A Swithin Spin: A Princely Passion (12 page)

He focused his thoughts and emotions internally,
listening
,
feeling
his heart pump blood throughout his body, carrying what his body needed in order to function around his system, feeding, healing. Unable to deny the underlying tension within him, Antal tried to turn his mind from all intrusions. His body beat, clenched around the undeniable obstacle, but the rest of his body slowly began to relax. He turned his attention inward. He concentrated on contracting each muscle, then releasing it, letting his limbs slowly slump, become supple. As he did so, he was supposed to connect to his surroundings, channeling that energy into his muscles. Although Antal struggled, gradually inner warmth seeped through him. The glade certainly seemed peaceful, tranquil even. Whatever the reason, he sensed
energy
here. Whether that was natural, caused by the statue, the comet, or his imagination, Antal had no idea. It occurred to him that as the Swithin fashioned adult toys from certain types of crystal that vibrated, perhaps someone had carved the statue from rock containing similar properties. It made sense and explained the peculiar, persistent idea that the rigid figure somehow contained life.

Peace. The word sang through his mind, through his being. He didn’t understand it, how he had come to this moment. A small frown tightened his brow, but then Antal simply let the concern slip away. His worries hadn’t left him. When he arose from this state, his problems would still exist, his unrest. Right now none of that mattered. Right now he could set everything aside and enjoy this moment. Aware he hovered on the edge of sleep, Antal just lingered there. He didn’t try for wakefulness, and he didn’t try to slip deeper.

Speaking of deeper… That was part of the reason he couldn’t go under. If not for the hardness within him, he might have easily slept, but he didn’t. He
couldn’t
. Even so, this felt more healing than the deepest sleep. Later he would sleep, and he felt sure he would wake refreshed. Even now, he felt renewed. Tomorrow… Tomorrow he would return home, and although the same responsibilities and problems awaited him, Antal sensed he could face those things with a more relaxed state of mind. If this was what meditation did for you, then he’d take it up regularly.

Antal gave himself a mental shake. No. It couldn’t be that simple. One experience of a meditative state did not cure your anxieties. Maybe with practice, meditation could help him to face his concerns, but something was wrong here. For one thing, his thoughts raced, but even as they did, he no longer sensed the underlying panic that usually came when his mind wandered in such a fashion. His mind remained clear and clean, analytical. Yet he felt more aware of his body than he had for ages. He felt his consciousness and the body it inhabited as separate entities, yet as one, in perfect unison. He wasn’t in control here. The thought came, sudden and devastating. He couldn’t explain it, but in the moment he’d connected with the statue, the…statue was in control, not him. The effigy caused this sense of peace. He didn’t know how, but he knew the truth of it even as his ensuing moment of resistance faded in defeat. He couldn’t fight this.

A brief moment of panic engulfed him, then fled so quickly he almost put it down to his imagination. It left behind certainty. He didn’t know what properties the statue possessed, but they affected his emotions. His connection to it -- as intimate as it was and maybe even precisely because of that intimacy -- had helped produce this condition.

Antal sought that connection. At once that intimate part of his body tried to close, but that proved impossible. The resulting squeeze made him gasp. His heartbeat increased. Despite the overall feeling of serenity, his body responded the way it knew best. His body spasmed, and his skin came alive.

How fucking long would this take? Kilan glared across the clearing at Antal with less than charitable thoughts, definitely less than loving ones. He didn’t know what he’d pictured happening
exactly
, but once Antal had stopped hesitating and finally climbed onto the figure, things had become interesting, at least. Since then Antal had sat there for what seemed like hours. It wasn’t hours -- Kilan could tell by the passage of the sun across the sky -- but it felt long enough. How long could one sit on an intrusion of that magnitude, anyway?

The little twitches, muscles tightening and then relaxing throughout Antal’s body, and the variety of expressions that played over his face were all very entertaining but hardly worth watching when you took into account that Kilan’s perch had grown decidedly uncomfortable. Added to that, his muscles had started to cramp.

