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Dirty Laundry

Chapter 15

By Roofles

Several future chapters will have heavier themes.

Sloan woke to an empty bed, again.

The lion stirred enough to roll onto his side, facing towards the other side of the bed. And at the empty space there. It seemed far larger than it actually was; Sloan was a large feline and took up most the bed. Even if he’d splurged and gotten something in elephant size, Sloan had a habit of spread out which left little room for Logan.

“Was that why you keep leaving me?” Sloan let out a breath, closing his eyes before forcing them open once more.

Despite Logan staying with him, the lion found it rather difficult to manage to get their schedules to match. Sloan worked morning into late evening while Logan seemed to be a, metaphorical, night owl. The human coming and going as he pleased with little notice of when, or if, he’d ever be back.

He was sure it was just work… though Sloan hadn’t exactly given much for Logan to do. He must’ve had plans or friends or…

Or maybe, Sloan feared, the human was avoiding him. Logan never seemed to sleep long and every time Sloan woke up, he was gone.

And each time, the lion would grasp at the empty space next to him and wonder… if he’d ever see the human again. A lingering dread was left in Logan’s wake that couldn’t be calmed until Sloan heard from him.

The lion groaned as he sat up. His age catching up to him, nearly pushing forty these days. Sloan took meticulous care of his mane and fur in order to keep any gray furs from showing up. He wanted to go at least another ten years, hopefully, before his mane’s luster began to fade. One could only dream though, the lion grumbled at the idea of being seen as the old man in the group.

With a stretch and a yawn, Sloan scratched his ever growing belly as he snagged one of the twin bathrobes off the wall before stalking into the apartment looking for his wayward human.

All the lights were off, though that was never a problem for the feline. Sloan had always had impressive night vision. Most of the Kincaid family did. It was hereditary as well as a natural benefit from being a lion. It was why they worked so well at night.

One of the tawny gold ears flicked as the lion heard the insistent typing from the kitchen, or rather the adjoining room where the table was at. Sloan hadn’t used this apartment in some time and it was a cluttered mess of boxes and artwork he’d collected over the years.

This place was always quiet even during the day. It was a pleasant change to hear the tapping of plastic against metal. That nonstop stream of words being typed out on a laptop Sloan instantly recognized to be his assistant at work, even into the late hour.

Glancing over at the clock, Sloan realized it was almost four in the morning. On a weekend! The lion grumbled, quickly wishing he lived alone once more.

At least Logan hadn’t just left him, this time. Instead, the human seemed to be working. On what? Well, Sloan planned to find out.

For a man who claimed not to have a proper job, Logan always seemed to be working… doing something or other that Sloan was never fully sure of; in a way, Logan was a mystery that had captivated the curious feline interest. The playful, kinky fun, lustful side of the human had pulled him in while the man behind it kept his interests peaked. Though, Sloan worried, the more he learned of the human the less he seemed to know of just who Logan really was.

“Logan.” Sloan spoke up from the entryway, politely announcing his presence. Human’s had terrible night vision and he rather not startled him. Having a lion suddenly show up behind you was practically begging to cause a heart attack.

The typing stopped at Sloan’s voice.

There was a moment pause and Sloan sniffed at the air as if trying to detect something. Was it, fear? It was hard to say as the lion walked further into the room so Logan could see him fully, rather than lurking like some unseen shadow in the dark. Like a creep, or rather in Sloan’s case… like a predator.

That handsome face was brightly illuminated by the laptop screen that Logan began to close. Blinking a couple of times, those aquamarines looked over at Sloan and the lion could feel his tail flick as his throat grew dry. Logan had such striking, bright eyes that really put his own to shame.

Sloan loved and hated those eyes.

Eyes that were breathtakingly captivating and yet… a mystery that the feline couldn’t seem to crack. Every time Sloan grew closer to solving the enigma that was Logan, a new piece would be added to the board that would throw everything else off.

“Sorry, did I wake you?” Logan just asked with that friendly tone and a smile that pulled up his cheeks just enough for a dimple to form at the corner. That smile, never fully, reached Logan’s eyes though. As if it weren’t fully genuine.

“You weren’t there when I woke up,” Sloan just said as if to explain why he was here. Or rather, to formulate a way to ask why the human was awake without coming off that the older, disgruntled, male was interrogating the human. Though, Sloan had learned he needed to be a bit more… direct, in order for Logan to tell him something that wasn’t just what the lion wanted to hear.

The feline could be sly and play this game as well, with a flick of his tail, Sloan rested against the wall with folded arms over his large chest as he tilted his head to one side, just enough to appear curious instead of accusing.

“I couldn’t sleep.” Logan said truthfully. And it showed. Sloan could tell the words were genuine, honest and not even a trace of a lie lingered after as he received another warm, if somewhat melancholy, smile.

Logan, in a way, always looked tired. As if he were running solely on caffeine and little else. That some great burden or weight was on his shoulders and only now Sloan seemed to notice it was there.

But the feline was too worried to ask what that might be. What the human, this human living with him, could still be keeping a secret from the lion, his boss and Sloan dared to hope… his friend.

That look made a growl form in the lion’s chest but he pushed it away. If Sloan became too direct, too worked up Logan would take advantage of it and they’d end up in the sack, again, without Sloan getting any kind of answer to his many questions.

If Logan wanted to play this game, Sloan could play this game. He planned to win, though, in the end… but, at the same time, was afraid of the cost of what winning would mean for him. For Logan. And for the two of them.

“Trouble sleeping…?” Sloan asked carefully, not taking his eyes off the human. He tried to appear relax, calm about the situation. “I have some chamomile tea in the pantry, if you’d like.”

“You sound like a dad,” Logan just jested. Teasing. Playfully smirking after as he gave the softest of giggles that made the lion’s tail lash behind him once more. Sloan had to consciously keep his nails from extending as a rumbling growl filled his chest and threaten to leave him.

“I’m not that old, am I?” Sloan traced his hand over the black painted, wooden table he had imported from Italy. The family was really big on having things from their home country. As much as Sloan had gotten tired with the look, it really was a nice sturdy table.

He’d fucked Logan on it once, so he was assured of its quality.

“You’re almost twice my age.” Logan just offered in reply. It was hard to tell if the human was teasing him, making fun of him or hinting at something else. The more Sloan spent with Logan, the more he began to understand how little he understood the human. “And twice my size,” the human added giving the lion a once over.

A shiver ran up Sloan’s spine and the lion couldn’t help the chuff that escaped his lips, feeling a stirring underneath his bathrobe and between his legs. The way those eyes lingered over the lion’s body, focusing on those key spots a little longer than anywhere else… it hadn’t escaped the feline’s keen eye.

“Is that a problem…?” Sloan asked, uncertain if it was or not. “That I’m older?”

“If it was, would I be here?” Logan just asked lifting up the laptop and continuing doing what he’d been doing previously.

