Prized Possession (Up-Ending Tad: A Journey of Erotic Discovery Book 4) Read online

  PRIZED POSSESSION

  UP-ENDING TAD

  VOLUME FOUR

  KORA KNIGHT

  Copyright © 2015

  Kora Knight

  ASIN: B00TCPZ75M

  Amazon Digital Services, Inc.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without written permission from the author. The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional. Any similarity to real persons, living and or dead is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  PRIZED POSSESSION

  “Really?” Tad muttered, eyeing the clusterfuck of rubberneckers forming up ahead. “You’ve never seen a guy getting a ticket before?” Surely a cop writing some dude a citation couldn’t be that interesting.

  He leaned his head back against his headrest and let out an exasperated sigh. Traffic was crawling. He should’ve taken the back route home from work. Dumbass. He knew better. He did. Rush hour on the interstate was beastly this time of day.

  Thing was, he’d just finished the second day of his new internship and had been totally distracted. Because he was really freaking loving it. Finally out of that mailroom hellhole and saddled up to, of all people, the sports editor. Wet dream come true—considering he’d had a fifty-fifty chance of getting stuck over in Obituaries.

  So, needless to say, he’d been thinking about a lot of other things. One of which, getting home then back out again to whatever the night had in store. Being his one evening off a week, he typically spent it at the gym lifting weights with his close-knit posse. In all honesty, though, he was kind of hoping he’d end up seeing Scott instead. Since he had the same downtime schedule as Tad, and had said he wanted to hang out again soon, it made Tad hopeful that they’d hook back up. Maybe pick up where they’d left off last time. Thanks to Scott’s asshat of a roommate, Max. He’d definitely put a sledgehammer to their fun.

  Not that they hadn’t had their fill of it already.

  Hell, thanks to Max’s little peep show with Blondie, Tad and Scott had one majorly hot bonfire raging just minutes before. Who knew voyeurism could be such a turn on. But man, was it ever. Scott being in touching range for the duration hadn’t hurt. It was one thing to be a fly on the wall for some insanely perva-licious role playing, but quite another to watch it next to the one person Tad wanted to hump. Yeah, that was crude, but true nevertheless. And if he wanted to figure shit out he was going to have to be straight with himself.

  And in all honesty, Max and his little sub had gotten him so worked up, he’d literally let Scott take his ass right against that glass. Talk about making strides. If that wasn’t going with the flow, he didn’t know what was. Shit, he’d even gone so far as to let the big dude plant one on him.

  Not that the kiss ever happened.

  Again, thanks to Max.

  The way the guy had just busted in? Then stared them down like they’d done something wrong? Talk about unnerving. Tad’s stomach had done a damn triple lux. And not the cool kind. The I’m-about-to-freaking-stroke-the-fuck-out kind.

  And then Red’s expression not two seconds later. It’s like Tad’s humiliation had flipped his berserker button. Because he hadn’t seemed all that surprised at first. But the second Tad tried to duck and run? The dude turned all but irate. Which made no sense. Tad would understand disappointment. Or annoyance. Or hell, even bald-faced disgust. But anger? Yeah, to this day, he still had no idea what pissed the guy off so bad. And, of course, now Tad couldn’t help wondering if the dude would behave the same way in the future. Sure made return visits not very appealing.

  Fuck Max.

  Scott said the guy didn’t get it. Didn’t know shit about their deal. So, Tad decided to trust him on that. Which wasn’t too hard. The alternative was pretty crappy. He just really hoped Scott was right. Otherwise, Red was going to make a sketchy situation a hell of a lot more difficult.

  Creeping along, foot barely on the gas, he sighed. Truth of the matter was, Max’s tantrum did more than interrupt their kiss. It brought to light a very big issue Tad still had yet to address. He supposed in a backward kind of way he should be grateful the dude busted in like he did. Because even though Tad had gotten more comfortable with the ‘friends with bennies’ thing, that really only included just the two of them. Closed-off in their own secluded world.

