Pairing: Chris and Vin

Warnings: Sexually explicit

Notes: Just a little piece of angsty fluff involving my favorite couple. Thanks to Ruby J for giving it a look over and pointing out the stuff that didn’t work.

Buck Wilmington looked out the back door to find his oldest friend sitting on the back steps. From the slump of the blond’s shoulders, he knew that the man wasn’t in a mood for the gathering that he, himself, had called. Signaling his approach with a cough as he stepped out onto the deck, he said, “Hey, stud, you’re a helluva host.”

“Just needed some air,” Chris Larabee mumbled before tipping the bottle he held to his lips. Downing almost half the beer before he lowered it, he said, “Didn’t figure anyone would miss me this quick.”

“It was my Spidey sense, what can I say?” Buck joked before he dropped down beside the other man, close enough but not too close. “You’re worried.”

Chris responded with a snort but, staring out into the trees that lined his property, he said softly, “I don’t know why. It’s not like this is the first time.”

“When was the last time?”

After a brief search of his memory, Larabee responded, “Team Five… they were trying to take down McCoskey and his bunch.”

“And that was how long ago? Like a year or so ago?”

“Something like that… what’s your point?” Chris turned and pinned his friend with a stare.

“How long ago did you and Junior make it official?”

“New Years, you know that, as well as I do.” They had had a very special celebration on the first day of the year. The ceremony may not have been “official” in a legal sense, but he and Vin Tanner considered themselves just as bonded… just as married… as any couple ever had been.

“So that was…”

“Eight months ago, for chrissakes, you want to come to a point anytime soon?”

Reaching up and tapping his finger against his friend’s temple. “You, who’s supposed to be so analytical… you can’t put somethin’ this simple together? This is the first time you’re sending your partner, lover, husband… whatever you think of him as –“

With a grin, the blond broke in with, “all three.”

“Okay, so this is the first time you’ve sent him into the lion’s den without you, since that ceremony.”

Shaking his head, Chris said, “But we’ve been involved in some way for three years.”

“Yeah, but this time, it’s… more real, I guess is the best way to say it.” Buck could almost see the light that came on for his best friend at that second.

“It makes it different. It shouldn’t, but it does.” He startled when he suddenly found himself bracketed by a pair of denim clad legs. Not needing to turn to know that it was his partner, he lovingly stroked one of those legs. “You finally missed me?”

Wrapping his arms loosely around Larabee’s shoulders and leaning his cheek against the top of the blond head, Vin responded with, “Knew you were gone right off; figured you might want some time to yourself, though. You’ve been edgier than normal today.”

“Sorry.”

“Eh, I’m used to it,” Tanner teased. Then, sobering he asked, “Figure it out?”

“You already did?” Chris could feel his temper rising.

“Simmer down. Me and Buck put our heads together after you disappeared. Figured you might be able to sort it out better with him.”

Turning a glare to his oldest friend and then up toward his partner, Larabee growled, “Anything else the two of you figure you know better than me?”

“Yeah, but let’s stay on target here. What do we do? Chris, I’m scheduled to take off in the morning to hook up with Team Three in Powder City. I can’t leave them hangin’, but I don’t want to leave you hangin’ on by your fingernails for two weeks. I don’t want to be worryin’ about you while I’m gone, and I can’t call you. I need to know that you’re not gonna fall apart while I’m gone.”

“Awfully sure of yourself, Pard.”

Nuzzling against the man’s head, Vin said, “when it comes to you, yeah, I am. I know that you’ll keep everything bottled up until you tear yourself up, or you’ll explode on the boys. Gotta say, not likin’ either of those scenarios.”

Midnight found them lying, once more sated and relaxed beneath the light of the full moon. Chris lay snoring softly with his head pillowed on Vin’s chest. Tanner was gently stroking the other man’s bare back beneath the double sleeping bag they shared. He was staring up at the stars, his mind filled with thoughts of the next two weeks. He had his own concerns, but he was more concerned with Chris.

He remembered the walls that had surrounded Larabee when they had first met. Even before they had gotten close, it was easy to see how closed off Chris was. He had been naturally charming, even smiling and occasionally showing some warmth. What people most often saw was a confident, at times cocky, self-assured man.

