Bound by Desire

Owned 7

Bound by Desire

For Trev, falling in love with his alien captor after the lottery sent him halfway across the universe
was easy. Navigating his relationship as time wears on proves to be much more difficult. He is
bound by his desire for his master, but he doesn’t know if desire is enough. When his lover takes a
job back on Earth, Trevor asks for his freedom.

Yanai is used to being desired, but love is another matter entirely. Unused to human customs but
very much enamored with his lover, he will do just about anything to prove to Trev that he cares,
including taking a job across the universe on Trev’s home planet. If he could only learn how to
communicate properly with his human, he knows they will be able to work.

Will the two of them learn to communicate, or will both of them be unable to reconcile their
differences?

Ge nre :

Alternative (M/M or F/F), Contemporary, Science Fiction

Le ngth:

35,083 words

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Prologue

He had trembled as his name was called for the lottery, but now he

was  trembling  for  an  entirely  different  reason.  Trevor  McCall  hadn’t
expected  to  find  his  new  captor  attractive,  but  he  did.  The  little  squat
things  that  had  looked  at  him  like  was  a  piece  of  chewing  gum  on  the
bottom  of  someone’s  sneaker  had  certainly  not  been  attractive.  They’d
been  hairy  little  miniaturized  teddy  bears  but  their  faces  looked  like
squished  potatoes  with  pudgy  human  features.  His  captor  was  a  lovely
purple color with matching eyes. But it wasn’t the unique coloration that
was  attractive.  His  face  was  so  perfectly  balanced  that  it  was  almost
painful to look at.

But this alien was… Oh my. “Welcome to my home,” the alien said,

bowing over Trev’s hand. His touch felt electrifying. “I am Yanai.”

“Um, Trev. I’m Trev.” He sniffed the air. “Uh, are you baking

sweets?”

“No. I’m not baking sweets. It is my natural scent.” He paused

expectantly. “Do you wish to touch me?”

Trev felt a blush infuse his cheeks. “Uh…are you offering?”
Yanai blinked, confusion skittering onto his expression. “If you

desire something of me, you just need to say the word. I will provide
everything you want and need. Understood?”

“Got it.” He stared at his new alien. “So what do you do for fun

around here?” He’d only met three people since being chosen for the
lottery. Two had been the little pudgy things that had talked around him
and then this guy. A look around the house that he’d been delivered to
said that he was in the middle of nowhere, so it looked like he was going
to continue to only know three additional aliens.

“There are many activities. I enjoy the computer systems that operate

grand worlds. There are many games to play on them. However, you can
also walk the trails around the property. They’re quite safe. No one else
comes near my home.” He motioned to the wide, round glass door at the
back of the room he was sitting in. “You can take meals with me, if you
like, or by yourself. Whichever you prefer.”

“Is there a library around here?” He’d said that the land was

isolated, but he was hoping that he wasn’t too isolated.

“Not a public library, no. However, the database I have has

thousands of books available to you. Feel free to download them to one

of the portable vid-screens that I have.” He motioned toward the door
and several gray-cloaked figures came in. “These are my servants and
are extensions of myself. If you should need anything or if you need to get
in touch with me and I’m not around, ask one of them. They have a direct
link to my psyche and can reach me anywhere I happen to be.”

Trev smiled. “Thanks.” Maybe being the slave of an alien wasn’t

going to be so bad after all. His stomach rumbled. “I’m really hungry
now. Do you think we could do that sharing a meal thing?”

Yanai returned his smile, looking relieved. “Thank you, Trev.”
He blinked. “For what?”
“For not asking me to bed you.”
His eyes shot wide. “What? Already? We don’t even know each

other yet!” His cheeks felt hot again. Great. He’s going to think that I’m
some backwater virgin.

Yanai laughed, and his entire being tightened. “Exactly. Not yet. You

are a treasure, Trev.” He pushed up from the soft bean-bag-looking chair
he sat in. “Let’s get you something to eat.” He offered out his hand, and
Trev immediately took it and let him pull him from his chair.

As he looked up at the beautiful purple alien who had just become

his master, he had to say, he might’ve gotten lucky this drawing as well.

Chapter One

One year later

“I want to fuck your beautiful mouth,” Yanai said, tracing Trev’s

bottom lip as he gently stroked his growing erection. Yanai had become
his master almost a year ago by virtue of the lottery in Trev’s hometown
of Quebec. He’d been scared at first, but it hadn’t taken him long to give
in to the desire that permeated Yanai’s being.

Yanai was an alien from a special pleasure species that rarely

walked  out  in  public  because  of  the  unique  pheromone  that  made  them
damn  near  impossible  to  resist.  People  tended  to  hound  them,  causing
chaos  wherever  they  roamed.  Instead  of  leaving  their  homes,  the  gray
men,  a  parasitic  species  of  alien  that  had  developed  a  symbiotic
relationship to Tannara blood, served the Tannara like silent extensions.
At  least  that  was  what  the  tutor  had  told  him  when  he’d  arrived.  He
hadn’t  been  much  of  anywhere  but  in  Yanai’s  quarters,  first  in  his
bedroom  and  then  in  his  ship.  They’d  left  Tannaran,  Yanai’s  home
planet, over nine months ago, ironically enough destined for Earth. The
real estate was apparently popular with far-universers.

“Yanai,” Trev breathed, arching his hips as Yanai kissed his neck.

He nibbled Trev’s jawline, using the pointed tips of his fangs to tease
him mercilessly. Trev had learned to crave Yanai’s bite like a stiff fuck.

The bite of a Tannara was just as enticing as the sweet scent they

possessed that smelled a little like caramel and spun sugar. It didn’t help
that the alien was a delicious-looking light purple that reminded him of
blueberry ice cream and had the build of a fitness model. Even his hair
was a darker shade of plum and constantly smelled sweet, whether or not
he’d showered. But it was his eyes that were hypnotizing. An ethereal
amethyst that could make someone forget all their troubles. Just because
Yanai didn’t employ his charms on Trev didn’t mean he wasn’t aware of
them.

What did I ever do to deserve you? Trev spread his thighs as Yanai

muscled in between them in an effort to pleasure him more. The male’s
knotted cock formed three perfect rings that vibrated when Yanai was
engaged in sex. Trev loved being a slave to a living, breathing vibrator.
But it wasn’t just Yanai’s beauty or his incredible dick that made Trev a
very willing captive. He was just as sweet as his scent. The male was

soft spoken and incredibly patient. He just wished that Yanai would let
him in emotionally. They remained comfortable companions, but Yanai
refused to even contemplate Trev’s romantic advances. Tannara didn’t
do love as Trev understood it, and Yanai was a traditional Tannara.

Trev groaned, twisting as Yanai’s finger sank into his ass. “Tease.

You  don’t  have  time  to  fuck  me.”  He  had  a  meeting  with  some  new
business  associate  in  fifteen  minutes.  Yanai  was  a  world
communications  builder,  running  and  operating  the  communicative
channels between Tannaran and the nine immediate worlds closest to it.
Now  that  he  was  moving  to  Earth,  the  Eoean  government  was
interviewing him to take over their communication channels as well.

“I might not. However, I have time for a bit of mutual pleasure.”

Mutual pleasure usually meant he’d allow Trev to suck him until orgasm
since ingesting his seed would leave Trev writhing in pleasure for at
least half an hour. Yanai liked to sex him up and watch him lose his mind
while he worked at the desk not ten feet away.

“You are so sexy,” Trev murmured, aching to say more than that. I

love you. The words pounded in his mind with every beat of his heart.
He just wished Yanai would accept it if he said it aloud. It was killing
him to love the alien and get nothing in return.

“As are you, pet,” Yanai said, his voice as calm as water in a pond.

He flopped onto the mattress beside him, palming his cock. “Suck.”

Saliva flooded his mouth, and he scrambled to obey the gentle order.

He wrapped his hand around the base of Yanai’s cock at the same time
he  wrapped  his  mouth  around  the  swollen  head.  The  three  holes  along
the  slit  were  already  dripping  pre-cum,  and  Trev  eagerly  lapped  them
clean,  groaning  at  the  tingle  that  instantly  washed  over  his  tongue.  He
made sure to rub the raised ridges of Yanai’s length since they were the
most sensitive parts of his cock.

Yanai wound his hands in Trev’s thick hair and fucked up into his

mouth. “Pet,” he murmured, warmth and intensity entering into his body
for the first time since they’d started. Please, just once, use my name.
Call me Trevor. Call me Trev. Whichever you prefer, just use my name
and let me know that it’s me you’re fucking. “Pet, your mouth is so
delicious.”

Trev shut his eyes and concentrated on his task. He couldn’t look at

his perfect owner with his perfect smile and his perfect personality and
not love him. It made the ache of unrequited love worse. A burst of pre-

cum stole even those melancholy thoughts away. If I have to become
intoxicated to deal with loving my master, what better drug of choice
to use than the object I lust after?

He didn’t bother touching himself. He knew in just a minute that he

would be wrung out from pleasure. The anticipation made his hips sway
like an animal in heat, moving because he couldn’t help himself. He
swallowed around his cock, sucking harder in an effort to produce more
of the sweet pre-cum Yanai was giving him.

“Do you want me to come quickly, pet?” Yanai asked. He was

holding back. Trev could hear it in the tone of his voice. It sounded a
little too detached. Yanai was normally more responsive.

Trev popped off his cock for a split second. “Yes. Give it to me.” He

descended back down Yanai’s dick, and his movements were fucking
upward with ever increasing intensity.

“Pet, take my cum,” Yanai commanded, gripping his hair tighter.

Trev whimpered, needing to do what he wanted. He didn’t care if the
male was choking him with each upward thrust. He just wanted.

The rings on Yanai’s dick vibrated harder, signaling his impending

orgasm. Give it to me, Yanai. Please, give me your pleasure. Cum
erupted into his mouth, and Trev sealed his lips over the swollen head.
He drank Yanai down, needing everything his lover gave him as he
drained him dry.

As he finished drinking, warmth built in his belly like a lit fuse. He

raised his head to meet Yanai’s satisfied gaze. “Yanai,” he whispered,
the warmth spreading outward.

Yanai smiled softly. “Lose yourself, pet. I enjoy watching you come

undone.” The words had his desired effect. Trev came. Hard. His entire
body vibrating as he was thrown into a body-wide pleasure-fest. He
couldn’t think, could barely breathe. Yes. Yes. Yes.

He fell into the welcome embrace of the bed, rubbing his cock

against the sheets as he rocked through his body’s reaction. “Yes!
Yanai!” Love you. God, I love you so much. He screamed, unable to
hold it in a second longer. He spiraled further into the ecstasy, and then
there were no more words. He could only feel.

* * * *

Yanai completed the little quiz they’d left for him to do without much

effort. The Eoean technologies and communication systems were actually
quite simplistic in comparison to Tannaran ones. Even with the
distraction of his gorgeous human companion writhing on his bed, he’d
muddled through easily enough.

My sweet pet. He’d grown more and more fond of the charming

companion  that  the  lottery  had  given  him.  Of  course  he’d  received  his
human  as  payment  from  the  Pressians  for  a  communications  fix.  He’d
been  dismayed  at  first.  The  last  thing  he  wanted  was  an  in-house
admirer.  However,  Trev  had  proved  to  be  the  most  delicious  of
distractions and steadfast of lovers.

Most marriages on Tannaran were arranged, and they didn’t take

outside lovers because frankly it was difficult to find people who didn’t
immediately  recognize  their  kind  and  try  to  take  advantage  of  the  fact.
Weaker-minded  beings  became  intoxicated  from  Tannaran  scent  alone
and  became  crazed.  He  shuddered  as  he  remembered  one  time  in
particular he had experienced the phenomenon himself.

Banishing the thought, he turned his attention back to Trev. His

human had been completely undemanding when he’d first arrived. To the
contrary,  he’d  been  fearful,  a  reaction  that Yanai  had  been  completely
unprepared  for.  For  the  first  time  in  his  life,  Yanai  had  been  the  one
pursuing  someone  else.  The  courtship  process  had  been  a  delicious
dance.  However,  his  pet  had  been  almost  melancholy  in  the  quiet
moments when they weren’t having sex. It had started three months after
Trev  had  moved  in  and  gotten  steadily  worse  ever  since. Yanai  didn’t
have the first inkling what to do about it.

At first he’d thought the human had simply been homesick, which

was why Yanai had arranged to move his living quarters to Earth and the
Eoean colonies there. But news of their return to the little backwater
planet had not elicited the giddy joy in Trev that he’d hoped. Instead the
human had looked at him with fear again and asked if that meant if Yanai
was giving him back. It was madness. Yanai would not part with his
human willingly. Ever.

“Supper is prepared, lord ,” one of his gray men murmured down

their mental link. The gray men were a race of beings that symbiotically
fed on Tannaran energy to sustain their own life forces. Yanai had four in
his household. They did household chores and acted as his emissaries to
the outside world, and in exchange he fed, housed, and provided energy
for them. Their bond had been established one by one, and now they

communicated freely through their mental channel.

“I’ll be there in a moment. My pet is finishing his pleasure .” Yanai

watched his lover arch hard into an invisible caress and smiled. He was
beautiful with his pale, white skin and pretty blue eyes. His dark hair,
which had grown very long since he’d come to Yanai’s house, was a
shimmering blue-black cascade that Yanai enjoyed threading his fingers
through.

“Ah,” the gray man said. “Should I prepare an energy drink for the

young master then?”

“Thank you. That would be best.” He would’ve called his gray men

by name, but they were a secretive breed whose superstitions ran deep.
No one outside their ranks could know their identities.

“Yanai! Yanai!” Trev cried out, his body trembling. The chant sent a

shiver down Yanai’s spine. Tannara typically showed their affections by
bestowing a name of honor, a nickname of sorts, on their loved ones, but
on Trev’s tongue, Yanai’s name sounded like a gift from otherworld.

Finally, the heat seemed to leave Trevor and he collapsed back onto

the ruined sheets of their sleeping quarters. His human was so messy.
Yanai smiled at the thought. “Finished, pet?”

Trev nodded, panting harshly. “Think so. Dunno yet. Sometimes it

ebbs and flows.” He seemed to really enjoy Tannara pleasure, for which
Yanai was grateful. Humans were passionate creatures, so he couldn’t
say that he was surprised, but he was appreciative of his appreciation
nonetheless.

“Shall we cleanse ourselves and then dine? The gray men have

prepared quite the feast for us.”

“Oh? What’s the occasion?” Trev used the edge of the blanket

covering to wipe off his sticky stomach.

“Tomorrow we arrive on Earth.” Yanai hoped that once Trev

arrived that he would be more enthusiastic about the move. “I might have
the gray men give you a tour of the Eoean city if you wish. We’ll be
staying some leagues outside it, but port is right offshore.”

Trev shrugged. “I wish I could go with you instead.”
So did Yanai, but there was no use in mourning the loss of something

he’d never have or never be able to have. “You know I can’t be around
that many people, pet,” he admonished. “However, the gray men will be
able to show you the sights, and if you wish to, we can communicate
through them.” Their psychic link assured him of that.

“Can you see what they see?” Trev asked, curiosity creeping into his

voice. The human never tired of asking questions and ferreting out tidbits
of cultural information despite the fact that Yanai and he had been
largely isolated.

“If they wish me to do so. All you need to do is tell them what you

want me to see and they can accomplish it.”

Trev sighed. The noise had become synonymous with his

displeasure. “That’s okay. I want to see the new house more.”

“As you wish.” Yanai tried not to be annoyed at Trev turning down

yet another gift. He didn’t understand the human sometimes. There were
moments when he thought that they were well on their way to becoming
spouses, but then Trev would reject him and Yanai was left puzzled as to
what  he  did  to  offend  the  male.  Perhaps  he  would  consult  the  human
diplomat  on  this  planet  and  see  if  more  information  was  available  on
their  behavior.  In Yanai’s  hometown,  there  hadn’t  been  much  given  the
great  distance  from  Earth  and  the  rarity  of  the  breed.  Just  finding  out
what  the  other  male  could  and  could  not  eat  on  Tannaran  had  been  a
challenge.

He bent down and scooped Trev up into his arms like he weighed

next to nothing. He’d lost some weight since they’d begun this journey. It
may have been several weeks since he’d picked up the man, but the
difference shouldn’t have been this noticeable. Yanai frowned. “Are you
ill?”

Trev blinked up at him. “No. Why?”
“You appear to be lighter than you were on Tannaran.”
His human’s cheeks deepened in color. That usually meant anger or

embarrassment. “I’ve been working out.” The red turned almost purple.
“You know, I wanted abs like yours and since I’ve been doing next to
nothing since this journey started, I figured it was about time I worked on
them.”

Yanai frowned. “You envy my stomach musculature? Why?”
“I thought it might please you if I got closer to your fitness level,”

Trev murmured almost inaudibly.

“Why would I care about your fitness level?” Now he was very

confused. “Does something happen to humans if they aren’t in prime
fitness?”

Trev made a sound of frustration. “They get fat. Some people find

that unattractive.”

“But…you did not have an excess of fatty tissue that caused you to

bloat before you dropped weight.” The door slid open to admit them into
the hallway. The bathing deck was three doors down on his ship and was
Yanai’s favorite room. Being naked in water pleased him greatly,
especially with Trev.

“Yeah, well, I wasn’t a Tannara male either. It’s not my fault you

guys are effortless super models.”

“You are not to try and mimic a Tannara male,” Yanai admonished.

“Our bodies are shaped this way to act as a natural attractant to every
species that beholds us. You’ll never be able to achieve it, and I enjoy
you just the way you are. Have I ever complained about your body or our
sex?”

Trev growled. “That is not the point!”
“Then what is the point?”
“Never mind. Put me down.” He was angry again, and Yanai had no

idea why.

He slowly lowered his lover to the ground but had to catch him as

his legs gave out. Trev should’ve known better. He was never able to
keep standing until after he had a soak.

“Why are you angry with me?”
“I’m not,” Trev snapped. “I’m frustrated. Don’t you ever get

frustrated?”

“Yes. I do.” Especially when I am dealing with an

uncommunicative human who won’t tell me what I am doing to
displease him. He might have owned Trev legally, but Tannara weren’t
normally slaveholders and he only knew how to treat him as an equal, a
lover. He had tried very hard to make sure that they were on the same
level at all times.

“Didja ever think you might want to express it?” Trev drawled.
He waved his hand in front of the door to open the bathing area

before helping his lover inside. “I do express it.” Now he was angry
because Yanai didn’t yell and scream at him when he became frustrated?
He wasn’t a screamer. He was more of a talk-it-out-calmly sort of male.
Losing one’s temper showed a lack of breeding and respect for one’s
companion.

Trev’s face fell, and he sighed. Yanai had disappointed him again.

“Okay. Let’s just agree to disagree. We can shower and then grab a bite
to eat. Maybe I’m just being overly sensitive.”

He looked at his lover and felt the familiar helplessness rise up to

greet him. Something was ruining his relationship with his human, and he
had no idea how to stop it.

The deep basins that held the ever-churning water for their bathing

were  set  up  much  like  Earth’s  Jacuzzis,  from  what  Trev  had  told  him,
and were lit to create the mood he designated. He pressed a button on the
control  panel  and  the  color  changed  from  white  to  a  warm  pink  to
accompany  with  the  Mreg-X  night  flower  he  had  added  to  the  water
earlier. It would induce calm and hopefully relaxation. Tannara were big
on  aromatherapy  and  relaxation  as  well  meditation  practices.  The
aromatherapy was practical. When one’s scent could induce obsession in
other species, it was best to cover it up as much as possible. It had been
a  real  blessing  to  find  that  humans  were  immune  to Yanai’s  scent.  The
fact had allowed him to pursue a normal relationship for the first time in
his existence.

“Hey, Yanai?” Trev asked as he sank into the bubbling pink water.
“Yes, pet?”
“What are we?” The question seemed vulnerable, but Yanai didn’t

understand it.

“I don’t know what you mean, pet,” he said, climbing into the pool

after his lover. The warm water immediately embraced him, soothing his
muscles and calming his breathing. “We are Yanai and his pet. Do we
have to be more than that?”

Trev bit his bottom lip. “I guess not.”
Yanai opened his mouth to ask what was bothering him so much, but

Trev surprised him by crossing the distance between them and climbing
in his lap before pressing his mouth to Yanai’s. It was a custom he’d
grown to appreciate. Kissing was something he enjoyed a great deal now
that he understood what it meant. Leave it up to some little backwater
planet to come up with the concept of using their mouths as foreplay.

“I want you,” Trev murmured against his lips, licking Yanai’s bottom

lip.

“I want you, too, always, pet,” Yanai returned, gripping him tightly.

No matter how close they grew physically, there was a chasm of
distance separating them.

Trev pinched Yanai’s nipples, eliciting a gasp from Yanai. His

nipples were almost as sensitive as his cock. He reached up and stilled
Trev’s hands. “Pet? You can’t possibly want more orgasm now. Why are

you doing this?” He leaned his forehead against his humans, pleading
with him to just tell him what was wrong.

Trev stiffened. “You know this isn’t working, don’t you?”
Yanai swallowed, his insides doused with cold. “I had thought that

we worked fine. Our sex is always—”

“Humans need more than sex, Yanai.” Trev pushed off his lap and

scooted backward in the pool, removing his touch completely. “You
offered to let me return to Earth once. Did you mean it?”

Everything in Yanai rebelled at the thought. “Yes. I meant it.”
“Then I want you to release me when we get there.”
The words were a physical blow to Yanai’s stomach. He couldn’t

speak, couldn’t suck in air for a full twenty seconds. “Is that really what
you wish?” He had thought Trev cared about him, wanted him. Maybe
he’d misread the signs. “Do I not please you?” He asked the last with no
small amount of pain. “I can try harder to please you if I do not.”

Trev shook his head. “You please me just fine, Yanai. But like I said,

I need more than sex.”

“What else do you need? What else do you need that I haven’t

given?”  Yanai  snapped,  crossing  his  arms  over  his  chest.  Hurt  was  a
living,  breathing  creature  inside  of  him.  He’d  given  him  everything  he
could  think  of  to  show  his  affection,  clothes,  trinkets,  the  best  food
money could buy.

