A Dominion Short
Gabe
S eiran’s hand around my cock made focusing on the road difficult. I nudged it away for the twentieth time and glared at the moonless sky. He already fought the need to change. Every surge of the high-jolting power shot through him and straight into me from our focus bond. Yet he wanted to play. Had, in fact, been teasing me for hours. I suspected the playfulness from more from the lynx side than the human side, as he was still somewhat hesitant from the incidents of the past few weeks. This adventure into the forest was the first since we’d nearly been separated forever, and I hoped the opportunity to play would bring the Sei I knew back to a balance.
“Cock tease,” I growled at him when his hand worked its way back into my pants. “You’re going to make us crash. We’re almost there.”
“I can jerk you off before I change.” His voice was soft, but deep with the growling purr of the cat he would become later. His nails already began to sharpen, curling around my rock-hard erection. He was usually very good with his hands, but I didn’t think he could keep those claws from accidentally scratching sensitive flesh.
Delicately extracting him again, I said, “Later, love. We’ll have plenty of time to play in the morning. You need to run. I can feel it. I promise I’ll be right there with you.” I’ll never leave you.
He sighed heavily and flumped against the seat in frustration. His dark black hair looked like ink in the starlight. The short length was slowly regrowing, no longer irritating him enough to scratch at it. I rubbed his head and leaned over to kiss his cheek and stare into his shining sapphire eyes that glowed with the power pulsing through him. The new moon meant total freedom. And this month had been a double go for him, since it was a wolf moon. Sei called it a lynx moon, but he was biased.
Most often when he changed he became almost completely a lynx, exploring the world through the mind of the cat he became. I’d almost lost him several times in the woods since he could fit in cubbies I couldn’t dream of finding. It would not be good to lose him this time. Not when he teetered so precariously on the balance between animal and human. “Stay close to me this time, please.”
He snuggled against my side, fingers winding in my hair. The scent of his blood turning to dirt and cat made me pull off the side of the road and race to the small enclave. He didn’t have much time left before he changed. The trees swallowed us up, and the metallic scent of him baited me like the most exclusive wine.
Focus. Mate. Lover. Forever. That’s what Seiran was to me. His lynx recognized all those terms. My fingers traced patterns in the flesh of his wrist, soothing me with his presence. His hands were mostly healed, but I still worried and touched them gently.
Words weren’t enough to describe how I felt for him, how much I needed him. If he would follow me to the cabin, he’d be safe and I could breathe easier.
The hunting cabin had already been stocked with food, and Jamie would come get Sei in the morning. The distance would hurt when Sei left for the day, but once night fell again, I’d be back at his side. That daylight could still separate us was beyond irritating. But I couldn’t stop being a vampire any more than he could cease to be a witch.
He twitched and shifted restlessly in his seat. Still, he gripped my shirt like he feared leaving me. When I pulled the car to a stop, he hesitated. I got out, watching him follow, his body slinking around the car to press against me. His lips touched mine, tongue delving in to taste and duel.
We stayed together in that moment for a while, the earth shifting around us, power pulsing through him in waves that became almost suffocating. How had he ever managed this much power on his own? I could see it crushing lesser men. And Sei used to love the change, now I think he feared the total loss of himself. “I’ll take care of you. Don’t worry,” I promised him as I ran my fingers over his scalp and then down his cheeks where tears were forming.
“Love you, Gabe,” he whispered, sounding hoarse. The cat was coming to the surface whether he wanted it to or not.
“You are my breath, Seiran Rou. My life. My everything. I love you.”
He smiled impishly at me and pulled away, unable to deny the change any longer. He turned toward the heavy grouping of trees and lifted his shirt over his head. His pale skin winked at me in the moonlight in a teasing dance. Regardless of his tender height, the definition in his arms, shoulders, and waist had me dreaming of tracing that heavenly flesh. I’d never really cared for small men until I met him. But he’d reshaped my world in so many ways.
