Home and Away

by Ariel Tachna

  “Damn, I swear it got colder while we were inside,” Kit said as they stepped outside, his breath white against the weak winter light.

  “It is February.”

  “I know, and Uncle Thane swears that’s always the coldest month of the year. It wasn’t that way in Louisville, but Uncle Thane has lived here his whole life, so he’d know what he’s talking about.”

  “You’re from Louisville?” Linc asked.

  “I was born there, yeah, but I moved to Lexington to live with my uncle when my mom died. I’ve lived here for seven years now. It’s definitely home. I actually had dinner with them last night.”

  Linc noticed Kit didn’t mention his father, but he decided not to ask. If his father had been in the picture, Kit wouldn’t have come to live with his uncle. “It must be nice to be that close to home.”

  “It is.” The smile Kit sent him radiated warmth and happiness. “I don’t know what I’d do without my uncles. Phillip—my brother—and I were over the moon when they got married.”

  “That musta made coming out easier.” Linc remembered his own dread at how his parents and siblings would react. They’d surprised him fortunately, although they’d urged him to be cautious about who he told outside the family. He’d followed their advice right up until speculation had started based on a picture of him dancing with a guy at a party. He’d decided then that coming out voluntarily would let him frame the story the way he wanted, rather than having it thrust on him. Then he flinched, hoping he hadn’t misinterpreted Kit’s remark yesterday about gay boys in tank tops and basketball players in silky shorts.

  “I’m not sure I was ever not out,” Kit admitted. “You’d have to meet Uncle Thane to really understand. He doesn’t know the meaning of the word tact. His version of relationship advice is ‘Keep a condom in your wallet. Use it. Consent is sexy.’ He’s bi, a fact he never hid from us. When Mom was still alive and we’d come to visit, he’d talk about whoever he was dating at the time. Mom gave him a hard way to go about how often that person changed but never about whether he was seeing a man or a woman. It never occurred to me to hide, with that as an example. Him settling down with Uncle Blake was almost anticlimactic.”

  Linc chuckled at that as they reached the door to the coffee shop. He held it open for Kit. “He sounds a lot like my dad. Not the bi part, but the blunt to a fault part. My dad always tells it like it is, and if you can’t deal with it, too bad. What do you want? My treat.”

  “Drinks here are more than a dollar in a vending machine. You don’t have to pay for me.”

  “It’s not a question of have to. I want to. I can afford a fancy coffee if that’s your poison.” Linc’s scholarship covered all his tuition and fees, so the little bit of money his parents could afford to send him every month paid for the occasional extra, and his pride wouldn’t let him admit that money was tight.

  “Then I’ll have a small mocha with whipped cream. I have a party tonight at the frat house, but if I have too much caffeine, I’ll be awake all night, and I have stuff to do tomorrow before the game.”

  Linc suspected this was Kit not wanting to make him buy a more expensive drink, but he let it go because the logic made sense. He ordered Kit’s mocha and a decaf tea for himself and joined Kit at one of the tables. He pulled his backpack onto his lap and unzipped it. “Okay, let’s finish this chapter so I can get my head back on right for tomorrow.”

  Kit shook his head. “No, you need to relax. Physics is making you stressed. You need to let loose a bit. You should come to the DLP party tonight. There will be plenty to drink besides beer if you won’t want the alcohol. You can call it hanging out with your biggest fans.”

  “You sure? I don’t wanna crash the party.”

  “Dude, it’s a party, not a board meeting. We have an open-door policy anyway, but even if we didn’t, I invited you. And I can tell the guys to chill if you want to stay out of the spotlight. They’ll know you’re there, but they won’t fawn all over you.”

  That sounded like a perfect way to spend a pregame evening. “You sure?”

  “I’m sure. The party starts around eight. I have to go home to change, but I’ll be there early, so come whenever you want. You can text me if you get there before the doors open and I’ll let you in.”

  Kit had given Linc his number after the first tutoring session so Linc could reach him if he had to cancel for any reason, not that Linc had needed it. Now Kit had given him permission to use it for more personal reasons. “I’ll do that.”