Sloan took a second on that, noting how the speed had slowed down… The lion was certain that whatever Logan was working on now wasn’t what he’d been so intently focused on moments ago; whatever it had been, it had kept the human from coming back to bed.

That whatever it was… it was more important than sleeping with the lion…

Sloan tip toed that line, not wanting to dwell on it as he turned the dimmer switch on before taking a seat next to Logan at the table. Just enough for the lion to see the screen without being too apparent that was why he chose the spot.

“What are you working on?” Sloan inquired, trying to sound casual with it.

“Now, you really sound like a dad.” Logan just pointed out without missing a beat, typing away on the report he was currently working on. Sloan glanced over at the screen. It seemed to be about their old job but could only fathom why Logan would be working on it. “Some papers needed to be fixed for the weekly report; even after I quit, that thing still haunts me.” Logan answered the unasked question without even looking over.

There it was. That shift in tone, it was so subtle the lion hadn’t picked it up, not at first. Even being a lawyer, Sloan was impressed at well his assistant lied to him. Or rather… Logan wasn’t telling him everything. Just giving him a piece of the pie to sate the feline’s curiosity while hiding the rest.

“Right,” Sloan nodded though he didn’t believe it. He rubbed a hand on the human’s shoulders and if only, for the briefest of seconds… Logan flinched away from his touch.

Sloan withdrew his hand, curling his fingers and taking a moment.

“Sorry,” Logan paused his work to look over. “You’re just really warm.” Logan lied.

And this time, Sloan could tell.

Even with that friendly smile, there was something more. The lion was beginning to pick up on it. It wasn’t that Logan was lying, no. It was more like… he was only showing half his hand. That there was something the human wasn’t sharing with him, which concerned the lion as his growing doubts and fears seemed to be founded on something.

And Sloan hated that. He had to live his entire life with that, with his family, and all the secrets they kept from him.

“Logan, is everything… okay?” Sloan asked and the human took a second to answer that. The lion’s keen eyes watched the thoughts cross the human’s face, despite his best efforts not to let it show.

“I…” Logan started as if trying to figure out which words to use in that moment. “Just been thinking, a lot, is all…” Logan admitted though left it open ended for Sloan to fill in the blanks.

“With?” Sloan scooted his chair a bit closer, reaching over to gently place his hand on Logan’s shoulder once more and this time he didn’t pull away.

“There was an attack at city hall, the other day.” Logan just said. Sloan knew; he had even warned Logan not to be down there yesterday. “The parade was… and people were… I just…” Logan took a second and his hands were shaking.

Sloan reached out his own hand and held both the human’s, easily, in his grip. Those warm paw padded fingers rubbed over Logan’s as he looked at his face.

“They were lions…” Logan just said, taking a moment to breathe. He could smell Sloan’s musk, the lion knew. Sloan didn’t have a strong habit of showering when he was home. Letting his own natural smell permeate throughout his apartment as if marking it, as he had marked Logan just the other night.

“Yes, I saw the report…” Sloan nodded, frowning over it.

They had been reckless. Enzo was in charge for only a day and this is what happens! His youngest brother was careless about the lives of his friends and family… all in the sake of his revenge. But if it had just been that, then why had the lions attacked city hall? They should’ve been focusing on the wolves. To finish exterminating them from the city after what they had done to his brother, Jeron, and to Enzo’s face…

Logan winced and Sloan eased his tightening grip on Logan’s hands. He couldn’t let his family dealings and issues affect Logan and their relationship.

“I had a bad feeling about the parade,” Sloan lied. “I’m glad you weren’t there.” The human just nodded at that.

“Why would they attack city hall?” Logan asked as if reading Sloan’s mind. “It was such… chaos, down there. What could they have gained from it?”

“You didn’t go down there, did you?” Sloan took a sharp breath, his fears bubbling up to the surface with the heat of anger. Sloan had warned Logan to stay away from the parade and feared he’d been disobeyed and that… that Logan could’ve been hurt.

Hurt by his own family…

Logan shook his head, looking downcast as he continued.

“No, it’s just that… they were lions? What if they, what if others think you were somehow involved? Just because you’re a lion?” Logan asked almost innocently naïve, as if Sloan wasn’t aware he’d be lumped into the mess.

Even if he weren’t part of the family, The Pride, Sloan would have to deal with his own form of backlash from it all. If a lion did something, all lions were to blame. He’d been hounded by reporters for less; asked if he knew them or was a relative of them and if he had something to “comment” on. Sloan had plenty of words to give them but knew it was best to keep his silence.

“It’ll blow over. It always does.” Sloan hoped as he said the words; although founded in some truth, until a new headline replaced it this would be haunting him for the next several weeks.

“Why would they go to city hall?” Logan asked once more, his tone shifting slightly.

Sloan took a second on that. Wondering if Logan was fishing for something, from him, as so many others had. Snooping around the family trying to dig up some sort of concrete proof or evidence they could use to bring them in. Sloan was acutely aware of such tactics, being a lawyer and having dealt with his fair share of reporters snooping around such as that fat black rat just the other week. He knew when to say something and when not too, his job giving Sloan and edge where others didn’t.

And this… this was a time not to say anything.

With a shake of his head and a shrug of his shoulders, Sloan got up. “Do you want to come back to bed?” He said instead, offering his hand for Logan to take.

“Once I finish this up,” Logan nodded but they both knew the human most likely wouldn’t. Logan was a workaholic and Sloan was trying to get used to that.

The lion had given him very little in the line of actual work for him to do. Sure, he was paying Logan but the human blew through anything that was given to him in minutes, always ending up asking for more. More juicy bits and details as if hoping to find something within the nuggets of work Sloan tossed to him…

“I’ll get you some coffee,” Sloan just sighed heavily with a shake of his head needing the coffee himself as he walked into the kitchen, planning on at least keeping Logan company. And here the lion assumed the human would be keeping HIM company. Funny how the tables were so easily turned.

Pulling down an Italian French press, Sloan began making the two coffee as he mulled over his thoughts like an internal dialogue he was having with himself.

While it was clear something was going on, Sloan wasn’t sure exactly what that might be. And every time he tried to confront Logan about it, Sloan found himself recoiling as if afraid. Afraid of what it’d mean when he did find out the truth Logan was keeping from him.

Did Logan have another family? Was he seeing someone else? Was he only using Sloan for his money? Did he just have a lion fetish? Or was there something else…

And Sloan could feel the lingering dread building up inside, gripping at his heart with clawed fingers.

If Logan was… then he… would lose him…

Just as he’d lost his father.

Just as he had lost Jeron…

Lost his family. Job. Life. Everything.

Just as he had lost everything in his life before all this began…

And Sloan didn’t want to lose Logan too, unsure if he’d be able to handle it if he ever did.

