Fire in the Hole - 1 

Fire in the Hole 

By Lorne Rodman 

"You're getting unreliable, Tanner. You need to take 

a break." The mirrored sunglasses Ray wore gave 
nothing away, and the tone was easy, but Tanner knew 
that was deceptive. 

Ray had always been his biggest supporter, his best 

source for work in his unique field. If Ray thought he 
was slipping, things must be worse than Tanner thought. 

He rubbed his forehead, the constant ache behind his 

eyes intensifying. "A break. You mean like a vacation? 
I'm not sure guys like me get those, Ray." 

"I'm not sure you have a choice." Ray's tone was still 

easy, but there was a hint of something in it now -- like 
maybe a warning. 

As he let the words sink in, Tanner watched a ripped 

blond stud -- blond as in almost-white blond -- sit across 
the bar and order a drink. 

He studied the guy, trying to focus on Ray but having 

a tough time. "That sounds ominous. It's not like I 
burned down midtown or something." 

The muscles definitely looked like they came from 

hard work and not the gym. The guy was dressed like he 
worked for a living, too. Tanner couldn't tell whether or 
not the hands were callused as they wrapped around a 
beer, but if he had to guess, he'd say yes. 

"No, not all of midtown, but you are getting sloppy, 

Tanner. And men like us can't afford sloppy." 

"I'm not getting sloppy!" He hated being on the 

defensive. He had been sloppy on the last job, but not 
intentionally. Tanner thought he might be losing his 
mind these days. He'd always been good at doing little 
jobs, nothing where anyone would get hurt, nothing that 
would be anything but an insurance job. Ray, though, 

Fire in the Hole - 2 

was pushing Tanner to do stuff he was afraid of, and that 
was making things bad. 

Mr. Blond glanced over at his outburst, eyes blue like 

glaciers. 

"I'm not being an asshole, but you can't even see it." 

Ray was just going on and on, the droning starting to get 
monotonous. 

Thankfully, Tanner barely heard. He was caught by 

that stare, looking back helplessly. 

The guy looked strong, immovable, like there was 

nothing that he couldn't withstand. Like he could hold 
off any number of firestorms. 

Tanner chuckled a little. He never felt that way 

anymore. In fact, sometimes he felt like he was 
disappearing, a little at a time. Like he was burning 
away to ash. 

"Huh?" He glanced at Ray, who was frowning. "No, I 

wasn't laughing at you." 

"Have you been paying attention to anything I've 

said?" 

"Yeah. I need a break. I'm unreliable. What you mean 

is I lost you money." That was Ray's bottom line, really. 
"Unless you intend to lose more and pay for my 
vacation, I can't afford it." 

"Another screw up and it won't be a vacation so much 

as lack of work. There's only so much room for error in 
this profession.” 

Blond guy's attention had been caught by something 

else now, those bright eyes no longer boring into him. 

"Fuck. Look, I'll take a few days before the next job, 

get my head on straight." It wouldn't work. He knew it, 
but Ray didn't know that. Nothing seemed to work for 
his unique kind of burnout. 

Ray nodded, half-smile looking appeased. "That 

would be a really good idea." 

Fire in the Hole - 3 

"Cool. I'll call you when I'm back in the game." 

Maybe he'd just disappear. He could squat somewhere in 
the Caribbean for awhile. 

"That works." Ray nodded to the bartender, handed 

over a couple of bills. "Whatever he wants for the rest of 
the night is on me." 

"Thanks, Ray." He shook the man's hand and 

watched him leave the bar. Christ. When had shit gotten 
so mixed up? When had Ray started to seem more… 
dangerous than helpful? 

Mr. Tall and Built was still sitting across the bar, 

leaning back casually and watching the TV above the 
bar. 

Tanner stared a little. It was way more pleasant than 

thinking. The guy looked a little like a Viking or 
something. Plunder-ho! 

A plate of wings was plonked down in front of the 

man. He nodded his thanks and dug in, eating like it was 
the first food he'd had all day. 

Mmm. Tanner's belly rumbled, and he grinned. "Did 

the boss leave enough money for me to get fried cheese, 
man?" he asked the bartender. 

"Yep. Of course, the more you have, the more it eats 

into my tip." 

"Shit, man. I'll do my best, but I'm starving." Tanner 

tried for a smile. 

The bartender chuckled. "I'll warn you before I'm 

aiming to cut you off." 

"Thanks." He wasn't really going to drink all that 

much, but an open tab meant he could sit as long as he 
wanted and watch pretty blond dude. 

It looked like the guy was pretty hungry. The wings 

were stripped clean in short order, followed by a plate of 
loaded potato skins and then a bowl of onion rings. 

Fire in the Hole - 4 

That sounded good, too. Onion rings. Maybe he'd 

grab a few of those. 

Blondie caught him staring at one point and nodded 

at him, saluted him with a ring. 

He nodded back, trying to decide if that was just 

politeness because he was staring, or if the guy was 
showing interest. He couldn't tell anymore, really. 

The half-smile he was given tipped him toward 

"showing interest." 

"Gimme a basket of onion rings and you can keep the 

rest, man." He nodded at the bartender before moving 
down to stand in front of the hot guy. "So, if I get the 
next basket of rings, will you share?" 

Blondie looked at him for a moment, then passed the 

basket over with a smile. 

"Thanks." He sat, grabbing an onion ring. Maybe he 

wasn't the only fucked-up loner in the place tonight. 

A hand was held out to him, lean and callused. 

"Win." 

"Tanner." He shook, and something jolted right up 

his arm into his chest. His nipples tightened, almost like 
he'd stepped out into a cold night with no shirt on. 

"Nice to meet you." The way Win said it, it felt real. 
"You, too." He guessed it was, anyway. This could be 

dangerous, as hot as this guy was. 

"The guy you were with...?" The unfinished question 

hung there. 

"Huh? Oh, that was business. He's like my manager, I 

guess." Tanner smiled a little at the thought that he had 
some kind of talent. It was a damned curse, really, and 
Ray wasn't exactly watching out for Tanner's interests. 

Win relaxed a little, smiled. "Cool. What're you 

drinking?" 

"Gin and tonic." He leaned back, munching an onion 

ring. 

Fire in the Hole - 5 

"Doug." Win motioned to the bartender. "Another 

draft for me, and a G and T for Tanner here." 

"On your bill or his?" 
One of Win's eyebrows went up. "I'm ordering them, 

I'll pay for them." That was definitely a growl. 

"Just checking." The bartender got busy, and Tanner 

popped another onion ring. 

"Have you noticed how people are getting ruder and 

ruder these days?" 

"No shit, man. I've gotten burned a few times because 

of it." The joke made him want to laugh out loud, so he 
gulped down some ice water in the bottom of his glass. 

"That sucks. Do you?" 
He choked a little. "Suck? Given the right 

encouragement, yeah." 

Win's eyes danced wickedly. "Good to know." 
"I guess." He tilted his head. "Do you?" 
"I can give as good as I get." 
"I bet." He didn't think Win would want to chance 

immolation for sex, but who knew? A very few, rare 
people got off on the idea. 

The bartender put their new basket of rings and their 

drinks in front of them. "You want something a little 
more substantial than onion rings?" 

"I--" He glanced at the bartender, deciding it wasn't 

worth it. "Nah. Thanks, though." 

Win raised a nearly white eyebrow. "Are you and 

him together?" 

"Who? The bartender?" He shook his head. "God, 

no." 

"Glad to hear it. I wouldn't want to be stepping on 

any toes if I got a little forward with you." 

"No toes to step on but mine." It was a novel 

experience to have someone find him attractive. 

Fire in the Hole - 6 

Normally he was too pale, too freckled, too skinny, or 
his hair was too red. Too fiery. 

"Excellent. I won't ask you to dance -- your toes will 

be safe that way." 

"I flail more than dance." Tanner moved a little closer 

to Win, the evening looking up. 

Win laughed for him and it was a good look on the 

man. "That's definitely two thumbs down on the vertical 
dancing, then." 

"I'm better with a little mattress support." 
"I think we're on the same wavelength here, Tanner." 
"Cool. I never know." He loved sex. Really. He just 

didn't get it often. Or maybe at all. He'd been on a long, 
long dry spell. 

"You don't for sure unless you ask." Win shrugged. 

"Life is short -- I usually ask." 

"I'll have to remember that." He pondered a moment. 

"You know, I think I want a burger." 

"Is this where I make a joke about my meat?" Win 

gave him a wink and signaled for the bartender, waving 
the man down with ease. 

"Man, y'all are trouble." The bartender smiled, 

though, wiping down the bar. "What can I get you?" 

"A couple of burgers." 
"Fries with that?" 
Win nodded. "We'll talk dessert once we're done." 
"You bet. Adriana made toffee cheesecake." 
His stomach rumbled. Oh, man. Tanner loved 

cheesecake. 

"That sounds great. If we have room." Win gave him 

a wink. 

"I always have energy to burn. Makes room." He 

patted his belly, which was a little more concave than 
usual. 

Fire in the Hole - 7 

"You look like you could eat a horse and still not be 

full." 

"I probably could, huh?" He shrugged, hoping that 

wasn't a bad thing. He'd offended more than one 
potential date by filling his skinny body with huge 
amounts of food. 

Win just chuckled at his answer and raised a glass to 

him, drank. "So what do you do for a living?" 

"I do contract work." That was always his answer. It 

made people take a step back and punt. 

"What kind of contracts?" 
"Uh..." Shit. No one had ever asked him that. 
Win put his head back and laughed. "That sounds a 

little less than aboveboard." 

"Oh, it is." Less. Lord. Need your house burned 

down? Call Tanner. 

"You're not going to tell me, are you?" Win didn't 

look particularly put out by that. 

"Nope." Cool. He munched more onion rings. "Are 

you having onions? I don't want to be the only one with 
bad breath." 

"I had almost an entire basket of onion rings before 

you joined me -- trust me, you aren't the only one." 

"Oh, cool. I had cheese." Crispy and yummy. 
"You had cheese? Is that relevant to the onion 

discussion?" 

"Probably not?" 
Win cackled. "Good enough. I don't like the crispy 

cheese. I know, makes me some sort of freak of nature, 
but there you have it." 

"I like almost anything fried. I won't hold it against 

you, though." He probably wouldn't hold much against 
the man, unless it was like that old song and Win wanted 
to hold his body for awhile. 

Fire in the Hole - 8 

"So if you won't tell me what you do for a living, 

how about what you do for kicks?" 

Tanner opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He 

swallowed and tried again. "I talk to strange men?" 

"Aw, so I'm not special?" 
His cheeks heated painfully. "I haven't had a drink 

with anyone but my handler in maybe four years." 

Win's eyes widened, his surprise clear. "Oh, man. 

That sounds lonely." 

"Loser-ish." The smile was a weak attempt, and 

Tanner knew it. It was nothing but the truth. 

"I don't share drinks with losers." 
"Well, good to know." Now the smile felt real on his 

face. 

The bartender put their burgers in front of them, the 

smell making his mouth water and his tummy rumble. 

"Oh, good. I'm starving tonight -- it was a long day." 
"Bummer." Now he felt bad. He'd never even asked 

Win anything. "Bad day at work?" 

"Just long. I was there at dawn, then we had two guys 

call in sick and the rest of us had to cover for them." 
Win gave him another smile. "It's definitely looking up 
now." 

"I like that." Tanner did, somehow. He didn't know 

this guy, but he was glad to make his day better. 

