19. Kai

Something was wrong with Xiang.

Upon arriving at the grand Varik manor with its great white fa?ade and windows of golden light, noise and chaos surrounded them. Winter, Chen, Moon, and another vampire named Aiden took Fox to a private room while the rest of them strolled into a lovely library. Some of the Variks bickered. Others shouted.

Xiao Dan worked to restore the peace and get them to discuss the attack as well as what had happened to the displaced shifters. Through it all, Xiang remained standing with his arms folded over his chest and his expression bleak.

No, this could not continue. His vampire could not keep this expression on his face.

As the night wore on, Xiao Dan declared he wished to remain with the Variks to ensure their safety after the attack, but someone needed to return to the Zhang clan home to protect it and Su Ming Yu.

“We will do it!” Kai announced, his loud voice cutting through the room as soon as Xiao Dan stopped speaking. “Xiang and I will fly to the clan home and protect it. We will also keep Xiang’s jiejie safe.”

A hand landed on his arm and squeezed. Kai shifted his stance to see Xiang staring at him with a wrinkled brow and wide eyes. “What? We will?”

“Mn,” he grunted. “We must return to your home.”

His primary intention wasn’t so much to protect it, though. He had layered his own magic over the spells Moon had woven into the walls, adding an even heavier barrier. The fae would have even more trouble entering the grounds, and they definitely couldn’t do it without alerting him. No, the point of returning was to remove this worried expression from Xiang’s face, and to do that, they needed more privacy than could be found in this motley collection of bloodsuckers.

“Oh. Okay,” Xiao Dan agreed with a blink.

Kai didn’t bother to linger another moment. He took Xiang by the hand and led the vampire out of the house. As soon as they were away from the structure, he shifted and lifted Xiang onto his back. They zipped across the short distance from the Variks to the Zhang home, where Ming Yu stood in the open doorway to greet them as soon as they landed.

“Xiang, is Fox going to be okay?” she inquired, grabbing Xiang’s hands in hers.

“He will recover. He’s received blood from both Winter and Shixiong. Chen is with him now. Fox’s love for Winter combined with the ancient blood of the Zhang clan will put him right.” Xiang leaned forward and brushed a kiss to her cheek.

A sigh of relief slipped out between her lips and her slim shoulders drooped. “Good.”

“We have returned to protect you and the clan home while the others remain with the Variks throughout the day,” Kai volunteered. Ming Yu flashed him a bright smile, but his words earned him yet another questioning look from Xiang.

With the sun rising, Ming Yu retired for the day, leaving him alone with Xiang at last. However, before he could even inquire into Xiang’s problem, the vampire whipped around to face him, one finger pointing at the tip of his nose.

“All right, what’s going on with you? Why were you so eager to leave the Variks? Do you not like them?” Xiang demanded.

“I’m indifferent to the Variks. They appear to be nice enough and are good friends with your family, but I have no reason to care about them,” Kai admitted.

Xiang deflated, his hand falling to his side and his brow furrowing yet again as it faded into the same worried expression he’d worn while in the Variks’ library. “Then…why were you so interested in leaving to come back here? Are you worried about your hoard?”

“No, I’m not worried about that.” Kai took brief pleasure in being able to point at Xiang’s face the way he had moments ago.

“What?”

“You wore that same expression the entire time we were at the Variks’ home, and I don’t understand why it is there.” Kai lowered his hand to rest on Xiang’s cheek, his thumb sliding across his cheekbone. “I also didn’t think you would tell me what is troubling you while so many people surrounded us. Returning here appeared to be the best solution.”

Xiang stared at him, but he could feel the movement of his jaw muscles against his palm as he clenched his teeth. Just as he began to worry that maybe Xiang wouldn’t tell him, the vampire grabbed his wrist and pulled him down the twists and turns of the hallway until they were behind the closed door of Xiang’s private chambers.

Within the seclusion of that room, Xiang released him and started pacing across the open space, his hands balled into trembling fists at his sides.