It had been the man beneath that had called to him, though. Some part of him had been touched by the broken, pain-wracked part of Chris that he fought so hard to protect from the world. It had been that part of Chris that needed someone; someone to care for and to be cared for by; that part of his being that yearned to be part of something once more that had reached out to him. They had come together and, once found, that bond had given both men strength to be more than they had been.

“Too much thinkin’, Tanner,” he whispered to himself. “Go to sleep.”

~o~

They stayed at the pond until late afternoon on Sunday, continuing the weekend of lovemaking and being together. Returning to the ranch, they spent time caring for the horses and puttering around, doing some superficial cleaning around the house. Vin finished packing his bag for the trip; Chris sitting on the edge of the bed, watching him. Snapping the bag closed, he carried it to the company car that sat in the drive. He slipped it into the trunk, where his equipment bag was already waiting for him. The vehicle was non-descript, carrying a New Mexico license plate that would aid in his cover story as a visitor.

Returning to the house, he found Chris in the den, sitting on the raised hearth beside the gas operated fireplace. Dressed only in his boxers now, Larabee turned when he entered the room, giving him a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. Padding across the room, Vin knelt between his lover’s legs. He reached up, stroking his hand along the other man’s face, then allowed it to trail down his chest, to rest over his heart. He leaned in and kissed the other man then.

The kiss deepened, tongues grappling and caressing, hands moving over familiar flesh and muscle. With only a little coaxing Vin got Chris out of his shorts, releasing an already hard cock as he did. Breaking off his contact with Larabee’s mouth, he turned his attention to that heavy muscle. His tongue went to work licking, his teeth teasing, his mouth tasting. From above he heard the soft groans, followed by breathless grunts that told him that his actions were having the desired affect. Three times he took Chris to the edge; three times he refused to let him cross.

“Oh… shit… Vin! Please… ohshitvin! I need to…”

“Shhhh,” Tanner cautioned, the sound reverberating against Larabee’s hard-on. Then he shifted them both, bringing Chris to the floor. While his partner lay there, panting with desire, he quickly shed his own clothes and dropped to his knees, bracketing the other man’s slender form. With a smile, he opened and seated himself on the head of that tortured cock. With deliberate slowness he slid down it until he was ass to balls with the blond. “Ah… shit, that feels good!”

“Oh, damn! Vin!” Chris’ mind was numb, the weekend of teeth-jarring sex leaving him without the capability of coherent thought. All he could do was hold the other man’s slender hips tight, as he began to thrust inside. He arched up, screaming out Tanner’s name as he came inside him, then dropped limply to the floor as every muscle seemed to relax at once.

Tanner smiled, watching the blond laying there, a lazy smile spreading over his face. “Don’t get too satisfied yet, Cowboy, we ain’t done.”

Before Larabee could respond, he felt his cock released, and watched Vin raise up. Then the man slid back, spreading and then lifting his legs. Tanner lifted them over his shoulders and Chris felt his ass come to rest on the other man’s thighs. “Oh… shit, Vin…”

“Shhh,” Tanner coaxed as he pressed the head of his cock against Larabee’s ass. Teasing it long enough to relax that tight ring of muscle, he slid inside with a moan. They rocked and writhed, moaning and cursing as he took his time moving to climax. When he did, both men cried out, the sounds echoing off the walls and ceiling.

When he finally withdrew, Vin tumbled to his side, collapsing next to the blond. “Oh, damn… reckon that ought to hold us both ‘til I get home.”

Despite the tightening of his gut, Chris chuckled and drew the other man into his arms. They lay like that until the floor grew cold, sending them to their feet. Turning off the fire, Chris led the younger man through the house and into the master bedroom. Without thought of showering, despite the grunge of camping and sex, they simply crawled beneath the covers. Drawn together in the middle of the bed, Chris spooned up behind his partner as they both fell asleep.

~o~

Chris woke to an empty bed. With a start he leapt from the bed and padded through the house. A few minutes later he found Vin, standing at the sliding doors in the den, staring out across the dark yard. It was earlier than usual, the sun hadn’t even risen, but Vin was already showered and dressed. “What are you doing up so early?”

Without turning, Tanner replied, “Dan called; they’re moving everything up a couple hours.”

“You weren’t even going to wake me?” Larabee’s tone wasn’t angry, he sounded hurt.

With a sigh, Vin said, “Of course I was going to wake you, ya idjit!” That brought the response he’d hoped for as Chris smiled and shook his head.

“Sorry, it’s just… I woke up and you were gone… sorry.”

