Book Title: Wishes for Rohi
Author: K.L. Hiers
Publisher: Self-Published
Cover Artist: Reese Dante
Release Date: March 26, 2021
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Trope/s: Arranged marriage, fish out of water, falling in love with the wrong brother, magical mpreg
Themes: Love Overcomes All Things
Length: 53 000 words
It is a standalone story.
Buy Links – Available in Kindle Unlimited
Blurb
Ashley Mostrich gets one heck of a birthday surprise when the guy he brought home for the night turns out to be the twin brother of the prince he didn’t know he was supposed to marry. Unbeknownst to Ashley, his grandpa made a deal with a jinn and promised him off to the royal family before he was even born.
Zamir is the heir to the mystical kingdom of Palmyra and promises he will love Ashley in time, while his younger brother, Zaire, is trying to get into Ashley ‘s bed again. Ashley wants to be a faithful fiancé to Zamir, but he cannot deny the powerful chemistry he feels with Zaire. Additional jealousy flares when Ashley discovers that Zamir’s heart already belongs to another, but the pressure for the wedding is on because the future of the Palmyran people hinges on a royal union magically producing an heir.
Once Ashley realizes that Zaire’s feelings for him might be more than physical, he finds himself falling in love with the wrong brother and risking the fate of the entire kingdom. It’ll take a miracle—or one very powerful wish—for everyone to have a happy ending.
“Close your eyes.” Zaire turned to face him now, his hands resting on Ashley’s bare shoulders. “Relax. Think about being a cheetah… the fur, the long legs, your tail… how the ground will feel beneath your paws…”
Ashley took several deep breaths, trying to imagine it as Zaire’s voice guided him. The stone in his hand began to burn, and he felt a strange tugging in his gut. His heart began to pound in his ears, heavy and hard, and he gasped as he heard all the bones inside his body begin to crunch.
The sound was horrible, though completely painless, and Ashley was forced down to his hands and knees. No, that wasn’t right. He was dropping down to his paws.
He had paws. A tail and whiskers. Holy crap, he’d done it.
Ashley stared up at Zaire in shock and amazement, trying to grasp the fantastic energy surging through him. The stone had disintegrated, but he’d already forgotten all about it. He was ready to burst, each sinewy muscle coiled and eager to pounce. Every twitch of the landscape caught his attention and the smells, wow, the smells were overwhelming.
“The animal instincts can be very strong,” Zaire warned him, crouching down as he turned into a tiger again. His intense golden eyes focused on Ashley, his voice speaking inside his head as he said, “Try not to lose focus.”
“It’s… it’s insane,” Ashley panted, hoping his thoughts were transmitting over to Zaire. “All I want to do is run. And run some more. And run again!”
“So, let’s do it,” Zaire said with a short little chuff. “Run, Ashley.”
Ashley turned and bolted, his paws flying as he propelled himself forward, his tail arching high in the air as he zoomed through the field. He was laughing, giddy and ecstatic, bouncing through the tall stalks of wheat faster than he could have ever dreamed possible.
The rush was addictive, and he was running and running until the world nearly became a blur around him. He had to stop and catch his breath, his ears perking up when he realized Zaire was not far behind him. He dropped down to hide, and his pulse fluttered excitedly.
Ashley couldn’t quite detect where Zaire was, his cheetah instincts still too new and frantic. When Zaire suddenly pounced on him from behind, he yowled in surprise and quickly scooted away. He was faster than Zaire, so fast, zooming through the fields and cackling inside his head.
For hours they played like this. Ashley would run and hide, but Zaire would always catch up and jump on him. Ashley was a little kid again, running and rolling around and laughing with complete abandon. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so happy.
There were brief breaks when Ashley would let Zaire pin him down, enjoying the rough swipes of his tongue and exchanging gentle head butts. They’d cuddle and purr, and Ashley’s new cat instincts would be temporarily sated.
Soon, it was time to run again, and he would yowl until Zaire let him up so he could go bolting off into the fields again.
Even when the sun began to fall, Ashley kept going. He wanted to keep running, and he never wanted to stop chasing down that spectacular thrill. He headed back to the oak tree where they had left their clothes, hunkering down in the edge of the crops.