“I…I keep seeing Winter’s expression in my mind when Fox was lying there, the blood pouring out of him. The panic. The absolute fear that gripped him. No matter how hard I try, it keeps repeating in my mind.”

“And it makes you worry about your clan mates,” Kai filled in.

Xiang spun around, his eyes wide and shimmering. “No! It makes me think of you!”

That simple declaration rendered Kai speechless. He could only watch as Xiang closed the distance between them in two long strides. His hands gripped both of his arms, digging his fingers into his flesh with enough force to bruise, but Kai couldn’t tear his gaze from Xiang’s. The worry that filled his expressive face had twisted into pure terror.

“I don’t care if you think it’s stupid; I need to hear you say that you won’t be killed like that. The fae won’t be able to hurt you like the queen did the last time. That?—”

Kai stopped Xiang’s panicked words by placing the pads of his fingers to his lips. “Stop. Breathe,” Kai commanded. He lifted his fingers and immediately replaced them as a “But” stumbled from Xiang’s tongue. “You forget. I’m a dragon. We are extremely hard to kill. I’ve lived on this earth longer than you. Longer than all the members of your clan combined. And I’m not even the oldest of my kind.”

Xiang grabbed his hand and pulled his fingers away from his lips, his eyes still attempting to peer straight into his soul. “But the last time you stood up to the queen, you barely made it back to the hoard. You could have died.”

“I was badly injured,” Kai conceded, though he hated to. “But I would have healed, even without your care. It just would have taken me longer.”

Of course, he wouldn’t have fought the queen’s magic as hard as he did if it hadn’t been for Xiang. The strange, combative vampire not only gave him a reason to fight, but there was something special there that gave him the strength to defeat the pull of the magic. He wasn’t ready to put it into words yet. Not when things still felt so fragile with Xiang. But soon.

He lifted his hand to Xiang’s jaw and caressed the stubble that grew there, loving the contrasting feel of rough hair and soft skin. “I’m not going anywhere. The fae cannot defeat me. No one can stop me. I will stay here as long as you want to keep you and your clan safe.”

For the first time in too many hours, the first hint of a smirk twisted up the left corner of Xiang’s mouth. “That sounds pretty cocky there, Mr. Dragon. Don’t you think you’re asking for trouble?”

“I was cocky when I thought no one could find my hoard, and the fae proved me wrong.” Kai’s hand slipped to circle Xiang’s throat and tightened, holding him captive. Xiang swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing by his thumb while his heartbeat fluttered against his palm. Everything about him was an enticement, pulling him in deeper and deeper in the dark swirling waters that were Xiang. “Now I have something new in my hoard that is precious to me. No one will steal it. No one will even touch it. You are mine.”

Xiang’s lips parted on a gasp, and Kai took it as an invitation.

He seized that perfect mouth, sealing them together so that Xiang’s moan could only go down Kai’s throat. The world faded away, and he lost himself to the taste of Xiang as his tongue swept through his mouth, memorizing every bit. Electricity zipped through his body, tingling along every nerve ending, as Xiang gripped his hips and pulled him in even closer. Their knees bumped and Kai widened his stance, welcoming Xiang.

This was better than anything he’d ever experienced. He was flying higher than when Huangdi pressed that sword into his hands. Better than sliding into his hoard after being away for a long period. Xiang was joy. He was soaring above the clouds on a warm summer day, the sunlight glistening along his scales.

With a groan, Xiang tore his lips away to drag his mouth along Kai’s jaw before nibbling on his neck. “I did not expect you to be so good at this.”

Kai tipped his head, giving his lover more access to his throat, relishing the scrape of fangs followed by the soft swipe of his tongue. “You thought I would be a terrible kisser?” Even as he spoke, his fingers tugged at Xiang’s still-damp T-shirt, pulling it up so he could slide his hands along smooth, chilled skin. The rain had lowered the vampire’s already sub-human temperature, but he had ways of raising it again.

Warm breath gusted across where Xiang had been kissing as a laugh escaped him. “Not bad. Just…someone who might not have a lot of practice.”

