Page 20 of Sinful Crimes for the Artistically Inclined
It was a grim fate.
And yet…
That night with Percy…
If only he could relive that, over and over, things might be a little easier. If Percy’s body and Percy’s smile could transport him, repeatedly. If he could keep saying those sweet things, it might be like he wasn’t there at all. He might have something, for the first time in his life, to look forward to. Something beautiful. Transportive.
Even if it was a mirage.
A half happiness.
He could let himself believe for those few hours, couldn’t he?
Until Percy got bored with him. Which would probably take him all of five minutes. A man like that with all the sexual attention he must get everywhere he went.
Joe’s stomach gave a queasy scrunch as he wondered how Percy would manage things when he finally arrived. He’d probably keep it a secret. No one needed to know Percy was Joe’s fuckboy. Joe was supposed to be a priest, after all. So Percy would probably pretend there was nothing going on. Keep his distance. Carry on with his little jokes and flirtations with Anna, right in front of him and everybody else. It was what he’d agreed to, wasn’t it? So what more could he expect?
With his heart sinking, Joe took the bowl he’d spent a full ten minutes filling, and stepped back into the living room just in time to see the front door burst wide open to reveal Percy’s delicious frame.
His eyes latched onto Joe as though no one else was present. “Joe.”
Joe’s heart damn near smashed itself out of his chest. “Percy.”
Percy’s body obliterated the space between them in two steps, and half a second more saw Joe pushed up against the wall, Percy’s chest against his. Percy slammed one hand down on the wall by his head, snaked the other around his waist and wrenched him even closer, grinding their hips together, and he kissed him, long and hard and glorious, in front of everyone.
“Joe,” Percy said breathlessly when he finally set his lips free, “I think I’m falling in love with you.”
Joe very nearly squealed, but rather remarkably, he kept a grip on his chips. It was like winning every lottery in the world all at once, only better and a thousand times less believable. But this was new ground, and he was determined to hold it, so he made his voice as sultry as humanly possible and said, “Then I think I’d better come over tonight.”
Those lips. That smile, like the sexiest demon on the planet. Percy kissed Joe, on his mouth, across his cheek, up to his ear, where he whispered, “You’d better.”
Percy Ashdown was a walking stop light, shining violent red over an icy crossroads in the inky night. But he was the only light Joe had seen in such a long time.
So Joe slammed his foot down on that accelerator, and held on for dear life.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
THE SKELETONS IN PERCY’S BASEMENT
Joe laid the handle of a sledgehammer against the sparkling granite wall of Percy’s church, and his knuckles rapped out his arrival on the thick oak door.
During the long morning’s discussions and arguments with their friends, he’d found a quiet moment to offer to help Percy with his skeleton problem. It would be the first time they’d been alone since they slept together, and Joe wondered what sort of reception he’d get.
Percy felt things deeply, and he didn’t do things by halves, so Joe tried not to put too much stock in his declaration. Yes, they’d known each other for months, but love…
The door cracked open. “Handsome.” Percy pulled him in and turned him swiftly, wrapping both arms around him for a long kiss. “I’m so glad you’re here. I was thinking, what if wedon’tdo skeletons, and I just take you straight to bed?”
Joe took in his alluring grin, countering with, “Skeletons, then bed?”
“Why complicate matters?”
“Because I don’t want you to die.” Joe shoved him off andmade his way into the living room. He beelined to the white rug they’d had their impromptu picnic on, and ripped it back. Percy’s trapdoor rumbled with the excitement of the creatures listening beneath as they anticipated its opening.
Percy remained where he was in the entranceway. “While I appreciate your enthusiasm, don’t you think we’re more likely to die if we do open that door?”
Joe clasped his hands together like a man used to putting a fast and dramatic end to supernatural problems. And the quicker he did it, the sooner his thankful new boyfriend would be able to take him back to bed with one less worry on his mind. “We can handle them. What’s your plan? Put a spell on them to freeze them or something?”
Percy’s hands slid into his pockets. “I’m not sure I should be doing spells just now, since I lost the Necronomicon. That might actually be why they reanimated.”
