A King's Ransom

by Lia Black

  "I didn't say I wasn't interested." Veyl's voice had taken on that low, seductive tone of the experienced companion that he was.

  Kaidos looked up and caught Veyl's eyes. "Are you certain you're up for this?" Kaido's breath was already coming heavier and his voice was a raspy whisper.

  Veyl's lids settled lower and his lips, plumped from the humid air, parted as he began to move closer. "Oh, I'm definitely up," he purred.

  *~*~*

  Gods, it had been so difficult to keep his mind focused on talking to Rose after Veyl's unexpected kiss. Although his body hadn't needed much more convincing with regards to Veyl's offer of sex, his conscience had. But sometime between Veyl's tongue sliding into his mouth and Kaidos' foot hitting the top stair, he'd made up his mind. He hadn't even made it to see Rose—taking a walk around the block a few times to try and focus his thoughts instead.

  He'd hoped to have some restraint—to mention it casually as they were headed out of town or perhaps after they had stopped someplace to camp for the night—but when he'd come back down to the bath chamber and seen Veyl in the bath, his wet hair trailing through the water like poured gold, he suddenly couldn't wait.

  As if there were a thread being pulled between them, Kaidos leaned in towards Veyl, his eyes sliding closed and lips parting as he anticipated the kiss. They were so close now; Kaidos could practically feel Veyl's warm breath on his lips.

  A sudden rush of water cascaded over his head, leaving him sputtering and swearing.

  "That's for telling me 'no' earlier," Veyl said with a taunting smile and returned the now empty pitcher to the step beside the tub. His smoldering eyes sparkled in challenge.

  Kaidos' immediate reaction would normally have been to respond with a punch to the face, and had Veyl been any other man, that was likely what would have happened. But Kaidos would not be sharing a bath with any other man, and frankly, after all he'd been putting Veyl through, the least he'd earned was a pitcher of water dumped over his head.

  He let out a long, slow breath and nodded as he pushed his dripping hair back from his forehead. With his eyes closed, he felt the movement of water against his abdomen as Veyl slid closer and sucked the water from his chin. Kaidos' hands moved quickly to tip Veyl's face up and he dipped his down to meet his mouth in a kiss.

  At first, Kaidos slipped into old habits--the wet, clumsy longing of his customary expression of romance--but Veyl drew back just enough to make him have to put some effort into kissing him, and soon Kaidos got the idea. He sucked Veyl's upper lip to bring him nearer, then realized how nice it felt against his tongue--how if he sucked a little harder on one spot, that it swelled more and gave him a little silvery taste of blood.

  He felt Veyl's hands on his shoulders give an involuntary squeeze, which let Kaidos know that he was doing something right, and it encouraged him to try to learn more by following Veyl's lead. He slanted his mouth over Veyl's, letting his tongue explore the delicious heat inside. He slid his hands through Veyl's long, wet hair, wrapping the silken strands around his fingers as they continued to feast on each other's mouths. Each glide of Veyl's tongue against his own, every sensation of smooth lips and hot breath, sent more blood and heat raging through Kaidos' belly until he worried he might release too soon.

  Reluctantly, Kaidos broke off his kiss and gazed into Veyl's amber eyes.

  "You're not going to be an ass again tomorrow are you?" Veyl murmured, and despite the content of the words, his tone made them sound like seduction. So much so, that Kaidos was initially confused about how to respond.

  "Yes...I mean no. No." Kaidos confirmed, shaking his head.

  Veyl smiled, sliding one hand to Kaidos' cheek, almost smooth from his recent shave.

  "Good. I'll be holding you to that." Veyl gave him a soft kiss on the lips and slid himself onto Kaidos' lap.

  Kaidos moved his arms down Veyl's smooth back, enjoying the little shiver it elicited from him as Kaidos' rough calluses rasped the unblemished skin.

  Veyl shifted in such a way that it brought their erections together underneath the water and Kaidos gasped as a spike of sensation traveled from his cock to his chest, making his heart skip a beat. Veyl rose slightly and reached back to grab the bottle of oil that Lin had left on a small shelf attached to the tub.

  "Please forgive me for my indelicacy. Normally I would be much better prepared for this situation," Veyl said as he stood up.