A hand touched his back making the lion jump with a start. So lost in his own inner turmoil, Sloan hadn’t even heard the human come in to check on him. Glancing over one shoulder, Sloan saw the human before he felt those arms, his arms, wrap around the lion’s center, around his sides to hold against his belly from behind.

“You doing, okay?” Logan was the one to ask. His voice sounded warm, his presence felt it and Sloan didn’t want the human to let him go. Didn’t want these brief, fleeting moments to ever end.

“Yeah…” Sloan slumped against the counter, holding it with both hands and using it to support his weight. “I just,” his head hung low as he closed his eyes. “Have a lot on my mind…” Sloan mimicked Logan’s words back at him.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Logan asked, letting go and resting against the marbled counter top next to the lion. Logan was looking up at him, a good head shorter than the lion was, and Sloan couldn’t help the smile that crossed his face.

He rather just hold Logan, than to talk about any of this. It was better than nothing though. And it needed to be addressed.

Sloan was sure, once they finished talking though, Logan would just get back to work. It was four in the morning and here the human was working. It would be admirable if it wasn’t so… obsessive. What drove Logan to work so hard? To try so hard? The human could easily get by on his look alone; hell, Sloan had outright said all Logan had to really do was keep him company.

And the human had just given him that look. A look filled with something the lion that made his heartstrings play. A look that said far more than, he knew, Logan ever would tell him.

A look filled with anguish and pain held back, or maybe held together… by willpower alone; threatening to snap and break at any moment.

Before Logan laughed, playing it off, as he ever did…

“What am I an escort?” Logan had just said back with a smile that didn’t touch his eyes.

Sloan wished that was the case, at times. Then these thoughts, these worries and concerns wouldn’t be plaguing him so. If Logan was just some escort, Sloan could easily buy that “Affection” from the human. To give, to throw money at. A transaction and little else. Logan, however, seemed to care very little for his money and Sloan was unsure what else he could bring to the table to keep his interest in the long run.

The lion had spent more than half his life working to get where he was in life; a good career and home, a life for himself. It left little in the way of a social life, however. And age didn’t help matters any; the need for companionship as strong as it was when he was young as it was now.

Companionship he found in the human.

How long that’d last, was the question, the fear, Sloan held these days. He knew loss all too well.

There had been times Logan had looked at him… bored. Bored with this old lion, as if what he had to give Logan wasn’t enough. Or rather, it wasn’t what the human was looking for. It wasn’t the interest he had been seeking. What that was? What did Logan want? What did he need for him… of him…

“To stay with me…” Sloan muttered, the coffee pot scolding his finger bringing him back into the moment and away from the doubt lurking in the depths of his hear like some hungry predator.

“Sweet and black, right?” Sloan asked about Logan’s taste in coffee.

“Same as my men,” Logan just said taking the cup without looking over at the lion. Taking a long sip of the scolding hot liquid, the human looked over at the tawny golden fur lion. “That was a joke, Sloan.” Logan explained, seeing as how the lion hadn’t gotten it.

It was hard to tell what was a joke sometimes and what wasn’t with Logan.

The lion offered half of a chuckle, a frown replacing the rest. Ever since Logan had been using his name, he seemed… different. Less of the playful assistant crawling under his desk and someone with far more… depth? Layers? Was that the right word? Sloan wasn’t sure.

He wasn’t sure about a lot of things these days.

Was that how Logan saw him, then? That Sloan was more than what his outward appearance was. He wasn’t just some lion and little else. Sloan liked to collect art, to go to exhibits and was a connoisseur of fine wines and meats. He enjoyed quiet times listening to Mozart and Frideric Handel. He enjoyed the opera and even saw several of the musicals held in the city.

Though, from his appearance alone, the lion was sure most wouldn’t think such things. Why would a predator at the top of the food chain want to sit down in a stuffy room listening to such dribble as his brothers had called it. Something he had loved to do, mocked and ridiculed by his family…

Sloan hadn’t been able to connect with his family, as he had wanted too. Maybe then…

“Do you enjoy the theater?” Sloan asked making Logan’s fingers stop. The two had retreated back into the dining room so Logan could continue working. The human glanced over at him in the dimly lit dining room, over the bright screen of his laptop.

“Uh,” the human took a second on that, unsure how to answer the sudden question.

“Jerron and Enzo never liked the theater. It bored them. They couldn’t sit still for so long and ended up causing trouble.” Sloan just went on, though there was a soft tug of a smile as he reminisced on the old memory. “Father enjoyed it… I think. It was hard to tell if he… if he did.”

The lion went quiet and Logan placed his hand over his.

Sloan glanced down at it. The fingers were so… small, compared to his “murder mittens” as Enzo liked to call them. His hands, like his body, were large. Predators tended to be. His fingers held knives in each finger and with his strength, there was no doubt Logan wouldn’t have a chance if Sloan just…

Yet, why then, in the rare brief moments like these did Sloan feel like the vulnerable one as that hand touched the back of his own. Sloan felt his breath catch in his throat, and for a moment, he forgot how to breathe.

“How are you doing?” Logan asked and, in that moment Sloan knew would pass far too quickly… he was sure, the human would inquire about his family. His father, what was going on with them. Into his personal matters and the families business and… “With Jeron’s death, I mean.” Logan clarified and Sloan just looked at him.

Sloan had tried to talk to Logan about his middle brother before. It hadn’t gone well, the human practically abandoning him. And here he was now, maybe, to make amends for his callous choice before. There was no real gain in Sloan telling Logan about Jeron. The human gained nothing from asking.

Asking about some predator who’d lost his life in a turf war… Someone that no one else seemed to remember. Not the real Jeron, not the lion behind the Kincaid name…

“I know it’s been weighing on you, Sloan…” Logan continued and his voice was gentle, yet firm. Like that hand on his own. The human, in these brief moments, seemed to be the strong one whereas Sloan was the one trying to keep it together. “I never got the chance to properly ask about it. About him and how you’re… doing, after that. With everything. But I’m here now, for you, Sloan…”

“It’s been… rough,” Sloan said not adding on what it had done to his family.

Jeron’s death by The Pack had lit something underneath the lions, The Pride. Reminding them of what had happened at the docks last year brought up old memories burned over by the betrayal. Enzo hadn’t been the same after the docks and Jeron’s death had only helped in the younger lions fall. His youngest brother driven by nothing more than seemingly revenge these days.

And Sloan was sure the fires of his anger and hatred for the wolves would burn them all in the process.

It wasn’t highly known but The Pride had an… agreement, with The Pack. A stalemate, of sorts. Neither side would interfere with the docks. That was the agreed abound rule. The lions would do their thing, do all the work and give a small “courtesy fee” over to The Pack that would stay out of it. Just as they had been doing with the police, in secret.

It had been broken, that truce by The Pack. The attack on the docks had been ruthless. Maybe his brothers and sisters had gotten cocky, expanding outside the agreed abound boundaries… or maybe the wolves were just tired of being fed scraps. It was hard to say.

