Chapter 18

Rhys knew something was wrong when Myles got on the bus but didn't say anything. His friend had been quiet since the day Rhyn had gone with Ryan. rhys had thought he was mad and would talk his ear off, but the days following had been normal.

Rhyn hadn't done anything out of the ordinary either. He still studied late into the night, and he went to class like usual. But Rhys already knew. Every night he'd come home smelling like Myles. He never said anything because Rhyn was happy, and Rhys didn't want to deter that.

They'd survived Thanksgiving and were finally on Christmas break. With school out, the basketball season was in full swing for tournaments. After winter graduation, they were scheduled to drive across the state for a Christmas charity tournament. Everyone was excited, especially Myles. His father's law firm was a major host for the tournament. His father would see him play since he would be in attendance to hand out the trophies to the first, second and third places.

But this Myles was far from happy. He sat in his seat staring out the window, anger tightening his face. He didn't join in the usual banter with his teammates. Whatever had happened was bad enough he didn't want to talk about it. Rhys didn't blame him, but he wondered if his brother was involved.

He texted Myles. It was the safest bet. The last time he'd seen Myles get this mad, he'd nearly beaten the guy senseless. Rhys didn't want to be in the middle of whatever it was, but it better not have anything to do with Rhyn. He would put an end to the relationship if it was something disastrous for his brother.

Myles texted him back with a resounding 'No' to his question. So Rhyn was not involved. That's all Rhys wanted to know. He half thought about calling Rhyn to tell him something was up with Myles, but he didn't have to. His brother had impeccable timing. He heard Myles's voice soften as he spoke, a clear sign of who he was talking to.

