A Taste of Home Ch. 05

"That's right, my love," Micah crooned, "you're doing so well. Can you feel me? I'm inside you now, all the way in. I never dreamed anything could be so perfect as you around my cock. It's almost as wonderful as when you're inside me, possessing and loving me."

How was it possible? How could this small, delicate-looking young man take him over so completely? Any further questions were driven from his mind when Micah slowly pulled out and just as slowly thrust back in. It was the most incredible sensation he'd ever imagined. No, he could not have imagined it. He could only echo Micah's words, that it was almost as wonderful as when he was inside Micah's tight body.

Simon felt licking at the side of his throat and tipped his head back. He knew what was coming. He anticipated the bite and nearly came at the thought of it, wondering what it would feel like with his ass being pounded.

Micah's feeding was no less intense than before, but it was different. If anything, it was...sweeter. He yelled out his orgasm, overwhelmed, yet the connection was stronger between them. For a moment, he was terrified at the feeling that filled him as he descended from the peaks of ecstasy, but it was quickly replaced with a feeling of rightness. He wanted nothing more than to share this exquisite sense of finally being home with Micah forever.

"I love you."

"Je t'aime, beauté."

They both made their proclamations at the same time and smiled at each other. Already Micah looked back to normal, the bruising gone and his skin regaining its silky softness. They exchanged tender kisses as their breathing returned to normal. Simon loved the feeling of Micah sprawled on top of him and prevented him from rolling off.

"My parents are never going to understand. I just hope they'll come to accept it."

Micah leaned back and frowned at him. "What do they have to accept or understand?"

"Their most cherished dream is to have a handful of grandchildren to dote on and spoil. I'm their only child and their only chance. That's the reason I've spent my life denying that I might be attracted to men." Simon kissed away the sad expression from Micah's eyes and refused to let him say anything. "I won't deny my heart, beauté, not anymore. I love you and I won't let you go unless it's what you want."

"I would hate to come between you and your family, Simon. Although," he mused thoughtfully, "I don't see why there can't be grandchildren. There are many ways we could go about having children, without actually having them."

Simon rolled them so he was on top. He saw the love in the blue depths and wondered how he could have missed seeing it before now. After kissing for several more minutes, showing each other their love, Micah and Simon wandered to the bathroom to shower, and returned to the bed to rest. Micah declared that he'd been so drained earlier, that he probably could sleep the rest of the night and the day as well.

The doorbell woke them very early in the morning. Micah dressed quickly and went off to see who was there. When Simon arrived a few seconds later, he found Micah looking at him and biting his lower lip worriedly.

"What is it? Who's at the door?"

"It's Ryan and Pen. Do you want me to...?" Micah trailed off, gesturing vaguely towards the bedroom.

"No, I don't want you to go hide. I meant what I said, mon ange. I love you and we don't have to be a secret. It was never my intention to make you feel like you had to hide we were together."

Color flooded Micah's face, but he looked very pleased and relieved. He reached up and kissed Simon deeply, even as he opened the door. Twin gasps of surprise met their display and they smiled against each other's mouths.

******

Pen accepted the cup of coffee Micah offered him without a word, never taking his eyes away from his cousin's face. Micah knew what was on his mind and waited for it to make its way into the conversation. There hadn't been any time for the two to speak privately that morning, when Micah and Simon revealed their relationship.

Ryan had learned about the problem Micah had in the restroom of the club and was surprised to hear that Simon had been present. When they couldn't find Micah at home, the couple made their way to Simon's apartment. After Micah and Simon revealed what happened to him in the club, the two agents left for the office to follow up on the leads. Micah needed to sleep for the day and Pen reluctantly left him to it.

At five o'clock, he was back at Simon's apartment. He'd learned from Ryan that the agents would be at work until at least seven, so they had time to talk now.

"When you told us you were seeing someone we knew, I must say Simon was the last one I would have thought of."

