Page 1 of Scout
PROLOGUE
Kendrix
The apartmentstill smells of roasted garlic and thyme. I did the cooking. I always do the cooking, just like I’m the one trying to hold us together. The plates are still on the table, abandoned without a second thought. Xavier’s wine glass sits nearly full, untouched, the overhead light glinting off it.
Mine’s empty. Of course it is. I drank it too fast, trying to quiet that restless ache in my chest.
I glance at his glass again, and something about it gets under my skin. Why pour it at all if you’re not going to drink it?
He sits across from me, arms crossed, body coiled tightly. He’s either ready to argue or walk away…I can’t tell anymore honestly. The sleeves of his scrubs cling to his arms, the fabric doing nothing to hide the hours he clearly spends in the gym. Bronze skin. Groomed beard. High cheekbones and a mouth that rarely moves unless it’s something clinical, or he's trying to wrap it around my cock. His stethoscope sits on the table beside his plate. The black frames of his glasses catch the light whenhe finally looks up, sharp and serious like everything else about him.
I glance at the window behind him. City lights scatter across the glass, tiny stars drifting in their own galaxy. How many nights have I stood here, trying to read him—a chart I’m not allowed to touch?
There’s nothing mysterious about me. I’m tall, stocky, built the way you’d expect from someone who bench presses stretchers more often than he operates on the people lying on them. My jaw is usually set in quiet defiance, my dark hair messier by the end of the day, and my skin carries a warm copper-brown tone. My voice rises when I care too much—loud, steady, impossible to miss.
Xavier says something about work being hell lately. That he’s tired. That he didn’t mean to forget our dinner plans.Again.
“Kendrix, you know I had that double auto accident come in last minute?—”
“I know,” I cut in. “You did. And I had back-to-back operations today, including two of the victims from that crash.”
His mouth opens slightly. He wasn't expecting that… for me to snap back at him so quickly.
“But I still showed up,” I go on, heat rising in my chest. “Still texted you that I was running a little behind. Still came here and made dinner. You know what I didn’t get?”
I wait. He doesn’t answer.
“Anything from you,” I finish. “Dinner’s cold and you come strolling in here acting surprised to see me, like we didn’t make planslast fucking night.”
I’m on my feet before I even realize it.
“I can’t do this anymore,” I say it fast.
Xavier’s eyes snap to mine. “Kendrix…”
“No.” I shake my head. “You don’t let me in.”
His jaw tightens, a subtle pulse beneath the skin, steady and tense.
“I mean it.” I reach for my jacket. “You won’t let me in, and I’m done trying.”
He doesn’t stop me when I grab my jacket. Doesn’t follow when I walk to the door.
And I don’t slam it. I just close it behind me.
1
Scout
Juniper singsalong to the radio as I pull into the driveway, her voice high and sweet, mismatching the bass drop in the worst but cutest way. She's in the passenger seat, still holding the iced coffee I bought her two hours ago, fingers wrapped tight around it, as she hums to the radio. The shopping bags in her lap spill over her lap onto her seat, full of new notebooks and shoes and way too many scrunchies.
"Thanks for today, Scout," she says, unbuckling. With her arms full, she shoots me a grin that’s so pure I feel it settle warmly in my chest. "You're, like, the best big brother ever."
I ruffle her hair before she ducks out. “Yeah? You're not so bad yourself, kid.”
She flips me off in that twelve-year-old way that saysI love you,then disappears inside.
I don’t walk her in. I never do.