"I do, too." Win gave him a warm smile. 
He got very busy with his hamburger for a few 

moments. He was hungry, and really, Tanner had no 
idea what to do next. He was such a social dork, 
completely inept. 

"There's a good game on tonight," Win said around a 

mouthful. "You interested in it?" 

"Uh..." He had no idea what sports season it even 

was. "If you mean am I interested in doing something 
with you, sure." 

Fire in the Hole - 9 

Win laughed. "Okay. I'm good with eating and going 

somewhere more private." 

"Cool." He glanced around, noting their clean plates. 

"Now?" 

"Works for me." Win waved his credit card at the 

bartender. 

The guy came over and ran it, and they were out the 

door. Tanner had no idea where. 

He guessed it really didn't matter. He was on 

vacation. 

*** 

Win didn't live very far from the Pretty Penny Pub --

it was his local -- and he led Tanner to his place, the 
evening pleasantly cool as they walked. 

He kept glancing over at Tanner. The man was good-

looking if you liked the red-haired, striking type. And 
Win did. He liked it a lot. 

Tanner walked with his hands in his pockets, 

shoulders hunched a bit. Like he was out of touch with 
being social. The man was odd, no doubt about it, but it 
just made him more intriguing. 

He had the urge to stop Tanner and kiss him there in 

the street, just to see what the man would do. 

Tanner glanced at him, a little smile appearing. "You 

okay?" 

"Yeah, I'm really good. You?" 
"I am. Good. Yeah?" 
Chuckling, he grabbed Tanner's hand. "Come on. 

We're almost there." 

Tanner's skin felt feverishly hot, almost. It felt so 

good against his skin, because Win was always cold. 

Fire in the Hole - 10 

"You're hot." He dragged Tanner along to his place. 

He lived over a fish store -- aquariums and shit, not the 
flounder and salmon kind. 

"As in wow, you're a hot guy, or as in my skin is 

hot?" 

"Both." He grinned, pushing the door to the stairwell 

open. 

"Oh." Tanner followed, climbing the stairs easily, 

which boded well for the body under those clothes. 

He let Tanner into his home, not bothering to turn on 

the lights -- it was bright enough from the illumination 
coming through the windows. 

"You're more cool. To the touch, I mean." Squinting, 

Tanner looked about. "And cooler than me, kinda. No. 
No, I mean..." Tanner rolled his eyes. "You're definitely 
cooler than me, I just meant your place was more up 
with the times than mine, you know?" 

"Is it? Where do you live?" 
"Oh, over on the south side of town." 
One of Win's eyebrows went up. He was surprised. It 

wasn't a very good part of town, as in drug dealers and 
guys with bullet holes in their cars. 

"I know." Grinning, Tanner shrugged a little. "I can't 

afford a lot." 

"Yeah, sorry. I didn't mean to come off judgemental." 
"No prob. This is nice, though." Tanner paused. "I 

promise, I'm not here to rob you or anything." 

"I didn't think you were, Tanner." He gave Tanner a 

cocky grin, looking to break the ice. "You're here to 
fuck the stud, right?" 

"Absolutely." Tanner laughed, the sound bright and 

hot, somehow. Like actually warm enough to stir the air 
in little shimmery waves. 

"Cool." He reached for Tanner, wrapping his hand 

around one hip. He could feel the heat coming off the 

Fire in the Hole - 11 

man, even through the layer of denim. It had him 
moaning a little as he pressed his lips to Tanner's. 

Tanner moaned back, opening up for him, lips like 

fire. The kiss burned between them, chasing away the 
chill he always seemed to have. 

"God, you're hot." 
"Too hot?" The man was twitchy, pulling back and 

staring, biting that sweet lower lip. 

"Fuck no. Did I say too hot? No, I didn't." He 

grabbed Tanner's belt and tugged him back in, bringing 
their mouths together for another kiss. 

Tanner made this amazing noise before wrapping 

around him, all arms and legs. It was kind of like a 
really sexy octopus was attacking him. 

He staggered back toward his bed, sharing one kiss 

after another with Tanner. 

They tumbled down to the floor instead, flying limbs 

and bumped noses. Both of them oofed a little. 

Win tried not to laugh, he really did, but he just 

couldn't help himself, the way they were both on their 
asses and out of breath. 

Tanner grinned back, stroking his cheek. 
"Oops," he said when he'd stopped laughing and 

caught his breath again. 

"No problem." Tanner leaned close, the heat from his 

skin amazing. "More?" 

"Oh, yeah. Definitely more." He closed the distance 

between their mouths, needing the connection. 

Tanner kissed him like the man was starving for 

touch, like the dam was broken. This was like a flood. 

He let it pour over him, giving back as good as he 

got. He was assuming that if things progressed like they 
were looking to and it all went boom in short order, 
they'd be able to have a second, more leisurely go at it. 

Fire in the Hole - 12 

Tanner humped him, panting, that lean body begging 

for his touch. 

He pushed his thigh between Tanner's legs, giving the 

man something to rub on as his fingers searched for little 
nipples hidden behind the t-shirt. 

"Oh. Oh, God." Damned if Tanner's eyes didn't roll 

back in his head, and the man went to town, really 
rocking and rolling. 

He plucked the little, hard points and kissed with all 

he was, watching as Tanner got closer and closer to the 
edge. It was amazing how these little touches were 
making the man crazy. 

"Please." Tanner thrashed a little, body completely 

out of control. 

"Do it. Come. We'll make it to the bed for round 

two." 

Tanner came for him, right there on the floor where 

they'd fallen, body bucking and writhing. 

Wow, that was sexy. Hot. Because Tanner was 

literally very hot all of a sudden. 

"Oh, God. I'm -- I'm sorry, man." Tanner's cheeks 

were so red that the freckles all but disappeared into the 
flush. 

"You only need to be sorry if you're not up for 

another go." Hell, even if Tanner wasn't, he'd bet that 
hot hand would feel real good around his cock. 

"No. No, I'm good." Tanner swarmed up over him, 

kissing him deep and hard. 

"Wait, wait. Bed, okay? It's not far." Hell, they'd 

nearly been to it when they'd gone down. Luckily his 
dirty shorts were all in a basket in the bathroom. 

"Okay." Tanner drew back, looking a little sheepish. 
Win laughed and popped the man in the arm. "It's a 

compliment that we didn't make it." 

Fire in the Hole - 13 

He got up and hauled Tanner up with him, working 

on the man's shirt as they sidestepped together the last 
few feet to his bed. 

"It's nice and soft." Tanner sank down, stroking the 

sheets. 

"Uh-huh. Good for fucking." 
Tanner's cheeks went nuclear, which was a neat trick. 

He hadn't thought they could go hotter. "Do you want 
to? Fuck me?" 

"Only if you want to, man." He wasn't going to force 

himself on anyone, and he'd be happy with a blow or 
even rubbing off on the guy. 

"I'd like to. I mean, unless you have a thing against 

amateurs." 

"Amateurs?" 
"I haven't done it a lot." Tanner chuckled. "I kinda 

scare people." 

"You don't scare me, Tanner. And I don't see how not 

having done it a lot is a big problem. Not if you want it." 

Win had a hunch this guy was kind of lonely. Maybe 

more than a hunch. What had Tanner said? Four years 
without? 

"I do." Tanner moved close to kiss him again, which 

was good, because the mood was waning a little. 

He kissed back, started working off Tanner's clothes. 

Tanner helped him, baring that skin inch by inch. The 
man really was hot, skin like fire. Win pressed close, 
unable to resist rubbing up against him. 

Tanner moaned, the sound so needy it made Win's 

cock jerk. He couldn't wait to feel how hot Tanner was 
inside. 

Those lean fingers worked at Win's clothes in return, 

Tanner's curiosity about his body tangible. He helped, 
eager to move things along, even more eager to get his 
cock out of his now far-too-tight jeans. 

Fire in the Hole - 14 

"Here." Tanner helped him with his jeans, then sat 

there and looked at him. "Oh, God. You're so pretty. I 
want." 

That made him feel like a million bucks and he 

sucked in his belly, making his abs ripple some. His 
prick was hard, curled right up toward the ceiling, and 
he let his hips roll, showing it off. 

"Yeah. I-- Wow." Tanner leaned down over him to 

lick his cock. 

He groaned, his hips bucking forward without any 

thought from him. That was so good it almost hurt. 

"Taste good, too." That little licking touch came 

again, then again, Tanner's tongue flicking against him. 

"Oh, fuck." He slid his hands through Tanner's hair. 

"If you want that fuck, you're going to have to stop." No 
way was he going to last long if Tanner kept that mouth 
around his cock. It was too much, too warm and 
wonderful. 

"Mmm." Tanner pulled back, lips already swollen. 

"Sorry." 

"Oh, I was liking it." He cupped Tanner's cheek, 

rubbed the swollen lips. Tanner really was the hottest 
thing ever. 

"I could tell. I want, though. I want to fuck." 
"Yeah, I want that, too." He grinned and reached over 

to his bedside dealie, finding lube and a couple 
condoms. They were still good, even though it had been 
longer than he wanted to admit since he'd done this. 

"How do you..." Tanner chuckled. "Man, I sound 

stupid. How do you want me?" 

"Lying on your side would be easiest." He didn't 

want to hurt Tanner; he wanted the man to enjoy this 
and want to do it again. 

"I can do that." Tanner gave him a smile, looking a 

little less panicky around the eyes. 

Fire in the Hole - 15 

He leaned in and kissed the guy, letting his tongue 

play with Tanner's. "We'll make sure you're really ready 
first." 

"Sounds good." Tanner stretched right out for him, 

lying on one side, looking like a piece of erotic art. 

Win swallowed his moan and settled in behind the 

man, his fingers stroking along Tanner's crease. 

Tanner went tense for a moment, then breathed deep, 

relaxing each muscle. It was a bit of a struggle, he could 
tell, but it was amazing. 

"I'm not going to hurt you, Tanner." He stroked along 

the man's crease a few more times, being sure to touch 
but not linger on the tight little entrance. 

"I know, man." Tanner shook his head, a little laugh 

coming out. "I trust you. Weird, huh?" 

"Been a long time, I guess." He kept stroking, telling 

his own cock to back the fuck off and be patient. 

"Yeah. I -- yeah." 
"Just relax, okay? I'm going to make it good." He 

leaned over and licked at Tanner's neck. "Or, you know, 
you could just blow me." 

"I could, but I want this." Tanner reached back, 

touching his hip. 

"Okay. We'll make it good, then. Next time you'll be 

begging for it." He nuzzled into Tanner's neck and let 
his finger linger against the tight hole. 

Tanner let go for him, the little ring opening up to let 

him in. So trusting. 

Finger slick, he pushed it in gently, going to the first 

knuckle. 

"Oh." Tanner kind of curled a little, but he could tell 

it was good, because that ass stayed nice and ready for 
him. 

He slid his finger out, pushed it back in, a little 

farther this time. Then again, going all the way in. 

Fire in the Hole - 16 

"God. Feels good. Really good." 
"Gonna get better." 
"That might just kill me." Tanner was on fire, so hot 

inside that Win couldn't wait much longer to get in there 
with his cock. 

"Yeah, me, too." He pushed in a second finger --

much as he just wanted to get in there, he was 
determined for the entire experience to be good for 
Tanner. 

Tanner sighed, relaxing a little more, and started 

riding his fingers like a natural. Almost like the man did 
it every day. 