It was hard not to chuckle. Xiang was trying very hard not to say that he thought he was a virgin. Grabbing the hem of Xiang’s shirt, he ripped it over his head and tossed it aside. The damn thing was only getting in the way.

“No practice?”

“Well,” Xiang hesitated. He paused, focusing his attention on helping Kai out of his own shirt. A hiss escaped them both when their bare chests came together for the first time. Kai’s heat instantly overwhelmed Xiang’s chill, putting a flush to his cheeks.

“Well?” Kai prodded.

“Huh?” Xiang’s head snapped up, his eyes glazed over for a heartbeat before he blinked them focused. “Oh. Yeah. You don’t seem to actually like people, which makes it difficult to have sex. Unless dragons have very active sex lives with each other, and that’s something that was not covered in the old myths.”

Kai opened his mouth, ready to set Xiang straight about his previous sex life with humans and dragons, but not a single syllable left his lips. Xiang’s hand shot up and covered his mouth.

“You know what? On second thought, I’d rather not know.”

His lips parted on a grin, and he licked across Xiang’s palm. The vampire squeaked and jerked his hand away.

“I think it’s enough to know that this isn’t your first time,” Xiang continued, though there was something in his eyes that made Kai think this was more a question than a statement.

“First time? No.” He paused and smirked. “First time with a vampire? Yes. Is there anything I should know about the unique preferences of vampires?”

Xiang wrapped his arms around Kai’s neck, plunging one hand into the hair at the back of his head. He pressed, and Kai obliged, bending closer. “We bite more than most.” When he smiled, there was a hint of long, white fangs and a faint glow to his eyes that was so very intoxicating. Part of Kai longed to know what it would be like to have Xiang bite him, to know his blood was flowing into his body, extending his life.

But there was a danger too.

“Maybe we should avoid the biting this time,” Kai hedged. Muscles tensed throughout his entire body, waiting for Xiang to be displeased with this request.

His lover surprised him again by beaming at him, the fangs disappearing. “I’d never bite you without your permission. Besides, I don’t know what ancient dragon blood would do to me, and I think my clan has had enough scares.”

That was enough. No more talking.

Kai bent and swept Xiang into his arms, wringing a shocked yelp out of the man as he took the necessary two steps to reach the bed. He dropped Xiang into the center, where he bounced on the mattress. When he was settled on the covers, Xiang was naked and even more lovely than Kai had expected. Every inch of him was hard, toned muscle under sleek pale skin. A sprinkling of old scars crisscrossed his chest and left shoulder, but they told the story of a life well lived. Xiang was every bit the warrior, and every true warrior had seen tough battles in their life.

“Hey! How did you do that?” Xiang shouted as he glanced at his naked body.

“Magic,” Kai purred. He waved a hand down his own frame and his clothes disappeared before he slid into bed next to Xiang.

The vampire turned toward him and wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling him in close. “Then what took you so long?”

Kai seized his chatty mouth, tangling their tongues together so there was no more talking. Just touching and devouring. The only sounds he wanted to hear were Xiang’s ragged pants and the racing beat of his heart.

He wanted to get lost in everything that was Li Xiang. And he wanted to be everything to this man.

Fingers slid along Xiang’s chest, soaking in the silky smoothness of his skin as it rippled over bunched muscles. The pad of his thumb brushed a nipple and Xiang’s breath caught in his throat, bringing a wicked grin to Kai’s lips.

Xiang rolled Kai onto his back, their legs rubbing and flesh teasing as it pulled, but Kai would not be distracted. Digging fingers into Xiang’s plush ass, Kai held him in place as he licked across that innocent nub. He sucked and teased that bit of flesh until it hardened. A low, delicious moan rattled up Xiang’s throat and Kai shifted his attention to the neglected nipple.

“Fuck, Kai,” Xiang groaned. He shifted his hips, lining his hard cock up along Kai’s so that they rubbed together with every thrust.

Kai hissed and swore he saw stars burst in front of his eyes. How long had it been since someone had last touched him like that?

Fuck.

How long had it been since he’d last bothered to even have an orgasm?

Maybe he should have told Xiang he was a virgin. He couldn’t remember anything ever feeling this good, and they were just getting started.

