Desolation Road

by Feehan, Christine

  “I’ve continued to read about it from a kitten’s point of view,” Scarlet said. “And I watch videos. I pride myself on always being the best for you. You’re going to have the best pet ever.”

  He punched in the new security code and stepped back to allow her to precede him so she wouldn’t notice that just her saying that could bring him to his knees. She could do that so easily with her honest, casual statements. She studied how to be a better kitten for him because she wanted to be the best pet possible. For him. How many women would do that for their man? He doubted if there were many. Most would think he was far too fucked up to bother with.

  He walked into the entryway behind her and stopped abruptly. The living room had been completely renovated. The huge glass wall facing the ocean was still there, letting in the light from the waning sun and showcasing the creeping fog as it began to move faster toward them, spreading out like an eerie gray blanket. Where the fireplace had been was a floor-to-ceiling thick glass wall filled with bubbling water that looked like a perpetual waterfall, but obviously housed something behind it.

  She took his hand and tugged. He went with her to see her lay her palm on the plate that was a golden inset into the glass. The bubbling wall slid to one side, revealing a large rectangular glass cubicle stretching out into the inner courtyard garden. All four of the walls contained those same bubbles inside the very thick glass, creating a sound barrier between the inside and the outside world.

  The floor inside the spacious room was carpeted a thick soothing gray with thin black circles. A single chair was there, clearly designed for comfort, sitting beside a small table to set books and a drink. One wall could be opened to the outside and a screen could drop down to keep insects out, or a large screened window could be utilized for cooler air.

  Beside the chair was a thick square cushion. The cushion matched the soothing colors of the carpet and was built for the long-term comfort of his pet to wait for him in silence, either curled up sleeping or head on his thigh so he could pet her or kneeling between his legs, sucking his cock. The front of the cushion simply proclaimed Yego kiska—His pussy.

  He knew Scarlet had thought to ask Lana to help her as well. The chair, the table, the cushion. That had all come with Lana’s help. The room clearly was built for one reason only. His pleasure. His solace. Scarlet knew that he would always have demons and he needed places to escape to. She already knew he would need his kiska. He didn’t have to tell her. She had removed the fireplace, a trigger for his flashbacks, and given him the gift of this space to enter when he needed somewhere quiet to go.

  It was no wonder he wanted to fall to his knees and worship her. How could he not? He couldn’t look at her, not yet. Not with his eyes burning like hell. He just stood in the middle of the room, looking around at the stark beauty. Hearing the silence. Seeing the rolling bubbles, the various shades of green in the garden in their courtyard. He looked down at the cushion beside the chair. Slowly he turned to look at Scarlet.

  His wife looked so anxious, those green eyes of hers searching his face, causing his stomach to do a slow roll and his heart to turn over. He stalked across the room to her and framed her face with both hands, leaning down to take her mouth. She even tasted like love. Like sweet fire.

  “I love you so much, moya literaturnaya ledi. You have no idea what this means to me.”

  “You like it.” She let out her breath.

  “I would never have thought of this, not in a million years. I don’t know how you did, but I’m grateful. This is going to top the library and I didn’t think anything could.”

  She gave him a little smirk. “We’re not finished yet.”

  “We’re not?” He rubbed his palm over his heart. “You’ve already given me more than anyone ever has, Scarlet. I don’t know if I can take more.”

  “They all helped. Your brothers and sisters. I couldn’t have done it without them,” she confessed. “I’d like to take all the credit, but they all helped me.”

  He knew they had to have done so, because this room alone with the extraordinary glasswork should have taken months. Scarlet took his hand and led him out of his quiet room and down the hall toward their master bedroom. He wasn’t positive what to expect, but anticipation was building fast. She opened the door and stepped back to allow him to enter. He saw one hand go up to cover her mouth, her fingers pressing tight to her lips. She really was nervous.