His human reached out and touched his chest, and Yanai looked up at

him in question. “I want your heart, Yanai. If I can’t have it, then I don’t
want any of this.”

Yanai recoiled. “I can’t give you that!” Some sort of bizarre human

ritual where he got his heart carved out was downright barbaric. Tannara
couldn’t live without their hearts. Unlike some species, they only had
one.

Sadness tinged his lover’s expression. “Then I want away from you,

Yanai. It hurts too much to stay.”

Yanai pushed himself up and out of the bathtub, unable to stay after

that definitive statement. “I will have the gray men prepare your things
and begin research on how best to go about getting you to your home.”
He swallowed past the lump in his throat. “I’ll go check on supper. Join
me when you finish with your bath?”

“Sure.” The word was so soft.
Yanai climbed out of the bath and wrapped a cloth around his waist,

the metal bottom of the floor digging into his feet as he padded toward
the door.

“Master, what ails you ?” one of his gray men asked. He felt the rest

of them listening. Tears blinded him as he walked down the hall to the
eating room.

“Trev has made his wishes known to me. He wants to leave our

home and pursue his happiness elsewhere.”

“But why, lord?” another asked.
“He asked for my heart, and I cannot give it to him. I would give

him  my  home,  my  being,  my  spousal  promise,  but  it’s  my  heart  he
wants.  Humans  are  impossible  creatures .”  Their  yearlong  affair  had
been nothing more than that, an affair. He’d never been so shattered by a
relationship  ending.  He  felt  like  he  was  going  to  break  into  a  million
pieces at the slightest touch.

Silence greeted his declaration, but he could feel their minds

working through the problem, wanting to find a solution. “It’s useless,
my friends. He has made his declarations known.” And if he knew
nothing about humans, he knew that they were ungodly stubborn when it
came to their independence.

“We will work on a solution, lord.”
“I appreciate the sentiment. However, I would greatly like if you

just left well enough alone.”

Chapter Two

“You want to do what?” the red Eoean asked him for the fiftieth time

since he’d begun this conference call. Yanai gritted his teeth before
repeating himself yet again.

“I wish to free my human. I care for his happiness, and he has

expressed  the  desire  to  have  his  freedom.  I  will  provide  him  any
monetary  object  he  may  need.  I  understand  that  he  may  not  be  able  to
return to human population. However, there is no reason that if I free him
and  grant  him  a  stipend  he  can’t  have  a  home  somewhere  in  the  Eoean
provinces.  I’ve  looked  over  the  laws  carefully.  So  long  as  I  maintain
official  ownership,  he  shouldn’t  have  to  be  returned  to  the  lottery  for
redistribution. However, I will need an independence visa so he can go
places unaccompanied and without a slip of permission.” It was the best
he  could  do  given  the  volatile  political  climes  Earth  was  in.  He  hadn’t
been aware that humans were forbidden to leave their masters’ care even
if freed.

Again the black-eyed Eoean blinked. “But you’re Tannara.”
“I am well aware of what I am,” Yanai said, narrowing his eyes at

the vid-screen. “Since he and I have not performed a joining rite, this
shouldn’t be this complicated.” In theory. “Are you sure you’re the
human relations expert?”

“Kelr, is there a problem?” an unfamiliar voice asked from behind

the red Eoean who was giving him such trouble.

Kelr turned his head to look over his shoulder. “I don’t know. I have

a Tannara who wants to give up his human but not back to the lottery and
not to give or sell him to a new master.”

A human face came into view. “So what’s the problem?” Yanai

blinked. He hadn’t seen another of his lover’s kind before. His coloring
was different than his Trev’s, but it wasn’t necessarily unpleasing. He
still preferred his raven-haired beauty though.

“Is that technically legal?”
“Just issue him an independence visa under the condition that the

human maintains residence inside Eoean city limits and checks in once a
business cycle. That should appease the bigwigs,” the human said. Trev
used a similar human expression. He raised his green eyes to Yanai and
smiled. “You’re a pretty one.” Kelr growled. “Chill out, big guy. Just an
observation. You and your human not getting along?”

Yanai shrugged. “Sex is not enough.” He repeated the words that

Trev had said to him. There was little else for him to say.

“Would you be willing to try out the Eoean-human counseling

program that I’ve been working on?” the human asked gently. “I find that
a lot of humans don’t get along with their masters because of a
communication issue.”

Yanai shook his head. “No, thank you. I don’t want to drag out our

parting any more than I have to.”

The human nodded. “Okay. I’ll have Kelr issue you an independence

visa as soon as you find your human housing. If you change your mind or
want to talk, I’m Jack Corbet. Just use this missive to get in contact.”

“You are wed to your master?” Yanai asked curiously.
Jack nodded. “Yep.” He draped an arm over Kelr’s shoulders.

“Going on a year now I guess. Message me if you need anything else.”

Yanai bowed. “I thank you.”
“No problemo.” They cut communication, and Yanai turned to Trev

who was sitting at the back of his workspace.

“Was that satisfactory?” Yanai asked.
“Yep.” Trev pushed off the wall and walked toward the door.
“Where are you going?”
“I’m going to grab a nap before we go down to the surface. You’re

taking the transport directly to your house, right?”

Yanai swallowed. “Yes.” He twisted the bottom of the black dress

robes he wore. The silky material was very reminiscent of Earth’s
kimonos. Pet, please stay. He ached to beg, to plead with his human to
stay by his side for the rest of their lives.

Trev nodded. “Okay. The gray men are helping me find a place to

stay?”

“Yes.”
“Good.” His eyes lowered. “Yanai?”
“Yes?”
“Will you come to bed with me one more time?”
Something in Yanai’s chest cracked. “I cannot.” He couldn’t bear to

touch his human knowing that in a few hours’ time he would never see
the male again.

Trev looked wounded, but it couldn’t be helped. He had to maintain

some sort of distance because he couldn’t afford to break. There was too
much to learn about this new planet. Too much to grow to understand and

adjust to.

A terrifying realization struck. I’m going to be alone for the rest of

my life. Outside of Tannaran, few of his kind ventured into the universe.
Even if he arranged a marriage for himself, they wouldn’t travel here,
and so long as Trev was alive, Yanai couldn’t leave.

The gray men came into his mind. “Lord?”
“Leave me be!”
“Yanai? Are you okay?” Trev asked, concern in his expression.
Yanai swallowed and took a deep breath. “I am fine.”
“You sure? You looked pinched for a second.”
“I’m sure.” He clamped down on his selfish emotions. Trev did not

ask to be enslaved. He did not deserve to be guilted into staying with
Yanai.

The door slid open, and Trev stepped into the entryway. “For what

it’s worth, I love you very much.”

The word didn’t translate very well. Tannara had nine different

words for what he’d just said and all of them meant something different.
I care for you as a friend. I care for you as a lover. I care for you as a
person. I care for you as a sibling. I care for you as a child. I care for
you as a teacher, beautiful object, a beloved pet, a favorite pleasure. All
of them seemed to mean that word in his human language. He opened his
mouth to ask for clarification, but Trev was already gone.

* * * *

“His loneliness already poisons his blood,” the gruff voice of the

tallest gray man said as Trev stepped out of the transport. “And you
cheerfully seek an apartment away from him.”

The gray men were aptly named. They were human-like aliens with

pale-gray skin, red eyes, and teeth like a shark. It didn’t help that they
wore rough gray cloaks wherever they went as well. They would’ve
been creepy companions had Trev not been used to them.

“I’m not discussing this with you,” Trev said. “I said I loved him,

and he just sat there. Tannara don’t have a word for love.”

The gray man nearest him snorted. “You’re right. They have nine

words for it. Idiotic human. You leave him to suffer for your
stubbornness.”

“I know you are all in the we-kiss-Yanai’s-ass club, but you can stop

it right now. He didn’t even fight for me to stay.” If he’d asked him to
stay, he would’ve. He knew it in his bones. “And you figure if he cared
the least little bit he would’ve used one of those nine words when I said
something.”

“You humans insist on conflict at all times,” one of them sneered.

“You are so stubborn. You don’t even see a good male when he knocks
on your dwelling and begs entrance.”

“Okay. No more talking. You guys are not here to give me a hard

time.” And if he told Yanai, the male would berate them mercilessly and
probably not allow them sips of blood for a week. It was the
equivalency of taking away their favorite food.

“No. We are here to escort you away from our master. I hope you

know what you’re doing, human.”

He’d long ago made peace with the fact that he’d never see his

human family again, and he was still okay with that. This new place was
a fresh start. But none of the places they’d seen felt right. Maybe
because none of them have Yanai. The insidious voice could stuff it.

“And I suggest you make a decision soon because the sun is setting,”

another gray man muttered.

“Is Yanai’s dwelling far from here?” he asked, unable to help

himself.

They grew silent, probably talking amongst themselves telepathically

like they did with Yanai. “It is on a beautiful estate just off the beach,”
one said, a wispy quality to his voice.

“It is an isolated home that would allow both master Yanai and you

much freedom,” another added.

Yeah, yeah, don’t sell it to me too hard, guys . A part of him just

wanted to quit, run back to Yanai, and beg him to just forget he’d said
anything. That same part was tired of being heartbroken by Yanai’s
indifference.

“Do you guys have a portable vid-screen on you?” He would settle

this once and for all.

One of them nodded.
“You want me to give him a chance?”
The tallest one nodded.
“Then let’s see what he says to casually dating.” They handed him

the small flat disc that sort of resembled a woman’s compact. He
pressed his thumb to the panel. “Call Yanai.”

The waiting indicator popped up a second before Yanai’s beautiful

purple face came into view. “Yes, pet?”

“Do you want to still see one another after I find a place?” Trev

asked, trying to sound unaffected. Just the sight of his lover tightened
everything inside him.

“Why? You are leaving me, are you not?”
“Your gray men think that this doesn’t have to be permanent.”
Yanai frowned. “My gray men need to keep their opinions to

themselves,” he said pointedly. The gray men chuffed in their unhappy
tones. He paused, voice softening. “Do you wish to see me after we part
ways?”

“I want to,” Trev said honestly. “But I have to know, do you care

about me?”

“You know I do.”
No he hadn’t, but that was all right. At least he knew now. “We’ve

been together a year, and you couldn’t bring it up, not once?”

“Didn’t my actions tell you as much?” Yanai asked, crossing his

arms. He had to still be in the transport.

“Humans like to hear the words.”
“And Tannara like to display them. Why couldn’t you have just said

something?” He looked confused again. Trev was beginning to hate that
look.

He sighed. “I don’t know.” He rubbed his temples. A five-minute

conversation with Yanai was giving him a headache. He’d heard that the
first year in a relationship was the hardest, but this seemed damn near
impossible. They were too different. “How about we spend one month
apart and see how we feel about it afterward?”

Yanai’s amethyst eyes narrowed. “You mean, you will find out how

you will feel about it afterward. I grow weary of this game of yours. You
said you couldn’t be with me if I did not give you my heart, and since
that is physically impossible, we’re at an impasse.”

Trev made a noise of frustration. “That’s what I’m talking about! It’s

an expression. I got you a human slang dictionary. You ought to know
this crap.” All they did was argue lately. They fucked like a dream, but
he’d been so right. Sex wasn’t enough. “How about you try learning
about me a little bit and then we can try this again?”

“Why don’t you do the same?” Yanai snapped, rage evident in his

expression. It was the first time in Trev’s memory that he could

remember feeling the heat of Yanai’s anger. At least he’s not calm
anymore. Nothing felt worse than being worked up while his lover sat
there being an indifferent statue. “You always lecture me to know more
about your kind. Why don’t you learn about mine?”

Trev had nothing to say to that. “Fine. Then it’s decided. A month

from today you’ll send a car for me and we’ll visit to see if we can
reconcile?”

“If you promise to use the time apart to truly consider what it will

take for that reconciliation. I am quite finished being the giver and
receiving little in return.” The words felt like an ice pick driven into his
heart.

“I’ll be using the separation productively, just make sure you do the

same.” Trev was proud that his tone was every bit as cold as Yanai’s.

“Good.”
“Great.”
“Fine,” Yanai rumbled. “I’ll speak with you then.”
“Likewise.”
“Bye.”
They hung up. He turned to glare at the gray men. “There. Second

chance. Happy?”

“Not especially,” one said.
“But we’ll take it.”

* * * *

“Lord, you need to get up,” one of the gray men murmured, shaking

him lightly. “You have an urgent message from the Eoean government.”

He managed to pry his eyes open, but they were scratchy and

uncomfortable. A quick glance at the clock revealed that he’d only been
asleep for an hour and half. Damn. Since Trev had found a dwelling in
the  city,  he  hadn’t  slept  well.  He’d  grown  too  used  to  the  comforting
feeling  of  a  lover  beside  him  in  the  night  and  woke  up  every  time  he
reached for Trev’s warmth. So he worked long hours at his vid and got
little  sleep  and  pushed  his  body  further  than  he  probably  should  have.
Even the gray men said his taste had changed.

“I want something with caffeine,” he rumbled. He’d taken to drinking

the teas of this world. The gray men had picked a set up on a whim near
the apartment where Trev stayed, and he’d liked it so much that he had

them pick it up every time they went over to deliver money to Trev. Trev
wasn’t happy taking his money, but he had no choice. Eoeans didn’t
employ humans, and since Trev was technically still a slave, he couldn’t
open his own business.

“Right away, lord,” his tallest gray man said, bowing.
He rubbed his eyes, trying to rid himself of the scratchy feeling. “Did

you deliver the ratta fruits to my pet?” Ratta was Trev’s favorite fruit.
They’d brought six trees with them on the ship, so when they’d finally
born fruit two days ago, he had sent a basket to Trev.

The gray man shifted, clearly uncomfortable. “Yes, lord.”
“What did he say?”
“Nothing.”
Nothing? “Not even a thank-you?” That wasn’t like Trev. Even when

he was angry, he was aware of social decorum. It was only three days
until he was scheduled to come for a visit.

“Tell him,” one of the gray men whispered.
“Yes,” said another.
A headache started to pound between Yanai’s eyes. “What is it?”
“He smiled and said thank you before telling us that his supper guest

might enjoy them for dessert.”

Yanai’s heart stopped for a painful second before resuming a

galloping rhythm. “What?”

“I’m sorry, lord.”
“What kind of guest?” Yanai demanded, all sleepiness leaving him.
“He’s apparently been making friends in and around the building,

master.”

Yanai bit into his bottom lip. “Oh.” He hadn’t been able to give him

friends back on Tannaran. He would’ve liked to, but he had no friends of
his own to share with Trev. “Does he like any of them?” What if he fell
for another? What if he took their time apart to find an Eoean male who
would give him a huge household and dozens of spawn? His kind only
had one to two children at most. His hands clenched into fists by his
side.

“We don’t know, lord.”
The not knowing was what killed him. He wasn’t even sure that he

had the right to ask. “Would he accept my call?” He’d been trying to give
Trev the space he’d requested and respect his wish to adjust to this alien
world on his own. But he ached to reach out to him every day.

“We don’t know, lord,” the gray man murmured. He sounded as sad

as Yanai felt.

Yanai spat. “Wonderful.” He rolled out of bed, not bothering to

cover his nudity. “Bring my tea to my work room.” The sprawling home
he’d  bought  had  belonged  to  an  Eoean  before  he’d  purchased  it.  The
central  hub  of  the  house  was  built  for  entertaining  while  the  private
rooms  that  shot  out  like  the  spokes  of  a  hub  were  comfortable  oases.
He’d  made  the  hub  closest  to  his  bedroom  into  the  workspace  he’d
needed to conduct his duties as communications keeper.

“Yes, lord.”
He stalked out of his bedroom and into the white-and-turquoise

hallway. The soft turquoise that kept his feet from the chill of the stone
floor wasn’t even enjoyable at the moment. All he could think about was
his lover having a meal with another male, touching another male,
kissing another male, taking another male to his bed. He wanted to howl
at the thought. He’d never experienced such an all-encompassing feeling
of jealousy.

The lights came on at his entrance into the next room. It wasn’t an

especially bright light because Yanai preferred to work in the dark. The
darkened  room  was  only  lit  with  pinpricks  of  blue  and  white  light  in  a
shifting  display  of  Earth’s  constellations  projected  on  the  ceiling.  He
walked  unerringly  to  his  desk  chair  and  pulled  it  back.  He  sat  without
preamble and brought up his messages.

His eyes widened as he took in the missive.

To Yanai Musuki, you have been entered into the annual Eoean

lottery on behalf of the Eoean government and have been awarded a
human male. You will see his profile attached. He will arrive
tomorrow morning to your residence at two p.m.

“Otherworld, help me. Trev is going to kill me.”

Chapter Three

“It’s so nice to have someone to talk to,” Trev said as he bit into one

of the ratta fruits that Yanai had thoughtfully sent him. How could he not
love him when he did things like that? He hummed, savoring the burst of
sweet that tasted like a peach and an orange had a baby.

Jack smiled at him while Jack’s Eoean friend, Aldn, poured them

some  more  juice.  “I  knew  when  Kelr  received  the  request  for  an
independence  visa  that  there  was  more  to  the  story.  Sometimes  alien-
human  relations  can  be  tough.  Kelr  and  I  didn’t  get  off  the  best  start
either. Since you were so isolated, I imagine it was even worse for you
two.”

“Did you bring the tutor programs I asked for?” Trev asked, wiping

off his mouth as some of the juice from the ratta fruit dripped down his
chin.

“Yep,” Jack said, nodding. The cheerful human was always happy

every time he visited. It was probably due at least in part to his gorgeous
red Eoean-Renka male that doted on him constantly. “The Eoean
databases are a lot fuller than most data packages available for purchase
on the market. Since Kelr and I are diplomats, we even get the restricted
stuff.”

“Cool. I appreciate you dropping them by.” Now he could keep up

his  end  of  the  bargain.  The  anger  he  felt  toward  his  lover  was  largely
due  to  the  fact  that  they  didn’t  communicate  very  well  and  neither  one
had really taken the time out to understand the other’s culture. They knew
the  basics,  language,  family  structure,  et  cetera.  However,  there  was  a
lot more to emotional stasis than knowing that human beings had a wide
range  and  that  Tannara  had  a  million  different  words  for  emotions  but
didn’t express any of them. Tannara valued calm way too much for that.

He just hoped that Yanai had been holding up his end of the bargain

and  trying  to  understand  him  better  as  well. As  skeptical  as  he  was  of
their reconciliation, he was equal part hopeful. He had missed Yanai so
much during the past few weeks that he was almost ready to surrender to
the  growing  need  to  see  him  again.  However,  he’d  also  realized  that
things  needed  to  change.  He  needed  to  be  able  to  do  something
productive, and he wanted to have some kind of interaction with people.
Jack had even helped him come up with some ideas because of Tannara
restrictions on interaction.

“I really hope that you two can work it out,” Jack said. “It would be

a shame if not. You two really seem to care about one another.”

“I love him.” He was going to figure out which of the Tannara’s nine

love words he meant and say it to Yanai as soon as humanly possible.
Well, if we decide to make this work. If they could make a few
compromises, Trev knew that both of them could be happy.

“All Father above, I’m never going to get a human,” Aldn grumbled,

closing his portable communications device.

“They announce the winners for the lottery?” Trev asked. He’d

almost forgotten that it was that time of year again.

“Yeah.” Aldn huffed. “And of course I didn’t get one. It’s just my

rotten luck. Some guy who has been here less than a month gets one, I’ve
been since we first colonized Earth, and I haven’t even come close.”

Jack patted his back. “No big. You’ll get ’em next time.”
“Hmph,” the Eoean huffed. “I think the government is purposely

trying to torment me. I’ve got to escort one of them from the capital to
their new owner. Since I’m off duty, they thought playing babysitter
suited me.”

“I guess that’s our cue to leave,” Jack said apologetically. “Maybe

they wanted the human diplomat along with, huh? That makes more
sense.”

“Oh yeah. I forget that you’re officially on the payroll now.” Aldn

grinned. “Thanks for the meal, Trev. I’m sure we’ll see one another
soon.”

Trev nodded. He was sad they wouldn’t be able to stay after and

play some of the Eoean games he was learning, but he was glad they
hadn’t had to run out midmeal. “I’ll call you later.” It was good to have
friends again. His neighbors were nice people, and he really liked Jack
and his assortment of companions as well.

He walked them to the door before shutting and locking it behind

them with a wave of his hand. The small one-bedroom apartment on the
third  floor  of  the  massive  white  building  on  the  busy  Eoean  street  still
didn’t  really  feel  like  home,  more  like  a  comfortable  room  at  an
extended-stay  motel.  He  didn’t  need  much  room  by  himself.  The  crafts
he’d been working on littered the floor of the living room, and Alden had
commented  on  how  good  they  were  getting.  He  was  enjoying  working
with  the  Eoean  paints  he’d  bought  at  the  market.  He  was  thoroughly
enjoying  the  shifting  colors  of  blue,  green,  and  fuchsia  pigments  that

glowed in the dark when applied to a special canvas shipped in from
somewhere off world.

He was halfway done with the one he was bringing to Yanai. It was a

picture  of  Yanai  from  his  vid-screen.  The  snapshot  showed  their  old
house  back  on  Tannaran  in  the  background  while  Yanai  stood  by  the
bonfire  they’d  built  in  the  backyard  for  one  of  the  Tannara  festivals  of
beauty. They had seventeen in all. If Trev hadn’t realized how much the
people were actually inconvenienced by their beauty, he’d take them for
a  planet  of  narcissists. Yanai  was  in  three-quarter  profile,  a  soft  smile
flirting with his lips, naked from the waist up.

It had been one of the happiest nights. The first time they’d had sex

had  been  under  the  vastness  of  the  Tannaran  sky  that  night.  The
atmosphere  had  been  perfect.  As  their  neighbors  lifted  purple  paper
lanterns and let them float toward those stars, Yanai had laid him down
beside the fire. Everything had felt so easy back then, so hopeful. It had
been  their  honeymoon  period  and  so  incredibly  sweet.  He  trailed  the
curve of Yanai’s face in the portrait he was painting. Maybe they could
get back to that place again soon.