Micah smiled and sat down opposite his cousin. "I know. He's so wonderful, Pen. I've never felt this way about anyone before. I think that being honest right from the start of our relationship really made a difference." It wasn't really a lie; he'd been honest at the start of their new relationship.

Pen smiled and reached over to cover Micah's hand with his own. They didn't need to say more on the subject, just seeing how happy the two men were, how they acted towards each other, was enough to convince Pen that things were well.

"I'm glad. I must say you've been very happy these past two weeks. Ryan and I were a bit worried about you, especially after your last...I hesitate to call it a relationship, but you know what I mean."

With no more pushing for information, they moved to other topics of conversation. Plans were made for a dinner party Ryan and Pen wanted to throw for their close friends and they talked about food and music to prepare. Micah tried to give informed opinions, but cooking just wasn't his thing. He knew what he liked but until recently, he didn't really eat all that much. Dating Simon and spending time with Pen, he'd ingested more food than in the two years before moving to Rutherford.

Pen went to the fridge about half an hour before their men were due to arrive, to see about making supper. He'd told his husband not to eat out, so he wanted to have some food ready for them. It took a little while before Micah realized that the constant stream of words was a cover and that Pen was actually a little upset about something.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. No, really, it's not that something is wrong, but..." Pen shook his head and leaned on the counter with a resigned sigh. "I keep thinking about what you told me, about what happened to my father. It's wonderful to know that he didn't attack me on his own, but at the same time, I feel terrible that I've thought such bad things about him since then."

"It's terrible that one man could destroy so many lives for such a stupid reason." Micah hugged Pen close, giving him what comfort he could.

"There's something I've never understood. I did some research for a paper once, and it said that when a nightwalker was bound, their need for blood was greatly diminished, and any need could be met with animal blood. Everything I read indicated that if humans wanted to feed a nightwalker it was fine, but that it wasn't something common."

Micah frowned and thought about how to answer that question. It wasn't anything he'd ever really thought about. "It's true that we don't have any overwhelming thirst. An unbound nightwalker always needs blood. As I understand it, some compare it to a full human stuck in the desert with no water. Once bound, that sharp thirst is no longer there. We can survive on animal blood, and I think everyone hoped nightwalkers would limit themselves to that supply, but it really doesn't do a thing for us. We prefer human blood and we can generally find people to feed us without difficulty."

"My father never told me any of this. Probably he didn't think it necessary, since my daywalker half was so much stronger than the nightwalker half. Other than fangs when in a heightened emotional state, such as anger or passion, only a scan showed that part of me. How is the binding so specific? I mean, you can drink from a willing human, but how does the binding know if the person is willing or not? Or how can it tell whether you're just feeding or attacking?"

"All I know is that it has to do with chemicals in the blood. If a nightwalker attacks to hurt and injure, the blood lust releases certain chemicals in the saliva, which would react differently with the blood of even a willing feeder. If a person is afraid of a nightwalker, then other chemicals are released in their blood."

Both of them lapsed back into silence, considering how such a thing as chemicals could have such a tremendous impact. Pen mourned the loss of his father anew, really mourned now that he knew the truth of the situation. It wasn't a lack on his part, or that he was unlovable, as he'd thought for so long.

Micah kept quiet, sensing that Pen needed this time to think. Instead, he thought about how big and bright everything was now that his love for Simon was out in the open. And to think Simon returned his love! It was beyond wonderful. He wished there was something more he could do for his lover, something tangible. But what? If he could, he would find Simon's parents and try to make them understand about their son's choice, but that would likely cause more problems. Besides, they might not even have any problems with Simon being gay or in a relationship with a man. From what he could understand, it was simply what Simon thought.

What they wanted were grandchildren. Micah hadn't ever thought about having children of his own. There had never been anyone in his life for the idea to develop. He tried to imagine having a child, a little boy or girl to love and take care of. Suddenly, he realized that he did want that, wanted it desperately. A small sense of dissatisfaction tried to rear its head, but Micah pushed it away. It would be incredible to have a baby that was truly a product of his love for Simon, but that wasn't possible.

