CLOSE PROXIMITY

Chapter 18

Four weeks later

I rolled over slowly on the mattress and groaned. An elbow dug into my waist, and a stray fingernail scratched down my arm as I pulled it out from under the sleeping body beside me. Gotta get a bigger bed, I thought, like I did every morning these days. It was a large single, and let’s face it, the trailer didn’t really allow for king-size anything, but sharing it regularly with another person was far from comfortable.

But then comfort can be way overrated, can’t it?

The sun was that special colour of too-early bright, making my brow crease with complaint. My body ached - it felt like I was dragging myself up from a really late night and some unusual physical exercise that utilised muscles that had been sleeping for far too long. I was squashed up on one side of the bed so that my foot hung down over the edge, and the pins and needles were just starting to aggravate me. My right leg was bent awkwardly under my left knee, cramping the muscles of my thigh.

I grinned.

Like I’d want things to be any different!

I slipped my legs over the side of the bed and shook my foot back to life. I stretched my arms up, feeling a couple of joints pop satisfactorily. We’d spent the previous day out on the trailer park, working with Junk and Phil and the others to finish up the repairs on the damaged homes. Things were almost back to normal on the site now. The only thing left to be fixed was my set of steps. I wasn’t sure I could be bothered to change them now; they were a kind of memorial to the end of a scary time.

Heero stirred behind me and breathed out a half-snore.

I grinned again. The unusual physical activity wasn’t just to do with working around the site, of course.

I flexed my shoulders, feeling his steady breathing tickling my back.

“You do that one more time,“ came his voice, muffled into the pillow, “and you can forget about breakfast for another hour.”

I licked my lips. Then I flexed my shoulders again. Breakfast was another overrated thing.

His hand curled round my bare waist and tugged. Hard. I tumbled back on to the bed and the sheet slid carelessly to the floor. He rolled me on to my side and spooned up behind me. I could feel the whole line of his bare body up against mine. We liked to sleep naked. Actually, we liked to do all sorts of things naked.

“You said I could have your ass any day of the week,” he growled. “This is another day starting, right?”

“I ain’t keeping a diary,” I panted. His cock rubbed a thick, damp, early morning warmth against my thighs. “But twice already since we came to bed last night sounds kind of self-indulgent…”

“And three times sounds downright greedy,” he hissed into my neck. His tongue slipped out and licked at my ear. I arched back against him, unable to do anything but respond. Unwilling, to be honest. “And that’s what I am… greedy. But not for breakfast.” He shifted carefully behind me, scooting down the bed. I imagined it was his turn for a foot or so to be hanging off the side. Then he started to lick his way down my spine and I started to moan in earnest. My skin shuddered with each lapping stroke – I could feel his smile widening as my goose bumps sprang up against his face.

When he got to my ass he pushed my upper leg up, bending the knee and exposing me to his tongue… and his lips… and his hands, nestling round my painfully erect cock, slicking my own leaking pre-cum around me and pumping almost lazily. Damned fine, strong hands…

“And I got bagels…” I sighed in mock sorrow. He laughed softly. He continued pumping; at the same time, his tongue licked slowly and languorously up and down between my buttocks, the sticky saliva dribbling down the inside of my thigh. He lapped a trail down to the irresistibly sensitive patch behind my balls, and then sucked one into his warm mouth, savouring it there for a while.

I was almost sobbing by now.

“Fuck the bagels, Heero… fuck me…”

His answering sigh made my balls shift and wrinkle against his chin, and my cock jump in his palm. “Shut up, Duo.”

I did. Remember, it’s not often I do what I’m told without any say in the matter.

His hands released my cock, leaving it quivering just this side of total agony, and they returned to my ass, prising my buttocks apart, stroking the flesh with his thumbs. His tongue flicked its strong tip at my entrance, softening it, lubricating it, stimulating the nerve endings around it. I was panting now, I could feel myself relaxing and contracting with his caress, the puckered skin blossoming open, shamelessly anticipating more than such a teasing touch.

I bit my lip because my begging was getting far too common – however much he claimed it turned him on.

He tugged at my hips and brought me up on to my hands and knees, then wriggled himself into position behind me. He let go of me for a moment to stroke some lube along his cock, ready to ease its way, then it nudged eagerly between my cheeks and I dropped my head to the mattress. Maybe I was sore from a lively night already passed; maybe I felt well and truly used. But I was just as eager - my legs spread further apart and I reached for my own swollen cock to cajole it to another aching, spurting climax.

