Page 16 of Starting Over in Cedarwood

Shaun understood? “Yeah, and his actions make life difficult.”

“I’m not shocked.” Shaun groaned. “And he’s coming over.” He kept his hold on Kevin. “What he doesn’t understand is that I don’t care. I went out with you and I’m here foryou—not him.” He squeezed Kevin’s ass. “I like your crooked smile, the way your eyes light up when you grin and that you have a nice ass.”

“I do?” He’d never given much thought to his own ass.

“You do,” Shaun murmured.

Before Shaun could say more, Kyle approached. “Kevin. Shaun.” He stood beside them. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

Kevin steeled himself for the onslaught of negative comments. He hadn’t been as interested in other guys in the way he was with Shaun and he didn’t want Kyle’s intrusion. “I don’t know what you owe it to.”

“I’m not here for you,” Shaun said. He never took his gaze off Kevin. “I came for other reasons.”

“This isn’t a social club, gentlemen,” Kyle said and nudged Shaun. “You’re acting childish.”

“But if I were here for you, it’d be a different story,” Shaun said. He tugged Kevin closer. “It’s no different than a guy meeting his gal after work or two women meeting…or two friends, even. He asked me to join him and I did.”

Kevin nodded. He wasn’t letting Kyle take this moment from him. “I did.”

“Right. You’ve never had this much backbone in your life,” Kyle snapped. “Stop.” He held up both hands. “I get it. You did this to make me jealous. Well, it worked. I’m jealous. Now, Shaun, ditch him so we can go.”

“Nope.” Shaun brushed his nose along Kevin’s enough that his breath tickled Kevin’s cheek. “I’m good.”

“So am I.” Kevin bridged the gap between them and kissed Shaun. This wasn’t how he’d planned on their first kiss going, but he craved Shaun’s kiss. Besides, the perfect moment, whatever that might be, wasn’t everything. He needed the right push and his lips on Shaun’s worked. He liked the feel of Shaun’s breath on his skin, the way Shaun massaged his ass as they kissed. He caressed Shaun’s shoulders and closed his eyes while he enjoyed this moment. The passion between him and Shaun was palpable. It could be lust, but he didn’t care.

“Enough.” Kyle swatted Kevin’s arm. “Hey. I said enough.”

Kevin broke the kiss and stared into Shaun’s eyes. The crystal blue intoxicated him.

“You can go now,” Shaun said. He kept Kevin in his embrace.

“I thought we were together,” Kyle growled. “You told me we were.”

This time, Shaun bristled. “I said nothing of the sort. You assumed and it looks like you’re just saying this to cause trouble.”

“Well.” Kyle stomped his foot. “See if I take you clubbing again. Good evening.”

Again?Kevin kept his poise, but not by much.Jesus.Kyle insisted on butting into everything.

When Kyle walked away, Kevin exhaled and Shaun sighed. “I guess we both have a bit of confession coming,” Shaun said. “I never asked him out—for coffee or clubbing, but I was polite to him because the paper does advertising for the team.”

“I knew.” Kevin put some space between him and Shaun. “You said something about dinner tonight. Well, before everything went to hell. Are you still interested? We can order something out.”

“We could.” Shaun’s eyes glittered. “My place or yours?”

“Either.” He had no preference. “Mine’s just small and my cat will want to get in your face. He’s pushy.”

“I can handle pushy. I’ve dealt with Kyle.” Shaun hooked his fingers in Kevin’s front pockets. “Why don’t we go to yours so you can shower and change? I’ll handle dinner and get to know your cat.”

“I’d like that.” Kevin brushed his hand over Shaun’s arm. “You’ll follow me?”

“I will.”

He kissed Shaun again and electricity sizzled between them. His lips tingled and his heart beat faster. When he pulled back a bit, his breath caught in his throat. For once he was happy. This handsome man liked him. This one. God, he was lucky. He caressed Shaun’s forearm. “Did you spray paint your pants on?”

“Just about.” Shaun chuckled. “They’re my favorites.”

“I can tell.” He liked the way Shaun looked in the denim. “We should get going. My stomach is going to start rumbling soon, and no one wants to hear that. Besides, the cat will want feeding and he can be a pain in the ass until he gets his dinner.”

---