  But to let others see into their private little haven? Publically make it known that he was seriously into Scott? Tad cringed at the thought. That kind of reveal would need a serious ice breaker. And he had absolutely no idea how to orchestrate one of those. None of his friends, that he was aware of, were attracted to the same sex. Nor were any in his family. Would they understand? Really understand?

  And though he was pretty sure most would be accepting, he wasn’t an idiot. Some would certainly voice opposition. Which was expected. And hey, whatever. To each their own. But he still wanted to be prepared. Have a plan for how to deal with the shit. Because the crap that went down with Max really sucked. He’d been utterly taken off guard. Sure, now he had tons of things he would’ve said, but that ship had already sailed. So, he wanted to be ready for next time. Armored with genuine, unapologetic conviction. Not the lame-ass reaction he’d displayed in that room.

  God, just remembering made him groan.

  Having to consider any of this just felt so foreign. Seriously, how did one deflect that kind of scrutiny? Or put themselves out there to be scrutinized to begin with.

  Tense hands squeezed the steering wheel as The Neighbourhood’s Afraid pumped its angsty groove through his cab. Kind of fitting, really. Because just thinking about doing the whole “Hey, guess what!” made Tad’s stomach roll. All week he’d been contemplating how to approach it. Subtly introduce the concept to his friends? Yeah, right. Way easier said than done. Just saying he wanted to hang out with someone outside their circle would instantly make them curious. Then it’d only be a matter of time. Hell, they’d probably figure it out before he had a chance to spill. But no way could he keep shit under wraps forever. Wouldn’t want to even if he could. Lying was just as unappealing as disclosure.

  Unsettled, he dragged a hand down his face. Was he making a bigger deal out of this than it was? Overthinking stuff again? Hell, maybe he should just hold off for a while. Who really knew how long this ‘thing’ with Scott would last. For all he knew, the guy bored pretty quick. Then Tad would be back to the old bump and grind with no one being the wiser.

  For some reason, he didn’t believe that, though. The vibe between him and Scott just felt too solid. Too real. And strangely, not just about sex. Truth be told, the way things had been going the last time they hung out? If it wasn’t for that unforeseen live action porno, they probably wouldn’t have even gotten physical. And while Tad would’ve been totally okay with that, he was pretty sure Scott would’ve been, too. Just hanging out was satisfying enough. Sure, sex was off the hook, and he’d be game for it any day, but after that month long hiatus he’d endured? He wasn’t about to get picky over how they spent their time.

  So, with all that being said? Yeah, he probably should give his buds a heads up. Because chances were Scott and his little ‘friendship’ wasn’t ending anytime soon.

  Tad frowned, eyes locked absently on the car in front of him. Friendship just didn’t feel like the right word. But what was the right word? Was there even a term for what he and Scott had going on? Even friends-with-bennies didn’t seem sufficient enough. But it wasn’t like they were dating.

  “Yeah, right,” he scoffed, shifting in his seat. Because dating would
tie in the whole ‘boyfriend’ deal. And being another guy’s boyfriend just felt way too… well… too gay.

  His frown deepened. He’d been skirting around that word for a while. Especially the ‘closet case’ aspect. That one expression alone made him want to run and hide. Because really, wasn’t ‘closet’ just another word for ‘pussy?’ Chicken shit? A ball-less tool? Thing was, he wanted to be sure he was gay before he told others as much. What if, on top of being overly horny, he was also just exceptionally curious?

  Tad exhaled. No, he already established it was about more than just sex. He was attracted to Scott. Period. More than he’d ever been to any girl before. He didn’t know why. He didn’t know how. At this point, he kind of figured it didn’t matter anyway. He was what he was regardless of the reason.

  So, what exactly was he, then? Bi-sexual?

  He groaned and scrubbed his face. God, he did not want to start contemplating which gender he checked out more. Whether it was girls or guys that cranked him hotter. The only person he wanted to think about was Scott. So, what did that say? That he was only gay for Scott? He had no fucking idea. The fact that he was just as clueless about their ‘relationship’ didn’t help at all.

