Page 33 of Beastkin

“Go!” Lila hissed, giving me a not-so-gentle shove. “Before he gets away!”

I stumbled forward, nearly dropping my books as I hurried after him. “Karrick!” I called, not caring that several students turned to look. “Wait up!”

He froze in the doorway, his broad shoulders tensing visibly beneath his uniform shirt. For a moment, I thought he might ignore me and keep walking. But then slowly, reluctantly, he turned.

Those amber eyes that had haunted my dreams met mine, and I felt that same electric current run through me. But there was something guarded in his expression now, something that hadn’t been there last night in Professor Blackwood’s office.

“Hey,” I said lamely, suddenly aware we had an audience of curious classmates filing past us. “Can we talk? Somewhere private?”

Karrick glanced around, his nostrils flaring slightly as he took in the watching students. “I have practice in twenty minutes,” he said, his deep voice carefully neutral.

“Then afterward,” I promised, trying to keep the desperation from my voice. “Please?”

Something flickered in his eyes… uncertainty? Fear? But after a moment, he shook his head. “Not right now. I’m… I’m busy.”

Sudden anger flooded through me as I followed him into the hallway, then out through a side exit into a small courtyard. The autumn air was crisp against my heated skin, the afternoon sun casting long shadows across the ancient stones. The other students dispersed, but I stuck close to him. Finally, he stopped.

“Phoenix…” he sighed. “Don’t you have another class or something?”

“I said I want to talk to you,” I reiterated, a little more aggressively this time.

“I’m busy.”

“Then I’ll wait until you aren’t.”

He sighed again. “So, you’re just gonna follow me around until I’m not?”

“Yep.”

He chuckled. Clearly, he didn’t believe me. But two could play this game.

“Suit yourself then. I’m going to practice.”

I followed dutifully behind him, keeping a few paces back to avoid suspicion. For the first time in my life, I guessed I was going to go watch football practice. I just hoped it was a lot less boring than it sounded. Either way, Karrick and Iweregoing to talk.

Whether he liked it or not.

Chapter 14

Karrick

It was hard enough to concentrate on football practice with Phoenix on my mind. That alone made it almost impossible to remember plays or what drill I was doing for more than ten seconds. But having Phoenix sitting in the stands, all by himself, watching my every move? Gods… it was torture.

I could feel his eyes on me from the moment I stepped onto the field. Of course, I was used to being watched at games. That was just part of the experience. But nobody came to the practices to watch. And certainlynotPhoenix Emberwood. But now that he was, I couldn’t tell if I was embarrassed or turned on. Then again, considering how tight my jockstrap was getting, it was probably the latter. Thank the gods for my cup or else the entire team would’ve known exactly what I was preoccupied about.

“Quit adjusting your balls and get your head in the game,” Jackson snarled after I failed to stopanotherlinebacker from driving him into the turf. “Are you all fucked up again like you were the other day?”

I shifted my uncomfortably tight jock once more, wincing not inpain, but the sensitivity. I was fairly certain my underwear was slowly getting stained with pre-cum.

“Sorry,” I muttered, irritated but too distracted to get really angry. “I… I think something's wrong with my gear.”

“Well get the fuck over it,” Jackson called back. “And don’t let me get tackled again!”

I tried to focus on the next play, but my eyes kept drifting to the stands where Phoenix sat with perfect posture, his attention completely fixed on me. The afternoon sun caught the auburn highlights in his dark hair, and even from this distance, I could see those orange eyes tracking my every movement. It was like being studied by a flame.

“Laurent!” Coach Flannery’s voice boomed across the field. “What the hell was that?”

I looked around, disoriented, realizing I’d completely missed whatever formation we were supposed to be running. Silver was giving me a concerned look from across the line, while Daisuke just shook his head in disappointment.