With the tension eased for now, Rhys sat back and enjoyed the hour and a half bus ride. At least he tried to. He couldn't shake the feeling that he was missing something.

~~~~~~

Rhyd and Rhyn showed their tickets and went to the concession stand. It was the night of the championship game, and their university was playing in it. Somehow, they had come back from a ten-point deficit in the semifinals to beat an even bigger named school.

The university had hosted a massive watch party for the games. If they went to the finals, the school would buy tickets for the families to attend. Friends and other students had to pay their own way. Leyana and Arthur - the boys' father- hadn't been able to get off work in time to go so Rhyn and Rhyd had gone to support their brother.

Rhyd had driven. It was close to where he'd done his internship over the summer so he knew the way. Rhyn had sat back and enjoyed the quiet with his brother. If it had been Rhys, music would have been blaring and he would have been singing way off key. Rhyd was rambunctious but he was a quiet driver.

Rhyn thought about Myles the entire way. After saying they were in a relationship, he had meant it. No one had texted Myles, making Rhyn wonder what he had said to the people who always blew up his phone. He'd become so much more attentive. He'd started buying lunch, making sure he was home safely, and they'd even studied there. Once, a girl had come up asking for his number. Myles had smiled and rejected her gently, saying he was already taken.

The sex had been impeccable. Myles had encouraged Rhyn to research what more he'd like to do. They'd watched porn together so Rhyn would know what was out there. He'd rejected BDSM, dom/sub, and several others. He knew he was too gentle for those. They'd tried role playing, but after several fits of laughter, they'd ended it. Rhyn found out he was open to new positions and places instead of niches. He was fine being run of the mill.

He'd found Myles enjoyed teasing. He would tease Rhyn until he became so frustrated he wanted to scream. Then he'd kiss him until he was at ease. He'd never done anything Rhyn hadn't wanted. In fact, he'd helped Rhyn edit his final paper, and he'd gotten an A on it.

Rhyd found their seats and handed Rhyn his hot dog and M&M's. Rhyn passed him his soda and they waited for the game to start.

He noticed the student section for their team was steadily filling up. Half the student population had shown up. It was great to see the support.

"I say they'll win by four," Rhyd suggested.

Rhyn shook his head after some thought. "No, I think five."

Rhyd's eyes glistened. "Whoever loses buys dinner on the way home."

"You're on."

They bumped knuckles just as the music started playing. The announcer made his spiel about emergency exits and their locations. They stood for the other team, listening to their fans cheer them on. When their team emerged after being announced, Rhyn swor he felt the stand shake. It was so loud all he could do was smile and clap.

The national anthem played, then the starters for each team were announced. The opponents were huge. Rhyn guessed they were as tall as many pro players. They were on the smaller side though. Myles, Rhys, and Ryan could handle them. Some were going home bruised.

Speaking of those three, the ceiling nearly came down when they were announced. Rhys and Ryan did their butt bump and wiggle while Myles simply gave high fives.

When Rhyn called Myles before they'd left on Tuesday, his voice had been tight. Something had happened between the time he'd left on Monday night to the time Myles left on Tuesday morning. As they'd talked, Myles had relaxed. When Rhyn had talked to him after every game, he'd been calmer and happier. It had made Rhyn wonder what he was hiding. He hadn't asked, but looking at him now, Myles seemed at ease.

The buzzer sounded and the teams lined up. Several shook their opponents' hands and offered good luck. The ref blew his whistle. Rhys and the other player squatted and watched the ball. When the ref tossed it up, Rhys tipped it back.

Myles took it down first, and the pace picked up. It was almost like watching a crazy pingpong match with human paddles. The tempo was fast paced. If he blinked, he would miss something.

He watched how cool under pressure Rhys, Ryan, and Myles were. They scanned the court with knowign eyes and made solid decisons. Rhys took a charge that knocked him into another player. They got the foul, and he got up laughing.

The first quarter ended in a tie. As they stood on the sideline, Rhys found his brothers and waved wildly. He slapped his hands in question. Rhyn and Rhyd shook their heads. He was clearly asking where their parents were, but he wasn't upset. He shrugged then turned back to his team.

The second quarter was just as fast paced. Several fould were committed on both teams. The only difference was Rhys and Myles sank their free throws while the other team didn't. In the end, it made the difference becasue their team was on top 27-21 at halftime.

Rhyn went to the bathroom, not caring about the cheerleaders' halftime shows. Rhyd wanted ice cream so he went to the concession stand after. As he was standing in line, he saw Myles's father. Martin Dane was hard to miss. He was the only man in a suit and he towered over everyone.

Martin and Myles could be twins they favored so much. The elder Dane owned several suit companies, two apparel stores, and a nonprofit attorney's office. The nonprofit was hosting the tournament with the proceeds going to a local women's shelter.

In the two months Rhyn had been going to his house, he had never seen the father. He had always been at work. Seeing him now, Rhyn wondered how much alike father and son really were.

He saw him hand a girl Rhyn's age some candy and a funnel cake. Rhyn didn't think anything of it and ordered two chocolate cones. By the time he got back to his seat, the third quarter was starting. Rhyd took his ice cream,and they watched the game in fascination.

Rhys was fouled violently at the end of the third. To stop his momentum, he slammed into the barricade with his shoulder. It was padded, but it clearly hurt. Coach Beyers pulled him from the game so the staff could check on him. The guy substituted in for him luckily sank his free throws then went on to nail a three-pointer at the top of the key. That was sweent revenge at its finest.

Myles went on a fifteen to zero run. Whenever he was open, his team got him the ball. Rhys was out for the remainder of the game. Nothing was broken or out of place, but Beyers wanted to make sure he didn't agitate it anymore. He should have known that by benching Rhys he was about to have the loudest cheerleader. A couple of times they had to pull him off the court. He was finally banned to the second row where the staff could contain him.

But the damage had been done. Myles was the captain, but Rhys was the heart of the team. With him benched, the team kicked it into overdrive. They were shooting, reboudning, and stealing the ball any time the other team started getting any momentum.

Rhyn glanced at the clock. Thirty-six seconds remained. The other team was out of timeouts and they were gassed. Myles and Ryan had run roughshod over them for fifteen minutes, and no one looked winded. In fact, they were happy. They were having fun.

Time wound down, and the buzzer bleated as the ref blew his whistle four times. The roof lifted a little as the cheers exploded. Excitement filled the air, and fans hit the floor to congratulate the players.

Rhyd leaned over. "We were both wrong," he laughed.

Rhyn looked at the scoreboard. 63-48 was the final score. They'd both been off on their predictions. Rhyn shrugged.

"Who cares. We're getting McDonald's anyway," he said.

Rhyd's laugh was hearty. "Let's go congratulate them."

They got up and went to the floor. Picking their way through students and parents, they found their brother. Rhys yelled then hugged them as best as he could with an iced shoulder.

"Are you okay?" Rhyd asked.

Rhys nodded emphatically. "It's just bruised, but I'll go to the doctor to make sure." He slapped Rhyn's arm when he saw his gaze wandering. "He's over there."

Rhyn followed his brother's finger and picked his way through the celebrating people. He saw the number 22 jersey, and he would have reached out for him. In fact, he lifted his hand to do just that.

Time slowed down. Rhyn watched as the girl he'd seen at the concession stand with Martin Dane wrapped her arms around Myles's neck and kissed him in front of everyone. Some cat called them and others scowled, clearly jealous of the interaction.

Rhyn stood still, so still in fact he was unaware of the tears rolling down his face. He could feel his lip quivering but he couldn't do anything to stop it. Everything around him was just a blur, and he was a stop-motion puppet watching his movie play in the background. If there was sad music, he was sure everyone around him could hear it because he sure could.

"Rhyd, get him out of here." Rhys filled his vision. He looked at his brother, not understanding the feelings written on his face or the ones burning in his chest. "Go home, Rhyn. I'll figure this out."

Rhys pushed him into Rhyd, and his younger brother turned him away from the scene. He yammered the entire way. Rhyn didn't understand what he was talking about. He was focused on putting one foot in front of the other so he could get out of the crowd.

Rhys turned just as Myles pushed the girl away. Hewatched him get ugly with her and his dad. Luckily, his dad walked away without starting a scene. The girl wasn't as bright. It took Myles being hateful to get her to leave.

"Who is she?" Rhys demanded.

Myles sighed as he watched the two disappear. "That's Braylin Connor. My dad wants me to marry her so he can have her dad as an investor. I can't stand her." He wiped the sweat from his face. "Why?"

"Rhyn was here." Rhys watched him turn slowly. His blues were filled with shock and terror. "Yeah. You already know."

"Where is he?"

"Rhyd took him home. I don't care who she is, but you're playing with my brother's emotions. If you hurt him, it's over."

Myles watched him walk away. His gaze went to the crowd, searching for those familiar backs. He spotted them at the top of the bleachers as they walked to the exit.

Once again, his dad had screwed up his relationship. He wasn't going to let that happen again. He went to the locker room to shower and catch a ride home. Screw partying with his team. He had a relationship to save.