Shifting yet again, Kilan almost groaned aloud. For some reason, lessening the pressure of where he lay reminded him that he suffered other discomforts. His thirst burned his throat mercilessly. He was about to give up and risk discovery as he made his way down the tree when something about Antal’s posture captured his attention.

Although the young guard just sat there, something had changed. Kilan couldn’t figure out what it could possibly be, but he trusted his intuition. Where before Antal had seemed a thing apart, mostly as silent and motionless as the statue itself, something about his bearing now suggested awareness. One could only describe the young man’s expression as thoughtful.

Kilan almost sighed, wishing he understood the meaning of this ritual. He very much wanted to know if Antal experienced something divine. Ryanac would sneer, saying Kilan lacked a spiritual side to his nature. That wasn’t true. He just never paid any attention to it. He pushed such emotions aside whenever possible. Contemplation was for the old, or so he’d always assumed. Assumed? No. Wanted to believe was more like it. He wanted to remain young at heart as long as possible. The thought of growing up too swiftly always panicked him. He even knew why. When knowing you could access an incredible mystical power and that with such a power came a world of responsibility, who would want to grow up and face that? Ryanac said he was grateful that Markis had full control of the comet because Markis was the only man he trusted with it. Kilan was grateful for more selfish reasons. When he had said he wanted Markis to let him grow up, that wasn’t what he’d truly meant; he’d meant he wanted freedom, and royalty never truly had that.

He arose from his thoughts with some surprise, confused. He’d heard a noise, but it took him a moment to decipher it. Antal had gasped, and the glade being so peaceful, almost breathless with silence, had carried that sound easily. It served to remind Kilan that he could never climb down quietly, especially in his present condition. Even with the comet shielding him, the sound would carry.

Was he mind and body, or mind, body, and spirit? He didn’t know, but he soared. Something released and filled Antal’s mind with thoughts and memories of those he loved, all the good times he’d shared with others. It felt as if someone wanted to pick apart his memories, force him to relive them, yet he experienced no malice. He resisted for one brief moment, and then took the journey with the…
statue?

The idea failed to matter. He came back to himself, alive with his life up until this point. The ensuing joy left no room for worry or for pain. His mind once more turned to his body, knowing it would one day cease to exist and yet continue to exist as all things did, in another state of being, even if that were as spirit or as stardust as many Swithin believed. You couldn’t fight the inevitable, so he took joy in the moment. As that bright spark of pain illuminated his mind, he ceased to worry about it. He’d almost died, yet he lived. He might not be able to protect everyone, but that didn’t make those he saved any less grateful. Life existed here in this moment. He could feel it. He was part of the glade, of the world, of the universe. Life!

The statue speared into him. The penetration connected his mind to his body, undeniable. At once he pictured the statue lying under him, on its back, lying in the midst of the perfect scenery. The wind blew, making him shiver. He heard leaves rustle. He would soon open his eyes and rise up. He would have to. Hidden muscles fluttered. His testicles tightened.
Oh no. Not now. Not yet
. He didn’t know if his body would heed the plea. He didn’t know how long he’d sat there, but at last the penetration proved too much. Even as he tried to calm his breath, he became aware that his body had other needs besides breathing. Oddly, even as he started to return to a more normal level of consciousness that would result in orgasm, Antal became aware of the leaves continuing to rustle, of the wind picking up, of the
caw
of a crow, of the splashing of the waterfall in the distance, of a mouse in the undergrowth, of…
another’s heart beating.

Kilan jolted, suddenly aware of the power within, hovering and waiting, always with him.

Kilan acknowledged something that had bothered him all day. Here in the glade, he found it almost too easy to detect the comet. That made no sense, but even as he tried to examine the possibility, movement from the center of the clearing caught his eye. No, not movement:
sensation.

He could hear another heart beating.

