Today I'm blogging at my friend Amber Kell's Birthday Bash blog. As part of the overall celebration, she asked me to have a character throw a party for another character. I thought hey great! In 'A Royal Bind' my favorite born vampire Stephon, throws a birthday celebration for my young shifter prince Lance, who had never had a birthday party before. I thought to myself fabulous, I don't have to write a thing its already done.
Happy Birthday Amber!
This orgy is for you. :)
Stephon's Unbirthday
from Blood Ties - Changing Moon Book 3
(Soon to be released with Dreamspinner Press)
Stephon stepped out of
the shiny, black lacquered horse-drawn carriage at the back of his property. It wasn't that he didn't have cars, or trucks for that matter, but when he came
home after traveling, he enjoyed the slow ride through his lands in the old-fashioned,
but highly modernized with all the conveniences, carriage. He’d only been gone
a week, but his home was not as he’d left it.
“Maurice, what’s going
on?” His yearly sojourn had gone as it always did—poorly—and it left him
feeling bereft. He’d wanted to come home to peace and quiet, where he could
lick his wounds alone. That was about as far from what he was seeing before him
as it could possibly get.
“I’m not sure, it kind
of looks like someone’s at the house and they’re throwing a party.”
“Thank you, Captain Obvious.
That much I can see,” Stephon sniped. He swatted the arm of his burly drone.
Two more drones stood at
attention, garbed in what appeared to be poorly copied Roman gladiator
costumes. They wore red tunics, which were clearly not wool; the body armor was
some sort of silver plastic and the fake leather cingulum that girded their
waists were such that no self-respecting Roman soldier would've been caught dead
wearing it. Drawing himself up straighter, he took a deep breath, grabbing hold of
his temper, trying not to notice the horrible costumes and dress down his
drones for their distinct lack of fashion sense, he approached them looking first from one to the other waiting for answers that were not forthcoming.
“Someone needs to speak
now and explain what the hell is going on in my home before I completely lose
my temper!” Stephon growled, his eyes flashing, his fangs dropping
uncontrollably, as they hadn't done in years.
Both drones dropped to
one knee and bowed their heads before their maker in complete submission.
Stephon sighed. It hadn’t been his intention to throw that much power at his drones.
They were his family, and it clearly showed how stressed he felt that he was
hurting his own, even unintentionally.
“We’re sorry, my Lord,
but Lance and Andrew insisted,” the guard on the right practically whispered,
his eyes on the ground.
“They ask that you wait
here just a moment and they will be out to explain. They are on their way now,
my Lord.” The other guard visibly trembled as he spoke.
“I’m sorry, my sons. It
appears I am more on edge than I imagined. I didn’t mean to take my agitation
out on you. Evidently I am the recipient of some sort of joke…”
Lights glowed from
behind billowing white canvas pavilion tents. They stretched along Stephon’s black
wrought iron gates. Suddenly they winked out, the only illumination coming from
the opening to the tent that blocked his way. A chorus of snickers and hushing
sounds rippled from behind the canvas. Stephon could only sigh with tired
frustration. Whatever was about to happen, he told himself he wouldn’t be
angry. LB and his Poodle must mean well. The mated pair were like family to him,
and would never intentionally hurt him. He just felt so bone weary, and with
another year going by and his mate still eluding him after centuries of waiting,
he wasn’t sure how much longer he could last before he lost his mind entirely.
Of course none of this was Lance and Andrew’s fault, so he schooled his
features to reflect an emotion that said annoyed, not homicidal, as he really
felt.
Lance and Andrew walked
out from behind the canvas and Stephon’s jaw dropped to his feet. The two men
were nude except for the small black speedo’s they wore. He was used to seeing
his shifter friends either clothed or nude, but the tiny black speedo seemed
indecent in its teasing seductive nature.
Lance took one look at
the tense irritated vampire, approached him and wrapped his arms around
Stephon. “I’m so sorry. If I would’ve known you were this unnerved by surprises,
I never would have suggested this.”
“I told you… he gets
tense this time of year and goes on sabbatical to be alone.” Andrew rolled his
eyes, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Well, yeah, but I
thought when he came back that he’d be relaxed and ready for company, not even
more wound up than before he left,” Lance grumbled. “Nobody touched the house,
I can have everyone close down and we can all disappear like we weren’t even
here.” Lance took hold of Stephon’s shoulders and looked the vampire lord in
the eyes.
Stephon closed his eyes
and took a deep breath, forcing himself to relax. It felt so good to be held.
