Shivers

by Remmy Duchene

  After dinner and when he was alone with Ciro, Osaki and Thýella, Koi brought up Hades’ worry.

  “There are no other Shivers,” Ciro said with a shrugged. “Are there, Mother?”

  “Not unless one of you boys had a child and did not tell me about it,” Thýella said.

  “This makes no sense, then,” Koi muttered.

  “Koi, do not worry so,” Osaki told him. “Sometimes I think they get bored on Olympus and they try to use others for their games. If there was another Shiver, we would have felt him, would we not?”

  “You should. But who knows with these abilities anymore?” Thýella added. “You boys do not worry. Osaki, your fiancé is waiting to be alone with you. We should go.”

  “Where are Carter and Kofi?” Koi asked, looking around.

  “They have gone for a drive,” Osaki explained. “Kofi and I have been in Japan for a little while and the two haven’t really seen each other. There’s a special love between brothers that I miss dearly—I see it every time they look at each other.”

  “I’m sorry about your brother, Osaki,” Ciro said. “It always takes a part of our soul when we have to do what you had to.”

  Osaki smiled.

  Koi stood. “I should go. I will return home when I can.”

  “Where are you going?” Ciro questioned.

  “I can feel Sisqo growing impatient,” he said.

  With the goodbyes out of the way, Koi left his family and the warmth of Kofi’s home to wander the streets with Sisqo, looking for trouble. He wasn’t sure why they still did that. The rogues were all under control—sentenced or dead. He guessed it was out of habit more than anything else. True to form, they found nothing and at the end of the patrol, they sat together on the docks, watching the sun rise over the water.

  “You have been extremely quiet,” Sisqo pointed out.

  “My apologies. There has been so much going on in my mind that I remain speechless to control the voices in my head.”

  “Is there something I can be of assistance with?”

  “I am not sure—you have dated humans before, have you not?”

  Sisqo nodded then turned his attention to the water. “It was not easy. You know when one human dates another, their problems are human problems. But when we do, there are so many other issues that can cause such trauma.”

  “Like?”

  “Telling them you can part the oceans. Ciro and Osaki have been lucky. The men they found freaked out a little at first, but their love was stronger than their fear. I keep praying to find someone like that.”

  Koi took a breath. “I have given up. Mother thinks I need to find someone to be truly happy, to not be alone.”

  “She is right. None of us were placed here to go this whole deal alone.”

  “On that note, I should return home. What are your plans for tonight?”

  “Father wishes to have me home for dinner. He says Trident needs a big brother in his life more than ever now. I am not sure what that means.”

  Koi smiled. “Go. I shall speak with you when you are free.”

  “You wanna run the car back? You look like a man who has a lot on his mind and this car has a way of taking away all those worries.”

  Koi smiled. “I will ensure it is returned home safely.”

  Sisqo nodded and, with a wink, he was gone. Koi tilted his head from side to side before climbing into the driver’s seat of Sisqo’s car, then he revved the engine. He gunned the car through the empty streets and only stopped when he was pulling into Sisqo’s driveway. The house wasn’t much by mansion standards. It wasn’t anything like Carter and Ciro’s or even Kofi’s, but there was a warmth and comfort to it each time Koi walked through the doors. This time, he merely parked the car in the garage, made certain the doors were all locked and disappeared.

  But he didn’t go home. Kofi found himself outside Christophe’s gym, hovering outside the window, watching Christophe spar with another man. They hit the mat with Christophe on time, their sweat-covered bodies sliding over each other, their legs tangling together. So many thoughts flowed through Koi’s head—thoughts that this man was Christophe’s lover and that he stood no chance with the sexy fighter with skin as beautiful as a Mongolian night.

  The longer he watched, the harder the wind swirled around him. It caused his long cloak to flutter violently against him. Koi had to look away after a time for he couldn’t help feeling like ripping this stranger limb from limb. It was his own fault. He’d taken too long to make good on his offer to train with Christophe. When he looked back, the men were no longer boxing. Instead, they were sitting on the floor, their backs against the wall, chatting softly.

