Tears of the Neko (27 page)

Damien handed Kayden the cup to rinse with,
not wanting to risk getting water in his ears again. After he had
rinsed his hair, Damien noticed that Kayden had slipped a little
farther back towards him, Damien's knees hugging the boy's
hips.

Damien let his finger trail over the boy's
back. He leaned forward, hands caressing the still bony shoulders,
as he kissed the boy's shoulder blade.

He held out the hand with the soap in front
of Kayden, offering it to him to finish washing. It was several
seconds before he felt Kayden's hand on his. But instead of taking
the soap, he felt Kayden press his hand to his chest.

Damien smiled against the warm skin under his
lips. As his hand moved over the thin chest, Damien could feel
Kayden's heart beating wildly. He slowly urged Kayden to lay back
against his chest. For a second, Kayden froze, and Damien realized
that the boy could feel Damien's hardness pressing against his
lower back. Damien just held still, loosening his arm in case
Kayden needed to escape. He waited for Kayden to decide what he
felt.

Damien nearly lost it when Kayden's lean body
relaxed into his chest. His kissed the top of the wet head resting
on his shoulder, as he slowly lathered soap over the taut brown
nipples and down the ridges of the boy's ribs.

He could sense the tenseness still in the
boy's body, and Damien gently nudged Kayden's head to the side so
he could reach the long tendons of the boy's neck. Kayden's head
tilted, and as Damien licked his way down the boy's jaw to the
collarbone, he could feel the boy's tension evaporate under his
lips.

"I love you, kitten," he whispered, as his
hand slipped lower.

Kayden mewled, his body arching into Damien's
slick hand. Damien continued to suck at the boy's neck as his soapy
hand slid further. When his fingers slid in the crease under the
boy's tail, Damien sensed the tension he always felt whenever he
had ventured that far, so he carefully slid his hand back, waiting
for Kayden to melt back in his arms.

As he stroked, he watched the pleasure slide
across the boy's features. Kayden's eyes were closed, his head
thrown back into Damien's shoulder, and his beautiful lips parted
slightly in orgasm.

As Kayden came, Damien caught his come with
the rag, discreetly dropping it over the edge of the tub as the
boy's body dropped heavily against his chest.

Damien resisted the urge to shift his own
erection against the boy to get the friction he so desperately
needed. Instead, he gently scooped the water with his hand over
Kayden's heaving chest.

As Kayden's breathing slowed, Damien kissed
the small nips he'd made on Kayden's shoulder.

"Better?" Damien whispered.

Kayden's head tilted back so he could look
into his master's eyes, and he nodded shyly.

God, Damien thought, he could drown in those
eyes.

He cleared his throat. "The water's getting a
little cold. How about you hop out and get warmed up by the fire,
and I'll get washed and rinsed off real quick?"

When Kayden's body slid against his groin,
Damien bit back a groan. His head fell back against the edge of the
tub as Kayden stepped out. He rolled his head enough to see the
long sleek tail curled against the crease of the boy's round
buttocks before a towel wrapped around the thin body and he
disappeared out into the bedroom.

Damien barely touched himself before he felt
his climax surge through him.

****

Kayden hovered by the door of the bath as he
toweled dry. He blushed as he heard the grunt of his master, then
he felt slightly ashamed at the fact that his master still gave him
pleasure, but Kayden had yet to return the favor. He was still so
afraid of making a mistake. What if he did it wrong? What if his
master didn't like being touched the same? What if--?

He heard splashing and knew Damien was
climbing out of the tub. He rushed to the dresser in his room where
his new clothes were and pulled out another pair of silky pants. He
loved the feel of these pants, and Damien seemed to like them on
him.

After slipping the fabric over his hips and
tying the string, he stepped back into the bedroom, swishing his
tail to dry it. The bedroom he now shared with his master every
night. He languidly stretched out across the carpet on the floor in
front of the fire on his side, resting his head on his arm. He felt
the heat of the fire warm his damp skin.

He heard his master's footsteps pad across
the room to his armoire, and Kayden rolled to his belly to watch
the way the muscles of the glistening body moved under the golden
skin. As a pair of satin sleep pants slid over the muscular hips of
his master, he sighed contentedly.

