by Becca Steele
I nodded, placing my drink on the upturned crate next to me. He dipped his fingers into the paint, and then he brought his hand up to my face. Shivers raced down my body as he dragged his paint-covered fingers across my skin, slowly and surely.
Preston had an effect on me that I wasn’t even sure I understood. When I’d shown up at his house, pissed off and upset, he seemed to instinctively know how to handle me, letting me work through my fucked-up mess of emotions until I was calm. And the physical effect he had on me…there was a reason why I’d been trying not to stay too close to him this evening. I wanted him all the time.
Standing with him here right in front of me, his gaze focused as he drew careful lines across my face, the urge was becoming harder to ignore.
“Done. You look…” He paused, raking his gaze over me as I stared at him, hungry. “Like a delinquent. My delinquent.”
“Want me to do you?” Swiping my fingers through the paint he was still holding, I leaned closer to him.
“Oh, I want you to do me.” His voice was low and seductive. My dick strained against my jeans.
“I…” Licking my suddenly dry lips, I tried again. Preston’s eyes followed my movements, his body so close to mine that I could feel the heat radiating from him. “Fuck it,” I muttered, wiping the paint on my jeans. “Let’s get out of here.”
He laughed as I pushed away from the wall, heading for the exit as fast as I could. “Wanna try the paint run?” he murmured low in my ear, as we exited the container. This close, it took all my willpower not to turn my head and close the gap between us, to claim him as mine.
When would I be ready to do that? I’d come out to my dad, and Preston’s parents knew; why was it so hard to do the same with my friends?
I shook the thought off for now. “The paint run? Not what I had in mind.”
A low chuckle escaped him. “I know. I know what you want.” Moving past me, he ducked around the corner of the warehouse. “This way.”
When I reached him, leaning against the warehouse wall, hidden by the corner of the container, he tugged me into him, burying his face in my shoulder, before drawing back to look at me.
My hand went to his hair, running my fingers through the soft strands and down to clasp the back of his neck. “I missed you so fucking much.” I rested my forehead against his, staring into his blue eyes. “I’ve been wanting to touch you all night.”
“I know. Me too.” He pressed his lips to mine, before drawing back.
His words sent a spike of guilt straight to my gut.
He seemed to know what I was thinking because he ran his hands up and down my back in reassuring strokes. “Hey. I’m not trying to give you a guilt trip.”
I nodded. There’d never been any pressure from him, just never-ending patience as he let me come to terms with everything in my own time. “I know. Sorry, it’s…”
“Don’t apologise.”
“I—”
He shut me up effectively by lunging at me and slamming his mouth down on mine. Everything else was forgotten as our lips collided in a bruising kiss.
Fuuuuck.
I gripped his ass, pulling his hips into me, kissing him harder, our teeth clashing as we fought for dominance. My hand went to his jeans, undoing them and yanking them down, and he reciprocated by doing the same, before grinding against me again. Through the thin barrier of our underwear, my cock rubbed against his in a way that was both hot as fuck and insanely frustrating, because all we had was this stolen moment around the back of the container.
“Kian…” Preston’s voice trailed off as I went for his neck, sucking at his warm skin. Maybe I wasn’t ready to tell people about us yet, but in the meantime, I was going to mark him as mine.
A curse fell from his lips when I dragged my teeth across his throat, and he pushed down my boxers, before shoving his own down. “Spit,” he commanded, his palm by my mouth. Then, his hands were grasping both our cocks. “Hands on the wall. Now.” He bit my jaw, his teeth scraping against my stubble, thrusting his hips towards me.
“So controlling,” I rasped, my hands going to the cold bricks either side of his head almost of their own accord. I felt the wall vibrate under my palms, the heavy bass of the music from inside the warehouse reverberating through the entire space and permeating our dark corner.
“You love it.” He left bites across my jaw, before pulling my lip between his teeth.
