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Spell Cat
by Tara Lain
Blurb:
When Killian Barth, history professor, meets Blaine Genneau, quantum physicist, they ignite their own big bang. But Killian can’t pursue a physics professor—or a human. As the most powerful male witch in ten generations, Killian must bolster his dying race by reproducing—despite the fact that he’s gay.
Even a fling with Blaine is out of the question, because Killian has been told sex with humans drains his power. But if that’s true, why can young human Jimmy Janx dissolve spoons with the power of his mind? If Killian can sort through the lies he’s been fed, he’ll still face his biggest obstacle — convincing rational scientist Blaine to believe in magic.
With his ancient and powerful cat familiar, Aloysius, on his shoulder, Killian brings the lightning against deceit and greed to save Blaine from danger and prove love is the greatest power of them all.
Available for purchase at
Also available in paperback
Excerpts
He looked around and spotted the City Hall building a
block away. That’s right; there’s a park
there. He walked toward it, moving past the tall buildings and
late-afternoon pedestrians. Inside the park, he stopped. Blaine sat on a park
bench. Killian just wanted to stare at him. So beautiful. Not that perfect kind
of beautiful like Moran. Blaine looked… what? Smart as hell, yes. Free,
self-actuating, brave. That was a kind of beauty no picture-perfection could
match. Oh gods, I love the way the
black-rimmed glasses sit on his high-bridged nose.
Blaine looked up as if he’d felt Killian staring at him.
Goal achieved. He looked entranced without benefit of spells.
Killian paused. It wasn’t without benefit of spells. The
man was righteously bespelled. He took a breath. But at least he had Blaine for
now.
He walked toward Blaine, putting a little extra sway in
his walk.
The green eyes shone. “You look beautiful.”
Killian smiled. “Thank you. I wanted to be fitting of
your surprise, whatever it may be. You look pretty yummy yourself.” It was
true. Blaine was usually very casual, but he’d made an extra effort today.
Freshly washed jeans, a white shirt, and a dark sport coat. What was the
occasion?
Blaine looked up at Killian’s shoulder. “Hi, Al. Good to
see you, buddy.”
“Merwaor.”
Blaine glanced at his watch. Hmm. Was he taking Killian to a show? Maybe he had a restaurant
reservation. He patted the bench. “Come sit down.”
Killian sat. Curiosity gnawed. He glanced around the park
for a clue. “I hardly ever come here. I forget what a great building the City
Hall is.” He looked at Blaine. “Are we going on a tour?”
“Not exactly, but there is another building I want to
show you, I hope in a few minutes.” Blaine’s eyes crinkled. He looked like he
wanted to laugh.
“What’s going on? What’s the surprise?” Why did he feel
anxious? Aloysius began to purr.
Blaine giggled. Giggled?
Really? “I’m so bad at secrets.” Al’s purr got louder. Blaine reached in
his pocket. Oh, Killian had an odd feeling.
Blaine pulled a box out of his pocket. Oh gods. He couldn’t breathe. Blaine
opened the box, revealing the most beautiful antique gold and sapphire ring. He
looked up at Killian. “I love you. I know it seems fast, but I think you feel
it too. I’d like to walk you over to the marriage license office this afternoon
and apply. Will you marry me?”
Killian couldn’t breathe or speak—he just stared at the
ring. His life passed before his eyes. Every dream and barely acknowledged
wish. Every lonely moment’s ache of longing. It lay there in that box. Tears
pushed behind his eyes. He had to say yes. In all his life, no matter how long
he lived, there would never be another moment like this. There would never be
another Blaine. He looked up. “I can’t.”
A crease pushed between Blaine’s eyebrows. “You told me
you weren’t going to marry her.”
“I’m not. Though I haven’t told the family yet.”
“So tell them you’re marrying me instead.”
“I can’t. You’re the most wonderful thing I’ve ever
known, and that’s the most beautiful ring on earth. But I can’t.” And that was
it. If his heart had one tiny sliver still intact, it broke.
Blaine took Killian’s hand, wringing it tight. “Why? Tell
me.”
Killian sighed. So his hope to have this magic in his
life just a little longer was over. “Because you don’t love me, really.”
“What the hell?”
“It won’t last, and soon you’ll be glad you dodged this
bullet.”
“Bullshit! I’m a grown man, and I know how I feel.”
Blaine glanced around at the few passersby and lowered his voice. “How can you
believe that idiocy?”
“Because it’s true.” Aloysius bit Killian’s ear. “Ow.
Dammit, Al.” He pushed the cat onto the bench.
“At least Al’s on my side.” Blaine took a deep breath and
let it out slowly. “Sweetheart, I know you’ve been sheltered and never allowed
to explore your feelings for a man. It makes sense that you’d be nervous. Maybe
expect me to leave like your father did. But I love you, and I want to be with
you for the rest of our lives.”
Killian stared at his hands. “It can’t happen. You won’t
love me much longer. Maybe days are all we have left. It’s different for
everyone.”
“What’s different? Killian, you’re not making sense.”
It seemed there was only one way to persuade him. He
looked up into those confused and beloved green eyes. “The spell is different.”
“What do you mean ‘spell’?”
Killian sat up straight. “I mean the witch’s spell I cast
on you to make you love me. And Aloysius helped.” The cat hissed. “Get over it,
Al.” He looked back at his hands. The hands Blaine was no longer holding. “The
witch’s spell that is right now running out. Though in my defense, I had no
idea you would be the target of the spell. If I could have taken it back, had
you love me in truth, I would have done it a thousand times. If I could stop
being a witch so you could love me, I’d do it in a heartbeat. None of those
things are possible, even for me.” He looked up. Blaine—the human—stared at him
with wide eyes.
