Not in Kansas-Kindle

by Alexander, R. G.

  “Real rooms,” the king intoned firmly, irritation flickering in his gaze. “I thank you Fenna Glider and Lenard Felix for your care in delivering this…human. It will not be forgotten.”

  They clearly didn’t want to leave him, but neither Fenna nor Lenard would question their ruler. Giving Kansas a parting embrace, they left to find their new accommodations.

  “I would believe that you were an illusion created by Z to amuse me, but even he is not this good.”

  Z sniffed. “I’ll let the insult to my abilities go since you’re royalty and I am ever your humble servant.”

  “Wise.”

  “I thought so.”

  Kansas smiled slightly at their comfortable banter, sobering when he noticed how the movement had drawn the king’s gaze to his lips. He had a sudden, wild desire to return to the watering hole. At least there he’d find some satisfaction for the arousal beating in his blood.

  “I’m no illusion,” he said instead. “That’s the only thing I’ve been sure of since I arrived.”

  He waved his hand dismissively at Kansas. “Of course not. Though you must forgive me my surprise. Storm children and storm riders are the stuff of children’s stories. Tales our parents use to teach us about offering kindness to strangers. I never once imagined they were true and yet, here you are. Why now?”

  “I have no idea.” Kansas was aware that the king and his wizard had moved closer. Having the attention of both of the sexually dynamic men had put his senses in overdrive. “One minute I was walking in an open field near my home, the next I was naked in a forest, with Fenna and Lenard standing over me. I still can’t wrap my head around it.”

  “You didn’t choose to come here of your own volition?”

  Kansas shook his head and the king licked his lips. “Then you don’t know how to return?”

  “That’s why I’m here. I was told you could help.”

  Of all the things to get distracted by, Kansas found his gaze lingering on the king’s dark nipples. Bronze and hard and pierced with silver bars. The temptation to lick them, to swirl his tongue around the piercings, was hard to resist. Emphasis on hard.

  One strong finger tapped his chin, lifting his head until he was eye to eye with the king. The passionate light in his eyes made Kansas sure he was thinking of kissing him too. Yes.

  “You’ve done the right thing, Kansas Frayne. Z is the most powerful wizard of this generation, so I’m sure he can arrange something. Eventually.”

  “Eventually?” he echoed.

  “There’s no hurry, is there? Is someone waiting for you back home?”

  “No, I mean, no one’s waiting for me. I imagine eventually my uncle might worry if I don’t answer my phone…”

  “Good. Then we have time.” The king lowered his head slowly. “I wish to learn more about this Eye-Oh-Wa. And you, Kansas. I must know everything about you.”

  “There’s not much to know,” he murmured dazedly. “I’m not that interesting.”

  “I beg to differ. But regardless, it is my duty to be thorough. It may take weeks to plum your depths and uncover your secrets. Until then you will be my…guest.”

  Oh God, yes. I’ll show you what to uncover first.

  Kansas licked his lower lip, imagining how the king would taste. His fingers itched to trace the muscles of his back, his abs. But a glimmer of movement out of the corner of his eye held him back.

  The wizard.

  He’d forgotten Z’s warning. Okay, he hadn’t forgotten, but he’d been giving it his best damn shot. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d wanted someone this badly. Not even Danny.

  Shit. Danny. Don’t forget what that asshole did to you.

  The thought of his ex broke Kansas out of his lust-induced haze. He had a proven track record of picking the wrong guy. A spoiled king from another world suddenly sounded like the same old same old.

  Say no.

  That was what Z had told him to do. If he wanted to get home, he had to deny the king. And himself in the process.

  So, definitely not a dream.

  “No.”

  The shock emanating from the king’s powerful body was tangible. Kansas watched in fascination as the strong jaw dropped in stunned disbelief. “What did you say?”

  Uh oh. Kansas took a step back, away from the king’s touch and temptation. “No? I mean, I appreciate your offer, but I can’t stay here for weeks. I don’t belong here, and I think it would be better for everyone if you sent me back as soon as possible.”