  Growling at his mounting frustration, he scowled at the SUV that almost just took his front corner panel off. Yeah, he really needed to stop thinking. Maybe if he could just get out of this parking lot of a traffic jam he could actually—

  His phone blared to life, sitting in his console. Tad glanced down at the thing. Probably Jay, making sure he wasn’t going to stand them up again. Tad sighed. Hanging out with his posse wouldn’t be a total bust. Not his first choice of ways to spend his weeknight off, but still.

  He swiped the thing up on the second ring and eyed its screen. A big fat smile spread across his face. “Scott. Hey.”

  A warm chuckle greeted his ear. “Tad.”

  His grip on the steering wheel instantly eased. “Long time no speak.”

  “That it has. Miss me?”

  Grin widening, Tad shook his head, scanning the cars ahead. “Nope. Not at all.”

  “Ouch,” Scott laughed. “I’m bleeding over here.”

  Tad smirked. “Thin skinned, are we?”

  “No. But behind this tough exterior is a soft and sensitive man.”

  Tad laughed. “I’ll try to keep that in mind.”

  In truth, he was already well aware. Had gotten a sweet taste of that sensitive side up against an observation window. God, the things Scott had said to him as he’d fucked him into oblivion. The dude definitely knew how to wield his words, whether soul-searing and sweet or unabashedly kinky. Watch out if he decided to make them both.

  Tad’s free hand adjusted his stirring crotch. “So, what’s up?”

  A few seconds ticked by. “It’s Tuesday.”

  He stilled. “Um… It is indeed.”

  Another couple beats of silence. “I wanna see you.”

  Tad’s heart shifted gears, picking up speed. “Do you now.”

  “Yeah. I do. And every Tuesday after.”

  His brows shot up, then pinched back down. Shit. Tuesday was the one night a week he consistently connected with his friends. An occasional blow off was one thing, but to flat-out ditch tradition was very much another. His left hand tightened its grip on the wheel. “Uh... Seriously?”

  “Yeah,” Scott chuckled. “Seriously. Why, not liking the idea?”

  “No, no,” Tad blurted, actually liking it a lot. “It’s not that. I just—”

  “Where are you?”

  Tad blinked. “Um… On my way home? Why, where are you?”

  “At your apartment.”

  His brows jacked back up. Whoa.

  “Did you leave work late or something?” Scott asked.

  “No. Just stuck in shitty-ass traffic.”

  “Damn. I should’ve had Max drop me off at your Jeep again.”

  “Why? So, you could be stuck in shitty-ass traffic with me?”

  “Well, yeah.” As if the concept was a no-brainer. “Beats sitting here in my car waiting for you. Besides,” Scott chuckled, his timbre dropping low, “you trapped in such close quarters with me would be much fun.”

  Tad’s cock roused further. “Fun?”

  Scott laughed. “Fuck, yeah. No way would I squander an opportunity like that.”

  Tad glanced down at his crotch. Did his dick just purr? Damn it. A couple frisky words and the dude just punted his curiosity through the roof. Licking his lips, he stared out the windshield, gripping the wheel tighter. “And what exactly would not squandering entail?”

  “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

  He smiled boyishly. “Actually, I would. So, spill.”

  “Nah. Way too much to tell. Since we’d be sitting in gridlock for God knows how long.”

  Tad’s lips twitched. Then so did his cock. “Well, seeing as I’m sitting in that very gridlock, I happen to have the time. And so do you, since you’re waiting on me.”

  Scott chuckled. Another few seconds of silence. “Okay. I’ll tell you.”

  Tad’s heart revved up another notch. He could only imagine what the guy would say. Scott’s mind was a wondrous thing. On the flip side, considering what a punk he could be, this could all be some stupid joke. Eyes locked on the car in front of him, Tad prompted Scott to start. “Any time this year.”

  “Mm,” Scott murmured, tone simmering lower. “Well, first thing I’d do is scoot my ass closer. But you can be pretty bashful, so I’d turn toward my window, too. You know, so it looked like I barely even knew you were there.”

  A sheepish grin tugged at Tad’s lips. “How very thoughtful of you.”

