“That is part of you, Kaden. Everything about you is beautiful.” Logan leaned down and placed a gentle kiss upon the scar, drawing his lips down the length from where it started at the corner of his eye to the end at the corner of his mouth. “I love you.”
The younger man’s lips curled into a contented smile, and Kaden’s thin arms wrapped around his shoulders. “I love you too.”
The limo came to a stop, and they hurriedly fixed themselves up before the driver could open the door. The moment they entered their suite, Logan stripped the clothes from Kaden’s body. Once the smaller man was naked, he lifted Kaden into his arms and carried him to the bedroom. Kaden laughed softly and ran his fingers through the mane of golden hair. “I always likened you to a lion. Did you know that?”
Logan gave him a questioning look as he set him on the bed. His eyes drank in the sight of his lover lying among the silk sheets, innocent yet sinful. “Your eyes reminded me of cat’s eyes. And your hair is like the golden fur of a lion,” Kaden explained, holding out his arms for Logan to join him.
It still made Logan’s breath hitch at the sheer beauty stretched out before him, and he slowly shed his own clothing before accepting Kaden’s embrace. He breathed in deeply, dragging Kaden’s scent into his lungs. He leaned close to him, pressing his lips to the corner of Kaden’s mouth, moving upward to the tip of his nose, and higher still to his eyelids. As he dropped a light kiss on each, he proclaimed, “You are the only thing I live for. My life was empty until that day. There is nothing I wouldn’t do to make you happy.”
Kaden smiled tenderly and reached up to caress Logan’s cheek, watching in amusement as the large cowboy leaned into his touch like a giant cat. “You make me happy just by being with you.” He slid his right leg up and around to hook behind his back. “Make love to me, Logan. Please,” he begged, and he felt Logan tremble with emotion.
Their lips met in a soft and sweet kiss as Logan prepared Kaden for him. Kaden sighed with pleasure as he felt Logan entering his body, sliding his other leg around his waist to bring their bodies closer together. Logan’s eyes never left Kaden’s as he slowly began to move, pushing his hips forward, spearing deep inside him. Kaden gripped Logan’s shoulders, digging his fingers into the muscles beneath them, reveling in the intimate connection. No words were uttered, their bodies undulating together in a languid and loving dance. Logan dipped his head low and captured Kaden’s mouth with his own. Nothing existed outside of the two of them. Gentle sighs of pleasure, lingering touches of reverence, and tender kisses of affection were all that they were.
Kaden gripped Logan frantically, letting out a small cry of ecstasy as his fluids spilled between their bodies. His snug entrance tightened even further around Logan’s invading flesh, demanding the other man’s essence, milking it from his body. Logan buried his face in the crook of Kaden’s neck as he exploded, moaning deeply at the almost sucking sensation of the younger man’s body. Finally, they fell still. Their bodies quivered from the overload of sensations, and Kaden drew a shaky hand through the dark blond strands of Logan’s hair. Unwilling to break the silence, they lay there, merely savoring the feel of one another.
It could have been seconds, or maybe even hours later, before Logan slipped from Kaden’s body and slid to the side, gathering the younger man close. He rested his chin atop Kaden’s dark head and sighed in contentment. “I can’t believe that Shea is getting married in two weeks. It feels like I’m losing my baby sister.”
Snuggling closer, Kaden wrinkled his nose. “You’re not losing your baby sister. You’re gaining a brother. Besides, I’ve never seen her so happy. She really loves him.”
“Well, Tyson better take care of her, or I’ll have to kick his ass down to the honky-tonk and back again,” Logan snarled.
Laughter bubbled up inside Kaden’s throat, and his body fairly shook with it. “I think that Shea can take care of herself, Logan. She’s a strong woman and knows what she wants. Besides, Ty’s a great guy.”
“I’m looking forward to going back to the ranch tomorrow. And you aren’t leaving it again, ever. You’re too tempting, and someone might try to steal you away again.” Logan’s emerald eyes darkened with jealousy at the memory of Kingsley trying at every turn to catch Kaden’s interest.
“Stop,” Kaden chastised gently. “I don’t want anyone else. You are the one I love, Logan. No one will ever be able to steal me away.”
The expression in Logan’s eyes softened, and he pulled him firmly into his body, running a hand down Kaden’s thin back. His palm brushed over the scar at the base of his spine, and a shudder wound its way down his own. He’d almost lost him once. That day would haunt him for the rest of his life. He tried so hard not to smother Kaden, not to keep him from living, but it took a lot of his strength to not lock him away from the world. “I cannot bear the thought of losing you, Kaden. You are more to me than my own life. Without you in it, it wouldn’t be worth living. I love you so much.”
