The Night the Lights Went Out in Chicago

Chapter 2



In the thirty minutes they had been stuck in the elevator, Lexi had learned five things. Number 1, emergency lighting is borderline romantic. Number 2, Sam could do one hell of a Keanu Reeves impression when prompted. Number 3, Sam smelled better than any man she had ever met, including her ex-boyfriend and it was starting to get to her. Number 4, he turned fifty times more attractive now that she had talked to him, especially since he had a killer sense of humor. And number 5, if anything was going to happen with this boy, she was going to have to make the first move, because he was pretty much oblivious to all the signals she had been giving. And boy had she been giving them.



She was using every trick in her arsenal to get any reaction out of him. She had crossed and re-crossed her legs (which she believed to be her best feature), she had batted her eyelashes; she had even taken off her suit jacket. Hell, the only thing left for her to do was to come out and say what was really on her mind. And being a nice, polite Southern girl, she didn’t see that happening. Sometimes she wished she had been raised different, or at least didn’t have that voice in her head that sounded alarmingly like her mother that evaluated all her decisions. She wasn’t a prude by any means, but she certainly didn’t go around throwing herself at strangers.



But Sam didn’t seem like a stranger. He had been nice to her since they had been trapped, making sure she was as comfortable as she could be. He had made her laugh and on more than one occasion had laughed at something she said. It wasn’t bad enough that his broad shoulders and gorgeous face were giving her fits and causing her blood pressure to rise, he had to go and have the cutest personality of any guy she’d met in a long time. She had been giving herself pep talks for about 10 minutes now, trying to get up the courage to make a move, but it wasn’t working. If she could only get a sign that he was interested, she’d shove aside years of being cautious and see what would happen.



Instead, she sat across the elevator from him, trying not to stare wistfully at him. It looked like this was going to be yet another missed opportunity for her; her unlucky star had decided to make another appearance. Before she could stop herself, she sighed out loud. Sam, who had been obviously lost in thought, asked politely, “Are you okay?”



Lexi smiled slightly before answering, “I’m fine.” Since telling him that she wanted his body was completely out of the question, she decided to tell a little white lie. “I think I’m just getting a little claustrophobic, that’s all.”



She immediately felt guilty about her fib, because Sam’s expression turned worried. “I’m sorry, I didn’t even think about that. Is there anything I can do?”



She really hoped that none of the thousand or so indecent responses she had to that question were evident on her face. “No, I’ll be okay. I just hope we get out of here soon.” She saw a frown flicker across his features. “Don’t you?”



Sam had noticed Lexi growing more and more tense as time passed and cursed himself for not guessing the reason behind it. Of course she didn’t want to be trapped in this tiny box with a complete stranger any longer than she had to be. He, on the other hand, was having a great time. He supposed having spent so much time in the front seat of the Impala had been helpful, because he wasn’t feeling at all cramped. He instead was focused on how nice it was to be around a normal person. He almost felt normal, sitting there, other than he was talking to the prettiest girl he had seen in a long time. He had noticed her when they were standing in adjacent lines in the lobby, even without his brother’s less than subtle hinting. She was naturally beautiful, wearing minimal makeup and a flattering, but modest suit. What had really gotten him, as they had sat a few feet from each other, was her laugh. She had the most attractive, alluring and seductive laugh he had ever heard. It rushed over his skin almost as much as a physical touch would have. And the fact that she had laughed with him made it that much better…or worse, depending on whom you asked.



To counter his reaction to her (which was getting difficult to hide), he had been uncommonly still, sitting in one place while Lexi had begun to fidget. This might have given off an impression of calmness, but his mind was racing the entire time. There weren’t many times in Sam’s life that he wished he were more like his brother, but this was definitely one of those times. Sam had always been less than confident in regards to interaction with the opposite sex, ever since he had sprouted up three inches in one summer and the girls in his grade had started staring at him. It hadn’t helped that he had Casanova Winchester living in the next room, or at times the same room, during his adolescent years. Dean had always won over girls effortlessly, where Sam had struggled to have a conversation with one. As he had grown older, he recognized that he was reasonably attractive, but he still couldn’t get over his nerves around pretty women. This time, though, he decided to go out on a limb. He was going to answer her question honestly.



“No, actually, I’m pretty happy where I am,” he said, a light blush spreading across his cheeks.



Lexi blinked a couple times, processing his response. “Oh,” she murmured, surprised. It took a few heartbeats before she forced herself to meet his gaze. His brown eyes were warm and friendly as before, but now they held something more. Her stomach turned a quick flip as she recognized it, the sign for which she had been waiting. If she was going to make a move to encourage Sam, now was the time to do it. “Well, I guess the company does make it much more bearable,” she commented, her lips curving up into what she hoped was an inviting smile.



The temperature in the elevator jumped about 20 degrees. Suddenly, they both knew that anything they said or did would have underlying meaning. “It could be a lot worse,” Sam said, shifting his long legs over a little. The movement brought his jean-clad legs in contact with her bare ones. “You could have been stuck in here with my brother. He would have been serenading you with the best of mullet rock.”



He earned another laugh from her. “He would get along great with Mac then. She’s a southern rock fan, through and through.” Now that Sam had made the initial contact, she had decided all bets were off. It was her turn, and she slipped her foot beneath his calf. She heard him suck in a deep breath and he didn’t protest, so she knew she had successfully conveyed her feelings. What she didn’t know was that she was playing with fire.