Either or, it had cost them greatly.

And with it, his brother Enzo had been broken. And shortly after that, his brother Jeron had been killed. Brutally murdered and left as a “display” for the lion’s to find. Something that would haunt Sloan to his grave, he was sure.

Now his father was gone and just…

“Sloan.” Logan’s voice cut through those thoughts like a hot knife and the lion lifted his head, looking over at him with tears burning in the corner of his eyes. Sloan didn’t let a single one fall, not showing that kind of weakness despite barely holding on. “I know what’s it’s like to lose a brother…” The human admitted and the lion’s ears perked up.

“Yes, well. This was no accident.” Sloan growled low, not wanting to dwell on such thoughts. Sadness could be hidden behind a veil of anger. It was a natural front. Something most would just shrug off and leave him be; letting the lion sulk and stew in his own misery.

And here Logan was, scooting closer in his chair. The human turning to face him as he closed his laptop before placing his other hand on top of Sloan’s. Logan using both his much smaller ones to hold one of the large lion paws.

“I’m sorry to hear that, Sloan.” Logan said, honestly speaking. He met those eyes before they fell back to the table, back to the hands holding his own. “My brother’s death wasn’t an accident, either. He was murdered.”

Sloan took a second on that, tensing up from hearing it. Logan, to Sloan, had been the front man for society. The perfect model for how things should be. Handsome and yet average, willing and yet playful. Fun and yet caring. A human that could fit in anywhere, yet without baggage.

To see him like this, hurt the lion’s pride in a way. As if Sloan wished he could’ve prevented such tragedy from stopping Logan from losing that naïve, innocent, playful smile. For that look to leave his eyes so the lion’s heart wouldn’t ache from seeing Logan in pain like this.

“I… yes, my brother lost his life, as well, to another.” Sloan nodded, not wanting to dwell on it but knowing Logan was going to ask about his death. To his surprise, though Logan did, the human seemed to respect the memory of his younger brother enough just to say…

“Tell me about him.” Logan said leaving one hand on Sloan’s as he took another sip of his coffee. “I’d love to know him, your brother that is.” The human smiled then, hiding his own pain inside with it.

Sometimes a smile… could hide the pain more than anger ever could.

“He was… Jeron was ridiculous, to say the least.” Sloan chuckled softly as he took a lapping drink at his own cup he’d brought in with him. Taking that brief moment to collect himself in front of the human.

“Tell me about him.” Logan just said, once more, with that soft smile on his face. These days, it didn’t meet his eyes and it felt a bit forced, sad even when Sloan looked at him.

“Jeron was a bit… rambunctious, to say the least. He was only a couple of years younger than me but had a, uh, lifestyle, let’s say, to him that the family didn’t like.” Sloan smiled, talking about his brother he never had a chance too.

Those in the family chose to ignore it, to forget about it and letting it brood and fester like an untreated wound instead of addressing it. Jeron’s death. It was an issue, a tool the family could use to rile up their members, to use against the wolves and the city itself. His brother’s death had been monopolized into a weapon, ammunition for the family to use.

That wasn’t a way to respect his death. No way to even address or acknowledge it. That he, their brother, had died and hadn’t even been given a proper funeral for those to mourn his passing.

“He cut off half his mane.” Sloan started with getting a look from Logan. He could tell the human was trying to visual what it’d look like if Sloan only had half his mane. The lion chuckled at that, feeling the weight in his chest and on his shoulders ease with every word he said. “He stylized it. Put these blonde streaks in it,” Sloan ran a hand through his luxurious mane. “Some kind of fohawk, I think, he called it. Wanted to be in a band. Be the lead singer for… and he just…” Sloan took a moment, recalling, remembering the sweet tender memories.

“That seems a little… flamboyant.” Logan smiled though, joining in on the conversation but letting Sloan do the majority of the talking.

“It really was. He looked like some punk rocker.” Sloan chuckled. “Dad was pissed, to say the least. Everyone in the family chastised him for it, not that Jeron cared. Maybe, maybe he liked the attention they gave him for it… even bad attention was still attention… Father didn’t give any of us any kind of proper caring for; it isn’t common, in a lion pride for them too. The mothers took care of, well, everything.” There was a moment, a second, that Logan face shifted and the lion feared the human was going to ask about his father.

Instead, Logan just took a drink and once he set the cup back down he was all smiles again.

“I’d have loved to meet him. Jeron, that is.” Logan just nodded. “Out of everyone in the family, he seems to be the one you were closest too.” The human said perceptively. “Or, I might be reading into it.” Logan then just shrugged off, putting up a fools act once more. That naïve smile playing on his face.

Sloan caught on quickly to that but didn’t focus on it. Just enjoying being able to finally talk about this. To address it. The family didn’t talk about what had happened. About him. His own brother’s death was left unspoken but the “Retribution” would be paid “ten fold.”

Jeron… “Jeron, hadn’t wanted that.” Sloan said to Logan and got a look. “Our family is rather, intense… to say the least. Jeron was far more… carefree? He was a free spirit, a dreamer that loved to just… go out there and…” Once more, Sloan found it hard to continue and was thankful when Logan butted in once more.

“We don’t have to talk about them. Your family. I want to know about Jeron, after all, not them...” Logan was the one to bring up, to offer and to give Sloan a chance to focus on his brother. Something he gladly took, wanting to talk about that. About him. About his life and not his death and what had happened.

That, in the end, it had been his families fault…

“Jeron hadn’t wanted to deal with the family. He came to me often, asking how I got out of it.” Sloan just said without going into detail. “I’d helped him, with some financial stuff. Of course.” Sloan chuckled. “He was terrible with money! Always in debt or asking for some cash… He Jeron was always sticking his nose into things he shouldn’t…”

There was that somber tone creeping into his voice and Sloan took a moment to let that digest. To address, admit and accept his own brother’s death… something his family seemed to be unable to do.

“He wanted to be a rock star.” Sloan suddenly said getting another look. The lion rolled his eyes. “I know, I know. He couldn’t sing! Or even play an instrument and he wanted to… to… to…” And the lion covered his mouth, looking away.

Jeron had wanted so much in life. Coming to him for advice, seeking his help outside the family. Reconnecting with his brother and trying to find him a way, a means to escape his family ties. He had been the only family in his life for so long and now he was just… gone.

“Sloan,” Logan said as he reached over to touch his hand once more. “We don’t have to talk about this if it’s that uncomfortable.”

“No, no. It’s… I need too.” Sloan took a steady breath. “I bought this apartment with a side fund I had been saving up… I had planned to surprise Jeron with it. A place for him to stay, to live at. Away from the families eyes. He’d have been able to, maybe, start a life here…? At least be given a chance too.”

Logan took a moment on that, looking around the place with a new found appreciation for it.

