Staccato (Magnum Opus #2) - E.M. Lindsey Page 0,70

not directly. Not yet.

“To feel safe,” Adam added. “To feel wanted.”

“I can work with that,” Nik told him. He kissed Adam’s palm again, and Adam felt the way his lips were curved into a smile. “I don’t need much more. I mean, as long as you can put up with terrible night hours and shitty attitudes when I’m composing songs that will get me nowhere…”

Adam pulled his hands away only to gather Nik closer and smudge kisses across his cheeks, his chin, his mouth. “I think I can work with that,” he echoed, and he basked in the softness of Nik’s laugh.

Chapter 16

Allant

By Saturday, Adam was desperately regretting taking it slow. Work kept him busy, but paying attention was a struggle he hadn’t anticipated when he knew Nik was his. He had permission now, to touch him, to kiss him, to hold him. He woke up in Nik’s bed twice that week, limbs tangled, the soft puff of air against the side of his neck.

He was thrumming with want, even though taking that first step into sex with a cis man was always a little unnerving. But with Nik, the fear wasn’t as strong. Nik had never once been hung up on Adam’s body, hadn’t ever suggested that sex with him would be different—even if it would be. Adam didn’t think he could ever walk into a physical relationship with someone without some level of apprehension, but Nik made it easy to shoulder.

He didn’t regret pumping the brakes, though. He wanted to trust that Nik wouldn’t backpedal, that he wouldn’t change his mind, or let his past get in the way of their future. He seemed sincere. He seemed stable now in his desire for Adam, but there was a niggling fear in the back of his head that no matter what he wanted, it wasn’t going to last.

It didn’t help either that Cooper finally had his return date. Eight weeks—which for Stella would feel like an eternity, but for Adam was the blink of an eye. He was supposed to work that afternoon, but Vincent called him before the sun was up to let them know several pipes had burst in the mall from tree roots in the system, and that half the shops were closed, including theirs.

He needed the cash, but the unexpected day off was a blessing. Nik had a full day of lessons, so he took the opportunity to give Stella a break, and he and Evie popped by the bank to check his balance before pointing them in the direction of the little fifties diner with burgers and shakes.

“I wan’ a cherry,” Evie said, skipping as she held his hand. “An’ I want…fries. French fries.”

“You got it, Monster,” he told her, tugging her close as they approached the crosswalk. The little sign began to beep with the appearance of the green man, and he hurried across the street with Evie at his heel. The lunch crowd hadn’t appeared yet, so he waved to the server and grabbed a booth in the middle. Evie liked the mini jukeboxes on the table, even if they didn’t do anything except eat quarters and pretend to put songs in the queue, but Adam had a pocket full of change and it kept her occupied as he ordered their meals.

“Adam?” Evie said, just as he started to lose himself in the memory of the way Nik’s fingers skated up his bare spine.

He looked at her and tried not to blush. “Yes, my dear?”

“Is…is my daddy…is he comed home tomorrow?”

Adam sighed. “Not tomorrow, but soon.”

Evie bit her lip. “Is he scary?”

Adam realized Evie hadn’t seen her dad for almost a year. She’d been barely three when he left, and at most, they had half a dozen skype dates during his deployment. He’d called a lot more often after they arrived in Okinawa, but he couldn’t imagine what it would be like for her to not know him.

He realized then also how hard it must have been on Stella. “He’s not scary. I’ve known him since before you were born.”

“When was I born?” she demanded.

He laughed. “Four years ago.”

“Did he like me?”

“Yes,” Adam told her. He pushed her drink at her—a little plastic cup with a bright yellow sun and a bendy straw poking out of the top. “Drink your juice if you want a milkshake after.”

She dutifully took two sips, then pushed a couple more buttons. “I wanna bear.”

Adam rolled his eyes. “No more bears this week.” It hit him all