To be touched by someone who cared about him. It was a luxury he only had with
these two. Of all his children and friends, only Lance and Andrew ever touched
him. He didn’t think he was unapproachable, but there was some barrier between
him and others that nobody seemed willing to breach and he was starved for
affection and touch. He allowed himself to lean into warmth for a moment before
drawing back just a bit.
“Of course not. You went
to all this trouble. Tell me about my surprise.” Stephon reached forward and
tweaked Lance’s chin and tried to give him a relaxed mischievous grin.
“You aren’t fooling me,
you know, but I think this might help.” Lance grinned back and took Stephon’s
hand in his. He led Stephon through the canvas and into his yard which was
suddenly filled with colored lights.
“SURPRISE!!! HAPPY
UNBIRTHDAY!!!” was hollered from men spread out around the large yard. They
were all dressed similarly to Lance and Andrew, in swim trunks of various types
and colors. The hard bodies of drones appeared pale in the light, intermixed
with the golden bodies of a few male shifters that Andrew and Lance had
obviously brought with them.
“Victoria called your
usual party list and invited the eligible unmated males. We brought a few
available friends from the men who volunteered to become part of Lance’s
guard.” Andrew spoke from just behind them.
“Unbirthday?” Stephon
turned to look at his friends, a bemused look on this face.
“Well, of course. You
won’t tell anyone when you were born, so we decided to celebrate your
unbirthday. Which can be done on any day of the year that isn’t your birthday.
It isn’t your birthday today is it?” Lance teased.
“No.” Stephon chuckled
and looked out over his lawn at the expanse of muscles and skin on display.
“So, first of all, you
need to be properly attired… or should I say … less attired.” Lance laughed and
led Stephon to one of the many white cabanas that ringed the yard.
“What kind of unbirthday
party have you thrown for me!” Stephon’s shock was clear in his voice as he looked around.
The white tent was strewn with gently flickering fairy lights that gave the room the private feeling of a
spa. It was more like an upscale hotel room instead of a tent in his yard.
Andrew untied a knot releasing the canvas flap that closed the cabana off from
the rest of the yard. There was a clothing rack against one wall, a small table
with red roses in a small vase, and a colorful bag with a bow. The center of
the tent was taken up by a beautifully dressed double bed in burgundy and blue
satin.
“The best kind there is.
An all male party.” Lance nodded to Andrew, who picked up a colorful bag from
the table.
“You’re throwing me an
orgy?” Stephon started to laugh. In all his long life, and all of the parties
that he’d thrown and in turn attended, nobody had ever done something like
this.
“In a manner of speaking,
I guess so.” Lance grinned. “Now off with the clothes. I have your designer
label outfit all ready for you.
“You expect me to run
around as unclothed as the rest of you.” Stephon tried to look affronted, but he
wasn’t fooling anyone.
“Stephon, you used to
attend frat parties in a toga with nothing underneath. A speedo is not going to
embarrass you.” Andrew grinned. “Besides if I remember correctly, you have a
beautiful body, so why not flaunt it? You never know, you might just find your
mate.”
It was like a bucket of
cold water, but Stephon tried not to let the hurt show. “My mate isn’t among
the men out there, Andrew. But that doesn’t mean I can’t still have a good
time.”
“How do you know? He
might be out there. Don’t give up hope. If I’d ever given up… before I met
Andrew… I could’ve died on the street a long time ago.”
Stephon paused. He’d heard
Lance’s story, and knew what the young man had been through. It was amazing he
wasn’t more damaged than Stephon knew him to be. And it wasn’t that he didn’t
have hope. It was hope that kept him going year after year to the same place
for his sabbatical, just in case… but the man he knew to be his mate had yet to
come for him, despite what he’d promised all those years ago. The sabbatical
had become his yearly self-flagellation of the spirit, but he couldn’t stop
going, and seeing Lance and Andrew together in happily mated bliss was just one
of the reasons he continued to try.
Still, all punishment
and no play made Stephon a dull boy, and he’d be damned if he’d go out being prudish.
His mate might not want him, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t have fun.
“Okay.” Stephon nodded
and began unbuttoning his coat.
“Really!” Andrew’s jaw
dropped.
“See? I told you he’d
play along.” Lance chuckled. “You owe me a blow job.”
“But I was sure that
he’d never…”
“What’s that old saying,
never say die? Well, I decided there was too much handsome man-flesh out there
to be a stick in the mud.” Stephon took off his suit jacket and walked over to
the clothes rack. “But you two are going to have my lawn spotless when this is
all over, and that means replacing the sod if all this activity destroys the
grass. I won’t have my gardener paying for your little surprise with extra
work.”