  The wizard came forward, gaze intent on the king. “Your Majesty, I believe there is a spell that might work perfectly. I’ll take him to my—”

  “Silence!”

  Kansas flinched. He couldn’t help it. The man had changed from playful charmer to intimidating ruler in the blink of an eye. Shoulders back, nostrils flaring, he addressed the wizard, his attention never leaving Kansas. “It pleases me that you know how to send him back, and I’m sure the human is relieved as well. However, I have made my decision. As I said before, I’m determined that this man will be my guest until my curiosity is satisfied. Would you deny your king?”

  The emphasis wasn’t lost on the wizard. “Of course not, Your Majesty.”

  “I’ll deny you.”

  What are you doing?

  Kansas wasn’t sure, but he’d committed himself. Hopefully Z wasn’t full of shit and his chosen one wasn’t the kind of king who liked to make statements with severed heads.

  Stop it with the heads already.

  “Fenna, Lenard and your wizard have all praised you to the moon and back, and I’m sure it’s well deserved. I was taken from my home against my will—and it’s a place where there is no king, so I hope you’ll forgive me for being blunt—but this is my life we’re talking about. I need to get back to it.”

  Kansas couldn’t believe he’d had the nerve. Neither, apparently, could the golden god standing in front of him. The one whose temple was starting to pulse as his whiskey eyes narrowed. Not in passion, but in anger.

  “As a stranger, I will allow your ignorance on this one occasion, since you may not know how dangerous it is to reject the kindness of the king. I will be blunt in return. You are in my domain with no clan to claim you and no ability to protect yourself, or return to this life of yours without aid. My aid. It will insult me, do you deny my hospitality again.”

  The king’s gaze dropped to the strained laces of his borrowed pants. “We both know you want to say yes.”

  Kansas couldn’t deny it. At least, not to himself.

  “Say yes.”

  Chapter Five

  If he ever saw Z again, the wizard was in for a world of hurt. That is, once he found a way out of these chains.

  That sham of a sorcerer must have known what the king would do when Kansas had said no for a third time. He had to have had some idea that his ruler would have him dragged away by his guards and shackled to the damn wall.

  He’d expected to be thrown into a dark, drippy dungeon. One of the cells Livania, bird bitch of the East, had wanted for Fenna. Instead he was led into the most opulent bedroom he’d ever seen and chained to the wall. Oh and stripped again, because why not?

  A few hours into his punishment, Kansas started to wonder if it had all been an elaborate hoax. What would it hurt to have spent a night or two in the royal hunk’s company? To have given in to the instant chemistry between them and finally shaken off the sexual cobwebs while waiting to grab the next tornado home?

  God knows he wanted to. Z knew he would. Which could only mean one thing.

  The wizard was hiding a huge green-eyed monster.

  Z must have the hots for the king. It was the only explanation that made sense. He’d wanted to make sure the king wasn’t distracted by his new toy, so he made Kansas into the bad guy. The uncooperative alien.

  As far as he was concerned they could have each other. No matter how seductive the packaging, the king was a tantrum-throwing child. Imprisoning an innocent man
for declining a social invitation? What did he do when someone forgot to send him a thank you card?

  He stomped over to the food-laden table a few feet away. The chain was barely long enough to reach it, and the toilet thankfully hidden behind a silk screen.

  He popped what looked like a grape into his mouth and his eyes closed on a moan. Delicious. He’d barely eaten anything since he’d arrived.

  “Is the food to your liking?”

  Frozen in the act of shoveling more of the tangy fruit into his mouth, Kansas studied the woman suspiciously. Something new. Instead of the pure golden hue of the other men and women wandering the palace, she appeared to be made of silver—from the top of her flowing hair to her bare metallic feet. The silver jumpsuit that clung to her curvy figure looked painted on.

  What was she?

  “Pleasure droid. My identification number is rather long and difficult to remember. Most people just call me Pan,” she answered the unasked question with a smile. “The wizard sent me to pleasure you. He told me I should introduce myself first to make you more comfortable, since humans weren’t blessed by the GW the way we have been.”