He grabbed the nape of Xiang’s neck and forced the man to curl his body so he could devour his mouth. There was no getting enough. He licked deep into Xiang’s mouth, trying to learn every bit of him before moving on to other interesting places.

Except he was impatient.

He wanted all the fun parts now.

With one hand still on Xiang’s neck, he lifted the other, intending to reach between them. The vampire’s long, hard length pressed into his own, but he wanted to wrap his fingers around that cock. Learn the heft and feel of that member centimeter by sweet centimeter with his fingers and then his mouth.

Xiang never gave him the chance.

The sexy creature above him caught his wrist, stopping him from slipping even a finger between them. Forcing Kai’s hand up, Xiang slammed it on the pillow beside Kai’s head and broke off the kiss.

“Are you going to let me fuck you?” Xiang’s voice was rough and breathless, sending a wave of goose bumps through his body.

“Yes, please,” Kai begged. He tried to pull Xiang close for another round of draining kisses, but Xiang stiffened, refusing to budge.

“Really?”

“Why wouldn’t I want to feel you inside me? To have you as close as you could possibly be?” His disbelief was so strange, but he’d never been able to understand human minds. Clearly, vampires were no different, but it didn’t stop him from cherishing Xiang.

A strange noise escaped Xiang as he collapsed on top of Kai, pressing them together from shoulder to toe. “I can’t take any more of this mouth. How can you be so grumpy and sweet?”

Xiang didn’t give him a chance to answer. He sealed their mouths together in a kiss so complete, Kai thought his soul would leave his body. Fire rushed through his veins as Xiang broke off the kiss only to drag his lips along his throat, nibbling in the most toe-curling tease.

Kai squeezed his eyes shut so he could lose himself in the feel of Xiang’s mouth and hands moving over him. Every lick and touch lit tiny fires across his skin that threatened to burn him up. Gods, how could anything feel so wonderful?

The bed shifted as Xiang climbed between his legs. He was opening his eyes to see what the wicked man planned when he felt Xiang’s tongue slowly slide up his cock from root to head, breaking his brain. His toes curled into the blankets, and a curse tore from his lips as his back bowed off the mattress.

Xiang didn’t give him a chance to gather the pieces of his brain together before he was sucking his dick all the way into his throat with a loud, wet slurping sound.

The intense damp heat combined with the suction and the caress of Xiang’s nimble tongue was driving him insane. He opened his eyes and gazed down to see Xiang watching him, his beautiful lips stretched around his dick. Nothing had ever looked sexier.

Without thinking, he thrust his hips upward, fucking that mouth. A low groan rumbled up Xiang’s throat, and those dark eyes rolled into his head. The orgasm that he’d been ignoring since Xiang had first rubbed their dicks together nearly broke free. The urge to fuck Xiang’s mouth until he came was overwhelming.

But he shoved the need away. He was a greedy dragon. He wanted to feel Xiang inside him. To feel him come inside of him.

“Wait. Stop,” Kai panted. “We need?—”

Xiang pulled his mouth from Kai’s cock with a wet pop and exhaled. “Lube. Need lube.”

Kai located two brain cells that knew how to work magic and slammed them together with a single word command—lube.

A loud cackle exploded in the room from Xiang when he looked over at the nightstand where Kai was pointing. It now held a red crystal jar about the size of a pineapple, threaded with gold and encrusted with precious gems. “You dragons don’t do anything simple!”

Kai snorted. “See how well your brain works when someone is sucking on your cock.” He grabbed the container and thrust it at Xiang. “Now hurry and fuck me.”

“Yes, my dragon master,” Xiang purred, further short-circuiting the remains of Kai’s poor, fragile mind.

His lover made quick work of stretching his body, all while continuing to tease him with small bites along the inside of his thighs and kittenish licks to his dick.

It was only when Xiang pressed the head of his cock against his hole and pushed in that Kai gasped and conscious thought jump-started his partially functioning brain. His eyes snapped open, and he stared at the worry mixed with the strain lining Xiang’s face.