He dropped his pants and shimmied out of his bikini briefs like a skilled stripper might. That small white ass of his fit so well in my hands and I longed to grip it, hold him to me. I had to clench my fists to keep from rushing after him. No one had ever made me as hot as he did. I had to reach down and adjust myself to keep the fly of my jeans from biting into my erection. Shouldn’t have had that extra bottle of QuickLife on the way. Now my cock was ready to explode all while Sei did a sexy little hop, flinging socks through the trees toward me.
“Tease.”
“I offered you play!” he protested, as he disappeared into the cover of the trees to change.
I gathered up his discarded clothes, piling everything in a bag to be washed, and followed him farther into the tree line. He’d need a few minutes to change and get adjusted to four feet instead of two. I leaned against a tree, letting my senses still to vampire sharpness.
We’d traveled south for this adventure, where the snow hadn’t yet arrived, but the taste of it was on the wind. The chill in the air took the edge off my need, though if he had enough energy when we got home tonight, I’d have him any way I could. Maybe he’d be aggressive enough himself to turn the tables and take charge. Those moments were rare, but so worth the wait.
An owl hooted from somewhere to my left.
The sounds of the forest were a testament as to how different it was from the rest of the world. Small things moved of their own accord, plants lived and struggled for light, while animals fought only for food and shelter. A doe and her calf wandered near the distant stream. Once they caught Sei’s scent, they would likely run. He was a predator after all. But in lynx form he was little more than twenty pounds and far too small to need the meat of even the smallest foal. Usually he played with mice or chased squirrels, but waited for me to feed him since my offer was sure to be free of bones, feathers, and other unpleasant tummy troubles.
After a few minutes passed and the deer didn’t startle, I began to search for Sei. The rustle of leaves led me around for a bit until I discovered the wind just pushing them in random patterns. “Sei?”
I scanned the branches of the trees, knowing he loved to climb, but saw nothing that flashed of his brightly reflective eyes. My heart filled with dread. Searching frantically around the small cove of trees where he normally chased mice, and then the large oak he liked to race up to scare the barn owl that often roosted there brought up nothing.
So many times he’d changed and nearly been lost to us, pulled by the Earth to become the animal that was so deeply ingrained in him. My heart strained in a sluggish beat that reminded me of my old age. Vampires weren’t meant to live for several millennia.
Especially not without a mate. How I’d survived before I’d found him remained a mystery. Now I knew I could never exist without him again. The distance alone slowed me down.
I stumbled over a huge tree root that shouldn’t have tripped up any vampire. But the sting of pain when my hands smacked into a rocky ground gave me a moment of clarity.
Panicking wouldn’t help. Only finding Sei mattered. And cats were fickle creatures that came when it suited them.
Dragging in a deep breath, I leaned up against the tree and tried to focus on our bond. Distance made it harder to get exact thoughts, and the cat reduced those thoughts to nothing more than basic needs anyway. For the moment, however, he was well, and moving like all animals did at night, with happy recklessness. He had found a stream that was cold but filled with fish. He splashed around like a newborn baby.
“Sei!” I called again, glad we were farther from the road, but worried as I caught the smell of humans drifting from the west. Hikers maybe, probably not armed with more than a knife, but I really didn’t want to take my chances.
I got to my feet, feeling the ache in my bones from drinking too much synthetic blood, but I was determined to find and follow Sei until dawn arrived. Borrowing Sei’s incredible sense of smell would help. I could follow his aroma anywhere with that power of his. The trail of his sweet honey-clover scent led me in a meandering path through brush too heavy and an icy stream.
The distinctive pop of a tranquilizer gun froze me in my tracks. Who would be shooting tranqs out here? It wasn’t hunting season. I growled and put on a burst of superhuman speed to race through the woods until I reached a clearing where a pale brown SUV parked just off another thin dirt trail. The letters on the side of the truck proclaimed it to be environmental control. And the large carrier that was shoved into the back of the vehicle smelled like Seiran.
Both of the EC officers had the burly, hardened look of men who hunted often and knew how to face down a raging bear if they met one. A small lynx would hardly have been a problem. But a vampire appearing in the dark forest, chasing after them like a demon on a mission from hell would likely raise eyebrows. I knew some of the guys at EC, but not all of them, and the shoulder holsters the men wore weren’t for tranq guns. So I ducked back into the trees, memorized the plate number, and waited for them to head toward the open road.