He was certain he could do this forever. He didn’t have to worry about paying rent or arranged marriages or stupid kisses.
All that mattered was the game and being with Zaire.
Zaire, beautiful and amazing Zaire, who was somewhere very close by and about to pounce.
Ashley tried desperately to focus his cat instincts, ears twitching, and he yelped as Zaire came rushing in from the side.
Zaire roared triumphantly, easily pinning Ashley onto his back.
“I give!” Ashley laughed, realizing his voice was his own, and he was naked beneath a very heavy tiger. “What the crap…?”
“You’ve been shifted for too long.” Zaire chuckled, bowing his head to gently nuzzle Ashley’s cheek. “Your body will get tired of holding that form after a while.”
“That was so incredible!” Ashley hugged Zaire’s thick neck and grinned. “Holy crap! Like, I wanna go again! Can we go again?”
“You need to rest. With more experience…” Zaire seamlessly transformed into his human body to finish, “It becomes much easier.”
“Thank you,” Ashley said, his arms still wrapped tightly around Zaire’s neck. “I needed this so much.”
“Are you happy, Ashley?” Zaire’s warm eyes flickered over his face with a smile.
“Yes,” Ashley answered with a raw honesty that made his voice crack. “Here with you… I’m happy.”
“Oh, Ashley.” Zaire’s fingers danced over his cheek with unexpected tenderness.
Ashley’s heart began to thump, and he was more aware now of Zaire’s strong body on top of him and his hips pressed firmly up between his legs. He dared to pet through Zaire’s short hair but started to pull his hand away. “Zaire… we should… we should go back.”
“Is that really what you want?”
“No,” Ashley replied tearfully. “I want… I don’t know. I can’t have what I want. I wish… I wish I could…”
“What’s wrong, Ashley?”
That simple question brought on a wave of tears, and he gasped desperately, “You know how I didn’t want to talk about what happened with Zamir? Okay, I’m ready to talk about it.”
“Tell me as much or as little as you’d like,” Zaire said, cradling Ashley’s face in his hands.
“I don’t know what to do.” Ashley whimpered. The internal dam that had been holding all his pain back shattered instantly, and he started to cry. “I walked in on Zamir and Rashid… he still loves him so much… they were kissing and talking, and I just… How could he do this to me? I thought, I thought everything was finally going so well, and, and—”
“He’s a fucking fool,” Zaire declared passionately. “If he can’t let go of the past to see the perfect future he could have with you? He’s stupid! You’re amazing, you’re gorgeous—”
“Says the guy who just wants to fuck me!” Ashley snapped back. “All the flirting, your dumb little jokes? I get it, okay? Stupid Zamir has no idea what a great lay he’s missing out on!”
“Ashley,” Zaire scolded affectionately, “you are so much more than that. Do you know why I first visited you as a cat?”
“Ugh.” Ashley groaned and tried to turn away. “Because you’re insane?”
“You can tell so much about a person by the way they treat animals,” Zaire said insistently, gently turning Ashley’s face back to his. “You could have kicked me away, left me outside to starve, but you didn’t.”
“So?” Ashley stared hopelessly up into Zaire’s eyes.
“You would have given me a home and taken care of me without a second thought. You have such a big heart and so much love to give,” Zaire replied earnestly. “If I could have one wish… it would be to have even just one piece of that love for myself.”
Ashley panted and swallowed back another sob to hear such sweet words. He knew Zaire meant every single syllable, and there was only one course of action he could possibly take in response.
He kissed him.
K.L. “Kat” Hiers is an embalmer, restorative artist, and queer writer. Licensed in both funeral directing and funeral service, she’s been working in the death industry for nearly a decade. Her first love was always telling stories, and she has been writing for over twenty years, penning her very first book at just eight years old. Publishers generally do not accept manuscripts in Hello Kitty notebooks, however, but she never gave up.
Following the success of her first novel, Cold Hard Cash, she now enjoys writing professionally, focusing on spinning tales of sultry passion, exotic worlds, and emotional journeys. She loves attending horror movie conventions and indulging in cosplay of her favorite characters. She lives in Zebulon, NC, with her husband and their children, some of whom have paws and a few that only pretend to because they think it’s cute.
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