  What was he doing? There was no way he was cut out for settling down in life. Sure, Ciro and Osaki were happier than he’d ever seen them, but some people weren’t meant to find love. Koi smiled and pushed higher into the sky. He ensured the wind was back to normal before walking, invisibly, through the clouds.

  Chapter Six

  The hours turned into days and the days quickly morphed into a month. Within that time, Christophe received three more commission checks, each larger than the first. He settled into his new place and was even thinking of buying a second place to use as an income property. Kofi encouraged it and so did Geoff, but Christophe had a few things occupying his mind. He had his first fight coming up since his mother’s death and he wasn’t ready for it. Plus he figured he should enjoy his condo for a while before taking on added responsibility.

  Never in a million years had he thought he’d be able to live in a penthouse condo that was decorated by a professional, with more money in the bank than had been in his mother’s pension. He’d stopped dreaming of a good life—but he was blessed by the Olabasu brothers. Christophe knew he had to find a way to thank them, to show them how deeply they affected him.

  “You worry too much,” Geoff said. “You’ve been training so hard I’m sure every athlete worth his or her salt would tell you that at some point you have to take a break, allow your muscles to heal again.”

  “Yeah.” Christophe tossed a chocolate-covered almond in the air and caught it in his mouth. “I can’t help it. I’m basically starting from the bottom again…”

  Geoff broke out in a rather offbeat rendition of Drake’s Started from the Bottom and Christophe wanted to strangle him.

  “Focus, would you?” Christophe asked. “You can be a dope, you know that?”

  Geoff merely grinned and wiggled his eyebrows.

  “I’m just saying all this training and I still get terrified because it feels like my first fight all over again.”

  “And look how well that ended for you. Knockout in the first round.” Geoff punctuated his statement by throwing a one-two jab. “You had him running twenty seconds in then blamo! Got him with an uppercut!” Geoff swung a fist. “You were worried about that one too—remember?”

  “Yeah. I was there.”

  “All I’m saying is you need to give yourself more credit. You can’t step into that octagon not believing in yourself. Look at Weidman, huh? He walked into that ring with a monster and both times took out Silva. George St. Pierre? The best welterweight champion the UFC has ever seen and he is the most humble guy you will meet—but humble doesn’t mean self-effacing.”

  “You’re right. These guys are epic. But remember I haven’t done this in a while.”

  “True. So look at it this way—that punk they’re putting in the octagon with you is in your way. And you know what we do with walls in our way? Smash through them.”

  Christophe wrinkled his eyebrows at his friend.

  “But don’t take this on alone,” Geoff continued. “You have some awesome people at your back, bro.”

  Christophe reached for his water bottle. “I guess.” He took a long drink while his mind raced. Geoff was right. A fighter didn’t win by being meek. He had to believe in himself, because if he didn’t, he’d already lost the damn fight without stepping foot inside the octagon. No
one wanted to back a fighter like that. No one wanted someone who got defeated before throwing the first punch. People looked up to fighters who showed a healthy support for themselves and to get to that place, he had to take all the help he could get.

  “Koi offered to help me out. He was one of the people who trained Kofi and look how good Kofi is now. I remember the first time I saw Kofi throw down at the gym after Koi started working with him. I was scared of him afterward.”

  “Yeah, I remember.” Geoff popped a chocolate-covered almond into his mouth and chewed. “Why haven’t you taken Koi up on that?”

  “I’m afraid I will take things a little too far.”

  “Okay, put your cock away for a second,” Geoff advised. “I’m sure your opponent has watched every video there is of you fighting. I mean, with YouTube and cell phones these days, everyone fancies themselves a videographer and has access to everything. At least with Koi helping you, showing you some new moves, you’ll have a few surprises up your sleeve they haven’t seen yet.”

  “I hate it when you’re right,” Christophe muttered.