Stepping across the room, Vin slipped his arms around the other man’s waist. “Don’t worry about it. I was just gettin’ ready to come wake you up when I heard you comin’ down the hall. I do have to go, though.”

Nodding, trying to ignore the sound of his heart pounding hard in his chest, Chris returned the hug, drawing the other man tight against him. “Promise me one thing.”

“If I can.”

“Promise me you’ll come home.”

In response, Vin kissed him deeply, taking his time breaking it off. Pulling back just far enough to look the other man in the eyes, he said softly, “I promise.”

~o~

Chris stood in the driveway until the taillights of the car had disappeared into the darkness. He moved back into the house, already working on putting up the walls he would need to survive the next two weeks. They weren’t firm enough, though, and he found himself giving vent to his emotions in the shower.

Dressing and filling a travel mug with black coffee, he left for work about the time that, normally, he and Vin would have been getting up.

Monday was filled with SAC meetings and then a meeting with the rest of his team to discuss the assignment they had just been given. He went home to an empty house that night, going through the actions to check on the horses, check the mail and fix a dinner that he barely even tasted. Entering the bedroom after the news, he considered changing the bedding, but, in the end, decided against it. Slipping beneath the covers, he could smell his partner in the rumpled bedding. He woke once that night, finding that he was cuddled against Vin’s pillow.

Tuesday and Wednesday he spent in a conference on some of the procedural differences that were going to be coming into effect at the beginning of the year. The speaker was as interesting as some of JD’s jokes, and he found his mind drifting with a frequency that surprised even him. He was glad that the entire conference had been provided to them, printed, collated and tucked into a three-ring binder. He knew he’d never remember anything that was presented.

Thursday was back to the office. He did his best to keep his mind on business; he was glad the others understood when he didn’t. Ezra, Nathan and JD had done the background research they would need in mapping out their actions for the new assignment. Buck and Josiah had filled in for him at the meetings that had been called in his absence. The day was spent in a bull session to discuss their options.

Friday was more of the same, and he found his anxiety rising. The weekend was upon them and, for once, he didn’t look forward to spending two days at the ranch. Alone. He considered having the others out for poker and a barbeque but, in listening to them talking in the bullpen, realized that they had already made their own plans. He settled for going out with them after work, for beer and a dinner of nachos and wings at the Saloon.

He spent the weekend keeping his mind off the only thing he could think about, and cleaning. By Sunday evening the entire house fairly glistened, half the DIY list had been completed, and he was exhausted.

Monday. One week. He woke feeling as tired as he had been when he’d laid down. Fading memories of dreams he didn’t want to remember rustled at the edges of his mind. He dragged himself up, shaved, showered, and left for work twenty minutes after his usual time.

Tuesday and Wednesday were so routine that he wanted to scream, but he simply put one foot in front of the other and moved forward. Buck, astonishingly but predictably discreet, had checked in with him several times in the past week, but Chris could only reassure him that he was okay. He didn’t go so far as insisting that he was fine, but he could pull off ‘okay’.

Wednesday night they all went out to Eddie’s for pizza, beer and karaoke. While the others remained in the audience, Buck and JD couldn’t resist getting on stage and performing. Chris shared laughter and shakes of the head with the others as the duo clowned their way through “Eye of the Tiger”, “Bad to the Bone” and, oddly enough, “Come on, Get Happy”. They all enjoyed watching the people around them react, though, when Buck went solo on “Suspicious Minds” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love”; unsurprised at the round of applause he received.

Thursday found them all slightly hung-over, but functioning enough to get through the day. Sending everyone home at four, Chris wrapped things up and left two hours later. Climbing behind the wheel, he rubbed at the headache that had sprouted up between his eyes, grabbed his sunglasses and started the truck. Pointing the vehicle toward home, he put soft jazz on the stereo and let his inner autopilot drive.

~o~

A few hours later found him startling awake at something, but not certain what it was. There was the echo of a noise in his mind, but he didn’t know if it was real, or part of a dream. Then he heard a second sound, and he was out of bed. Slipping into his pants and grabbing his handgun out of the bedside table, he loaded a clip as he padded across the room. The alarm hadn’t gone off, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t something worthy of the caution. He crept down the hall, moving from room to room, mentally announcing each one “clear” before he moved to the next one.

Entering the kitchen, he saw someone silhouetted in the dim light from the open refrigerator. Taking a breath to calm his pounding heart, he put the safety on before putting the gun on the counter. “Vin!?”

