Elemental Love (7 page)
Part of the reason the place felt so remote was the lack of access for vehicles. When he drove, Dominic had to park his van almost a quarter of a mile away where the tarmac ended, then follow the narrow track that led to Agatha’s rickety gate. Trees bent over the track, reaching for one another, forming a leafy tunnel. Dominic imagined himself as a character in a fairy tale as he walked its length, sunlight dappling the ground. When it rained, as it did often, the pleasant stroll became a muddy slog and the real world impinged on his daydreams.
Tonight, he was thankful that the rain held off. After retreating from Agatha’s hospitality with unseemly haste, bordering on rudeness, he half jogged along the track. Part of the way back to civilization, he stopped and bent over, hands braced on his thighs, gasping for air. He’d been holding his breath without even realizing it. His heart was pounding and a sensation of mild panic urged him to run. Agatha was a little kooky and she definitely dabbled in things Dominic chose not to ask questions about, but she’d never given him cause to be afraid. Her cabin had an air of calm benevolence about it that he loved—but tonight that had changed.
The wooded lane seemed unusually quiet. Around him the leaves rustled in the breeze, but that was it. No birdsong, no small mammals scurrying through the undergrowth, just an eerie silence and the wind ruffling his hair. Dominic took a couple of cleansing deep breaths. He closed his eyes and all he could see was Evrain Brookes’ handsome face. Dominic shook his head but the image didn’t shift. Glossy black hair, pale skin and those weirdly magnetic green eyes haunted him. Evrain’s looks were striking but there was something else about him that called to Dominic, a siren call of assertive confidence. Seeing him sat in Aggie’s kitchen chair, long legs outstretched, slender fingers gripping his mug, Dominic had felt the urge to drop to his knees at the man’s feet.
“Shit, shit, shit, what the hell’s wrong with me?” He continued at a steadier pace and soon covered the remainder of the distance to his truck. It was a relief to reach the enclosed space of the cab. He clambered inside, locked the doors then rested his head on the steering wheel for a few minutes. He couldn’t recall ever being so struck by one man before. How could less than ten minutes in one person’s presence have affected him so dramatically? His dick ached. His hands shook. A small part of him wanted to head straight back to the cabin, the rest was far too scared.
“Idiot.” A man like Evrain Brookes was hardly going to take the slightest bit of notice of his grandmother’s gardener.
Dominic got his key into the ignition on the third attempt. He did a ropey three-point turn, narrowly avoiding the compact car parked behind him, which he guessed had to be Evrain’s. It was fortunate that he’d driven the same route many times before because when he reached home he couldn’t recall the journey at all. He parked in front of the diner in his usual spot, locked the truck then walked around the side of the building to the fire-escape steps. He had his own private entrance to the apartment on the first floor of the building. There was another staircase through the back of the diner but he didn’t feel like making small talk with the regulars, or with Annie, the owner and his landlord.
Dominic’s apartment was more spacious than it appeared from the outside. It stretched the full length of the upper floor of the building and had originally been designed as a vacation let for tourists. Annie had done a lovely job of making the place homey with some small touches of luxury. The rugs, pictures and knick-knacks in the lounge-diner were all purchased from local craftspeople. The kitchen was modern and sleek while the single large bedroom had been decorated to attract young couples. There was even a four-poster bed that had come from a grand house sale somewhere in Colorado.
Annie had gotten fed up of the constant round of cleaning and laundry that a rental property required. It was too much alongside her busy workload running the diner and she had decided that a longer term let would suit her better. Dominic was a regular customer and she’d overheard him talking about how his lease was running out. She’d offered the apartment to him on the spot and traded part of the rent for gardening services. He provided and maintained all the hanging baskets and pots that decorated the front of the diner, which proved to be great promotion for both his business and Annie’s. It was a great deal all round, and Dominic took care of the place well. It was his sanctuary.
He crossed the threshold, then pulled the door firmly closed behind him. The sense of calm that usually enveloped him inside his home was absent. He sighed, bending to unlace his work boots. He pulled them off and put them on the piece of newspaper laid next to the front door. He’d get round to cleaning them later, but for now, he needed a shower.