His vid-screen chimed where it sat on its base, charging. He

frowned. The only people who ever called him had just left. He pushed
himself to his feet before hurrying over the screen. With a press of his
finger he answered the call. “Yanai,” he greeted, absurdly pleased that it
was him for some reason. Maybe it was the nostalgia from before, but he
was really happy to see his lover’s face. “Are you breaking the rules by
calling me?” He said it teasingly, flirting just a little.

“I want you to come to my home tomorrow,” Yanai said, his voice

serious. “I know it’s early, but I need you here, pet.”

Trev’s voice tripped a little over itself at the “need you” part. Maybe

Yanai was finally learning to express himself verbally. Trev almost did
a damn happy dance. “Okay. Send the gray men and I’ll come to you.”
He would propose some of the changes over supper and hopefully be
back in Yanai’s bed by lights out.

“Um, I’ll send two.” Yanai’s eyes shifted to his gray men. “I hope

that’s all right.”

“That’s fine.” Weird. But fine. The gray men usually worked best as

a whole unit, all four of them together.

“Good. Well, I’ll see you tomorrow then.” Yanai’s pretty amethyst

eyes warmed. “I missed you, pet.”

God I missed you, too. “See you tomorrow.” He cut the connection.

If he only had a night to sit down with the tutor and learn all the data that
Jack downloaded to his screen, he would have to start now.

Without hesitation he activated the tutor program. The technology to

be able to download data directly into the brain had been something that
had scared him a little at first. However, after some getting used to, Trev
couldn’t imagine doing it any other way. Forget going to school and half
listening to someone lecture. This way someone could learn whatever
material for that day with a click of a button. It was ridiculously easy.

The data files Jack had left were easy to find. With a few presses of

his fingertips he brought them up. He placed his fingers over the
indicated slots. “Download all Tannara files.”

He gasped as he was thrown headlong into a stream of information

much more detailed than the ones he’d been able to download back
home. He started at the thought. He’d considered Tannara home. It was
an unreal realization.

Then the download amped up, and he couldn’t hold onto his own

thoughts as those were supplanted directly into his cerebral cortex.

The biology was fascinating. Tannara were highly competitive

during their initial evolutionary period, thus why the males in particular
had  developed  such  impressively  beautiful  features  and  near-perfect
physiques. The scent of pheromone was unintentionally overpowering to
those who weren’t used to the fragrance. Most bipedal settlers had been
unable  to  resist  the  allure  during  the  period  where  they’d  allowed  off-
world settlers onto the planet’s surface. It had caused a lot of problems,
which had eventually led to the government shutting  down  the  planet  to
any further colonization. There was still a healthy off-world population
in the cities though, and Tannara had retreated almost completely to their
own  dwellings,  all  their  relationships  arranged  via  an  Internet
connection.

Their skin tone was perfect for the three suns in the subtropical

planet and perfectly matched to the forestry where they originated where
the tree trunks were a light purple and the leaves were a deep plum. He
knew all this already. He fast-forwarded through that bit with a thought.

Emotional upbringing. There was something he wanted to know

about. Tannara were extremely emotional beings that indeed had nine
words for love, all of which were used to express love and affection
toward something different. But they were much more about action than

words and were raised to express their feelings through acts of kindness
and gifts bestowed on their loved ones. To turn down a gift was akin to
refusing their affection. He thought back to all the gifts Yanai had given
him. He sighed. All their problems could’ve been cured if they’d both
bothered to educate themselves on the other’s culture. Why don’t they
have these discs available to the public?

When Tannara were ready to declare their affection for another in a

permanent way, they stopped using their given names. Instead they
picked out nicknames for one another that they used in place of their
given names. Maybe Yanai calling him “pet” was just his way of saying
that he wanted to get hitched.

“Aw fuck,” he grumbled. He’d misread everything.
Tannara weddings were apparently a very private affair. Yanai

would  take  him  on  a  special  blanket  that  the  taken  party  would  be
expected  to  sew.  Great.  Now  I  have  to  learn  to  knit  or  some  shit.  To
finish,  a  “feral  bite”  would  have  to  be  performed.  Feral  bite?  What  is
that?  The  tutor  supplied  the  answer.  It  wouldn’t  be  the  nibbles  or
shallow  bites  that  Yanai  had  been  giving  him.  Yanai’s  fangs  would
elongate top and bottom and then he would place a deep bite on his chest
that  would  scar  into  a  perfect  four-puncture-wound  pattern  over  his
heart.

He touched the area with reverence. He knew that it would hurt like

an SOB, but he couldn’t say that he didn’t want it. Maybe after he and
Yanai got on the same page they could finally achieve this soul
resonance business that he’d been hearing so much about.

* * * *

“My God, you’re beautiful,” Eric Greer said, staring at Yanai like he

wasn’t something edible. It was a look Yanai had seen on other people’s
faces  before,  and  it  made  his  skin  crawl.  It  was  speculative  and  more
than  a  little  bit  aggressive.  Eric  Greer  was  a  handsome  human  with
blond  hair  and  deep-brown  eyes  with  a  lovely  tanned  flesh.  However,
Yanai wasn’t the least bit physically attracted to him. He had eyes only
for black hair the same color as a true Tannaran night that only happened
once  every  seventeen  days,  a  startling  blue  gaze,  and  flesh  the  color  of
Earth’s moon.

“I thank you for your praise,” Yanai said, giving a curt half bow.

“You smell so good,” the Eoean escort murmured, licking his pale-

blue lips. He visibly shuddered. “All Father above, you look so pretty.”
The male was as big as Yanai with a set of wicked-looking horns
growing from his forehead. He was also fairly attractive for a male, but
his touch repulsed him.

He took a hasty step back as the Eoean reached for him. “Please,

don’t touch me.” This was bad. His gray men stepped between them,
forming a barrier. “I understand my scent and flesh are alluring.
However, that does not mean I’m available for sex.”

Eric groaned. “No?”
“Definitely not,” Yanai said. “My chosen would be vastly unhappy

with me if I touched another.”

“There are two of you?” Eric asked, a hopeful note in his voice.
“No. My chosen is human.”
“Now wait just a second, you have two humans?”
“It is an unfortunate situation but yes,” Yanai said. “My pet will be

vastly unhappy with me when he arrives here tomorrow. Escort Aldn,
will you stay with us? I’m afraid that while I may be a poor host, I need
a chaperone.”

“I’ll stay wherever you want me to,” Aldn murmured. “Just let me

contact my boss and let him know that I’ll work from here for the next
twenty-four hours.”

“Excellent.” He tapped first one of his gray men and then another.

“My servants will show you to your lodgings. Do not leave them for any
reason. Meals will be delivered to you.”

The round of protests he was anticipating rose up, but he turned from

them. He’d always thought if he could tolerate the company of others
he’d want to engage in conversations with them. However, he was a bit
of a hermit by nature and had no interest in conversing with those people.
They looked at him like an object to be possessed. He liked his solitude,
his gray men, and his lover. That was it.

He walked to his room and locked himself inside as the gray men

escorted  the  two  males  to  their  lodgings.  They  would  be  sleeping  on
temporary sleeping beds, but he wouldn’t feel guilty about it. He hadn’t
been  planning  to  have  guests  visit  regularly,  and  that  wasn’t  going  to
change  anytime  soon.  He  crossed  to  the  large,  soft,  Eoean-style  bed  in
the middle of the room and crawled into it. He hadn’t had much sleep so
almost instantly, his eyelids started to droop.

As per his lover’s request he’d tutored himself on the ways of

humans  and  their  customs,  and  he’d  come  to  one  conclusion:  human
beings were far too blunt and relied entirely too much on verbal cues to
understand any subtly or appreciate a more gentle form of courtship. He
was  going  to  have  to  all  but  throw  Trev  against  the  door  and  take  him
while screaming his affection to the underworld in order for his message
to  be  understood.  The  thought  carried  him  into  a  dream  of  sex  and
warmth and Trevor.

“Lord, we have finished our task,” one of his gray men reported.
“Clean up the house, prepare my pet’s room, and then get the meal

ready for the two guests in house,” he commanded. He couldn’t wait to
show Trev the room he’d been modifying for him. It contained enough
entertaining material to keep him occupied for a good long while.

“Yes, lord. We will do so .” There was a pause. They wanted to ask

him a question. Their psychic link was annoying at times.

“Ask.”
“We wish to offer him Tannaran herbal remedy when he arrives.”
“No.”
“Lord, we feel like it is best. He will be upset when he arrives.”
“I want him free from influence when he gets here. He’s already

going to be unhappy when he finds out that we’ve inherited another
human male.”

“But—”
“No ‘buts.’ No tea.”
A long-suffering sigh filled his mind. “Fine.” Then they retreated,

becoming shadows in the back of his mind.

At the thought of seeing his lover after so long, nervousness bubbled

up in his gut. He didn’t even know if Trev would still want him. He said
he  missed  me.  That  must  mean  something.  He  hasn’t  used  the  time
apart to get to know other males or make a life separate from me. He’s
done  as  I  have  done  and  used  it  to  assess  how  best  to  proceed.  He
knew that he hadn’t been as good of a lover as he could have been in the
last  few  months,  but  he  was  going  to  try  to  be  better  from  now  on.  He
didn’t know if he could stand to spend another month away from Trev.

His eyes drifted shut again, and his hand instinctively slid toward the

other side of the bed before he remembered that it was empty. He curled
his hand into a fist. One more night. One more night alone and then I
never have to have another night alone again. It was strange that before

Trev, he couldn’t imagine spending every night sleeping next to
someone. Now he couldn’t imagine a lifetime of an empty bed.

* * * *

“Welcome home, little master,” the tallest gray man said, bowing

low. The others followed suit. They were far too happy. It was almost a
smugness that clung to their expressions. He couldn’t pinpoint an actual
expression, but the emotion just sort of sloshed off them like a scent or
something.

“Miss me?” he drawled, dropping the roughhewn traveling bag he’d

picked up with his independence card.

“Our lord missed you,” the shortest rumbled. “That is quite enough.”
Uh-huh. Bet his blood isn’t as sweet as it normally is. Self-serving

jerks. He didn’t really mean that, but they had a sort of love-hate
relationship between them. “Where is our esteemed Yanai?” The house
he’d gotten was breathtaking. It reminded him of one of those old Greek-
style villas on the coast, all pristine and white. He had been anxious to
see the ocean but had refrained. He wanted to experience the
phenomenon with Yanai first.

“In his room. Shall we take you?”
He shuddered at the offer. Yanai rarely clothed himself in his room,

and a naked Yanai immediately brought sex to mind. He’d gone without
for the past few weeks, and his body was screaming at him to run to
Yanai and let him take care of it. After a year of multiple orgasms,
masturbation just didn’t cut it anymore.

“Let him know I’m coming.”
They grumbled but nodded their assent.
He followed them from the round living room down a hallway that

led to a heavy metal door. The gray men opened the door with a swipe of
one of their thumbs across the keypad, and the sheet of metal slid into the
wall to admit them. “He says to go inside,” one said. “He’s waiting for
you.”

“Can one of you grab my bag and put it away? I have a present for

him in there I want to give him after supper.”

He swore that their expressions softened just a little bit. That must

be what a shark looks like when something touches it emotionally.

“Yes,” the tall one said. He waved Trev inside. “Onward.”

Trev gave them a sloppy salute before entering into Yanai’s new

room. He whistled at the calm décor. Like the rest of the house, it was
white and turquoise, but this room was infused with more fuchsia, which
Trev liked. The color would complement Yanai’s skin nicely.

Yanai was lying at the center of a massive turquoise bed. The

bastard hadn’t even thrown a blanket over his nakedness. Trev licked his
lips as his mouth went completely dry. Yanai had a body that was made
to  be  worshipped.  It  was  a  good  thing  Trev  had  continued  doing  his
crunches  at  the  apartment.  Otherwise  he  might’ve  been  a  little  self-
conscious  next  to  all  that  perfection.  Though  maybe  not. Yanai  had  the
peculiar  ability  to  make  him  believe  that  he  was  beautiful  when  they
were  together.  Back  in  his  human  life,  he’d  always  felt  lacking.  With
Yanai, at least physically, he never had.

“Hello, pet,” Yanai rumbled, his eyes half-hooded. “I apologize for

my dress. I didn’t have time to put anything on.”

“Or to cover up, huh?” What game was he playing at? As Yanai’s

cock started to pulse and swell, he got the answer. Ah. Someone has
missed me. “Your cock miss me?”

Yanai reached down and adjusted his length, causing it to twitch in

interest. “Oh yes.” He didn’t look embarrassed about the fact. “I hadn’t
intended for you to come into my bed until after we’d had our
discussion.” He paused. “Was the month enlightening for you?”

Trev swallowed. “Yes. I found out a lot.” He watched Yanai slowly

stroke his growing erection, playing with his cock as Trev watched. He
groaned. “Yanai, you don’t play fair. I wanted to wait, too.”

“You wanted me to be more aggressive. This is me saying I want you

now and I can’t wait for the civilities to play out. I want your ass
wrapped around my dick, and I want it in the next five minutes. It’s been
too long, pet. Let me have you.”

Whatever argument Trevor had been formulating got blown out of the

water at that plea. He untied the sash on his dress robes and let the top
fall to the floor before untying the bow on his pants and letting them
follow suit. A quick jerk brought his tunic top over his head to be cast
aside. “Fine, Yanai. Have me.” Have all of me.

Yanai growled. “Get over here.”
He knelt on the edge of the bed before crawling over to where Yanai

laid in repose. It had been too long since he smelled his lover’s scent,
touched his gorgeous flesh. His mouth watered. He hadn’t known how

much he’d needed this until just this second.

“I have missed you,” Yanai said, stroking his hand up and down his

hardened cock. The ridges were already swollen and vibrating lightly.
Trev knew that Yanai’s prick felt incredible when they were fucking,
and a deep longing took up residence in the pit of Trev’s stomach.

Trev licked his lips. “You are so beautiful.”
Yanai shook his head. “Don’t say that. Say anything but that.”
“But you are beautiful,” Trev said, leaning over Yanai and claiming

his lips in a kiss. From the second their lips touched, sparks of something
greater, something deeper resonated through his core. What he couldn’t
say with his mouth pressed so tightly to Yanai’s and his tongue dancing
with his was that Yanai was more than beautiful. He was so much more
than a pretty face that it boggled the mind how anyone could just see
Yanai for that.

Yanai bit his bottom lip, and Trev groaned at the little bit of pain.

“Where’s the oil?” Trev asked. Yanai always kept a special oil
manufactured from a fruit on Tannaran that smelled citrusy and felt
absolutely fantastic.

Yanai motioned over to the wall. “There is a panel there. I’ll get it.”

He rolled away from Trev and gained his feet before walking over to the
blank wall and placing his hand on the smallest panel. It moved, rotating
outward.

“That’s neat.” He had similar panels in the kitchen at his apartment,

but they were to a smaller scale. “This house is top of the line.”

Yanai nodded. “It is. I thought you might enjoy these little touches.

The last owner was a stickler for efficiency.”

“Do you think after we can head down to the beach?” He’d seen the

marina from his apartment building, but it wasn’t the same as an actual
beach. He’d made Yanai take him to the beaches in Tannaran, which had
been beautiful. However, he’d always heard legends of the beaches here
and never had the opportunity to explore them.

“If that is what you wish.” Yanai retrieved the elaborate blue vial

from its hiding place before returning to the bed. He poured some of the
substance  onto  his  palm  before  slathering  it  onto  his  cock,  making  it
glisten with moisture. The scent of citrus perfumed the air, and Trev bit
back  a  groan.  Good  memories  were  definitely  triggered  by  that  scent.
When  he’d  come  across  an  orange  seller  at  the  market,  the  scent  had
been so similar that he’d hardened behind his robe.

“Otherworld beyond, I missed you,” Trev murmured, stealing

Yanai’s phrase. He scooted back on the bed, making room.

Yanai muscled his way between Trev’s spread thighs, hoisting his

right leg onto his shoulder to spread him even further. “You’re mine,
pet,” Yanai snarled, a deep, possessive cadence in his voice.

“Yours,” Trev agreed. He’d agree to just about anything so long as

Yanai fucked him soon. No matter how many times Yanai and he had
come together, Yanai had never been this aggressive, this possessive. It
turned Trev on like nothing else, making his hole ache and his cock leak
in a steady stream. Yanai’s oiled fingers pressed inside, preparing him
roughly.

“God yes!” Trev yelped, his body eagerly swallowing those probing

fingers. He met Yanai’s eyes and marveled at the change in them. Gone
was the male who had been all but indifferent to his presence. This was
a side of Yanai that he’d never seen before, and he really, really liked it.

Two fingers stretched him along with a healthy dose of slick, and

every nerve ending inside him cried out for more. Yanai growled when
Trev  started  rocking  his  hips.  He  withdrew  his  fingers  and  replaced  it
with  the  thick  head  of  his  prick.  The  vibrations  immediately  made  his
toes curl. He had to shut his eyes because the visual of Yanai’s pleasure-
soaked  expression  coupled  with  the  sensation  of  a  hot  vibrating  cock
spreading him wide was too much. He gasped as the first ridge pressed
to  his  entrance.  The  ridges  rubbed  all  the  right  places,  causing  his
pleasure  spots  to  practically  sing  as  the  rings  passed  over  them.  He
groaned, fisting his hands in the blanket of Yanai’s bed.

“Yanai,” he whispered. “Feels so good.” The vibrations grew more

intense, letting him know exactly how much Yanai was enjoying his
praising.

“I desire you. I need you. I want you at all times,” Yanai rumbled,

forcing the second ring of his cock down into Trev’s willing body.

“Oh!” His balls drew up at Yanai’s admission. They were as close

to love phrases as Yanai had ever uttered. “I’m gonna—” He was going
to shake apart as the vibrations went deeper into his body.

“Not yet. Not yet, pet. Wait for me.”
He clawed at the sheets as the third and final ring of Yanai’s cock

sank the rest of the way inside him. Yanai held still for an aching instant,
the vibrations knocking against his insides as he was held immobile. He
screamed, unable to take the overload of sensation. He reached for

Yanai, needing to hold onto something sturdier that the bits of blanket he
was clawing.

Yanai grabbed his hand, squeezing it tightly as he finally started to

move. Trev’s mind blanked as Yanai fucked him hard, pushing deep. If
this wasn’t a claim, Trev didn’t know what one was.

“Yanai!”
“Yes.”
He pried his eyes open just to see the expression that was written on

his  lover’s  face. Yanai’s  perfect  features  were  twisted  into  a  mask  of
desire as his amethyst gaze bored into Trev with an intensity that took his
breath away. He wanted him to come, wanted him to fill him completely
and make Trev his again. Logic said that he should keep his heart out of
it  just  to  be  on  the  safe  side  if  their  relationship  didn’t  work  out.  But
touching  Yanai,  it  was  impossible  not  to  involve  his  emotions,  not  to
love him completely.

Their eyes met for an achingly sweet second, and he knew that it was

all  over.  Pleasure  crested,  demanding  satisfaction  as  his  cum  splashed
his stomach and chest with the force of his release. The vibrations grew
damn  near  unbearable  as  Yanai  came  apart  above  him.  His  lover
shuddered  as  his  spunk  hit  Trev’s  insides,  their  harsh  breath  the  only
sound  in  the  room.  He  threw  Trev’s  leg  to  the  side,  burrowing  closer
before biting him hard where his neck met his shoulder. More pleasure
swamped  him,  nearly  sending  him  into  another  orgasm. Yanai  retracted
his teeth, and Trev’s head spun.

When the haze cleared he reached up and cupped Yanai’s face.

“What has come over you?” he asked, panting lightly. He felt the first
tingle of heat in his lower abdomen. He would be thrown out to the stars
again in just a second, but he had to know what had changed.

“Tell me no other male touched you,” Yanai murmured, his eyelids at

half-mast. He’d clearly ignored the question. “Tell me I am the only one
in your bed and in your heart.”

“Jealous?”
“Yes.” He loved that about Yanai. He loved that his lover admitted

things like that so easily when he was asked.

“There is no one else.” There was never going to be anyone else.

Even if they didn’t work out, it would be a long time before he could
even contemplate doing that to himself again. He would be devastated in
a way he wasn’t sure he’d recover from. He opened his mouth to say

Chapter Four

Yanai tried very hard to ignore the twinge of conscience that said he

should’ve waited to take his lover like an animal, but it was very
difficult with Trev thrashing beside him on the bed. I should’ve told him
first. But he was afraid that if he had, Trev would’ve gotten angry and
they wouldn’t have that one perfect moment of reunion before the storm
of their relationship came crashing down on them once again.

He hoped he’d made himself clear this time. He wanted Trev to

understand that he was ready for the next logical step in the path of their
reunion. He wished to reconcile and for their lives to go back to what it
had been on Tannaran when they’d both been happy and enjoying their
new bond.

“Lord?”
“Yes?”
“The other human is wandering the house.”
Yanai cursed softly. He didn’t want to leave Trev’s side, but he

couldn’t allow the human to wander. “Is there any way for you to corral
him until I am properly attired?”

“Shall we restrain him?”
“No!” He often forgot that gray men had very little obligation of

conscience that didn’t serve themselves and the blood he gave them.
Speaking of which, they would need to be fed relatively soon. He’d seen
them getting restless, staring at him with hunger in their expressions.

“He is muttering to himself and sitting in the greeting room.”
“I’ll be right there.”
He rolled off his bed, casting a longing look at his beloved before

hastily pulling on his robe. He wasn’t fully robed, but it would do in a
pinch. He smoothed his hands down his body. There wasn’t a great way
to hide the sex that still clung to his body or the hair that was mussed, but
it couldn’t be helped. “I’ll be right back, pet.”

Trusting eyes, glazed with lust, stared at him before Trev nodded.
He tried not to feel guilty about betraying that trust.
Yanai made his way to the door before letting himself out into the

hallway. As he rounded the corner into the living room, he paused. “I
believe I told you to stay in the quarters I installed you in,” Yanai said.

“I am bored out of my mind,” the human quipped, not turning to look

at him. “I was scared I’d either be eaten, worked, or fucked to death. But

I never imagined you people would actually try to bore me to death.”

“Eric, I do not aim to harm you,” Yanai said, trying to be patient.

Trev had been similar in the beginning, fearful. “I will make sure you are
taken care of.”

Eric turned his head to pin Yanai with a frankly sexual look. “In all

ways?”

