Free Kickass Anthology by Keira Andrews, Jackie Keswick, Jade Crystal, Nancy Hartmann, Tali Spencer, JP Kenwood, A.L. Boyd, Mia Kerick, Brandon Witt, Sophie Bonaste Page A

It was a good thing; otherwise, he would have been thinking a little too hard about Jay’s hand so close to his ass.
    Hard. Fin groaned.
    Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger” started playing over the sound system. If Fin rolled his eyes any harder, they would roll right out of his head. “Really? Is that necessary?”
    “No, but it is the boss’s favorite motivational song. If the boss ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy.”
    “Motivational, my ass.”
    “Speaking of, keep it down and your back parallel to the floor.”
    An eternity passed before Jay finally moved his hand and announced, “Time’s up. You can relax for a couple minutes.”
    “Oh, thank God,” Fin groaned as he dropped flat onto the mat. “How long was that? An hour?”
    “You’re a funny guy. It was only sixty seconds.”
    “No fucking way, man.”
    “Yep. Don’t feel bad, Fin. We all have to start somewhere, right?”
    “Start? We’ve been working out together forever!”
    “You’ve been playing at working out forever. If you ever hope to achieve your goals, you need to get serious about it,” Jay stated bluntly, ruffling his friend’s hair as he got to his feet.
    The words tumbled around in Fin’s head as he watched his best friend retrieve a water bottle from a nearby weight bench. Jay wasn’t one to mince words. He spoke his mind and didn’t think sugarcoating the truth helped anyone. It was one of those momentous sorts of moments for Fin. Maybe it is time for some self-improvement. I don’t really have anything left to lose, right?
    He took the water Jay offered him and drank as if he’d just crawled in from the desert. Once his thirst had been satisfied, he handed the bottle back and asked, “In what evil way do you plan to torture me next?”
    “You can have a few more minutes,” Jay answered, bumping his shoulder against Fin’s as they sat side by side on the mat. “My next client should be here any minute. So what happened to get you fired – ” Fin glared at him “ – I mean, laid off this time?”
    “The company was down-sizing, and the most recent hires got axed first. Me and three others – our entire department.”
    “But I thought you were putting in for a promotion a few days ago.”
    “I did. So did the others. There was only one opening. I swear the guy’s been sucking the supervisor’s dick since he was hired. That grinning piece of shit still has a job. The rest of us…not so much.”
    “That sucks – and not in the good way,” Jay joked. When he got a glare in return instead of a chuckle, he cleared his throat. “Can you collect unemployment?”
    “I dunno. Can I collect unemployment working after a job for less than three months? I was still on probation.”
    “No idea.”
    “Right, because you’ve never had to find out, living your charmed life.”
    Fin gave his friend a side-eye, for a moment wanting to make Jay feel as miserable as he was. But only for a moment. The tension hung thick in the air between them, and Fin felt terrible for unloading his troubles on someone whose only crime was being his friend. W hat are friends for, right? I hope.
    “Charmed?” Jay snorted, then looked Fin over with a careful eye. He unfolded his long frame and rose to his feet, scrutiny replaced by a twinkling look. “Dish it out all you want, Fin. I can take it. I have the stamina.”
    “I bet you do,” he replied, grinning, as he accepted Jay’s offer to lever him up off the floor.
    “You will too, when I’m done with you.”
    Fin snorted. “Maybe, but it won’t be today.”
    “No, today is about working all of that tension off so you can have fun tonight. Now squat.”
    “What?” In the context of the conversation, Fin wasn’t sure how to take such a command.
    Jay answered with what could only be described as an evil smile. “Time to work. You’ve rested – ” he snatched the water bottle before Fin could guzzle the rest of its contents “ – and drunk enough. That ass is mine