expertise. Karein’s mastery of Sari’s body made him settle in a haze of lazy pleasure. Whatever discomfort that might have clung to him after the bath completely vanished. He was putty in Karein’s talented hands, but very relaxed putty.

Karein didn’t only linger on Sari’s shoulders and back. He went lower down, bypassing Sari’s buttocks and instead focusing on his legs. Even his feet got the royal treatment. At one point, Karein even turned him over, although Sari wasn’t exactly sure when it happened. With just as much focus, Karein massaged Sari’s front, too, although he managed to avoid Sari’s cock and balls, just like he had with Sari’s ass.

In a strange way, Sari found himself dangerously close to falling asleep. It was only the sexual desire his mate arose within him that kept him awake. However platonic Karein might have tried to be, Sari still wanted him too much, and he couldn’t have hidden it if he wanted to.

At last, Karein was left with nothing to massage except Sari’s genitals. Sari opened his eyes and glanced at Karein. “Come to me,” he said simply.

Karein looked torn. “You’re tired,” he murmured, his voice full of gravel. “You should get some sleep.”

“And I will,” Sari replied, “after you claim me.” A touch of uncertainty filled him as a small part of Sari wondered if Karein might not want to bind them together at all. It was a huge step to make, and the fact that Sari was ready didn’t mean that Karein automatically felt the same. “If you want, of course,” he hastily added.

Karein’s nostrils flared, and all of a sudden, his dark eyes gained that wild look that Sari had once seen in Karein’s dragon. “If I want?” he repeated incredulously. “Oh, baby. There’s nothing I crave more in this life.”

“Then come to me,” Sari said once more. “Kiss me and take me. It’s what I desire, too.”

Fortunately, Karein’s resistance broke at Sari’s words. Faster than the eye could see, the draechen climbed on top of Sari and crushed their mouths together. Sari parted his lips, moaning as his mate thrust his tongue inside his wet cavern. He fulfilled his own earlier wish, fisting his hands in Karein’s soft, dark hair. Karein groaned wildly, rubbing his hard erection against Sari’s hip, no longer trying to hide what he craved.

If Karein’s earlier ministrations had been soft and relaxing, the buildup that had gathered during the sensual massage made their current actions frantic, almost desperate. Karein practically devoured Sari’s mouth. There was no other word that could have explained the way Karein kissed, like his life depended on it, like Sari was the last drop of water in an endless desert. When they broke apart to breathe, the draechen proceeded to map the rest of Sari’s body with his mouth. He peppered Sari’s face with butterfly-light kisses, although when he reached Sari’s ear, he bit down on the lobe instead. As he continued to explore, he alternately sucked, nipped, and licked. Sari’s collarbone seemed to fascinate him, but when he reached Sari’s nipples, the real torture began. Briefly, he lifted his head to say, “These naughty things are going to be the death of me.” He tweaked one little nub—the left one—hard, causing Sari to cry out in pleasure. “I don’t know how I managed to touch them at all without losing it.”

Sari didn’t get the chance to reply because Karein engulfed his right nipple in his mouth. More inarticulate sounds escaped him, although they were likely far louder than the ones he’d made in the bath. A small part of Sari was aware that he probably sounded like a cheap harlot, but he couldn’t care less. In fact, if he had to judge by Karein’s own groans, the noises Sari was making seemed to excite Karein a great deal.