“Duncan! Are you in there?”
Jake looked at Duncan who laughed and stood up. Why did this keep happening to them?
“The fucking paparazzi are all over the fucking venue. We need you to stop fucking around and get your ass out here!” their keyboardist yelled.
Jake snorted as he finally got his pants fastened. “Eric really gets himself worked up about stuff, doesn’t he?”
Duncan smiled, feeling too blissed-out from his orgasm to care very much about Eric’s impatience. The man needed to chill out anyway. He was always freaking out about something. “I’ll be right there Eric!” he called, then leaned into Jake, kissing the other man softly. He smiled as Jake closed his eyes, savoring the contact. “Man, I really love you.”
“Ditto,” Jake replied. He opened his eyes. “Now get out there and deal with Eric before I punch him again.” Duncan laughed, remembering the last time that happened. Eric had a tendency to say stupid things when he was drunk.
“Yeah. He had a fit when he found out I was bi. I bet he’s freaking out over the bonding thing now.” He felt Emma’s concern in the back of his head and sent a quick reassurance her way. “Whatever. If he can’t deal with it, he can leave. The only reason I kept him in the band after his last homophobic rant was because he had a contract,” Duncan said, smoothing his jacket down over his shirt.
Jake nodded. “If it comes to that, I can play the keys.”
Duncan stared at Jake, ignoring the pounding on the door. You hate playing in front of an audience, he thought.
“Yeah, well, I’m not going to let Eric fuck things up because he can’t handle us sleeping together. I like playing keyboards. I just wasn’t interested in the fame. I think it’s too late now for that.” Jake smiled and kissed Duncan, then turned and opened the door. Both men blinked in the light from the hall. Eric stood just outside, fist raised to pound on the door again.
Jake stepped back quickly. “Whoa, man, relax!”
Duncan frowned. Eric looked beyond pissed, his blond hair tousled and his face red. His eyes were bloodshot, like he’d been drinking. He watched Eric sway on his feet and wondered if the man was on drugs or something.
“What the hell? You’re fucking each other now? I didn’t sign on for this,” Eric said, venomously.
Duncan felt his temper finally rise. “If you have a problem with us, the door’s that way.” He pointed to the exit down the hall. He watched Eric glare at them, his face growing redder.
“I let it slide when you told Oprah you were bi last year because I thought you did it for the publicity, but now—” Eric broke off, struggling. “You too Jake?” He raised a fist and Jake pulled Duncan back.
“Get a grip, Eric!” Jake said angrily. He’s lost it.
Duncan nodded, then shoved Jake to the side as Eric charged. “Jesus Christ, Eric! What the fuck?” He ducked as Eric threw a punch and then Dave and Charlie were there, grabbing Eric and shoving him up against the wall just inside the closet. Duncan looked down at the floor and winced, hoping none of them noticed the wet mark on the floor. Jake snorted at Duncan’s thought, then pulled him out into the hall. Both men sensed Emma watching the scene though their eyes. Her concern for them and disgust for Eric made Duncan feel a little better.
“What do you want us to do, boss?” Charlie asked.
Duncan sighed. “Let him get his stuff and leave.” He looked at Eric who fought against Charlie and Dave’s hold. “I’ll send your check to you. You’re done.”
“Fuck you, faggot! I wouldn’t work for you now if you begged me! And I’ve got a lead on another gig anyway, with more perks than playing for you ever got me!”
“Quiet, you,” Dave growled and yanked him out of the closet. He and Charlie frog-marched him down the hall as Duncan sagged against the wall.
“I didn’t expect that. I mean, I knew he was nuts, but I didn’t think he’d totally lose it,” Jake said, leaning into Duncan. He dropped his head into Duncan’s neck. “Like you’d beg that asshole for anything.”
Duncan laughed. “I’d beg you for a whole lotta things.”
Jake lifted his face and grinned. “Oh yeah? I’d like to see that.”
Duncan’s mouth went dry and they both felt Emma rolling her eyes at them. You don’t have time for another go-round, she sent, then faded into the back of their minds.
“She’s right. You need to do sound-check and I need to practice. It’s been a while since I played all the songs and since tonight’s show is acoustic, it’d really suck if I screwed up.” Jake pushed away from Duncan and started down the hall. “Come on.”
Duncan smiled and followed his lover’s gorgeous ass down to the stage.
Chapter 9
Jake woke with a start as the car slid to a stop. “We there?”
Duncan turned the ignition off and smiled as Jake rubbed his eyes and fought to wake up. “Yeah, we’re here. It’s late. Emma’s asleep.”
Jake yawned as Duncan opened the door and got out of the car, stretching in the cool night air. His jacket and shirt rode up, revealing a thin sliver of skin for Jake to admire. Even exhausted, he’s a gorgeous bastard, he thought. No wonder I turned gay.
Hey! I heard that! Duncan thought back at him, grinning. He walked over to the passenger side and opened the door. “And anyway, you didn’t just turn gay. I think you were leaning toward bisexual, but you were too lazy to ask any guys out. Too many women throwing themselves at you.”
Jake snorted. “Yeah, yeah, whatever. I honestly didn’t think about it.” He grabbed Duncan’s hand. “You know, I don’t need you to haul me out like a damsel in distress,” Jake said, grumpy with exhaustion.
“Then get your ass out of the car. I want to get out of these clothes and crawl into bed with Emma,” Duncan replied, heartless.
Jake groaned, both at how tired his body felt and at the thought of them naked together in Emma’s bed. He felt her stir as their proximity and arousal seeped into her sleep, bringing her closer to consciousness. He stepped around the car to help Duncan with their bags.
“You were great tonight, by the way,” Duncan said as they closed the trunk and walked up the sidewalk.
Jake smiled. “Thanks. I’m not used to performing in front of such a large audience. I was a little nervous.”
“You were wonderful. I don’t know why you were nervous. You spend all your time organizing my life. You’re around crowds of people all the time, and you’re usually telling most of them what to do, too. You’re more than comfortable being in the spotlight.” Duncan smiled.
Jake paused outside of Emma’s screen door. “Yeah, but the crowds are there to see you, not me. I’m just your manager. I’m not the star.”
“Well, after tonight, I have a feeling things will be different. Between the bonding and this performance, the fans are going to go crazy.”
Jake sighed and opened the door. “I’m afraid you’re right. You didn’t look after the show, but I checked my laptop and the internet basically exploded. We made the top entertainment headline on most of the news sites. I was afraid to look at the blogs.” He stepped inside and held the door open for Duncan.
“Do you regret it?” Duncan paused, whispering in the dark.