Yeah, I did. And so did my cock, so hard against his, leaking precum over his fingers as he moved his hands in a rhythm that was driving both of us insane. “Feels so good,” I panted, and he responded with a low moan of agreement. My lips found his, crushing our mouths together in another bruising kiss, as his movements became faster, harder, both of us racing towards the edge.
“I’m gonna come.” My voice was barely recognisable, thick with lust, as my balls tightened, and hot cum covered his hands.
“Oh, fuck.” He stiffened against my body, shuddering against me, his head dropping to my shoulder. I lowered my arms from the wall, winding them around his broad shoulders as I held him. When we’d both managed to catch our breath, he raised his head and gave me one of his soft smiles that he never seemed to direct at anyone else. Smiles that made me feel things I’d never felt before. “You okay?”
Leaning forwards, I brushed my lips over his. “Never better.”
He smiled against my mouth, before a shiver went through his body. “It’s kinda cold out here, huh?”
Yeah, it was. It was winter, after all. “What, my body isn’t enough to keep you warm?” I pressed against him, and he huffed out a laugh, burying his face in my shoulder and hugging me tightly. Keeping one arm around him, I lifted my hand and ran my fingers through his hair. “Let’s clean up and I’ll warm you up by chasing you around the paint run.”
“Or I could chase you,” he suggested, raising his head.
“You already caught me, remember.”
“Yeah. I caught myself a delinquent.” His lips curved into a teasing grin, and I knew we were both thinking of the words he’d said to me on Fright Night. “It was the mask, wasn’t it? That was how I managed to get close to you without you knowing it was me.”
I made a point of looking him up and down. “Nah, there’s no disguising you. Even with that mask. Guess you just got lucky.”
“Mmm. I did.”
My eyes met his. “So did I. I’m glad you caught me,” I said hoarsely.
His arms tightened around me as he held my gaze. “Me too.”
15
Kian’s first day back training with the soccer team, and it wasn’t going well. Coach was riding us hard, and our team captain was in a dark mood, affecting everyone. When Coach blew the whistle for a break, I headed over to Kian, pulling him aside for a brief moment. “Why don’t you go and talk to Carter, see what’s up?”
Kian nodded, breathing hard. “Yeah, I’m going to speak to him now.” He jogged off in the direction of Carter, and I headed over to the side of the field, picking up a bottle of water and uncapping it. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Kian and Carter, deep in discussion. Man, I wanted to be over there with him. As much as I didn’t want to put any pressure on him, and wouldn’t, I wanted to have our relationship out in the open. I’d never felt this way about anyone before, and I wanted everyone to know that this amazing guy was all mine.
With a sigh, I tore my gaze away from Kian and dropped into a series of stretches, working out my aching muscles. My teammates were doing the same around me or lying collapsed in the grass.
As I started stretching out my hamstrings, my gaze swung back to Kian. He was looking at me, and right then, all his usual walls that he had up around our friends were down. He was looking at me the way he did when we were alone.
My heart beat faster.
He beckoned me over to where he stood with Carter, and I jogged slowly over to them, my legs shaky. As soon as I reached them, Kian threw his arm around my waist and kissed me, hard and desperate
.
What the fuck?
Caught off guard, I stumbled back, but Kian steadied me. I studied him closely, seeing nothing but pure determination in his eyes. A smile spread across my face as I held his gaze. He’d just kissed me in front of the entire soccer team, and it hadn’t gone unnoticed.
He’d outed himself. For me. For us.
“I take it the secret’s out?” I managed, when my brain finally wrapped itself around the fact that Kian had come out. To all our teammates. His closest friends.
Carter’s stunned expression faded, and he gave us a genuine smile. “I’m happy for you both. How long has this been going on?”
“Since Fright Night,” Kian told him, tightening his hold on my waist. I leaned into him, because I could. The smile wouldn’t leave my face.
“I wasn’t the only one to have a secret hook-up over Halloween, then.” Carter grinned at Kian. Before I could ask him about that, we were interrupted by the whistle blowing again, and we headed back onto the field.