Dominic emptied his pockets onto the kitchen counter. Keys, a few dollars in change, a small wad of tissue with some seeds snugly wrapped inside it and a clean handkerchief made a small pile. He padded into his bedroom, pausing to turn on a lamp that stood on his chest of drawers. He lowered the blinds, shutting out the darkness. Rolling his shoulders, he scanned the room. Something seemed off, but he couldn’t work out what it was. Everything was in the same place he’d left it early that morning. Feeling utterly childish, he bent to look under the bed. Apart from a few scary dust bunnies there was nothing there.
“Jesus, Dom. Next you’ll be checking the closet for the bogeyman.” He laughed at his own nerves, trying to shake off the prickling sensation that had gooseflesh popping up on his arms. He pulled off his clothes, throwing the whole lot into the hamper just inside the door of his en-suite bathroom. He felt so hot—it was a relief to be naked in the cool room. Feeling a little giddy, he retreated to the bed, sat on the edge of the mattress and grimaced at the intense heat that enveloped his groin and painful erection.
“Absinthe, adder’s tongue, agrimony, allspice, aloe…” he recited a long list of herbs. “Fennel, fenugreek, feverfew…” Dominic groaned. It wasn’t working. Normally, reciting alphabetical lists took his mind away from his body and softened his errant dick. In the privacy of his home, he could have taken advantage of his hand and jacked off some frustration, but he just didn’t fancy it. He shook his head.
Since when is a bit of manual relief not an attractive option?
He was already at ‘f’—usually he got to dock and boredom set in, but not today. Evrain Brookes haunted his thoughts.
Dominic took a shower, the water as cold as he could bear it, needles stinging his skin. He sluiced away soap and shampoo and rested his forehead against the tiles. His rebellious body still resisted all attempts to cool its ardor. He rubbed himself down roughly with a towel then stalked naked into the bedroom, annoyed at his own lack of control. He lay down on the narrow bed and wrapped his hand around his cock with little enthusiasm. The velvety sheath slid easily beneath his hand he was so slick with pre-cum, but he forced himself to move slowly. His eyes closed and his thoughts drifted.
The lightest of touches tickled Dominic’s bare shoulder. He twitched, shrugging it away, and carried on tormenting himself with featherlight strokes to his hypersensitive shaft. A minute or two later, the sensation returned, so light Dominic wasn’t sure if it was real or his imagination. He continued to pet himself gently but opened his eyes to identify the source of irritation—probably a stray feather sticking out of his pillow. He blinked. He was seeing things. A slender green tendril curled over his upper arm—it seemed to be growing out of the wooden headboard. Leaves sprouted from the shoot and he recognized the distinctive shape as oak.
“Dreaming. I must be dreaming,” Dominic muttered. As dreams went it was one of the most vivid he’d ever experienced. The delicate pressure on his skin was all too real. Erection forgotten, Dominic prodded at the stem. It was cool to his touch but there was the slightest vibration, almost as if the plant were breathing. As he watched, the stem circled his upper arm once, then again. He flexed his biceps as it squeezed a little, digging into his flesh.
He flinched as something slithered across his ankle. A second stem, issuing from one of the bottom corner posts of the bed was winding around his calf, pulling it so that his legs parted wider. Dominic bent his knee, tugging in an attempt to free himself but only managed to encourage the plant to hold him tighter. New shoots found his other limbs. Fresh, leafy growth embraced his wrists and ankles. Dominic found himself gradually pulled into a spread-eagle position on his bed. He yanked harder at the stems but they would not break. They kept tugging until his naked body was stretched taut.
“Not a dream, this is a nightmare.” But it seemed so real. The stems thickened, holding him in place as firmly as any chains could have. He was completely helpless.
Dominic attempted to slow his breathing and calm down. This was nothing more than a waking dream. Perhaps if he relaxed, his mind would allow him to awaken. One by one he allowed his muscles to release their tension, and for a few moments nothing happened. He was still held in place but his bonds stopped moving and growing. He gave himself a mental pat on the back. Dreams were nothing more than his subconscious playing tricks, or so he’d heard or read somewhere. His encounter with Evrain had stressed him out and now he was paying for it with some kind of erotic out-of-body experience. Except, as far as he was concerned, he was firmly inside his body and in control of his thoughts. For Christ’s sake, he was tied to his own bed by a mutant oak! Tied down. Spread-eagled. Utterly exposed and defenseless. His cock, which had wilted a little, hardened into stiff rigidity.