His master smiled at him when he turned to
see Kayden staring, and of course Kayden felt the heat rushing to
his face, but he hadn't been able to look away. Damien moved to sit
on the couch, his long legs stretched out across it. He beckoned,
and Kayden pushed fluidly to his feet as he crawled into his
master's lap.

Kayden sighed deeply as he laid his head on
his master's shoulder. He could hear the soft thud of the man's
heart and feel his breath against his hair. Damien's fingers played
lazily in his damp hair.

Between the crackling of the fire and the
rhythmic beat of his master's heart, Kayden felt his body slipping
toward sleep.

"Kitten," Damien's voice rumbled in his
chest, "Are you happy here? With me?"

Kayden frowned, finding the question odd, but
smiled up into the azure eyes. "Yes, sir."

"It's Damien. And really? You are?"

Kayden snuggled into his master's neck.
"Yes," he finally whispered. "I-I've never been happier."

"You don't have to stay here, you know."

Kayden froze. Was his master looking to sell
him, now that the month of the bet was at an end? It had been at
least one moon cycle; he knew his master had to keep him for at
least that long to win the bet he'd made with his brothers. But
he'd started to think that maybe his master would want... His lip
quivered nervously.

"I-I'll do whatever you want, s-sir."

Damien suddenly lifted his chin, appearing
shocked by the tears glistening in the boy's eyes.

"Kayden, what--"

"I-I know a month has passed. You won your
bet. I-I understand if you are looking to sell me, but--"

"Oh, fuck, kitten, no," Damien breathed
rapidly. "I don't want you to go anywhere. I want you to stay."

Kayden frowned at him.

"But I want you to stay because
you want
to
, not because you feel you have to. I know I screwed up. I
didn't protect you from Roman, and I--"

"It wasn't your fault. You didn't know what
would happen. Your guard was just protecting you--"

"Still, I--"

"I--I could probably have
said
something, instead looking like I was attacking you too," Kayden
said with a little smirk.

They both smiled.

"Mistakes happen."

"Yeah, I suppose they do," Damien sighed. "I
just want you to be happy and feel safe."

"I do," Kayden sighed. "With you."

Damien leaned down and gently kissed Kayden's
lips. "I love you, Kayden. You make me happy like I've never been
before."

Kayden sighed and snuggled in.

"When was the last time you were happy?"

"Now?" Kayden smiled shyly.

There was a soft chuckle. "No, I mean before
this."

Kayden smirked. "The washroom."

They both laughed then. "I think you know
what I mean," Damien said, sobering. "Before you came here, did you
ever feel anything but..."

"Fear?" Kayden finished for him.

Damien sighed heavily, sadly. "Yeah."

Kayden let his fingers trail lazily in the
soft, dark hairs on his master's chest. "I-I guess I felt happy
when Master Ehern sold me to Master Farth," he said softly. "I
wanted so badly to be away from the hunters."

He felt Damien huff. "But Master Farth didn't
treat you much better."

Kayden shrugged. "He didn't shoot at me," he
said, trying to lighten his master's mood.

Damien grunted, tugging Kayden closer. Kayden
felt his master press a kiss to the top of his head. "That
shouldn't be a criteria of happiness, not getting shot at."

"It's okay," Kayden mumbled, not sure what to
say to make his master happy again. He didn't like it when his
master got melancholy or upset.

"No, it's not okay," Damien grumbled. "Were
you ever happy, kitten? I mean, truly happy? With your parents
maybe? Before the hunters?"

Kayden shifted at the mention of his parents.
He didn't remember much about them anymore. Over the last six
years, he'd tried not to think too much about them since he
couldn't do so without remembering their death.

"I-I suppose I was," he finally admitted.

"But you don't remember?"

Kayden turned his head up to Damien, tears
glistening in his eyes. "It's hard to think about them. I keep
seeing ... seeing them... get k-killed."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up bad
memories. I know you have nightmares about that," he said softly,
petting Kayden's head soothingly.