“You got it.” Lance
grinned. He leaned over and kissed his mate before helping Stephon by hanging
each piece of clothing the man removed.
“Here.” Andrew handed
Stephon his gift bag before he took off his Calvin Klein underwear. “You’ll
need this. Come out when you’re dressed.” With a growl, he grabbed Lance’s arm
and led him outside.
“Some mates.” Stephon
laughed as he heard Andrew possessively snarl something about not seeing any man’s
underwear but his. Stephon was actually surprised that he could laugh, as he’d
been in such an awful mood when he’d arrived. There was just something about being
around Lance and Andrew that relaxed him and made him happy. Sure, he still
longed for his mate. The problem was his mate didn’t want him, so the closest
thing he had to that kind of happiness was when the pair shared theirs.
“I must have lost my eternal
mind,” Stephon mumbled to himself as he looked into the bag. He couldn’t
believe what he saw. He pulled out a hot pink spangled speedo with the words
“Unbirthday Boy” on the little bit of material on the back. Accompanying the speedo,
a few accessories had been added to the bag: a tube of ID Glide lube, a hot
pink butt plug with what appeared to be a glass ruby in the end, and a pack of
chewing gum so he could be minty fresh for whomever struck his fancy.
Stephon dropped his
Calvin Kleins and put on the speedo. The things I do for my friends. He
wasn’t about to use the butt plug, or any of the other accessories. Well, maybe
the gum, but it tended to stick to his fangs in strange places. It wasn’t his
favorite thing to chew.
He stepped out of the pavilion
and Andrew and Lance each took an arm and led him out into the menagerie.
“First up, Wet Wild and
Twister.” Andrew pointed to the left as they walked past a giant inflated
twister board where the guys were playing wet bouncy twister. One man stood off
to the side calling out colors and another was spraying a constant rain of
water over the players, as they stretched and laughed, attempting to stay
upright or, at the very least, taking out as many other players with them as they could when they fell.
“I think I’ll save that
for later.” Stephon couldn’t keep from grinning as one guy in the middle of the
pack screamed, his feet sliding out from under him as his arms flailed about; he
took out half the players on the board.
“Okay, here in the
middle we have the Naked Jell-O Pool. Hop right in and let the Jell-O ease your
way to a brighter tomorrow.” Lance motioned to the ladder at the side of the
pool. Speedos littered the little walkway around the outside of the pool where
guys had obviously ditched their trunks.
“A strong possibility,
but I don’t think I’m ready to take the plunge.” Stephon laughed at a jello
fight currently in progress, the guys flinging the sticky green glop at one
another. “I’m a lover, not a fighter.”
“Well, next up is the
Bouncy House of Ill Repute.” Andrew motioned toward a deep red-and-black
striped castle. Only it wasn’t open so you could see what was going on inside,
but you could easily guess. Small black mesh windows with dimly strobing lights
flashed in various colors, and the whole house rocked erotically. If that
wasn’t enough of a hint, the sound of moans and the overpowering odor of sweat,
sex, and blood poured from the building.
“Holy mother of orgies.”
Stephon laughed and smacked Lance on the shoulder. “You definitely know how to
throw a party.”
“Well, I didn’t
originally intend it to go quite like this, but some of it has clearly gotten
out of hand.”
“Last but not least, the
maze.” Andrew led them to a blacked-out building and handed Stephon a glow
stick. “You might find what you’re looking for at the center of the maze.”
A vaguely familiar
shadow at the edge of the rows of pavilions detached itself from the darkness
and disappeared into the maze. The breeze carried the faint scent of something
familiar, then it was gone.
“One never knows for
sure, I guess,” Stephon mumbled. He looked first into Lance’s eyes. He
plastered a grin on his face and turned to Andrew. “Guys, I’m going in!”
“We’ll
see you on the other side… unless you find something worth staying for in the
center.” Lance waved as Stephon gave his glow stick a shake and ducked around
the corner into the maze, disappearing from sight.
****
I hope you've enjoyed this never before posted sneak peek at Blood Ties - Changing Moon book 3. And for two lucky people, one copy of either A Pauper Prince or A Royal Bind... Birthday Girl's digression... In other words if you want to be a winner... ask Amber, she gets to pick the winner.
Happy Birthday Amber!
from Sui Lynn~~
