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Don’t even go there. You swore off men. Besides, Kenji is only visiting. Behave yourself!
“How long are you in town again?” Drake asked as he wiped chili off his chin with a paper-thin napkin.
The temptation to reach across the table and smack Drake had Tido’s hand itching. He didn’t want to engage in conversation. Normally, Tido loved talking to new people, but Kenji was a walking temptation that he needed to keep his ass away from.
“Was supposed to leave this weekend,” Kenji said. “I’m thinking of extending my visit because this town is so charming.”
“It’s not that charming,” Tido quickly said. “It’s like any other small town. Boring. There’s not much to do here.”
He curled his lips in, cursing himself for adding his two cents. He should have just kept his mouth shut. Now Kenji was eyeing him as he slowly ate his ice cream. Strawberry, in a large sugar cone. Tido’s mouth watered to take a bite. Of the ice cream. Not Kenji.
Then Kenji leaned in and sniffed him.
Tido looked toward Drake for help, but his friend sat there frowning as he watched them.
“I forgot I had something important to do!” Tido jumped up, nearly knocking his drink over. He grabbed the cup to stop it from falling and accidentally swatted his onion rings to the ground. He tried to pull his legs out of the picnic table, only to hit his knee and topple backward.
Kenji’s reflexes were fast. He slipped an arm around Tido’s waist and pulled him close. For a brief second Tido couldn’t breathe. It felt like his lungs had seized right up as he stared into Kenji’s beautiful eyes. Then Kenji eased Tido back toward the table, the moment gone.
Drake smirked as Kenji removed his arm from around Tido’s waist. “Smooth.”
“That promise of death is still on the table.” Tido glared at Drake. “I need you to take me home.”
His emotions were all over the place. Tido’s brain refused to work while he was so close to Kenji. He could still feel Stud Muffin’s arm around him, which made Tido’s frazzled nerves even more chaotic.
“I can take you,” Kenji offered. “We do live across the street from each other.”
“Kenji can take you.” Drake chuckled, and it sounded downright sinister, like he should have been rubbing his hands together like an evil genius. “I need to get to the café to see Ajax, anyway. “
Unless Tido wanted to walk home—which was pretty damn far—he had no choice but to accept Kenji’s offer, because it seemed Drake was getting too much enjoyment out of playing matchmaker.
After throwing his stuff away, Tido leaned close to Drake’s ear. “Payback is a total bitch, hon.”
“Love you, too,” Drake whispered in a singsong voice.
Grinding his teeth, Tido stomped toward Kenji’s SUV in a huff.
Chapter Two
They drove in silence, although there were a million things racing through Kenji’s brain, but every time he opened his mouth to say something, he clamped it shut.
He was marveling at the simple fact that his mate was sitting next to him. Never in a million years would he have thought to find him while visiting his old alpha.
What were the odds?
Not only was Kenji shocked but this was important, and Tido was human, so Kenji didn’t want to say anything that might scare away the stunning man.
Kenji could feel Tido stealing glances at him with those big, expressive smoky-gray eyes. He also couldn’t help but feel as if his mate was rejecting him from his strong reaction when Kenji had sat down at the table. It was like the guy couldn’t get rid of him fast enough.
Kenji wasn’t even going to lie. He used his charm a lot to pick up dates or to calm down heated situations. He’d been that way his entire life. It just seemed to come naturally to him, yet all that charm vanished as he gripped the wheel tighter, wondering what in the hell to say to Tido.
Since moving into the rental across the street, Kenji had noticed how Tido checked him out, through a window or just standing on his porch openly gawking at him. He’d found it adorable and kind of hot. Kenji had been interested in him, too. He hadn’t known it was his mate, but he’d definitely been interested in getting to know his neighbor better.
Now he had the chance and he sat in the driver’s seat like a juvenile with his first crush. He also felt like Tido was icing him out.
“Tell me the truth,” Tido finally said. “Did Drake call you and ask you to come to the ice cream hut?”
Kenji didn’t want to get Drake into trouble, but he also didn’t want to lie. “Ice cream sounded good.”