A sigh of affection drifted from Kaden’s lips, and he smiled as he pulled back to be able to look up at Logan. “I’m not going anywhere. You are my home. I can’t wait to get back to the ranch, either. Mantacor must be so lonely without me.”
“You and that horse. I still can’t get anywhere near him, but you… you can do almost anything to that horse, and he lets you.” Logan sighed. It still frustrated him to know that Mantacor would have nothing to do with him.
“I know that bothers you,” Kaden admitted softly. “But sometimes it’s not always easy to gain the trust of a frightened creature. One day he will learn to trust you, Logan. I have faith in him.”
Logan grunted but didn’t say anything. It had taken him a long time to gain Kaden’s complete trust. The fear had slowly receded and been replaced by love and affection. Logan looked down at where Kaden’s right hand rested against his chest, his eyes centering on the ring that graced his ring finger. For Christmas last year, he’d given the younger man a promise ring. He hadn’t expected Kaden to cry, and he’d been shocked as he’d watched the violet eyes he loved so much fill up with tears that slowly trickled over. Only Kaden had had this huge smile on his face, and a second later, he had launched himself at Logan, catching him by surprise. He wore a similar ring on his hand, showing his own promise to the younger man.
They lay in silence, just listening to each other breathe. Logan’s thoughts turned to the reason Kaden had found the strength to walk again, and he broke the quiet by asking, “Do you still think about her?”
Kaden knew who he was referring to and nodded. “Yeah. I do. I wish things had been different, and she’d lived. But I know she’s happy where she is. I talk to her father every once in a while. He’s remarried to a widow with two children. He says that they’ve helped him to heal, a lot. But he still misses her. I suppose he always will. It’s not right that a father should outlive his child.”
“Do you think….” Logan hesitated, not sure if he should bring it up or not.
“What?” Kaden looked at him in question, his brow furrowed in a small frown. Logan had never been reticent about talking to him about anything.
“Would you possibly want to adopt a child someday?” Logan held his breath. He’d been thinking about it more and more as each day passed. To be able to provide a wonderful and loving home to another child. Someone perhaps like Kaden, whose childhood had been cut short.
Kaden’s eyes widened, and he sucked in a breath in surprise. “I thought you didn’t want to have children.”
“I used to think like that. Only because I didn’t want to bring another being into this world and have them suffer what I went through. But nothing would feel more right than raising a child with you.”
Silence reigned for a moment, and Logan shifted in discomfort, wondering if maybe Kaden didn’t want to, but then a beautiful smile broke out over Kaden’s lips. “I would love to raise a child with you, Logan. I think you’d make a wonderful father. Even if you don’t give yourself enough credit for it.”
Logan released the breath he had been holding and crushed Kaden to him. As he spoke, his breath rustled the strands of hair at the edge of Kaden’s forehead, tickling the younger man slightly. “We can start looking once we get back home. I think that Shea will be happy to know she’s going to be an auntie.”
Kaden couldn’t believe how blissful his life had turned out. Shadows still lurked inside his mind, trying to convince him that this wouldn’t last, but he never let them take hold. His heart wouldn’t allow it. He was part of a family now and couldn’t let those shadows defeat him. It had taken him a long time to find the happiness he had now, and he refused to let it go without a fight. He heard Logan’s breathing begin to even out as the large cowboy slipped into sleep, and he snuggled closer, closing his eyes in peace when the man’s arms instinctively tightened, sheltering him and protecting him from any nightmares that might try to threaten him. The sky had just begun to darken as he drifted off to sleep himself, the stars shining through the curtain, blanketing the earth and lighting the way for those who still needed it.
J.R. Loveless
is a native Floridian who spends her days in an office physically but mentally is frolicking between the pages of her imagination. Writing has been a lifelong passion that escaped from her in the midst of life until she discovered yaoi. After following breadcrumbs of the anime style, she discovered a forum dedicated to the world of yaoi. Inspired, she tried her own hand at M/M romances, spending hours building worlds of her own with the newfound support of other forum members. She can never write enough of the electrifying emotions that blaze across the hearts and souls of her characters.
She is a self-confessed
Dr. Who
addict with a spastic dog and a neurotic cat for companions on her long journey through the many chapters of her life. One day she hopes to visit far off places and have grand adventures like those of the characters in her stories.
You can contact her at
[email protected]
.