Page 59 of Steady Stroke
“Same song or new song?” Emmett asked when he returned to the stage.
“New song. ‘Homeward Bound.’”
“Excellent. Now you have to back me up.”
Lincoln laughed. “I know.”
Their attempt at “Homeward Bound” wasn’t as smooth as their first go-around—the emotional tone changed more frequently, and Lincoln didn’t seem to know the music quite as well—but they got through it. And laughed a lot at the end.
“Okay, that definitely needs practice,” Lincoln said. “Want to change the lights, and we’ll try it again?”
“Sure.”
The afternoon went at a similar rate, with Emmett altering the light arrangements between each song. They did a lot of Simon & Garfunkel, including “The Sound of Silence,” until the stage got so hot under the lights that they both declared it was time for a water break.
Emmett fetched cold bottles from the refrigerator in the break room, keenly aware of how his shirt was plastered tight from sweat. Even his jeans were damp, and he entertained real thoughts of taking the darn things off. Not as if Lincoln would mind.
He turned, unsurprised to find the object of his thoughts—and his growing affection—leaning in the break room doorway. A bottle of water in hand, Lincoln proceeded to rub the sweating plastic all over his neck. “Just turned on a fan, so hopefully that’ll cool things off.”
Guh.
Emmett’s body went tight all over; nothing he could do or think about was going to keep his dick down, not with Lincolnlooking at him with so much heat and intent in his eyes. Lincoln’s skin sparkled with moisture, a combination of sweat and the water bottle. Things were definitely not cooling off. When Emmett didn’t respond, Lincoln slowly twisted the cap off the bottle and somehow proceeded to make taking two long gulps into a seduction. From the curl of his lips to the jumping of his Adam’s apple, the entire thing made Emmett lose his mind a little.
His own water forgotten, Emmett reached for Lincoln.
And found himself standing in complete and total darkness as the building’s power went out.
THIRTEEN
“Seriously?”The plunge into pitch blackness sent the open bottle falling from Lincoln’s hand and splashing to the floor. He barely felt the cold water on his calves, because everything was slowly tilting to the side.
“Lincoln?” Emmett in the dark. Somewhere.
He reached out and grasped air, and that ended his ability to remain upright. Lincoln’s knees buckled, and he hit the floor hard on his right hip. “Fuck.”
A pale glow illuminated Emmett’s face—his cell phone. Lincoln blinked up at him as the dizziness faded, grateful for something to focus on. Emmett fiddled with his phone until a brighter light cast from the front.
Emmett knelt in front of him, phone aimed at the floor, his concern as endearing as it was annoying. One power failure and Lincoln was on his ass like a wimp. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, sorry.” Lincoln rubbed at the back of his neck. “The sudden darkness just . . . I don’t know, I lost my center, I guess.”
“Understandable. I can’t believe we lost power.”
He glanced at the break room doorway, which was vaguelyoutlined by distant light. “Looks like the place has emergency lights somewhere out there.”
“Looks like. I hope this doesn’t last long.”
“Yeah. Hard to practice with lights when we don’t have lights.”
Emmett nodded. “Plus, you know, there’s a freezer full of food that could spoil.”
That too.
“It’s also the middle of summer and people are using a lot of power for air-conditioning,” Lincoln said. “Blackouts happen. It probably won’t last long.”
The phone’s light cast funny shadows across Emmett’s face. Pinpricks of white made his eyes sparkle. “However will we pass the time?” he asked, the perfect picture of innocence.
Lincoln took Emmett’s phone and put it on the counter behind him, light facing the ceiling, then tugged Emmett into a kiss. Their mouths slid together, Emmett’s hot, spicy taste evaporating any thoughts Lincoln had of being seductive and slow. With Emmett’s tongue plunging deep, all he could think wasPlease, yes, now.