He spread them inside Tanner, stretching the man 

out. Picking up Tanner's rhythm, he slid his fingers in 
and out. 

"Yeah." Tanner was panting, his legs shifting back 

and forth. 

"Another finger now." He added more slick to it, and 

then pushed it in with the other two. 

Tanner was unbelievably tight and unbelievably hot 

inside. 

"Come on. Please." Tanner's voice was rough, hoarse. 
"Gonna make sure it'll be good for you." His prick 

echoed Tanner, though, jerking and begging for 
attention. 

"It feels good now. So good." 
"Good. Wanna keep it that way." 
He stretched his fingers wide and pushed them in 

deep. 

Tanner shouted, rocking back, then arching up. He 

could hear Tanner's feet drumming on the mattress, the 
sound almost like a military cadence. That was a weird 
thought, huh? 

Grinning, he made sure to hit that same spot again --

it was obviously the spot. 

Fire in the Hole - 17 

"Fuck. Burning up." That was true enough. Tanner 

was on fire. 

He couldn't wait another moment to get inside, be a 

part of that heat. 

Groaning, he tugged his fingers out and got the 

condom wrapper open, despite the slick. Tanner spread 
for him like a hot knife through butter, waiting, panting 
for him. Lining up with that pretty little hole, he pushed, 
his cockhead slowly pushing in. 

"That's... Oh." Tanner moved for him, pushing back 

to meet him. 

He pressed in, not thrusting hard or anything, but not 

stopping his forward movement until he was buried in as 
far as he could go like this, his upper leg between 
Tanner's. 

"Hot." Tanner was moaning out words and only 

about half of them made sense. 

That made him feel good, knowing he wasn't doing 

this in a vacuum. He grabbed hold of Tanner's hip, 
fingers curling around it as he started to pull out again. 
Tanner was with him, moving on him, rocking back and 
forth like crazy. 

"Oh, fuck." 
Tanner was the hottest fucking man ever. Not just hot 

in the fucking sexy way, but hot in the going to burn his 
prick off way, too. It made him harder, made him move 
with more force.

 "I -- big. It's so big. The whole thing." 
"Yeah. Fuck." It was better than he'd ever had. 
Like ever. 
And he wasn't a slut or anything, but he was nearly 

thirty, he'd been around the block a time or two. 

Tanner held on, pushing, really getting into it. He had 

a feeling Tanner thought it was better than okay. 

Fire in the Hole - 18 

He found Tanner's cock and grabbed hold, letting 

their movements push it through his fingers again and 
again. 

"Oh. That's perfect. Fucking perfect." 
He stayed right there, thrusting harder and faster as 

everything began to build up. Win could feel Tanner 
shaking, could feel everything start to fall apart. He was 
almost there himself, his balls pulling up against his 
body. "Okay. Yeah. Come on. Let me feel you." 

"I can. I can do that." Tanner pushed back on his 

cock, then forward on his hand before letting loose, hot 
fluid sliding across his skin. 

Tanner's hot ass tightened hard around his cock, and 

Win shouted as he filled the condom. 

"Fuck." Tanner made this noise, and it sounded 

perfectly happy. 

"Yeah." He patted Tanner's thigh, then grabbed the 

end of the condom and pulled out of Tanner's ass. 

Tanner winced a little, but then melted into him, lax 

and heavy. "I liked that." 

"Yeah, so did I." He grabbed the covers and pulled 

them up. "You like breakfast?" 

"I do. All kinds." Tanner grinned at him, lashes 

drooping. 

"Excellent. There's two things we have in common." 
"I bet we have more than that." Tanner was a fall 

asleep after sex guy. 

"Uh-huh. Be fun finding out." 
He patted Tanner, letting him know it was okay to 

fall asleep. 

The man murmured something completely 

unintelligible and started snoring, just like that. 

Chuckling, Win, settled in, letting sleep take him, 

too. 

Fire in the Hole - 19 

*** 

Tanner woke with a start, completely disoriented. He 

had no idea where he was, but it was comfy. Not too 
hot, which was always his problem with sleeping. 

Someone grunted and a leg slid over his own. Tanner 

stilled, trying not to panic. Nobody touched him for 
long, and he didn't want to burn this guy. 

A cool hand patted his belly. 
Oh, that felt good. So nice.  Tanner hummed, pushing 

into the touch. 

The hand on his belly stroked. "So hot, Tanner. Like 

a furnace." 

"Too hot?" Tanner pondered scrambling away, but he 

stayed still by force of will. 

His companion chuckled -- what was his name again? 

Will? Win? Yeah, that was it, Win. 

"Last time I checked, hot was a good thing." 
"Oh, okay." He grinned a little. Win. The guy's name 

was Win. He had such cool, sweet hands. 

"You into morning nookie?" Win's hand slid around 

his cock without waiting for an answer. 

His hips rose and fell, his cock pushing into that cool 

touch. "I don't know. I mean, I like to jack off." 

"Well, let me do that for you." Win snuggled close 

and smiled against his shoulder, hand working him. 

"I -- I want to do for you, too." He did. He was just a 

little stupid in the morning. 

"You can wait 'til you come if you want." He thought 

maybe he could hear laughter in Win's voice, but just 
then Win squeezed around the head of his prick and all 
thoughts were gone. 

He managed to gasp out something like words, or at 

least he thought so. Then he went into overdrive, 
humping hard. 

Fire in the Hole - 20 

Win's other hand cupped his balls, the touch cool and 

firm. 

His toes curled, his balls drawing up. Funny how ice 

was erotic to someone who burned all the time. 

"That's it, babe. Show me how much you like it." 
"I do." He nodded, panting, a little worried that he'd 

set the bed on fire. 

"Come on, then." Win bit at his shoulder, tongue 

soothing away the sting. 

"Oh, God." He came so hard his teeth rattled. 
"Mmm. God, you smell good." Win rubbed his come 

into his belly, hand still cooler than not. 

"Thanks." He thought he smelled a little funky. Like 

ozone. 

Win nibbled at his shoulder and rubbed lazily against 

him. His head cleared a little when he felt Win's cock 
against his hip. He could help with that. Win kept 
nuzzling his shoulder, kept rubbing against him, breath 
beginning to come faster. 

Tanner got control of his breath and pushed Win over 

on his back, kissing the man full on. 

Win's eyes went wide, but the man moaned into his 

mouth and bucked up against him. 

He managed not to grin, because he didn't want teeth 

involved. Then he reached down and grabbed Win's 
cock. Win nodded, moaning into his mouth. He stroked, 
up and down, letting his fingers find every texture. 

"So much better than jacking off on my own." 
"Yeah. I like it better, too." It was weird. Intimate, 

but strangely familiar. 

Win smiled at him and pushed into his hand.  He 

squeezed, tugging harder, needing to see Win come. He 
could concentrate this time. Win's eyes dropped to half-
mast, his mouth opening on a moan. 

"So pretty." He hoped pretty wasn't an insult. 

Fire in the Hole - 21 

Win grunted, pushed harder into his hand. 
"That's so amazing." He wanted to feel everything. 

Now. 

Win's answer was to cry out, body jerking beneath 

him as spunk poured over his hand. 

"Perfect." It was. It was so damned perfect. 
Win relaxed on the bed, hand sliding around the back 

of his head to bring him down for a kiss. The kiss was 
lazy and happy and all the things he dreamed of when he 
fantasized about having someone. 

"God, you really are hot, you know that? I usually 

wake up freezing, but not this morning." 

"You feel good." What else could he say? It was like 

Win was made for him. 

"Uh-huh." Win's fingers slid up and down his spine, 

the touch still cool, refreshing. "So what was it I 
promised you for breakfast?" 

"I don't remember." He didn't really care, as long as it 

was food. 

"Oh, good, 'cause I don't either, and I'm not sure that 

I've actually got breakfast stuff aside from a box or two 
of cereal." 

"We could go out." That would mean he had to wear 

kind of skanky two-day clothes, but he could suck it up. 

"You don't like cereal?" Win stretched, muscles 

shifting against him. 

"It's okay, but I have to admit, I'd have to eat, like, a 

whole box." 

Win shot him a confused look. "What?" 
Tanner flushed a little. "I eat a lot. I'm sorry." 
Win's hands slid along his body. "No way; you're too 

skinny for that to be true." 

His body warmed even more, blood rushing up under 

his skin. "I can eat like a truck driver." 

Fire in the Hole - 22 

Chuckling, Win patted his ass. "We'd better hit the 

shower and go down to Melanie's Eatery. Because I 
know my cupboard is pretty bare." 

"Okay." That was decent of the man. Tanner hauled 

his ass out of bed and held out a hand. 

Win grabbed it and pulled himself up. "I've got 

sweats with ties that'll probably do you if you don't want 
to put on the same clothes, man." 

Oh, that was more than decent, even if he would 

probably look like a little kid playing dress-up. "That 
would rock." 

"The price is you have to share the shower with me, 

and it's not very big. We'll have to get close." Win was 
grinning. 

"I can handle close." He might steam up the water too 

much, but he could do it. 

Win showed him to the little bathroom and turned on 

the water. Really hot. Then tugged him in. "Let me 
know if it's too hot for you." 

He grinned. He could get it this hot and save 

someone a lot of energy. He waited until Win was 
hunting soap before turning the taps to more cool than 
not. They had the same amount of steam either way. 

Win turned to him when the soap was found, rubbing 

it between his hands and then soaping him up. Even 
with all this hot water, Win's hands didn't seem hot. 

It was stunning, making him shiver a little, his 

nipples drawing up. Win hummed, totally in his personal 
space, hands touching him absolutely everywhere. 
Tanner let himself get lost in it, giving up things like 
worry and secrets. He'd much rather touch. 

"You're so warm." Win seemed fascinated by his 

heat. 

"I'm like a furnace, huh?" He had no idea how else to 

explain it. 

Fire in the Hole - 23 

"Yeah. It's awesome." 
"I like how cool your hands are." He'd said it before, 

but he meant it. 

"Yeah? It kind of freaks some guys out." Win 

shrugged. "I just run cold." 

"I don't think you're cold. Just awesome." He winked 

and grabbed the soap. 

"I'll take that!" Win leaned back against the tile, 

letting him soap up and touch. 

He traced every fine muscle, every little dip and 

hollow. Win's skin was cool, and it didn't seem to heat 
up under his touch. There was something very sexy 
about that. His own skin felt like it was on fire in 
comparison. He pressed his palm over Win's nipple, 
feeling it harden. 

Win reached out and copied him, the cool hand 

making his own nipple ache. 

"Nice." It sounded lame, but it was nice. 
Win nodded, stroked his nipple. He did the same to 

Win, completing the little mirror they had going. Win's 
eyes dropped half-closed, and one hand drifted down to 
stroke Tanner's belly. 

Which growled. Hard. He hadn't been joking about 

needing fuel. He was teetering on the edge of burning 
out. 

Win's eyes met his and the guy started to laugh. 

"Okay. Food. Before that belly of yours grows its own 
mouth and eats me." 

"Oh, no alien baby stomachs, I promise." He might 

get a little... flame-y, though. 

"Uh-huh. That sounded way worse than anything I've 

seen in a movie." Win winked at him and then hauled 
him under the spray and helped him get rid of the last of 
the soapy bits. 

Fire in the Hole - 24 

He did the same for Win, his hands actually cooling 

off a little with the last touches. 

