Was there an “undertone” behind his words? Or just Katt’s own paranoia?
“So… you in or out?”
Why had he optedin?Was it reallythatimportant to belong to a fraternity?
Apparently so,he thought, taking note of where he was and the blond boy with the big, blue eyes gazing lustfully at him, waiting for them to kiss.
“Ready?” Marcus whispered.
Katt cleared his throat, swallowed thickly, and nodded. He wasn’t ready, not even kind of.
Marcus smiled and touched Katt’s face, his fingertips brushing lightly against Katt’s cheeks as he leaned closer. A hush fell over the room as everyone seemed to be holding their breath.
“Close your eyes,” Marcus breathed softly as his lips closed in on Katt’s mouth.
Katt swallowed again and closed his eyes. He felt the stiffness in his body, resisting the kiss, as the boy’s lips touched his—soft, warm, with a hint of strawberry. The tension briefly spiked, his own lips unresponsive. But Marcus didn’t retreat. His warm palms flattened against Katt’s face, his fingers slipping into his hair, as his soft lips massaged Katt’s mouth, gently sucking his lips.
Before Katt knew it, the tension was leaving his body—and he was responding to the boy’s kiss. He heard a quiet moan, thought it came from Marcus, then realized it was rising from his own throat. Marcus pushed deeper into the kiss, his fingers gently twisting Katt’s strands. When the boy’s tongue slipped into Katt’s mouth, Katt abruptly pulled away, snapped back to the reality that he was kissing aman.
“Sorry,” Marcus blushed, a sheepish smile on his face. “You just tasted so good. I wanted to… taste more.”
Katt nodded nervously and absently rubbed his mouth. “Can I, uh…” He cleared his throat. “… use your restroom?” he asked, not to anyone in particular.
“Yeah, sure,” Garrett said. “I’ll show you where it is.”
Standing on trembling legs, Katt followed Garrett out of the rec room.
“Listen,” Garrett said once they were alone. “You don’t have to do anything if you don’t want to. You can just hang out, play pool, whatever. Gideon doesn’texpectanything of you. If you’ve changed your mind about wanting to… try stuff… it’s okay.”
“Thanks,” Katt whispered. “But I’m… I’m okay. I just…” He released a deep, shaky breath, but didn’t continue his thought.
“All right.” Garrett stopped at a door. “This is the bathroom.”
Katt opened the door and paused. “Garrett…”
“Yeah?”
What had he meant to say? Tell him thetruth?“Nothing,” he mumbled and entered the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
Once inside, Katt gripped the sink and stared at his reflection in the mirror. His eyes were wide as his heart pounded in his chest.
You liked it—you fuckinglikedkissing him!
Katt grabbed his phone with shaky hands, his throat tightening and cutting off his breath. After a slight hesitation, he made the call.
6
“What do you think?” Gideon asked.
“About what?” Daniel glanced from the monitor to Gideon.
“The kiss. Did it look like he enjoyed it?”
Daniel nodded. “I think so. He seemed nervous at first, but then he was leaning into it.” He chuckled. “But then, itwasMarcus. I can imagine even a straight guy would enjoy his kiss.”
“Yeah,” Gideon smiled. “That boy—boththose boys—have some magic talent.” He stared at the monitor. “Katt seemed eager to get out of there, though. Right at the last, the way he pulled back from Marcus, like he was coming back to his senses.” He shook his head. “Like he remembered he was kissing aboy.”
“Well, if he’s struggling with his sexuality,” Daniel said, “it’s understandable he would have these reactions.” He stepped closer to Gideon and stroked his arm. “You went through similar struggles before…”
