Dhampirs of Sgiach

26. Kieran

Endless white. Everywhere Kieran looked was endless white light. His skin tingled with pain. Before he could run, golden chains of light burst from the floor and shackled his wrists and ankles. They pulled him to the ground as more wrapped around him and pinned him.

“Kieran…”

His fangs elongated and he hissed at Lacey as she straddled his waist.

“Martin will come for me and his son. You can’t keep us from him.”

Kieran shot up in the bed and color bled from the room as he frantically embraced the shadows. Everything blurred as he moved through the shadows to his closet and curled up into a tight ball in the back. There was a small mat there and a space heater that Kieran turned on.

The darkness, the small space, the heat from the space heater. It was all soothing as Kieran lay there in the dark. Slowly his shaking stopped and his breathing slowed down to a more reasonable rate.

When he fell asleep once more, he was greeted with a dream of both his mothers holding him as they sang lullabies.

Knock, knock.

“Kieran.”

Echo’s soft voice pulled him from the dream.

“Yeah?” Kieran’s voice was thick with sleep and he was still curled up on his mat in the closet.

“It’s lunch time,” she said and dim light shone on him as she opened the door and knelt next to him. Her sweet clean scent filled his nose as she patted his head gently. “Another nightmare?”

He nodded as he uncurled from his ball and crawled out of the closet. He buried his nose in her hair and breathed deeply of her scent as he hugged her tight. They stayed like that for a bit before they pulled away and went to have lunch.

“Where is Kage?” Kieran asked as he sat down. Echo had already set the table and served lunch. Grilled ham and cheese with spicy chicken soup.

“He decided to go for the feed early. He wants to get back home and keep an eye on you,” Echo said with a smile.

Kieran rolled his eyes and sipped his tea. Roasted tea with honey. From the smell, Echo had chosen peach tea with honey for herself. “I’m not a child.”

“You snuck out earlier today,” she pointed out.

“Dr. Sorcha says I need to use my magic.”

“She also says you need to take your medication.”

“They make me even more tired. And you two get annoyed when I sleep in the shadows,” Kieran pointed out.

Echo smiled. “But we can still find you. The smoky shadows kinda give you away in your little nest.”

Kieran grunted at that. The first time they had found him there, they had passed their hands through that smoke. It was the weirdest feeling. “At least you two haven’t poked at the shadows again.”

They ate in silence for a time before Echo spoke again. “Can I ask you something?”

“Yes…” Kieran said with a raised eyebrow.

“Why do you and Kage always sniff at me?”

“You’re family. It’s comforting for us,” he said with a smile.

“So, you’re not flirting?”

Kieran shook his head. “No.”

Echo seemed to relax and look relieved. The reaction brought a chuckle to Kieran. “That’s good.”

“Why do you ask?”

“One of the dhampirs that moved in down the hall sniffs me every time he sees me. Then he smiles but doesn’t say anything,” she said as she finished her sandwich.

“He’s flirting.”

Her face went from its normal peach color to tomato red so fast as her jaw dropped and she looked at Kieran in shock. “But you said it’s not flirting!”

“When Kage and I do it, we’re not flirting. Just looking for comfort with our family. That dhampir likes your scent and is flirting and waiting for you to acknowledge him,” Kieran explained. The door opened then and he scented Kage’s cotton candy scent a moment before he saw him. “Kage, what does it mean when we sniff at Echo?”

“Comfort,” Kage answered as he hugged Echo from behind and breathed deeply of her scent. “Comfort and family.”

“And if a strange dhampir sniffs her and smiles?”

Kage giggled as he moved to do the same to Kieran. “Flirting,” he said, and rubbed his cheek against Kieran’s.

Echo watched them. Her blush slowly went away as she thought about what they said and their actions. “So, when you two sniff each other, it's flirting and comfort?”

Both men nodded.

“Dhampirs are weird,” she mumbled and concentrated on her soup.

Kage kissed Kieran’s cheek and ruffled Echo’s hair before he went to take a shower. They spent the rest of the night watching movies. Kieran dosed in and out as Echo wrote in a notebook with two cookbooks open on the couch beside her. Kage sat on the floor with a large bowl of water on the coffee table in front of him, along with a big book of animals.

Between his naps and bouts of paying attention to the movies, he watched Kage practice his ice magic. He used it to make ice sculptures of the animals in the book with water.

“Cheetah!” he cheered happily at the small sculpture of a cheetah.

Kieran was startled a bit from his nap and looked at the ice cat in the bowl. “Yep,” he said with a yawn as he moved into a more comfortable position. Kage had changed the movie to an educational video on cheetahs. “What’s with the cheetah video?”