Win turned off the shower and pushed a towel at him. 

"I don't have an extra toothbrush, man, but there's 
mouthwash if you want it." 

"I can use my finger." He hoped. His hands were 

shaking. "Man, do you have any juice?" 

"I got pop in the fridge; I'll get you one. You should 

have said you had blood sugar problems." Win moved 
toward the kitchen. 

Oh, that was a good way to explain it. It really was. 
Win was back a moment later with a can of Sprite, 

even popping the top for him. 

"Thanks." His teeth weren't quite chattering, so he 

managed a gulp, then two. 

"You need another one?" Win looked more than a 

little concerned. 

"Nah. I'm good. Sorry, man. I had no idea I was so 

close to a meltdown." He tried a smile, going for 
reassuring. 

"Yeah? Well, you gotta take care of yourself." 
"Sorry." Shit. He always screwed up somehow. This 

was like a roller coaster. 

"Hey, it's not me who's gonna go into a coma or 

anything. Is it diabetes or hypoglycemia or something?" 
Win went into the bedroom and offered him a t-shirt and 
a pair of sweats. 

He slipped them on, feeling like an idiot. "Low blood 

sugar is the best way to describe it, yeah. Been a while 
since I was so energetic." 

That got him a grin. "I can stock up on chocolate 

bars. Leave them stashed around the bedroom." Win 
waggled his eyebrows. Then he rolled his eyes. "And 
here I am assuming there'll be a next time. Sorry, man. I 
didn't meant to get all 'call me' on you." 

Fire in the Hole - 25 

"Huh? If you give me your number, I will." Every 

day. Like a horny puppy. 

"Yeah? Cool." Win grinned, then hauled him in and 

kissed him, those lips cool against his fire. "Let's go get 
something to eat, then, before you faint on me or some 
shit like that." 

"Okay." He could so handle that. And if Win was this 

willing to overlook him being an idiot now, it boded 
well for future dates or whatever they were. 

Right? 

*** 

Win followed Tanner out of the movie complex, still 

grinning. He did love it when his action was laced with a 
good dose of humor. He and Tanner had been hanging 
out for a few weeks now, going out to eat, seeing 
movies, fucking like bunnies. It was fun, satisfying, and 
Tanner was good company. 

They had a lot in common. They both loved curry, 

they both liked ice cream, and they both preferred the 
gym to jogging or whatever. 

The best part about Tanner, though? When he was 

around, Win was never cold. 

He touched Tanner's hand lightly as they turned out 

of the cinema. "Let's go eat. The Olive Garden has that 
all-you-can-eat pasta special on." He'd never seen 
anyone put food away like Tanner could. Man never put 
on a pound, either. 

"Oh, yum." Tanner nodded enthusiastically, touching 

him back for a moment. They weren't silly enough to try 
and hold hands in this part of town. 

"So what'd you think of the movie? I liked this one 

better than the Bruce Willis one, but I might be a bit 
biased toward the Rock." 

Fire in the Hole - 26 

"Biased? You border on obsessed." They turned 

down the alley that would take them to the nearest bus 
stop, both of them having decided they wanted a few 
drinks with dinner. 

"You've got to admit, the man is a stunner." Win was 

not obsessed. He just appreciated a fine specimen when 
he saw one. 

"He is. I like that Vin Diesel guy, too." It was a good 

thing Tanner appreciated Win's type, too. 

Win nodded -- yeah, Tanner definitely had good taste 

in men. 

They'd gotten halfway down the alley when they 

heard footsteps behind them. Tanner stiffened up. 

Win straightened his back a little, tried to walk with 

more confidence. It was probably just someone else 
using the alley as a shortcut. 

Still, it was good not to look like a victim, right? 

They always said to walk with purpose. He walked a 
little quicker, and Tanner matched his pace. 

The footsteps increased until the guy behind them 

was running. Shit. 

He grabbed Tanner's arm. "Run!" 
"Fuck!" Tanner ran with him, but it only took two 

seconds for something to hit his shoulder hard enough to 
spin him around. 

The first thing he saw was the gun. And the hand 

holding it. 

Tanner grunted, going to his knees as another 

assailant hit him across the back. 

"Wallets!" 
Win was hurting and furious, but he wasn't stupid. 

His money wasn't worth dying over. He reached into his 
pocket for his wallet. 

Tanner turned on his knees, raising his hands. "We 

don't have any cash, man." 

Fire in the Hole - 27 

The gun shook. "Wallets!" 
"Just give him your wallet, man." These kind of guys 

weren't going to care what Tanner said. 

"Okay, okay, just hold on, huh?" Tanner didn't sound 

scared all of a sudden. He sounded mad. 

Shit. Tanner was going to get them both killed -- that 

gun was aimed right at him. 

"Give me your fucking wallet." The guy with the gun 

waved the damned thing and boom. It went off. Win 
opened his mouth to scream, with rage or fear, he wasn't 
sure, and the night went up in flames. 

Literally. 
"Fuck!" He dropped to the ground, reaching for 

Tanner. 

Tanner rolled toward him, and he touched Tanner's 

arm. It was like touching molten lava, almost blistering. 

"Jesus!" He slid his hand down Tanner's arm, then 

touched his lover's chest with his other hand. 

"Tanner?" 
"M'okay. They gone?" Tanner's speech was a little 

slurred. 

He looked around. "Oh, God. They... they're burned 

up." 

He closed his eyes on the gruesome sight and turned 

back to Tanner. "God, are you hurt? You've got a fever 
or something." He kept touching Tanner, and it seemed 
to him that the man's fever was slowly coming down. 

"I'm okay. We have to -- we need to go." Tanner tried 

to stand, but he was shaking hard. 

"We..." They should call the cops or something. But 

the guys who'd tried to mug them were... gone. He 
grabbed Tanner's arm. "Okay, come on." 

Tanner was still so hot that Win's nerves jumped a 

little when they touched. It was crazy. 

Fire in the Hole - 28 

"Man, it's like you're on fire." He wished Tanner 

wasn't so hot; it was worrying him. He grabbed hold of 
Tanner's hand, not caring what people would think, and 
tugged him along. 

"I am, kinda." Tanner barked out a little laugh. "I 

haven't used that much fire since I was a kid." 

He looked at Tanner, hard. "What?" 
"I--" Tanner looked at him, eyes almost glowing. "I 

did that, man." 

If Tanner's eyes hadn't been doing that odd glowing 

thing, if the man hadn't been about fifty million degrees 
hot, Win might not have believed him. As it was, it 
sounded crazy. 

"Okay." He could deal with the crazy later. Right 

now he was pretty sure Tanner needed to eat. Preferably 
ice cream and ice cubes, although, thank God, he didn't 
seem quite as hot as he had just a moment ago. 

They were a couple blocks down and he looked 

around. "There's a bar over there." 

"O-okay." Tanner was wobbling dangerously, but his 

skin was almost back to its normal color, if a little green 
around the gills. 

"You need to eat, right? We'll get something down 

your throat. There's a Joe Hamburger right next to it if 
you think it'll take the bar too long to come up with 
food." Though, honestly, he needed a shot of something 
strong. 

"No, no, the bar is cool." 
He tried not to make it too obvious that he was 

supporting Tanner as they went into the bar. He got 
them a seat near the back, making sure the waitress saw 
them sit so that she'd be by soon. 

Tanner slumped against the wall, his head lolling a 

little. "You okay?" 

Fire in the Hole - 29 

"I'm fine." Okay, not exactly, but he was a hell of a 

lot better than Tanner looked. "I need a drink. 
Something strong." 

"I'm sorry. They were going to hurt you." 
"They were going to hurt both of us. What... what the 

hell happened out there, man?" Win was pretty sure he 
knew, except for the part where it was impossible. 

"They were mugging us." Tanner reached out to 

touch him, and he would swear the fever was back. 

He frowned, reaching out under the table to touch 

Tanner's knee. "That much I'm pretty sure I got right." 

"Oh." Tanner grinned a little. "Well, they didn't." 
He chuckled, squeezing Tanner's knee. He wished 

he'd sat next to the man, because the urge to be close 
was huge. That just might earn them more trouble, 
though. "It's the what you did part that has me ques--" 
He broke off as the waitress arrived at their table. 

"Hey, guys. What'll it be?" 
"Coke for me, please," Tanner said. "And one of 

everything that's deep fried." 

Win grinned. "I need a whiskey, neat, and a Coke to 

chase it down. And he's serious about the one of 
everything." 

The lady blinked, her blue eye shadow crumbling a 

little. "Did you boys see the gas main blow out there?" 

"Yeah, yeah, we did. Big kaboom, eh?" He shot 

Tanner a look. 

"No shit. You want the calf fries, too?" She winked, 

and Tanner gagged. 

"No. No, just the things that should actually be food." 
"You got it. Back in a minute with drinks." 
Win chuckled. "Chicken," he accused, teasing as she 

left. 

Fire in the Hole - 30 

"What? I don't think men would eat other guys' 

testicles unless it's for fun." Tanner was cooler again 
now and had a little color in his cheeks. 

He laughed at that. "Of course, I'm not sure a calf is 

'another guy'?" 

"They have balls." Tanner nodded very seriously. 
Win laughed harder. Maybe he was finding it a little 

funnier than it really was, but it felt good to laugh. 

"Okay. So why does the waitress think there was a 

gas main explosion?" 

"There was a big flare-up of flame." Tanner lowered 

his voice. "It's good that they think that. No one but 
maybe you would believe I did it." 

He squeezed Tanner's knee. "And you did it on 

purpose, didn't you?" 

"I did. I hate to hurt people like that, but I couldn't let 

them shoot us, and I couldn't think of anything else to 
do." 

He nodded. Yeah, he was a fan of being alive. "I can't 

disagree with that." 

"Well, there you go." Tanner shrugged. "I've never 

done anything that big. I'm surprised I'm alive." 

"But you've done that kind of thing before? 

Spontaneously... lit things on fire?" He was pretty sure 
he needed that drink. Like, right now. 

"Oh, yeah. I'm sorry. I know I should have mentioned 

it." Tanner was staring hard at a wet ring on the table. 

"I don't know, I can see how it might be a little, uh, 

difficult to work into conversation." 

Frankly, he wasn't sure how he would have reacted. 

Hell, he wasn't even sure how he was reacting now. The 
whole being held up at gunpoint had already made the 
whole thing freaky. 

"It makes it better. When you touch me." 

Fire in the Hole - 31 

"It does?" He squeezed Tanner's knee. He hadn't 

realized he was still holding it. "How?" 

"I don't know. I just know you have magic hands." 

One of Tanner's hands covered his. 

He turned his hand to hold Tanner's, right there under 

the table, and smiled. "Magic hands. That's me." 

"It's true." Tanner's eyes were back to normal, and 

that smile was almost impish. "It's like when you stick 
your face in the freezer on a really hot day." 

"Yeah?" 
The waitress came with their drinks and he let go of 

Tanner's hand, sat back in his seat. 

"Is that bad?" 
"Thanks, hon. Feel free to bring that food out as it's 

ready instead of all at once." Once she'd gone, he tossed 
back the whiskey, gasping at the burn. "No, I guess not. 
Unless you're saying I'm a cold fish." 

"Hell, no." 
That was gratifyingly fast. 
He watched Tanner down the Coke like the man was 

starving. "That's why you have to eat so much, isn't it?" 

"Huh?" Tanner shook his head as if to clear it. "I 

guess. I've always done it." 

