"No, please." Aileas' voice was faint and a bit breathless, completely different to his usual cool tone, and he himself was surprised by it the most.

 Captain Lorcan's hand stopped and hovered above the eye patch. "Do you think I'll be disgusted?" he asked softly.

That was a good question. If the other man might indeed be appalled, the general would have a legitimate way out of this strange arrangement. The other question was if he really wanted a way out. He had given his word, and he was not a man to back out of a promise for any reason.

The captain took his lack of answer as permission to go on and carefully pulled off the eye patch. Aileas saw no flicker of disgust or even pity in the other man's gaze, just the strangely tender fire he had watched burning there the whole evening.

Nevertheless, he felt somehow naked and exposed now, something he hadn't felt at all when he had undressed earlier. Absolutely no one ever saw him without the eye patch.

With a soft smile, Captain Lorcan leaned down and kissed the scar where Aileas' right eye had been. His lips felt incredibly hot, and although the touch was feather-light, Aileas felt the surrounding skin tingle.

The captain pulled back to study Aileas' face again. He seemed to wait for something. Permission, perhaps?

"Go on," the general whispered. He still had no idea how he felt about this, and his mind was more confused than it had ever been. Planning battles, attacking the enemy, leading solders – those were the things Aileas knew how to do. Before he had gotten command over the entire Idrisan army, he had spent all his time learning and reading books about history and military strategies, hoping to be at least an advisor to his admired older brother. But fate had other plans, and now he could put his knowledge to actual use.

However, on his way from a studious, scholarly youth to a celebrated war hero, Aileas hadn't found the time and energy to become an expert on intimate acts. And since his injury, he had all but excluded the very idea of anyone ever finding him attractive again. The stigma of being the pretty, girlish princeling was gone, luckily, so it had been for the best, and he hadn't spent a thought on it again.

Until now.

Aileas' clear train of thoughts became murky as Lorcan obeyed the order and let his hands wander further down. They were rough and calloused as the general's own, but their touch was as careful and tender as it had been when the captain had calmed the injured stallion.

Still, the general tried to stay detached from the things happening to him. He just had to remind himself that this was a simple gesture of gratitude he granted Captain Lorcan, nothing more. It was just the same as giving the man a nice estate or a fine horse.

Suddenly, Aileas drew a sharp breath as the captain's fingers ghosted from his hips to his arousal. When had he become aroused in the first place? Was his body truly this treacherous to react that swiftly to a stranger's touch?

Captain Lorcan was satisfied by this, however, his smile clearly betraying his feelings. He really seemed to stay true to his words about the general enjoying their encounter as well. It would have been far easier if the captain wouldn't pay such attention and just went about his business so this would be over soon.

Or would it? Aileas had all but ordered Lorcan to seduce him; there was no way around it. And now, the captain was doing just that…

Once again, Aileas felt soft kisses on his neck and chest, like butterflies landing on his skin. As hot lips found a nipple, however, the feather-light sensation changed into a sharp pang of heat racing through Aileas' entire body. He shuddered involuntarily.

In the dim light, Captain Lorcan's green eyes glowed like those of a forest cat about to pounce on its prey as he looked up into Aileas' face. His mouth left the nipple only to blow cool air on the wet flesh.

Before he knew what he was doing, Aileas had arched his back and given a small moan.

"By the gods, you are so beautiful," Lorcan murmured. Oddly enough, his almost reverent tone prevented the general from feeling embarrassed at his own reaction. Nobody had ever spoken to him like that.

But Aileas had no chance to think about this further because his – lover? – moved to the other, so-far-neglected nipple and kissed it as well. His hand, however, gently stroked Aileas' erection.

Try as he might, Aileas couldn't suppress another moan escaping his lips. Those touches felt good, and although his mind was still debating whether he wanted this, his body was very clear on that matter. For a second, the general was almost angry at this loss of control over his own flesh.

But any anger fled his thoughts the second Lorcan kissed his way down Aileas' belly to his arousal and gently engulfed it with his mouth.