Yanai shook his head immediately. “No. Not sexually.” He paused.

“My human has arrived from the city, and he is not to be troubled with
any misplaced sense of competition you may harbor.”

The human pouted. “So you have a harem going on here?”
“Absolutely not.” The idea was abhorrent. He could hardly afford to

take care of one emotional human lover. “There is only pet and no one
else.”

“Pet? You seriously call him pet?”
Yanai frowned. “What is wrong with that name?”
“Um, nothing. So are we like fancy dogs for you guys or something?”
“No.” Now he was truly confused. Humans always had the most

illogical minds of any creature he’d met in the galaxies.

“Uh, who the fuck is that?”
A bucket of ice water wouldn’t have been more effective as Yanai

turned to see his lover in nothing but a partial robe wrapped around his
waist standing behind him. He’d forgotten that the pleasure from his cock
juice, when not ingested, didn’t last as long. He froze, unable to find the
words.

“I’m his new pet,” Eric declared, staring at Trev in frank challenge.
Trev’s eyes snapped to Yanai. Oh no. No. No. “He is not my new

pet,” Yanai said, his irritation rising with his anxiety. “I won him in the
last lottery. It was an accident.”

“You accidently got a new human to replace me right after we

separated?” Trev snapped, using air quotes around the word
“accidently.” “And you couldn’t bother to inform me at any point in the
past forty-eight hours?”

Yanai winced. “I know this looks poorly. But I swear to you, I have

not touched him.”

“He wanted to talk to you first,” Eric piped up.
Yanai cringed. “Otherworld beyond, Eric, stop helping me!”
Trev sneered. “You want to have a three-way with some twink you

picked up from the Eoeans?”

Yanai had no idea what a twink was, but it sounded like an insult.
“Hey!” Eric growled. “Watch who you’re calling a twink.”
Apparently his assessment had been correct.
“I—I don’t want that at all!” Yanai wanted to crawl back into a hole

and never come out again. This much drama was bad for his calm. “I
have proof of what I say. I asked the official Eoean delivery specialist if
he would stay on as chaperone.”

“So you couldn’t practice self-restraint on your own?” Trev

snapped. “You had to have someone babysit you?”

All right, pet. Now you’re being unreasonable. “Pet—”
“Don’t call me that!” Trev shouted, his fists curled into fists. “I’m

not a ‘pet’! Call me Trev or Trevor or any variation thereof, but you
have lost the privilege of giving me a nickname!” Yanai’s heart fell.
“You lure me here early and fuck me and make all those damn promises
of wanting and needing and caring about me and this whole time you had
another human stashed in the house? What the hell is wrong with you?”

Yanai held up his hands in the universal signal for surrender.

“Enough!”  he  yelled.  The  volume  of  his  voice  must’ve  startled  Trev
because  he  finally  fell  silent.  “I  have  not  touched  another  since  we
parted. I haven’t even seen another since we parted, which is more than I
can say for you.” He pointed to the other human. “Eric was delivered to
my door the night I called you to come. I was going to tell you, but we
got  preoccupied  with  things.”  He  rubbed  the  area  above  his  heart  that
was  throbbing  with  hurt.  “I  have  never  lied  to  you,  Trev. And  I  meant
every word I said.”

The gray men closed in a protective semicircle behind them. “Lord,

perhaps  we  should  escort  your  pet  to  a  separate  room  so  that  you  may
talk  freely.”  The  tallest  of  them  glared  daggers  at  Eric.  “And  perhaps
you’ll  allow  us  to  dispose  of  that  one.  He  will  cause  nothing  but
trouble.”

“I vote yes on the disposing,” Trev rumbled, placing his hands on his

hips. “Kick him out.”

“And where is he supposed to go?” Yanai asked. “He has no

resources, no clothing other than that concubine shift, and no options.
He’d be dead or a prostitute within a week.”

Eric’s eyes had grown enormous by the time they’d finished

speaking. “Seriously?”

“Yes. Seriously,” Yanai said. “Pe—Trev, I wish to talk about this,

but  you  are  going  to  have  to  be  a  bit  more  reasonable.”  He  leveled  a
glare at the gray men. “You will behave or I will not give you what you
seek  tonight.”  They  grumbled,  shifting.  He  gentled  his  voice  slightly.
“Eric, return to your room, please. I promise that I will find something to
occupy  with  at  a  later  date.  However,  right  at  the  moment,  I  need  to
discuss things with my lover. All right?”

Slowly, Eric nodded. “Okay. So you guys are like a couple then?”
“I believe I told you that once before, yes.”
“Okay.” He pushed himself to his feet and wandered back down the

hallway he’d come down. “Tell those gray things to stay away from me.
They’re creepy.”

Yanai imagined they could be a bit unnerving to an outsider. He

glanced at the gray men. “Come. You can get your sustenance while I talk
with my Trevor.” They made the happy purring sound they usually did
when they were pleased. He turned his attention to Trev. “Will you
please come talk to me?”

“Are there any more surprises that you’re going to spring on me

tonight?” Trev asked, looking weary.

He shook his head. “No, pet. I promise there is nothing else.”
Trev sighed. “I wish you would’ve told me earlier.”
“So do I. But it cannot be undone now.” He lowered his voice a

fraction. “My need for you was too great to be denied earlier. For that I
apologize.”

“Did you download anything new from the tutor about my kind?”

Trev asked, looking sad for some reason.

“I did,” Yanai said. Trev looked relieved. “I am still learning to

assimilate though. Just because I have the knowledge doesn’t mean my
understanding is instantaneous.”

Trev nodded before spinning on his heel and stalking back the way

he’d come. Yanai walked back to his bedroom after Trev, watching his
lover’s confident stride as it carried him back into his sanctuary.

“I want to be able to invite company over,” Trev said as the door

swished shut behind him. “I want to be able to do something to make
friends. They have some volunteer stuff that I’m into, and I’ve already
made a few friends in the city. I don’t want to go back to being isolated.”

Yanai blinked. “You know that’s quite impossible. People react

poorly to my kind. They become overly sexual, aggressive. It’s
uncomfortable for me.”

“It’s uncomfortable for me to spend every waking second alone or

wrapped up in you. Human beings are social creatures.”

He’d learned as much from the tutor program.
“I don’t expect you to participate, but I do want you to make some

compromises so that I can do the things I want without feeling like I’m a
bad guy for wanting to go out.”

“Are these your demands for reconciliation?” Yanai asked.
Trev nodded before waving toward the door. “Yeah. They are. I

want you to deal with that situation like tomorrow. I believe you that you
didn’t bring him here to replace me, but I don’t want him here. Like you
said, other people wanna molest you, and I will lose my temper if he
tries it.”

“That is reasonable. I can agree to send Eric away just as soon as I

can find a good placement for him. Is that sufficient?”

“It is. What about the socializing thing?”
Yanai shrugged. “If you really want that, I can make

accommodations. However, if it becomes a problem, then I reserve the
right to revoke the privilege of having others in our home.”

“That sounds fair,” Trev said. He paused. “I owe you an apology.”
Now that was unexpected. “Oh?”
“Yes,” Trev said softly. “I was accusing you of not knowing my

culture and you said that I hadn’t bothered to really get to know yours
either. You were right. I hadn’t. A lot of the problems in our relationship
are because I didn’t understand your culture. I do now. I don’t want you
to call me anything but pet for the rest of my life.”

Yanai all but purred at that. The gray men came through the door a

split second later and knelt on the floor by Yanai’s leg, waiting.

Trev waved at them. “Go ahead and feed them. They’re looking a

little thin.” The essential nutrient that Yanai’s blood provided, when
deprived, made them look more than a little waifish. “You need to take
better care of them, Yanai,” he admonished. “They take good care of
you.”

That was the first time in his remembrance that he’d actually said a

good word about the gray men. “Thank you for the reminder, pet.” He
rolled up the sleeve of his robe to expose the crook of his elbow where
the gray men fed. The place was a line of slits that had developed after a
few years of having them. “Form a line,” he commanded them. “A sip or
two from each of you.” It was all they needed. The first one popped the

skin with his teeth and swallowed as Yanai’s blood filled his mouth.
“Continue, pet.”

“Right. So anyway, I’m sorry I didn’t appreciate you or your culture

and thank you for being able to put aside a lot of your cultural things for
my sake.” Trev still looked so uncomfortable when the gray men took
their sustenance, despite the fact that Yanai had reassured him time and
again that it didn’t hurt. He never failed to look a little queasy.

“You’re welcome, pet.”
“I also want you to buy me some cloth so I can sew us a blanket.”
That was the oddest request he’d filed all night. “I was unaware you

could sew.”

“I can’t. I’m gonna learn.”
“Why?”
“Because I want your feral bite and I want you to marry me.”
Yanai’s eyes widened. “Pet, you don’t have to.”
“Nope. I want to. It’ll take me a little while to sew a blanket, so

we’ll have time to get used to the new socializing thing and get settled
here. But I want you to know the eventual goal.”

Everything inside Yanai softened. “Very well, pet. I will do so to

please you.” He was incredibly touched that Trev was making such
efforts to accommodate his culture as well. “Will you keep the apartment
in the city, or may I revoke your lease?”

“We could keep it for when we go into the city. There is so much to

do there and so many people to meet. It would be nice not to have to stay
in an inn or whatever the Eoean equivalent is, right?”

“You would wish me to go with you even if I could not leave the

dwelling?” Yanai asked.

Trev nodded. “Yes. It’s a pretty long journey. I wouldn’t want to

make that whole trip in one day. We could spend the night there. Plus it
can be a vacation spot for the two of us. Unless it’s too expensive, then
that’s fine.”

“Money is not an issue,” Yanai assured. His parents had been very

generous to him, and his own investments from his work made it
possible for him to quit work all together for the next fifty years if he
wished to without consequence. “If it pleases you to keep the apartment,
I will allow it.”

“Thanks, Yanai.”
“You are welcome, pet.” This conversation was going far better than

he had expected it to. “You know, to accept my bite, you must name me
as well.” The last gray man knelt at his feet, sucking on the wound as it
gave up its last required sacrifice.

“I know,” Trev said, rubbing his arm in a nervous gesture that Yanai

had learned to interpret as a sign of his discomfort. “I’ve been trying to
think of one. But none of them seem right. You just seem like Yanai to
me. It’s a beautiful name. Why change it?”

“If you do not wish to rename me, than Yanai I will be forever.”
“Yanai?”
“Yes?”
“Can you explain to me why Tannara rename one another? I was

curious about that, but the tutor didn’t go into much detail.”

Yanai took the cup of juice that one of his gray men had gone to fetch

him during their conversation and took a grateful sip. He was always a
bit dizzy when they finished. “It is a special name only our beloveds are
allowed to use. It denotes a name of honor.”

“Hmm, then I guess I’ll have to come up with something good,” Trev

said.

Yanai shrugged. “I will not be upset if you do not. Yanai has suited

me well for many cycles, and I have no complaints about its continued
use.”

“No. I’ll definitely come up with something spectacular. I’ll have to

get back to you on what it is exactly.”

He chuckled. “Very well, pet.” He couldn’t help the yawn that

cracked his jaw.

Trev considered him. “When was the last time you slept?”
“I have been…distressed of late. Sleep hasn’t come easily.”
Trev huffed before dragging him further up onto the bed. “Come on.

You need to sleep, and I need to cuddle.”

Pleasure blossomed at the concern in his human’s voice. “Very

well.”

“Hey, guys, can you occupy our guests?” Trev asked the gray men as

he stripped off his robe, heedless of his nudity. “Lock our door so they
can wander around.”

Our guests. Our door. The possessive pronoun thrilled him.
“Lord?”
“It’s fine. Just do as he says.”
They bowed. “Very well, lord.”

Chapter Five

He woke up in Yanai’s arms, the lovely caramel and candy smell

lingering in his nostrils from his sweat. The great purple alien was
wrapped around him like an octopus, his arm and leg curling around his
body as Trev snuggled into his chest. He pressed a kiss there before
resting his ear over the male’s heart to listen to his heartbeat.

Their conversation from the night before had gone much better than

expected, even with the hiccup of there being another human in the house.
It  was  odd.  Trev  hadn’t  used  to  be  so  hostile  to  other  people,  but  it
seemed that Yanai’s isolation and the idea that the house was a sanctuary
not  to  be  violated  by  outsiders  had  rubbed  off  somewhat.  When  he’d
seen Eric, all he had thought was that he wasn’t supposed to be here and
that this was his and Yanai’s house. The jealousy had followed right on
the  heels  of  that  thought  which  had  spiraled  into  I’m-Going-To-Kill-
Yanai with Eric’s next words.

He sighed. He was glad that Yanai had dragged him off to talk to

him.  If  he  hadn’t,  he  was  afraid  he  would’ve  really  lost  his  temper.
Yanai’s  admission  that  he  had  actually  taken  the  human  course  on  the
tutor  had  been  what  saved  their  relationship.  It  was  startling  to  realize
that they’d come that close to a breakup. Falling in love had been easy.
But staying in love and being happy was taking way more work than he’d
originally thought it would.

The lines of exhaustion had faded from under Yanai’s gorgeous face

after  they  slept,  and  Trev  couldn’t  resist  pressing  kisses  to  both  of  his
closed  eyelids.  When  he’d  first  arrived,  all  he’d  seen  was  Yanai’s
hunger.  However,  after  closer  examination,  he  realized  that  his  lover
was  suffering  more  than  he’d  originally  thought.  I’m  going  to  have  to
take better care of you, huh?

He watched his lover sleep. Sometimes it was easy to forget that

Yanai wasn’t invincible. He’d clearly been troubled by Trev’s absence.

“Tell me no other male touched you,” Yanai murmured, his eyelids

at half-mast. “Tell me I am the only one in your bed and in your
heart.”

He’d been worrying over it, but he had respected Trev’s wishes

despite that. Trev sighed. How was he supposed to have any sort of
defense for that? Honestly.

“Pet?” Yanai asked, his arms tightening.

“Yeah, babe?”
Yanai’s grip tightened. “Have there been any other males? Tell me

truly. I know I asked last night, but I would greatly appreciate hearing it
one more time.”

“No,” Trev assured. “There hasn’t been anyone but you. I did get hit

on  a  little  bit  when  I  first  moved  in,  but  I  never  acted  on  any  of  those
invitations.”  He  wanted  to  be  completely  honest  with  him.  Realization
struck.  It  wasn’t  just  jealousy.  Yanai  was  insecure.  This  gorgeous,
perfect  male  was  scared  that  he  was  inadequate.  “Yanai,  I’ve  never
wanted anyone but you.” And that was the God’s honest truth. Everything
about Yanai called out to him.

“Sometimes I fear my life isn’t enough for you,” Yanai murmured,

holding him close. Tannara were prone to nightmares during stress. “You
humans are curious, adventurous. You desire more than quiet and
solitude, but those are the things I know how best to give.”

“Did you have a nightmare about me?” Trev asked.
Yanai shuddered. “Every night.” He laughed, and it was tinged with

a bitter edge. “I dream that you have another at your apartment. I dream
you leave me alone here.” He raised one hand and rubbed his temples. “I
dream I die alone. Me, who desired nothing but to be left alone before
you, am terrified of the possibility of you walking away.”

Trev winced. “I never meant to stress you out that bad. I think I just

needed some time to think about things and to figure out what was
making me unhappy.”

He knew that when he first left, it had been with the attitude that their

relationship  was  over,  but  he  had  to  have  known  deep  down  that  he
couldn’t  have  really  followed  through  with  never  seeing  Yanai  again.
Hell,  he’d  been  painting  the  guy  nonstop.  If  that  didn’t  say  that  he  was
still deeply in love with the guy, he didn’t know what would.

“Where is the bag I brought with me on the transport?”
Yanai shrugged, a gesture he’d picked up from Trev in the beginning.

“I can ask the gray men. They probably put it away.”

“I want to show you something.”
Yanai was silent for a second, no doubt chitchatting with the gray

men. “They put it in the room I sectioned off for you as your private
dwelling. Would you like them to retrieve it?”

Trev nodded.
“They will bring it in just a moment.”

“So why did you give me my own room? I always share yours.” It

had been pointless for him to do anything but. His first night on Tannara
had been vastly uncomfortable because he’d been hard all night lying
next to Yanai’s beautiful body.

“The tutor told me that humans liked having their own space for

personal items, be it an office or a bedroom. I thought you could use the
room for naps, hobbies, whatever you wished. I just wanted to give you
something that was yours and yours alone.”

It was sweet, like everything Yanai did. “Claraan iessae. Claraan

udana. Claraan edo.” Trev repeated the words he’d learned from the
tutor. He still didn’t know if he was pronouncing them properly, but he
figured he had to try. I love you as my friend. I love you as my lover. I
love you as my favorite pleasure. There. I said it your way.

Yanai looked stunned for a good twenty seconds. “Trev?”
“I wanted to explain what I meant when I said I love you,” Trev

explained. “That’s what I mean. In my language, we only have one way
to say all those things, but those are what I mean when I say I love you.
Okay?”

“Ah. I understand now,” Yanai said. “Humans feel the need for

verbal reassurance of emotions. You say it to me because you feel
pleasure from saying and receiving the words in return. How do you
wish me to return them in your tongue?”

“You don’t just say them. You have to feel them.” Trying to explain

love was hard. It was like trying to explain the color green to a blind
person. “It’s like when that warm feeling of comfort and affection gets so
intense that you feel you can’t possibly keep it to yourself because your
body just won’t be able to handle keeping it bottled up. Then you say ‘I
love you,’ and it eases some of the intensity, giving the energy to
someone else.”

“Energy exchange through verbal expulsions of emotion makes sense

to me.” Yanai tilted his head up for a kiss, and Trev let him. He finally
felt like he was getting somewhere. Their lips met, and he marveled over
the soft texture of Yanai’s flesh. He could easily become lost in the touch
of his beloved. Yanai licked Trev’s bottom lip. “How long did you feel
this intensity for me? And why have you never told me?”

Trev’s eyes popped open. “I don’t know. I think I fell in love with

you in the first month, but I didn’t admit it to myself until around the
three-month mark. Humans don’t really trust their own emotions on stuff

like that when sex is involved.”

“Why?”
“Sometimes human beings confuse lust for love. It’s pretty common.”
There was a soft knock on the door panel before it slid open to admit

one of the gray men carrying Trev’s backpack. He took it from the gray
man with a smile and pried open the satchel.

“Have you confused your lust for me with love?” Yanai asked. He

always said that human beings were curious. The male was always very
curious with how Trev thought and worked.

Trev shook his head. “No. Because I realized that I could forgo sex

with you and still have something more there. I like spending time with
you.” He pulled out his canvas before handing it to Yanai. “I have a half
dozen of these at the apartment. I couldn’t help but paint you. There were
a million new experiences to have and make in the city, but this is the
one I wanted to capture.”

Yanai stared at his likeness with an unfathomable expression on his

face. He was quiet for so long that Trev was afraid he didn’t like it. He
swallowed. “You don’t have to keep it. I mean, I’m not an expert or
anything. I’m not a professional, and I’m sure you had plenty of people
paint you better.” Now he really just wanted to crawl into a hole and die.
He’d been really proud of his painting. He thought he captured Yanai’s
essence even if the likeness wasn’t as hyperrealistic like he would’ve
liked it.

“It’s perfect,” Yanai said, swatting away Trev’s hands as he tried to

take it away. “You have created true beauty here. Your talent has struck
me. Have you been trained?”

Trev shook his head. “I had a couple art classes but nothing major. I

like working with the paint that the Eoeans make.”

“Do you paint other subjects?”
He shrugged. “I painted a portrait of one of my friends’ husbands in

the building as a present.”

“You have a gift for capturing the emotion here. I can feel your love

when I look at this.” Yanai traced the edge of the canvas with reverent
fingers. “I will make you a studio to create more beauty like this.”

“I had one of the merchants at the market buy one,” Trev said. “I

mean, I know it won’t bring much credit, but we could just sell the extra
ones.”

“If that is your wish. I will make it so.” Yanai always did that.

Whenever Trev expressed a need for anything, he made sure to make it
happen.

“I do have one condition,” Trev said.
Yanai raised his eyes from the painting. “What is that?”
“That I don’t have to sell any picture I do of you. I want to keep you

all to myself.”

Yanai smiled, revealing straight white teeth. “I can live with that.”

He pointed over the bed. “That is where we will hang your paintings.
However, I, too, have a request.”

“What’s that?”
“I want one of the two of us. I want both of us together, immortalized

with your paints.”

Trev grinned. “I can totally live with that.” Doing a self-portrait was

going to be really hard, but he would learn how to do it for Yanai.

Yanai’s eyes darkened, and Trev knew that look better than he knew

himself. “Sex?” Trev asked, his cock perking up at the possibility.

Yanai nodded. “Yes. I desire you greatly after this gift.” He looked

strong again, confident. It was amazing how much Trev influenced his
mood. How did I not realize the power I had until now?

“You mind if I ride you?”
Yanai rolled to his back in a blink. “Be my guest.” He really liked

when Trev rode him, stealing some of the precious control he held onto
like a blanket of comfort. The knowledge gave Trev another idea. He
grinned as he straddled Yanai’s hips. Their relationship was getting an
overhaul top to bottom. His lovely alien master just better hold on to his
hat because the ride was about to get even better.

* * * *

“So you guys been together a year?” Eric asked as he knelt on the

beach to examine yet another shell that had washed up on the sand.

Yanai was fifteen feet ahead, his eye trained on the horizon. He

really was a solitary guy. It was probably because he had to constantly
keep his guard up. However, that left Trev to walk beside Eric, who was
slow as molasses.

“Round about that long.” He had been just as fascinated with such a

large body of water when he’d first dragged Yanai to the beach on
Tannaran. The memory made him smile.

“How do you stand fighting other guys off all the time? I mean, he’s a

damn all-you-can-eat buffet to a hungry mob.”

Questions. Questions. Questions. “He and I don’t go out much.”
“But you left him. There had to be a reason.”
“Okay. Enough prying about me and my relationship. Let’s talk about

something else.” Or not talk at all. Wow. He hadn’t realized how chatty
humans were. He wondered if Yanai had this much issue with Trev’s
talking when he first arrived on his doorstep.