"Always done the fire thing?" It was still a little hard 

to believe. But he'd been there when it had happened. 

"No, the eating thing. I guess I dropped fire the first 

time when I was a teenager." Those shoulders hunched 
up a bit. 

"Wow -- your mom must have shit a pink Twinkie." 
"I don't know." The food started to come, and Tanner 

tucked in, not really answering him. 

He stole bites here and there: a couple of wings, some 

French fries, zucchini sticks, a chicken finger. He had to 
admit he was hungrier than usual, and put it down to 
adrenaline. 

Fire in the Hole - 32 

Tanner finally looked right up to meet his eyes. "I 

know I'm a freak, but I hope you don't run." 

"I haven't left yet," he pointed out. He liked Tanner. 

A lot. While this was a lot to process, Win wasn't at all 
convinced that it was a reason to dump the guy. 

Tanner smiled, looking happy as hell. What a roller 

coaster. 

He stole a couple of battered shrimp, munching on 

them noisily. Suddenly he wanted to be home, where he 
could strip Tanner naked and fuck him until they both 
passed out. 

Tanner glanced at him again, pupils dilating, nose 

working. No way. There was no way Tanner could smell 
his sudden need over the fried food. 

He felt himself responding to that look, though. 
"We could go. I feel better." 
"Yeah? I want to go." He grabbed another chicken 

finger and signaled the waitress. 

"I do, too." 
"'Kay. As soon as we pay for this." Win slid his foot 

forward, touching Tanner's. 

"I can put it on my card." Tanner had come into some 

money in the last few weeks. Not a lot, but he said he'd 
gotten paid for a project. 

Now Win had to wonder what exactly that entailed. 
"Sure. Long as we can get out of here and get home." 

Back to his place, he meant. Of course, he'd never 
actually seen Tanner's place. 

"Yes." Tanner waved the waitress down while 

stuffing in two more chicken fingers. 

Win chuckled and grabbed another zucchini stick. 
They got paid up, got a box for the leftovers, and 

Tanner grabbed his hand on the way out the door. 

Fire in the Hole - 33 

He looked at Tanner in surprise, but he didn't try to 

take his hand back. Tanner's skin was almost cool. Not 
like his own, but for Tanner it was amazing. 

"You good?" he asked as they went out into the 

street. There were two cop cars at the top of the alley 
where they'd been mugged, and he tugged Tanner in the 
opposite direction. Maybe they should find a cab. 

"We'll go this way." Tanner tugged him along faster, 

and yeah, they were headed right for the cab stand 
across the way. 

They slid into the back of the first one, and Win 

rattled off his address. He kept half an eye on what was 
going on back in the other direction. 

The cab took off, and Tanner slumped down next to 

him. "Yay." 

"Yeah. We're safe. Hopefully no one saw what 

actually happened. Because they're not going to find any 
blown-out gas main." 

"They might. There was enough fire to bust one." 

Tanner shrugged, glancing at the cabbie. 

Win got the message and shut up about it. He hoped 

they didn't run into traffic; he wanted to get home and 
fuck Tanner's brains out. 

Tanner's hand landed on his thigh, high up, the pinkie 

side pressing against the seam of his pants. 

He tried to hold back his groan. It felt so good; he 

wanted more, but for where they were, this was great. 

"Shh." Tanner grinned over. "Soon." 
"You're the one who started touching." 
"I know. I can't help it. It feels so good to touch you." 
"Hey, it feels good to be touched, too. Trust me, not 

complaining. Well, aside from the not being able to do 
more thing." 

"Yeah." Tanner's leg started to go up and down, foot 

tapping. Someone was ramped up. 

Fire in the Hole - 34 

He turned and looked out the window, trying to 

figure out how much longer they'd have to endure this 
cab ride. Maybe two minutes. Time was flying, even 
with the need riding him hard. 

He let Tanner fling some money at the cabbie once 

they'd pulled up -- he was busy dragging his key out of 
his pocket. 

Tanner breathed down his neck while he struggled to 

unlock the door. 

It was funny how the minute you were in a hurry, you 

suddenly couldn't do something you usually did without 
even thinking ten times a day. He finally got the door 
open, and they stumbled in together. They closed the 
door, Tanner locking it with a quick 'snick' before 
jumping him. 

He laughed into Tanner's mouth as his back hit the 

wall, his arms wrapping around Tanner's waist so he 
could pull the man even closer. 

The kiss was so hot he felt warm all over, balls to 

bones. That was so rare that he reveled in it a little. He 
got one hand shoved down the back of Tanner's jeans, 
the heat even more intense at the skin on skin contact. 

"Fuck. Fuck. You feel so good." 
"You feel better." 
"Do I?" Tanner pushed into his hand, that skin so 

smooth, so hot. 

"Uh-huh." He was pretty fucking sure of that. 
He squeezed Tanner's ass cheek and rubbed up 

against the man. 

Tanner pushed one leg between his, giving him 

something to hump, but there was too much cloth in the 
way. Not enough touch. 

"Bed." He wasn't getting naked and doing it on the 

hardwood in front of the door. Yet again. 

Fire in the Hole - 35 

"Okay. Come on." Whirling around, Tanner tugged 

him along. 

He was less about the moving and more about the 

tugging shirts out of jeans and opening buttons and 
zippers. Between the two of them, they made it to the 
bedroom and were already half naked when they got 
there. 

Tanner's hands slid over his chest, down to his belly, 

fingers sliding over his nipples on the way. 

Groaning, he pulled Tanner's pants and underwear 

right off, pushing into the touches at the same time. It 
was a miracle they hadn't taken a tumble on the floor 
like their first time. 

"Oh. Oh, more." Tanner's legs spread so he could get 

in there and touch even more, cock pushing against him, 
long and hard and hot. 

He slid one hand around Tanner's balls, the heat here 

bigger than anywhere else. 

Tanner went up on tiptoes, those pretty eyes closing 

for a second. Then Tanner yanked off the rest of Win's 
clothes, getting him pushed down on the bed. He 
wrapped his legs around Tanner's waist, humping them 
together eagerly. 

"Yeah. Yeah." Tanner panted, hands on Win's ass. 
He wanted to fuck Tanner, but he just couldn't seem 

to let go or stop long enough to get what they needed. 
So he just went with it, going for broke as he rubbed 
them together. 

Tanner was all over him, touching him, fingers 

tracing patterns on his skin. They kissed until they 
couldn't breathe, until he thought he might just fly away. 

He loved how hot Tanner was; he always had, and 

now he knew why. Groaning, he pushed Tanner over 
onto his back and rolled on top of him, humping hard. 

Fire in the Hole - 36 

"Fuck..." Tanner wrapped up around him and pulled 

him down. 

Win fucked Tanner's mouth with his tongue, hips 

rolling and rubbing. 

Tanner's fingers dug into his hips, holding on. 

"Mmmph." 

He groaned a little, but he didn't have anything to say 

-- he just wanted to come, wanted Tanner to come with 
him. Tanner nodded, like the man understood, and tried 
to push a hand between them. That hand finally closed 
around both of them, pulling at their cocks. This sound 
came out of him and he bucked hard, come spilling out 
of him. 

"Oh, God." Tanner rocked like a crazy man, his hips 

slamming against Win's. When Tanner came for him, he 
cried out again, just panting. 

He collapsed onto Tanner, panting with the man, the 

two of them sounding like the clichéd steam engines. 

"Wow." Tanner petted his back with the hand not 

caught between their bellies. "That was... wow." 

"Yeah. Needed that, huh?" 
"Yeah. Needed you." That smile made him warm 

inside, just like Tanner's touch warmed his skin. 

He rolled half off Tanner as he caught his breath, an 

arm and leg still holding Tanner close. "Yeah. Strange, 
huh? Weird day." 

"Just a little." That hand stayed curled around his 

cock. "I -- thanks. For bringing me down." 

"All I did was touch you." It hadn't hurt him any at 

all, hadn't made him tired, hungry, nothing. 

"It helped. I swear." Tanner chuckled. "I'm not just 

saying it for nookie." 

That had him chortling. "You don't need to say it to 

get nookie. Besides, I could feel you get cooler. I didn't 

Fire in the Hole - 37 

realize it had anything to do with me, though, 'til you 
said." 

"It does, somehow. No one has ever been able to do 

that." Tanner lay there a moment, still, thinking. 
"Sometimes it makes me really sick." 

"Do you do it a lot?" Was this something Tanner had 

control over? Did it just happen? 

"No! No. I mean, when I get really emotional, I can 

really overheat, you know? That's why... well, I told you 
I didn't do this a lot." Tanner's free hand waved over the 
bed. 

"So you don't have control over it?" He wasn't trying 

to interrogate Tanner, but he figured if they were going 
to keep hanging out -- and he wanted to -- he was going 
to know what was going on. 

"I do, kinda. I mean, I'm not going to set your place 

on fire. I meant to do that earlier." 

"Wow. That's a pretty powerful ability. I bet the 

government would love to have a piece of you." Or, like, 
all of Tanner. 

They'd study him and dissect him and try to figure 

out how to make more of him. 

"Yeah." Tanner grimaced. "Don't tell." 
He chuckled. "Who would I tell? Besides, I can't fuck 

you if you're stuck in a government facility." 

"This is true." Rolling up to one elbow, Tanner met 

his eyes. "Thank you again, man. I mean it." 

"You're welcome. I'm just glad you were there today. 

Or I would have been toast." 

"Or not..." Tanner chuckled, a laugh that turned a 

little hysterical. 

He thumped Tanner in the arm. "No bad crispy 

puns." 

Tanner wheezed. "Sorry. Sorry. Do you have any 

idea how nice it is to be able to laugh about it?" 

Fire in the Hole - 38 

"I bet. I could be more freaked out about it, I guess. 

But you kind of saved my life with it, and frankly, I like 
you." 

"I like you, too." They shared a kiss, which was, of 

course, when Tanner's tummy growled. "Leftovers?" 

"Yeah. Now that we've dealt with the whole nearly 

died adrenaline sex thing, I could eat. A lot." Probably 
not Tanner levels, but he was definitely feeling a need 
for food. 

"Cool." Rolling out of bed, Tanner headed to Win's 

kitchen, naked and easy as could be. It was nice to see, 
how comfortable Tanner was. 

Win detoured by the front hall for the bag of 

leftovers, thinking it was nice having Tanner here, 
period. 

No matter what freakiness came along with the deal. 

*** 

Tanner wandered around the market, stuffing things 

in the little basket slung over his arm. He was making 
dinner for Win tonight, and he wanted to make sure it 
was yummy. 

Making dinner. Him. Mr. I-squat-in-a-room-with-no-

stove. He couldn't believe he'd taken a cooking class at 
one of those fancy stores and was making pasta 
carbonara for someone. 

One minute he was checking out the fresh herbs and 

everything was honky dory, the next a shiver went down 
his spine; he felt eyes on him. It didn't feel good, not like 
when Win watched him. This was... malevolent. 

He tried to look around casually, but couldn't see 

anyone lurking or watching. He could still feel it, 
though. Tanner hurried through gathering the rest of his 

Fire in the Hole - 39 

supplies, wanting to get the heck out of there. Maybe it 
was just the cameras. 

It followed him all the way back to Win's, that 

feeling, growing more ominous the farther he went. 

Shit. He pulled out his cell phone, another indulgence 

he'd gotten since he started dating Win. He'd taken on a 
few odd jobs to keep it, feeling like a real person for the 
first time in forever. He dialed Win's number, walking 
right by the man's building. 