  “I bet you do. So, all you have to do now is call him up and ask him to touch your body—er, I mean, help you train.”

  “You suck at this.”

  “I assure you I suck at many things for which I’ve never had a complaint. But this is not one of them.” Geoff laughed. “You were the one who asked me how to seduce him. What better way than to have him toss you to the mat over and over and over and…” Geoff stuck his tongue out of the side of his mouth, rolled his eyes back and panted dramatically.

  Christophe tossed his bottle cap at his friend and laughed. “Listen, horn dog. Like I keep telling you, I’m not Koi’s type. And can we be serious for another second? Please?”

  “Is that what he said—that you’re not his type—or is it coming from your twisted little mind?”

  Christophe merely stared at him with an arched eyebrow.

  “You’re no fun.” Geoff pouted. “You know that?”

  “Yeah, yeah.” Christophe climbed off the stool and grabbed a bowl of fruit from the fridge then sat again. “But it would be nice to be his man. Listen what if—and I’m not saying you’re right—but what if I did ask him to come down to the gym and help me train? What do I do after that?”

  Geoff rolled his eyes. “You always overthink things. Why can’t it be simply black or white? Right or wrong? Sexy or not? Take it one step at a time. I’m sure when you need to come up with something else, it will be there.”

  “Thank you, Confucius.”

  “That’s not what I…” Geoff said, his shoulders rising and falling heavily. “Well, after training, ask him out for a shake or whatever it is you healthy nuts go out for after a workout. Then you can gather intel. You know? A reconnaissance mission?”

  “Gather intel? And since when did you start using words like reconnaissance?”

  Geoff smirked.

  “You make it sound like I’m a spy and this is some covert mission or something.”

  “Well, you are a spy—of sorts—and this is a covert mission…”

  “Of sorts—got it.” Christophe shoved a piece of kiwi into his mouth and pulled his cell phone from his pocket. He didn’t know Koi’s number but he knew the perfect person to ask. As the phone rang, Christophe was tempted to hang up. His heart raced like he was asking a boy out for the first time. Each ring brought him back to that day when he first knew he wanted to kiss Jimmy Sanchez. He was terrified. Still, he held the phone by his ear.

  “Kofi Olabasu.”

  “Kofi, it’s Christophe.”

  “Hey, champ!” Kofi teased. “How’s training going?”

  “I’m finished for the day. Listen, um, I hate to have to ask you this but…”

  “Ask away.”

  Christophe licked his lips and looked to see if Geoff was watching him intensely. He turned away. “Um, Koi had offered to help me out with some new moves for my fight—you don’t happen to have his cell number, do you?”

  “As a matter of fact, Koi is outside with my brother and Ciro right now. Hold on.”

  Christophe looked over at Geoff wide-eyed.

  “What?” Geoff asked.

  “He’s there,” Christophe whispered.

  “Who?”

  “Koi.”

  Geoff climbed from his seat to do the running man, a few pelvic thrusts before moon-walking back to the stool.

  Christophe wanted to cry. “Stop that, you…”

  “Hello?” Koi said.

  “Koi—hey, it’s Christophe.”

  “Hi there. Kofi told me you wished to see me. Is something the matter?”

  “No.” Christophe’s voice cracked. His palm was wet against the phone so he switched it to the other hand. “Nothing is wrong. Why would you think something is up?”

  “Well, you have never called me before. I just assumed… What can I do for you?”

  “Right—right.”

  “Christophe? Why are you nervous? I can hear it in your voice.”

  Christophe chuckled. “I just—I have my first fight coming up and you did offer to help me out. I was only calling to take you up on the offer. Only, I didn’t have your cell phone number.”

  “I do not have one.”

  “Wait, you don’t have a cell?”

  “I have never had a need for one,” Koi replied with a soft, raspy laugh. “When do you wish to train?”

  “As soon as you can?”

  “Well, I am free tomorrow.”

  Christophe swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded. “Okay. I have one appointment in the morning, then I’m free, so how about after?”