Fortunately, the general did still have the presence of mind to cover his lips with his hand to muffle the cry. Undoubtedly, the soldiers outside the tent would come rushing in if they had heard him…

Eye screwed shut and gasping helplessly, Aileas grabbed the captain's hair with his free hand, not to shove him away, but to hold him in place. This sensation was unlike anything he had ever felt; it was almost as if he was melting away with pleasure like a piece of ice under the sun.

It was over far too soon. Aileas gave another muffled cry as he came, unable to keep the orgasm from washing over him. Bright stars danced before his closed eye, his body shaking with the aftermath of a sensation more intense than anything he had ever experienced before.

When he opened his eye again, he saw Captain Lorcan looking down on him. Those green eyes still shone with unfulfilled passion, but there was also a satisfied smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"Am I correct in guessing that you enjoyed that, Sire?" he asked, a hint of gentle teasing in his voice.

A last shred of dignity prevented Aileas from answering, but it seemed that his lover for the night knew the answer all too well already.

The captain softly brushed a sweat-soaked strand of hair away from Aileas' forehead. "May I continue?"

This time, Aileas hesitated. He knew that the other man hadn't found his release yet, the evidence of it pressing hard against Aileas' thigh. He knew enough of couplings between males to have a fairly good idea how they would proceed, since at court such pairings had been the fashion for a few years now, and the idea wasn't exactly a comfortable one.

General Whitestorm, Prince of Idris, taken by another man like a common harlot?

But did it really matter now? Captain Lorcan had already seen him at his weakest, so there wasn't much to lose anymore.

Finally, Aileas nodded. "Do… you want me to do anything? Shall I turn around?" he asked, feeling a bit awkward. It hadn't been this embarrassing before.

Lorcan shook his head. "No, I want to see your face. And maybe you could spread your legs a bit… and put your arms around me?"

This request was followed by a blush. All this time, the captain had been so confident, almost smug, but now he was embarrassed again? Oddly enough, it was a reassuring thought for Aileas. Hesitantly, he lifted his arms to put them around the other man's shoulders. The skin beneath his fingers was slick with sweat and so very warm.

It was all Lorcan seemed to have been waiting for. He quickly wet his fingers in his mouth and then carefully felt for Aileas' opening.

The sensation was weird, but not unpleasant. Aileas took deep breaths and tried to relax. This would be over soon…

A shocked whimper rang though the silence of the tent as Lorcan touched… something inside him that sent a ripple of pure fire through his whole body. It was quickly muffled, however, as Lorcan leaned down and kissed Aileas on the lips.

Such a careful and comforting, almost chaste gesture, strangely contrasting to the intimate touch between Aileas' legs, but the general was far beyond any rational thought by now. His lips parted on their own, admitting a probing tongue that soon caressed his own.

The kiss muffled another cry as Lorcan withdrew his fingers and pushed Aileas' legs further apart to slowly enter him. It hurt, but the pain was overshadowed with the sweetness of the kiss and the strange burning in Aileas' lower body. Lorcan gave him a few moments to adjust, as soon as he was fully settled, before he started a slow thrusting rhythm. Aileas' erection had returned, and his lover started to stroke it with matching, agonizing slowness.

Time lost all its importance. Aileas had no idea how long this sweet agony dragged on until he couldn't take it any longer. Lorcan's lips swallowed another cry as Aileas succumbed to orgasm once again, this one far more intense. Breathing heavily, he clung to Lorcan as if the man was the only solid thing left in this world, feeling his lover reach the peak just seconds later with a soft groan.

As he opened his eye again, he was granted a strangely beautiful sight: Lorcan's face was a mask of bliss, his sweet smile still in place.

"Aileas," he whispered. It was just the name, stripped bare of any titles, but it sounded more reverent than any formal addressing could have ever been.

Almost like a prayer, Aileas thought. But he didn't get much time to think about it when Lorcan kissed him again.

The night had just begun.

To be continued...