Dominic moaned. His deepest, darkest fantasies were coming true. Secret longings that he had spoken about to no one, brought to the surface in a dream that had him doubting his sanity.
“No!” Dominic jerked his head up and strained to see what was going on farther down his body. A slim creeper wound sinuously around the base of his shaft, forming a living cock ring, ensuring that he stayed erect. The touch was torment. Strangely, Dominic wasn’t scared. He still thrashed hard against the waxy green restraints in an attempt to free himself, but to no avail. The ache at his wrists and ankles just served to make him even harder. Pre-cum gleamed at his slit and his balls throbbed with heat. In his mind, he acknowledged that he would have been disappointed if his struggles had succeeded in breaking his bonds.
He stilled to gather his thoughts and calm his racing heart.
Accept the dream, Dom. Go with the flow. Admit you love this.
He closed his eyes and focused on the grip of the plant. He would probably have bruises by the morning where he’d fought, but now there was no attempt to squeeze or hurt him. His hands and feet were not tingling or cold so his circulation wasn’t affected. That gave him comfort. The stems had made no attempt to encircle his neck or cause him harm. The message was clear. If he submitted, he had nothing to worry about.
Dominic felt the stirring of a breeze around his body. He hadn’t opened a window because the night air had an intense chill. There had to be a draft coming from somewhere that he hadn’t noticed before. This seemed more directed, though. It was as if someone was gently blowing warm, moist air across the head of his cock. He craned his neck to look but there was nothing to see. He was giving himself neck ache and let his head collapse back against the pillows. The soft sensation was maddening. It didn’t provide nearly enough stimulation for him to come, instead it had him craving more. A proper touch.
From the corner of his eye he caught movement. Jerking his head from side to side, he watched as new shoots appeared from the bedposts. Not stiff enough to be termed twigs, they were more like vines or creeping ivy, but covered with oak leaves. The plant seemed sentient, moving with purpose. Assaulting from both sides, tiny tendrils tightened around his nipples, squeezing to the point of pain. Dominic gasped and arched his back only to be pressed back to the bed by wider stems across his thighs. He threw his head back and yelled as fronds circled and squeezed his balls. Stimulation of so many sensitive spots at one time was unbearable. He was going to come. A part of him resisted the urge. He should not be gaining so much pleasure from this uninvited attack on his body.
Dominic sobbed desperately as new stems pushed their way back to tickle the edge of his hole. The thought that he might be penetrated crossed his mind and he clenched his ass cheeks defensively. The touches to his balls, his dick and his nipples continued. Little pinches and jabs that caused momentary, delicious pain.
“Oh God!” Dominic writhed and squirmed as much as he was able in his leafy restraints. There was no escape from the plant’s attention. However much he wriggled, the stems were there, touching, probing. It was as if the thing was exploring, mapping every inch of his body. Testing every sensitive spot. Working out which areas gave Dominic most pleasure and most pain. He threw his head back, closed his eyes and gave in to the sensations coursing through him.
Sweat sheened his skin. Muscles clenched and relaxed. Limbs twitched as the plant found new spots to tickle. Held on the edge for what seemed like a lifetime, Dominic was desperate to come. His balls were drawn up tight, his dick leaking pre-cum that the plant seemed to delight in sliding through and spreading. He gradually became aware that most of his body had been left alone and all the various shoots were now concentrated on his groin. Stems curled the length of his shaft, probed at his hole, wrapped his balls in a tight grip. The strange cock ring loosened. Dominic screamed. He spasmed and orgasmed harder than he could ever remember having done before. Heat rushed through his body and his vision blanked. He didn’t see stars, just layers of green. Emerald upon olive upon lime flashed before his eyes. He spurted again. Sticky secretions burst from the plant stems, leaving silvery trails on his skin. Dominic panted, his breath coming in short, sharp gasps. Then, as suddenly as they had appeared, the stems retreated—unwinding from his limbs, slithering across his skin and disappearing back into the wooden posts and headboard of his bed.