Kei's Gift (87 page)

But Kei moved away again, and traced patterns with his tongue on Arman’s thigh. Arman relaxed—it seemed Kei was just going to lick him from head to foot...one of Kei’s hands cupped his balls and rolled them carefully, the strange but enjoyable sensation distracting Arman from Kei’s mouth—but then warm heat engulfed his cock, the sudden intense pleasure shocking, so much more than anything he could have imagined. He instinctively tried to move, whether into or away from it, he wasn’t even sure himself, but Kei’s grip was insistent, his mouth relentless.

Helpless against the rising tide of his arousal, Arman plunged his hands again into Kei’s hair, holding him tight, wanting him closer, harder...if there was even one fantasy he had, this was it and he wondered how Kei could possibly have known...and that it was
Kei
doing this, and not some faceless stranger....

His hands shook, his whole body trembled with desire, overwhelmed by the sensations of what Kei was doing to him, but also acutely aware of how Kei’s hair slipped through his fingers, of Kei’s warm body between his legs, and always, that he’d been given his heart’s desire. Finally, happiness was not just within his reach, but in his hands.

As he came with a startled cry, he found he was still holding Kei’s hair and head in a cruel grip. Mortified by his selfishness, he let him go with a murmured apology. But Kei stayed where he was, his tongue still licking and sucking Arman’s cock. Arman made him pull away, and found his lover—oh, wonderful word—smiling up at him, looking rather smug. “I didn’t mean to...did I hurt you?”

“No, you didn’t. No one’s ever done that to you before, have they?” Arman shook his head mutely, ashamed of his lack of experience, but curiously glad Kei was the first to give such a wonderful gift to him. “And was that frightening?”

Kei stood so Arman could look directly into his teasing dark eyes, his perfect mouth, the lips that were so soft but so very clever, curved into a sweet smile, “It was wonderfully frightening. Do...?” Arman was about to ask if Kei wanted him to do the same to him, but his courage failed him. He simply wouldn’t know how to begin, and he was afraid he might gag, or hurt Kei. “How can I make you feel good too?”

In answer, Kei kissed him, the same agile tongue that had just been curled around his cock now plundering his mouth, his kisses as different from Mayl’s perfunctory efforts as sand was from water. Arman could have kissed Kei all night, could have spent a year holding him and revelling in being so close to him, having so much of his beautiful body against him, and so he complained a little when Kei pulled away. “Where are you going?”

Kei stuck his tongue out a little as an impudent reply, as he went looking for something on the table near the bed, found what he wanted and triumphantly held up the pot of ointment Siv had been using for Arman’s leg massages. Something occurred to him—he took a cautious sniff of the contents before he smiled again, apparently reassured by what he’d detected. Arman’s mouth went dry again, this time from nervousness. Kei had said he and Reji used this stuff for sex...did Kei want...how could he...?

“You suddenly went petrified just then—what’s wrong?” Kei said, climbing on the bed and putting an arm around him.

“The cream...do you want me to...or...I really don’t....”

Kei put his fingers on Arman’s lips and shook his head with a smile. “No, not that, not now—it’s all new to you, and for all I know you wouldn’t even like it.”

Arman was relieved, ashamed to be so, but relieved nonetheless. “But what do you need the massage ointment for?”

“Let me show you. Sit up against the backboard. Mind your ribs.” Kei got him comfortably settled, and then sat between Arman’s legs, his back to Arman’s chest, his enormous length of hair carefully tucked out of the way. “Put your hand on me.”

“On your...?” Kei took his hand and put it firmly around Kei’s cock. It definitely felt odd to touch another man this way but to have the freedom to do this made his heart soar with pride. He gave the long cock a light upstroke and Kei wriggled appreciatively. “Like that?”

“Mmmm, but that’s why you need the ointment.” He took Arman’s hand and put some of the stuff on his fingers—it was smooth and slick, with no particular odour. “I had to check they weren’t using the tirsel leaf—that would have brought this night to a very early close,” he said with a chuckle.

“You sound as if you know this from experience.”