  “There are so many things wrong with that sentence I don’t know where to start.” Kansas dropped the fruit to rub his temples. “The wizard sent you? A female droid? To pleasure me? And what, exactly, is the GW?”

  “Do you have a headache?” She frowned, walking closer to reach for him. “You look like you need a massage. I’m programmed to give a deep tissue massage that, I’m told, is almost orgasmic.”

  She touched his shoulders and he flinched, closing his eyes when she instantly found the knot in his neck. “Oh. Okay, that feels amazing. Thank you, Pan.”

  “Of course. It’s what I was made for. The wizard said you prefer men, but that I was to pleasure you in every way I could, and to inform you that all is going according to plan.”

  A mocking snort escaped. “I’m sure he thinks so, since he’s not the one chained to a wall. What’s next on the agenda? A massage to let down my guard followed quickly by a thousand lashes with a spiked flogger?”

  Silver hands stilled. “I’m not programmed for that, but if that’s what will bring you pleasure…”

  “No.” Kansas laughed. “No, Pan. Ignore me. The massage is pleasure enough.”

  “Really?” There was skepticism in her tone. “Just a massage? Nothing more?”

  “A little information would be nice.”

  “Agreed. I find information highly pleasurable.” She began to massage his shoulders again. Damn, she was good at that. “You asked about the GW. Have you never heard of her?”

  Kansas shook his head, moaning as he lowered his elbows to the table while she dug into a particularly stubborn knot.

  “She and a few others like her helped to create this world. She was a friend to all creatures great and small. She even fought her own kind when they tried to enslave the population.”

  “She fought slavery, then created pleasure droids? That sounds…complex.”

  Pan laughed. “She didn’t create us. She aided the king’s great grandfather, the first and wisest of the Crow Warriors, in defeating a powerful enemy. In return for his aid, the GW gifted him with new life. She used her spindle and spun his flesh and those of his people into gold and infused them with a bit of her magic as well. It gave them strength, longevity and mastery over this world.”

  Kansas frowned. Spun flesh into gold?

  “One day she simply disappeared, no one’s quite sure why, and that was when they realized she’d given them one last gift—her book of knowledge. In it was a crude template that they eventually used to make us.”

  Kansas whipped around, his clanking chains reminding him of his current situation. “Wait, I’m still on that first part. She spun them into gold? What were they before?”

  When Pan pointed to an oil painting near the fireplace, Kansas blanched. No. No fucking way. “What the hell kind of twisted fairytale have I fallen into?”

  Z stepped out from the shadows. “You recognize him. How?”

  Kansas instinctively dove for the wizard. Unfortunately the chains didn’t reach that far.

  “You bastard. ‘Say no’, you said. ‘The only way to get home’?” He sneered at them both, chains rattling when he crossed his arms defiantly.

  “I’ve been slipped some kind of drug, haven’t I? You’re playing with my mind. How can he be real?” Kansas pointed to the painting. “He’s a character from a children’s story for crying out loud. The next thing you’ll tell me is the lion and the tin ma—” He looked at Pan, and swallowed hard. “How can any of this be true?”

  The king and all of his men were… He couldn’t even think it. It was like admitting he had a hard on for a bale of friggin’ hay.

  Okay, that’s beneath you.

  Z waved his hand and a cloth cover appeared to drape over the painting. “Calm down, Kansas, please. You’ll hurt yourself.”

  He stepped closer, his expression thoughtful. “Humans from Earth have been in stories our parents told us as children, as you heard the king mention. I suppose it makes sense that you would have stories of us as well.”

  Kansas shook his head wryly. “We don’t have stories about you. Him? Sure. But I’ve never read anything about horny cats, hot wizards or sex bots.”

  “Our stories didn’t mention anything about beautiful, blue-eyed men from Iowa.”

  Kansas scoffed. “Don’t try to get on my good side, Z. I’m on to your game. There’s no need to worry. I have no plans to get between you and your king.”

  Z’s smile was dark and sinful. “But that’s exactly what I want.” He glanced over Kansas’s shoulder. “Pan. Have you been in contact long enough to show him your special talent?”