“Once he was…” Sloan took a second on that. “Once he was killed, I couldn’t bring myself to sell the place. Not that it reminded me of him or like it held any strong memories. It was just…” Sloan tried to explain but wasn’t able too. His thoughts were muddled and he was tired.

Tired from waking up so early.

Tired of his family, his life.

And tired of losing people.

“That if you keep it, maybe he’d come back someday…” Logan just answered for him. “Even knowing he never would. There’s always that… thought. That warm, fuzzy thought that maybe if you do this, if you keep this place, stay in this city… maybe then he’d come back…” Logan said from his own personal experience on the matter.

“I almost expect the door to just get tossed open. For Jeron to come walking inside, dragging some amp or drum set he’d… accrued…” Sloan chuckled, knowing Jeron was most likely to steal the damn thing instead of buying it. Even with all their money, it meant little if you couldn’t touch it without every eye turning on you. “Needing to borrow some cash that I know he’d never be able to pay back… let him crash on the sofa and wake up at two in the morning to find him watching something on TV, eating a bowl of cereal with way too much milk and making a mess and… and…”

Sloan took another moment, not wanting these feelings bubbling up and out of him. He thought addressing it, talking about it would make him feel better. All it did was make him feel vulnerable, exposed and without his suit on he truly felt naked, defenseless…

Even as a several hundred pound lion, Sloan was the one who felt scared. Lost and alone…

“It doesn’t get better.” Logan stated getting a look from the lion. “Oh, sure. It gets easier… easier to wake up. To continue your day. To keep going, to live your life… But it never gets… better?” The human shook his head, trying to find the right words to express his own thoughts and feelings while consoling the lion while still respecting the fact he was an adult and not just some child.

Sloan appreciated that. He hated being looked down on or talked to like some imbecile or child. He was almost forty! It didn’t mean he didn’t have feelings or concerns or worries, that things didn’t affect him. It was just…

“People will tell you, they probably already have.” Logan nodded as he went on. “That it happened for a reason. He’s in a better place. That things will get better and you’ll get over it,” Logan said the last part spitefully before taking a second. “That… you need to just move on. It’s not that simple. I almost envy those who can use religion as a crutch to get through loss, death and the inevitability of it all…”

Sloan placed his other hand on top of Logan’s, getting the human to look at him.

“I was born and raised in a Catholic family. It doesn’t help.” Sloan offered and it took Logan a second to realize the lion had been joking with him. They shared a quiet laugh together on it. “What… helped you, get through it? Your brother’s passing?”

“Sex.” Logan just stated and the lion nearly snorted his coffee out at that. Logan just laughed. “Okay, well partially sex. And work. Just… keeping myself busy. Focusing on something, someone,” he added looking at the lion. “Helps. It helps a lot to keep myself occupied.”

“How long ago was it…?” Sloan frowned a bit trying to figure it out.

“Let’s see… I’m twenty-two, it was back in high school. The end of high school I should say… Senior year,” Logan acted as if he had trouble with the math for a second. “Four years ago? Give or take a couple months.”

“What about your parents?” Sloan thought about it, tapped a finger on his chin trying to recall if Logan ever mentioned them.

“We… didn’t see eye to eye on a lot of things as it was?” Logan grimaced a bit. “They had a lot of… thoughts, over the matter. Telling me what to think, how to feel and well… how to deal with it. I don’t like being told what to do,” Logan added with a smirk and a wink. “Outside the bedroom, that is.”

“Of course.” Sloan chuffed a breath, waiting for that playful side to show its head again. It was rather refreshing, in a way.

“But no, I’m not close with my parents. They don’t… believe, in what I do…” Logan left it at that, frowning a bit as he thought it over. “Why I chose to do this…” Logan said, almost to himself rather than the lion sitting next to him.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Sloan placed a large, friendly hand on the human’s shoulder. He was glad Logan was wearing the bathrobe he’d gotten for him at least, knowing how particularly cold humans could get. Sloan was wearing his just because he didn’t like to be nude, even in his own apartment.

“Maybe that’s why I like older men?” Logan teased, resting his chin on his arms as he looked over and up at the lion. “I got daddy issues.” And the human didn’t even wait to ask “can I call you my daddy?”

“Don’t you freaking dare.” The lion growled back with a shake of his head, holding the side of it with a hand as if trying to suppress a migraine from the very thought. “I’m not that… old, am I?” Sloan let out a heavy breath, a deep sigh that rumbled from his throat like a growl.

“I find it to be one of your best qualities.” Logan grinned, showing off his sparkly white teeth. For how much coffee his assistant consumed, Sloan was impressed to see just how clean his teeth were.

Logan really was a handsome guy and if he hadn’t gotten the life he had… would he have been just a normal, average day human? Someone like Logan wouldn’t even need to take a second look at someone like Sloan… The older lion fidgeted at the uncomfortable thought. If Logan hadn’t lost his brother, been clawed and scarred and hadn’t… then would he even… and then…

“Hey,” Logan said pulling Sloan from the darker thoughts lingering. “You have a wonderful smile, too.” The human said catching the lion’s attention. “A little more… pointy, than mine. But nice, still.” Logan gave him a wink before turning back to his cup.

The two took a couple minutes to appreciate their coffee before the lion started up again. It was strange, being able to talk to someone and open up like this. He thought it would leave him vulnerable, exposed just waiting for the other shoe to drop and for Logan to stab him in the back. The human never did.

“Jeron didn’t like to be told what to do, either…” Sloan brought up, tapping a finger on the table. “He was a free spirit,” and the lion rolled his eyes at the very idea of it. “Wanted to do what he wanted when he wanted. Didn’t want to dress like the family did. He got his mane done without anyone knowing. It was just one thing after another…”

“You seemed close, with him.” Logan pointed out. “You don’t mention your family often but Jeron seems to be… special, to you.”

“He was… in a way, the only family I had. Sure, you love your family! Doesn’t mean you like them!” Sloan chuckled. “For a long time. Jeron came by, he texted, he called, he included me after my father kicked me out.” Sloan shrugged as if it were the most normal thing for lions to do. “I was so busy with university; I wasn’t able to really… connect, with people. But Jeron? Well, he had a habit of forcing his way into your life.”

The human chose not to point out that it was probably also due to the fact Sloan was nearly a seven foot tall lion man why he couldn’t connect with people.

“Jeron ended up just showing up one day on campus.” Sloan laughed, a true genuine sound that rumbled out his throat and filled the quiet apartment. “He just kicked open my door, walked right in with a briefcase and told me that dad was being a wad again and needed a place to crash.”

“A wad?” Logan laughed though as Sloan shrugged in reply. “And he just showed up at your school?”

Sloan nodded. “Yeah. It worked out better than you’d think! At first,” the lion chuckled. “We were able to keep him hidden for longer than we should’ve; I think the other students were too scared to say anything.” Logan was the one to laugh at that.

