I mulled that point over and tried to ignore the flutter of warmth in my chest. “Okay. Protectiveness. I can work with that.”
Rans nodded. “Of course you can. I think the main question will be whether you can let other people’s energy in while blocking mine out.”
That was the question of the evening, all right. “Only one way to find out, I suppose,” I said gamely. “Come on, then. Let’s go see how many people we can titillate.”
NINE
IF RANS HAD BEEN human, I couldn’t help but think the position he was shackled in would become excruciating after the first couple of minutes. The bondage furniture he was draped over resembled nothing so much as a very well padded sawhorse—only considerably sturdier. Each of the four legs had an attachment at the bottom for wrist or ankle cuffs.
Apparently, most people used the thing for flogging or spanking, with the victim lying on their stomach across the padded top, ass in the air. Rans, by contrast, was draped backward over it like a gymnast doing a backbend, ankles spread and attached to the legs on one side, wrists on the other.
I’d made good on my promise to get his coat off. The position stretched the taut muscles of his bare torso, lengthening the already lean and elegant lines into a tense arch. The matching silver piercings gleamed in his brown nipples. He was still wearing his tight leather trousers, however, because A) there was something to be said for holding onto a bit of the mystery, and B) mine, damn it. Meow! Hiss!
Ahem.
A silk blindfold covered the top half of his face, though I had little doubt his inhuman senses could still pick up more detail about our surroundings than I could with my eyes wide open. We’d attracted a few people already, with more wandering over all the time.
I wasn’t sure whether I should be focusing all of my attention on Rans in an attempt to keep my nerves at bay, or if doing so would only make it harder for me to filter out his energy from the rest of the crowd’s. As a test, I started simply, by running the tips of my fingers over the vulnerable lines of his chest and stomach like a sculptor molding clay. I felt a fine tremor beneath my touch, and his sigh of pleasure settled something inside me.
Rans wouldn’t be attempting to stifle his reactions while I played with him. We wanted horny onlookers, and that meant giving the crowd a show. I flicked first one nipple ring and then the other, drawing a low hiss from my captive. Emboldened, I trailed my hand down and cupped his trapped dick, which was hardening already. As expected, I immediately felt the surge of his lust pressing at my magical barriers, trying to get in.
I took a steadying breath. We’d practiced this several times over the last few days. I knew how to block him now. I thought about the people nearby that I didn’t trust—the rough men in their biker gear, and also the mysterious woman who might not be human. I didn’t want to weaken Rans when there might be trouble at some point during the evening. His animus coiled restlessly, but it stayed on his side of the invisible wall I’d placed between us.
Good.
Next, I tried casting my senses outward. Sure enough, the unseen currents that had hovered just outside of my awareness grew more tangible as I teased Rans, and by extension, the people watching us.
And... whoa.
It was startling, actually—though perhaps it shouldn’t have been. This room was rich with sexual energy. Most of it was separate from me—directed at someone else, and therefore out of my reach. But a few strands wafted toward me like smoke. I had to stop myself from staring at them like a crazy woman. Instead of trying to look at them with my eyes, I turned back to the expanse of pale skin in front of me and cast my mind outward, instead.
Yes, I could still feel the hazy trails converging on me. I tried to let them in while keeping Rans out. It was hard to tell if I was succeeding. I’d gotten so used to the power of Rans’ animus that these insubstantial brushes seemed like a pale substitute.
Not wanting to deviate from the plan we’d discussed beforehand, I gave Rans’ stomach a final rake of my nails and turned to retrieve one of the lit candles from a table nearby. Several of the trails of energy grew stronger. Looks like we’d uncovered a popular kink—not that any of the kinks in this place were all that covered up in the first place.
Rans and I had decided on this particular scene mostly because it didn’t do a whole lot for either of us, at least in theory. The idea had been to choose something that would minimize both the amount of animus Rans was throwing off, and my own level of distraction. It had all sounded perfectly logical at the time. Unfortunately, I was quickly coming to realize that having Rans trussed up and at my mercy while a bunch of horny men and women hung on my every move was... kind of doing it for me.
Oops.
Being careful of the candle flame, I sauntered around the sawhorse using my best ‘model on the catwalk’ stride. Rans’ head was hanging limp, his hair dangling toward the floor. I had to crouch a bit awkwardly to reach his mouth, but I sat on my haunches and leaned forward to catch his lips in an upside-down kiss. Despite his seeming helplessness, he turned things filthy in seconds, our tongues dueling and sliding together. A few more of the energy trails around us strengthened.
After a minute or so of this, I pulled away from him and stood up. With no further warning, I lifted the candle and tilted it until a thin stream of hot wax dripped down Rans’ sternum. He jerked