Turning, the orange juice container still at his lips, Tanner smiled as he said, softly, “Surprise!”

Padding across the room Larabee wrapped his arms around the other man, kissing him as he did. But all he managed to say, was, “You’re early.”

“Yeah, I know. Things went faster than we expected; we wrapped up everything this afternoon, so they cut me loose.” He grunted and grimaced slightly as Larabee tightened his hold. “Easy, Cowboy.”

Eyes widening, the blond accused, “You’re hurt!” He reached out and flipped on the light over the sink, then cursing under his breath as he saw the variety of bruises that showed up on the other man’s face and neck.

“Settle down, it’s just some bruised ribs… bruised face… bruised shoulder…”

“What happened!?”

“Run in with some of the bad guys, couple of them decided to bounce their fists off me a few time.” Seeing the concern in his partner’s eyes, he continued, “They checked me out at the hospital before I came home. I’m fine, Larabee.”

“Okay… okay, you’re right.” Chris nodded, toning down his emotions. Then he noticed the ashen, pinched look on Tanner’s face. “You look ready to fall on your face.”

“Might be ‘cause I am. Don’t think I’ve been to bed since… hell, it’s, what, Thursday?”

“Yeah.”

With a nod, Tanner finished with, “Tuesday… or Monday…”

“Shit, we need to get you to bed.” Chris began walking back through the house, pulling at the other man’s hand. As he passed the counter, he retrieved his weapon.

“Gonna shoot me, Cowboy?”

“Would have, if I hadn’t recognized your skinny ass.”

With a jaw cracking yawn, Vin said, “Glad you know it so well, then.”

Chris guided the man, seemingly half asleep, through the house, through the bedroom, and into the bathroom. There he set the shower as hot as he could without scalding them, and gently removed his partner’s clothes. He grimaced at the bruises showing along his upper body, but reminded himself that it was nothing worse. Getting Vin naked, he slipped out of his own pants, and got them both into the shower. Tanner, eyes half closed and a smile on his face, simply allowed himself to be guided along. Placing him under the steaming water, Chris gently shampooed and showered the other man and then guided him out into the bathroom. There he toweled Vin off, then, wrapping his arms around him, he moved them both into the bedroom, and then into bed.

Melting into the mattress, Vin was asleep as soon as he lay down. Beside him, Chris disarmed and put away the handgun and then picked up his cell phone. Deciding that none of the others would enjoy a phone call at 2:00 am, he opted to text them all. He let them know that Vin was back, but that he was the worse for wear and they were both going to spend the day at home. That finished, he climbed into bed as well, contentedly spooning up against his partner’s back.

~o~

Tanner slowly pulled himself out of a deep, dreamless sleep. Squinting at the alarm, he realized it was almost 3:00 pm. Moving slowly, his bruised and exhausted body protesting every inch, he pushed himself up to a sitting position. He rubbed at his unbruised eye and blinked himself the rest of the way awake. As he did, Chris entered the room with a tray.

“Afternoon.”

“After… noon,” he said around a yawn.

“Brought you something to eat. Wasn’t certain if you’d be ready for breakfast or lunch, so I brought you a sweet roll and some chili.”

Grinning, Vin asked, “Chocolate milk?”

“Biggest glass I could find,” Larabee answered with a chuckle. He settled the tray over his partner’s lap, moved to the other side of the bed, and settled near him, leaning against the headboard. He watched with an amused expression as the other man began shoveling spoonfuls of chili into his mouth, trading off every few bites for a healthy portion of the sweet roll. “Let me guess, you haven’t eaten since you left here.”

“Pretty damn near. What I did eat was usually in a sack.”

“Hell, isn’t that all you used to eat?” Chris teased, remembering the other man’s former diet of McDonald’s and Starbucks.

Leaning back against Larabee’s arm, that had found its way behind him, Vin drawled, “Ya spoiled me with real food, what can I say?”

Nuzzling against his partner’s head, Chris said, “Yeah? Well that’s what I plan to do to you all weekend. By Monday you’re going to be spoiled beyond redemption.”

Vin nearly choked on his food at the man’s declaration, but recovered enough to say, “Lookin’ forward to it.”

Pulling Tanner close enough for a kiss, Chris said softly, “Welcome home, Pard. Welcome home.”

The End

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October 2, 2010