“Not me—Reji. If you don’t clean it off your fingers properly and then have a piss, it’s beyond painful. He had me cleaning his cock for an hour to try and get it off—it’s amazingly persistent.”

“Ouch,” Arman said in sympathy. “This is safe, I hope.”

“Yes. Now.” Kei brought Arman’s hand down to his cock again. “Try it again.”

This time, the stroking was much smoother and easier, and Kei sighed in pleasure. “Oh, gods, that’s it...just do what you’d do for yourself.” He suddenly twisted to look into Arman’s eyes with a worried expression. “You’re not such a saint that you don’t masturbate, are you?”

Arman grinned. “I’m no saint, just deprived. How do you think I keep sane?”

Kei smiled. “Oh, good—for a moment there, I was afraid you were too innocent to be real. Oh...now try this.”

Gently Kei guided him, suggesting he try this, or move that way, all the time his breathy sighs telling Arman how much he enjoyed it. Arman was astonished how much
he
was enjoying this, the feel of Kei’s cock in his hand, the smooth soft skin sliding easily under his fingers, the act both familiar and strange—the shape of Kei’s manhood was subtly different, longer but narrower than his own, a little more sensitive in some ways, and less in others. Kei caught his other hand and brought it up to one of his nipples. Arman hadn’t realised that a man could enjoy being touched in that manner, but from the way Kei moaned and wriggled, he truly did like having his nipples tweaked carefully and rolled.

This was so much more beautiful, so much more satisfying than the mockery of lovemaking he’d endured that night months ago with his wife, whose cries of pleasure had been both feigned and forced. Not like Kei who shifted in his lap like a wild thing, lost in his delight and truly wanting Arman’s hands on him, not an ounce of guile or pretence in anything he did, just pure reaction and emotion. Arman was instantly and permanently addicted to the power of making Kei lose himself in his desire and need. Who needed to command an army when the feel of his fingers and lips enslaved his whole world?

He tried to prolong it for Kei as long as he could, knowing that was what he liked best himself and guessing Kei was not so very different. He took some pride in the fact he could drive Kei quite pleasantly mad for some time, but finally Kei came with a guttural calling of his name, and a wonderful whole body shiver. Arman kept his hand loosely on him, and let Kei lie limply against him, obviously sated, obviously satisfied. He hoped it didn’t compare too badly with how Reji might have done it.

Kei lifted Arman’s sticky hand and kissed it, and then, rather to Arman’s shock, licked his own come from it. He wasn’t sure why it shocked him when Kei had swallowed Arman’s seed a few minutes before—it was partly that it would never have occurred to him that any one would ever do such a thing. But there were so many things he had no idea about.

Kei got him to rub the rest of the ointment into the skin of Kei’s stomach, and then he lay back against Arman, his contentment plain. “Are you happy?” Arman murmured against his ear.

“Yes, I am,” Kei said just as quietly. “I’ve been such a damn fool.”

“Why?”

“Because I thought it was wrong you made me feel so at peace, and yet the pain that leaving you caused me should have proved my mistake. Pain has a purpose, and in this case, its purpose was to tell me I’m an idiot.”

Arman chuckled and played idly with the strands of hair that had escaped and were hanging down Kei’s chest. “And will this heal you? You meant it, I hope, when you said that you aren’t just doing this from necessity.” He winced as Kei elbowed him—fortunately not on his injured side. “Sorry.”

“You should be. If I didn’t come to you out of necessity before, I wouldn’t come now. Yes, Bikel thinks you can heal me, but there are other parts to this problem that only time and I can deal with. My gift has altered. He doesn’t know why, and that’s something I’ll always need to watch.” He sighed. “How long are you going to be away?”

“Well, it’s eight days to Utuk and the same back—but it could be a month or more while actually in Kuprij depending on what happens.”

“Then I’ll be going with you, of course.”

Arman’s hand tightened in Kei’s hair, his contentment replaced in an instant by raw fear. “No, you aren’t.”

Kei turned around. “I wasn’t aware I’d been asking permission.”

“There might be a battle—very likely there will be—I can’t allow you to be in such danger...not after what happened to Loke...please don’t ask this.”

