“He had his arm around your shoulders.”
“Brennon,” he confirmed. “Yeah, we’re friends.”
“Just friends?”
“I’m not currently with anyone if that’s what you’re getting at.” Rin refused to volley the question back, getting the feeling Kelevra would enjoy being asked about his romantic life too much.
Sure enough, Kel paused as though waiting, and then sighed in mild disappointment when Rin noticeably remained quiet. “Definitely the hard way,” he murmured to himself before moving to one of the end tables by the bed. He tugged open the top drawer and pulled something out.
“So you like water,” he asked over his shoulder, his body blocking whatever he was doing.
“Yeah.” Rin ran a hand through his hair. “Look, if this is it—”
“Forgetting I’m your commanding officer already?”
He clamped his mouth shut.
Kel chuckled and turned back. “Have you ever fucked another man before?”
Rin’s mouth dropped open at the blunt question. “Excuse me?”
“I have,” Kel replied smoothly.
“I didn’t ask.”
“You wanted to know.”
“I didn’t.” He was only a little bit curious, but there was no way he was going to be admitting to that out loud.
“You find me attractive.”
“Everyone finds you attractive,” Rin stated, lifting a single shoulder. “I’m not understanding the point of these personal questions, Imperial Prince. You were assigned to me to teach me—”
“You were assigned to me,” Kelevra corrected, moving over toward the windows. Below the sound of music and laughter could be heard trickling through the glass, and he paused, watching his friends for a moment before he called Rin over to join him.
He didn’t want to, but his feet got moving, the reminder that this prick was in fact his commanding officer ringing in his head. He couldn’t afford to mess this up, couldn’t do something or say something so out of line it would lead to the Imperial Prince failing him. There was still too much he needed to learn in the Academy. Failure wasn’t an option.
Rin had barely stepped up to his side, however, when suddenly a strong hand was grabbing him by the back of his neck and slamming him face-first against the glass. It reverberated but held, his palms slapping against the solid surface in a poor attempt to keep himself from being completely pressed to it.
He wasn’t weak by any sense of the word.
But Kelevra was stronger.
“Pretty sure I told you to call me by my name,” Kel’s mouth was close, barely an inch from the curve of Rin’s ear as he practically purred the words. There was an edge to it, his displeasure clear. “Look down.”
Rin did, sucking in a breath when he realized they’d drawn attention. The partiers on the rooftop level had taken notice, some hooting and hollering up at Kelevra, raising their beers to him.
“They think we’re playing a game,” Kelevra filled him in, stepping in close so his front was sealed over Rin’s back. “They aren’t wrong.”
“Back off.” He ground his teeth and tried to push away from the windows, only to be smashed back against them hard enough that his cheekbone hurt.
“Why’d you blow the competition?” Kelevra asked again.
“I didn’t.”
“Liar.”
“Got any proof?” Of course he wouldn’t. Rin had been careful. He’d checked beforehand to make sure the challenges weren’t filmed. Some classes and events were, and in those he had to be extra sneaky, but this had been a piece of cake. Or so he’d thought. Apparently he hadn’t fallen back as subtly as he’d believed.
