Sinful Longing

But he’d also seen him in a photo on Brent’s phone.

His eyes widened as he studied the guy heading in his direction. That was the dude who’d been stalking his twin sister. Brent had taken a picture of him outside Shannon’s home one afternoon more than a month ago.

What the hell?

The hair on his neck stood on end. A primal instinct to protect his flesh and blood kicked in. He wanted answers. Wanted to know why the fuck a teen at the community center had been parked outside Shan’s house…more than once. The guy had dark eyes, dark hair, and ink covering his right arm. He wore jeans. His boots clunked on the linoleum floor.

Colin hadn’t yet gotten Brent to resend the image so he could forward it to Elle. Now the guy was here, and Colin was going to cut out the middleman.

“Hey,” he said to get his attention.

The guy stopped short and peered around, like he was making sure who Colin was talking to. He pointed at himself and mouthed me?

“Yeah. You,” Colin said, tilting his head. One part of him wanted to demand an answer. But the other part, the rational, logical, adult portion, told him not to jump to conclusions.

Give him the benefit of the doubt.

“What’s your name?”

“Marcus,” the guy answered, shifting on the balls of his feet.

Colin motioned him to the side of the hallway, next to the bulletin board layered with announcements for center activities. A poetry class. The free lunch schedule. Basketball leagues.

Marcus joined him. Colin scrubbed a hand across his chin, then dived into business, meeting him square in the eyes. “This might sound weird. But I’m pretty sure you were hanging around outside my sister’s house a few times. Shannon Sloan. What’s up with that?”

He answered immediately. “It’s not weird.” Marcus pulled up his right shirtsleeve. Colin flinched, but quickly relaxed when he saw the ink. It matched Rex’s arm. Protector. “I do safety patrols with the Protectors,” Marcus added. “If you saw me somewhere, that was probably why. We go to a lot of neighborhoods.”

He blinked. “Really?”

Marcus nodded. “Yup. We do. And I do.”

A smile broke out across Colin’s face. Color him impressed. “Rex was telling me about the Protectors. Like the Guardian Angels.”

“That’s where we got our inspiration from. Rex and I do patrols together sometimes. By the way, it’s nice to meet you officially.” He extended a hand. Something that looked like happiness flashed in Marcus’s eyes as they shook. Colin wasn’t sure what to make of it.

“Sorry, I should have given you my name. Colin Sloan. I volunteer here. Good to meet you, too. Truth be told, I was worried you were part of the Royal Sinners. We thought you might be when I saw you outside Shan’s house. That you were targeting my sister for something.”

Marcus held up both his hands, a sign he had nothing to hide. “No. God no. I want nothing to do with them. I was just checking things out. We’ve been scoping out a bunch of neighborhoods, even nicer ones. Just to make sure.”

“Make sure of what?”

“That the streets are safe. No matter what.” Marcus tapped his arm. “Always.”

“That’s awesome. Keep it up, man,” he said. He couldn’t wait to tell Shannon and Brent that there was nothing to fear, and that this kid was doing a good thing for the community. Colin knocked fists with the young man. He started to walk down the hall, when Marcus called out to him.

“Hey.”

Colin turned around. Marcus swallowed then cleared his throat, as if he was about to say something difficult. “I sat in on one of your math sessions a few months ago. When I first checked out the center.”

“You did?”

Marcus nodded several times and ran a hand over his chin, a gesture that Colin often did. Well, it wasn’t unique to him. Lots of people did that. Still, he felt as if he was looking in a mirror for a second, seeing a young man trying to do good. “Yeah. Learned some stuff about P and L statements. I’m going to college in the fall.”

“Good. I’m glad. Let me know if you need any more help. Math is kind of my forte. I’d be happy to work with you if you need anything.”

Marcus smiled briefly. “I will. Thanks. That means a lot to me,” he said, and his voice sounded like the very definition of the word hopeful. Odd, considering they were talking about math. For a moment, Marcus seemed as if he was about to say something more but he cut himself off. “I gotta run.”

“Take it easy,” Colin said and turned the other way.

He had an appointment with Rex to work on advanced algebra, thanks to the bet he’d won on the court the other day. As he headed to the homework room, his phone buzzed in his back pocket. His heart beat faster with the hope that it would be Elle, confirming a time for tomorrow evening. Then he nearly smacked himself for being so damn eager to see her.