33. Kisano

Chapter 33

Kisano

T he sweet scent of the start of Sephen's heat clouded Kisano's senses. It made something deep inside him stir with a lust he had never experienced before. It drove him to be more daring than normal.

Kisano held his breath as he leaned forward to kiss Sephen. When he wasn't rejected, Kisano's heart soared. The kiss was sweet, unhurried, and full of tenderness as they tasted each other for the first time.

It was a perfect moment Kisano wanted to remember for the rest of his long life. His heart fluttered with the overwhelming rush of feelings for the human, who had already come to mean so much to him in such a short amount of time.

But Kisano's mind eventually caught up with him. He pulled back with a scared look, expecting Sephen to grow angry with him. "I-I apologize, Sephen. I should not have taken such an egregious liberty with you."

To Kisano's great surprise, Sephen's response was to kiss him again. This time, it was full of a passionate need, which filled Kisano with a roaring fire that seemed to burn so much brighter around Sephen.

When they parted, a charming blush graced Sephen's cheeks. "I'm sorry if I was bad. It was my first time kissing anyone."

Something inside Kisano purred at being privileged enough to claim Sephen's first kiss. It wanted all Sephen's other firsts, too. The thought startled Kisano, so he refocused himself on Sephen. "That is true for me as well. It was so much better than what the books promised."

Sephen's grin lit up Kisano's entire body. "I know exactly what you mean. But I think I need to try again because, you know, practice makes perfect."

Kisano laughed into the next kiss. He dared to delve deeper into Sephen's mouth, drowning in the taste of him. Sephen ran his tongue against Kisano's small fangs, sparking a dark desire within the shifter. The scent of Sephen's growing arousal urged Kisano to press the human against the bed, but he resisted out of respect.

It was why it came as such a shock to smell shame emanating from Sephen. Kisano drew back to look at Sephen with concern. "My apologies. I did not intend to make you feel uncomfortable."

Sephen's cheeks flushed an even deeper shade of red. "No, you have nothing to apologize for!" Sephen was quiet for a moment as he gathered his thoughts. "I remembered you were a shifter, which would mean you'd find my human scent objectionable, so…"

His need to alleviate Sephen's worries made it easier to speak freely. "Nothing could be further from the truth. In truth, I have never smelled anything so wonderful in my life."

"Really?" Sephen's shy happiness stirred a different desire in Kisano's heart.

To prove his point, Kisano earnestly kissed Sephen again. The human ended up straddled over Kisano's lap. He moaned as he ran his fingers through Kisano's long, cream-colored hair.

Kisano's heart raced from the simple touch. He whispered Sephen's name with need, sending a shudder of lust through the human. A startling image flashed through Kisano's mind of himself naked and thrusting into Sephen. The burst of arousal it inspired overwhelmed Kisano. He rested his forehead against Sephen's as he paused to collect himself. It was strange having to struggle to control himself, which had never been an issue before.

He had not expected Sephen to move his hair out of the way so he could suck on the tip of Kisano's ear. When Sephen took it between his teeth to tug on it, Kisano moaned Sephen's name. He had the human flat on his back on the bed, pinning him into place before he had even processed what he had done.

Kisano started to apologize, but Sephen pulled him down for another hungry kiss. It chased all coherent thoughts out of the shifter's mind as he drowned in the smell of the human's lust commingling with the start of his heat. His body reacted on instinct, thrusting his hardness against Sephen's answering erection. He burned with a need for more, dying to know how Sephen tasted. He licked the mage's neck, experiencing Sephen's heat scent in a new way. It drew a surprisingly feral growl from him over how divine the flavor was.

Sephen wrapped his legs around Kisano's waist as he stretched his arms back, arching his body. Something hit the floor as their bodies moved in a mimicry of a far more intimate moment.

Kisano had never been so lost in someone before. He had a powerful urge to strip Sephen out of his clothes, desperate to feel their naked skin against each other with nothing between them.

Before he could act on his instincts, a loud knock on the door caused them to freeze in their compromising position.

Another acolyte called out to Sephen. "Hey, are you going to join us for lunch?"

Sephen's voice was remarkably steady as he responded. "No, but thank you." Kisano was impressed at how Sephen could sound so polite when he was so aroused and annoyed at the interruption.

"Is everything okay?" The acolyte sounded concerned.

"Yes, very well. Please leave me to my meditations."

After the young mage left, Kisano felt free to comment. "Meditations? Is that what we were doing?"

Sephen playfully shoved Kisano's arm with a laugh. "You're lucky I could think of anything to say at all!"

The tantalizing scent of Sephen's heat inspired new feelings inside Kisano. He could scarcely believe it when he said, "It would be in poor taste to desecrate your virginal body in a temple."

"But I don't want you to stop," Sephen whimpered. He arched his hips in a bid for reconsideration.

Part of Kisano was all too willing to give in to the dark whispers urging him to accept what was being offered, but it startled him too much to continue. "It is not right," Kisano protested. He was too fearful his reaction was only in response to the temptation of the start of Sephen's heat. It would not be fair to Sephen to react that way.

Sephen tried to change his mind with another passionate kiss, rocking his arousal against the shifter's answering erection.

Things were moving too quickly for Kisano. "We must stop."

"Why?" Sephen breathlessly demanded.

"Because the things I want to do to you would have you screaming my name, alerting everyone about what we were doing," Kisano murmured. The uncharacteristic words startled him. "Sephen, my apologies for saying something so disrespectful."

"Why are you apologizing for saying something so incredibly sexy?"

The blushing, innocent look on Sephen's face made Kisano want to do things he could hardly believe he wanted. It was enough to force him to sit back to create distance between them and their desires.

Sephen sat up with a pout. "I know you're right, but my body really wants to keep going."

It made Kisano chuckle despite his discomfort at how out of character he was acting. Was it only the start of Sephen's heat scent causing Kisano to feel so strange?

"May I come back to the castle with you?" Sephen hopefully requested. His green gaze pleaded with Kisano.

The shifter had to take a deep breath to stop himself from immediately agreeing. He caressed Sephen's cheek. "There is nothing I would like more in this world, but I do not wish you to misunderstand my feelings as being present only under the sway of your heat. I never want to give you any doubt that I am merely desiring you out of a biological response."

" And you're honorable on top of it," Sephen playfully groused. "Do you really have to wonder why I think you're perfect?"

His actions had proven he was anything but. "I am far from perfect."

"You are perfect to me, which is all that matters," Sephen insisted before kissing Kisano with a tenderness that flooded the shifter with more romantic feelings.

When Kisano pulled back, he caught sight of a book that had fallen to the floor earlier. He leaned over to pick it up, surprised to see it was one of his own. "Do you really keep my book under your pillow?"

"I was reading it when Auslin came in to tell me the truth. Then you arrived so suddenly, so…" Sephen's embarrassment was adorable.

It drew Kisano's attention to the bookshelves in the room, which were stuffed full of books, most of which were his. "I do not know why I am so surprised to discover you were not exaggerating about your collection of Reskin and Liros books."

"I know mages are supposed to lead austere lives free of the desire for worldly possessions, but being able to hold their words means more to me than any religious tenet."

Sephen's earnest confession moved Kisano's heart. Despite knowing he should resist, he gave in to yet another kiss, unable to pull himself away from temptation.