  He stepped inside their enormous bedroom. Like the living room, the bedroom had also been transformed. The fireplace had been removed and in its place was a floor-to-ceiling bookcase. The entire wall was taken up with the case. In front of the shelves was a solid oak desk, almost a replica of the one she sat behind at the library, only this one was much more suited to him and his fantasies.

  There was a very large space under the desk where his kiska could be hidden while he sat working late. There was a cushion on top of the desk, this one matching the color of the carpet in the bedroom, with the same Yego kiska embroidered on the front of it in flashy letters. A golden stand sat to one side of the desk holding several jeweled collars.

  The closet doors were open, and he could see that another wardrobe had been added. She took him over to it. Inside was an array of her library clothes. Her pencil skirts. The swing skirts. The prim tops. On a shelf above was an array of glasses in all colors to match the various clothing. Boots and high heels were in a separate stand beside the prim clothing.

  His woman could give him whatever he wanted, his librarian or his kiska, or, if he preferred that night, his sexy woman in her sensual lingerie.

  “I stocked the shelves with a few books I thought you’d be interested in based on what you were reading at the library,” she explained. “I also included some interesting studies on sadism, which, by the way, Savage doesn’t really fall into the true meaning of a sadist. I thought if we came at his problem from a strictly intellectual view, we might find ways to help him. You said you subtly influenced him over the years to be the way he is. Is it possible to reverse that need just as subtly?” She shrugged. “We can’t know until we try it, right?”

  “Babe.” He had to sit down. Not only had she removed one of his biggest triggers, but she was trying to find ways to help Savage even after he had really frightened her. “I’ve tried. I don’t know if it lessens for him or not, I can’t tell, and I don’t ask him because then he’d know what I was doing and it wouldn’t work.”

  “I’ve thought a lot about the things I really want as well in our relationship. Not just want from you, but need to make us work, Absinthe.” Scarlet sat on the bed. “Savage is a huge problem for you. You take on too much with him. And now there’s Destroyer adding to the mix of really ugly memories that will run around in your head. I want some assurances from you and I honestly don’t think they’re too much to ask.”

  Absinthe sank down onto the bed beside her. “You’re wearing too many clothes. You’re in our bedroom. If we’re going to have this discussion and you don’t want to be naked, we have to go somewhere else.”

  She reached down and pulled off her T-shirt. Her nipples were already hard pebbles. “I’ve waited as long as you have to come home. Remember, I’ve known what I was coming home to. Which do you want first? Librarian? Sexy wife? Kiska?”

  He’d had three weeks of his sexy wife and his librarian in the compound. He was desperate for his kitten. “I want moya malen’kiy kiska. So, talk fast. You won’t be talking for a long time.” He removed her bra and crouched down to take her shoes from her feet.

  “When Savage is having a difficult time, when any of them are, and you need to help them by influencing them the way you do, I want to be with you. I help you. You know I do. You can touch me, and it lessens the impact on you.”

  “I don’t like that you see what happened to them. It’s …” He tried to search for the right word. “Invasive. It gets in your head and it also strips away their privacy.”

  “I realize that,” Scarlet said. “I pr
obably won’t get half of what you do from them.”

  He shook his head immediately, going back on his heels. Retreating fast. “What I love most about our relationship is the absolute honesty between us, Scarlet. You know what’s real and I do too. You’ll feel their demons in your head every time. If you want this, you have to accept the consequences. If I allow it, I do as well.”

  She nodded and stood to slide the jeans down her hips and off her legs. He followed her to the shower. He stripped and joined her.

  “We’re a partnership, Absinthe,” Scarlet continued. “If you continue to take on every one of your brothers’ and sisters’ demons, and they have so many, you’re going to burn out. You know it. You have enough of your own. You need me. I take that away for you. I think my mind kind of throws it away or burns it up. I don’t have Savage’s images running around in my head anymore. I did for a few days and then they were gone.”

