Sixteen year old Jacob Smithson has quite a temper. He’s picked on by other kids because he likes boys, and recent fighting has kicked him out of public school. As a last resort, his parents have placed him in the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Boarding School for Boys.<br><br>It’s at his first mass at St. Thomas where he sees Avery Dendritch, a senior who serves as altar boy during the service. When they meet, the attraction between them is hard to deny. The two become fast friends, and as the school year progresses, their friendship deepens into something more. For the first time, Jacob has found a place where he belongs ... and someone with whom he’s falling in love.<br><br>But the other students gossip about their growing relationship, and while Avery can ignore them, Jacob cannot. As the rumors and slurs start up again, can he curb his temper, or will his penchant for fighting get him expelled from St. Thomas, as well?

Without Sin

He knows there’s going to be a later.


Avery is already outside his building when he comes down. “You look great,” Avery says, gaze straying to Jacob’s waist, where his pants hang low. Jacob resists the urge to hitch them up because he likes the way Avery stares at him.


“So do you.” Avery is wearing tight jeans and a white T-shirt. A black vest covers the shirt, tied across Avery’s chest with a thin cord. Jacob can’t wait to untie that vest, push it aside, and get his hands and his lips on Avery. He thinks he might try to untie it with his teeth, if given the chance.


They head for the gate that surrounds the school. Avery’s hands are shoved deep into his pockets. Jacob wants to hold one of them and can’t, so he sticks his own hands into the back pockets of his jeans. He doesn’t know what to say. “Thanks for inviting me.”


“No problem.” With a shy smile, Avery adds, “I didn’t want to go alone.”


Jacob laughs. “Can I ask you something?”


Chapter 11