“And then what happened?”

“Well, he was found out eventually. And I ended up representing him in a mock court case the school decided to hold.” Sloan rolled his eyes. “It was a whole thing.” The lion paused and Logan frowned, seeing where this was going. “Until the police were called in…”

“Did you lose the case?” Logan was a bit confused on that.

Sloan shook his head. “No, we won it. We were technically correct, the best kind of correct.” Sloan chuckled at the seemingly inside joke. “But the other students didn’t like having another lion on campus. Especially one as troublesome as Jeron was.” Sloan took a second. “The police and my family never really got along…”

Logan face went blank as he just gave a single nod to that.

“Most police officers don’t seem to hold predators in high regards as it is,” Logan just said after a long drink of coffee finishing the mug. “I can only imagine what that’s been like for you, and Jeron…” Logan took a second after getting up. “It wasn’t the… police, that did your brother in… was it?”

Sloan shook his head and noticeably saw Logan relax at that.

“No. It was a rival… family, of sorts. It’s a bit of a long story that I rather not get into tonight.” Sloan got up to join him.

“Right.” Logan chuckled lightly, shifting his weight to his other foot. “Sorry for waking you up so early, again. Sir. Sloan. Mr. Kincaid.” Logan said one after another while yawning. Sloan chuckled at that, lightly placing a hand once more on the human’s shoulders.

Sloan could feel the smaller male shift under his weight, his body addressing the hand more so than Logan did. Sloan leaned closer and pulled the human to his side, sharing his body with the smaller man he’d invited to live in his home.

It wasn’t a healthy relationship, even Sloan was aware of that. It was nice, though, to have someone instead of the empty apartment Sloan was used to coming home too. Solitude was nice but the company was worth giving it up for.

Logan was about to respond but before he could an idea formed in the older lion’s head. Opening up the side of his bathrobe, Sloan twisted the human around in a mock pirouette; undoing, opening and removing the human from his bathrobe to then join Sloan in his. The lion greedily tucked him in, wrapping an arm around the naked man and took a slow sniff of his hair as he held him close, sharing not only his warmth, his body with Logan but also his bathrobe.

“Someone affectionate today. Tonight? This morning… let’s go with that.” Logan chuckled lightly feeling the raw heat of the lion’s body against his own. Sloan gladly hugged Logan against him, feeling that smooth hairy skin against his furry body as he nosed down at him once more. “Are you fishing for something else, I wonder?”

Logan felt a hot breath against his face and turned in time to share a kiss with the man who didn’t let him go.

“I’m spent,” Sloan admitted with a sheepish smile that made his round ears wiggle a bit. Something Logan had only ever seen his boss do once. “It doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy your touch, the feel of your body against mine.” The lion purred deeply rubbing himself against the human. “Just having you, like this, in my arms…”

The lion’s thick thigh, the bulge of his sheath, the weight of his sack and the firmness of his stomach against the human’s back and side. It felt nice. It felt right. It reminded him of the sculpture in the corner; of a human interlaced and entwined with a lion that feasted on his neck. Their bodies molded and shaped together as one as they gave into the “final embrace,” as the art piece was named after. A statue Sloan had seen and knew he had to get for his collection.

It made the lion purr.

“I didn’t take you for the snuggling type,” Logan said with a hint of amusement and a tired smile on his face. The human was clearly too exhausted to put up much of a fight and Sloan didn’t mind; though he enjoyed the game of it, there were times, like this, where snuggles were all that were needed or wanted.

“There’s a lot you still have to learn about me, Logan.” Sloan just took a second to breathe in that scent once more. Logan smelled of him. And Sloan loved that.

The lion arm snaked back into the bathrobe out of the sleeve to touch and feel the man with his fingers not wanting to expose Logan’s naked body to the cold morning air. Sloan’s soft, warm paw pads kneaded against the naked man in his arms. Touching, feeling him as his strong fingers gripped Logan’s body every now and then, feeling that taut muscle of the man held against him.

Logan was thinner than Sloan had thought he’d be underneath his suit but there was plenty of muscle to make up for that. Skin and bones and muscle with a handsome face. His body was hairy and untrimmed, much to the lion’s delight. Feeling that soft hair in his fingers reminded the feline of fur and he enjoyed it as much as he enjoyed the smooth touch of that skin.

How the lion wanted to just sink his claws into this man and…

Logan shivered and Sloan’s claws retreated from his fingers. The lion hadn’t even been aware of how tightly he’d been holding Logan.

“Sorry,” Sloan whispered softly. “I just…”

“It’s a cat thing,” Logan said for him with a bit of an eye roll. The human wasn’t looking at him though and the enjoyment of this was fleeting faster than the lion had desired it too.

Hoping not to ruin the moment, Sloan rubbed his groin just above the smaller male’s rear end and dragged it down until his plump tawny gold furred sheath was nestled between those perfect cheeks.

“I am sorry,” Sloan said again not wanting to have such thoughts linger and fester. He knew what it was like to leave things unsaid. “I know you…” Sloan stopped himself, sounding accusing with his words. He changed it up. “I’ve been trying to do better, with my nails.” The lion just said instead.

“I don’t mind.” Logan just said casually.

“No, but I do…” Sloan just left it at that, resting his head on the human’s own as he held him close in the kitchen. Sloan rubbed and kneaded him with his fingers as a cat would when trying to find the perfect spot to curl up on. Just pushed and pressing his large paw padded fingers against the human’s body. Kneading his very scent into the man in his arms.

“Am I a blanket to you?” Logan chuckled as the feline continued to knead his body.

“Yes. You took me from my bed. You are now my bed.” Sloan growled softly, resting some of his weight on the human and making Logan struggle. Sloan flicked his tail at that as he flexed an arm, holding the human securely so he couldn’t escape.

Not that Logan did…

The human hadn’t tried to run from him, tried to escape his grasp. There was a sort of… warmth in that, in itself. The lion hadn’t known another that hadn’t retreated from his touch. Afraid of him on some level, whereas this human he could hold like this… and not worry about Logan trying to escape.

The only time Logan had, it had been personal. With his past, not because of Sloan the lion was sure. It was why Sloan tried so hard not to remind Logan of his ex, being a feline as well made it difficult. Sloan swore he’d do better though, for Logan’s sake… and thus his own.

“What do you like to eat?” Sloan brought up as the two waddled awkwardly into the kitchen to put their mugs away. The lion didn’t let Logan go, keeping him safe and warm in his bathrobe. Entwined together, man and lion. It seemed… fitting, for them to be like this.

“Uh, like food wise?” Logan took a second to think that over. “I like mac n cheese.” He just said with a half shrug.

“It’s been a while since I made that…” Sloan thought it over. “I might have some in the cupboard?”