  “Right? Anyway, my hand, Tad, would make its way to your knee.” He chuckled. “You, of course, would go stiff as a board, removing it with some goofy wry remark. And that’d be fine. But the second your attention was back on the road? My hand would be back where it was. Only this time a bit higher up your leg. Which,” he continued, pure amusement in his tone, “would make you just that much tenser. Since we’re out in public and all.”

  Tad’s mouth pressed tight. It wasn’t like he could deny the guy’s claims. And he definitely didn’t want him to stop. “Whatever,” he mumbled, belly slowly heating. “So, then what.”

  “So, then you’d pull something similar to before. And again, I wouldn’t resist. Because once you let go, that hand of mine’s back even higher. I’d say a good mid-thigh by now.” He snickered softly. “You’d blush something fierce, fire off a few filthy curses, then grab my hand and chuck it at me. Love your sailor mouth, by the way.”

  Tad blinked, looking down at his phone.

  “Of course, my hand would come back more determined than ever, latching on just inches from your cock.”

  Tad grinned, his dick perking raptly to attention. Yup, the dude was definitely in punk mode. Squirming in his seat, he tried really hard to sound more amused than aroused. “Persistent fucker.”

  “You’ve got no idea,” Scott chuckled. “So, by now you’d’ve caught on to my dirty little game and realize you’ve pretty much got three choices to work with. One: hold my hand indefinitely to keep the thing in check. Two: allow it free reign even though you know it’s about to park even closer to your dick. Or three: keep on playing ‘til I’ve returned enough times to end up on your crotch. Hmm,” he mused. “I wonder which one you’d choose.”

  Fuckin’ A. Tad wondered, too. Those were some pretty tough choices. Because as simple as holding hands sounded, it really wasn’t. He’d rarely ever held a girl’s hand before, let alone a guy’s. But letting Scott’s fingers nestle up to his groin was no small concession, either. He’d be harder than steel in seconds flat. Thing was, his only other option was the toughest yet; all but offering up his dick for the guy to freely grope—or do God knows what else to as they sat there in traffic. He shifted again, a slow burn kindling in his gut. His dick was going to have zipper indentions before this conversation was over.

 
“Well?” Scott pressed. “Which would you choose?”

  Tad stiffened. Evidently, Scott’s question hadn’t been rhetorical. He actually wanted an answer. Shit. When had story time turned interactive? Not that this couldn’t be fun. If Tad wasn’t out in public. Yards away from bored, wandering eyes as the masses crept collectively along.

  “Uh…” He scratched his cheek. “I’m thinking I’d actually try to sit on the frisky thing.”

  Scott laughed. “Like that’d work. Come on, Tad. Which would you choose? Are the options really that bad? ‘Cause I’m thinking you’d like every one.”

  And Tad probably would. Nevertheless, he scrambled for an answer, not lost to the fact that it was all just kinky conjecture anyway. Thing was, for some reason he really wanted to answer truthfully.

  So, what would he choose?

  Biting his lip, he ran a hand through his hair. “Okay. Fine. I’d go with… option two.” Because in all honesty, holding hands was a lot like kissing to him, and since they’d yet to cross that bridge, he wouldn’t be comfortable doing the initiating. On the flip side, Scott’s hands had been on him countless times, and since the guy wouldn’t even be looking his way, it seemed the wiser of the remaining two choices. Things would get way out of hand with number three.

  “Nice,” Scott murmured. “You’re getting bolder.”

  Tad’s lips quirked upward. “Like you gave me much of a choice.”

  Husky chuckle. “I gave you three, actually. Besides, you like what I give you.”

  Very true. Tad gazed off to his left. “That I do.”

  A bit more silence.

  “So, how close are you to home now?”

  “Not close enough.”

  “Hmm. So, I’d still have more time to torment you?”

  “Yeah,” Tad smiled. “You would.”

  “Nice. So, you wanna know what I’d do next?”

  His grin turned lopsided. “Yes and no.”

  Scott chuckled. “Got some inner confliction going on there, babe?”