  Kaidos' felt his brow pinch with disappointment, certain that Veyl was finished now and getting ready to leave him to his bath alone, but then Veyl handed Kaidos the bottle of oil.

  "Would you be so kind as to pour a bit onto my fingers?"

  "Uh, sure." Kaidos uncorked the bottle and tipped a bit of its sweetly-scented contents onto Veyl's fingertips, before setting the bottle back down.

  "What are you--" Kaidos lost the capacity for words as he watched Veyl bend over and reach around behind himself. His mouth went dry when he realized what he was doing.

  "It's been a while, " Veyl sighed with flushed cheeks, "I hope you don't mind if I leave out the foreplay."

  Kaidos was just shaking his head when Veyl took his place back over Kaidos' lap and brought himself down so that Kaidos' cock was now pressed against his opening.

  "Oh..." Kaidos had no words as he realized that he was just moments away from traversing a territory that was foreign to him. "I- I've never...I mean..."

  Veyl paused and looked into his face, "You've never been inside of a man before?"

  Kaidos bit his lower lip to keep from thrusting up and impaling Veyl on his steel-hard cock beneath the water. He alternately shook and nodded his head emphatically, his expression pleading as he made fists of his hands against Veyl's back.

  A slow smile, thick as honey, spread over Veyl's sensuously flushed lips. "Well then, this will be a wonderful new experience for the both of us, Kai, and I'm flattered to be the one to share it with you."

  Veyl shifted a little, and the next thing Kaidos felt was the sensation of tight flesh yielding, encircling, and swallowing him slowly inch by inch. Veyl's eyes were closed, his head tipped up and his features a mask of concentration. Kaidos watched Veyl's expressions flash between pain and pleasure as he continued to slide down over Kaidos' cock until Kaidos felt Veyl's thighs setting down onto his. He was inside of him. Kaidos let out a low moan, his eyes rolling back in his head as he stayed still for a few moments, just feeling the velvet-slick heat of Veyl's body around him.

  "My, you're a big one..." Veyl grunted softly as he adjusted his body's weight.

  "It's so hot..." Kaidos whispered, amazed at how deliciously tight and warm the grip of Veyl's body was. When Veyl sighed and began slowly to rock his hips, Kaidos was rendered breathless. He'd never experienced anything quite so intense in his life. It was different from a woman; Veyl's body fit to him as if they were mold and casting. His oil-slicked inside was like satin enveloping his cock. Gods, what woman had ever ridden him like this? The occasional prostitutes he'd visited in the past seemed conservative in their lovemaking by comparison.

  Veyl's erection rubbed against Kaidos' belly as he moved in his lap. He threw back his head, breathing through his mouth and making soft, lusty sounds. Kaidos moved to kiss Veyl's slender golden throat.

  He wanted to taste Veyl's skin and burn the memory into his tongue. Kaidos dipped his head to catch one of Veyl's tight nipples. He mouthed it gently, then as Veyl began to grind his hips harder and moan, Kaidos took the dark bud between his lips and sucked. Beneath the water, Kaidos wrapped his trembling fingers around Veyl's hard cock, moving the soft flesh of his foreskin over the steel shaft in his grip. Kaidos raised his head again, watching the expressions on Veyl's face. Veyl pressed his hands into Kaidos' shoulders, holding onto them for leverage, and he rose up and then slammed down, finishing each hard stroke with a grind and a squeeze from his well-trained muscles inside.

  Kaidos lost himself in the incredible feeling of Veyl's body sucking him in to draw out what Kaidos knew w
ould be an explosive orgasm. He began moving his hips, raising them up in an effort to meet Veyl as he came down, pressing so deeply inside of his scorching, tight passage that he thought he might melt. Someone was making sounds; mewling, groaning, begging, desperate sounds that were muffled by the rush of blood through Kaidos' ears. Distantly, Kaidos realized that many of the noises were coming from him.

  Veyl's movements became more erratic as he came closer to orgasm, and Kaidos wasn't far behind. He thought briefly about how much he'd like to see Veyl's face when he came, but his eyes refused to remain open as the signal raced like lightning down his spine. With the next grind, Kaidos was emptying everything he had into Veyl's heated core.