  “Very well, tell me where.”

  “Can you meet me at the gym? Okay. Ask Kofi for the address.”

  Koi agreed and Christophe all but dropped the phone to end the call. Christophe then paced the kitchen furiously, rubbing his palms into his thighs. “I did it. I actually did it. I didn’t think I could do it! But holy crap, I did it!”

  “Let me ask you something,” Geoff said. “You can go into an octagon and kick the crap out of these men, but you can’t walk up to a man and say to him ‘you turn me on, check out what I can do with my tongue!’”

  Christophe groaned. “That’s not the same thing!”

  “Of course it’s the same thing!” Geoff retorted. “You have to be able to tell a man what you want. The men who are worthy don’t want you shy and submissive—not when it counts.”

  “You’re not focusing!” Christophe snapped.

  “I am too focusing!”

  “Of course you are! On the wrong thing! I just asked him to go sparring with me and I’m scared and you’re talking about sticking my tongue down his throat. Can we just bring it back to the center for a second? Where I tell you I’m terrified of embarrassing myself with this man and you encourage me without being a jerk?”

  Geoff blinked at him. “You want me to be serious? Okay, let’s be serious.”

  “All right. What happens when we’re sparring and he falls on top of me and realizes that I’m hard?”

  Geoff sighed loudly. “You like this guy. I mean, ever since that day at your mother’s grave. And you want something to happen between the two of you. This, asking him to spar with you, is the first step to making something spark.” Geoff broke a piece of cantaloupe in two and chewed on a half. “You’re going to have to let these nerves go. For once, be open to what you want. Each time you feel yourself getting nervous, remember that this man has a kind heart. He stood by you at your mother’s grave all because you told him you didn’t want to be alone. This man will hold you when you want to be held and break a bed for you when all you want is a good fucking.”

  Christophe blushed. Geoff was right. It was time to man up. “Yeah. Go big or go home, huh?”

  “Bull’s-eye!”

  Chapter Seven

  Together, Koi and Osaki battled, floating high above the sandy land. Their swords clanged together, sending sp
arks downward. The sound of metal on metal soothed Koi in a strange way, but he couldn’t keep his mind on what was happening around him. The minute he zoned out, something would go wrong—like that moment. Osaki caught him in the gut and Koi landed on his back with dust swirling all around him. He frowned, slammed a fist into the desert beneath him and closed his eyes. This was stupid. How had he let Osaki get the drop on him?

  “You are not focusing,” Osaki said, drifting lightly to the ground then hunching down. “What is on your mind? I know you are a warrior, Koi. It is not at all like you to make such a careless mistake.”

  “What is not on my mind is the better question.” Koi sat up. “Lately, I have not been feeling myself. And to top it all off, Mother is worried I will spend my lifetime alone. What’s sad is, now I am beginning to believe her.”

  “I don’t think you will be alone forever. There has to be someone out there for you. You are a handsome man, Koi, and you are quite intelligent. I find humans feel those are alluring attributes.”

  Koi smiled as his mind drifted to Christophe. Would he find them alluring? “Yes, well, it matters not what humans believe. I do not think I was cut out for a life of family like you and Ciro. You both deserve love and happiness.”

  “Are you saying you are not worthy of the same?”

  “I do not know anymore.” Koi stood and brushed the sand from his bum. “I do not know what I am entitled to now. My family is happy, so I am content with that.”

  “You are a good man, Koi.” Osaki looked up at the sky. “But even I do not believe that.”

  “There is nothing I can do, really, but just live.”

  “I see. Perhaps we should break for now. Your mother’s northwesterly storm should be heading back and we should not be in his realm when he returns.”

  Koi smirked and nodded his agreement. They walked across the desert for a bit before disappearing and reappearing in Carter’s house. A dog Koi knew as Ai was barking at them until he probably recognized who they were. The puppy wagged its tail happily, ran around their legs sniffing at them before standing directly in front of Osaki. Koi looked up at him expectantly.