Fic: Sabbatical
Title: Sabbatical
Fandom: Parks and Recreation
Characters/ships: Leslie/Ben
Word Count: ~2,500
Spoilers: up through 4.16 "Sweet Sixteen"
Rating: R
Summary: Leslie is worried about the Parks Department while she's on sabbatical. Ben tries to help her relax. Smutty fluff ensues.
Notes: I have not one, but two WIPs that I need to work on. Yet this happened. Apparently I lack focus and willpower. Oh well.
Sabbatical.
The very word made Leslie sick to her stomach. Yet, here she was, at campaign headquarters (aka Ben, April and Andy's house-not that Ben spent many nights here anymore) at ten in the morning while all her friends at city hall got to keep on working on Parks business without her assistance or guidance or direction or-crap. They were going to screw everything up, weren't they?
She loved them all dearly, but they just didn't have what it took to make that department excel.
She sat typing thank-you emails to donors thinking that it was just day one, and already she could hardly stand it. Yes, Ron had been right that she couldn't keep up her 100 hour work-weeks. But god, sabbatical sucked. How would she ever make it through the next few months without going insane with worry?
And that's when Ben started massaging her shoulders.
"I'm trying to type," she said.
"I know. And you look really stressed and tense. This sabbatical is supposed to help with that-not make it worse." He kept on massaging.
Though tempted to let him continue (because man he could give amazing back rubs) she was on the job right now, so his behavior was completely inappropriate.
"Sweetie-this is really nice, but could you save it until after the workday?"
Ben didn't let up. "The whole point of working from home is that you can set your own schedule. If you feel like you need a break at ten in the morning, you can take a break at ten in the morning. And you really look like you need a break." He kept on massaging, moving his hands down along her spine. Ooooh, that was nice.
Though she never would have guessed it on first meeting him, Ben was a very affectionate person. Ann hadn't believed Leslie when she told her that all the sneaking around at city hall had been instigated by Ben. But it had been.
Oh, sure, Leslie had been the one to declare Ann's office as their official meeting place and to start texting to schedule their rendezvous. But only because if she hadn't taken charge Ben would've pulled her into empty offices and custodial closets or even restrooms (he'd actually tried that once, before she put her foot down) whenever he got the urge. Which was all the time. So Leslie had no choice but to take charge or they'd have been caught a lot sooner and by more people than they actually were.
Ben's affectionate nature had been one of the most exciting and unexpected things about dating him. Once he finally had her permission to touch her and kiss her he simply never wanted stop. None of her other boyfriends had been that way with her, and she discovered that she liked it. A lot.
But there were appropriate times and places for affection. She didn't usually like excessive public displays of affection, and he respected that. And she didn't approve of overt affection in the workplace.
Right now he was not-so-good at that.
"I thought the whole point of working here was to get more work done on my campaign," she said, trying to sound stern, even though that back rub felt really good.
"It is. But that's not going to happen as long as you keep stressing about the Parks Department while you're on sabbatical. Which means that it's my job-as your campaign manager-to get you to relax enough to focus on the campaign instead of your day job." He slid one hand under her hair to start rubbing away the tension in her neck, and she sighed, closing her eyes.
"Am I that obvious?" she asked.
"Kind of," he said, his fingers still kneading her muscles just right. "You need to have faith in your team, Leslie. They might not run as tight a ship as you'd like, but they won't let things fall apart, either."
"Are you sure?" She knew she sounded a little whiny, but the Parks Department had been her whole world for almost a decade, and the thought of it faltering without her made her sick to her stomach.
"I'm sure. And if things need shaping up when you go back to work, I'll give you a hand. And you only need to pay me in kisses and snuggles." He moved his hands down to her shoulders again.
She laughed. "That sounds like a bargain."
"Good. Now, take a break for an hour and let me help you relax."
The suggestive tone in his voice sent a wave of pleasant heat through her body. She'd never even considered the possibilities of break-time alone with Ben in his house. "Okay," she said, craning her neck to look up at him. "I can take a break. But only twenty minutes-we've got a lot of work to do."
She let him lead her away from the kitchen table and her laptop and down to the couch.