  “Yes. And you were correct about his preferences as usual.” Pan walked around Kansas until he could see her clearly. She smiled. And then her body began to morph.

  “Holy shi— What is she doing?”

  “Pan was made to give you whatever you want. To be whomever you want.”

  Kansas didn’t like the sound of that. And as Pan’s silver hair disappeared from her head, her breasts turning into a broad, muscular chest, he realized where this was going. Within moments Pan had, apart from “her” distinctive color, taken on all the physical attributes of the king.

  And the king was naked.

  “Did you tell her to do this?” Did Fenna or Lenard tell Z about what the water had done?

  “He doesn’t understand, Pan.”

  Pan smiled the king’s smile at Kansas. “The wizard added a few special tweaks to our original template. One of them is the ability to sense your inner desires, who and what you most want, and then become it.”

  “Neat trick.” He was having a hard time concentrating. Seeing that body so close was affecting him. He knew it wasn’t really the king. But parts of him didn’t seem to care. And there was no hiding his reaction from the others. “Now change back.”

  Z stripped off his shirt, tossing it in a heap behind him. “Not quite yet, Kansas Frayne. Not until Pan gives you the release you’ll need to resist the real king.”

  He saw red again. “I told you I wouldn’t take what’s yours. Just send me home and you’ll never have to see me again.”

  Z walked up behind Pan and rubbed her…his…back. “You’ve gotten the wrong impression. I’m sorry you’re chained, and yes, I knew he would react exactly as he did. I also knew that he would rather die himself than hurt you, and that you’d end up here, in his bedroom, fed and readied for him.”

  Kansas raised his arms, banging his chained wrists together to make a loud clanking sound. “And what are these? Love tokens?”

  Pan stepped forward, silently gripping his wrists with the king’s hands. Z was close behind. “More than you know. He’s intrigued by you. Since you’ve denied him it’s only gotten worse. Every minute he stays away from you is a torture spent imagining you here, just like this.”

  As he spoke Pan low
ered Kansas’s arms, pressing the king’s warm, silver body against him. Pan’s newly grown cock was thick and hard, and Kansas shivered in arousal. “If this is his room, won’t he be upset to find you here with me? Like this?”

  “He’s in a meeting with his council. He can’t escape for at least another hour.”

  “Why are you doing this, Z?” Kansas arched his neck when he felt Pan’s lips press against the pulse at his throat. He moaned. “And why is it so important for me to resist him?”

  “What you truly desire and what the king desires is the same.” Pan’s deep voice vibrated against his nipples, his ribs. “Only he would never allow us to give him what he needs. He is our king. Our leader.”

  Pan knelt in front of Kansas, and Z growled at the sight. “You are different. Not under his rule. Not his responsibility. Just a man he desires. A man who can give him what he so desperately craves.”

  Kansas looked down at the image of the king eyeing his hard shaft with obvious intent. He slipped his fingers beneath Pan’s chin. “You don’t have to do this, Pan. Not for me. Not if you don’t want to.”

  Pan’s eyes widened. Lips so like the ones he’d been dying to kiss curled up in a breathtaking smile. “No one has ever said that to me before. Given me a choice.”

  Kansas frowned. “Everyone deserves a choice.”

  “I freely do this for you. I…want to.”

  He wanted it too. So much that he didn’t resist as his cock disappeared between those lush lips. Pan’s mouth was hot and wet around him. The tongue pressing against the underside of his shaft weakened his knees, causing him to stumble backwards, and his hands grappled for the wall behind him. Pan followed greedily. “Oh God.”

  “This is what you want, isn’t it? Our king on his knees for your pleasure. His body yours to command.” Z’s harsh rasp had Kansas opening his eyes. The wizard was mesmerizing. His pupils large and dark, cheekbones slashed with a dark gold rush of heat, lower lip snagged between his teeth. Z’s attention was fixed on Pan’s mouth swallowing Kansas down his throat, his hand gripping the impressive erection he’d released from his own confining pants.