GENRE: Gay Fantasy Erotic Romance
LENGTH: 82,903 words
RATING:

Kelwyn Grayson is just one more faceless runaway on the streets of Tower City. Among elves, gnolls, and dragons, one winged boy fades into the background of life in the Eternal Kingdom. But when he cuts the purse of the handsome were-lion Harun Rashid, he finds himself dragged out of the crowd.

Rather than a cell, however, Harun offers a helping hand to set Kelwyn on the road to a respectable, peaceful life ... if he could just bring himself to stop flirting shamelessly with Harun, keep his sticky fingers to himself, and avoid bringing the wrath of a powerful, mad vampire down on his head.

But even faced with Kelwyn's death -- or undeath -- Harun will not give up on him, and Kelwyn will not give up on finding his way to sharing that peaceful life with Harun. Two men, love, and magic are bound and determined to find their way to their shared dream of a future -- and family.

EXCERPT:
Note: may contain sexually explicit scenes of a homoerotic nature.

After a long moment, Kelwyn leaned in and kissed Harun softly. "I haven't said so yet, but I love you, Harun."

There was a little catch in Harun's breath, and his voice was thick with emotion when he replied, "I love you too, Kelwyn." He wrapped his arms tightly around Kelwyn and kissed him with fervent passion.

Kelwyn kissed back with matching intensity, closing his eyes to focus everything on the kiss, on the taste and feel of Harun. It was beyond wonderful, and there was nothing else to come between them now. They kissed for a marvelous eternity, and Harun pressed tight to him, making Kelwyn very aware of the fact that the were-lion was currently unclothed. He blushed at the thought, his cheeks still red even though his blood was no longer hot -- and no longer entirely his own. When Harun broke off the kiss Kelwyn could smell that, could smell Harun's blood that he'd tasted so recently. He wasn't hungry, though, so it was merely a scent, and a pleasant one. It mingled with the rest of Harun's scent, and Kelwyn found himself inhaling again, taking it in.

The were-lion smelled of an animalistic musk, a strange but not unpleasant aroma, mixed with the hot iron of his blood and a hint of smoke. He also smelled rather strongly of masculine arousal, and Kelwyn blushed more. He felt a mix of trepidation and desire, thinking about that, about where it could lead. He wanted Harun, very badly, but the idea of having sex with him was also incredibly intimidating. Harun was ancient, and no doubt vastly experienced. Kelwyn was barely twenty and had absolutely no idea whatsoever what he was doing. He's seen sex often enough, admittedly. You didn't grow up the way he had and remain innocent of how it worked, but he was a virgin, he'd never so much as kissed anyone other than Harun. He was not going to count Lucretious.

Harun gave him another kiss, but brief, soft. "The night is wearing on. Morning is probably not that far off by now," he said. "Would you ... Do you want to spend the day here?"

Kelwyn nodded. "I would like that an awful lot. But ..."

"But?"

Kelwyn reached up, cupped Harun's cheek in his hand. He felt like his heart should have been hammering away, an intense tension filled him. "What do you want, Harun? Just sleep, or ...?"

Harun put his hand over Kelwyn's, capturing it. He looked at Kelwyn and licked his lips, his expression somehow both hungry and vulnerable. "What I want is everything. I want you, Kelwyn. I want you every possible way I could have you. But I'll understand if you want to go slowly. I also want you to be happy, to feel comfortable. I want to show you I love you, not just ... have you do what I want. I wouldn't want to treat you like Lucretious did."

Kelwyn blinked. "You ain't got any worries there. You're nothing like him."

Harun gave him a wry smile, and turned his head to kiss the palm of Kelwyn's hand. "I know. My fears are not always rational. I believe I have mentioned that I have repeatedly been a fool? I do want you, Kelwyn. I'll be content, though, if all you want to do is sleep."

The nervous anxiety lurking somewhere at the bottom of Kelwyn's gut almost made him agree, made him say just sleeping together would be enough. It would certainly be wonderful. But he wanted more. He looked at Harun, and slid his arms around him, pulling him close. "I want you too," he said finally, his voice trembling.

Harun looked back, from mere inches away, and he smiled. "I'll be gentle with you, then."

Kelwyn licked his lips, a little shiver running down his spine. "It's no t... You don't have to be gentle. Just ... I don't know what I'm doing. I don't want to do the wrong thing."

"Oh Kelwyn ... Don't worry, you could not possibly do anything wrong."