Page 111 of Studs Up
I groaned. How much could people hear? If someone heard us having sex…My chest hiccuped.
“No, it was fighting,” I said.
“Holden,” there was an alarm in his voice like he had just put the pieces together. “This is gonna be bad. Really fucking bad. Are you two just fucking? Because if you are, end it now.”
“Not a chance,” Nolan called down the hall.
We both turned. He came back, this time in flannel bottoms and nothing else.
“Not a fucking chance,” he repeated. He took the Nolan Reed defense stance and stared down Alex.
Alex, a veteran midfielder, didn’t even flinch.
My best friend and my lover were on the edge of a brawl I couldn’t deal with. Alex didn’t know about the blackmail, and Nolan was so incredibly protective of me, he wouldn’t care Alex didn’t know.
“Is he the reason why you didn’t have two brain cells to rub together last night?”
“Hey,” Nolan hissed. “You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”
“No,” I insisted at the same time. “He came down because he saw the game, and he cares.”
Alex tilted his head back, and a cold laugh burst from his chest.
“He doesn’t fucking care,” he pointed at Nolan. “He’s a straight guy using you for…” He paused and took Nolan in. “Whatever it is, straight men want out of gays.”
“I am fucking not,” Nolan seethed.
“So what, you’re gay now?”
“Why do you need a label so fucking bad?”
This was getting out of hand fast, and it wasn’t helping.
“Because he’s my fucking friend, and you’re,” he gestured to all of Nolan. “You.” I could feel Nolan vibrating, and I appreciated the effort he was putting in not to lose his shit on Alex. “There’s only one person in this room who actually cares for Holden, and it ain’t you.”
“Alex,” I snapped. God, he had no idea how wrong he was.
“What?” He bellowed back. “How long has this been going on?”
I glanced at Nolan, and he kept his mouth shut, letting me decide how to answer. If I couldn’t tell Alex anything else, I could at least tell him the truth about this.
“Technically, January,” I said. Alex sputtered.
“You’ve been fucking him for ten months, and you didn’t tell me?”
“I wonder why?” Nolan couldn’t help himself, and I sent him a reproachful look. I couldn’t entirely blame him. He was doing his best to keep it calm, and he was doing it for me.
“Fuck you,” Alex seethed.
“Alex,” I barked. He let out a disgruntled huff.
“Okay, setting the gay aside, he is a Guardian you’re a Rover. Not only are you going to get a whole ass piece of the homophobia pie, but you are fucking our biggest rival. Soccer fans aren’t exactly known for their chill. There are a thousand ways this goes bad. Career ending bad.”
“I know,” I said.
“If you fucking spill the beans, I’ll end your career,” Nolan snapped.
“Do you think the fans will be on your side?” Alex growled. “No. He’ll get death threats. The front office will push him out. The team will shut him out and ignore him. This will ruin him!” Alex looked from me to him and burned with rage. It would set the bar for him, too. If it all went sideways for me, there was no hope for him. I was putting all of us on the line, and I knew it.