  Veyl's body pitched and he gave a cry, his muscles tensing as he pulled Kaidos into his arms; Veyl's hot sheathe of muscle convulsed around him, milking him of every last drop of come. Kaidos felt the surprising heat of Veyl's climax hit his belly then dissipate through the bathwater as pearly clouds.

  They remained locked in a tight embrace, with Kaidos' head resting against Veyl's chest. He let the sound of Veyl's beating heart against his ear bring him back down to earth. Having no words for what he'd just experienced, he lifted his face to kiss Veyl's swollen lips instead, in what he hoped Veyl would understand as gratitude.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  A light Dinner

  The brothel was already getting busy by the time Veyl and Kaidos emerged from the bath chamber. They'd drained and refilled the tub because Veyl had insisted on them both getting properly cleaned. That included Veyl washing Kaidos' hair. Kaidos wasn't certain if such a thing would normally be considered erotic, or if it was Veyl who made it so. It must have been the sex, because now every move Veyl made looked like seduction.

  Kaidos insisted on carrying Veyl, who had reluctantly admitted that their encounter had left him somewhat light-headed. From Kaidos' perspective, Veyl seemed to take the entire thing in stride, as if things like this happened every day. Kaidos pressed his teeth against his tongue. Of course it would seem commonplace to Veyl because he did do it every day, multiple times a day as he'd been reminded earlier.

  There were about eight years between them in age, and living the sort of life Kaidos had lived tended to age a man in certain ways. Like senility, he'd say when thinking about the mistake he'd made with Adria. He'd misread her intentions as love and foolishly let himself be led around by his heart for a time. With Veyl there was no risk of that. They both understood that things were going to come to an end, and there was no such thing as love between captor and captive. Kaidos found that realization oddly disappointing.

  Their room was on the second floor and Kaidos carried Veyl--wrapped in a bath sheet--up the wide staircase. Men coming down were giving Kaidos covetous grins as they ogled his drowsing princess. The girls in the house had very likely been filled in by now about Veyl's sex, and he wondered briefly how their treatment of him would differ. He assumed that someday, long after Veyl was delivered to his new master, he might have need of the house's services again. The thought soured his stomach, so he put his mind elsewhere.

  Even if the house was aware of what had gone on in their bath chamber, Kaidos felt fairly certain that his cries had been drowned out by the sounds of rutting that drifted through every closed door.

  "Reeeally..." Veyl drawled, rolling his eyes as they passed another room. He snuggled into Kaidos' chest.

  Unlocking the door to their room, he carried Veyl inside and put him on the bed, barely having the energy himself to kick off his boots and lie down.

  "Just a rest," Kaidos mumbled against the pillows. Satisfying sex always left him lethargic, and it was a wonder he'd been able to carry Veyl and himself all the way up the stairs before collapsing into a heavy, dreamless sleep.

  *~*~*

  When Kaidos woke a few hours later, late afternoon had become evening and the room was dark. He had rolled to his back while sleeping and Veyl slept against him, his head resting in the crook of his shoulder. Kaidos listened to Veyl's soft breathing; his exhalations blew warm across his chest as he slept, and he wouldn't have moved if it weren't for a full bladder and empty stomach.

  Carefully, Kaidos shifted out from underneath Veyl and got out of bed to go find relief for both of his problems.

  He quietly closed down the door and went down the stairs, visiting the garderobe in the hall before heading towards the kitchen.

  "It's good to see that you've healed from your broken heart," Rose said when Kaidos walked past her open door.

  Kaidos backed up a few paces and stood in the entryway of her small office, waiting for her to lift her head from her ledger and invite him inside.

  Rose set down her quill and raised her head from her calculations, waving to an empty seat between Kaidos and her desk.

  The room had likely been a small pantry once, the space only large enough to fit two chairs and a desk with only minimal clearance on one side. There were no windows, but Rose had decorated the bare walls with curtains anyway. The flickers from the oil lamp on her desk cast shadows across their pleats that made the fabric appear to move, as if stirred by a light breeze.

  Kaidos sat down, the padded chair creaking a little under his weight.

  "I'm a bit surprised that your lover is a man." Rose's voice was not accusatory, but Kaidos squirmed just the same.

  "He's not…he's not my lover. He's a…temporary diversion." He was finding it difficult to look her in the eye when he said the words that had sounded more convincing in his head.