“You’re a witch?”
Blaine was standing at the end of the counter a few feet
away, staring at Killian.
How long could a witch live with his heart stopped?
Oh gods. He
understood. Heat. The way he felt this moment dwarfed every emotion he’d had
with Moran by a thousand. A million. The chasm between indifference and…
passion. His heart beat fast, his breath caught in his chest, and his eyes
never wanted to look on another sight, just Blaine.
He ought to run, but whether away or straight to Blaine,
he wasn’t sure.
“Mrwar.”
Blaine seemed to catch the welcome in that meow. He
smiled and took a step closer. “Hi, Al. Good to see you, buddy.”
Aloysius unwrapped himself from Killian’s neck, did one
bound off the tabletop, and launched himself into Blaine’s waiting arms. Oh
Powers, would that Killian could do the same. He actually had to hold himself
still, or he knew he’d follow the cat.
Blaine petted Al as the cat did his imitation of a moving
fur coat, purring so loudly Killian could hear him, even a few feet away. “You
seem happy to see me, anyway.” He looked up. “Are you happy to see me,
Killian?”
Killian nodded. Correction—his head nodded. He had no
power over it.
Blaine walked even closer. “Could I have lunch with you?
Talk to you?”
The head nodded again.
The human slipped into the chair beside Killian. Sweet
Powers, he smelled so wonderful. That sweet and spice together.
“This sure is one great cat. Where did you get him?”
Killian cleared his throat. “Gift, uh, a gift from my mother.”
Blaine chucked Al under the chin, and the cat let him.
“My mother hates cats.” He looked up, and Killian swam into the pools of deep
green. “Of course, my mother hates me, so she’s not likely to give me the time
of day, much less a pet.”
“Surely not.”
He grinned. “That she hates me? Oh yeah. I keep defying
her by choosing to be gay when her preacher has clearly cleansed me of this
delusion at least ten times, so she washed her hands of me.”
“But you didn’t choose—Oh, you’re joking.”
Blaine’s grin faded. “I wish it were a joke. Then a lot
of beaten-up, confused kids would have parents who loved and understood them.”
There were worse things than having a manipulative witch
for a mother. “I’m so sorry, Blaine. I didn’t mean it like that.”
Blaine smiled. “I never thought you were making fun. I
just have a weird sense of humor sometimes.”
Then he did it. He put his hand on Killian’s arm. Such a
simple gesture. Flash! Heat blazed in
Killian’s head, and hot steel filled his cock. Blaine started and pulled his
hand away. Those green eyes widened, and he stared at Killian like he was
either the answer to a dream or a cobra, and Blaine wasn’t sure which. “Holy
shit!”
Killian tried to make sense of his brain synapses and
grasped at the first thought. “Uh, food—did you want food?”
Blaine leaned over and whispered in his ear. “I want to
eat with you and talk to you and sleep with you and take you home with me. But
right now I want to make love to you so badly I’m having trouble focusing.”
There was that head nod again. Where the fuck did that
come from?
“Does that mean you want to make love to me too?”
Killian stared at Blaine, the human physics professor
whose simplest touch could drain a witch’s power until his own mother didn’t
know him and his people couldn’t benefit from his great sperm and—and all that
dogma. The answer was yes. He did want to make love to Blaine. He wanted it
more than anything. The evil witch voice piped up in his head. Yep, these humans are tempting. That’s how
the witch race got so depleted. He was the strongest male witch in ten
generations. That had to be worth something. He’d never had a really satisfying
relationship with a man, even for a short time. He wanted one. Didn’t he
deserve just a little happiness before he gave his life for his people? He’d
tried it the right way, the witch-stamp-of-approval way, and nearly got his
back broken for his trouble.
Blaine was staring at Killian like he was in suspended
animation; only the fingertips that scratched Al’s head moved. There. That was
it. Blaine had the best possible credentials. Aloysius, who was no dumb cat,
adored the human… and so did Killian. Just that simple. He didn’t care if he
rotted in witch oblivion, or if he lost some of his fabled power. How much
damage could he do in such a little while? “Yes.”
Blaine came to life. “Excuse me?”
“Yes. Please take me home with you.” He swallowed. “And
all those other things.”
Blaine’s smile lit like a midwinter bonfire.
“Mwrarrrrr, mrrrrrwarrrr, mrrrrwarrrr.”
The bloody cat was singing while he slithered around
Blaine’s neck in some happy dance known only to strange and powerful blue-eyed
familiars.
About the Author
Tara Lain writes the Beautiful Boys of Romance in LGBT erotic romance novels that star her unique, charismatic heroes. Her first novel was published in January of 2011 and she’s now somewhere around book 32. Her best-selling novels have garnered awards for Best Series, Best Contemporary Romance, Best Paranormal Romance, Best Ménage, Best LGBT Romance, Best Gay Characters, and Tara has been named Best Writer of the Year in the LRC Awards. In her other job, Tara owns an advertising and public relations firm. She often does workshops on both author promotion and writing craft. She lives with her soul-mate husband and her soul-mate dog near the sea in California where she sets a lot of her books. Passionate about diversity, justice, and new experiences, Tara says on her tombstone it will say “Yes”!
You can find Tara at Lain
