Excerpt from my as yet unnamed Tesla/Houdini story. For Goose.
He threw Houdini against the wall, turned him so they were facing one another, and began to unbutton his dress shirt. Tesla pulled the shirt out of Houdini’s trousers and finished with the buttons. He yanked it down the young man’s shoulders and off his arms, discarding the clothing on the ground.
“What are you doing?” Houdini asked in anger. For the first time Tesla looked into his face. Houdini could not have been more than twenty-five, probably younger. His cheeks were sharp and his chin narrow. There was no denying that he was handsome. His eyes were deep blue and his hair was dark brown and tousled.
“Checking you,” Tesla stumbled out, for a moment taken aback by the fire that swayed in the pools of Houdini’s eyes. Tesla began to unbuckle Houdini’s belt, but the younger man pushed him away.
“Checking me for what?” Houdini asked, angrier than before. He stood tall and puffed out his chest, ready for a fight if necessary.
“Weapons,” Tesla answered. He moved forward again to keep searching, but Houdini batted his hands away and pushed him against the opposite wall. He ran a hand down Tesla’s side and around to the small of his back to find the gun.
“Apparently I’m the one who should be worried about you,” Houdini said. He did not pull the gun but remained with his hand around it, keeping close to Tesla.
“Who are you?”
“Nikola Tesla,” he answered in a whisper, his eyes roamed up and down the man who stood so close to him. Tesla could smell the man’s cologne, could feel the heat from his body, and just barely pick up the small quiver in the man’s gut. Tesla realized Houdini was nervous.
