Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 116254 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 581(@200wpm)___ 465(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116254 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 581(@200wpm)___ 465(@250wpm)___ 388(@300wpm)
But as he glanced in the direction Ned had bolted, he stilled.
Then did a double take, unable to believe his eyes.
Walking straight for him in a tank and cargo shorts, dark hair down at his shoulders, his beautiful bare feet sinking into the sand, was the one person on the face of the earth that he was desperate to see.
Lips parting, he shoved from his seat, nearly knocking it over. “Kai?”
Kai pulled to a stop just a few feet away and donned a devastating smile. Pocketing his hands, he held Breck’s gaze. “Hello, handsome.”
Breck’s heart leapt at the sound of his voice.
Not a hallucination.
Choking out a laugh, he palmed his skull. “Yeah, hello… Holy shit.” He laughed again. “I can’t believe you’re really here.”
An impish light glinted in Kai’s midnight eyes. “Yes, well… I had some help with this little impromptu surprise.”
His gaze cut to the rest of the table. Breck turned and tracked his focus to none other than Tad and Scott. Both grinned widely, clearly guilty as charged, while across the way, Marcie melted like a noodle on a dreamy sigh.
“You knew about this?” Breck gawked at Kai’s cohorts.
Tad laughed with a sorry-not-sorry shrug. “Someone needed to make it happen.”
Scott flicked Kai a grin. “I merely provided the shove.”
Breck stared at them, still partially in shock, then turned back to Kai and, with an ear-to-ear smile, strode straight into his arms.
Kai rumbled contentedly and squeezed him tight.
Then, in front of his friends and the entire beach, Breck found Kai’s lips and kissed him for all he was worth.
Marcie’s squeal sounded somewhere in the distance. “Jay, hurry!”
“I know, I know, woman,” Jay groused. “I’m getting my phone.”
Breck laughed against Kai’s mouth, then murmured huskily, “Best damn surprise in the whole fucking world.”
———
ONE MONTH LATER
DRAFT NIGHT
BROOKLYN, NEW YORK
———
“Oh, look, Ben! We’re nearly there. Wow… That place is spectacular.”
Breck glanced at his parents, sitting across from him in their limousine, his mom pressed against his dad as she peered out his window with wide, wondrous eyes. They looked nervous, but were also brimming with excitement, his mom all dolled up in a fancy yellow dress, his dad in a high-dollar, charcoal suit.
Breck peered out of his window at the venue coming into view. A colossal construction with a massive front entrance. Two stories of glass merged with modern architecture, an enormous wave of copper rising up its left and spanning across its top. Breck eyed the giant light blue letters bonded to that copper. BARCLAYS CENTER.
He couldn’t believe he was here.
His heart hammered with nervousness and exhilaration.
“Not too shabby,” Kai noted at his side.
Breck turned to look at him, just as rapt at the sight of him as he’d been when Kai first presented himself in all his glory in their hotel room. Hair pulled back into a small, tight ponytail, his jawline of stubble all neatly trimmed, his eyes like midnight diamonds. But, Lord Almighty, especially his tailored black dress suit with that crisp necktie.
He was mouthwatering. Breathtaking. Dismantling Breck’s sanity.
He wanted to worship him—and then eat him alive.
He smiled at Kai and cleared his throat, then restlessly tugged on his own GQ get up. He wasn’t used to wearing shit like this. Although, a part of him did enjoy looking dapper as hell. But unlike Kai and his classic black-on-black, his tailor-made suit was royal purple. ‘Flashy but classy’ was what he’d coined it. ’Cause let’s be honest, he looked like a billion bucks.
That covertly hot gleam in Kai’s eyes said he thought the same.
The stadium grew nearer.
“You ready?” his mom asked with a grin.
“Beyond ready.” He’d been born for this moment. He knew it down to his bones.
“How ’bout you, Kai?” His dad chuckled. “Because let me tell you, ever since high school, Breck’s drawn quite the crowd.”
“Oh, please. Look at him, Ben,” Breck’s mom laughed. “He’s going to draw a crowd all his own.”
Breck stifled a groan. He’d give his mom grief for that later.
Kai’s lips twitched. “I assure you, I’ve witnessed Breck’s popularity many times first hand.”
“Let me guess,” Breck’s dad ventured. “During your taekwondo classes.”
Kai turned his gaze to Breck. “It certainly started there, but pretty much everywhere we’ve gone together as of late.”
Which, honestly, wasn’t a ton of places. Breck had been busy non-stop since they’d returned from their trip. But they did squeeze in time to do things whenever humanly possible. On several occasions, they’d gone out to grab a bite. Once they’d even caught a game. Not basketball, though. Baseball at Camden Yards—where Breck was spotted nearly as quickly as each time they’d gone out to dinner.
And for the most part, the reception had been positive. Then again, both he and Kai did loom over most people. Nevertheless, it’d given him hope for a similar outcome at the Draft tonight. As did the take-two interview he’d done with Tad.