"Hey, Tanner." 
"Hey, babe. I'm going to be a little longer than I 

thought. I think someone is following me." 

"Following you? Are you sure?" 
"Pretty sure." He hadn't seen anyone, or heard them, 

but he knew. He could feel the target on his back. 

"Okay, where do you want me to meet you?" 
"Huh? No, you just stay there." He'd already almost 

singed Win's pretty self during that mugging. Tanner 
didn't want to put the man in danger. 

"If someone's out for you, Tanner, I should be there, 

watching your back." 

"Well, I just didn't want to lead them home." Man. 

He thought of Win's as home. 

"Oh, good idea. Do you think you can lose them?" 
"I think so, yeah. I'll call again in a few." He wanted 

to get well past Win's apartment. 

"No. Stay on the line. And you tell me if it gets 

hinky. Hinkier." 

"Okay." Okay, he could do that. "I need to listen 

now, though." 

"'Kay, babe. Just remember I'm right here." 
"Will do." He didn't hang up, but he put the phone 

down by his side, ducking into a doorway so he could 
hold his breath and listen. 

Fire in the Hole - 40 

A few folks walked by, all of them seeming 

innocuous. He waited, straining to hear, but no one else 
was coming. When he stepped back out onto the 
sidewalk, the feeling of being watched was gone. He 
couldn't quite shake the ominous feeling in his gut, 
though. 

He pulled the phone back up to his ear. "Hey. I guess 

I was being paranoid." 

"Yeah? Good. I was worried." 
"Me, too." He turned, heading back to Win's. He 

needed to cook. 

"So're you coming home now?" 
"Yeah. I'm only a few blocks away." He felt like his 

head was on a swivel, the way he was looking. 

The feeling of being watched didn't come back, 

though, making him feel like he'd been having a 
paranoid moment. 

"Cool. You wanna go down to the bar for supper?" 
"I-- Sure. I was gonna cook, but I can just drop the 

shit off." That way he could cook tomorrow, when his 
nerves settled. 

"Yeah? You sure? 'Cause I'm easy. And also hungry." 

Win laughed. "I'll meet you downstairs?" 

"No, no, I'll come on up and stow the groceries, huh? 

I need to pee, too." 

"Cool, I'll wait for you. That way I can give you a 

proper hello." 

Oh, he liked the sound of that. Somehow he felt like 

he'd been at war. 

He heard a soft chuckle. "For some reason, I don't 

want to hang up." 

"That's okay. I have plenty of battery." He got to 

Win's building, checking right and left before he went 
inside. Nothing. There was nothing, no one. He had to 
shake it off. 

Fire in the Hole - 41 

He hauled his bags up to Win's place and knocked 

with his foot. 

Win opened the door, one hand shoving his phone 

into his back pocket, the other grabbing at him and 
hauling him in. 

"Hey." Tanner grinned. "I didn't mean to panic you, 

babe." 

Win gave him a quick hug and then a sheepish grin. 

"I was overreacting. If someone finds out what you can 
do, though..." 

Oh, man, he hadn't even thought of that. Ray had 

always handled everything for him. He hadn't seen the 
guy in weeks. Tanner kissed Win's cheek. "Let me put 
this away, and we'll go." 

"Yeah. I'm starving. I could use a beer or four, too." 
"You have a drinking problem." It was becoming an 

old joke for them now, after Win's first experience with 
the human flamethrower. It was the opposite, actually. 

Win helped him put away the food, chuckling. 

"Almost as bad as your eating problem." 

"No shit." He nibbled on a grape or two before 

stuffing the rest in the fridge. "I need some fried cheese, 
man." 

"I want wings. You know how I feel about fried 

cheese." Win grabbed his keys and opened the door for 
him. 

It felt safer heading down to the street with Win 

beside him -- two were less vulnerable than one. 
Tanner's shoulders finally eased down from around his 
ears, and he let his fingers brush Win's hand. 

Win's fingers curled around his for half a second. 
Tanner grinned, wanting to skip, which grown men 

did not do, right? Besides, why draw attention to them? 

"So how was your day?" 
"Not bad, up until the walk home. How was yours?" 

Fire in the Hole - 42 

Win shrugged. "It was a day. They all kind of morph 

into each other." 

"Wow." That sounded sad. Tanner knew how it was; 

he used to feel that way. 

Win shrugged again. "I'm not exactly qualified to be 

a brain surgeon or rocket scientist." 

"Yeah? Damn. I was hoping to bump you off for your 

money. Dork." 

Win slugged him in the arm. "Butthead." 
"Hey!" He loved being able to tease. Truth be told, he 

loved being able to have simple companionship with 
someone like Win. 

Win just laughed at his exclamation and bumped 

their shoulders together, their hands brushing casually. 

That felt good, too. They touched a lot. It made him a 

better human being, he was convinced. 

They turned the corner and went into the bar, that 

feeling of being watched not coming back. Maybe it had 
just been his imagination. 

He sure hoped it was. That had been sucktastic at 

best, downright scary at worst. 

They went over to the booth they'd started thinking of 

as theirs. 

"Two beers and a plateful of chicken wings, please." 
"Onion rings, too." They had established long ago 

that if they both ate rings, they could still get it on. 

"Better send out some chicken fingers, too." Win 

gave him a grin. "Someone's looking hungry." 

"Hey, I have stress." He couldn't shake the 

foreboding, even if the urgency was fading. 

"Yeah, I know. We'll feed you and you'll feel better." 
Win was starting to know him so well. 
"Yeah. I will." He waggled his eyebrows. 
Win laughed, touching his knee under the cover of 

the table. 

Fire in the Hole - 43 

He shivered a little, the intimate touch making him so 

damned happy. 

Their beer came first and Win sat back, taking a long 

swig of his. Tanner watched Win's throat working, 
admiring the long lines. It was like the feeling of being 
followed had heightened all his senses. 

Win looked at him and grinned. "What?" 
"Huh?" His leg bounced a little, his foot tapping. "I 

like you." 

"I like you, too. I was just wondering if I had 

something in my teeth or on my face." 

"No. No, I'm just horny all of a sudden." Man, he 

hoped that hadn't come out as loud as he feared. 

Win laughed out loud, snorted even. "We should 

have stayed home, then. Of course, you might have 
expired without the food that's coming." 

"I was going to cook!" Though he might have 

chopped his fingers off. 

"I still don't have proof of this magical cooking 

ability of yours yet." Win's eyes twinkled at him, clearly 
teasing. 

"Yeah, yeah. At least you didn't say mythical." Oh, 

chicken fingers... 

"Oh, man, you should see the way your eyes light up 

whenever food shows up." 

Jack set their food down and asked if they wanted 

anything else before heading back to the bar. 

"It's a necessary thing, man." Fuel good. 
"I know. I'm learning." Win's smile had gone from 

high amusement to something warm. 

"That's good, right?" He paused with a honey-

mustard-covered chicken finger halfway to his mouth. 

Win nodded. "Yeah, it's good. Very good." Win 

leaned in and snagged a bite of the chicken finger right 
out of his hand. 

Fire in the Hole - 44 

"Hey!" Not that he minded sharing. He didn't. But it 

was in the guy code to protest. 

Win shrugged, looking supremely unconcerned. "I've 

got to be quick if I'm going to get a bite in edgewise." 

"Bull." He grinned. 
"Not at all -- you have seen you eat, haven't you?" He 

could see Win trying not to laugh. 

"Well, it's hard to see my mouth." He crossed his 

eyes and squinted down his nose. 

Win's laughter burst out of him, happy and loud, the 

other patrons turning to stare at them. 

He grinned, the last of his tension fading away. 

Which left him a little shaky, so he was glad he had 
food. Which, he had to admit, he was eating pretty 
steadily, Win sneaking bites now and then. 

It was turning out to be a great evening until Ray 

walked in. Tanner stiffened, wondering if that was why 
he'd been feeling that watched feeling. 

Ray came right over to them, smile oozing from his 

face. "Tanner. Long time no see." 

"Yeah." He grimaced, trying not to be too rude. 

"What's up, man?" 

"Been looking for you." Ray gave Win a sideways 

glance and his eyebrows went up. "You want to come to 
the bar for a minute?" 

"Sure." He didn't want Win involved in anything Ray 

had to offer. 

Win's foot touched his leg under the table, the look in 

his lover's eyes a clear wanting to know that everything 
was okay. 

He nodded shortly, trying to help Win understand. 

Then he stood and went up front with Ray. 

Ray had a raised eyebrow again over at Win, but 

soon all his attention was on Tanner. "Got a job for 
you." 

Fire in the Hole - 45 

"I'm not really in the market." He frowned, going for 

repressive. 

Ray laughed, and the sound wasn't friendly at all --

more nasty, slimy. He'd never thought of it precisely that 
way before, but it was true. "Take the job, Tanner." 

"What is it?" He hated the very idea of that look, 

hated that sound. It made his skin crawl. 

"There's a building downtown that needs to 

disappear. Specifically one floor of it." 

"What does that have to do with me?" Okay, he was 

being deliberately obtuse, but he hated that idea a lot. He 
didn't really do stuff that hurt people. 

"Don't play dumb." 
"Why me? I mean, something like this can be done 

with an outlet and a chip bag," 

"They can't trace you, Tanner. You know that. They 

won't be able to find a starter, there won't be any fuel 
laid down. It'll be a nice, clean burn." 

"I don't... No one can be hurt." He just wouldn't do 

that. Those muggers that night were an aberration. 

Ray shrugged. "There'll be less of an investigation if 

there's no one there when it goes up, but the important 
thing is that the sixth floor goes in its entirety." 

"I'm not hurting people for you." Tanner squared his 

shoulders. "And this is my last job." 

"That's not your decision. I know what you do, 

Tanner. I could make real trouble for you." Ray's eyes 
had gone hard, and he passed over a piece of paper. 
"There's the address. It needs to be done by Friday. You 
don't want to let me down on this, Tanner." 

"Wait." He waited until it was almost too late to ask. 

"What's in it for me?" 

"Your usual fee." 
"This is bigger than usual." Maybe he could get Ray 

to give him some up front, then grab Win and run. 

Fire in the Hole - 46 

"And you botched the last job. I told you to take a 

vacation, but it's over now. Don't get uppity with me, 
Tanner. Just think what could happen if your secret got 
out." 

The threat was clear, and the repetition of it let him 

know that Ray was serious. 

"I know." He hung his head, trying to look humble. It 

might have been true once, but now he had this fierce 
need to protect Win. 

"So it's settled. I'll have your payment here on 

Saturday afternoon." 

"I--" He tried to look shifty, maybe get a little whine 

in. He kind of hated himself for it. "I'm broke, man. Can 
I have a couple in advance?" 

Ray looked over his shoulder to where he'd been 

sitting with Win. "Tell your boyfriend you'll pay him 
back on Saturday." 

Shit. Shit, shit, shit. He wasn't going to get any cash, 

and the threat was plain as day. Win might be in big 
trouble. Because of him. 

"Don't do anything stupid. Just get it done by Friday, 

Tanner. " 

"I will." He put all of his small ability to lie into the 

words, which meant he'd have none left for Win. Christ, 
he didn't want to explain this. 

Looked like it was time to run. Sadly, this time he 

had something he didn't want to leave. 

"Good." Ray was back to the smarmy smile. "Go get 

drunk and get laid and do the job in the morning." 

