“Come here.”
The taste of Caster in his mouth was the prime point of focus for his addled senses as he awaited further instruction.
Still on his knees, facing away from wherever Caster had gone, Mark took a deep breath.
His need to come was too great, but even greater was the prayer that he hadn’t derailed whatever plans Caster had for him.
He wanted this. Hadn’t wanted anything with such intensity in a long time, but his pain, his guilt, and the revulsion still roiling around in his belly had prompted him to say that.
He didn’t want Caster’s pity. Why it was easier to handle it from anyone other than him was a subject best pushed back, further away from this moment.
He needed pain. Pain that led to unimaginable pleasure.
His eyes drifted shut in rhythm with the exhale of his latest breath, and Mark prayed he hadn’t fucked this up.
Caster’s command startled him mid-breath, but his body was already obeying.
Caster patted the space next to him. He looked so relaxed lying on top of the covers, braced against the pillows he’d arranged on the headboard. He’d taken off his suit jacket, the delicious way his white shirt molded to his pronounced muscles drawing envy to dominate Mark’s tangled emotions.
Mark’s awkward movements did nothing to deter his desire to be close to Caster. His erection throbbed in its confines as he accepted the invitation, careful not to touch him, though still unable to relax.
Caster reached for his arm, pulling him closer, and put an arm around him, encouraging him to lay his head on his shoulder. Every bit of tension drained away from his muscles as he found the elusive relaxation in the embrace.
“Good. That’s better, isn’t it?”
He could only nod his reply and did nothing to prevent his body from turning to the side, so his cock pressed against Caster’s outer thigh. Everything in him begged him to move, but he was sure nothing good could come from that.
Caster’s hand moved to the back of his head, but the tight grip he braced for didn’t come. Instead, his fingers brushed his hair in repeated gentle touches that had Mark moaning with each pass.
“I already know you like to be touched.” His hand moved again, this time through his hair. “Am I to assume you also enjoy sensory play as well?”
Mark may have nodded, but the sensation of the gentle touches was too distracting.
Caster’s hand tightened at the base of his skull, the dull ache from the pressure causing him to wince. “You will answer my questions, or this will stop.” Caster used the leverage of his hold to raise his head. “Do you want me to stop?”
Mark shook his head. “No. Please…”
Caster stared at him, the red ring around his pupils, the only obvious anatomical declaration of his species, growing by the second. The moment dragged, the fear that he would stop overriding everything else.
He nodded. “What else do you like?”
“Pain.” Mark stared at Caster’s chest. His confession increased his guilt but did nothing to dampen his arousal.
Caster’s sharp inhale was almost imperceptible. “You want that today?”
Mark nodded, careful to verbalize his answer soon after. Caster’s anger was not necessary.
“Good. I am unfamiliar with your limits, and I’m certain you don’t want to talk about it.” His other hand reached for the collar. “That’s why you have this?”
“Yes. I wanted something minimal, and I needed… anyone I found to know I wasn’t into anything long term.”
“Look at me.”
The intense red ring around the light grey of his eyes was more pronounced.
“You have that with me. We will keep things light.”
He shook his head. “No… please… I want…” He closed his eyes, focused on his breath, and mustered the courage to ask for what he needed. “I need pain. A lot of it.”
When he could look at Caster, the expression he found could only be described as determination.
They stared at each other for the longest moment Mark had ever endured before Caster nodded, giving him the permission he needed to trust the surrender calling to him.
He lowered his gaze, his body trembling with need and anticipation.
Caster resumed his gentle touch, and Mark had to clench his core muscles tight to keep from grinding against him.
“What about sex?”
The question startled him, and he dared to look at Caster. Until now, he hadn’t considered it, but the desire to feel Caster’s cock inside him was a prospect that overtook the confusion in his mind.
“Do you want me to fuck you?” Caster smiled, a gentle, subdued smile, no longer the knowing smirk. “You’re not doing a good job of hiding your thoughts. That was a very vivid picture you just projected.”
“Yes.” The word was out of his mouth before he could think too hard about the disaster that had been his last foray into this world of pleasurable play.