“So if Yanai is my owner, does that make you my owner, too?”
“Uh, no. I’m technically his property, but Tannara don’t usually keep

slaves. So we’re equals in everyday life. However, on paper I’m his
property.” I thought we were changing the subject?

“So where does that leave me?”
“Hopefully we’ll find you someone else or somewhere else to live.”

Hopefully far, far away from Yanai. You look at him a little bit too
much like you want to eat him. It’s annoying.

“Oh.” Well, someone was disappointed.
“But don’t worry. Yanai has a deep sense of duty. He won’t leave

you some place dangerous or without protection.”

“Do you think, maybe, that I could go home?” The question was so

soft and so not on par with what he was usually like, Trev almost missed
the change in Eric’s tone.

He turned his head to catch the glimpse of Eric’s expression. He

looked sad, his hands balled into loose fists by his sides, his brow
lowered over troubled eyes, and his mouth down in a sharp frown.

“I mean,” Eric continued, “if your alien doesn’t want me for the

lottery, maybe I could just go back?”

He hadn’t realized until that moment how very young Eric appeared.

He wasn’t much younger than Trev’s twenty-four years, but those few
years made a difference. “How old are you, Eric?”

“Eighteen. I just graduated in the spring.”
Right before the lottery. “That’s a tough break.” He felt bad for the

kid. Trev had at least made it through school before he’d been pulled out
of  his  world  and  thrust  into  a  completely  new  on.  He  couldn’t  imagine
being  thrown  away  from  everything  he  knew  at  that  age.  He  would’ve
freaked.  Maybe  it  was  the  lack  of  freaking  out  that  had  made  him  miss
the vulnerability that Eric was displaying.

Eric’s brown eyes met his. “So, do you think you could talk to your

alien about sending me back?”

Trev had asked to go home a few times in the beginning. He thought

for sure if he just went back to his world and his old life that he could
pick up where he left off. “I’m sorry, Eric,” he said. “They’re not going
to let you go back home. The Eoean government regulates that sort of
thing, and they won’t permit a human to return to the human cities after
he’s been here.”

Eric’s face fell.
Trev couldn’t resist reaching out and patting the guy’s shoulder. “I

know it seems overwhelming at first, but at least you’re not alone. I’ll be
here to help you out, and I can introduce you to some people who have
been here even longer than me.”

“Why would you do that?” Eric asked. “You don’t even like me.”
Trev shook his head. “I dislike the idea of you pawing at my”—what

was Yanai to him now?—“Yanai. If you knock off hitting on him, you
and me will be just fine.”

“I think I can do that,” Eric said. “It’s just hard not to want him.

There is just something about him that says ‘hump me,’ yah know?”

“It’s the pheromones,” Trev said. “His species has this weird

attractant that is overwhelming to some people. That’s why he doesn’t go
out much.”

“Oh. Cool. That’s neat.”
It wasn’t neat, but at least he looked curious instead of terrified. “I

guess.”

“Pet,” Yanai called as Aldn drifted closer to him. It had been weird

to see that one of his friends had been the Eoean who had escorted Eric
here. “Can you please get him?”

He jogged up the beach to Aldn and grabbed his arm as he reached

for Yanai. “Hey, now,” he said, tugging Aldn away. “Knock it off. That’s
my lover you’re being grabby with.”

Aldn snarled as he attempted to dislodge him.
Yanai stood a few feet away, an annoyed look on his face. “I’m

going to go back to the house, pet. I think your friend has been exposed to
my scent enough for one day.”

“Sorry, Yanai,” Trev said over his shoulder. He shouldn’t have

asked him to come with them down to the beach.

Aldn tugged free and rounded on Yanai. Fear trickled into Trev’s

chest for the first time. He didn’t seem like himself. Unlike Eric, who

was interested but not overwhelmed, Aldn didn’t even appear to be
home in his head. God. No wonder he never goes out. If other aliens
react this way, I wouldn’t go out either.

“Aldn!” Trev shouted, wrapping his arms around the alien’s waist as

Yanai took a hasty step back. Aldn turned his head, sniffing the air as he
looked at Trev.

He turned and wrapped his arms around Trev, hauling him up before

pressing a kiss to Trev’s stunned mouth. He made a muffled sound of
protest, trying to shove Aldn away as he lapped at his lips.

He jerked his mouth back, kicking Aldn in the thigh as he did so.

“Yanai! Where are the gray men?”

“I called them. They’re coming.” Yanai slugged Aldn in the back,

making the Eoean release him.

Yanai pulled him to his feet as Aldn rounded on the both of them.

Pure animal intent showed all over his face. “Yanai?” Trev squeaked,
staring at his friend in horror.

“Run!” Yanai commanded, grabbing Trev’s wrist before turning

toward home. Adrenaline doused his insides as he sprinted after Yanai,
pulled along by his unbreakable grip.

They passed the gray men on the beach as they ran toward Aldn who

was pursuing them. “Don’t hurt him!” Trev threw over his shoulder.

One of the gray men’s muffled curses followed him as they reached

the steps. Yanai pushed him ahead of him. “Go,” he said, pointing up the
steps.

Trev panted heavily. He wasn’t used to doing sprints first thing in the

morning. He couldn’t remember the last time he went for an all-out jog-
fest. He climbed the stairs as quickly as he could, mindful of Yanai
following right on his heels.

When they reached the top, Yanai ushered him inside before shutting

the door behind them. “I was afraid this would happen,” he panted,
leaning his arms on his knees. His robe was ripped on one sleeve.

“What the hell just happened?” Trev asked, trying to regain his

breath as well.

“My scent,” Yanai spat. “You didn’t shower before we left this

morning, so it was all over you. When you got too close to him, he
transferred his lust over to you.”

“Shit.”
“Yes,” Yanai said. “You’re going to have to be mindful of that if you

do have guests over. It’s very easy for species like the Eoeans to become
overwhelmed. You humans have been the only species I know that have
any sort of natural resistance.”

“Great. Rarest species in the galaxy has a natural resistance to

Tannara pheromones. That’s helpful,” Trev said, sarcasm lacing his
words. Fear still pounded through his veins. “Is it always like that?”

“That was actually quite mild,” Yanai said, straightening. He looked

infinitely calmer than Trev felt. “In a crowd, it can be much, much
worse.” He shuddered, and Trev realized he had personal experience in
the arena. A quiet horror filled him at that.

“Yanai…”
“Don’t look at me like that, pet,” Yanai admonished, walking over to

the kitchen and opening the refrigeration unit to take out two glasses of
water. “It is simply the reality of being a Tannara.” He handed one of the
glasses to Trev. “Here. You must hydrate after that run.”

“Are you okay?” Trev asked. There was an energy that clung to

Yanai that he just couldn’t place or explain.

“I am fine, pet,” Yanai said, irritation creeping into his voice.

“Interaction with people frustrates me. I want to be a male you can
proudly walk down the street beside, not the cause of your harm because
you smell like me.” He made a frustrated noise and turned toward the
hallway that led to his bedroom. “I will be in the bathing unit should you
need me.” He paused. “Don’t let Aldn near you again. I worry.”

With that he disappeared down the hall, leaving Trev staring after

him in question.

Chapter Six

Yanai sulked. No, it wasn’t a very dignified thing to do, but he was

frustrated and annoyed and there was no appeasing or remedying the
situation. Therefore, he was going to sit here in water up to his chin, and
be angry with the world until he felt better about life.

“Watch over him while I bathe,” he commanded his gray men.
“Yes, lord.”
“Is the Eoean well?”
“Bruised but otherwise unharmed. A dunk in the ocean assisted his

reclamation of his facilities.”

“Good. Make sure he keeps his distance from my pet.”
“Noted, lord.”
There was no justice to be had in this situation. If my scent causes

such a reaction when simply resting against my lover’s skin, how is he
to  have  the  semblance  of  normalcy  he  craves?  That  was  the  most
frustrating  facet  of  all.  He’d  promised  his  lover  a  social  life.  But  he
couldn’t provide one, not so long as they were lovers. Yanai balled his
hands into fists, hating his beauty, hating his irresistible scent, and hating
his  appealing  body.  Those  things  that  Trev  loved  so  much  caused  them
both aggravation and pain.

A soft knock on the door made him raise his head as it came open.

He was surprised to see Eric standing there. “Hey,” Eric mumbled,
averting his gaze. He couldn’t see anything but the tops of Yanai’s
shoulders, but still. It was uncomfortable.

“Hello. What do you need, Eric?”
The little human shifted from foot to foot. “I wanted to come check

on you. Trev looked really sad when I asked. I thought I’d pop down
here and see for myself while the gray men bandage up Aldn. I, uh, didn’t
know this was a bathroom.”

“I am well.” If he said it enough, perhaps he’d start believing it.
“Okay. Well, I guess I’ll see you later.” Eric turned to leave.
“Wait,” Yanai called. “I have a question for you.”
Eric turned back around. “What?”
“If you had a choice, would you prefer a life of freedom or a life

confined in a small area with a lover?”

Eric shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess it would depend if the lover

was worth it. I mean, if I really loved him or something, then I could

totally understand and maybe enjoy it. But it would be hard to make a
decision like that. Are you sending me away?”

“No,” Yanai reassured. “I have yet to make a decision where you are

concerned. Have a little patience with me. You’ll have your room here
for the duration. Ask the gray men for a vid-screen and a tutelage on the
use of the technologies around here.”

Eric nodded. “Okay.” He paused, shifted. “Can I just ask Trev?

Those gray things scare the shit out of me.”

Yanai chuckled. He remembered the first time he heard Trev use that

expression. He had more than a little alarmed at the possibility. “No
problem. I’m sure he will help you. But do not fear the gray men. They
are simply servants of a sort.” Though he supposed they were more than
just simple servants. He wouldn’t dare call them anything close to
slaves. They were fiercely independent to a point.

“Still don’t like the way look at me.” He shuddered and walked

away, the door sliding shut behind him. The little human was frustrating
and clearly very different than his Trev, but he was a cute little thing.

He needed to send Aldn away immediately after the little display

down at the beach. Prolonged exposure tended to just make the reaction
of  those  around  him  worse.  When  Trev  had  looked  at  him  with
realization  for  the  first  time  earlier,  he’d  felt  emasculated.  He’d  been
very  careful  not  to  let  Trev  see  his  weakness  and  the  danger  of  what  a
simple walk outside with people not of his species could be. He had told
his  lover  of  the  danger,  but  seeing  and  hearing  about  it  were  two  very
different things.

He rubbed a hand over his face. He needed to deal with this situation

and not procrastinate any longer. Besides, he needed to begin his daily
work.

“Are you done feeling sorry for yourself?” a familiar voice asked

from the doorway.

Yanai raised his eyes. “I beg your pardon?”
“Are you done feeling sorry for yourself?” Trev repeated. “So you

have to live a little differently than everyone else? So what? You’ve got
me, and vid-screens the world over allow for outside interaction without
someone going psycho on you for your pheromones.” He was leaning in
the entryway, arms crossed over his chest. He’d changed into a white
robe similar to the black one Yanai wore.

“I am not feeling sorry for myself,” Yanai hedged.

“Liar,” Trev said. “It bothers you a lot more than you ever told me.”
“Only when I must confront the fact so baldly.” Yanai grabbed the

bathing oil from the stand just to have something to do with his hands and
began smoothing it over his naked chest. The smooth skin soaked in the
oil easily.

“You never told me how serious it was.”
“What does it matter?” Yanai asked, suddenly exhausted. “Must we

fight about this as well, pet? I came in here in an attempt to relax.”

“Having people over isn’t a real option, is it?” Trev asked, staring at

him. “Neither is you coming with me to the city.” It was a statement.

Yanai smoothed the oil down his arms. “I will make work what you

deem as nonnegotiable in our relationship. What can I do but try? You
came here with a firm list of things that were and were not acceptable.
Either I give them to you or you leave me. What sort of option is that at
all?”

Trev pushed off the door frame and came to kneel beside the tub.

“You fucking idiot.” He grabbed Yanai’s hair and pulled him over for a
kiss. Yanai allowed the manhandling, confused as to why he was
receiving it. Trev broke the kiss, and their gazes locked. “Why do you
want to suffer because of me?”

“I was unaware I had a choice. Pet, since we started the travel to

Earth, you’ve been unhappy,” Yanai said, pulling back slightly. “When I
found  a  way  to  adequately  express  my  affection,  you  found  something
else  to  demand  of  me.  You’re  a  social  creature.  I  am  not.  It  is  not  a
choice  but  it  is  a  problem  nonetheless.  I  will  attempt  to  give  you  what
you  want  despite  my  discomfort  because  I  care  for  you  and  I  want  to
make you happy.” However, he was beginning to expect that nothing was
going  to  make  the  human  happy.  He  was  always  unhappy  with  him  for
some reason. “I can only change so much of myself for you.”

“I don’t want you to change!” Trev protested.
“Really? That seems unlikely because that is all you have demanded

of me since we left.” He crossed his arms over his chest and stared away
from Trev, unable to look at him. If he leaves me for this, it cannot be
helped. “I am regretting offering to take you back to Earth to begin with.
At least on Tannaran you seemed content with life. Whatever this place
represents for you, you have been nothing but restless since we stepped
onto the vessel to come here.”

“You’re right,” Trev whispered.

I’m right? Yanai turned his eyes back on him. He hadn’t expected his

lover to agree with him. “What?”

“You’re right. I’ve been selfish. I can still talk on the vid-screen with

my friends, now that I’ve made them.”

“You said it would be painful for you to not be able to interact,”

Yanai repeated.

“This is called a compromise, Yanai. Get with the program,” Trev

said, a teasing note in his voice. “I love you very much, and me being
able to host a poker night is not worth me losing you.”

“I don’t know what that means.”
“Just agree with me. I’m sorry.”
At least his lover admitted fault. “Maintaining a relationship is much

harder than I imagined.”

“I agree. Good thing we’re solid, huh?”
“Pet, answer me truthfully, if I gave you the option of finding another

and walking away from me now, would you take it?” He raised a hand to
still Trev’s automatic response. “No. Think first. If you want to be with
me,  you  most  likely  live  a  solitary  life  with  the  exception  of  the
interaction  with  myself  and  my  gray  men. You  won’t  be  able  to  go  out
without  protection  and  a  lot  of  preparation  ahead  of  time.  We  will
probably spend majority of our time in and around our home, and when
we  have  children,  they,  too,  will  have  to  be  subject  to  these  rules.  We
will most likely have to arrange their marriages. If we should die, they
will  face  a  lifetime  of  isolation  unless  they  arrange  for  themselves  to
have a spouse. And should they have a human yearning for adventure or
socialization, they will suffer.”

Trev’s confidence faded from his expression in slow degrees. “But it

doesn’t have to be that bad. It could be much better than that. I’ll still
have the vid-screen to talk to people.”

“Or it could be much worse. You have to consider the worst

possible scenarios because if you should decide to stay, I want no more
talk of leaving,” Yanai said firmly. “This will be a thing of permanence.
You are the only one who can decide what you can and cannot handle in
our relationships.”

“How long do you want me to think about it?”
“How long do you need to think about it?” Yanai asked.
He shrugged. “I don’t know. How about until after supper? My

answer isn’t going to change.”

“I will feel better if you think about the possibilities first,” Yanai

said.

“Fine.” Trev reached out and ran his fingers through Yanai’s wet

hair. “I love you.”

“I hope that will be enough, pet.” He prayed for it in fact. If Trev

could find contentment and settle here with him, he would be the
happiest male in the galaxy. If not, well, he’d cross that border when he
had to.

* * * *

Yanai went to work, and Trev said good-bye to Aldn, who was still

apologizing  profusely,  as  he  got  into  the  transport  unit  that  would  take
him  back  to  his  home.  When  he  came  back  in,  Eric  was  still
downloading info from the tutor, so there wasn’t anyone he could really
talk to. He remembered Jack’s offer to be an ear but ultimately decided
that  peace  and  solitude  were  what  he  needed  to  make  his  choice.  He
respected Yanai enough to actually do as he said he would and consider
the  possibilities,  but  every  thread  came  back  to  the  same  conclusion.  It
didn’t matter. Whatever the obstacles, he wanted to be with Yanai.

He took out his travel set of paints and his canvas on the back patio

before sitting down to paint. The gray men brought him out his favorite
meal for lunch. They must’ve been happy with him because they weren’t
normally so accommodating. Maybe they were feeling some thankfulness
from the conversation he and Yanai had last night. Whatever the reason,
he didn’t question his good fortune.

“Hey,” he said as the tall gray man straightened to leave.
The gray man paused. “Yes?”
“Why do you guys want me to stay so bad with Yanai? Is it the taste

of his blood?”

Red eyes considered him unblinkingly. “Once you take his bite, you

will be able to feed us as well.”

Trev frowned. “Seriously?”
“Yes. Marriage to a Tannara is to be changed by a Tannara. The

bond that is formed is in the blood. It is always seen as a good fortune
for us when they wed. Twice the blood, twice the fortune. We would be
quite happy with that.” He paused. “You are our lord’s chosen. If you
two do not wed, that will be your failure, not his.” With that, he turned

and left.

“Well, don’t be worried about my feelings or anything,” Trev

muttered. “Bastard.”

He munched on his fruits and the little sandwich rolls that they’d

brought him and considered his canvas. He’d wanted to paint Earth’s
ocean. It would be beautiful in the dark if he could pull it off. He picked
up a little laser pen and began to sketch over the surface. Not much time
passed before the waves started taking shape and the horizon drew the
eye to the setting sun.

His imagination started rolling, and he added the small figure of a

person walking along the beach. The figure looked lonely as he finished.
With  his  back  to  the  viewer,  he  looked  like  he  was  wandering,  his
shoulders  slightly  hunched  and  his  arms  tight  to  his  body,  wrapped  in
robes. Well, look at me being melancholy .  He  hated  that  he  and Yanai
seemed so out of sync lately.

The alien had been right. When they’d been on Tannaran, things had

been different. Trev had loved him without expectation, and maybe that
was when he’d been happiest. Since he’d misread all the signs that
Yanai was throwing his way, it was very possible that some deep
subconscious part of Trev had known all along that his lover cared about
him in the exact same way that Trev cared about him.

When he’d finished his sketch, he started in on the painting. The heat

of the deck wasn’t unbearable, but it was rather warm, and it wasn’t long
before he lost his robe top and just sat there in the loose fitting bottoms
that he wore under his kimono thing. Yanai went commando underneath,
but Trev took off his shirt more often than Yanai did, and he never
wanted to be completely naked in a blink either.

Time passed, but he wasn’t sure how much as he lost himself in his

painting, working diligently to layer the paint into a final image. He kept
the man on the beach mostly in shadows and found himself turning the
beach below into the one he’d seen back on Tannaran. He wanted this to
be a happy painting, and Earth just hadn’t given him those memories yet.

Crystalline water took shape and beaches unlike any color beach on

Earth made an appearance. He added two suns to the sky and painted it
at Tannaran twilight. Yanai had gotten along well with his neighbors on
Tannaran since they were like him. Though they hadn’t seen them often
since Tannara were intensely private people.

He finished off the painting as the gray man who had gotten his food

earlier came back for his empty container. “You paint home like you
miss it,” the gray man said, picking up his dishes.

“I do miss it. I’d forgotten that I was sad when Yanai had told me he

was taking me back here. Feels almost like Earth doesn’t fit anymore.” It
was a startling realization. “I hadn’t really missed Earth there.”

He didn’t know how he could tell, but he swore the gray man was

pleased with his admission. “Final meal is almost complete. I am about
to go fetch our lord.” He paused. “Have you thought about our lord’s
proposal?” They might have played like they couldn’t read Yanai’s mind
when he didn’t want them to, but Trev also knew for a fact that Yanai
hadn’t said anything about their conversation.

“I will always choose him. I told him that earlier, but he just won’t

listen to anything I say until I think on it. Tannara think too much,” he
grumbled.

The gray man actually cackled, which was just plain weird. “They

would say that humans are much too impulsive.”

Opposites attract. “Thanks for making me give him a second chance.

I think I would’ve regretted it if I would’ve walked away permanently.”
He knew he would’ve regretted it.

“You are welcome,” the gray man rumbled. “We serve the blood of

our lord even when he doesn’t make the best decisions for himself.”

Like giving his human too much freedom. He might not have heard

those  actual  words,  but  he  knew  the  gray  man  was  thinking  it.  He
chuckled  at  the  thought.  If  the  gray  men  had  their  way,  he  would  be
strapped  to  Yanai’s  bed,  singing  his  praises  constantly  and  ready  to
service  him  at  any  moment.  While  his  cock  thought  it  was  a  damn
fabulous idea, the rest of him wasn’t too sure.

“Did you guys order the cloth for me to sew him that damn blanket?”
“It has been in the holding closet of your room since we arrived

here,” the gray man said dryly. “It and the supplies needed are waiting
on you to finish it.”

“Does it have to be pretty?” He knew very little about sewing.
The gray man shrugged. “One of us will show you how to use it

tomorrow. Once it is finished, you will accept his bite?”

Trev nodded. “I’m more than ready for that marriage thing.”
“Good.” The gray man that happy chuffing noise they did when they

were particularly pleased about something before wandering back off.

Trev turned his attention back to his picture. The painting needed

something. He looked back to the figure he’d put in the scene. It seemed
too lonely still. The far left corner seemed a bit empty, too. He added
another figure waving back at the first. Almost immediately, the feeling
of the painting warmed. There. I won’t leave you hanging, Yanai, not
even in a painting. The figures would appear completely black when the
lights went out, the rest of the painting glowing in an ethereal fashion.

Pleased with his work, he closed up his paints and gathered up his

supplies in case it rained. The painting would need to be put somewhere
to dry. He carried everything to the room that Yanai had gotten him and
propped the painting up by the window.

“That’s really incredible,” Eric said from somewhere behind him.
He turned to see him standing just inside the door. “Thank you. I have

an affinity for Eoean paint.”

“I can see that. I wish I could do something like that.” Eric stepped

closer. “Will you do me one?”

“Sure. What do you want it of?”
“I don’t know. Let me think on it?”
Trev shrugged. “Just let me know.”
“How about a flower?”
Trev blinked. “A flower?”
“Yeah. Orchids. They’re my favorites. I know I won’t see them

again, so I want something to remember them by.”