  Absinthe closed his eyes for a long moment, turning what she said over and over in his mind. He knew she was different than he was, that her brain worked differently. “Then yes, Scarlet, I think it’s a good idea. It would be ridiculous to turn that offer down. You’re intelligent and you know your own limitations just as I do. You’ve given me so much. This house has been transformed into something so incredible and beautiful. A place of peace. Of solace. Thank you. I love you, baby, I hope you always feel that from me in everything I say and do for you.”

  She nuzzled his neck and kissed his chest as he turned off the water. She reached for his cock, signaling she wanted to play. Absinthe closed his eyes and let her magic hands stroke and caress him before he stopped her, turning her around to face the wall. She hadn’t been his kiska for quite some time and she hadn’t forgotten what he liked. The playing. The satisfaction he received over and over from his little kitten while he petted and played with her. The caring she received at his whims. He kept one hand on the nape of her neck while his other slid down her spine to her wet cheeks.

  “My little kiska. Looks bare without her pretty bushy tail. So pale. Too white. You need color, little pussycat.” He smacked her wet cheek with his free hand, watching the color come up with satisfaction, then slid his fingers to her clit, flicking the little bud. “Come on, kiska, let’s get out now. You can crawl out. I’ll get your towel, collar and tail and meet you in the bedroom. Remember to behave yourself. I’ll be very disappointed if you’ve forgotten how to behave.”

  Absinthe left her there, nabbing a towel as he vacated the large shower, not daring to look back. His heart raced, adrenaline pouring through his veins. He had to calm himself, let the fact that he actually had his pet back with him sink in, let that bring him peace. Toweling his body off as he walked into the bedroom and took another long look around at what his wife had done to their room for him, he let himself be overwhelmed with love for her, knowing that Scarlet was a gift beyond any price.

  She got him. She knew him. She loved him without judgment, and she didn’t try to change him. She not only tried to find ways to make his life better, but she tried to find ways to enjoy the lifestyle he needed. She’d given him choices in their bedroom, all of which he loved. He went to the desk and touched the collars. By using the club members to help, and openly exposing them to what she needed help with in their bedroom, she was acknowledging that they all knew his fetish for kitten play. That excited him.

  He did want to show off his kitten occasionally. Never to outsiders, but once in a while he would like to bring her to a party, or if someone dropped by late at night for a drink and she was already out, he wouldn’t mind displaying her. She was beautiful. Gorgeous. And he was proud of her. Showing her off was a big part of playing, although he could live without that side of it if she never got there. Looking around at the cushion on the library desk and knowing about the one in the glass room, he thought perhaps she was signaling she was very close to accepting being put on display at a Torpedo Ink party.

  He drew on his silk drawstring pants, the ones that gave him room for his already hard cock to expand and allowed his little kiska to easily pull them down when she needed to get to her salty cream when she was hungry. The larger toy chest was in his closet and he took the tail he preferred, the last one she’d been wearing, the one with the fluffier fur and rubies and diamonds. The plug was a little wider and curved to accommodate the natural shape of her body for comfort, and a little longer in order to push her boundaries just a bit.

  He laid out the tail and bottle of special lubricant on the bed. He hesitated over the harness. He loved the way it looked on her body, but he also liked the way her skin looked so pristine, muscles rippling suggestively, so feline and sensual as she crawled toward him or away from him, nothing marring his view of her.

  Movement caught the corner of his eyes. Scarlet peeked around the corner of the doorway, head low to the ground, just the way a little kitten might cautiously survey a room before entering it. Every nerve ending in his body went on high alert, so aware of her and every nuance, every expression. She cocked her head from side to side, her jeweled eyes meeting his, and then she retreated fast, pulling her head back from the doorway.

  “Kiska.” He kept his voice gentle. That smooth velvet that caressed and soothed. “Come here to me now.”