"How about forty-five minutes?" he asked. "I'm not sure we can get you fully relaxed in just twenty."
Tempting. But there was still so much to get done today. "Sorry. Too busy. You'll have to do the best you can in twenty mintes."
Leslie smiled at the wicked twinkle in Ben's eyes.
He clapped his hands together. "Okay. We'd better get this thing going, then. Take off your shirt."
Her eyes went wide and she froze in her tracks. "Excuse me?"
Ben shrugged. "You know it's impossible to get all the knots out of your back with your shirt on. If we want to achieve maximum relaxation in the shortest amount of time the shirt has got to go."
She rolled her eyes at his smug smile, but went ahead and pulled her shirt off, and then let him manoeuver her into position on couch, kneeling on the cushions with her back toward him, and leaning forward to rest her head on her arms on the back of the couch. "I think you're just looking for an excuse to get me naked in the middle of your house," she said, feeling more than a little naughty.
The only place in his house that she'd been less than fully dressed was Ben's bedroom-and even then only a few times. April and Andy had teased her and Ben mercilessly the few times she'd stayed over, and she hadn't even dared to use the shower because the lock on the bathroom door was broken. Being partially nude on his couch felt both exciting and a little embarrassing.
Ben started rubbing her back again, and she had to admit that it felt even better with her shirt off. Maybe he had the right idea about this mid-morning break.
Then, in one swift move, he unclasped her bra.
"Hey!" She sat up, clutching her loose bra to her chest. She felt her face getting warm.
Ben chuckled. "I couldn't get at all your muscles with the bra strap in the way. Maybe you should just take the whole thing off?"
Leslie's eyes narrowed. "You are just trying to get me naked. I thought this was about helping me relax?"
"It is."
"I don't think public nudity is going to help me relax."
Ben glanced around and spread his hands at his sides. "This is hardly public. April and Andy are at work and no one is scheduled to come by. We have the place to ourselves."
Leslie looked pointedly at the furry shape curled on the ground behind him, happily thumping its tail in the floor. "Champion is watching."
Ben sighed. "Would you feel better if I put him in the back yard?"
"Yes."
Leslie continued to cover her chest with her arms as Ben led Champion to the sliding glass door and let him out. Then Ben walked back to stand in front of her and looked at her with an imploring smile.
God he was cute.
With a little smile of her own, Leslie slipped the bra off her arms and tossed it over the arm of the couch.
Ben grinned.
Her face still warm with embarrassment, Leslie quickly turned back around to resume leaning against the back of the couch. "Okay. Let's do this back rub right."
His fingers obligingly moved across her back again, kneading her muscles in all the right places. "Mmmm," she hummed happily, closing her eyes and enjoying every moment of his hands moving across her back.
After a few minutes of exquisite massaging, Ben's hands slid forward to fondle the sides of her breasts and he planted a kiss on her back exactly between her shoulder blades.
At that moment Leslie was acutely aware of just how lax she'd been in regards to their physical relationship lately.
When they'd first reunited just before Thanksgiving things had been-well, even passionate seemed inadequate to describe it. And after the re-launch of her campaign in the new year she'd made a conscious point of having at least six intimate encounters with Ben every week-she didn't want their relationship to take a back seat to her career. But as things with the campaign got busier those encounters has decreased in frequency and, though she hated to admit it, in quality. Lately they were lucky to squeeze in a sleepy round of missionary position right before turning in for the night or a frenetic quickie before hopping out of bed in the morning. In fact, now that she thought about it, they'd only made love twice last week, and both times had been less than spectacular.
As Ben planted a row of kisses along her shoulder she decided that it was high time to rectify the situation. (And she silently berated herself for not coming to this conclusion sooner, and instead hadn't thought of it until Ben had shoved his not-so-subtle hints in her face. But she'd make it up to him.)
She shifted her weight to spin and face him, quickly leaning to capture his lips with her own. It didn't take him long to join her on the couch.
God it felt good to make out with him again.