Like I said – comfort is overrated. At least in comparison to the joy of Heero’s body lying over my arched back, his hot breath grunting into my neck, and his hand tangling into my sleep-tousled braid, gripping me close to him as his cock slides into my ass.

Breakfast was looking even further away.

*

We had an early lunch surrounded by neat piles of Heero’s paperwork. Things had been pretty quiet since that night Greg was caught, and we’d both been allowed some vacation time. Lots of it, really, if you considered the usual statutory allowance for the Department. Either Heero felt more guilty than I did, or he had a stronger sense of commitment to his work. Whatever the reason, he’d offered to carry on with some research work he’d started a few months ago, and got the files sent over.

I’d sort of helped him, on and off. And then I took a call from Relena one afternoon and agreed to do some correspondence training for a few guys who were looking to take on a role like my own. Guess I was feeling my own sense of commitment stirring out of its laziness.

We were both reinstated, both back on the payroll. Heero had bought a new couch for the trailer to celebrate. I’d bought us some outrageous new sex toys, including something with a remote control that was fun to play with when I was in the kitchen and he was languishing in bed, indulging himself.

He didn’t complain.

Relena had also taken leave, and was rethinking the Project Team. She’d come over to meet us yesterday to tell us she was suspending operations for a while. It had been a difficult conversation.

“The Department was seriously compromised,” she’d said. In some ways she’d looked very worn; her confrontation with the powers above her couldn’t have been easy. But as she continued to speak, I thought I detected a relaxation in her manner, too. Maybe it had been a huge burden for her all this time.

“We should never have fallen prey to Greg. He played to our weaknesses - highlighted our vulnerabilities.”

“We never suspected attack from within,” Heero had protested.

“Then we were appallingly naïve,” she’d countered. “The Team will be suspended for the time being. I’d like you both to stay on with the Department of course, and you can be deployed on other work. Then we’ll review the situation in six months. Will you consider that?”

Heero had looked at me, and we’d both turned back to her. He answered for us both. “We will, of course.”

“But you will promise to review the Team?” I’d asked, demanding her attention. “You can’t deny the success we’ve had so far, just because of one aggrieved, irrational man.”

She’d smiled back at me then. “You and Heero have both suffered a great deal because of that one irrational young man. So have the others. I’m not sure that I can face risking that again.”

I’d grimaced. “But the Team has been one of the best things in my life, boss. Doesn’t that count for anything?”

She’d stared at me and sighed. Her smile had been slow and grateful. “Yes it does, Duo. Wufei will join me in the review and maybe together we’ll make something stronger and safer next time.” When she went to leave us at the door, she’d shaken our hands, then dropped them and hugged us instead. It was all kind of emotional, but I rather enjoyed it.

She went down my shaky steps with her bodyguards standing fairly innocuously to the side. I saw Junk standing outside his own trailer with a beaming smile on his face that wasn’t for us. I was embarrassingly pleased to see Relena go over to speak to him before she left.

*

We’d talked about Relena’s visit at the time, but tonight I returned to it, as we lay together on the new, vastly more comfortable couch. We were listening to some traditional jazz on the new sound system that he’d asked Phil to make up for me. The speakers were unbelievably clear and were reproduced in every corner of the trailer; the controls needed nothing more than a nudge to balance the sound beautifully. He even had it fixed up like I used to have it in my apartment, turning itself on as soon as we came in from outside.

“The Team will regroup again, I’m sure,” he said. “It just needs time. The internal investigation will take months I expect.”

I nodded. “You heard from Quatre and Trowa since the first couple of weeks?”

He smiled. “Heard about them! They can’t be parted. All that time of keeping a low profile, now apparently they’re Couple of the Year at the Department and loving the whole damned notoriety. They’re off field work of any kind, but their specialities are on support, of course, and they’re invaluable wherever they are. They said they’d come over next week.”

I snuggled up against him a bit and maybe he took it as a cue.

“Are you worried about the job, Duo? The Team?”

“Not sure it’s the job for me after all,” I said slowly. “Can’t deny I’ve made some royal fuck-ups. Maybe this is the prompt for me to take a break.”

He tensed against me, but he didn’t insult me by shouting me down. I could almost feel him gathering the words in his mind before he spoke; he was more forthcoming these days, and it was astoundingly welcome.

“You’re very good at your job,” he said. His thoughtfulness was like a special gift to me. “You always have been; the mistakes haven’t always been your fault. The way you played Greg was magnificent – I couldn’t have done it like that. You saw what would provoke him, and what would placate him. You saved us all, probably.”