Everything was different now. Whatever Kian had said to Carter had impacted his mood for the better, and as for me, I was walking on air after Kian’s public claiming. The team came together, working as one well-oiled machine, and the passes between me and Kian were effortless. I felt high, able to conquer the world.
When practice ended and we’d finished our cool-down stretches, I pulled Kian aside as the rest of the team made their way back to the locker room. He was covered in mud, sweating, and still breathing hard, but to me, he’d never looked better.
“Are you sure about this?” Running my hand through my hair, I stared at him.
His reply was instant. “Yeah. I should’ve done it sooner. Way sooner.” He gave me a crooked smile, stepping closer and putting his arms around me. “You’re pretty fucking special to me, Golden Boy, and it’s about time people around here were aware of just who you belong to.”
It took me a while to formulate a reply, the lump in my throat too big to swallow around. I lowered my forehead to his, my arms sliding around his waist. “You’re everything to me.”
His grip on me tightened, and he blew out a heavy breath. We stayed like that for a moment, just enjoying the closeness between us, before he released me. “I feel like a weight’s been lifted, y’know?”
“I know.” I turned in the direction of the locker rooms. “I’m proud of you. And happy. You make me so happy, Kian.”
His eyes shining, he took my hand and squeezed it lightly, before tugging me towards the locker rooms.
“So this is how we celebrate making things properly official, huh?” Smiling, I looked down at Kian’s hand clasped around mine, as we came to a stop at the end of the boardwalk that stretched out over the sea.
“Maybe I’m trying to romance you before I take you back to mine and do bad things to you.” He shrugged, a grin playing across his lips.
“Oh, baby, you’re so sweet.” I pretended to swoon, batting my lashes at him, and he hit me in the bicep. I glared at him. “Hey! That was uncalled for.”
“You’re a dick,” he said, laughing. “Good thing I like you so much.”
“Says the guy who just punched me.”
We grinned at each other, and I savoured being out here in the open with my boyfriend. No more hiding away, no more having to walk next to him without being able to hold his hand. Now, everyone could see that he was mine and I was his.
“Is this okay for you, being with me, in the open? Do you feel uncomfortable?” I ran my hand down his arm, feeling his hard muscles flex under my touch.
He took an unsteady breath. “It feels…new. But good. Really good.” Taking a step closer, he grasped my chin in his hand, running his thumb over my jaw. “I have no regrets about any of this. I promise.”
“Good. But I want you to tell me if you ever feel uncomfortable, okay?”
In response, he nodded and lightly nipped at my lower lip. “Speaking of romancing you…” A flush appeared on his cheeks, and he shuffled his feet. “Do you want to go out with me? For a meal or something?”
A wide smile spread across my face. “Are you asking me on a date?”
“Yeah. I know we’ve probably done things the wrong way round…okay, we definitely have, but I want you to know that you’re important to me. I want to be seen with you. Would that be alright?”
“Hell, yeah. It’s more than alright. I’d love to.”
He smiled back at me, his eyes sparkling, and I kissed him.
We fell silent, his arm against mine as we leaned against the railing. I breathed in the salty tang of the sea air, memories of my home on the Connecticut coast flooding back as I stared out to sea.
“Do you miss it?”
Kian’s voice broke through my thoughts, and I turned to see him studying me intently from under his lashes, his dark hair windswept from the sea breeze. Damn, he was gorgeous. How did I get so lucky?
“Huh?”
“America,” he elaborated. “You’ve got that distant look in your eyes, like you get when you’re thinking about it.”
“You noticed that?” I stared at him in surprise, and he gave me a small smile.
“Yeah. I dunno if you’re aware, but I notice a lot about you, Golden Boy.”