He nodded, watching Ray leave. Then he headed for 

a bathroom. Maybe there would be a window he could 
crawl out. 

*** 

Fire in the Hole - 47 

Win watched Tanner talking to the asshole. Win 

knew the guy was an asshole from the way Tanner was 
all tight and stressed. When they finally parted ways, 
Tanner ducked off toward the bathroom and Win 
frowned. 

Something told him Tanner wasn't coming back out, 

at least not by the door. It was like a cold chill in his 
back, a hard frost in his hands. This was bad. 

He threw some money down on their table and left 

the pub, heading for the alley at the back of the place. If 
he was wrong, he'd go back in and they could finish 
their meal, their beers. 

He wasn't wrong. Not two seconds after he got to the 

alley, Tanner popped out the window. 

Son of a bitch. Win raised a hand and opened his 

mouth to call out, but he didn't. He was going to follow 
Tanner. 

Tanner's shoulders slumped, his hands in his pockets. 

He looked utterly defeated. 

Damn it, what was going on? 
Win followed, staying back far enough not to be 

seen. He hoped. 

Tanner was on a mission, head down. He wasn't 

meeting anyone, he was just going. 

What the hell? 
Win kept following, feeling bad for being so 

underhanded. But then, Tanner had just ditched him 
without even a "back in a minute," right? 

Tanner glanced back, and Win froze, but it was just a 
furtive thing, so he thought he was safe. He couldn't 
decide if he was more mad or disappointed or worried. 
So he just kept following. Tanner turned down a narrow 
alley a few blocks later, then stopped in front of a fire 
escape. 

Fire in the Hole - 48 

Win stopped, leaning against a wall at the entrance to 

the alley. What now? 

Tanner shook his head and moved on. It was tough to 

keep close enough in the alley to see but not to be 
noticed. 

He stopped at the fire escape himself, looking up, 

moving to look at it from several angles. What was that 
about? 

Then he hurried on after Tanner. 
Tanner turned up past Win's apartment, crossing the 

street away from it, his shoulders hunching up even 
more. It gave Win a little bit of satisfaction. 

He grabbed his cell phone and dialed Tanner's 

number. Time to ask where the hell the man was and 
what he was up to. As far as he was supposed to know, 
Tanner was in the bathroom at the pub, right? 

Tanner stopped, pulling his phone out of his pocket 

and staring. Even from a distance Win could see him 
waver. 

Come on. Answer it. Please. 
Tanner finally did, every line of the skinny body 

tensing. "Hello?" 

"Babe, you fall in the can or something?" Win 

watched Tanner, waiting for the lie. He'd thought they 
had something together. He really had. 

"I--" Tanner shook his head. "I'm in trouble, Win. It's 

better if you stay away." 

He took a deep breath, so relieved. "Wouldn't it be 

better if you told me about it and we put our heads 
together and solved it?" 

"I don't know if I can. He threatened you." 
"Then I think I'm already involved, aren't I?" He 

started down the alley toward Tanner. 

"You-- " Tanner whipped around to stare at him. 

"You followed me?" 

Fire in the Hole - 49 

He closed his phone and shrugged. "You looked like 

you were going to run." 

"I was." Those pretty eyes were just miserable. 
"Come home, Tanner. And you can tell me all about 

it." 

He'd find that guy who'd accosted Tanner and beat 

him for that look in Tanner's eyes. 

"I'm a mess, man. He wants me to do this job." 
"What kind of a j-- Oh. You mean with that thing you 

can do." He started walking back toward his place, glad 
it wasn't too far. 

"Yeah. They've always been small, at least to me. 

Like insurance shorts. This one... it could hurt 
someone." Tanner followed, voice hollow-sounding. 

"Jesus. Tan..." He put his hand in the small of 

Tanner's back and, after checking the street, urged him 
up the stairs. 

"I know, right? I thought about asking you to leave 

town with me, but you have a life." 

Win snorted. He worked at an ice-packing plant. 

"The best part of my life is you, man." 

"Yeah?" A spark of hope lit deep in Tanner's eyes. "I 

don't know what to do." 

"When are you supposed to do this job?" 
"I'm supposed to get paid Saturday." 
"So we're safe if you come back to my place and we 

figure this out." He looked around, feeling very exposed 
all of a sudden. "We need to get off the street." 

"Okay." Tanner seemed pretty willing to let him do 

the thinking. Poor guy. 

He grabbed Tanner's arm and headed them toward 

home, walking fast. 

"What if someone comes to your apartment? I don't 

want you to not be safe." 

Fire in the Hole - 50 

"My place has to be less well known than yours. 

We'll bar the doors and close the blinds and figure this 
out, okay?" 

"Okay." Tanner finally nodded decisively, reaching 

out to touch his hand. 

He grabbed it and they made it the rest of the way to 

his place, moving up the stairs quickly. 

Tanner stood just inside the door when they got there, 

like he didn't belong anymore. He hated that, because it 
wasn't true. This was his place and Tanner was welcome 
here. Always. He pressed Tanner up against the door 
and kissed him. 

Tanner made this amazing noise, relieved and happy-

sounding all at once. Those thin arms went around him 
and Tanner kissed him back. 

Win felt relief go through him, too. They still had this 

-- Tanner still wanted it. 

He could feel how much Tanner wanted it in the 

strength of Tanner's grip on his arms, in the way 
Tanner's leg pushed between his. Groaning, he dove into 
the kiss, making it deeper and rubbing them together. 

Tanner moaned, holding on tight, then letting go to 

scrabble at his clothes. 

Yes. Yes, this was still good, still right. He tore open 

Tanner's shirt, buttons going flying. 

Nodding, Tanner shrugged off the fabric, baring all 

that skin for him. His shirt went the same way. 

He slid his fingers down along Tanner's chest, thumb 

flicking at one nipple as his hand slid by. 

"Oh!" Tanner jumped and grinned. "More." 
He grinned back and humped against Tanner, his 

fingers exploring the long, lean torso. 

This was good. It was really good, and damn it, there 

wasn't anything keeping him here that he couldn't find 
somewhere else. 

Fire in the Hole - 51 

He put all that into the kiss. 
He thought Tanner got it. He really did. The kiss 

warmed him all the way to his toes, and Tanner started 
moving them toward the bedroom. 

He followed Tanner's lead; they could talk about 

what they were going to do after. Now it was time to 
reconnect, to remind Tanner that no one was alone here. 
No one had to run off. They had each other to touch and 
need and love. 

He bent to find Tanner's nipple with his lips, touching 

it with his tongue, too. 

"Good. That feels so good." The feverish heat of 

Tanner's skin was so good against his mouth, his body. 

"Love how hot you are." His fingers found the dips 

next to Tanner's hips, slid along them. 

"You feel amazing. I can't describe it..." Tanner 

touched him, fingers sliding down his back to grab his 
ass. 

"Just show me." He grinned, bit at Tanner's nipple, 

took a kiss. 

"Okay." Tanner rolled them, then bent to kiss him, 

then started licking and sucking and kissing a trail down 
his body. 

Humming, he arched up into Tanner's kisses, his cock 

taking a definite notice of the direction Tanner was 
traveling in. So much notice, in fact, that when Tanner's 
face came level with his hips, his cock slapped the man 
on the cheek. 

"Please," he murmured. Not that he didn't think 

Tanner wasn't going to suck him off, but he wanted to 
make sure Tanner knew he really wanted it -- wanted 
Tanner. 

"Yum." The little murmur was all the warning he got 

before Tanner sucked him in. 

"Oh, God!" He might have whimpered a little. 

Fire in the Hole - 52 

Tanner went all the way down, then back up, before 

starting a good rhythm. 

"Fuck!" He slid his hands through Tanner's hair, 

trying hard not to pull on it. 

They moved together, Tanner giving him the perfect 

amount of pressure, the best kind of care. Those lips 
were like fire on his skin, making him burn so good. 

"Gonna make me blow, Tanner." 
"Mmmhmm." Tanner didn't seem to mind that 

thought at all. 

His hips started moving, pushing his cock into the 

heat of Tanner's mouth. 

Tanner held him close, fingers digging into his ass. 
"God. Fuck. Tanner." The words poured out of his 

mouth, and then he bucked and the spunk poured out of 
his cock. 

Tanner drank him down, licking him all the way up 

to the tip. He shivered and groaned, his hands stroking 
through Tanner's short hair. 

"Mmm. That was nice." Tanner could be the king of 

the understatement. 

"It was fucking awesome." He patted Tanner's head 

and got his brain moving again. "What about you?" 

"Mmm. Hot. So hot, babe." Tanner was rubbing on 

the bed a little. 

"I know you are." He laughed and rolled them, 

putting Tanner on his back. "I meant what can I do to 
make you feel good." 

"Oh. Touch me? That always feels so good." Tanner 

was reaching for him, those hands landing on his chest. 

He wrapped his hand around Tanner's prick. If 

Tanner was hot as fire everywhere else, there was a 
blazing inferno here. The muscles in Tanner's thighs 
jumped, the man's hips rising and falling. The skin of 
Tanner's chest and neck flushed a deep rose, so pretty. 

Fire in the Hole - 53 

He buried his face in Tanner's neck, pulling the 

smells into his lungs. Sweat and heat and man, with a 
hint of ozone. It was weird, how sexy that was. He 
stroked Tanner's cock the way he'd learned got Tanner 
the most turned on. 

"Uhn." Tanner arched, his whole body bowing. 

"More." 

"Yeah. Gonna make you come all over." 
"You are." Those green eyes flashed to meet his. "I 

want that." 

"Uh-huh." He grinned and took a kiss, his fingers 

squeezing tight on the upstroke. 

"Mph." Tanner wrapped one leg up around his hip, 

kissing him, clinging to him. 

"God, you're hot." He meant more than just in 

temperature. 

"Please." Tanner seemed pretty much beyond 

conversation now, that fine body moving and twisting 
and begging. 

He'd have returned the blowjob, except he didn't 

think Tanner was going to last long enough. Instead he 
bent his head and sucked on Tanner's nipple. 

"Yeah. Oh. That..." When he bit down, Tanner cried 

out, bucking hard enough to lift Win off the bed. Tanner 
came for him, wet heat spilling over his hand. 

God, he loved that smell. He liked the taste, too. He 

brought his hand up and licked the taste of Tanner off it. 

Tanner watched him, eyes dark, almost bruised. "I 

don't want to do this job, Win." 

"I'm guessing you can't just tell them no." 
"He told me to take some time off, but that was right 

before I met you." That had been awhile. 

"So... do you, like, owe them money or something?" 

He was trying to figure out just how deep Tanner was 
into this guy. 

Fire in the Hole - 54 

"No. No, it's just, there are only so many kinds of 

jobs for a guy like me." Tanner gave a helpless shrug. 
"He knows a lot about me. I told you, he's been my 
handler for years." 

"Will leaving town get him off your back?" 
"Maybe?" Tanner grinned. "You have a life, babe." 
"What life? Like I said on the street, there's nothing 

keeping me here if you aren't." 

"Really?" That smile was worth all the trouble. 
"Yeah, man. Really." He was kind of laying it on the 

line here; there was always a chance Tanner didn't feel 
anywhere near the same way about him. "The world's 
our oyster, right?" 

"It is." Tanner reached up and touched his cheek. 

"We could make a whole new start." 

"We could." He smiled, nuzzling into the touch. He 

could work anywhere. 