“You said you’d want to be a cheetah if you ever decided to go through the transition,” Kage said as he changed the ice cheetah to a still of it in motion.

“You did say that” Echo agreed as she stood up to go check on dinner.

“So, we’re studying cheetahs now?” Kieran asked.

Kage nodded as he let the ice turn back to water and turned so he could nuzzle Kieran’s belly and smile up at him. “Need to know what to expect from you.”

Kieran thought back to his dream earlier about Lacey. “Other than an increased need to hunt rats, I doubt I’ll change much.”

Sadness flashed across Kage’s features for a moment before he moved up to kiss Kieran softly and press his forehead to Kieran’s. “The Sleuth is hunting him,” he said softly and snuggled to Kieran on the couch.

Dinner went by in companionable silence, followed by all three cuddling on the couch as Kieran read to Kage and Echo. They bid Echo goodnight as they all decided to go to bed.

Kieran could taste the sugar and honey that Kage had loaded his tea with at dinner. Could taste it along with the sweet taste of Kage as they kissed. Cotton candy filled his mouth as Kage nicked his tongue on one of Kieran’s fangs and blood mixed in with the kiss.

They both moaned and Kage rolled them so he was straddling Kieran’s waist. Kieran watched Kage sit up and pull his shirt off. Since he had gotten to a healthy weight, Kage had gone from scrawny cuteness to a slender beauty that would have been mistaken for feminine if not for some trick of line that made him still masculine.

Kieran looked up at Kage as he slid his hands up along Kage’s side. The smooth copper skin made his fair skin seem to glow in the dim light of the room. Kage shivered lightly as Kieran’s hands trailed up his ribs. They weren’t visible like they had been when they first met. Kieran even had to press lightly to feel them now.

Kage’s n*****s hardened and he closed his eyes as Kieran’s palms slid over them to grip the soft mounds. With a shirt on, anyone who looked at Kage wouldn’t realize what they were seeing. People were like that, if they expected to see someone one way, their minds would tell them that is what they were seeing. Without his shirt, there was no denying that Kage had breasts like a woman. Small with no need for a bra, but definitely there.

The attraction to Kage was still confusing to Kieran. He had always preferred his women to be curvy and thick. Kage had the body so many insecure women starved themselves for and he didn’t even try. It was also just masculine enough that you wouldn’t even know he was an aphra-male unless you knew him.

Kieran sat up, one arm around Kage’s waist and the other holding him up. A shiver ran through Kage as Kieran’s tongue swirled around one n****e before he gently gripped it with his teeth.

“Kieran…” Kage breathed out in a moan. A whisper of his power rode his voice as he said Kieran’s name and Kieran shivered.

Kage’s arms and legs wrapped around Kieran as he flipped them, so he was on top. Kage’s skin was salty as Kieran licked up along his sternum. His tongue slid up along Kage’s neck, his extended fangs gently grazing the soft skin. Kage’s c**k was already solid as Kieran’s hand slipped inside the silky booty shorts that Kage liked to wear to bed.

The incubus moaned out and arched his back as Kieran’s finger slid inside his tight, wet opening. Kieran licked and nipped at Kage’s neck as he found Kage’s sweet spot inside that opening.

“Please, Kieran!” Kage begged as Kieran kept him on the edge.

“Please what?” Kieran whispered against the soft skin of Kage’s neck.

“f**k me. Make me yours.”

Kieran shivered at those words. He wanted to. Wanted to rip those booty shorts off Kage and slam his c**k inside that opening. An opening that Kage promised was his alone. Wanted to f**k Kage until he screamed his pleasure and couldn’t walk straight, even with his increased healing.

I promised you I was only yours. Do you really think an incubus would keep that promise?

Kieran bit down on Kage’s neck as he pushed him over that edge. He wanted that sweet taste of Kage’s blood and the sounds of his pleasure to chase away Lacey’s voice, but her laughter still haunted him.

When Kage was trembling in bliss, Kieran moved so he could lick his chest and belly clean. Then he licked his fingers clean before he kissed Kage so he could taste himself.

Kage’s arms wrapped around Kieran’s neck as he looked up into his amber eyes with his crimson-flecked silver ones. “Please…” he begged.

Kieran smiled and kissed him again before he pulled away. “Not tonight,” he said softly and curled up on the bed with his back to Kage.

“Why not?” Kage asked as his arms slid around Kieran’s waist and he pressed his forehead between his shoulder blades.

“We have to be up early for my doctor’s appointment.” It wasn’t a lie. But it was better than the whole truth.

How can I tell him I can’t even get it up? Even when I’m by myself?