Caster nodded, the mask of his dominance replacing the smile. “I want to tie you up. Nothing too fancy—”
“Yes.” Again, his assent preceded any thoughts of guilt. He pushed them deeper. There would be enough time to drown in them when he was alone. Now, he needed this.
In his haste to take everything Caster offered, he forgot to keep his body in control, his hips shifting forward, a sigh escaping his lips when his aching cock brushed against the hardness that was Caster’s thigh.
Caster’s hand tightened at the back of his head, the pressure increasing with each passing second. “I imagine I don’t need to tell you what would happen if you come without my permission.”
Mark’s hips shifted away from the temptation as he mumbled a half-hearted apology.
Caster’s grip loosened. His tone didn’t. “The pain I will inflict on you if you disobey me in any way will be devoid of any pleasure. Is that understood?”
“Yes, Caster.” The involuntary holding of his breath that only occurred when he was in Caster’s presence came back with a vengeance, and he had to close his eyes to release it.
The battle he waged against his reaction, and the silence was replaced by a sudden jolting movement.
Caster released his hold and withdrew the warmth of his body.
He stood beside the bed and held out his hand.
Mark accepted the proffered hand and assistance to get to his feet, though he was careful not to touch Caster’s body in any way, sure any contact would cause him to break the unspoken rule.
“Yes. That’s the only rule for today.” Caster’s cool caress on the back of his hand distracted him further.
He released his hand, and Mark missed the contact so much he almost begged for it.
The smirk on Caster’s face was back, an indication he hadn’t hidden that thought very well. “Take off your clothes.”
He reached for the buttons of his shirt too fast; his hands stumbled, large fingers unable to grip tiny buttons.
Caster didn’t move, the proximity increasing his discomfort. He reached out to still Mark’s fumbling fingers. “Slow down. Do you have anywhere else to be?”
Mark shook his head, took a calming breath, and this time, found the connection between his fingers and the buttons.
His shirt was a long-forgotten memory, and he needed a second long inhale before he reached for his belt.
It wasn’t that he was ashamed of his body, only that he hadn’t done this in a long time.
No one had seen his naked form in so long, there was the unusual niggling thought that he would somehow be unacceptable.
It didn’t pass his notice that he had never once been insecure about his body, not with anyone else.
Soon, he was on full display, and the urge to cover his body with his hands, as impractical as it was, overrode even the guilt that continued to exert its presence.
“You’re so beautiful.”
He looked up, the reverent whisper drawing him back to the present. Caster looked at him with unrestrained desire. The red ring around his pupil was now larger. Was it a physiological response to his arousal?
“Yes,” Caster answered the question in his thoughts, and Mark didn’t want to hide anymore, letting go of the mental barrier erected through years of practice to keep vampires out. As he did so, his wolf clawed at the barrier, displaying his joy by prancing around in their shared mind-space.
Caster’s nod was almost imperceptible, an acceptance of the new channel of communication they’d now established.
Then he moved to an area that until now had seemed empty.
He pushed a button on an empty shelf, and a scraping sound filled the room, a hidden drawer appearing from the void concealed behind the wall.
Caster turned to him. “Come here.”
Mark’s heart thudded away in his chest, his feet moving with little input from his brain. He couldn’t turn back now.
The drawer contained all manner of tools and implements designed for the kind of play they both enjoyed. He tried not to examine each one. It was best to be surprised by these things.
Caster’s smirk came back. “Yes, it is.” He stepped closer to Mark and reached for the collar. “I want this gone.” Then, in a single forceful move tore it from his neck.
Mark opened his mouth to protest, only for Caster’s lips to take advantage of his open mouth. The kiss had been so unexpected that his body swayed towards Caster, trying to find purchase, lest he come crashing down.
Caster’s expert tongue controlled his entire body, and as their mingled sounds of pleasure filled the room, the fear he would come from a simple kiss grew to inordinate proportions.
Caster pulled away, his hand grabbing Mark’s elbow when the sudden movement threatened to topple his resolve. His thumb rubbed Mark’s bottom lip. “You’re doing so well.”
The compliment, the pride in Caster’s voice, brought an unexpected hum of pleasure to his addled mind. His wolf reveled in its newfound master, but Mark didn’t want to think about that. Not right now.