Antal opened his eyes. His vision sped through the glade as though it were a separate entity, a thing alive and apart from his body. He didn’t know how. He couldn’t explain it, but his vision flew, down from the statue, across the glade floor, into the small cluster of trees ahead, and up. Dark brown eyes widened in surprise. A cry of alarm followed a flash of recognition. Antal cursed, his vision returning to normal. It didn’t matter. He knew the identity of the spy. He could see the branches rustling as the spy climbed down. Reality returned all too quickly. Antal lost all the tranquility he’d gained, and then he climaxed, his body no longer able to contain the ravishment of having that long, white, gleaming cock buried for so long inside him.

Even as his mind closed down, shutting out almost all thoughts but the pleasure, one part of Antal remained focused. How long had the spy been there? How much had he seen? Antal was definitely going to get hold of Kilan and teach him a lesson!

Kilan looked to Antal’s face at the precise moment Antal opened his eyes. He didn’t know how, and the why of it hardly mattered, but he knew that Antal
saw
him.

Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit!

Kilan didn’t know how to describe the look he’d seen on Antal’s face, but he couldn’t call it friendly. His natural responses kicked in, and Kilan reacted on instinct.

Run. Get down. Get out of the tree and flee
! Despite his nerves screaming for him to obey and the fact that he was already now halfway down the tree, he paused, unable to look away as Antal poured forth his desire over the statue.

Trapped, pinioned, Antal bowed forward, his back arched, his head lowered. Even from here, Kilan could see that Antal’s eyes squeezed shut. Even as he watched and Antal’s very handsome cock pulsed, Kilan could also see Antal’s internal struggle to return to his senses. Slowly,
carefully
, Antal moved from the sitting position into a kneeling one. From here, Kilan expected him to flow smoothly to his feet. He didn’t. Another tremor took him over. Antal almost flailed, and Kilan hesitated. As much as he wanted to run from Antal’s wrath, he wouldn’t leave the other man in serious trouble, and if he fell while that large member was still inside him, Antal would definitely find himself in trouble.

Kilan had wanted to rush to his aid earlier when he’d slipped in the woods, afraid for a brief moment that the young guard had hurt himself. He couldn’t do that without making his presence known. He was glad he’d resisted the temptation to help, for he’d never have seen this. Never had he imagined witnessing such a fabulous sight. That didn’t mean he would leave him now, not until he felt certain Antal was safe, and not until he’d seen the full climax. Antal appeared to go through another orgasm or a continuation of the same one.

Just what did Antal feel? The experience looked incredible, enviable indeed. Now was not the time for such questions. Antal gasped, moved forward, eased off. Even though he couldn’t see from this angle, Kilan felt the actual moment when Antal’s body released the statue’s phallus. Still Antal took time to recover. A shiver passed through him, visibly shaking his body, and Kilan didn’t think it was owing to the cool caress of the wind.

“Kilan!” Antal’s angry shout got him moving again. He looked back once to see that Antal had managed to climb down from the statue, but if he could judge by the man’s stilted movements, the young guard felt shaky. He had this confirmed when Antal took a step, stumbled, took another pace, and swayed. The guard’s lips drew back over his teeth in either a snarl or a grimace. Kilan didn’t want to stick around to find out. Snatching up his pack, he raced for the trees.

Damn him
. Antal wanted to run after the whippersnapper, but his legs failed to obey. That wasn’t the only reason he hesitated. He had no time to worry about his bare feet or his naked state, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave the statue in its current condition. Silently apologizing, though feeling ridiculous even as he did, Antal snatched up his supply of water, dumped some of it over the statue, and then wiped away the evidence of his so recent pleasure…and pleasure he had most definitely felt. He could admit that much. It would have been more than pleasurable if Kilan’s presence hadn’t interrupted him and brought about such an abrupt ending. He felt sore from the penetration, but more than his muscles were stinging. He felt cross because he felt cheated of a private moment, and he resented Kilan disturbing him so thoughtlessly. Finished with wiping away his semen, Antal threw the towel on the ground and took off, first at a walk, then a trot, finally breaking into a run in the direction he’d last seen Kilan. No doubt Kilan was too far ahead or had gone into hiding, but Antal could track well enough, and even if he lost him, he’d return to the cave, dress, and then hunt the young prince down.

He couldn’t help thinking of a number of ways he would make the prince pay.