  "Hm," Rose raised a painted eyebrow. "That's a pity. You go well together. There is no shame in loving a man, you know…"

  "I've come to settle up my bill," Kaidos said, finally meeting her level gaze. He didn't want to acknowledge the remainder of her words, but Rose was no fool. Rose seemed to have a knack for all things related to love. She knew it when she saw it, often before the couple in question realized it themselves. But in this case, she was woefully mistaken, and Kaidos didn't want to be rude by telling her she was wrong.

  Rose took her time flipping through pages of notes. Kaidos could tell she was purposefully moving slowly. At first it aggravated him, then he let out a heavy sigh.

  "What, Rose?"

  "Hm?" Rose's eyebrows raised up high on her forehead, gathering the skin above into creases.

  Kaidos dragged his fingers through his hair and slumped into his chair, "You want to say something. You want to tell me that I don't know my heart, or that I'm fooling myself by denying that I have feelings for…him."

  Rose smiled. "Then I guess I don't have to say a word; except to tell you that you're not the only one."

  "Huh?" Kaidos let his hand drop to the arm of the chair as he suddenly felt his joints turn to rubber. She couldn't be implying that Veyl had some feelings for him, could she?

  "What you did for him when he was sick. How you cared for him. That's not something somebody gets over. You saw him at his worst, Kai—nobody gets more vulnerable than that."

  "What was I supposed to do? He needed me."

  "Right. He needed you. And you were there. You and I both know I have more experience with caring for the sick. I could have tended him—any of the other girls could have tended him--but you chose to do it. A man doesn't sit awake night and day, forgetting about himself to take care of a 'temporary diversion'."

  Somehow, even though Rose was telling him things he could have been considered too stupid to realize, she made the information seem like kind advice rather than scolding. That was one of the many things he liked about her. That and the fact that she'd bothered to tell him at all. Unfortunately, the idea that Veyl might have romantic feelings for him seemed like wishful thinking. Kaidos had kidnapped him--was planning to sell him into slavery. Yes, he'd saved his life by caring for his infected wound, but none of that would have happened had Veyl not been dragged out of Aaullsworthe against his will.

  "Don't worry about the bill. You've both more than paid your way—and your Veyl attracted a lot
of business—men just coming by to see if they could catch a glimpse. I might have to hire a few boys in the house. Seems I could have some more customers."

  "Let me just give you something for the meal I'm about to take from your cupboards, then." Kaidos smiled and stood up, dropping enough silver to more than cover their meal.

  Rose raised an eyebrow and grinned, "With this much you can even afford wine."

  Kaidos left the office and made his way to the kitchen. He put together a tray of cheese and bread, a bit of smoked fish and meat, with some cherries, grapes and a bottle of wine. This was the second time he'd done such a thing for Veyl. It wasn't for himself that he picked out the freshest cuts and only unblemished fruit.

  Kaidos paused on the staircase, closing his eyes briefly as he summoned his resolve. Now was not the time for getting wistful. Perhaps once they were out on the road again, he might have a chance to see things more clearly.

  The room was dark when he entered and Kaidos scolded himself for not remembering to light a candle at least before leaving. He stood near the door, trying to force his eyes to adjust.

  "Hey," Veyl said from the vicinity of the bed, his voice tipsy from sleep.

  "Hey," Kaidos replied, listening to the rustling of blankets as Veyl moved on the mattress.

  "I'll light a candle." Veyl walked around the bed.

  Kaidos heard the scrape of flintsteel and saw a few sparks ignite the pinch of tinder, then the room to his right side warmed with a circle of candlelight. Veyl was wearing his borrowed robe and his body stood out as a graceful silhouette through the fabric made sheer by the flame.

  Moving carefully as he tried to remember the placement of the furniture, Kaidos made his way over the the bed with the tray of food. He set it down between them as Veyl resumed his position on the bed and he joined him.

  "Lovely," Veyl smiled and Kaidos wondered if he'd imagined the sincerity he saw in Veyl's face. He was relieved by the dim lighting in the room, because when Veyl's eyes caught his own, Kaidos felt the color rise to his cheeks. Was he actually blushing? He'd never considered himself capable of such a thing.