Leslie felt the heat rising in her body as they kissed and his hands continued their exploration of her body. She reached forward to fumble with the buttons on his shirt. Just as she succeeded in pushing his shirt back off of his shoulders so he could discard it completely, she murmured, "Do you want to take this back to the bedroom, now?"
He kissed her neck again and muttered back, "I don't see why we need to. I'm fine right where we are."
That put the breaks on her rising passion immediately. She blinked in shock. "But this is the communal couch. You share it with roommates. And with my campaign staff!"
"So?" Ben replied, nuzzling his way along her jawline.
"So it's rude! And-and-and unsanitary."
Ben sighed and pulled back. "Leslie-April and Andy have had sex out here more times than I can count-with their pillow fights and their blanket forts and their over-the-top role-playing. I had to invest in some pretty serious earplugs to protect myself from the mental scars of hearing the shenanigans they get up to out here. After putting up with that for over a year I think I've earned some family room shenanigans of my own."
Leslie winced at the thought of what April and Andy might already have done on this couch. "So this is just about payback?"
"No. No. No." Ben pulled her in for a soft kiss, though she had trouble relaxing into it.
He sighed again. "This is about helping my amazing hardworking girlfriend relax for a little while. Payback is just a nice ancillary benefit."
The corners of her mouth perked up involuntarily. She loved when he talked business to her. "Okay. I get it," she said.
Ben met her eyes with a knowing gaze. "You'd still feel better about it if I covered the couch with a blanket, wouldn't you?"
"Yes. Much." She nodded emphatically.
He shook his head a little, but smiled and hopped up to jog to his bedroom. Just over a minute later he reappeared with his comforter-and he'd managed to shed the rest of his clothes, other than his boxer-briefs.
Leslie grinned and stood up to let him spread the comforter over the couch. This break looked like it would stretch closer to the forty-five minutes he'd suggested, rather than her allotted twenty, but as Ben pulled her back down onto the couch and unzipped her pants she found that she didn't mind so much anymore.
Leslie gasped in anticipation as Ben successfully slid her pants and panties down off of her hips all at once, and she kicked them the rest of the way off before scooting back to recline against the arm of the couch while Ben settled over her.
She pulled him in for a long, deep kiss, and wriggled in delight as he slid his hand down between her legs. "Oh god. Right there. That's the spot," she said as he started to work his thumb against her.
"You like that?" He grinned stupidly down at her.
"Fuck yes."
She let out a pleased moan as he dipped his head to suck one of her nipples into his mouth while continuing his ministrations between her legs.
So this was what working from home was good for. No wonder Ben had been so onboard with the idea.
Several shifts of position and sometime later (her sense of the passage of time had gotten a little hazy) Leslie sat straddled over Ben's lap, and sank in contented satisfaction against his chest. Her breathing still came heavy, and tiny aftershocks continued to send thrills through her body for a few more minutes as Ben lazily stroked her back.
"God we needed that," she finally said.
"I agree." He planted a kiss on her temple.
She sighed and sat up straight to stretch a little. "But break time is over. Gotta get back to work." As much as she'd enjoyed her mid-morning break, this campaign wouldn't run itself.
He nodded in agreement and they stood up together and ambled toward the bathroom to get cleaned up. Ben wore a silly smirk on his face.
"What? What is it?" asked Leslie when they reached the bathroom.
"I really like seeing you walk around my house naked."
She pointed her finger at him. "I knew that's what you wanted. I knew it."
Ben grinned and shrugged, but didn't deny it. But she wouldn't hold it against him. She rather liked seeing him walk around naked in her house, so she completely understood.
"You know," she said as they washed up, "pillow fights and blanket forts sound pretty fun."
Ben's eyes twinkled as he answered. "Maybe we can pencil it in for tomorrow."
After they finished dressing and were settled back in front of their computers and telephones, Leslie looked over at Ben, her eyes lingering on all the wonderful features of his face, and how intently he focused on the latest campaign budget breakdown. At moments like this she sometimes still marveled that she'd found someone like him.
He must have felt her gaze, because he glanced up at her and smiled.
"Hey," she said, "I really love that we get to do this together."
His smile softened into that wistful, dreamy expression that only he had ever given her. "Me too."