"Then that's what we'll do. I -- I didn't want to go 

without you, Win." 

"No, you're not going without me." He'd followed 

Tanner on his little out the window adventure, after all. 
He wasn't going to abandon the man now. 

"I bet there's an overnight bus to somewhere." 
"We should pack." Not that Tanner was moving. 
"Yeah. Bring what? Some clothes?" He looked 

around the place. He wasn't married to any of this 
furniture. He had a pocket watch he thought had 
belonged to his grandfather, but that was about it on the 
personal items front. 

Which was kind of sad if he thought about it, so he 

didn't. 

"Then we just have to wait until dark." 
He raised his head and looked out the window. 

Already dusk. "Do we need to hit your place before we 
go to the bus station?" 

Fire in the Hole - 55 

"No. No, but I do have a locker at the bus station. My 

stuff is there." 

He blinked at Tanner, just a bit. Did the man not 

really have anywhere to stay? Was that why they always 
hit his place? 

Win decided it didn't matter. 
He finally made himself get up. "You need more food 

before we go, don't you?" Tanner'd hardly eaten 
anything. 

"I do, yeah. I'll get the shakes." Rolling off the bed, 

Tanner came to give him a hug, surprisingly strong. 
"Thank you." 

"You're welcome." He gave Tanner a grin, but 

privately, he thought that maybe there wasn't anything 
he wouldn't do for Tanner. 

It was a scary thought, so he pushed it out of his head 

and grabbed his backpack, moving to his drawers to 
pack what he'd need to start over somewhere else. 

Funny, how the thought didn't make him cold at all. 

*** 

It felt so weird to be sneaking out of town in the 

middle of the night. 

Not weird leaving with Win; the fact that Win was 

willing to just pick up and go left him almost giddy. 
What was weird was feeling like Ray was the enemy. 
The man had been his only friend a good while. 

How sad was it that he'd felt like Ray was a friend 

until he met Win? 

Win came over to where he was waiting in the 

shadows, flashing two tickets and a grin. "Gate four. It 
leaves in ten minutes." 

Fire in the Hole - 56 

"Cool." He'd already grabbed his stuff out of his 

locker. Not much, just an ID, some cash, and a book 
with his birth certificate and all. 

Tanner nodded toward the gate and they headed 

there. "I grabbed some snacks, a couple Cokes." 

"Cool." Things were going really well. Tanner hoped 

it wasn't too well. 

Win glanced around as they got to the gate. The bus 

was already loading, and they joined the line for it, 
tickets in hand. 

The hair rose on the back of his neck just as Win 

stepped up on the first step. This time he didn't have to 
look far to see who was watching. One of Ray's guys 
stepped up and dug a gun into his ribs so fast that no one 
would know they were anything but friends. "Dude, glad 
I caught you. Come chat a minute." 

Win's head whipped around, his lover's eyes 

narrowing immediately when they caught sight of the 
guy. 

Tanner shook his head at Win, trying to make him 

understand. Just go. 

Win climbed down the stairs, glaring at the guy. 

"What do you want with my boyfriend?" 

Boyfriend. Oh, that was... a really bad idea. Tanner 

opened his mouth to tell the goon that Win was crazy, he 
didn't know Win at all. What came out was a grunt when 
the gun jabbed into his side. 

Win looked like he was going to lose it. "I think you 

should walk away from him. Now. Before something 
bad happens here." 

"Nothing is going to happen." The man drew Tanner 

away from the not-so-curious attendant, who was stoned 
out of his gourd. "He's not going to chance burning you 
up." 

Fire in the Hole - 57 

The guy was right. Tanner couldn't set any fires. Not 

with the diesel the bus was spewing. 

Win kept up with them, damn it, eyes on the man 

holding him against his will. The air almost seemed to 
vibrate with the tension. 

He could feel the heat building in his belly, in his 

chest. He couldn't release it, though. He just couldn't. A 
huge flare-up of flame would be a signal fire, drawing 
attention. 

Win's eyes were cold, the blue almost like ice chips. 

He'd thought that the first time they met, that Win had 
these amazing, polar eyes. 

"Look. Just go away -- nobody has to get hurt here." 
Win glanced at him, giving him a half smile before 

turning that glare back on Ray's man. 

"Can't do it. We're already in too much on this job." 

The guy kept pulling. Once they were out of sight of the 
bus, Tanner dug his heels in. 

"I'm not going." 
Win walked up to them and grabbed Tanner's arm. 

"We're out of here. Give him a taste of it, man, and we'll 
go." 

"I--" He wasn't sure if he could. Not with the gun and 

with Win touching him... 

"I'm gonna start shooting in a second," hissed the 

man with the gun. 

"No, you're not." Win shook his head. "He's too 

important to you alive." 

"Win." Tanner was afraid. Last time he just hadn't 

been able to control it enough. He could have hurt Win, 
and they needed to duck out of town quietly, not in a 
blaze of glory. 

"Maybe he is, but you're not." The gun was suddenly 

aimed straight at Win instead of him. 

Fire in the Hole - 58 

Rage built in him, and Tanner let the fire grow, let it 

slide up his spine and down toward his fingertips. 
Before he could let it loose and unleash hell, though, the 
gunman started screaming. 

He dropped the gun, which shattered as it hit the 

floor, and he'd gone pale, his lips almost blue. 

Tanner jumped back, staring. He hadn't. He couldn't. 

The man's breath came out in icy plumes. 

"Oh, God." Win was shivering, eyes wide as he 

stared at the guy with the gun. "Tanner! We gotta get out 
of here, man." 

"I -- the bus, do you think?" They could easily make 

it to the bus and be gone. He grabbed Win's arm, which 
felt frozen. "God." 

A full-body shiver went through Win, his teeth 

clattering together like it was freezing outside. Win 
nodded. "Yeah. Come on. We just need to go." 

"Okay." Tanner grabbed the tickets; they'd fallen on 

the ground in the shuffle. Then he dragged Win, who 
was moving like molasses in winter, to the bus. 

They climbed on, Tanner giving Win a good shove to 

get him up. They went all the way to the back of the bus, 
dropping into the last set of seats. 

Win was shivering like crazy. "Shit, Tanner. When 

did it get so cold?" 

"It's not, babe." Win was, though. Win was freezing. 

Tanner moved as close as he could, trying to share his 
considerable warmth. 

"Oh, God, you're so warm." Win pushed into him, 

head on his shoulders, hands sliding under his T-shirt. 
They were like ice. 

"Dude." It was starting to sink in. Win had done that. 

He's made the guy freeze damn near to death. "I've never 
seen anything like that." 

Fire in the Hole - 59 

Win just shuddered, skin feeling a little bit less frigid 

as he held on. 

"I got you, man." They could talk later. For now, Win 

needed to warm up. Tanner's brow furrowed as he 
concentrated. He fed warmth into his hands, transferring 
it to Win. 

"Oh..." Win moaned and relaxed against him, 

breathing hard, like he'd been running for miles. 

"That's it." He could do this. Usually his fire wasn't 

something he could control too much, but for Win, he 
would do it. 

"Oh, better. Oh, God, Tanner." 
"Shh." Luckily, the bus was mostly empty when they 

pulled out, so they weren't drawing attention. "You did 
that for me." 

"What? I did what?" Win drew back, eyes wide. 
He stroked Win's cheek. "You froze him out." That 

made him chuckle a little. It was a good word play. 

"Me? How?" 
"I don't know." He didn't understand the science of it. 

It was like something out of a sci-fi movie. 

Win shook his head, a trembling hand reaching out to 

touch his chest. "You're the special one, man." 

"You worked it, though." He put his hand over Win's, 

rubbing a little to warm it. 

"I have no clue what I did." 
"I don't either." He remembered that, how it felt the 

first time he'd seen what he could do. It was fucking 
scary. 

Win shook his head. "I don't believe it." 
"I know. It's weird." He grinned a little, pecking a 

kiss on Win's nose, which looked frost-nipped. 

Win shivered again. "You're nice and warm. And I'm 

starving. Where're those chips?" 

Fire in the Hole - 60 

"Here." They had managed to get on the bus with 

their packs; no small feat, considering the situation. 

"Cool." Win ate like he was starving, sucking back 

on the Coke, too. Tanner knew the feeling. 

More and more he was convinced that Win could do 

with ice what he did with fire. No wonder they got 
along. 

Win sat back, leaning against his shoulder once he'd 

devoured most of their food and all but a couple 
mouthfuls of their Cokes. "I don't know, man. This is 
kind of freaky." 

"It is. I mean, not to me. To me it's cool." It seemed 

important that Win know that he wasn't freaked. 

Win looked him in the eye. "Yeah? For real?" 
"For real. I mean, it kind of makes me think you're 

made for me." He rubbed Win's arms, feeling the skin 
lose its icy cast. 

Win laughed at that, then stopped and nodded. "You 

know, that makes sense. We're like opposites." 

"We are. You know they attract." 
"That's what I've heard." Win rolled his neck and 

looked out the window, relaxing as they came in sight of 
the highway. "So we're like hot and cold, huh? I mean, I 
knew what you could do, but I never..." 

"You help me when I get too hot." He chewed his lip, 

thinking. "I guess it makes sense, huh?" 

Win nodded. "You sure warmed me up quickly 

enough. I thought I was going to die of frostbite there 
for a minute." Win frowned, twisted the cap on the Coke 
bottle. "You don't think I killed that guy back there, do 
you?" 

"No." Tanner chuckled. "He was breathing. You 

killed his gun, though." 

Fire in the Hole - 61 

Win grinned. "Shocked the hell out of me when he 

dropped it and it shattered. I still can't quite believe I did 
that." 

"You did." He glanced around, then kissed Win hard. 

No one was watching. 

Groaning, Win latched a hand around his arm, tongue 

pushing against his lips. 

They clung together, his body heating Win's, the 

feeling so good. He loved to be able to do something 
right. 

Their lips parted and Win rested their heads together. 
"This is good, Win. I knew you were special before I 

knew this. Now, though..." He wasn't letting the man go. 

"Now we're on the run together." 
"Men of mystery." They wouldn't do what he'd been 

doing when they started over, though. They'd get real 
jobs. 

Win laughed. "Superheroes?" 
"Circus freaks." He started chuckling, not able to 

resist. 

"I bet that's closest." Win sobered suddenly "We 

can't, though. We can't do anything that'll draw attention 
to ourselves." 

"I know. I know." That would get them caught, 

studied. "We can do this." 

"Live on the lam together? I can think of worse 

things." 

"Me, too." He so could. "I -- I think I might be in 

love with you, Win." 

Win smiled and kissed him again. 
They were definitely meant to be. 

End. 

Fire in the Hole - 62 

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and 
incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or 
are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, 
locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely 
coincidental and beyond the intent of either the author or the 
publisher. 

Fire in the Hole 
SINGLE SHOT 
An imprint of Torquere Press Publishers 
PO Box 2545 
Round Rock, TX 78680 
Copyright © 2011 by Lorne Rodman 
Cover illustration by Alessia Brio 
Published with permission 
ISBN: 978-1-61040-259-0 

www.torquerepress.com 

All rights reserved, which includes the right to reproduce this 
book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever except as 
provided by the U.S. Copyright Law. For information address 
Torquere Press. Inc., PO Box 2545, Round Rock, TX 78680. 
First Torquere Press Printing: July 2011 
Printed in the USA 

Fire in the Hole - 63