The stadium was only a five-minute walk from his dormitory. It was a nice day. The sun was shining, with white fluffy clouds drifting across the sky providing a shaded reprieve from the hot rays. The fall semester was starting in two weeks, and the campus was looking pretty busy. The incoming freshman wandered around like little lost puppies.
"Yo, Kam!" Spencer called out to him and Kam smiled and headed in his direction. "The locker next to mine is empty so you can use it." Spencer held the door open for Kam.
"Thanks, man." Kam followed Spencer as he made his way through the locker room.
Kam glanced around at his new surroundings. The walls were white with stripes in the school's colors, black and gold, painted around the room. A large grizzly bear head was painted on one wall. With its head thrown back, it looked as if it were roaring.
"Over here." Spencer lightly punched Kam in the arm.
Kam set his stuff in the empty locker. He pulled out his glove and bat and set them to the side. He had a change of clothes in his bag for after practice. With the temperature being so high he had no doubt he'd be a sweaty mess afterward.
"So this is the spectacular shortstop we've all been hearing about?"
A man Kam hadn't met sneered at him. The guy had dark-brown hair and hard brown eyes. It was apparent he didn't care much for Kam.
"Do you really think you can just come in here and take over?"
"Huh?" Kam narrowed his eyes as he looked up at the other man. "Dude, I just got here. I'm not looking to take over anything."
"Shut up, Killian." Spencer rolled his eyes. "You're just nervous that Kam here might be better than you."
"Fuck you, Spence." Killian's jaw was clenched tight. "If your boy here is so great, why did he leave LSU?" Killian glared down at Kam.
Kam didn't like confrontation, but he wasn't one to back down from a fight either. Being raised by two dads made a kid grow a thick skin real quick and learn to fight. Kam didn't want to fight, but by god he wasn't going to be pushed around by this toolbox.
"Listen here, Killian." Kam stood. Killian was a couple inches taller than him, but Kam outweigh him by a good twenty pounds. "I'm not here to take anyone's position. I'm just here to play ball, man."
"Right." Killian barked out a laugh.
"I am." Kam crossed his arms over his chest. "And if you're as good as you think you are than you have nothing to worry about, right?"
The locker room broke out in a chorus of laughter. Killian's face flushed a deep crimson. He did not look happy.
"Oh, he got you there, Killian," someone shouted from across the room.
"Look, man, I'm not here to fight you or take your position. We're a team, and that means we need to work together." Kam held out his hand. "What do you say?"
Killian stepped in close to Kam almost nose to nose. "I say fuck you." Killian bumped Kam in the shoulder as he walked away.
Kam shook his head and chuckled as Killian walked out of the locker room. That guy was an asshole. "Is he always so pleasant?"
"Nah." Spencer shook his head. "He's usually a real dick." Spencer stood, wrapped an arm around Kam's neck, and pulled him in close. "Welcome to the fighting grizzles."
"Yeah just ignore him." A dark skin gentleman stood up and held his hand out to Kam. "I'm Jarrod. I play centerfield."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Kam." Kam shook the offered hand.
"I know who you are." Jarrod looked around the room. "We all do, and that my friend is why Killian is pissing in his jockstrap right now." Jarrod tapped his fingers on Kam's chest. "You got to give credit where credit is due, and you are a great player, man. You can field the ball and hit the damn thing. We all are a little worried. Am I right, guys?"
"I'm not worried." A tall man with pale skin and bright red hair walked over toward them. "He can't pitch so my position is safe." The man flashed a bright smile. "I'm Alex, by the way."
"What's going on in here?"
The sound of Henson voice sent a shiver running down Kam's spine. The older man was staring right at him. Then his eyes moved toward Spencer and where he had his arm wrapped around Kam's shoulders.
"If you're all done with social hour, get your asses onto the field. Now!" Henson shouted when no one moved.
"Great!" Spencer rolled his eyes. "He looks to be in a great mood today."
Kam grabbed his hat and sunglasses and hustled out to the field.
"Kline-Kemp, over here."
Kam stumbled to a stop at the sound of Henson's voice. He turned to face his coach.
"You're here to play ball, not make hookups in the locker room. Got it?"
Kam's eyes widened. He was caught off guard with the enticing scent rolling off of Henson's hard body but at those words it felt as if he'd been struck in the face by a bucket of ice water.
"Sir?" Kam couldn't have heard him right. Kam's brows were knitted together in confusion.
"You heard me. Now get your ass out on that field and show this team that you deserve the right to play on the same field as them. Go!" Henson barked out the order.
Kam pressed his lips together. That right there was uncalled for. He wasn't a sensitive person, but Henson was just all out mean to him. What had Kam done wrong? Didn't Henson want all the members of the team to get along? And what the hell was that part about hookups? Kam wasn't even gay.
"What an asshole," Kam mumbled under his breath. He turned back around and jogged over to where the other players were playing catch.
"I heard that, Kline-Kemp."
Kam stopped and slowly turned around to see Henson with his arms crossed over his mighty chest staring at him.
"Watch your mouth, kid," Henson whispered. With them being shifters their hearing was impeccable so Kam heard the softly spoken words directed at him.
Kam took a deep breath then continued on his way toward his new teammates.
"You all right, man?" Jarrod asked once Kam had caught up to them.
"Yep. I'm great." Kam smiled and raised his eyebrows.
Being around Henson was going to be harder than Kam thought. On one hand, he was pissed at the overgrown jerk for implying he was flirting with Spencer in the locker room. Kam was offended by that. And even if he was, why would Henson care? He was their coach, not their parent, and if Kam wanted to hook up with someone, then he had the right to do it. Henson didn't have a say in the matter.
The day lingered on, and it became harder and harder for Kam to focus. His gaze kept wandering back to Henson. Today Coach Henson had on a white polo shirt with the school's name on it and a pair of black gym shorts. The back of his shirt was drenched in sweat, making his scent nearly suffocate Kam. Each intake of breath was filled with that damn sweet odor.
Something else Kam also noticed about his new coach was how hairy the man was. He had the blackest hair on the top of his head and thick dark hair on his arms and legs. Kam really wanted to know if that same dark hair covered his chest.
It was thoughts like that that had Kam so flustered he was off his game. He wasn't playing bad, but he wasn't playing at his best either. It was obvious that he was agitated. He just prayed that Henson didn't know he was the reason for Kam's distraction.
Chapter Five
PJ thought his head was going to explode when he walked into the locker room and saw Spencer with his arms around Kam. He knew it was nothing, but the bear inside him didn't agree. PJ had made his bear wait for months to be near his mate, and now that they were in the same town, the need to bond with Kam was causing PJ to lose control. If he didn't do something quick, his aggression and attraction toward Kam would only grow until he became more animal than man. But luckily for PJ, Kam was a shifter, too. Kam had to be suffering from the same issues.
Practice carried on. It was a hot one, but PJ refused to call it short due to heat. The players needed to get used to it. The temperature was in the high eighties, nowhere near too hot to play.
PJ made the rounds, talking with his coaching staff and watching to see how the players were doing. He stopped to watch Kam, and he was impressed. The kid had speed and agility that just couldn't be taught. Sure being a shifter was helpful to his game play, but it was more than that. Kam was just flat-out amazing. He listened and took the offered suggestions from the coaches. He was doing really well until he caught sight of PJ watching him. From there on out, the kid fumbled one ball after another. At one point he even tripped over his own damn feet.