Sabbatical might not be so bad, after all.
Fandom: Parks and Recreation
Characters/ships: Leslie/Ben
Word Count: ~2,500
Spoilers: up through 4.16 "Sweet Sixteen"
Rating: R
Summary: Leslie is worried about the Parks Department while she's on sabbatical. Ben tries to help her relax. Smutty fluff ensues.
Notes: I have not one, but two WIPs that I need to work on. Yet this happened. Apparently I lack focus and willpower. Oh well.
Sabbatical.
The very word made Leslie sick to her stomach. Yet, here she was, at campaign headquarters (aka Ben, April and Andy's house-not that Ben spent many nights here anymore) at ten in the morning while all her friends at city hall got to keep on working on Parks business without her assistance or guidance or direction or-crap. They were going to screw everything up, weren't they?
She loved them all dearly, but they just didn't have what it took to make that department excel.
She sat typing thank-you emails to donors thinking that it was just day one, and already she could hardly stand it. Yes, Ron had been right that she couldn't keep up her 100 hour work-weeks. But god, sabbatical sucked. How would she ever make it through the next few months without going insane with worry?
And that's when Ben started massaging her shoulders.
"I'm trying to type," she said.
"I know. And you look really stressed and tense. This sabbatical is supposed to help with that-not make it worse." He kept on massaging.
Though tempted to let him continue (because man he could give amazing back rubs) she was on the job right now, so his behavior was completely inappropriate.
"Sweetie-this is really nice, but could you save it until after the workday?"
Ben didn't let up. "The whole point of working from home is that you can set your own schedule. If you feel like you need a break at ten in the morning, you can take a break at ten in the morning. And you really look like you need a break." He kept on massaging, moving his hands down along her spine. Ooooh, that was nice.
Though she never would have guessed it on first meeting him, Ben was a very affectionate person. Ann hadn't believed Leslie when she told her that all the sneaking around at city hall had been instigated by Ben. But it had been.
Oh, sure, Leslie had been the one to declare Ann's office as their official meeting place and to start texting to schedule their rendezvous. But only because if she hadn't taken charge Ben would've pulled her into empty offices and custodial closets or even restrooms (he'd actually tried that once, before she put her foot down) whenever he got the urge. Which was all the time. So Leslie had no choice but to take charge or they'd have been caught a lot sooner and by more people than they actually were.
Ben's affectionate nature had been one of the most exciting and unexpected things about dating him. Once he finally had her permission to touch her and kiss her he simply never wanted stop. None of her other boyfriends had been that way with her, and she discovered that she liked it. A lot.
But there were appropriate times and places for affection. She didn't usually like excessive public displays of affection, and he respected that. And she didn't approve of overt affection in the workplace.
Right now he was not-so-good at that.
"I thought the whole point of working here was to get more work done on my campaign," she said, trying to sound stern, even though that back rub felt really good.
"It is. But that's not going to happen as long as you keep stressing about the Parks Department while you're on sabbatical. Which means that it's my job-as your campaign manager-to get you to relax enough to focus on the campaign instead of your day job." He slid one hand under her hair to start rubbing away the tension in her neck, and she sighed, closing her eyes.
"Am I that obvious?" she asked.
"Kind of," he said, his fingers still kneading her muscles just right. "You need to have faith in your team, Leslie. They might not run as tight a ship as you'd like, but they won't let things fall apart, either."
"Are you sure?" She knew she sounded a little whiny, but the Parks Department had been her whole world for almost a decade, and the thought of it faltering without her made her sick to her stomach.
"I'm sure. And if things need shaping up when you go back to work, I'll give you a hand. And you only need to pay me in kisses and snuggles." He moved his hands down to her shoulders again.
She laughed. "That sounds like a bargain."
"Good. Now, take a break for an hour and let me help you relax."
The suggestive tone in his voice sent a wave of pleasant heat through her body. She'd never even considered the possibilities of break-time alone with Ben in his house. "Okay," she said, craning her neck to look up at him. "I can take a break. But only twenty minutes-we've got a lot of work to do."
She let him lead her away from the kitchen table and her laptop and down to the couch.