  KIT sank down on his bed and tried not to hyperventilate. It had been an ongoing battle since he’d suggested Linc meet him at the frat party tonight. He had a date with Linc Joyner! No, I have a date with my friend Linc, he reminded himself. Linc had been nothing but genuine with Kit. Kit owed him the decency of treating him like a friend, not a celebrity. He needed to get there early enough to drive home to the other guys that they needed to act the same. Sure, it would make great publicity for their chapter of the fraternity, but Linc deserved to have some fun without everyone fawning all over him.

  “Kit, you okay in there?” Ephah called through the door.

  “Yeah, just getting changed for the party tonight,” Kit replied. And trying not to have a meltdown.

  “All right. Zoe said you looked upset when you came in, so I wanted to check.”

  Ephah’s girlfriend was a treasure, and Kit hoped he manned up soon and married her because he’d lucked out a thousand times over with her. “I’ll be out in a few minutes.”

  He heaved himself off the bed and dug out tight jeans and his favorite shirt—Kentucky blue of course, with just a hint of sheen to the fabric that pulled snugly across his chest. He might not be as muscled as Phillip and Ephah, since he only worked on Uncle Thane’s construction sites in the summers, but he kept in shape in other ways the rest of the year, and this particular shirt showed that off. Phillip called it his fuck-me shirt. That wasn’t in the cards tonight, but it never hurt to look his best.

  He debated adding a hint of eyeliner, a trick he’d learned helping with stage makeup in high school, but decided against it. He didn’t want to scare Linc off. He’d save the eyeliner for a later date, if things got that far.

  Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he walked back into the apartment living room. While he’d been changing, Marisol, Phillip’s girlfriend, had arrived as well. She gave Kit a grin and a wolf whistle when he came into sight. “You need to give Phillip lessons,” she told him. “His idea of dressing up for a date is changing his dirty work pants for clean ones and his work boots for tennis shoes.”

  “Nah, for that you have to talk to Uncle Blake. Phillip never listens to me,” he replied over Phillip’s splutter of protest.

  He crossed the room to give her a kiss on the cheek. She hugged him in return and tugged him down to sit next to her on the couch. Zoe immediately sat on the other side of him. “Why are you all dressed up tonight?” Zoe asked.

  “Party at the DLP house.” It wouldn’t be enough to satisfy her, but he’d start there anyway. He might get lucky. Not expecting anything, he reminded himself.

  “You’re wearing the fuck-me shirt,” Phillip said before Zoe could reply. “You don’t pull that out for just a frat party. Whose eye are you hoping to catch?”

  Marisol’s eyes lit up. “You have a new boyfriend? When do we get to meet him?”

  “I don’t have a new boyfriend.” Yet. “I haven’t worn this shirt in a while, so I pulled it out tonight.”

  Phillip narrowed his eyes as he studied Kit. “It’s Joyner, isn’t it? You asked him out.”

  “I mentioned the party and suggested he might have fun,” Kit said. “It’s not a date, just hanging out with a bunch of guys, and he isn’t my boyfriend.”

  “But you wouldn’t say no if he wanted to be,” Zoe summarized.

  Kit couldn’t deny it.

  LINC stared at his closet in dismay. What was he supposed to wear to the party tonight? It would help if he knew wh
at Kit had in mind when he issued the invitation. Was it a date? Was it two friends hanging out? Was it a chance to make himself look good in front of his frat brothers? No, Kit wasn’t like that. Even if it wasn’t a date, he wouldn’t invite Linc to a party just to show off in front of other people.

  That didn’t solve the question of what to wear, though. Usually he wore track pants and a sweatshirt because he was either fresh from practice or headed there shortly. Nobody thought anything of that, and he didn’t have to worry his parents for clothes beyond what he already had. It made things easier for his younger siblings, but it left him with fewer options. He had a couple of pairs of trousers and dress shirts for church on Sunday if they weren’t traveling to a game, but this was a frat party, not church. He’d come across as a country bumpkin if he wore them. “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph,” he muttered. “It’s a party, not rocket science.”

  He grabbed a pair of jeans and a clean henley and pulled them on. He might still come across as a hayseed, but he wasn’t going to worry about it anymore. Kit had invited him. It would be fine.