  Her head slipped back around the door to study him for a moment, lashes fluttering in hesitation, and then she began that slow, sensuous crawl that was sexier than even his brain had remembered was so fucking amazing because she was even better at it. Lower to the ground, slower, almost a slow-motion freeze-frame, but not quite, still always in motion. Her hips swayed. Her breasts rocked. Her shoulders undulated as she put one hand slowly in front of her on the carpet, moving the opposite knee.

  He sank down onto the edge of the bed. Spread his legs wide and patted his lap. “Crawl up here, kiska. You look naked without your tail and collar.”

  Little droplets of water clung to her, enhancing the way the waning sun shone on her skin. Already the fog was drowning out the last of the rays, but he had always enjoyed the way the mist closed in, muffling sound around the house, turning his home into what seemed like a private estate. Now, sharing his world with Scarlet, he wouldn’t mind if they lived on a private island where no one could find them for days on end.

  Scarlet wove her body in and out of his legs just like a little cat, rubbing her head along his thigh before she crawled up onto the bed and finally stretched herself out over him, making certain her bottom lay across his lap. Feeling her tremble, he rubbed the backs of her thighs and then her buttocks.

  “You like this, malen’kiy kiska,” he soothed. “The lotion warms you. You just stay still for me.” He bent his head to press a kiss to the base of her spine. “I’ll take care of you.”

  He poured the oil into his palms and began to rub it into the backs of her thighs, moving his hands in circles, pressing deep, going up her legs to the seam under her buttocks. “Remember how good it feels to wear your tail? How stretched and full you feel? This tail fills you and vibrates. It can do so much more than that.”

  He rubbed the oil on the inside of her thighs and then between her legs, wickedly painting her clit, circling it and then fucking her gently with an oil-coated finger. He painted her pussy lips and then began to rub the oil into her cheeks, his thumbs making loops into the seam, pressing deep and pulling her cheeks apart. He pressed his thumb into the little star and poured the oil directly into that little entrance, using his thumb to press in and out and then his finger, pushing deeper and deeper. The heat was beginning to grow into something else and his little pussycat began to squirm in spite of his command not to move.

  He smacked her immediately. “If you’re a bad kitty, I’ll have to take some of your privileges away.”

  She meowed loudly when he smacked her, her little nails biting into his thigh.

  “We haven’t even started for the night,” he cautioned. “I want you to stay still, kiska. I suppose it has been a long time and your training had jus
t begun, but that isn’t any excuse. We haven’t even gotten your tail in.”

  He painted the glass base of the tail with the oil and began to insert it slowly, his cock jerking hard as he watched it disappear into that forbidden little star, preparing her for him. The furry tail rose proudly, rubies and diamonds scattered among the red fur. He loved the way it looked rising above her firm cheeks.

  “So nice, kiska.” He inserted one finger into the heat of her slick pussy, his heart already beating fast as he slowly stroked her tight little channel into need. “Kneel up, baby. I want to put your collar on you.”

  She crawled off his lap, a sensuous kitten, displaying her tail, and wound around his leg before coming to kneel in front of him. He buckled the thin gemmed collar loosely around her, not wanting her to have any reminders of their disastrous wedding night. She didn’t so much as flinch.

  “Tonight, I want to take advantage of the new room. I feel like reading for an hour or so. We’ll see how good you can be for me while I do a little relaxing.”

  Scarlet purred and rubbed her face along his thigh to show her approval. He stroked her hair, loving the feeling of peace stealing into him that always came with having his pet close.

  He couldn’t wait to use the new room in the living area. It looked like a spacious retreat, one he might need when his demons tried to get the better of him. She had designed it for quiet and calm, surrounding him with the sounds of water and nature yet giving him silence away from the outside world.

  By setting only one chair in there, Scarlet had made it clear that the room was his space and he could invite her in as his pet or he could enter alone. Their bedroom was set up to play and love in any way they chose together. The room was his, her gift to him. He wanted to get the feel of it once he was closed inside.