"How about forty-five minutes?" he asked. "I'm not sure we can get you fully relaxed in just twenty."
Tempting. But there was still so much to get done today. "Sorry. Too busy. You'll have to do the best you can in twenty mintes."
Leslie smiled at the wicked twinkle in Ben's eyes.
He clapped his hands together. "Okay. We'd better get this thing going, then. Take off your shirt."
Her eyes went wide and she froze in her tracks. "Excuse me?"
Ben shrugged. "You know it's impossible to get all the knots out of your back with your shirt on. If we want to achieve maximum relaxation in the shortest amount of time the shirt has got to go."
She rolled her eyes at his smug smile, but went ahead and pulled her shirt off, and then let him manoeuver her into position on couch, kneeling on the cushions with her back toward him, and leaning forward to rest her head on her arms on the back of the couch. "I think you're just looking for an excuse to get me naked in the middle of your house," she said, feeling more than a little naughty.
The only place in his house that she'd been less than fully dressed was Ben's bedroom-and even then only a few times. April and Andy had teased her and Ben mercilessly the few times she'd stayed over, and she hadn't even dared to use the shower because the lock on the bathroom door was broken. Being partially nude on his couch felt both exciting and a little embarrassing.
Ben started rubbing her back again, and she had to admit that it felt even better with her shirt off. Maybe he had the right idea about this mid-morning break.
Then, in one swift move, he unclasped her bra.
"Hey!" She sat up, clutching her loose bra to her chest. She felt her face getting warm.
Ben chuckled. "I couldn't get at all your muscles with the bra strap in the way. Maybe you should just take the whole thing off?"
Leslie's eyes narrowed. "You are just trying to get me naked. I thought this was about helping me relax?"
"It is."
"I don't think public nudity is going to help me relax."
Ben glanced around and spread his hands at his sides. "This is hardly public. April and Andy are at work and no one is scheduled to come by. We have the place to ourselves."
Leslie looked pointedly at the furry shape curled on the ground behind him, happily thumping its tail in the floor. "Champion is watching."
Ben sighed. "Would you feel better if I put him in the back yard?"
"Yes."
Leslie continued to cover her chest with her arms as Ben led Champion to the sliding glass door and let him out. Then Ben walked back to stand in front of her and looked at her with an imploring smile.
God he was cute.
With a little smile of her own, Leslie slipped the bra off her arms and tossed it over the arm of the couch.
Ben grinned.
Her face still warm with embarrassment, Leslie quickly turned back around to resume leaning against the back of the couch. "Okay. Let's do this back rub right."
His fingers obligingly moved across her back again, kneading her muscles in all the right places. "Mmmm," she hummed happily, closing her eyes and enjoying every moment of his hands moving across her back.
After a few minutes of exquisite massaging, Ben's hands slid forward to fondle the sides of her breasts and he planted a kiss on her back exactly between her shoulder blades.
At that moment Leslie was acutely aware of just how lax she'd been in regards to their physical relationship lately.
When they'd first reunited just before Thanksgiving things had been-well, even passionate seemed inadequate to describe it. And after the re-launch of her campaign in the new year she'd made a conscious point of having at least six intimate encounters with Ben every week-she didn't want their relationship to take a back seat to her career. But as things with the campaign got busier those encounters has decreased in frequency and, though she hated to admit it, in quality. Lately they were lucky to squeeze in a sleepy round of missionary position right before turning in for the night or a frenetic quickie before hopping out of bed in the morning. In fact, now that she thought about it, they'd only made love twice last week, and both times had been less than spectacular.
As Ben planted a row of kisses along her shoulder she decided that it was high time to rectify the situation. (And she silently berated herself for not coming to this conclusion sooner, and instead hadn't thought of it until Ben had shoved his not-so-subtle hints in her face. But she'd make it up to him.)
She shifted her weight to spin and face him, quickly leaning to capture his lips with her own. It didn't take him long to join her on the couch.
God it felt good to make out with him again.
Leslie felt the heat rising in her body as they kissed and his hands continued their exploration of her body. She reached forward to fumble with the buttons on his shirt. Just as she succeeded in pushing his shirt back off of his shoulders so he could discard it completely, she murmured, "Do you want to take this back to the bedroom, now?"