Sam may have been unsure about his ability to attract a girl, but none whatsoever regarding his knowledge of what to do with one once he had her attention. He slid slowly to the other side of the elevator, with Lexi’s eyes on him the whole time. He sat directly next to her, close enough that her shoulder touched his bicep. “Maybe we should introduce them,” he said, remembering that they were having a conversation.



Lexi wasn’t sure what to say next. She knew without a doubt that she didn’t want to discuss her best friend or his brother, but she didn’t want to be rude. His new location didn’t help her concentration either. She felt completely dwarfed sitting next to him, something she secretly loved, and his scent and warmth were enveloping her. She turned to face him and met his gaze. His eyes had grown darker and if she wasn’t mistaken, were focused on her mouth. To test this theory, she swiped across her bottom lip with the tip of her tongue. She got her answer when Sam groaned out loud.



Before she could blink, his hand was on the back of her neck, gently pulling her towards him. She closed her eyes in anticipation and felt his lips brush hers softly. She sighed and he took this as the acceptance that it was. The next touch of his mouth was firmer and more inviting, enough that she skimmed her hand closest to him up his arm to rest on his shoulder. His free arm snaked around her back, drawing her into his embrace. She tilted her head to the side, wanting him to deepen the kiss. And he did.



Heat flooded through her body as Sam swept the inside of her mouth with his tongue. She gripped his shoulder reflexively, holding on for dear life. For a guy she thought was shy, he sure did know how to kiss. When his teeth nipped at her lower lip, she gasped, shocked by his slightly aggressive display. He leaned far enough away from her so that she could see his face. If she thought he was hot before, she had been mistaken.



His heavy-lidded gaze swept her and she noticed his eyes had changed to a deep, dark brown. He was breathing harder, as was she, and as she watched him, he swallowed hard. Then he asked, “Are you okay with this?”



Instead of verbalizing her answer, she ran her hand down his arm, then up underneath the sleeve of his t-shirt. She went dizzy with arousal as his large bicep flexed under her fingertips, showing her just how strong he was. He’s seriously ripped, she thought before he recaptured her lips in another searing kiss. That was to be the last rational thought she had for awhile.



When Sam knew for sure that Lexi was 100% behind this idea, he finally let go off his control. With one firm tug, she was sitting in his lap, which made both of them happier. Her skirt had ridden up her thighs when he moved her, displaying more of legs. This didn’t go unnoticed by Sam, who ran a large hand up one, from her ankle to upper thigh. Lexi gasped into his mouth, surprised at the liberties he was taking, and with how much she liked them. They continued to kiss, pausing only when breath was needed.



Remembering what she had partially discovered before, Lexi’s hands began a journey of their own, finding the bottom of his t-shirt and delving underneath it. Sam grunted appreciatively as her hand swept over his abs and up to his chest, flicking a flat nipple along the way. He wrenched his lips away from hers, only to slide them across her check and over to her ear. She couldn’t stop her squeal when his teeth gazed her earlobe, before took in his mouth and sucked. Hard.



Stars flashed before Lexi’s eyes and she felt the unmistakable evidence of her arousal begin. And, when she shifted her weight slightly to be able to reach Sam’s delicious-looking neck, she felt the unmistakable evidence of his arousal as well. And boy was it unmistakable. So much so that she had to do more investigating. She moved again, settling completely on his lap, which lined up her center with his groin. She whimpered; he growled.



Sam was two seconds from ripping off Lexi’s skirt and whatever was underneath it when the overhead lights flashed on and the elevator began moving again. They both immediately stopped what they were doing and waited to see if they were truly interrupted. Sure enough, the elevator moved seamlessly up a floor and dinged pleasantly as the doors opened, as if there hadn’t been an hour break in operation. Lexi whipped her head around and was thankful that no one was waiting to board the car. She felt Sam’s shoulders shake under her hand and realized he was laughing. Unable to control her own reaction, she began giggling as well. Resting her head on his chest for a second, she willed her hormones to calm down enough that she could speak plainly.



“We’d better…” Sam finally said, untangling his fingers from Lexi’s hair. He brushed her cheek with his fingers as he did and smiled at her.



“Yeah, I guess so,” she answered, climbing off his lap. She straightened her skirt and ran a hand over her hair, hoping she didn’t look terrible. Sam stood up next to her and held out a hand to help her. She accepted and got to her feet. He didn’t let go of her hand, instead bringing her closer to him and kissing her briefly on the lips.



“Would you like to have dinner tonight?” he asked.



She grinned. “I’d love to,” she responded, just as the elevator doors opened again. This time, they were greeted by familiar faces.



“Lexi!” Mac shouted, pulling her out of the elevator and into an impulsive hug. “You’re okay! Oh my gosh, were you freaked out?”



“I’m fine, Mac,” Lexi told her friend. “Everything’s cool.” She glanced over at Sam, who smiled sheepishly at her.



“I’d say they were more than fine,” Sam’s brother was also waiting at the doors, a smirk on his face.



“Shut up Dean,” Sam ordered. Lexi stifled a giggle, while Dean laughed out loud. Then Sam turned back to her and said, “Does 8:00 in the restaurant downstairs sound okay?”



“That works for me. I’ll see you then,” she answered. He gave her another smile and walked down the hall, followed by his brother. Lexi gazed after him for a minute, until Mac interrupted her daydream.



“Dinner? You get trapped in an elevator and come out with a date? That’s completely not fair,” she said, as she waited for Lexi to head towards their rooms.



This time, Lexi did laugh. “C’mon, I need help picking out an outfit.”