Supper was on the table and all they could do was wait for Simon and Ryan to get home. By eight o'clock, Micah and Pen were wandering aimlessly around the apartment. The food was getting cold, and still they were waiting. Each in turn, they went to the windows to look down, but there was nothing to see.

Finally, Micah took his phone and called Simon to see what was keeping them. Pen did the same, calling Ryan, in case the two weren't together. When neither of them got an answer, they simply exchanged a glance, worry clear in their eyes. Pen called the office, only to learn that Simon and Ryan left for home at about six-thirty.

Micah remembered the last time he'd waited for someone to come home. He was younger then, waiting with his mother and sister for his father to come back. Ghislain had gone early that morning to visit his father to confront him. He called to say there was too much to discuss and he would have to stay until late afternoon, to avoid the midday sun. For hours the family paced and peered out the windows, calling uselessly, until a messenger arrived with a letter explaining about Ghislain's death. Grandfather's letter explained why Ghislain was dead and refused to accept any blame for it.

When the knock came at the door, three loud raps, he knew what he would find and nearly drowned in dread. "Oh God," he moaned, eyes closed against the truth. "He's got them. Grandfather got to them somehow."

Pen rushed to the door, since Micah was stuck, unable to move. He returned with an envelope, Micah's name scrawled across the front. "It could be anything. From one of the neighbors, or...or something innocent like that."

Micah shook his head and took the envelope. Although he wanted to throw it away, they needed to know what it said. He would take no chances with Simon's, or Ryan's, life. He would run to his grandfather and give himself up, if only those two men were released, safe and unharmed.

Micah:

You will go downstairs, where you will meet with a driver. He will bring you to me. All communication in and out of the building is blocked for the next half hour, which is the deadline I give you to be downstairs.

Once in the car, I allow you to make one phone call, to your mother only. She should know that you will no longer be in touch with her unless I allow it. She cannot save you, nor can she tell anyone where you are.

Half an hour is the amount of time you have to get downstairs, but the sooner you comply, the sooner your friends will be free.

JT

"All right. Pen, you come down with me and see what kind of car I get into. You can then call that information in from somewhere. Make sure nobody sees you, though."

"No! I'm going down with you. Ryan is my husband and I'm going after him!"

Micah hugged Pen close, hoping that he could make himself clear. "You can't. If you don't let them know what's happened, no one will be able to help. By the time anyone realizes we're gone, it will be too late to track us. Please, I won't let anything happen to Ryan or Simon."

"You can't stop me, Micah! Your mother knows who to contact, as soon as you call her, she'll let them know." Pen's expression was determined. He refused to give up his position. "I can't just sit here while everyone I love is taken away. I'm going."

Helpless to prevent it, unless he was willing to physically restrain or harm his cousin, Micah gave in. Maybe having the two of them there would confuse the person driving them. Maybe the man, or woman, didn't know how to tell them apart. It wasn't the best idea, Micah would much prefer leaving Pen behind, but if their positions were reversed, Micah knew he would want to go help Simon no matter what.

Taking each other's hand for comfort and courage, Pen and Micah walked out of the apartment. A man, average and ordinary in every respect, met them. He stared from one to the other in confusion, before shrugging. He escorted them to a car halfway up the block and ushered them inside. Soon they were on their way, wondering where they would end up and what would happen to them.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

I want to thank everyone again for all the wonderful and kind comments. It's a pleasure for me to share my stories with everyone here, rather than keep them for myself as I used to do.

Since I'm still working on finishing up the final chapter, if there's something unclear in the story to date, I'd love to hear from you. I can't promise to work an explanation or clarification into the final chapter, but it might give me something to work with in any future stories I might set in the nightwalker/daywalker world. ~Danae