“And you? Do you question your future with the Department?”

He was quiet for a moment, but I was teaching myself to allow him that, restraining myself from leaping into his silences with impatience and a provocation of my own.

“I’ll see. I’m enjoying a break from what you call my ‘mission-mode’ for a while.”

“You look good on it,” I teased. I lay back against his chest and I could feel his heartbeat, deep and steady against my own. Fucking fine, I sighed to myself. I didn’t curse quite so much nowadays. Getting mellow, I guess. It wasn’t the worst way to be.

He shrugged, but he sounded pleased. “I’ve had some discussions with Phil. There are some new components on the market that we think we could make up into cutting edge equipment. It’s just a thought, but he’s very skilled on manufacture.”

“And Sheri?” I grinned to myself.

He sighed; he knew my teasing by now. “They’re good together. She needs to talk about it though, every now and then, with someone who understands – her kidnapping; the scenes with Greg. It’s her way of coping.”

“And you’re her confidante, not me,” I said, gently. “It’s cool.”

“And I want to spend time with you,” he murmured against my ear. I turned so that he wouldn’t get a mouthful of hair and got a mouthful of my kiss instead. It was hungry again; seemed we were always hungry for each other. Yet again it wasn’t the worst way to be!

The couch sagged with a satisfying flexibility as I twisted on top of him and nipped at his throat. We were heading for another session of touch and passion and satisfaction. I wondered if he’d tested the couch in the shop before he bought it, and had thoughts of me as he sank his head back against the cushion, and spread his legs to grip around my hips…

This was the best way to be.

*

It was when we were yawning and ready for bed – to sleep – that he put a hand on my arm and turned me to look at him.

“Tell me what’s on your mind, Duo, if it’s not the work for the Department…”

I shrugged. “It’s nothing maybe. Just wondered when you’ll be looking for a new apartment. I’m sure the Department will still help. Guess I could go back to my old place too, some time. Brush off the cobwebs; get used to those five flights again.”

He pursed his lips before replying. “We could look for somewhere together.”

We could indeed, I thought, my heart beating faster. I didn’t think it was because of the thought of all those stairs. Dammit, I felt like a giddy kid again; he did that to me on an embarrassingly regular basis.

“But not yet,” he continued.

“No?”

“I’m happy enough here, aren’t you?” He looked quite worried, really, at the thought of moving back out.

We’d made quite an impact on this trailer park, but they didn’t seem to want to stone us out of it yet. I grinned. “Yes, I am. It’s good. We’re good here.”

“And if we’re not, we have Dylan to watch our steps for us.”

We both smiled at that. Junk was still getting used to Heero, but Dylan gave his full approval. It was just that Dylan continued to think he had to keep up his guardianship, in case of future attacks. He often slept at the foot of my trailer steps; he checked out every visitor we ever had; and he accompanied Heero all the way out of the park every time he went to the store.

It was a good feeling.

It was late and we’d made out all damned evening to the sounds of smooth, sexy music, but Heero still ran a hand down into the small of my back and sighed that sigh that told me his mind was on fucking, not faithful friends.

Damned guy was insatiable. Thank God.

“I’m sort of tired…” I began, weakly.

“Won’t take much of your time,” he wheedled. His mouth brushed at my jaw and I felt like I’d stepped into a warm, relaxing bath. “After all, don’t I come way too quick?”

I remembered a long, lusty session last night; waves upon waves of pleasure and torment as he took me up to the brink of orgasm and back again; the sight of him lifted above me, shining with sweat and eyes glinting in the darkness, for hour after hour…

Who the hell ever said that about him?

I remembered -- and I groaned. “You’re never gonna let me forget that, are you?”

“…and I have a distinct lack of imagination…” he continued, relentlessly.

“Shit,” I sighed. Of course, that had been a total fabrication. In reality, Heero’s imagination made my heart sing and my toes curl. Heero’s imagination startled me into erotic pleasure time and again. Heero’s imagination was beyond normal description …

What did I say about my spouting shit? Maybe he’d believed me…Maybe my acting had been just that little bit too good.

Then he laughed softly, the vibration thrumming against my neck, and I let him tease. It was all part of the delicious game we enjoyed together, now. His fingers slid into my loosened pants and I nudged my hips up against him. He had me off balance; he had me captured. He had me fooled, time and again, and I didn’t care.

Yeah, this definitely was the very best place to be!

End