Lynx weren’t endangered, but there wasn’t open hunting of them either. And no EC worth his badge would dare hurt the little gray cat that was Sei. It was probably more a tag and release sort of thing. Check his weight, size, and let him free just to monitor the wildlife population. It’s why I had provisions in place, knew people in unusual places. All because I had an eccentric boyfriend who turned into a cat on the new moon.
I dialed up a familiar number at the EC headquarters and waited for someone to pick up. On the third ring a strong male voice answered, “Hayden here.”
“Hayden, it’s Gabe.”
“Hey, you old bloodsucker. What the hell is going on man? Long time no talk.” Hayden sounded a lot like the valley boys in the city. All energy and extra adjectives.
“My cat has gone missing. I’m afraid one of your guys might have picked him up.”
“That odd lynx mix you told me about? Let me check with dispatch. Gray, about twenty pounds, right?”
“And sapphire eyes, yes. He slipped out of his collar.”
Hayden chuckled that pitying laugh that said he’d heard the story a thousand times. “Hold on a sec.” He disappeared from the phone for a few minutes and I made my way back to the car. Sei’s brain waves came slowly. It seemed he had been shot full of tranquilizers, but he was otherwise all right for now. A little pissed off, but he’d always been a fighter.
Then Hayden’s voice came back on the line. “We have a pair of control officers bringing him in. They were going to tag and release him farther north. If you can come identify him, we’ll get you both home sooner.”
I couldn’t help but smile with relief and wonder how Sei would have felt if he woke up with a tag in his ear and fifty miles north of the Twin Cities. “I’ll be there in an hour. Keep my boy safe.”
“Will do, G-man!” Hayden hung up.
I got in the car and pointed it back toward the city. This time I drove slowly. Sei could use a little squirm time. Maybe then he’d understand just how important it was to stay close to me on the new moon. I didn’t follow him just to ease my own paranoia, though that was a good part of it.
* * *
T he EC center had that nondescript warehouse look: all brown brick walls, few windows, and one main, heavily secured door. Government offices always had those extra precautions. I left everything but my keys and ID in the car. No need to alarm the norms when rescuing the witch in distress. I fought to keep myself from laughing at the thought and knew Sei would punch me in the arm if he found out. But his ability to make me laugh was one of the best things about him.
After getting through all the body scans and weapon checks, Hayden met me at the main animal control area. The smells permeating the area reeked of dog piss and feces. Not pleasant. But under it all, I could faintly smell Sei.
“Your boy’s in here.” Hayden led me down a long dark row of kennels all with whimpering animals in them. He flipped his dark brown hair out of his eyes and flirted at me with those long lashes that couldn’t be natural. Hayden was about as femme as I’d ever met a man. He wore nail polish and eyeliner, and though he wasn’t as pretty as Seiran, he worked hard for the many looks he got. He even rubbed my arm in a casual way that suggested he’d like to get to know me better.
Sei’s sapphire eyes peered out of the kennel at me, looking angry, possessive, and ready to kill. That look made my heart sing like a fool.
“You should really think about doing the old snip-tuck thing on him. Who knows what sort of consorting that Tom is doing out there. It’s better for their health to keep them inside too, no matter how much they want to go out.” Hayden grabbed a clipboard from the end of the kennels and began to write something down. “We can do the procedure tonight if you want. We have a doc on staff. He’ll be sleepy when it’s done, but you should be able to take him home.”
“Hmm. I don’t know,” I said, watching Sei through the kennel wire. He pressed his large paw to the grate and extended his claws as if to say You better the fuck not! I pulled a collar out of my pocket and opened the door, catching him by the scruff before he could bolt and strapping on the plain blue leather. “I’ll think about it. Just want to get him home right now.”
Hayden nodded and cupped himself. “I know what you mean, man, hard to do that sort of thing.”
Sei growled, which made me cuddle him harder while Hayden held out the board for me to sign. I scribbled on it and waved good-bye. “Thanks, Hay.”
“No prob, G-man. You know I’m here for you whenever you want.”
