Clan and Crown by Tracy St. John Read Free Book Online Page B

light tone, “You want more
already?”
    “I’m young, you know. Strong urges and
all that.”
    Egilka’s own strong urges were coming
to the fore. With another 200 years to look forward to, he counted
barely more than a youngling himself. He swallowed hard. “That’s
true. Poor kid, stuck with an old man for an Imdiko.”
    Clajak chuckled as his fingers combed
through Egilka’s long hair. “I like mature men. Besides, you’re
only in your early forties. That’s on the low side of
ancient.”
    Egilka faced forward so the Dramok
wouldn’t see his grin. Seldom had they bantered so easily. He
tended to keep people at an arm’s length, afraid to trust too much.
Maybe it was his doing that they hadn’t gotten closer.
    Clajak grabbed a nozzle labeled for
soap. “Hold still. Relax. Now that I can finally put my hands on
you, giving you a bath seems the perfect opportunity.”
    “I’m still mad at you for making me
come all the way out here,” Egilka grouched as Clajak sprayed him
down, sending a moisturizing cleanser all over his back, buttocks,
and legs. “A scrub is the least you owe me.”
    For an answer, Clajak grabbed his
wrists and made him plant his hands against the wall in front of
him. The fantasies that position unleashed grew as the prince’s
hands worked over Egilka’s arms, shoulders, and neck. It was more
massage than washing. Egilka couldn’t smother a groan as the Dramok
found a knot of bunched muscles and rubbed the tension
free.
    “See what all that work is doing to
you?” Clajak whispered in his ear. “You feel so rigid, like a block
of stone. As your Dramok, I’m going to order you to take more play
time.”
    “I could be a little more balanced,”
Egilka sighed. The man worked on his back now, turning him into
jelly. Clajak had an amazing touch. A Tratsod couldn’t have done a
better job of massaging.
    “Try being a lot more balanced. You’re
obsessed with your research. Granted, you have good reason for
doing so, but I don’t think Cyrt would approve.”
    Hearing her name made Egilka freeze in
place. Clajak rubbed up and down his back, soothing him.
    “Easy, Imdiko. I know she had your best
interests at heart, which is why I brought her name up. She would
not like knowing she is the reason you don’t have any
fun.”
    Swallowing past the ball of hurt in his
throat, Egilka said, “I have fun. I do.”
    “Tell me the last time you did
something frivolous. The last time you left Kalquor for a vacation.
The last time you took a vacation anywhere. The last time you
visited a pleasure club or went to a party that wasn’t an affair of
state or met with friends for drinks. The last time you slept late
even. When was that, Egilka?”
    The quiet tone wasn’t demanding for a
change. It wasn’t judgmental or mocking either. Clajak sounded
concerned. He sounded like he cared.
    Egilka leaned his forehead against the
wall. He didn’t answer because he didn’t have one to
give.
    Clajak didn’t press him. He continued
to scrub him down, skipping Egilka’s buttocks to concentrate on his
legs next. Little by little Egilka began to relax again, to let the
warmth of the falling water and the comfort of the other man’s
touch ease painful memories. Clajak’s arms came around to wash his
front, again skipping over areas that might have taken Egilka out
of his contented thrall.
    Egilka’s breed designation was Imdiko,
the personality type that felt compelled to nurture others. With
most other Imdikos, it would have been odd to be the one being
looked after, with no attempt to return the favor. Yet few who knew
Egilka – or thought they knew him – would have been surprised at
the current situation.
    Many commented on how aloof he seemed
for his breed, how uncaring of others he tended to be. In fact, it
was the opposite. Egilka had been diagnosed early as being far too
empathetic for his emotional health. When he encountered another
person’s pain, Egilka felt it as his own. When someone