“Yeah? I love the blue box!” Logan just grinned and the lion did ease up at that, pulling back to look at the smaller male in his arms. Sloan had been thinking of making mac n cheese for the human from scratch, the fancy kind with real cheese and pasta.

And here Logan was eating the dollar store kind from a box…

“Oh, Logan…” Sloan said in disappointment. “Don’t tell me you like cup of ramen as well?”

The human looked away bashfully, his cheeks burning red without needing to say a word.

“You probably get boxes of frozen waffles too…” Sloan chuckled lightly with a shake of his head. Here Sloan was partaking in imported wines and the finest of smoked meats and fish. Swordfish, being one of Sloan’s personal favorites.

While Logan seemingly had been surviving on a dollar store menu.

“It’s good!” Logan just said with a chuckle as he tried to pull back.

Sloan moved though, stopping the human and pulling him back into his robe. For a second it seemed as if the lion hadn’t wanted to let the human go, keeping him from being exposed to the cold morning air of the downtown penthouse apartment. The two knew otherwise soon enough as Sloan pushed his front against Logan’s back.

Sloan had been trying to hide Logan’s scars; as if afraid someone else might see them. The ten lines clawed down Logan’s back from his shoulder blades all the way down just above his rear end.

“I…” Logan took a second on that. “Grew up, very poor.” He admitted, trying not to focus on what Sloan had done for him. What someone had done to try and… protect him. “We didn’t have much in the means of food, let alone like name brand stuff… We ended up getting the same meals every week. Spaghetti with red sauce.” Logan rolled his eyes. “Was on the menu nearly every dinner.”

Sloan cringed internally at that. His Italian mother would’ve hit Logan upside the head for saying that, before making him a fresh pot of “real” spaghetti and sauce; which usually took all day to make and perfect.

“Robbie’s medical bills were… a lot, to say the least.” Logan tried to smile but it didn’t meet his eyes. “We ended up eating those packaged hot dogs, blue box mac n cheese, the cheap kind of pot pies… you name it!”

“So you just kept up with that?” Sloan took a second. “But you made me lunch before, so you can cook, right?” The lion frowned, realizing just how very little he knew of this man. It was at times, like this, a sort of slap in the face.

“I can do a lot of things!” Logan almost laughed with a shake of his head. “I can’t cook though…” Sloan gave him a look as the human looked off to the side. “I never needed to learn how to cook… I ended up buying the meats from the deli. The ones I made for you were store bought and packaged beforehand… I just made it look nice and neat.” Logan forced a shrug. “I know how to boil water and that’s about it…”

Sloan took a second on that.

“You did fool me,” the lion chuffed out a breath with an amused smile. “It might be odd for your boss to cook for you, but I did go to school for it so it only makes sense if I partake in making our meals.” Sloan didn’t want to eat the mess Logan ever ended up cooking in his kitchen, let alone clean up after it.

“I didn’t know you went to culinary school?” Logan was confused on that.

Sloan just grinned toothily in reply as the human looked back and up at him.

“Mother Sloan’s kitchen is the finest of schools when it comes to cooking… Italian, that is.” The lion chuffed as he reached over and opened the fridge. The stainless steel fridge had a glossy look to it even in the dimly lit room and as he swung open the door, Logan could see how spacious it was. “Live with an Italian mother and you’re going to pick up a thing or two. Real, homemade, pasta only in this house!” the lion chuckled.

The fridge was mostly filled with meats. Several different kinds, shapes and sizes from fish to chicken to beef. They were neatly wrapped and tucked away accordingly. Each had their own label on them and had been sorted out not only by what they were but when they expired as well.

“That’s a lot of meat.” Logan said, blinking a couple of times from the bright light of the fridge as well as how many pounds worth of food was in that fridge. Sloan was sure Logan’s fridge back at his place was empty.

There were two things about this however, that was rather unsettling now that Sloan had someone else here to partake in it with him.

The first being that Sloan was indeed a predator, someone who needed to eat meat to survive. And the feline wasn’t afraid to say it.

“I am a lion.” Sloan gave a short nod in reply at the amounts of protein he needed to consume.

The second being just how expensive it was.

It had been one thing for the human to show up here, in the penthouse suite of the Winter’s apartment complex down near ninth and the fish market. It was another thing to see just how many “red dollars” were here in the fridge before him; a term Logan had heard his coworkers, fellow police officers, having mentioned a couple of times during a rather large bust.

One could get easily get meat, from the four legged cattle or chickens raise for the very purpose, from any local grocery store or butcher shop. It was easily accessible and even with the demand, the quantity was manageable all due for one reason alone.

It was expensive.

Meat such as beef, chicken or even fish was extremely expensive and no matter how many people complained, rioted or petitioned for it to be changed… lawmakers weren’t about to help the minority, predators, with something like this when they could so easily be controlled by increasing, or worst yet, taxing meat products…

There was a reason why criminals imported and exported meats like its own form of currency. The “red river” was a common saying in the underbelly of the city. Where the red blood flow, there was surely meat there waiting to sate a hungry, desperate predators desires.

Sloan knew this very well. There was a reason why his family had gone into crime. Why so many predators go into it. And how The Pride, like most criminals, monopolized and took over the market all in order to make an ends meat, ironically.

Not that most could blame predators for their desire to partake in the one thing their bodies physically craved and hungered for. Protein substitutes, plant proteins and the fake foods could only carry so many so far. Fish had helped the matter, being feral and wild animals and little more.

Sloan and his own hunger had a rough time growing up for wanting a beef braciole for lunch instead of the strange gray shaped “meat” balls served at the school lunch. Mocked, ridiculed, ostracized for what his mother had made him…

Being treated differently, just being physically larger, being abused, ridiculed and blamed for their ancestor’s sins…

“Sins of the father…”

It only made sense so many predators turned to crime, in order to feed their “Fix” of red.

Sloan was one of the lucky ones who had been born after his family had made not only a name but an established, if illegal, income for themselves. He’d been grateful to them for this and had wanted to reconnected with them in order to pay his “dues.”

Such things, like so many others these days, were out of his reach however.

“Sloan.” Logan said his name and the lion blinked, realizing the fridge was beeping at him. He’d been holding the door open, just staring at the bloody red packaged meats and lost in his own thoughts.

Of his family, of his history and how it all led to where he was standing now… in a trail of bloody paw prints.

Sloan could practically see them, those red stained paw prints, leading to his shadow… walking to where he stood now. In this luxurious, expensive apartment with a fridge full of meat and with an assistant that was basically his sex toy half the nights he’d been here…

Did… did that make him guilty of it. Of the blood, in his fridge, that might as well be dripping down the shelves. His hands were clean, weren’t they? Sloan had never done anything illegal, technically… sure he’d roughed up some trespassers and made sure to threaten others but he…

“Sloan.” And he felt a hand touch his arm. The fingers rubbed into his fur and Sloan felt Logan’s touch on his skin underneath.