My heart skipped a beat. I cleared my throat before replying. “Me too.” He gave me a soft smile, which didn’t mask the question in his eyes, and I gave him my full attention, turning to lean sideways on the railing so I could face him properly. “I do miss it. Sometimes it’s like a physical pain, an ache deep inside. It’s…it’s my homeland.”
A sadness stole over his face that he tried to conceal with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. I tugged him into my arms. “You know what, though?” I waited until he looked at me, and I continued, telling him my truth. “I’m happier now than I ever have been.”
“Yeah?” His voice was a croaky whisper.
“Yeah. Sure, it hasn’t been easy, but I’ve gained more than I’ve lost. I got you, didn’t I?”
This time, his smile reached his eyes. “True.”
“Not only that, but now we’re official, I can take you back to my hometown one day. Show off the hot British bad boy I managed to charm into being my boyfriend.”
He pulled me closer, his voice a husky murmur against my lips. “I’d like that.”
16
JANUARY
We were on fire. That was the only way to describe us. Or, in the words of the local press, who must’ve been having a quiet week because they’d been hyping my return to the team way more than was necessary:
Could there be a better pairing? Watch out for Kian Courtland and Preston Montgomery III, the star strikers of Alstone High’s football team. With this dynamic duo reigning as an unstoppable force on the pitch, and the experience and intuition of Carter Blackthorne at the helm, the coveted championship trophy is well within Alstone High’s grasp.
I wasn’t complaining, though. I was fucking good at what I did, and it had only been my stupidity that had got me suspended in the first place. Now, I was back where I belonged.
This game was important for so many reasons, the first and foremost being that it was the quarter-finals of the championships, and we were playing our biggest rivals, Highnam Academy. It was my first game back, and I soaked up the atmosphere, reacting to the roars of the crowd, my heartbeat pounding loud in my ears as I passed the ball back and forth to my teammates, intercepting the Highnam defenders and claiming possession of the ball. Flying down the field, my eyes scanning for any openings I could take, my feet knew what to do before my brain could catch up.
Carter passed me the ball, and my foot flew out, sending it straight to Preston. Highnam didn’t have a hope of intercepting that pass, and they knew it. Preston’s foot connected with the ball, and he sent it straight into the goal.
The stadium went mad, and I ran for him, jumping onto his back and fist pumping the air with one hand while my other gripped him around his neck. He laughed, holding on to my thighs
as the crowd roared around us. The euphoria of scoring a goal and being here with him fizzed through my blood.
“I love you!” I shouted the words in his ear, and he froze beneath me. Sliding off his back, I pulled him into a hug, as our teammates piled on us, celebrating the goal. His eyes found mine in the midst of it all, a question in them, and I mouthed the words to him again.
I love you.
A bright, beaming smile lit up my golden boy’s face, before he was being tugged away from me, and we were back in the game.
There was no time to talk, and maybe I should’ve waited to tell him, maybe there was a better setting than in the middle of our biggest football game of the season so far, but I couldn’t hold it in any longer. He needed to know how I felt about him.
I loved him.
He was my entire world.
At half-time, I jogged off the pitch with the rest of the team, and Preston caught up with me as we entered the changing rooms, where our coach was waiting to talk to us. “Did you mean what you said?” His voice was low next to my ear.
“Yeah, I meant it, Golden Boy.” I hooked my finger around his, before releasing it and taking a seat on the benches. I felt his gaze on mine, and I turned to catch his eye, throwing him a wink. He stared at me, happiness radiating from him, and my heart stuttered. I’d managed to do that. Managed to put that huge smile on his face, to make him the happiest I’d ever seen him. He opened his mouth to say something, but the coach began speaking and we both turned our attention to him.
There’d be time to talk afterwards. Right now, we had a football match to win.
As soon as we hit the football pitch and the whistle blew, Highnam Academy were all over us, muscling through our defence line and scoring a goal. Carter held the team together, refusing to let us falter, and we rallied, working as one to block their constant attacks, while still creating our own chances. The end of the game drew closer with no further goals from either team, both of us too evenly matched.