Spell Cat by Tara Lain Page 0,76

back booth where they usually hung out and saw Chen—nobody dared call him Marvin except his father—waving at him. Seeing that handsome face made Sammy think about last night. At least Arnold had good taste.

“Hey, Chen.”

Sammy got into the order line, and Chen came over, carrying his coffee. “I’ve hardly seen you. How was summer?”

Sammy stepped forward as the man in front of him reached the cashier. “I worked like a crazy man. I wanted to save enough to afford the rent while I was in school.” He got to the front of the line, ordered a latte, then looked at Chen as they walked toward the pickup counter. “How was yours?”

Chen sipped his coffee. “My father had me in math tutoring all summer.”

“Hell, you’re already the best math student at Manhattan University. What more does he want?”

Chen gave a tight smile. “He wants me to be the best math student at MIT.”

“MIT? Gods, are you transferring in your senior year?”

“No. PhD. I’m supposed to go straight into an MIT doctoral program at the end of the year.” Chen’s dark eyes gazed into space.

The counter guy served up Sammy’s drink, and he grabbed it like a lifeline. Caffeine. Drug of choice. He took a sip, closed his eyes as the bitter flavor slipped down his throat, and walked out of the shop with Chen. “MIT. Is that what you want?”

“Doesn’t matter what I want. My father’s a tough witch to move. Anyway, I don’t want to talk about that. What’s up?”

Sammy grinned and took another swig of latte. “Arnold asked me about you last night. He sure was disappointed when I told him you’re straight.”

Chen frowned. “I thought you were going on a date with Arnold.”

So had Sammy. “No. It was just hanging out.” He’d had a nonexistent date and a nonexistent night’s sleep. Oh yeah, the painting. “Hey, have you seen any new guys around? Really handsome. Tall with long hair.”

Chen started to laugh. “You have been out of it, haven’t you?”

Sammy stared at his friend. “What do you mean?”

“Speak of the devil.” Chen nodded down the sidewalk.

Sammy turned. Coming toward him, smiling exactly like the painting, was a guy. Mr. Gorgeous. In the painting he’d been tall and lean, but in motion his walk was like music in human form. His baggy jeans tightened over hard thighs as he moved, and they outlined a package that looked better than a birthday present to Sammy. How-dy.

The guy waved. “Hey, Sam. Hi, Chen.”

What?

The painting guy got closer, and the wind caught the nearly shoulder-length hair and tossed it back from his perfect face. Ears! Pointed ears. Only one guy had ’em. “Alvish?” It couldn’t be. But those ears didn’t lie.

Alvish, the BFF who only two months before had been inches shorter than Sammy, now looked down on him by an inch or more. “Hi, guys. How was summer?”

Sammy knew his mouth was hanging open. “Summer, hells! What happened to you?”

Alvish shrugged, flexing his muscular shoulders. “I kind of had a growth spurt.”

That was an understatement. “I didn’t recognize you. I mean, aren’t you twenty? Who grows that much at twenty? You only came up to my chin last semester. And”—Sammy waved at the masterpiece in front of him—“and weren’t your eyes brown?”

Alvish smiled. “I know. Weird, huh?”

No damned fair. Sammy had fought his attraction to his friend every day of their acquaintance, but Alvish used to be a skinny, short guy with big, pointed ears. Hence the nickname. Now Sammy wanted to start at Alvish’s toes and lick his way to the tops of those ears in one huge orgy of oral gratification. This new Alvish was so hot Sammy held his art case in front of his crotch, trying not to spill the beans… or whatever else was inclined to spill. And this transformation was also damned strange.

Sammy started to walk toward class again. He needed to get his brush in his hand and forget everything for an hour. Alvish and Chen fell in beside him. Chen was in his class. The guy loved to paint, even if his life was planned around numbers. Alvish studied history and was Dr. Barth’s fair-haired boy. But the history building was on the way to the art department, so he hung with them.

Chen looked past Sammy toward Alvish. “So, Alvish, what did it feel like growing so fast? Even your hair grew, man.”

“It was interesting. Hey, could I ask you guys a favor? I guess I never told you. I don’t much