“Sorry, just… tired…” Sloan shut the fridge as his stomach rumbled in hunger. He was drooling and hoped Logan didn’t see as he swallowed it away; hoping to abate the hunger within with his drool…

“Had you ever tried real meat before…” Logan asked and Sloan felt every fur on his body stand on end. “I heard it tastes the same…” The human frowned, staring at the closed fridge as if wondering, suspecting, the lion had such a thing in his own fridge.

Real meat was the dubbed name for eating a sentient being such as a cow or bovine, chicken or even a human… whoever walked on two legs, talked and could think for themselves. A sentient being. Someone with a name, a family, a recognizable “face” as they said…

There were so many laws it was impossible to count them all. All of it forbid the practice of selling or distributing or eating real meat, not only making it illegal but in some places with the death penalty attached to the crime. It was one of the very few things that political parties and countries, as a whole, could agree on.

Even if it still was done in secret, under the table and through the black market…

If meat cost as much as it did from the wild, four legged cows… it would, literally, cost and arm and a leg to get the real stuff.

Sloan would know. It was how his family made their business. Something he didn’t like to think about or address.

“Just tired…” Sloan repeated.

They’d pose as bodyguards, threatening businesses that they were under “their protection” and charge them outrages protection fees that most couldn’t afford on top of their own expenses. They’d target down trotted areas, focusing on immigrants or the “lesser scene” species out there.

Sex workers, illegal immigrants wanting their families to join them, those who had too much debt or had lost it all to gambling… so many targets, so much “prey” for the lions to hunt down and stalk.

And it worked. It worked a little too well.

Most areas were under their control, protected from outside gangs or predators in general. After all, there was no point in slaughtering the cash cow…

But those who couldn’t pay. Those who built up that outrages amount of debt. Ended up on the table for dinner…

Organ trafficking wasn’t just for medical purposes. Most saw it as a fine cuisine paired to go with their wine. Or maybe, just as a sick curiosity.

There was always a market for it. The rich and wealthy, curious to see if it tasted any better… those who couldn’t stop thinking about their neighbors as anything other than a side of beef… human, lion, tiger… it didn’t matter.

There was always a market. Always someone willing to buy and thus someone willing to sell…

“I’m just tired, is all, Logan.” Sloan tried to force a smile. “Tired,” of my family. “Tired,” of being alone. “Tired,” of this sick, perverted, twisted world we live in… “I’m just tired…”

“I’ve tried it before.” Logan spoke up and Sloan jaw nearly dropped. It was illegal to even joke about it and people had been arrested on live television for doing so. “I once… ended up in a bad place. A very, bad… place.” The human shivered and Sloan instinctually pulled him closer.

“Why were you even… there…?” Sloan knew what Logan was talking about.

The Market. Or, in some places, known simply as The Slaughterhouse…

“I was following… tracking, someone.” Logan hesitated for a moment. He was shaking, and not from the cold. “My brother ended up on… on the market…”

“Logan…” Sloan said but the human pulled back, pulled away… as if the lion had shown his claws.

“I tracked my ex there, to that place… I nearly ended up on the table myself.” Logan laughed but it was an uneasy sound that caught in his throat and the human needed to pour himself a glass of water before continuing.

“How did you…” Sloan swallowed heavily, glancing over at his fridge and wondering if Logan would’ve ended up on his, or one of the other lion’s, table if things had been different…

“I met a guy,” Logan just laughed and it was a bit hysterical for a moment before he shook his head. The stress of not sleeping, working long hours and eating cups of ramen and running on coffee… showed on the twenty-two year olds face as he wiped a hand through his hair as he rested back against the counter.

Just out of Sloan’s reach.

“He was this jaguar dude. Real cool guy. We clicked almost instantly. And he… and Bosch ended up saving my life.” Logan took a moment on that. “Before then, I hated predators… especially big cats.”

Sloan frowned at that but didn’t interrupt.

“I hated it because of what the one guy in my life, the guy I trusted, did to me… did to my brother. And I blamed them. All of them… I blamed people like you,” Logan looked at the lion and it was if he were on the verge of tears. “I was so fucking stupid. On so many levels.” Logan wiped the back of his hand against his cheek, under his eye and look to the side. “I was so stupid… ever since then I swore, never, to let such… prejudice, cloud my judgment again. Ever.”

Sloan took a second at that.

“I understand, if you want to kick me out.” Logan brought up. It was the farthest thought from the lion’s mind. “Once you actually get me to stick around… I’m a little too broken to keep, huh?” Logan smiled then and it hurt Sloan to see that pained expression on his face. “I’m a terrible pet.” The human jested, joked and yet that look lingered in his watery eyes as he rested back against the counter.

His hands were still shaking as the human continued, forced out as if… this was the first time he’d ever told anyone this. Sloan wasn’t sure if that was a comforting thought; that out of everyone Logan had met and chosen, the lion was the one to learn the truth behind the human.

“It’s a place I never want to see again… to deal with…” And yet, Sloan could tell, for whatever reason… Logan was. He was thinking about it, even now, behind the locked door and security of the Winter’s apartment complex gave them…

Logan was thinking about the place most only dreamt of in their darkest nightmares.

“I’ve had opportunities… to test it. To taste, real meat…” Sloan paused though, formulating the words before speaking them. The very thought unsettled his stomach. “I never have. Not once. Even when it was offered to me by… I just…” Sloan took a second on that. “I could never eat you, Logan. You know that, right?”

The human looked at him and it was hard to tell what he was thinking.

Sloan wouldn’t blame him, if this human, this smaller defenseless male in front of him… feared the lion for that. Feared the thought of being devoured alive. With claws and fangs…

“What? Even if I offered myself to you?” Logan jested with a sly smile, taking a step closer to the lion. His cracked, broken mask being put back on again as the human tried to tease and joke his way out of this.

Sloan wondered if that was why Logan was so jaded about having a relationship. Maybe, maybe the human simply didn’t know how to be… normal. Outside the playing, the joking, the sexual innuendos that usually led to the act itself…

Logan didn’t know how to interact with someone.

Sloan chuffed at that scooping the human up into his arms, into his bathrobe and against his body. “Why would I devour you? When I can have you each and every night,” the lion purred as his rough tongue licked up along Logan’s neck and over his jaw before sealing his lips against the smaller male.

Kissing him deeply. Tasting him on his lips as their mouths met in warm, wet suction. Sloan could feel Logan’s tongue tracing and feeling his teeth and gladly parted his lips before, with an audible gasp, the human was his once more.

In his arms, chest to chest, heart to heart, Sloan held Logan close as he carried the human back to the bedroom. Away from these thoughts, these memories and his fridge…

Sex.

A distraction.

Keep the human occupied.

Something to keep Logan’s mind from wandering back to that place… and those empty cells, dripping red like the lion’s fridge…