It was an odd request. “What did you do in your other life?”
“My family owned a plant nursery.”
“On Tannaran there are a million fragrant flowers in every beautiful

shade you can think of. One of Yanai’s neighbors had a greenhouse you
would’ve liked. He gave us a tour of it once.”

Eric smiled. “It’s really cool that you’ve been to other planets.

That’s like wicked.”

Oh wow, I feel old suddenly. “It was an amazing place. So did you

need something?”

“Oh! Yeah.” He laughed. “The creepy gray guy told me that supper

was ready and to go get you. This is me getting you.”

“Right. I forgot that he said that supper was almost finished. I got

caught up painting again.”

“Are you going to give it to Yanai?” Eric asked as they turned and

left the room, making their way down the hallway to the main part of the
house.

Chapter Seven

Yanai closed out the communications system with a few punches of

the keys. He’d been fantasizing about his lover for the past half hour, so
his productivity had dragged a bit, but that was all right. He was so far
ahead of the normal schedule that his overhead manager had provided
him that it was almost comical. Apparently Eoeans didn’t know how to
operate their own technologies as efficiently as Yanai did. The Pressian
system had been equally as flawed before they’d paid him for the
overhaul.

He stretched, cracking his back. He had a good day’s work done.

That  was  all  that  really  mattered.  He  believed  his  lover  when  he  said
that he wouldn’t change his mind. He felt like Trev would be as stubborn
as he usually was when it came to their relationship. However, now that
he  had  forced  Trev  to  make  a  final  decision,  he  hoped  that  they  would
settle  back  into  a  life  of  love  and  comfort,  something  similar  but  more
mature than what they’d shared on Tannaran.

He pushed back from the desk attached to his workstation before

gaining  his  feet.  His  stomach  rumbled  in  warning,  reminding  him  he
hadn’t  eaten  since  first  meal.  His  gray  men  had  offered  him  lunch,  but
he’d been so bothered by his and Trev’s conversation that he hadn’t felt
like  doing  much  more  than  burying  himself  in  the  streams  of  the
networks.

Walking over to the door, he reached for the panel to open it, but

someone  beat  him  to  it.  The  smallest  of  his  gray  men  nearly  collided
with him. “Sorry, lord,” he apologized. “I only meant to tell you that last
meal  is  ready.  We  apologize  for  the  sparseness  of  the  offerings.
However,  the  market  did  not  deliver  here  as  promised.  They  sent  us  a
missive to say that they will be here at first light.”

“I’m sure the meal you all have prepared is exceptional.” His gray

men never disappointed. They could create a masterpiece with nothing
but a stone and a piece of fish. That might’ve been a slight exaggeration,
but it wasn’t much of one.

The gray man bowed. “Your pet and the new human are already

seated at the table.” He paused. “They’re drinking that acid-tasting
Eoean liquor.” He might’ve said swill for the look he was giving when
he said it.

“Makes one miss Tannaran wine, eh?” Maybe they could have some

imported.

“This is a harsh, riotous place,” the gray man huffed. “Even the food

is tough as Tannaran tree bark.”

“You will grow used to this place,” Yanai said, patting the gray man

on the shoulder. “Remember that this is my pet’s home. We will all make
adjustments.”

Yanai stepped around the gray man. “Please, straighten up the office

and then find your own meal with the others.”

“Yes, lord.”
He made his way to the eating room that was located adjacent to the

kitchen. He stepped into the space and was surprised to see his pet and
Eric leaning against one another, laughing. The low-lying table was only
a foot off the floor and an arrangement of pillows in purples and
turquoise took up the entirety of the color pallet. Last meal was already
stacked on pleasing wood plates at the center of the table and it smelled
delicious. He had no idea what kind of meat that was, but it looked good.
The green and yellow vegetables looked even better than the rest of the
meal.

“Have I missed something terribly important?” he asked, trying not to

be jealous of the happy scene before him.

“Nope,” Trev said, grinning up at him. “Sorry, we got a bit goofy

with the Yuko. Eric had never drank, and I thought a shot or two
wouldn’t hurt. We got a little buzzed. Nothing supper won’t help.”

“You are intoxicated.”
“Little bit.”
Yanai’s lips twitched. “You can’t be a little bit intoxicated. You

either are intoxicated or you are not.”

Trev grinned. “Okay. I am.”
“Then let me feed you so you can sober. We have a discussion that

needs to be conducted.”

“Right.”
In Tannara tradition, he always served his lover first, and tonight

was no exception. He placed three of the meat slices onto his plate
before adding vegetables and something that looked vaguely like
Tannaran round rice.

“Where are the forks?” Eric slurred.
Trev shook his head. “Tannara eat with their hands. No utensils.”
“What about soup?” Eric asked, looking scandalized.

Trev tapped his squat round bowel. “Yah pick it up and suck it.”
Eric erupted into a giggling fit.
Yanai rolled his eyes and placed the plate he’d just made in front of

Trev. He hesitated. Did he consider Eric a guest? If so, he served him
after himself. If he considered him family, he served him before.
Decisions. Decisions.

“Go ahead and serve him,” Trev said, clearly reading his mind.

“He’s family now or near enough.”

His lover had a gentle spirit. He’d formed an attachment to the other

human already, despite being furious with him to begin with. “Very
well.” He got out enough food for Eric and passed it to him. The younger
human devoured his plate, raking the food into his mouth like he was
starved for it. Yanai blinked. Hungry little thing.

Finally, he made his own plate and ate in silence as the two humans

joked around. It was easy to see that they would be friends in the near
future.

Trev looked over at him. “Did you have a good workday?”
“I had a reasonably productive workday. I don’t know if good is the

correct word for it.” He took a bite of the white meat. Hmm, this is
good. “What sort of meat is this?”

“It’s called chicken, lord. We can buy some of the livestock at the

market if you enjoy it.”

“Yes.”
“What did you do with your day, pet?”
Trev shrugged. “Painted a bit, set Eric up with the tutor, and had a

heart-to-heart with myself.” He seemed steadier already, less tipsy. “I
did discover some very interesting things about the house and some of its
technical equipment. I’ll show you after our talk.”

“Very well.” He sipped at his drink. It was a pale-green liquid and

he really didn’t care for the creamy taste. He wrinkled his nose and
pushed the cup away.

“Don’t like the para milk?” Trev asked, sipping his own drink.
“Not especially. It’s bearable but—”
“It’s not Tannaran Nuban juice,” Trev finished for him.
A smile stretched his lips. His lover knew him so well. “Exactly.”
“Can we import it?”
“Tannara don’t have a lot of exports,” Yanai said, sadly. “I don’t

know if we can get much from Tannaran this far away from home.”

Trev sighed. “That sucks.”
“Indeed.”
“You guys are making me wanna see this Tannaran place. So, why

did you guys move?” Eric asked through a mouthful of food.

“For me,” Trev said, smiling at Yanai softly. “Isn’t that right? You

moved us across the universe because you thought it would make me
happy?”

Yanai inclined his head. Now his lover was seeing the things he did

for him.

“Awwww, so romantic,” Eric said, giggling again. “Kinda like that

painting you did today.” He looked over at Yanai. “Tell me you’re going
to be selling those soon.”

“I sent out some inquiries while I was working. I imagine they will

appraise what you’ve done thus far.” Yanai never did anything halfway.
It wasn’t in his nature.

They finished their meal and were served more fruit, sugared this

time, as a dessert. Trev had been the one to introduce Yanai to the
wonder of the idea of eating sweets to conclude a meal, and he had
enjoyed integrating it into his system for their mutual pleasure.

Trev touched his shoulder as he stood, the nonverbal signal for

Yanai to join him. He rolled to his feet and padded after him.

“Can I play games on the vid-screen?” Eric asked as they headed for

the door.

“You may,” Yanai threw over his shoulder. “Please do so in your

room if you don’t have sound-drowning earphones in.”

“Ooh someone is going to get some!” Eric teased, nearly falling over

from laughing. He reached over and grabbed the pitcher of liquor the two
of them had dragged out earlier.

Yanai pointed to him. “Watch him and make sure he doesn’t hurt

himself.”

The tallest gray man sighed. “Must we?”
“Yes.”
“Babysitting another human,” one of them grumbled.
“Joy,” said another.
The last one just gathered up their eating plates and headed to the

kitchen, grumbling under his breath as he went.

Yanai would’ve laughed if it wouldn’t have just made them even

more annoyed than they already were. Trev didn’t have his compulsion

control though and laughed, earning him a glare from the gray men. Yanai
reached out and grabbed his lover’s hand, pulling him from the room.
They needed to talk, and the others needed time to grow used to one
another.

“So have you made your decision?” he asked, pushing his hair back

from his eyes. He needed a trim. Unlike Trev’s hair, his hair grew very
slowly and only needed to be cut every few months or so. The gray men
usually took care of it until Trev had come, and then he had done so.
He’d apparently worked with his father at the family’s barber shop when
he’d still been in high school. Yanai had always found Trev’s life to be
infinitely fascinating. Humans did more in their lifetimes than any three
Tannara combined. They were in constant states of upheaval and change.

“I have,” Trev said. “You know my answer already. I’m staying.

This is you and me, and we can work out whatever we need to in the
meantime.”

Yanai hadn’t known he was holding his breath until he was forced to

let it out in a hiss of sound. “Oh good.”

“Did you doubt me?” Trev teased, leading him down a corridor that

Yanai hadn’t really explored yet.

“Not really. However, as you say, it is nice to hear the words. You

know this means that you can’t leave now, correct?”

“I get it. I love you.” Those words were taking on a new meaning

now that Yanai knew their true intent. It was a pledge more than a
reminder, and they warmed him. “We’ll make it work, we’ll find
compromises where we can, and learn to live in the places we can’t.”

His human swiped the pad of his finger over the panel, and the door

swished open to admit them into a round white room. “What is this?” he
asked. He remembered vaguely glancing in here when he and the gray
men had first arrived but hadn’t really paid it much attention as they
prepared the rest of the house for their comfort.

“This is an Eoean pleasure room,” Trev declared, grinning like a

ninra cat who had lapped up the unan’s milk. “The tutor gave me a
wonderful rundown of what exactly all the equipment in here is used for.
Eoeans are kinky as hell.”

“Kinky?” Yanai asked, the word unfamiliar on his tongue. His

translation of the word was bungled as well. Tangled didn’t seem to
have the same lascivious connotation that Trev hinted at.

“Oh yeah. They like sex that is against the standard method of

fucking.”

“There is a standard?” Yanai asked dryly. His lover was acting like

Yanai was a virgin or something. Despite what he might have perceived,
he’d been well tutored in sex before he’d met Trev and had even had a
few tangles with foreigners before the potency of his scent had taken
care of that fetish. Perhaps he’d always been meant to have a human
companion. Trev certainly matched him strength for strength and lust for
lust.

“Some people might consider there to be one,” Trev said, shooting

him a stop-being-a-smart-ass look. “Anyway, I thought you might enjoy
giving up the control a little bit.”

“Why?” He always controlled their sex because he was the dominant

partner, and frankly his body fluids and scent were so overwhelming that
asking Trev to perform mentally challenging tasks during their
engagement would’ve been cruel to the both of them.

“Because, you’re so worried about pleasing me all the time. I want

to please you for once.” Trev crossed over to one of the panels and put
his palm on the surface. “Lights, aqua spectrum.” Immediately the walls
changed colors, morphing and fading into various shades of blues and
greens. He looked to Trev, who just shrugged. “It’s supposed to be
relaxing.”

“And what am I supposed to do for this losing-control business?”

Yanai asked, intrigued. His vibrations pleased his lover so much, he
wasn’t sure why or if he would really want him to bend to his will.

“Step onto that light box behind you to start,” Trev instructed. His

lover was already excited, his blue eyes swimming with lust as his cock
firmed behind the layers of his robe. He winked at Yanai. “Feeling
adventurous, Yanai?”

He’d never really desired to be adventurous, but now, with Trev, he

felt safe enough to do so. He nodded.

“Good,” Trev rumbled, untying his waist belt before letting it slither

to the ground. “Why don’t you strip when you get on there?” It wasn’t
really a question, but Yanai appreciated the courtesy.

He stripped off his clothing in time with Trev, marveling at their

differences. Whereas Trev was a smooth swatch of pale, white skin,
Yanai was a deeper purple. He knew many who would pay a good sum
of credits just to watch the two of them join. However, he was too
jealous of a male even to share the image of his lover with someone else.

“Yanai, you’re so beautiful,” Trev breathed, looking up at him as he

let the robe fall away. Yanai had resented his beauty for a long time
because of the restrictions it placed on him, but when Trev looked at him
like that, he felt like preening. It was hard not to be at once completely
enamored by that burning gaze his human possessed.

“Don’t freak out,” Trev cautioned.
“Why would I be bothered by standing on a box?”
“It’s not the box.” Trev went over to another panel that revealed a

few devices that Yanai had never seen before. He took out the two black
discs and carried them over to where Yanai stood. “Let me see your
hands,” he instructed.

Yanai hesitated. He was wary of all this newness in their bed but

decided to trust Trev. The worst thing that could happen was that he
would be uncomfortable for a time and then simply decide that he was
done with their game. Nothing more. The decision made, he relaxed and
offered his hands to his lover.

Trev pressed the black discs to his wrists, and they immediately

melted to form a matching pair of cuffs on either wrist. Strangely enough,
Yanai liked the way they looked on his skin.

He yelped as his arms were suddenly jerked upward by some unseen

force, pinning his limbs in a V formation over his head. “What is that?”

“Anti-gravity restraint device. Cool, huh?” Trev asked, grinning.
“Not cool. Warning would have been pleasant,” Yanai griped. He

tugged at the restraints. “Why am I being trussed up like a whore?”

Trev chuckled. “It isn’t because you are a whore. You’re giving up

control, remember? Therefore, you can’t be moving whenever you want
to.”

Yanai really didn’t know if he was going to like this.
“What is that for?” he rumbled as Trev picked up the long sash of his

robe.

“This is to cover your eyes so you don’t know what is happening,”

Trev explained. His cock was so hard that pre-cum was already weeping
from his tip. “I want you to understand the pleasure you give me.”

“I take pleasure, too,” Yanai said, pulling his head out of reach when

Trev extended the blindfold. “I assure you, I understand it.”

“Please, Yanai,” Trev whispered. “Let me go here. If you don’t like

it, you never have to do it again.”

Yanai sighed. “Is this another bizarre human way of you pledging

yourself to me? Because if so, it’s unnecessary.”

“This is so you can stop being so uptight. Let me in, Yanai. You’ve

let me into your home and everywhere else. Let me into this aspect of
you as well.”

With an argument like that, it was rather hard to put up a petty

protest. “Fine,” Yanai huffed. “But if I ask you to stop, you will.”

“Of course. Kinky stuff always stops if you stop enjoying it. Got it.”
He leaned forward so Trev could secure the sash around his eyes,

cutting off the light and everything else from sight. In the darkness, he had
a moment of panic. He was essentially shackled like a prisoner and
blindfolded to boot. There was nothing to stop someone from hurting him
or, worse, hurting Trev if they came in. He’d be helpless to stop them.
Just like before.

“Baby? You okay? You’re breathing awfully hard.” Trev pulled off

the blindfold, stroking Yanai’s face with gentle hands. “What’s wrong?”

“I apologize,” Yanai said, looking away in shame. “I worry.”
Trev kissed him, forcing Yanai to look at him again. “What do you

worry about?”

“That I won’t be able to protect you,” Yanai admitted, tugging on the

cuffs for emphasis. “I’m afraid someone will come and I won’t be able
to defend you.”

“No one is going to come into our home,” Trev assured, pressing

gentle kisses all over his face. “If it bothers you that badly, we don’t
have to continue.”

“No,” Yanai protested. He wanted to do this for Trev. He also

wanted to lose control for once. The idea appealed even if it did scare
the ever-living underworld out him. “Let us continue.”

“I’ll go slow,” Trev promised. “And if at any point you feel

uncomfortable, you just let me know.”

Yanai nodded. “Very well, pet.”
“Love you.” Trev put back on the blindfold and Yanai anticipated the

sudden blackness this time around.

“Yanai?”
“Yes?”
“What happened before that has you so afraid? I saw it in your eyes

at the beach today.”

It was a blow to his ego that he hadn’t been able to conceal he knee-

jerk reaction to the incident on the beach with Aldn. He sighed. “When I

was  younger  and  arrogant,  my  friend  and  I  used  to  go  into  the  nearby
town  and  flirt  with  the  foreigners.  We  thought  we  were  very  brave  for
doing so. One night, the crowd was thicker than we anticipated, and one
of  them  got  overly  aggressive.  I  got  away,  but  my  friend  did  not.”  He
swallowed  at  the  memory,  the  fear  of  being  chased  by  a  dozen  people,
all bent on possessing him. “He was severely injured and scarred for the
rest of his days. He still lives with his parents and refuses the touch of
anyone. I accept partial blame for the situation, and I am smart enough to
realize that it could have very easily have been me that day. Therefore, I
am overly cautious.”

“But you were going to make allowances for me.” Trev seemed

touched by the idea.

“I will always make allowances for you, pet,” he whispered. “That

is the depth of my emotions for you.”

“Sometimes I think I feel so much that my body isn’t big enough to

contain the emotion,” Trev said. “I say so much to try and make you
understand it, but you do so much more with a few little actions. It kills
me. How did I get so lucky to be with the most beautiful man in the
universe?”

“Perhaps you pleased your gods.”
“Not a chance. The humans killed their gods a long time ago. Maybe

I just pleased yours.”

“That is very possible.”
They grew silent, and Yanai strained to hear what his lover was

doing as he moved from place to place in the small confines of the room.
Silence stretched on, leaving him wondering where Trev had gone.
Something sticky wrapped around his cock, and Yanai jerked at the
sensation.

“Sorry,” Trev said. “Was it cold?”
“No, pet. It just surprised me.” It was on the tip of his tongue to ask

what it was, but he figured that he would just let the rest play out. He
was starting to enjoy himself. Being restrained should’ve felt confining,
but it was actually quite relaxing. He relaxed further into the cuffs.

The sticky substance surprised him by creeping down his shaft, over

his balls, before pressing inside his unused passage. He groaned. “What
is it doing?” The part left on his shaft started vibrating, and his cock
responded by fully filling.

“I’m showing you what it’s like to fuck you,” Trev explained, a

breathless quality to his voice. “I want to watch you come undone.”

Yanai moaned again, his hips swiveling as the rest of the substance

started vibrating as well. The substance inside him moved to his internal
pleasure spots, resting against them and humming until Yanai thought he
was going to lose his mind any moment.

“What is it?”
“Eoean nano technology. I took an entire tutorial on them earlier.”
Yanai just gasped as the pulses intensified. “Are you controlling

them?”

“Of course.”
The pulses traveled up and down his cock as if a vibrating hand was

stroking him in time with the pulses that felt curiously like an internal
massage rubbed against his glands. He groaned. Was this how Trev felt
when he fucked him? The pulses were almost overwhelming in their
intensity.

“You’re so fucking hot right now,” Trev rumbled. “I want you inside

me so bad, but I don’t want to stop watching you.”

His voice was an anchor, a reassurance that Yanai was giving him

what  he  wanted,  what  he  claimed  to  need  from  him.  He  shuddered,  his
hips  jerking  forward,  fucking  the  air  because  he  felt  so  good  that  he
didn’t  know  what  else  to  do.  “Trev,”  he  chanted.  This  seemed  like  a
midnight fantasy come alive. “As you say, payback is hell.”

Trev chuckled. “I am banking on that, sugar.”
Sugar. He liked that. It was reflective of both his scent and the

sweetness that he felt for Trev. “That is my name to you.”

“Sugar? You like sugar?”
He nodded. It was becoming impossible to think at this point as the

vibrations intensified. He cursed in his language as his balls tightened.
He wanted to come in his lover. He—Realization struck. His wants were
unimportant at the moment. Trev wanted to watch him. That was all he
could do.

Internally, he smirked. Fine, pet. You want a show. I’ll give you one.

He relaxed into the cuffs completely, no longer mindful of their pull, and
instead concentrated on the sensation streaking through his body like a
lightning rod of energy. He swayed with the cadence, holding nothing
back as Trev wound him tighter.

“I’m going—pet—come,” he gasped.
“Not yet,” Trev teased, lessening the vibrations. He shivered as his

lover removed the toy from his cock and ass. He almost mourned the
loss. A clicking sound reached his ears, and he strained to identify it. All
he knew was want. He wanted so deeply that he might as well have been
swimming in it.

“Sorry, sugar. Needed something to lean on.”
Lean? Fucking. Oh yes. Please.
Something slick was spread over his vibrating length, and then he felt

the tip of his cock being enveloped in impossible heat. “Pet!”

It was Trevor’s time to groan as Yanai jerked forward, burying his

cock into the hot, tight passage of his lover’s body. He wanted to be as
gentle and as careful as he normally was, but it was impossible. He just
had to fuck, had to move. He pounded into his lover, desperately chasing
his own pleasure as the pressure inside his body grew to a fever pitch.
He was reduced to nothing but an animal in rut, and he could do nothing
but give in to the impossible desires swirling through his mind.

He wanted to grip Trevor’s hips so badly, to control the pace of their

fucking, but with the cuffs, he could not. Trev controlled his release.
Trev controlled his pleasure. And for once, that lack of control was all
right.

He finally understood what Trevor meant when he said that the

emotion was too big to express in any actions. The words burst from his
mouth. “I love you, pet! I love you!”

Trevor stiffened under him, jerking as he came. His tight passage

milked Yanai’s  length  as  he  shuddered  through  the  release. Yanai  was
past  the  point  of  no  return  as  well.  He  buried  himself  to  the  hilt  once,
twice,  three  times,  and  then  he  was  coming.  It  was  the  best  and  worst
orgasm of his life, the intensity so present that he couldn’t even make a
sound as his hips snapped once more and the agonizing release was torn
from his cock, his seed buried deep in his lover’s eager body.

For the first time in his life, his feral biting fangs dropped top and

bottom, shredding his lips. But it was a distant pain. Animal need was
all he knew, and had he been freed, he would have bitten Trevor right
then and there, wedding them forever.