Kei twisted and knelt facing him, looking at him gravely. “And yet
you
can go into danger, possibly be killed. Can’t you imagine what your death will do to me? Or even just waiting here, wondering if you’ll ever come back? It would be better to slit my throat before you leave than to endure that.”

Arman’s heart stuttered in his chest at the very idea. “Kei...if anything happened to you....”

Kei put a gentle hand on Arman’s cheek. “You would have to tell yourself that it was still kinder than the alternative. Do you have to go? They can’t just carry out your plans?”

“No, they need me—I can only prepare them so much, but there’s always the unanticipated problem, not to mention the negotiations with Her Serenity. We’re going to try and minimize the fighting, but we can’t be sure there won’t be serious resistance. I can’t protect you if you go on this.”

“But...are the Rulers going?”

“Lords Meki and Peika are coming. I don’t think they’d look too kindly on my bringing my lover along.”

Kei made a face. “You forget that’s not all I am. Do you have a healer on this expedition? A soul-toucher? Who’s going to make sure your soldiers are fit and that the hostages are cared for? Some damn army medic?”

Arman wished this didn’t sound so reasonable. “No, you’re right—this is an omission, and if you’re really going to insist on coming, then I could also do with your help with the Gifted. Reis is presently being rather moody because a sailor died while he was bringing the ships in, and is talking about not going at all. We desperately need him—the other mind-mover can’t do this on his own. Do you think you could talk to him?”

“I’ll try. You forget how important this is to me too.”

Arman tugged on a lock of Kei’s hair. “No, I’ve never forgotten that. It’s not my principal reason but it’s been my principal consolation, since I never thought...that you and I....”

Kei smiled a little cheekily. “That you and I...would have sex?”

“You need a spanking,” Arman said, tugging on his hair again.

Kei pulled the lock out of his fingers. “Now don’t you start that, I’ve had enough hair pulling from Myka. Lesson one in the care and feeding of your Darshianese lover is—the hair always has to be rebraided before you and he go to bed, no matter how sleepy or tired you are.”

“Why?”

“Because your Darshianese lover doesn’t want to wake up half strangled, hair up his backside and the whole thing in an unholy tangle. You may like the look of it, but it takes as much attention as a sickly urs beast. You don’t know what you’re taking on.”

Arman grinned and pulled him closer for a kiss. “I know exactly what and who I’m taking on. I’ll braid your hair every night and every morning if I have to, because it, and you, make me happy.”

Kei nuzzled his smooth cheek against Arman’s bristly one. “Oh, if I’d known you were prepared to be my personal hairdresser, Sei Arman, I’d have been in your bed weeks ago. What a wasted opportunity,” he said with a dramatic sigh.

Arman just held him closer. “Not wasted,” he whispered.

Kei now had had the opportunity to see Arman’s sleeping face many times, but he had never seen it so happy or at peace before—he couldn’t help but be amazed how his handsome lover became even more beautiful when at peace. Only when he was like this, did it become obvious how unhappy and under stress Arman was most of the time, however well he tried to conceal it. The lines around his mouth and his eyes were the only clue. When they were gone, as now, it revealed what he looked like when he truly felt relaxed.

The sense of warmth and the relief from sadness that lying next to Arman brought were also familiar, but the lack of guilt at feeling this way was completely new. He had been released from being a hostage weeks ago, but he hadn’t felt truly free until this moment. He couldn’t stop smiling like an idiot as he looked at Arman. What a night it had been. Not the sex itself—after all, he had had his release with Reji earlier, and Reji was far more skilled than Arman, if all Kei wanted was simple sexual pleasure. What had made it something he would treasure forever, was Arman himself and his sweet, serious innocence—so inexperienced, so willing to please, and so astonished at discovering the pleasure even simple acts could bring.

It was a crime against nature, nothing less, that Arman had been denied the enjoyment of lovemaking before now. The kaleidoscope of Arman’s emotions—his joy, nervousness transmuting into raw delight, even pride at making Kei come, the wonder of discovery—had been like a drug and for the first time in months Kei had stopped cursing his gift. He even felt a little sorry for normals that they would never know what it was like to share what Arman was feeling. For once his ‘gift’ really had been just that.