"I-I'm sorry, s-sir, if I wake--"

"Kitten, stop," Damien commanded. "That is
not your fault. It only bothers me that you are still suffering
because of them." He sighed. "I just wanted to know that... well, I
hoped that... you haven't always been afraid..."

"I look like my dad," Kayden interrupted
suddenly, barely a whisper.

Damien's breath hitched. "Really?"

Kayden's head nodded against his master's
chest. "I-I remember he had black hair and green eyes like me.
B-but he was bigger, more like you. H-he taught me to climb."

"I hear you're pretty good at that," Damien
laughed.

Kayden's head ducked. "I didn't--"

"I think it would have been funny to see.
Arnett has never been that frustrated. So where did you live? Most
nekos live in the towns and cities now, did you?"

"No, we lived in the forest," Kayden
answered. "My father didn't like the crowds of people. He would go
to town to trade catches of rabbits and such for clothes, blankets,
and stuff."

"So you were happy then? Living in the
forest?"

Kayden shrugged. "I didn't think much about
it then, but yes, compared to what happened... after..." He shifted
against Damien, trying to stifle a yawn. "At the time, I wanted to
live in town. It seemed like so much fun and easier than being cold
half the time in the cave."

Damien smiled, "You don't like being
cold."

Kayden shook his head.

"Do you miss the forest?"

Kayden was quiet for several minutes. "I
don't miss the cold, or the fear of trying to survive, finding
enough food. I-I miss running. And climbing."

Damien pressed another kiss to Kayden's
forehead. "I wouldn't mind running with you sometime."

Kayden jerked in his arms, turning to look up
at his master, eyes wide in surprise. "Really?"

"If it makes you happy, you should do it.
Running, climbing, whatever you want."

Kayden stared up at the deep blue eyes for a
long time, trying to determine if there was some hint of duplicity
in his words. The man was willing to let him free to go where ever
he wanted? Not that he had wanted, being so afraid to, but he had
dreamed about it as he stared out the windows. Could he really go
outside for a few minutes on his own, if he got up the nerve?

"I c-can... I can g-go outside? By myself?"
Kayden asked incredulously. He hadn't really believed it when he'd
said it before.

"Of course," Damien frowned down on him.
"Kayden, you're not a prisoner here. This is your
home
.
Although, right now, with the whole Roman thing, I'd feel better if
someone were with you. To protect you."

Kayden nodded, digesting the fact that he was
actually free to go where he wanted. His hand fluttered to his
neck, where his collar should be.

Damien shifted his legs under him, breaking
Kayden from his thoughts. "So your mom? What was she like?"

"She had long blonde hair and white ears. She
used to sing a lot," he added, as his memories of a woman holding
him when he was younger flooded over him. "Dad and I would listen
to her sing at night. Dad loved her so much."

"I'm sure they both loved you too," Damien
whispered.

Kayden sighed as a tear slipped down his
cheek. "I miss them," he admitted softly.

"I know," Damien said, "I miss my parents
too, well, my father at least."

Kayden shifted and looked up at his master,
curious. "How did...?"

And Damien knew exactly what he meant. "Their
ship ran into a bad storm," he explained. "It was five years ago,
so I was already an adult. But I wasn't ready to really act like
one."

Kayden drew circles with his finger on
Damien's chest. "I'm sure they loved you too."

His master laughed softly. "At least my
father did. My mother... well, she wasn't very ... motherly."

They were both silent for several minutes,
and Damien thought that maybe Kayden had fallen asleep.

"I know my mother would have sung to you,"
Kayden said softly.

And Kayden felt his master's arms tighten
around him. Kayden snuggled into his chest, breathing in the scent
of the man whom he now considered home.

Within the next week, Kayden was back to his
old routine of mostly following Damien around, lounging in his
office while he worked, perching next to him at mealtimes--if it
were just him and Harrison. He returned to his place on the floor
at his master's side if others were present out of propriety.

They shared breakfast in their room most
mornings, although it was mostly too cold yet most mornings for the
balcony. They would eat at the fire or even occasionally in the
bed. Sometimes, if he wasn't busy that day, Damien would sit in his
chair by the window and read out loud, while Kayden would perch in
the window sill, idly staring at the garden and his master.