“I love you,” Trevor murmured, the sound soft and so very fragile. “I

love you so much.”

The effects of Yanai’s seed hit, and Trevor writhed under him,

groaning out in renewed want. He’d never stayed inside him as he rode
out this part of their sex, but now he had no choice. He stayed buried in

Chapter Eight

A week had passed since the night in the Eoean pleasure room, and

Trev was pretty sure it was the best they’d ever had. There had been a
peace  between  them  since Yanai  had  experienced  what  Trev  had  been
experiencing  all  along.  It  was  like  he  finally  trusted  Trev  after  all  this
time.  He  touched  his  lips  for  the  fiftieth  time  since  their  good-bye  kiss
this morning.

Like any other normal couple, they parted ways after first meal to go

to  their  designated  duties  for  the  day.  Yanai  would  disappear  into  his
office, and Trev would wander to his painting spot for the day. A buyer
in  one  of  Eoean  cities  in  the  European  continent  had  paid  one  hundred
and  fifty  thousand  credits  for  the  painting  of  Tannaran,  which  was
apparently  a  lot  if Yanai’s  stunned  expression  had  been  any  indication.
So  Trev  was  doing  it  full-time  now.  It  felt  really  good  to  contribute  to
the house.

He hadn’t been back to the apartment since he’d promised Yanai that

they  would  be  together,  but  he  didn’t  really  miss  it.  His  friends  were
easily  reachable  with  a  few  presses  of  the  keys  on  the  vid-screens.
Though  the  gray  men  had  taken  Eric  to  the  Eoean  city  a  few  times  and
had stayed there. The younger man had been as excited as a puppy with a
chew  toy  when  he’d  gotten  back  weighed  down  with  trinkets  and
presents  for  everyone,  including  the  gray  men.  Or  at  least  one  in
particular. The tallest gray man and he had been talking of late, and Trev
couldn’t help but wonder if there was a romance blooming. However, he
didn’t think gray men did sexual relations outside their kind, but he could
be wrong.

The blanket he was sewing was almost complete. The gray men had

showed him how to use the handheld sewer that they’d bought at port for
him, and he only had to stuff it and seal the end and he would be done. It
wasn’t  the  prettiest  thing,  but  it  would  work  for  the  ritual.  Yanai  was
stubborn about sticking to that tradition at least, though he’d been overly
enthusiastic with his fangs a few times when they’d had sex and Trev had
been  sure  it  would  have  happened  right  that  second.  Usually  that
happened  after  Trev  said  something  to  the  effect  of  “I  love  you,  sugar”
during  intercourse.  It  drove  Yanai  absolutely  nuts.  He  grinned  at  the
thought. His big tough alien liked to be called “sugar.”

Trev settled on the patio overlooking the ocean. If it was raining, he

holed up in the room Yanai had given him for his uses, but if it wasn’t,
he liked being out here on the beach. Yanai had put a really comfortable
chair out here for him to use along with the new easel Eric had bought
for him at the market. Hours passed with him like this, and knowing that
he was making money for his art made it that much more fun.

However, he just wasn’t in the mood for it today. He pushed back

from his half-finished canvas of an Eoean and his harem for lack of a
better word that had been commissioned through the broker Yanai used.
He felt like a walk. His mind wasn’t on the colors at the moment.

Before he headed to the beach he popped his head into the kitchen

where Eric was sitting icing some cookie-looking things with one of the
gray men. He was surprised they let him help. Usually they growled at
him whenever he tried. “Hey, I’m going for a walk down the beach.
Wanna come?”

Eric brightened at the suggestion. “Sure.” He glanced up at the gray

man. “Can you finish?”

The gray man snorted. “Of course I can finish. Please, get out of my

meal-preparation chamber.”

Trev’s lips twitched. So Eric wasn’t as welcome in the kitchen as he

first appeared. “Let us know when supper is ready?”

“Last meal will be announced with an orange flag on the banister,”

the gray man rumbled. “Go.”

Eric was wearing a cutoff pair of robe undergarments like board

shorts, which was hilarious because Trev had done the same thing to
them when he’d first arrived on Tannaran. He grabbed the sun spray off
the counter and headed toward Trev. “Spray me?” He’d gotten burnt a
few days ago and was apparently not anxious to repeat the process.

Trev sprayed him down with the chemical that basically equated to

sunblock before leaving the bottle by his canvas. A quick glance at the
sky showed a cloudless atmosphere, so he wasn’t really concerned about
rain ruining his work. With nothing left to do, he turned toward the steps
that led to the beach, Eric on his heels.

“You know, I thought I would hate being a lottery winner, but this is

really awesome,” Eric said. The guy was really bubbly today, more so
than usual.

“Well, I’m glad you’re not miserable,” Trev teased. He was in a

good mood himself.

“No way! This is way better than college.”

Trev laughed. Of course it is. “Yanai said that he’ll start sending you

on dates for another owner if you want.”

“Blind dates with various aliens? Nice! But…I will pass for the time

being.” He smiled. “Is that cool?”

“It’s all good. Just let me or Yanai know if or when you want to start

meeting other people. Did you get into contact with Jack and Kelr?”
He’d pointed Eric in their direction in case he got lonely. Humans who
had been divided up in the lottery were using the network that Jack had
set up as a sort of sounding board for alien-human relationships. It was a
pretty neat system overall.

“Yeah,” Eric said, nodding. “Jack was really nice. He got me set up

with a profile, and I’ve made a few online friends on it. There is this one
guy out in some other galaxy that is in a similar position to me. The
Pressians gave him to his alien, but the guy was already married so he’s
just sort of there.”

“He’s lucky that the alien didn’t just use him for hard labor. Jack told

me that not all humans are as lucky as we are.”

The wind picked up without warning, nearly knocking Trev over

with its intensity. What the hell? He looked up and saw what had caused
the wind disturbance. It was a ship. He frowned. He’d thought most
ships didn’t dock anywhere but at the port in the Eoean cities.

“Who is that? Are we expecting visitors?” Eric asked, stepping to

his side.

“We’re never expecting visitors.” He turned back toward the house.

“Come on. Let’s go back to the house. I don’t like this.”

They made their way quickly back to the house, and Trev wasted no

time in going right to Yanai’s office. “Sugar, we have company,” he said
as he opened the door.

Yanai turned around in his office chair, a frown on his face. “Oh? Do

we know this company?”

“There is a ship. I’ve never seen them this far from port.”
“Neither have I.” Yanai pulled up the vid-screen’s menu and sent a

summons to the nearest ship, which just so happened to be parked on
their beach. “It’s Pressian,” he muttered under his breath. “What could
they want?”

“Lord!” The muffled shout was followed by the sound of breaking

glass.

Yanai’s eyes widened before he pushed up from his chair, grabbing a

long baseball-bat-looking tube from under his desk. “Stay here.”

“Yanai, no,” Trev protested, grabbing his lover’s arm. “Please,

don’t.”

“This is our home, pet. I love you.” With that he left the room,

leaving Trev clenching his jaw in the relative quiet of the house. The
sound of muffled talking in a language that Trev couldn’t identify reached
his ears. They switched to intergalactic dialect, which he’d had a tutor
course in, thank god. At least he didn’t hear any sounds of violence.

He approached the door cautiously before swiping his hand over the

panel to open it. He saw nothing in the hallway, so he continued on to the
main seating room of the house. The short, dumpy, teddy-bear-looking
things were sitting on the couch opposite Yanai. They looked smug, but
then it could’ve just been the way they looked. Trev didn’t have any fond
memories of the Pressians or their attitudes.

“Filing an independence visa violates our agreement for gifting you

the human to begin with. We are reclaiming him,” the fattest Pressian
said in a heavy-accented international dialect.

“As you can see,” Yanai said, waving to Trev. “My human is back at

my home. Besides, per the intergalactic slave exchange, by revoking
ownership, you have placed the human and all his care in my hands.
Meaning I could do what I wished with him since he’s my property.”

The Pressians made unhappy sounds in a weird trill. The fat one

spoke again. “This is our space, Yanai Musuki, and we make the rules
that govern this land. You also received another human in the lottery this
cycle. Therefore, us retrieving the one you have places no hardship on
you.”

“That would be theft,” Yanai argued. “If I had to report you to the

Council of Galaxies, I would. However, from my understanding, this is
an Eoean colony and I have broken none of their bylaws. You may have
conquered their planet, but that does not give you the right to bully them
on a new colonized planet when said planet welcomed them so
generously.” Yanai knew his shit. He was one of the smartest beings
Trev had ever met. “Shall I continue the lesson in intergalactic law?”

“They settled here only because of our generosity,” the fat Pressian

sneered. “Our laws supersede Eoean law.”

“Intergalactic law supersedes all laws made by any planet, nation,

and species in the known universes up to and including all far-
universes,” Yanai drawled.

The frown on the fat Pressian’s face deepened. “Then we will

simply seize both of your humans until such a time as this is addressed
by the Council of Galaxies. We suspect that the humans were given to
you out of error.”

Yanai snarled. “That’s outrageous.” Trev started shaking. He wasn’t

leaving. They could fucking bite him. He circled behind Yanai to stand
behind him, resting his hand on his shoulder. The gray men stood behind
him in a comforting wall, Eric sandwiched between the tallest and the
next tallest gray man.

“You’re welcome to file a complaint,” the Pressian said, a slow,

nasty grin spreading his teddy-bear face. “It would of course take ninety
Earth days to process and then between six and nine months for the
trial.”

Yanai pointed a finger at them, eyes blazing. “You will not touch

them. Either one of them.”

* * * *

Yanai had never felt such a refined rage. The only reason the

Pressians were here was because they’d heard about the sale of Trev’s
paintings. The broker had used the rarity of Trev’s species as a selling
point to clients, and now the Pressians thought they could come in and
take Trev for profit. The greedy little bastards.

“Lord?”
“If they move for their weapons, drop them.”
“Noted, lord. Are we running?”
“Out of Pressian airspace, yes.” He was not losing his lover or his

new ward just because of Pressian greed. He was going to report their
harassment of the Eoeans to the Council of Galaxies as well.

“Where are we going?”
“Home.” Tannaran was protected by a plethora of laws and restricts

on entrance of foreigners. “Once we rid ourselves of the Pressians, it
will not take a long time for the others to send more of them with
better weaponry. I want this entire house broken down and packed into
the ship in two hours’ time. Can it be done?”

“Yes, lord.” He could feel their approval of his decision.
The nearest Pressian reached for his waist, and the gray men reacted.

They leapt across the couch, sinking their teeth into the nearest body part

of each of the little invaders. Someone got a shot off, and the crackle of
the weapon shot a bolt of light to bounce around the room, causing them
all to duck before it faded.

Almost instantly, the venom in the gray men’s saliva worked their

magic. The paralytic agent would send the Pressians into a near-
comatose state for at least twelve hours.

“Holy shit!” Eric exclaimed, his eyes wide.
“Holy shit,” Trev echoed, his fearful gaze going to Yanai.
“Is everyone all right?” Yanai asked. A chorus of “fines” met him,

and he finally relaxed.

Trev’s blue eyes met his. “What are we going to do?”
“Leave. I’ll send a message to the Eoean realtor we went through to

sell the property once we have vacated the space. We’re going home.”
He paused, feeling guilty. “I am sorry we have to leave your homeland.”

The gray men straightened and spread out, no doubt to carry his

orders to pack up the house. The transport ship was parked on one of the
back fields where it had been since the gray men had delivered it when
they’d first moved in. They’d been here less than three months.

He pushed himself to his feet and rounded the couch before pulling

Trev into his arms. “I’m very sorry. But I know the Pressians. They will
not stop until they have what they want.”

“My home is with you, sugar,” Trev said into the muscle of his chest.

“It’s always been with you. I miss Tannaran. Is that where we’re going?”

Yanai nodded.
“We’re leaving Earth?” Eric squeaked. Yanai opened his mouth to

offer the boy some kind of encouragement, a promise that he would find
a way to return him here, but Eric interrupted him before he got the
chance. “That is so awesome! I’ve never been on a spaceship.” Humans
were remarkably adaptive creatures.

“You will see other galaxies,” Yanai promised, smiling despite the

harshness of the situation.

“We’re going to have to stop in one of the closer port worlds to

resupply. We will not have enough for the entire trip,” one of the gray
men reported. “We’ve enough fuel to clear out of the Pressian-controlled
sectors, but I would feel better if we could get halfway. Our food will be
the major issue. We’ll have to stop in two weeks’ time.”

“We can make it to Runa by then,” Yanai said. It was a nice port. A

bit expensive, but he could afford to stop in a luxury port.

“Runa?” Trev asked.
“One of the moons off one of the pleasure planets in the Scorpio

system. You will be able to see a luxury port before we get back home.”

“Cool,” Eric said, sounding awed. “I have no clue but pleasure

planets and luxury ports can’t be not awesome.”

“What about your job?” Trev asked. He was worrying again.
“I can continue to do my job and my original job with little difficulty

from  the  ship.  If  they  have  a  problem  with  me  working  off  world,  they
will  be  able  to  replace  me  without  pressure  since  I  will  continue  to
monitor  the  network  streams.”  It  would  be  difficult  but  not  impossible.
There  would  be  a  three-day  lag  in  communications,  but  that  was  more
than all right. It usually took him that long to respond as is due to the fact
that he was thorough.

“So it’ll be okay? We can really go home no problem?” Trev asked,

clearly needing reassurance.

Yanai pressed a kiss to his lips. “Yes, pet. So long as we clear

Eoean space, we will have no problems. Even if they issue a warrant for
us, we should be able to overturn them easily.”

“What do we need to do?” Eric asked, standing straighter.
“Help the gray men pack your things and start taking them out to the

transport.” He turned toward Trev. “Get whatever you wish to take with
you from the pleasure room.”

Trev nodded. “What about my paints and canvasses?”
“They’ll load them. I’ll pay for more supplies to be put through the

doorways when we get to Tannaran. The canvasses you have will have
to do for now. I could actually just have your broker ship supplies
through a smaller transport gate to the ship if I asked her to take it out of
your commission. We’ll see. Come, we don’t have much time.” He
paused, gripping his lover’s shoulders. “I will understand if you want to
stay.”

“Oh shut up, Yanai,” Trev said, rolling his eyes. “Stop offering to let

me leave already. We’ve already been through this. You’re mine and I’m
yours, and you just need to shut the hell up and deal with our
relationship.” He leaned up and pressed a kiss to Yanai’s cheek to take
the sting out of the words. “Now shut your mouth and start packing. We
have a whole hell of a lot to do and very little time to do it.”

Yanai did as his lover bid, feeling warm all over from his adamant

denial of his offer. He’d been happy and secure when they’d fallen into

an easy rhythm once again but had worried that any sort of stress would
break their truce again. However, Trev had just proved once again that
he  shouldn’t  underestimate  his  lover’s  resolve.  He’d  promised  that  he
was prepared to stay with Yanai through thick and thin, and now he was
proving  that  pledge.  Knowing  that  Trev  thought  of  Tannaran  as  home
also pleased him. They never should have left it but Yanai would move
galaxies to fix their relationship. Little did he know that he didn’t have
to. But he didn’t regret coming to Earth. After all, if it hadn’t been for the
journey  and  the  time  spent  on  this  planet,  he  and  Trev  might  not  have
worked through their problems.

“Lord, we will need to start moving the furniture. I am assuming you

wish to take the Eoean mattress you purchased as well as the seats. Do
you wish to take appliances as well?” the tallest gray man asked him as
he came through with a half a dozen packed gravity boxes trailing behind
him. Thank Otherworld that I bought those. They made moving so much
easier.

“Only take that which we purchased separate from the house.

Everything else can stay.” It would aid in the resale.

“What should we do with the Pressians?” another gray man asked,

eyeing the offending creatures with a look that clearly said that killing
them was a definite option.

Yanai sighed. Damn his conscience and morality code. “Restrain

them and put them in their ship. Their people will find them soon
enough.”

“Yanai,” Trev said, drawing his attention. “The rest of Eric’s robes

haven’t arrived yet.”

“I know. It’s all right. We’ll have to commission more from him

when we stop. Runa will have better cloth anyway.”

Trev nodded and went to go back down the hallway, but Yanai

couldn’t resist reaching out and grabbing his arms before stepping into
him so that Trev’s back was pressed to his front. “I love you, pet. I thank
you for all you have given me. If they should by some turn take you from
me, know that I will never stop until I have you back in my arms.”

Trev softened against him. “Don’t worry, sugar. I promise those

gummy-bear-looking motherfuckers will regret taking me from you.”

If Yanai knew nothing, he knew how stubborn his lover could be. He

did not doubt that he could do as he promised.

Chapter Nine

Two very exhausting and sweaty hours later, they were packed in the

ship and the gray men were at the helm once again. Another nine months
in  the  ship  seemed  daunting,  but  Trev  had  a  different  mindset  now.  He
was  with  the  male  he  loved  going  back  to  the  planet  he  thought  of  as
home  with  a  new  friend  in  tow,  and  that  was  a  truly  blessed  way  to
travel. Besides, Yanai had already agreed to let him wander the ship this
time out.

“We will be reaching the outer atmosphere soon,” Yanai cautioned.

“It will get a bit turbulent. I suggest the two of you sit down in the
resistance chairs for the duration.”

“When can I call Jack?” Trev asked, beelining for the black curved

chairs that would suction him in with a flick of a switch. They hadn’t
moved to Yanai’s bedroom yet, but they would when they left the
atmosphere because he needed to touch Yanai like he needed air in his
lungs.

“After we get settled and a little farther off planet,” Yanai said, his

normal calm permeating his voice. “I don’t want you to try to make a call
where they can still pinpoint the signal, just in case.”

“Holy cow. I can’t believe that happened,” Eric said, staring out the

thick window by his seat. “I can’t believe I’m actually leaving Earth. So
what were those things?”

“Pressians,” Yanai supplied, fiddling with some gadget at his seat.

“They were the ones that conquered the Eoeans’ planet and sent the
Eoeans into space as refugees. I can’t believe they still feel entitled to
harass them like that. The Council of Galaxies would never allow such a
thing.”

“They seemed like arrogant pricks,” Eric said.
Trev nodded. “They are. From what I’ve read about them, they’re

awful little things. Like evil munchkins from hell.”

“That is kind of funny,” Eric said, giggling.
“It’ll be funnier when I don’t feel the pressure of their threat on the

back of neck,” Yanai said, sitting back further into his chair. His
amethyst eyes looked troubled.

“You okay, Yanai?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never fled from a planet like a fugitive before. I

worry that I was too hasty and made a rash decision.” He rubbed a hand

over his face. “If they file charges against me, it could put the both of you
in danger.”

“You didn’t touch them, and if anything, they started it first,” Trev

argued. “Weren’t they breaking the law just by asking to take me back?”

Yanai nodded. “Yes. That’s why I wanted to leave so quickly. I

knew that if they thought they could brush the case into the dark, the
council would have little reason to interfere.”

“Then you made the right decision,” Trev said. “You did the best you

could given the situation and, honestly, I was thinking about coming back
to Tannaran anyway. It’s home.” He hadn’t mentioned anything because
Yanai  had  tried  so  hard  to  make  him  happy  by  moving  them  back  to
Earth,  but  there  was  nothing  left  for  him  there. And  with  Pressian  and
Eoean  relations  like  they  were,  it  was  a  dangerous  place  to  be  if
someone got on the Pressians’ radar.

Yanai seemed to relax at that. “Thank you, pet. You always know

what to say.”

No he definitely didn’t, but he was glad this time he’d gotten it right.

He oftentimes barreled ahead instead of considering Yanai’s feelings,
but hopefully he was getting better at it now. They would be happy
together, and that was that.

The walls of the ship had been turned on to a calming setting of a soft

blue-gray and beige, and it did its job of making the space seem more
homey than the bald gunmetal gray that they usually were unless Yanai
turned on the projection crystals to make them reflect certain colors. The
only clue that they were in a ship instead of a home was the outside view
and the smooth, black, metal floors beneath their feet.

“Lord?” one of the smaller gray men asked, coming into the open

doorway. “One of us was injured blocking the light for the little human.
We will need your assistance in the medical unit whenever we clear the
atmosphere.”

Trev’s heart skipped a beat. He might not have always gotten along

with the gray men, but he didn’t want one of them hurt by any stretch of
the imagination. “Why didn’t you say anything?” he asked.

The gray man straightened. “Our lord gave us an order, and we

always operate for the betterment of the household.”

Eric worried his bottom lip. “I’m sorry.”
The gray man actually softened his voice when he spoke to Eric. “It

is fine, little one. It is our duty and our privilege to be a part of a

Tannara home. The Pressians are at fault, and were we not better for
staying with the lord and taking care of him and his, we would have
exacted bloody revenge on them for harming one of us.”

“Can I go see who it is?” Eric asked softly.
The gray man shook his head. “No, little one. Our lord has medical

training. You do not. The sight would distress you.”

“You should have told me if one of you were injured. I thought you

guys were blocking me from seeing something,” Yanai admonished. “In
the future, if one of you is hurt, you are to tell me immediately and not
wait until the wound is incapacitating to bring it to my attention.”

“We do as we please, lord. But if it should involve you, we will let

you know,” the gray man said. Trev would normally get annoyed at this
point, but there wasn’t really a point. It was their way. They served
Yanai, but they weren’t servants. They were something else entirely,
something between family, servant, and tick.

“Please,” Eric said, drawing the gray man’s attention. “Tell the

injured party that I will visit as soon as I can and that I’m sorry.”

“I will pass on your missive.” He turned from them and disappeared

back down the hall that led to the main bridge.

Yanai cursed. “Stubborn gray men. They shouldn’t have been

working if they were injured.”

“You know they do what they want when it comes to themselves,”

Trev reminded, reaching out and giving his lover’s hand a squeeze. He
knew Yanai. He would worry about this forever if he didn’t tell him to
knock it off.

Yanai returned his hand squeeze. “I know. Still, they’re my

responsibility.”

“He couldn’t have been that badly injured if he helped pack up the

entire house and loaded it into the ship,” Trev reasoned. “It might not be
as bad as all that.”

“Gray men are fast healers. It was probably more serious than

they’re letting on,” Yanai said, sighing.