He kissed her neck again and muttered back, "I don't see why we need to. I'm fine right where we are."
That put the breaks on her rising passion immediately. She blinked in shock. "But this is the communal couch. You share it with roommates. And with my campaign staff!"
"So?" Ben replied, nuzzling his way along her jawline.
"So it's rude! And-and-and unsanitary."
Ben sighed and pulled back. "Leslie-April and Andy have had sex out here more times than I can count-with their pillow fights and their blanket forts and their over-the-top role-playing. I had to invest in some pretty serious earplugs to protect myself from the mental scars of hearing the shenanigans they get up to out here. After putting up with that for over a year I think I've earned some family room shenanigans of my own."
Leslie winced at the thought of what April and Andy might already have done on this couch. "So this is just about payback?"
"No. No. No." Ben pulled her in for a soft kiss, though she had trouble relaxing into it.
He sighed again. "This is about helping my amazing hardworking girlfriend relax for a little while. Payback is just a nice ancillary benefit."
The corners of her mouth perked up involuntarily. She loved when he talked business to her. "Okay. I get it," she said.
Ben met her eyes with a knowing gaze. "You'd still feel better about it if I covered the couch with a blanket, wouldn't you?"
"Yes. Much." She nodded emphatically.
He shook his head a little, but smiled and hopped up to jog to his bedroom. Just over a minute later he reappeared with his comforter-and he'd managed to shed the rest of his clothes, other than his boxer-briefs.
Leslie grinned and stood up to let him spread the comforter over the couch. This break looked like it would stretch closer to the forty-five minutes he'd suggested, rather than her allotted twenty, but as Ben pulled her back down onto the couch and unzipped her pants she found that she didn't mind so much anymore.
Leslie gasped in anticipation as Ben successfully slid her pants and panties down off of her hips all at once, and she kicked them the rest of the way off before scooting back to recline against the arm of the couch while Ben settled over her.
She pulled him in for a long, deep kiss, and wriggled in delight as he slid his hand down between her legs. "Oh god. Right there. That's the spot," she said as he started to work his thumb against her.
"You like that?" He grinned stupidly down at her.
"Fuck yes."
She let out a pleased moan as he dipped his head to suck one of her nipples into his mouth while continuing his ministrations between her legs.
So this was what working from home was good for. No wonder Ben had been so onboard with the idea.
Several shifts of position and sometime later (her sense of the passage of time had gotten a little hazy) Leslie sat straddled over Ben's lap, and sank in contented satisfaction against his chest. Her breathing still came heavy, and tiny aftershocks continued to send thrills through her body for a few more minutes as Ben lazily stroked her back.
"God we needed that," she finally said.
"I agree." He planted a kiss on her temple.
She sighed and sat up straight to stretch a little. "But break time is over. Gotta get back to work." As much as she'd enjoyed her mid-morning break, this campaign wouldn't run itself.
He nodded in agreement and they stood up together and ambled toward the bathroom to get cleaned up. Ben wore a silly smirk on his face.
"What? What is it?" asked Leslie when they reached the bathroom.
"I really like seeing you walk around my house naked."
She pointed her finger at him. "I knew that's what you wanted. I knew it."
Ben grinned and shrugged, but didn't deny it. But she wouldn't hold it against him. She rather liked seeing him walk around naked in her house, so she completely understood.
"You know," she said as they washed up, "pillow fights and blanket forts sound pretty fun."
Ben's eyes twinkled as he answered. "Maybe we can pencil it in for tomorrow."
After they finished dressing and were settled back in front of their computers and telephones, Leslie looked over at Ben, her eyes lingering on all the wonderful features of his face, and how intently he focused on the latest campaign budget breakdown. At moments like this she sometimes still marveled that she'd found someone like him.
He must have felt her gaze, because he glanced up at her and smiled.
"Hey," she said, "I really love that we get to do this together."
His smile softened into that wistful, dreamy expression that only he had ever given her. "Me too."
Sabbatical might not be so bad, after all.