Sei took a swipe at him that forced me to take a quick step backward. I tapped his nose and said, “Bad kitty.”
He just glared at me, and Hayden laughed. “Feisty little guy.”
“You have no idea.” I hauled him out to the car, not letting him go until all the doors and windows were shut. He sat huddled on the floor of the passenger side while I steered us home. We would not be going back to the forest tonight. In fact, next month I’d see if Jamie could come with us to keep him herded away from incidents like this. Even EC was unlikely to mess with a full-grown bear.
“You brought this on yourself,” I told him.
He didn’t look at me. We drove in complete silence, no radio or anything other than the sound of the tires on the road. Finally once we hit the Twin Cities, I felt a tentative touch on my thigh. He had one paw on my leg, head up, eyes questioning.
“You can sit with me.”
He waited another moment before slowly making his way across to curl up in my lap, head on his paws. His soft purr was almost embarrassingly enticing because I knew it was his way of asking for forgiveness. By the time I parked in the underground parking of our building and opened the door, he was asleep in my lap.
I scooped him up, locked up the car, and headed into the underground condo. He barely stirred when I laid him in our bed and stripped the collar off him. My clothes had seen better days. Looking at them now, I realized I’d gotten them snagged on branches, torn them in some places, and stained with mud and green sludge in others.
Stripping out of the grimy clothes was easy. I even took a fast shower and pulled on some boxers and a thick comfy pair of silk socks. When I settled into the bed again, pulling the blanket up, Sei moved from his little circle at the end of the bed to burrow beneath the covers with me. His small purring body gave me that same sense of calm that rubbing his wrist usually did.
Whenever he stayed close like this, the bond that wove us so tightly together pulsed with relaxing waves. My heart beat in tandem to those pulses, his purr feeling like tiny I love yous. His large paws flexed on my arm like he was kneading my muscles. His bristly tongue stuck out slightly, and his eyes were half shut in pleasure. I laughed and kissed his nose, rubbing his ears fiercely before curling up to rest beside him.
I must have dozed because when the tingle of the morning sun rising above ground echoed through my bones, I awoke with Sei’s very human form wrapped around me like a vise. His heat pressed into my skin hot enough to brand. His kisses brushed my flesh like feathers caressing me, and his hips ground into mine with a need that had begun earlier in the evening. Normally the new moon shift zapped him of all his sexual energy. This time it appeared he wasn’t going to let anything stop him.
Excitement reverberated to my core. There was nothing sexier than when he wanted to take charge. When his passion spilled around me I could revel in the fact that I’d driven him to that brink, not by my touch, but by my existence.
So I let him do the work, his warm hand tight around me, his chest pressed to mine, his breath on my skin. Tasting the saltiness of his neck made the morning brighter. He nuzzled into me. My fangs pressed to his vein and he shuddered slightly, warning of the explosion to come.
The intensity built in my balls as he pumped me, trying to push me to the same edge on which he already teetered. As I felt that rush flood toward my spine, I sunk my teeth into the sweet flesh of his neck, feeling the warm wine of him flood my mouth as heat spewed from our cocks in unison. He writhed against me, clinging to my body, pressing his neck further into my mouth. Those long pulls on his blood made him hard again, and I took up the stroking this time, loving how he felt breathing so hard and shuddering in my arms.
He relaxed in my embrace, willing to let me designate the next session of apologetic sex of forgiveness for trivial things. I licked the wound at his neck shut, and blew on the heated flesh. He groaned and turned his head to force my lips to his. I savored the taste of him for a while. Finally he pulled away, sucking in a deep breath and exhaling the scent of us mixed together.
“You wouldn’t really have had me neutered, would you?” he asked, eyes wide and body still shaking from the aftershocks. “And what was with that Hayden guy? Have you done him?”
I laughed, loving the sound of jealousy coming from my naughty little kitten.
“Hey, what’s your deal?” he demanded, even as his body arched farther into my touch.
I shook my head. “No deal. I love you, Seiran Rou.”
“Yeah, I love you, too. But if you ever even look at that Hayden guy again, I’m going to neuter you.”