Trev pinched his hand as Eric bit his bottom lip so hard that Trev

expected to see blood at any moment.

Yanai looked up and caught a glimpse of Eric as well. “Oh. I’m

sorry, Eric. I did not mean to make you feel worse. My pet is right in that
he is most likely not critically injured. I simply feel terrible that he is in
pain.”

Trev sighed. “Not helpful,” he muttered. “Eric, gray men are tough as

nails. They’ll be okay.”

“I’ll help take care of him,” Eric pledged. “Whatever they need, I’ll

do it.” It looked like the gray men officially had a fan club member.

* * * *

After Yanai reset a bone and sewed up the injured gray man, leaving

Eric to fuss over him while the rest of the gray men returned to their
duties, he settled beside Trev on his bed. It wasn’t nearly as comfortable
as the Eoean model he’d bought, but Trevor wasn’t complaining. He
could be locked in a cell or something equally as distasteful right now.

“Is everything okay? We sped up a minute ago,” Trev said. He’d

nearly fallen in the floor when that happened, and his water bottle had
bounced under a table and only God knew where it rolled from there.

Yanai looked exhausted. “A Pressian suppression unit pursued, but I

managed to send a virus from the network onto their main system and
shut down the engines after I reset the gray man’s arm. They won’t be
bothering us.”

“How’s the gray man doing?” Trev rested his cheek on his lover’s

bare chest. He’d lost his robe when he’d come through the door, and
Trev was not complaining. He loved all of Yanai’s bare skin.

“He is well. The radiation beam cooked some muscle in his forearm

and broke the bone, but between myself and the medical unit, we were
able to patch him back together well enough. Eric is now hovering over
him. It must be a human behavior to hover over the sick like a vulture.”
Yanai yawned.

“Just showing we care,” Trev said, nipping his pectoral muscle in

protest.

Yanai chuckled. “I know. Did you reach Jack Corbet?”
“I did. He said he would get Kelr to inquire about it and help with

whatever he could. It was sad to say good-bye, but I don’t have any
regrets.” That was perhaps the strangest thing of all. He’d expected to
miss something, but he had everything he loved on this ship. It was still
weird to think that Earth was no longer home.

“Good,” Yanai rumbled. “I will put a complaint into the Council of

Galaxies in just a moment. I want to rest.”

An idea teased at the edges of Trev’s consciousness. “You have

access to all their network streams right?”

“Who? The Pressians? Yes.”
“Couldn’t you just shut down their networks? It would effectively cut

off their energy, their communication systems, and their government
buildings, right?”

Yanai stilled, his drowsy eyes widening in wakefulness. “Why

would you suggest such a thing?”

Trev shrugged. “To give the Eoeans a fighting chance. I mean, they

deserve to live free, happy lives, don’t they? I don’t think the Eoeans are
bad people, and you said yourself that they shouldn’t be able to harass
the Eoeans. I’m not saying wage a war. I’m just saying, give them a leg
up.”

Yanai tapped his chin, excitement starting to trickle into his

expression. “I couldn’t shut down their home planet. That’s forbidden in
intergalactic  law  because  it  would  leave  them  helpless.  However,  I
could  implant  a  command  in  the  streams  surrounding  Earth.  They  don’t
technically  own  Earth,  and  other  stream  controllers  have  done  similar
things in the past to ward off unwanted alien species from bothering the
planet.”  He  rolled  to  his  feet  and  padded  over  to  his  makeshift
workstation. With a touch, he brought the vid-screen to life.

He sat down at the table and began to work, leaving Trev to watch

him as he moved bits of streaming information around the screen like an
expert chess player. Trev couldn’t have told anyone the first thing about
being a “streamer” or a network stream specialist, but he could say that
his lover was one of the best the galaxies had. He could do things that
boggled the minds of his superiors, and it had always instilled Trev with
a deep sense of pride in his lover.

Long minutes later, when Trev was just about to drift off, Yanai

spoke. “This might not be a permanent solution, but it would allow the
Eoeans time to figure out a plan. I will send Kelr an encrypted message
about what we’ve done. It’ll be in Eoean hands after that.”

“You couldn’t get in trouble for this, could you?” Trev asked,

needing to be sure that what he suggested wouldn’t get Yanai thrown in
jail or whatever the alien equivalent was.

Yanai shook his head. “Not unless the Eoean government asked me to

remove it and I failed to comply. If they ask, I will, but this will give
them another option.” He pressed a button, and the screen went black.
“And it’s done.”

“You’re so sexy when you’re all nerdy and smart,” Trev teased.

“And philanthropic. It’s apparently my special-blend aphrodisiac.”

That got his lover’s attention. Yanai’s head snapped up, and his

nostrils flared. “Oh really?”

“Oh yeah. Want to see what I’m sporting underneath my robes?”

Trev asked, batting his lashes.

“I’d much rather kiss your lips for a while,” Yanai admitted as he

pushed back from the table and closed down the system. “I nearly lost
you today.”

Trev shook his head. “You didn’t even come close to losing me,

sugar. We kicked some serious Pressian ass.” Well, he amended, Yanai
and the gray men had kicked some Pressian ass.

Yanai knelt on the edge of the bed and crawled over Trev until he

was on top of him. “I could have easily lost you, pet. It was luck and the
efforts of the gray men that allowed me to save my heart from ruin.”

Aw, I love when you talk like that. He reached up and cupped his

lover’s face between his hands, forcing their eyes to meet. “I will
always come back to you, Yanai. It doesn’t matter if we spend an hour or
a month apart, I’m yours.”

Yanai, per his Tannara fashion, didn’t verbalize his gratitude. Of

course  he  didn’t  have  to.  He  bent  forward  instead  and  met  Trev’s  lips,
demanding  Trev  respond  to  the  desperate  edge  of  desire  that  he  was
expressing through his mouth. Trev’s eyes slid shut, and he clung to his
lover’s  shoulders,  loving  every  molecule  of  his  alien  master’s  being
with everything he was. The unique sugary scent that was all Yanai grew
more intense as his arousal intensified with their kiss.

However, Yanai made no move to take things to the next level. As

he’d  said,  he  seemed  much  more  interested  in  kissing  Trev  senseless,
and he was succeeding with flying colors. Yanai’s hands tangled in his
hair  as  he  licked  at  the  seams  of  Trev’s  lips,  seeking  entrance.  Trev
obliged,  allowing  him  deep  as  their  tongues  clashed  in  an  age-old
mimicry of sex.

He’d fallen in love with Yanai a year ago and had kissed him

millions of times since that moment, but every time was just as intense,
perhaps more so now. He no longer felt that his affection was one sided.
Yanai had showed him that love was expressed in all kinds of ways, and
he didn’t necessarily need the words to know that Yanai loved him.

“Pet, I love you.”

Trev groaned. Of course, it was always nice to hear the words, too.
He spread his thighs in invitation as the kiss heated up, needing to

feel his lover inside him. He babbled as much to Yanai as the male’s
scent washed over him in an olfactory invitation for something more than
kissing. He rubbed his needy body against his lover’s naked one. He
wanted to be taken, claimed. He wouldn’t accept anything less.

“Fuck me,” he begged, breaking the kiss. “Come on, Yanai. We can

sleep after. I want you inside me.”

Yanai groaned at the admission, and Trev knew he would be getting

his way. His lover spoiled him. He knew it. But he didn’t try to take
advantage of the fact even when Yanai was more than willing to let him.
He wanted to please his lover as much as he wanted to be pleased by his
lover, and he hoped that that was okay. Yanai hadn’t complained yet, but
then, he wasn’t much of a complainer.

“Let me get the oil,” Yanai rumbled against his lips, rolling to the

side before padding over to where they usually kept the oil. He dug in
the cabinetry for an endless second while Trev stroked his needy cock in
slow, teasing movements. He didn’t want to come unless it was with
Yanai. Of course he would probably come half a dozen times before he
actually got to settle down and enjoy his release, but there was no way in
fuck he was complaining. Everything about sex with Yanai was over the
top, and Trev liked it that way.

Finally, Yanai managed to find the oil and all but ran back over the

bed. A quick glance at his dripping prick showed that he was vibrating
hard already. So spoiled. I’m so fucking spoiled. How had he even
contemplated walking away from his lover? It would be like ripping his
own heart out and roasting it on a spit.

He spread wider as Yanai poured a generous amount of oil onto his

long fingers. He knew this ritual well. One of those thick digits teased
his entrance, asking permission. He just groaned and begged Yanai for
more, deeper. He gave him what he was seeking by adding another finger
to his fucking, stretching his entrance in preparation for Yanai’s cock.

“Yanai,” he gasped. He couldn’t call Yanai “sugar” during sex yet,

but it wasn’t for lack of Yanai wanting him to.

“Sugar,” Yanai corrected, adding another finger.
Trev cracked up. “Can’t.”
“Sugar,” Yanai repeated, slowing down his fingers.
He groaned, caving in. “Sugar, sugar, fuck me already!” His lover

was just this side of ridiculous, but he was so damn hot it made up for it.

Yanai chuckled, the sound low and pleased. He removed his fingers,

and a heady anticipation filled Trev. With careful hands, Yanai took his
cock and pressed it to the tight ring of muscle that guarded his entrance.
The vibration against his hole made everything inside him tremble with
want.

“Yanai, sugar, fuck, God!”
Yanai laughed at him again. “You don’t need to call me ‘God,’ pet.

Sugar will suffice.”

“Jerk,” Trev growled, squirming on the end of Yanai’s cock. “Just

fuck me.”

“Like this?” Yanai shoved his cock inside to the first ring, tearing a

yell of pleasure from the back of Trev’s throat.

“Yes!”
He pressed the rest of the way inside, the vibrations drumming so

hard against his pleasure spots that he was pretty sure he was going to
die when he came. Of course he always felt like that. Yanai always
fucked him to oblivion, and he liked it that way.

His thoughts scattered as Yanai pulled back slightly before thrusting

back inside. “Pet,” Yanai gasped, bucking into him. “I love you.” He
was getting so good at saying that during sex. So very, very good.

“Love you, too,” he murmured, thrashing back and forth.
The push and withdrawal of sex felt like it should have. He was

claimed, marked, taken in the best possible way. His lover wouldn’t lose
him because he was inside him in all ways, filling him completely with
those lovely deep thrumming vibrations. He clung to Yanai’s shoulders,
scratching him because it felt too good and he needed something to hold
onto.

Yanai growled out a warning an instant before Trev felt the hot proof

of his release bathe his insides. Their eyes met for one agonizing second
as he round out the pleasure and it was all it took. Trev was thrown
down the chasm of release, coming apart at the seams as never-ending
pleasure wrung him out.

They settled into their bed, panting in the aftermath of their sex. They

watched the stars pass in a blur as they lay in one another’s arms, secure
in their love. At last.

Epilogue

One month later: Runa

Yanai made the bed with the red-and-dark-blue blanket embroidered

with Yanai’s family crest that Trev had sewn just for today with careful
hands. He wanted everything to be perfect. He’d already scattered Runan
dream flowers in a trail from the door and lit the appropriate incense for
the ritual. The dream flowers had pale-purple blossoms that didn’t
exactly match the traditional wedding flowers of his planet but would do
nonetheless.

Though he’d wanted to wait until they returned to Tannaran to

perform this ritual, Trev had, in his stubborn way, made it quite clear
that the blanket was done and he was through waiting for Yanai to give
him his bite. Though Yanai thoroughly enjoyed the chant of “bite me, bite
me, bite me” during sex, it was too taxing on his control to be able to
resist for any sort of time.

However, the opportunity to consummate their union and wed one

another  in  the  way  of  his  people  had  arrived  in  a  most  fortuitous  way.
They’d  always  planned  to  visit  Runa  to  finish  gathering  their  supplies
before  heading  onto  Tannaran,  but  Eric’s  restlessness  had  led  to  him
asking if he could possibly, “pretty, pretty please,” stay the night in the
luxury  port  and  have  a  “authentic  alien  world  experience.”  It  had
provided the perfect cover for him to send the curious human onto port
with the gray men while he and Trev had the ship to themselves for the
night.

Trev was already out in the city, fetching what would be his wedding

attire. Apparently humans dressed up for the occasion, and since he had
nothing suitable, he had insisted on going into the port to buy something
new for the occasion. It suited him fine. It had given him ample time and
opportunity to ready their room to the romantic atmosphere he knew Trev
deserved.

Kelr was still sending him weekly updates on the Eoean situation.

Apparently, without the additional pressures of Pressians bearing down
on them every second of every day, there were major improvements
happening. Since they didn’t have to ship gobs of their technology to the
Pressians, they were making improvements, modifying them to sell to
other galaxies for a fair price instead of for free. They would be a rich

nation again so long as Yanai kept the network from being hacked by
their enemies. The Eoeans had even offered to compensate Yanai for his
travels and welcome him back to Earth for his trouble. However, he just
had no interest. He was returning to Tannaran to live away from their
conflict. He would still help them out by working for them, but he would
not endanger his beloved for anyone’s sake.

He had managed to find a bottle of Earth champagne in their things,

which was apparently also used to toast special occasions. The gray men
had bought it for their wedding shortly after they’d arrived to Earth. They
often anticipated his needs better than he did most of the time. It was just
one benefit of being a host for a group of gray men. He was just pleased
that the injuries the tallest one had incurred were all but healed. Eric had
been very diligent about his healing, and Yanai could attribute at least
some of his gray man’s quick recovery to his efforts.

The sounds of footsteps on the metal hallway sounded. The gray man

who had escorted Trev into town opened the door to his room. “Your pet
has returned. He wanted me to tell you that he is changing into his new
robes and then he will be here.”

“Are they as beautiful as he is?”
The gray man shrugged. “As beautiful as a human can be, I suppose.”
That was not helpful. But then they rarely were in matters of the

heart. The gray man disappeared door the corridor, leaving him on his
own to wait for Trev to finish changing.

“Help him if he needs it.”
“He has already threatened to remove my heart should I try ,” the

gray man said dryly.

Oh they were getting really sarcastic of late.
He poured them both some champagne in fat little cups just to have

something to do with his hands before placing the bottle back in the cold
bath. The swish of the door behind him made his heart pound.

“Did you enjoy port?” Yanai asked, trying to keep his voice steady.
“I enjoyed it okay. I think my mind was more on getting back than

enjoying the sights,” Trev rumbled from somewhere over Yanai’s
shoulder.

“Understandably.” He turned around, drinks in hand. His breath left

him at the beauty before him.

His pet stood just inside the doorway in a robe that looked like dark-

blue Earth silk with shots of silver swirls throughout. Trev reached up

and touched his hair which had been trimmed a bit. “I got a haircut while
I was there. The weird green thing gave it to me for free since I smelled
so good.”

Yanai groaned. “You probably were given free service because of

how breathtaking you are.” His lover’s dark hair complemented the shine
of the blue silk wonderfully, shining just as bright. But his eyes were
what captured him. They were the same shade as his irises.

A blush suffused Trev’s face. No matter how often he complimented

his lover’s beauty, he always reacted so innocently. “So, does it hurt?”

“Does what hurt?” he asked, unable to think of anything but how

much he wanted to strip his lover down to nothing and take him roughly
on the blanket he’d sewn.

“The feral bite. I want it, but I’m nervous.” Trev reached out and

took the cup Yanai was holding.

“I am told that the initial bite is quite painful but then, like my seed,

when my saliva is applied, there is pleasure.”

Trev shuddered. “I like that idea. A lot.” He raised his cup. “A

toast.”

“A toast?”
“Yeah,” Trev said. “It’s what you do with champagne. You wish for

things and you put up your hopes for the future. At every wedding I’ve
been to, there has been one.”

“Ah I see. We have similar rituals, but most of them involve eating

instead of drinking,” he said, echoing the movement of his lover. “Begin
and I will finish.”

Trev smiled. “To our happiness and our relationship. So that we

never doubt that we’re meant to be again and we continue to make one
another happy until we grow old and pass from this life to the next.”
They were beautiful words. “Your turn.”

“To a wonderful union for two people drawn together by

circumstances that might be fate. May our home and friends flourish
under our combined care.”

Trev’s smile widened into a grin. “I like that.” He tilted his drink up

for a sip, and Yanai did the same.

He immediately coughed as the bubbles assaulted his mouth and

nostrils. “What is that?”

“Carbonation,” Trev said, clearly laughing at him to boot.
Well, so much for being smooth. He coughed until Trev was forced

to pound on his back to aid in his spitting up the carbonation, whatever
the otherworld that was.

When he finally was able to breathe again, his lover moved in close

and the mood shifted. Lust revived in the wake of his coughing fit, and he
claimed his lover’s lips in a kiss. Trev immediately wrapped his arms
around Yanai’s neck, clinging to him as their kiss deepened.

He backed his lover toward the bed, running his hands up and down

his body as he did so. “I need you,” Yanai said. As if summoned by the
knowledge that he would be able to deliver the bite he so desperately
wanted to, his fangs dropped, elongating so far that they once again cut
his lips. He had a perpetual bloody lip since they’d done it the first time.
Once they pierced flesh, they wouldn’t do it anymore. However, until
then, he would have to live with it.

“Ready for me?” Trev asked, pushing Yanai’s shoulders until he was

forced  onto  the  mattress. Yanai  nodded,  unable  to  speak.  Trev  reached
up to untie the sash around his waist before he let the robe fall open. For
once  he  wore  nothing  underneath.  Yanai  groaned  at  the  sight,  yanking
apart  his  own  robes.  He  needed  this  to  happen  soon.  His  cock  was
already oiled and ready to go.

“So I just get on top and then you bite me?” Trev asked, slinking onto

the bed before crawling up Yanai’s body.

Yanai swallowed hard, nodded.
Trev slid up until he was just behind Yanai’s quivering erection.

“No turning back after this, huh?”

Yanai shook his head. There would be no turning back, no way to

eliminate  the  bond  between  them.  The  scar  would  always  remain,  and
the  change  of  their  marriage  would  be  felt  in  Trev’s  very  blood.  The
gray  men  were  very  excited,  but  Yanai  doubted  that  Trev  would  be
offering up his veins anytime soon.

Trev took Yanai’s cock in hand and positioned his body over it. He

gritted his teeth to keep from striking prematurely. The heat that
enveloped his cock made him moan in the back of his throat. He wanted
this.

As Trev slid down and fully seated himself on his dick, he echoed

his groan. “Jeez, you’re deeper in this position. It feels. Oh man, it feels
so good.”

“It will feel better,” Yanai said, slurring his words because of his

teeth. He didn’t even know if he was understandable at this point.

Trev bounced up and down on his lap, forcing Yanai into an even

higher sphere of pleasure. He reached up, grabbing his lover’s cock as
he rode his hips with abandon. Yanai jerked him in time with his fucking,
and his fangs slid an half an inch lower. This was it.

“Love you,” Trev gasped, his eyes rolling into the back of his head.

“Love you, Yanai.”

Yanai leaned up and opened his mouth around his lover’s chest at the

point above his heart. He lapped the area once, twice, three times before
he sank his teeth deeply top and bottom. The flesh gave way easily, a soft
pop accompanying the motion. Trev stiffened above him, a scream of
surprise issuing from his throat that ended in a whimper of pleasure.

“Yanai!” he screamed, his come erupting onto the planes of Yanai’s

abdomen. “Yanai, oh dear God, yes! Fuck! Don’t stop! God!”

The words would’ve made him chuckle if he hadn’t been so

interested in finding his own release. He slammed upward into his lover
as a deep sense of satisfaction pierced him. This is mine. This is mine,
and no other will ever touch him.

He came without warning, pouring the sticky proof of his claim into

the tight confines of his lover’s clenching ass. Another scream erupted
from Trev’s throat, and he shook so hard Yanai was afraid that he was
having some kind of seizure. Only the soft sounds of moaning in
increments kept him from being thrown from his own state of pleasure as
he came down from the most unimaginable high he’d ever experienced.
The taste of his lover alone was going to be his most potent fantasy from
now on.

Finally, his body sagged, hot relief pouring over him in a soothing

wash. He removed his fangs as Trev’s body went completely limp.
Yanai’s eyes popped open as Trev fell sideways on the bed.

“Pet? Are you well? Pet?” he asked, shaking his lover lightly.

“Trevor?” he said a bit louder. “Trevor!”

Trev’s eyes rolled a bit, a smile stretching his lips. “Holy cow,” he

whispered. “Gotta, sleep now. Love…you.” And then he was out.

Yanai chuckled. “Well, sweet dreams then, pet.” He finished

stripping them down and bundled it all in the blanket Trev had sewn for
the occasion. His lover didn’t stir as he busied himself with finishing
cleaning up.

Yanai tucked his lover underneath their regular blanket before

brushing his black hair away from his face. “You were perfection, pet,

as always.”

Trev stirred slightly. “Yanai?”
“Welcome back,” Yanai said, petting his over lightly. “How are you

feeling?”

“Good,” Trev said hoarsely. “A little sore.”
“It will ache for a while until it scars over.”
Trev grunted. “When can we do it again?”
Yanai chuckled. “That was a onetime thing. I’m sorry, pet. Tannara

only mate once in their lifetimes. My fangs will not come out again to
their mating length.”

“Aw damn. Should’ve savored that more then,” Trev said, his eyes

sliding shut once again.

“If you savored it more, you would be in a coma right now,” Yanai

teased, petting his lover more gently. “I think you enjoyed yourself
enough.”

“Did you?” Trev asked.
Yanai nodded. “The best we’ve ever had,” he promised. “But

hopefully one day we can top the experience.”

Trev chuckled. “Good luck doing that.”
Though his lover doubted him, Yanai resolved to do just that, to

work every day to love his beloved harder and better than the last. He
slipped into the bed beside him and kissed his temple. A few more
months and they would be home again. He knew that this time they both
would savor it.

THE END

WWW.JANADOWNS.COM

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jana Downs lives in the beautiful mountains of Western North

Carolina with three cats, one dog, several dozen fish, and a very
understanding partner-in-crime who hates to read but makes exceptions
for her stories.

You can usually find her either watching bad reality TV, buying way

too many books on Amazon, or dreaming up another man or two to
occupy her time because life is good but several drop-dead gorgeous
nonexistent men is just better.

For all titles by Jana Downs, please visit

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