Page 44 of Tamed (The Courtside King Duology 1)

“Hey, man,” Mr. Wary said, coming to a stop in front of Scott. “Long time no see.”

“Tad. You made it.” Scott grinned and clasped his palm.

Kai regarded the guy, his nervous energy intriguing. Six-foot-tallish. Solid build. Friendly smile. Young, but not too young. No doubt the same age as Breck.

Kai slid his gaze to said athlete… then fought back a smile.

Breck was glaring. Rather intently. At him.

Kai forgot how much he enjoyed being the focal point of those heated eyes.

‘Tad’ turned to Kai and gave him a ‘hey there’ chin-up, then motioned to his buddies and looked back at Scott. “We just finished working out… and they were curious about your class, so…” His thoughts seemed to falter.

He was staring at Scott’s mouth.

And there it was. The truth revealed for anyone with eyes to see. Scott and this Tad guy were lovers. Secretly. In a very intense, yet innocent sort of way. The vibe was quiet. And, unexpectedly, kind of beautiful.

Tad cleared his throat. “Uh, so, anyway…. Guys, this is Scott. Kickboxer extraordinaire. Scott, this is Ned, Jay, and—”

“Breck,” Kai offered absently. He’d spoken without thinking. Had suddenly just really wanted that name on his tongue.

All five guys turned and eyed him. Especially Tad, his one brow lifted as he looked Kai over.

Curtly, Breck lifted his chin. “Kai.”

Kai inwardly smiled.

Still so ornery after all these months.

“Get out. You guys know each other?” Scott looked pleasantly surprised.

Kai inclined his head, lips curving. “Used to be a student of mine over at the dojo.” Folding his arms across his chest, he couldn’t help asking. “Whatever happened to you anyway, Breck? One day out of nowhere you just… stopped coming.”

Breck stiffened, and Kai knew without a doubt that they were thinking about the exact same thing. The last time they’d been together. Sprawled out and grinding against each other atop the mats.

“Needed to focus more time on school,” Breck muttered, “so I didn’t get kicked out of Division.”

He was lying. Kai could see it plain as day. Flashes of chagrin in the depths of those golden-brown eyes.

Kai smiled a little but resisted the urge to call bullshit. The king was proud. And besides, this chance meeting was kind of nice. Felt good to be in such close proximity. Made him want to keep the peace. “Ah. That’s too bad.”

Breck just stood there, posture rigid, but didn’t reply. As if afraid of what might come out if he continued to speak.

Scott eyed them, then turned and gestured toward his class. “Okay, guys. I gotta head in now. Ned, Jay, Breck, it was good to meet you. Feel free to hang out and watch.” He turned to Kai next and, clasping his palm, met his gaze. “Thanks for dropping by. Get back to me about my proposition, cool?”

Ironically, said proposition no longer interested Kai.

He nodded and feigned a smile. “Will do.”

Tad, however, barely tamped his frown.

Interesting. The guy was possessive.

A trait that didn’t typically mesh well with discretion.

Meaning this secret Tad had going on with Scott wouldn’t be staying on the downlow for very long. Maybe that was for the best, though. Sometimes secrets were more trouble than they were worth.

Kai settled his gaze back on Breck. His heart thumped, his stomach clenching. He didn’t want to say goodbye. It’d been months, after all, since he’d seen him like this, face to face.

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