Page 21 of Shrouded Desires
“I had hoped to, Sir.” Raine kept his tone respectful as he sank to his knees next to Storm’s chair.
“What are you doing?” Storm looked confused.
“Waiting for you to feed me, Sir.” Raine kept his head bowed. He wasn’t sure how to explain that during his basic retraining Max had fed him otherwise he wouldn’t have eaten. He still didn’t eat the best, but at that point in his life he hadn’t eaten at all, unless forced.
“Max hand fed you?” Surprise colored Storm’s words. “Look at me, Raine.”
“Yes, Sir.” He drew in a deep breath then let it out, before lifting his head to meet Storm’s dark gaze. “You don’t have to feed me, Sir. But Master said that we were going back to basics, and that was one facet of Master’s basic retraining. When he found me, I barely ate enough to keep a bird alive. I do better now, but...”
“We’re going back to basics. It’s okay. I don’t mind. I just wish Max would’ve told me more than just have him sleep in the closet, and keep a close eye on his eating habits.” He smiled reassuring at Raine. “He never told me that he fed you. But that explains why there’s only one chair.”
“Yes, Sir.” Raine kept his answer short. He wasn’t sure how to handle Master Storm within their new arrangement but decided to err on the side of caution.
“Any food allergies?” Storm prompted as he began to plate food for himself.
“No, Sir.” Raine replied, as his tummy growled again.
“Water or tea?” Storm looked down at him. “Come on, boy, how am I supposed to know what to feed you or give you to drink, if I don’t ask? I’m not a mind reader. Help a dom out.”
“True enough, Sir.” Raine bit his lower lip to keep from laughing. Sir definitely had a dry sense of humor. “I like the coconut shrimp, and garlicy mashed potatoes. I’ll eat any of the veggies but brussels sprouts, and can take the salad or leave it.”
Storm narrowed his eyes. “Noted.”
Several moments passed before the first offering of food appeared in front of his nose. It was plump coconut encrusted piece of shrimp. He obediently opened his mouth, nibbling on the offering. The savory sweet taste burst over his taste buds. He made an appreciative sound deep in his throat. Damned if it wasn’t the best thing he’d tasted in a long while. It was followed by a crisp green bean and a nibble of potatoes. Each he took dutifully from Storm’s fingers.
Over the next half hour, Storm alternated between feeding himself and Raine. By the end of the meal, Raine was pleasantly full and was starting to feel sleepy. Especially after Storm had allowed him to rest his head against the outside of his thigh. He hadn’t lied earlier when he’d said it would be different with Storm than Master. But oddly, without the tension of a punishment hanging over his head, he found himself relaxing as Storm leaned back in his chair and watched the evening news on the television mounted over the dresser. The gentle stroke of Storm’s fingers in his hair was all it took to send him into a doze.
* * *
Storm absently watched as the news anchor handed off the broadcast to the sports anchor. The older white guy started running off the latest baseball stats. Other than a passing interest in the sport the figures meant little to Storm. He basically had the tv on for noise. Because between his belly being full, and the warmth of his submissive kneeling at his feet, slumbering peacefully, he was quite content. He wasn’t about to move now. He might even close his own eyes for a moment or two. He didn’t need to check in on the club until closer to closing time. Two of the pro doms were downstairs as well as several dungeon monitors. Redemption ran smoothly, thanks partly to the man curled up against his leg.
His eyes began to drift shut, then the topic on the tv turned to the latest scandal in the NFL. “The San Diego Chargers have placed wide receiverAnton Martinon unpaid leave after several underage men came forward to accuse the star of illicit acts with a minor. His agent, Jonas Jones, couldn’t be reached for comment at this time, but we’ll be sure to keep you updated on the last developments in this story.”
He groaned at the mention of his friend’s name. He and Anton had played college ball together back in the day, and to this day shared the same agent who’d recruited them right out of college. “Fuck Anton. I warned your stupid ass about that jailbait.” His friend liked them young and wasn’t good about checking IDs. Choosing instead to take the little twinks at their word about their age.
“Wh...at...?” Raine jerked awake in surprise.
“Shhh.” Storm was quick to sooth him. “I’m sorry. Go back to sleep, boy. Everything is okay.”
“No.” Raine yawned then straightened, but remained on his knees. Storm immediately missed the warmth. “If I sleep now, Sir, I’ll never sleep tonight.” He moved to get up, then seemed to remember something. “If it’s okay with you, Sir, I’m going to go hit the gym downstairs before bed.”
“Hit the gym? Now?” Storm didn’t even try to keep the disbelief out of his tone. “I’d rather just hang out here and watch some boob-tube. I think I liked it better when you were all snuggly and snoozing, and not pulling away from me.”
“Snuggly and snoozy?” A nervous chuckle escaped Raine. “Is that another way to say I was drooling on your leg, Sir?”
Storm glanced down at his chinos. There was a damp spot where Raine’s head had rested. Whether from the sweat beaded on Raine’s forehead or actual drool, Storm was going to think too hard about. “No. Snuggly and snoozy, like my Lulabelle.”
“Lulabelle?” Raine repeated, a blank look on his face – as if he couldn’t believe the direction the conversation had turned.
“Yep. Growing up, we had an orange striped Morris kitty named Lulabelle. She loved to snuggle with me. Slept with me every night. She had the damnedest habit of making nests out of my jerseys. I swear when I lived at home, I don’t think I ever wore one that didn’t have stray orange fur on it. No matter how much I lint rolled the damn things, she’d find a way to rub up against me as I was leaving for practice, or pull them off the hanger in the closet. Mom always said she wanted to mark her territory. To warn all stray cats to stay away from her man.” Storm chuckled. “The only pussy I’ve ever loved.”
Raine shook his head, the tousled strands looking adorable with the way they stood out in all directions. “I can’t imagine you with a cat, Sir.”
Storm lifted his finger to his lips. “Shhhhh, don’t tell anyone. It’ll ruin my street cred.”
The first true burst of laughter escaped Raine. “Street cred, Sir?” He arched a brow. “What you think you’re in some gang or something? This isn’t Colorado Springs.”
“Don’t make me spank you, boy.” He shook his finger at Raine.