“Okay?” Xiang gritted out between clenched teeth.

“Fine. Okay. Don’t stop,” Kai fired at him. Pain and pleasure were blending in his body to form a potent cocktail of ecstasy. He wanted Xiang to never stop.

Xiang continued to fill him in one slow slide that shoved the air out of his lungs. Oh, Gods. To be so full. To feel so complete was heaven.

Xiang leaned forward, bracing his hands on either side of Kai’s head as he moved inside of him. The strokes started shallow, but Kai needed more. He needed Xiang deeper, harder.

Digging his heels into the mattress, he lifted his hips, meeting Xiang for every thrust until the room filled with the frantic slap of skin and their broken panting for air.

“Fuck, Kai,” Xiang groaned. “You’re going to make me lose it.”

“Not till you fuck me harder,” Kai taunted, though it was amazing he got those words out. He was hovering on the edge. The feel of Xiang’s thick cock working his ass, those dark glowing eyes almost hidden behind locks of silken hair that had fallen forward, and the occasional flash of fang as Xiang clenched his teeth on a snarl—all of it made him want to shatter.

So, naturally, Xiang threw him off the edge of that cliff. The vampire shoved upright so that his hands were free. He grabbed Kai’s ass cheeks and tilted his hips up at just the right angle so that he was hitting Kai’s prostate with every thrust.

The last of Kai’s resistance crumbled, and the world exploded. He barely got a hand wrapped around his cock and jerked himself through his orgasm. Xiang picked up his pace, fucking him through the electric bliss that saturated every nerve and cell.

As he was floating back into his body, Xiang’s strangled shout reached his ears. That amazing cock swelled in his poor ass just before a rush of something new filled him. A shiver ran through Kai’s frame and a sated sigh slipped from his lips.

Mine.

Xiang had come in him. He now possessed a small piece of his precious vampire that no one else had.

His dragon brain was still triumphantly celebrating that when Xiang’s warm, sweaty body collapsed onto his. Enough of those thoughts. His sweet lover needed tending. Wrapping his arms about Xiang, he gathered him close as he pressed light kisses to his sweaty temple and along his jaw. With a bit of magic, he returned the jar of lube to the nightstand so it couldn’t spill over and make an even bigger mess than there already was.

Xiang rubbed his cheek on Kai’s and hummed. “I’d ask if you enjoyed that, but I can feel the evidence of your enjoyment between us.”

“I am pretty sure you also made me shout,” Kai pointed out, feeling no shame whatsoever about his own cum smeared between their bodies.

His lover tipped his head up and smiled crookedly at him. “I’ve made you shout plenty of times.”

“Shout at you, maybe. This was different.” He lifted his head and stole a soft kiss that was also very different from the ones they’d shared so far. This was one was infinitely sweeter and tender. “This kind of shouting you may lift from my lips any time you wish.”

Xiang sighed. “Agreed.” He laid his head on Kai’s shoulder while one hand sneaked up to play with the sweaty hair at the base of Kai’s neck. “The sun is going to be up soon. You haven’t slept in a long time. You need to rest.”

“I will,” Kai reassured him. For now, he wanted to be content in having Xiang lying in his arms.

“Where?”

That was a curious question that gave Kai pause. Where else would he sleep but near Xiang? Was the vampire thinking of something else?

“Are you going back to your hoard? You haven’t been sleeping there much because I’ve been there.”

Oh. That was a logical idea, too.

It made sense. He should want to sleep in his hoard, stretched out in his true dragon form. Sleeping anywhere else would mean staying human.

But it didn’t sound as appealing as it should.

“Since you spent so much time sleeping in my bed, would you mind if I slept in your bed for the day?” As the words left Kai’s lips, a deep sense of peace and contentment washed through him. Even if Xiang had to patrol the house and grounds, Kai would still be close to him while in his room, wrapped in his new lover’s scent. This was a much better arrangement.

“Sounds good to me,” Xiang replied. He pressed a kiss to the underside of Kai’s jaw, and Kai swore he could feel the smile on the man’s lips.

Yes, close was better.