  And if it wasn’t, at least he’d know now and could let go of that fantasy.

  Chapter Six

  KIT made it to the frat house by seven, in time to help with the setup. “Hey, Kit,” Logan, the current chapter president, said as Kit took off his coat. “I haven’t seen you much this week.”

  “I started working with a new person in tutoring this week, and it’s kept me busy, but I couldn’t miss tonight’s party after missing everything last weekend for Preston’s wedding.”

  “We understand family commitments, you know that,” Logan insisted. “Besides, it was a party, not a requirement.”

  “I know, but I still hate missing things. Listen, I invited a friend tonight, and I need everyone to play it cool. He needs a night to relax, not to be hounded.”

  “Hounded?” Logan repeated.

  “It’s Linc Joyner. He needs a night out of the spotlight so he can unwind. I’m hoping everyone will be cool with keeping it low-key.”

  “Back up. Since when are you friends with Lincoln Joyner?” Logan asked. If it had been anyone else, Kit would simply have blown him off, but he and Logan had been pledges at the same time, and that bond hadn’t faded.

  “I’ll tell you about it, but later, okay? Right now, just help me out?”

  “I’ll pass the word around,” Logan promised. “But you owe me that story.”

  “After the party or tomorrow,” Kit replied. “For now let’s get everything ready for tonight.”

  LIGHT poured from the windows of the Delta Lambda Phi house as Linc walked up the sidewalk. He’d pretty much talked himself out of believing Kit intended his invitation as a date, however much he wished otherwise. Still, it was easier to go into it not expecting anything. Despite his determination not to make this into something it wasn’t, he was a bit early. Kit had said that would be okay, and it might be easier if Linc was already there when the party started rather than making a big entrance later. Taking a deep breath, he dug his phone out of his pocket and texted Kit to let him know he was outside. He shifted from foot to foot as he waited for Kit’s reply, telling himself he was cold, not nervous, even as he cringed at the lie. The front door swung open, and Kit stood on the other side, smiling broadly.

  “Linc, glad you made it. Come on in. It’s cold outside.”

  “Thanks.” Linc stepped inside, drinking in the sight of Kit in tight jeans and an even tighter shirt—in his color. Well, technically it was Kentucky’s color, but it had been Linc’s favorite color for as long as he could remember. Not just blue, but the specific shade associated with UK. And Kit was wearing it.

  It doesn’t mean anything. In Lexington, it’s everywhere. None of that changed how good Kit looked in it.

  “I can put your coat with mine so you don’t have to keep up with it,” Kit offered. “The party is out here in the public areas of the house, but one of the guys who lives here lets the brothers toss their coats in his room.”

  “If you’re sure it won’t be a problem. I’m not one of the brothers. Don’t break any rules for me.”

  “As long as I’m the one to take it upstairs, it’s not breaking rules,” Kit assured him. Linc pulled off his coat and handed it to Kit. Kit’s admiring gaze gave Linc hope this was a date after all. “Come on, let me introduce you to everyone.”

  Linc winced at that. “I’m just another guy tonight, remember?”

  “I remember, but I’d introduce any guest around. How else are you supposed to meet people?”

  People were not Linc’s specialty, unless they were on the basketball court with him, but he’d do his best to smile and remember people’s names and not size them up the way he would the opposing team. These were Kit’s friends. If he continued to hang out with Kit, he’d see them around, even if they never became his friends. And as Kit had reminded him, they were huge supporters of him as an out athlete. He put on his press-conference smile and went to meet everyone.

  To his relief, while everyone wanted to shake his hand and a few guys thanked him for coming out, and one even thanked Linc for giving him the courage to come out, they didn’t do the fawning-groupie thing.

  “Okay?” Kit asked from Linc’s side, where he’d stayed the entire time, other than the couple of minutes it had taken him to stash Linc’s coat.

  “Yeah, I think so.”

  By the time he’d met everyone, someone had started dance music and someone else had tapped the keg. Linc grabbed a bottle of water rather than the soda and beer on offer. He couldn’t afford to be hungover tomorrow.

  People started arriving, some who greeted Kit and some who seemed to just be there for the party. He caught some surprised looks at his presence, but anytime anyone got overenthusiastic, one of Kit’s friends intercepted him and steered him away, leaving Linc to enjoy the atmosphere in relative peace.

  “Did you put them up to that?” Linc asked Kit when Logan stopped another guy from coming up to them.

  “I told them you were here to relax, not to be a star. They took it from there,” Kit said. “If that isn’t what you want, I’ll tell them to lay off.”

  “No, I appreciate it,” Linc said quickly. “The only place I usually get to relax is in the locker room with the team. Everywhere else, there’s always the chance someone will want to talk or get an autograph or something.”

  “Now you have two places,” Kit said. “Seriously, even if I’m not here, knock and someone will let you in. We might not be basketball stars, but most of us know what it feels like to need somewhere to be yourself. I was lucky with my family, but not everyone is. You may not wear our letters, but you’re one of us in all the ways that matter.”

  “Thank you.” Linc’s voice broke on the words, overwhelmed by the offer. The closest he’d ever had to what Kit was offering was with his various basketball teams, but that was only part of who he was, even if it was the most visible. Kit had given him a place for the other sides of himself.

  “Okay, enough seriousness. It’s a party. Let’s dance.” Kit tugged on Linc’s hand to lead him toward the crowded, darkened room where the bass pounded out a rocking beat and bodies swayed and writhed in time.

  “I’m not a great dancer,” he warned, but Kit ignored him.

  “Taller man leads,” Kit said, draping his arms over Linc’s shoulders and pressing up against him.

  Holy Mary, Mother of God, how was Linc supposed to resist that temptation?

  KIT very nearly crowed when Linc agreed to dance with him. He’d seen how tightly Linc was wound up when he’d arrived, and he’d only relaxed a little when he’d seen the guys keeping people from swarming him. If he didn’t relax, he’d sprain something just standing there, and then where would they be tomorrow during the game?

  Kit meant every word he’d said about the fraternity offering Linc a safe space to relax and be himself, but that would only help if Linc actually took them up on it and relaxed while he was there.

&nb
sp; The repurposed dining room with its party lights gave everyone a sense of anonymity, and Kit intended to take ruthless advantage of it, unless or until Linc told him to stop. Uncle Thane had pounded the “consent is sexy” lesson into Kit’s head for too many years to do otherwise.

  At just under six feet tall, Kit wasn’t used to looking up at people, not really. Sure, he knew people who were a little taller than he was, but an inch or two didn’t make much difference, even if they were dancing. He hadn’t been at eye level with someone’s Adam’s apple since he hit his growth spurt and passed Uncle Blake. Until tonight. The thought of being tucked against Linc’s height, his arm draped over Kit’s shoulder—or pinned beneath him in bed—sent a shiver of desire through Kit’s belly. He pressed closer into Linc’s embrace, plastering himself to as much of Linc’s body as he could reach. Linc’s hands rested on his hips, not pulling him closer but definitely not pushing him away either.

  Talking over the music wasn’t really an option, so Kit didn’t try. He simply gyrated to the beat, letting his body say what he couldn’t in words—that he wanted to be there with Linc, that he would take anything Linc would give him. Reading Linc’s expression with only the flashing party lights to see by wasn’t easy, but Linc’s pupils were blown, although that could be blamed on the low light. The hard heat against Kit’s belly button was less open to interpretation, although even that could be the result of dancing more than a true underlying attraction.

  Still, Linc wasn’t pushing him away, and Kit would take that and run with it. He tipped his head back enough to meet Linc’s gaze and angled their bodies so Linc’s thigh slipped between his legs. Perfect. Licking his lips, he gyrated against Linc, driving himself to full hardness.

  Linc’s lips parted, though any sound he made was lost beneath the music. Kit regretted that instantly, but if he pulled Linc somewhere quieter, he ran the risk of scaring him off. Linc’s tongue flicked out, wetting his lips, and Kit couldn’t stand it any longer. He pushed up on his toes, studying Linc’s face for any sign of resistance. When he saw nothing but a desire to match his own, he brushed their mouths together.