Fic: Hiding in Plain Sight - Part Five

[nikki4noo]

“Look, it is very important that I speak to Agent Kirk right now. Please,” Leonard pleaded into the phone receiver.

There was a quiet sigh from the other end and then he was put on hold. He pulled the phone slightly away from his ear. The tinny muzak seemed to be turned up louder than normal. That is what he got for calling into the offices on a Sunday, he supposed. The government’s way of punishing people who should be resting on the Sabbath.

Leonard looked down at his feet, noting the ratty sneakers he had on. They were in marked contrast to the spit and polish of Vasily’s shiny black wingtips. Leonard looked up into the serene face of Vasily, who was seated quite comfortably in his armchair. Standing directly behind Vasily, once again Lebedev. His face was less than serene towards Leonard. The look on Lebedev’s face promised a future full of pain, should Leonard in some way disappoint Vasily.

Leonard glanced away to look around his small living room, anywhere but at the two other men who had disturbed his attempt at a relaxing Sunday. His novel lay abandoned on the side table, dog eared yellowing pages and the well worn spine testifying to it’s age and appreciation.

The muzak clicked off abruptly and Jim introduced himself before Leonard could fully place the receiver back close to his ear.

“Special Agent Kirk, how can I be of assistance?” Jim said.

“Jim, can I meet with you?” Leonard replied.

“Bones,” Jim replied. “Sure, tomorrow is good for me. Got a staff meeting in the morning at nine thirty, but any time is good.”

“Today. Well actually now, I need to see you now,” Leonard insisted, looking at Vasily nervously.

Vasily had that sly little approving smile on his face as he nodded at Leonard.

“I’m a little tied up at the moment,” Jim prevaricated.

“It’s important, Jim. Real important,” Leonard stressed.

“Hang on,” Jim said and Leonard could then hear his muffled heartbeat faintly through the receiver.

Jim had obviously pressed the phone to his chest and was talking with someone else. Leonard was sure it would be Pike.

Vasily had upped the stakes even more and Leonard was suitably nervous and trying not to show it.

The muffled beating stopped.

“You there, Bones?” Jim asked.

“Yeah,” Leonard replied.

“I’ve sorted some stuff out and I can meet you now, where?” Jim asked.

Leonard glanced towards Vasily before answering. “Your place?”

There was a little in drawn breath from Jim that Leonard was able to ascertain. “Okay, can do that. See you soon,” Jim said before disconnecting the call.

Leonard hung up his phone. “He agreed,” he told Vasily.

“Good. Very good, Leonard. See, I told you it would not be difficult,” Vasily smiled at him.

“I need to leave now,” Leonard told him, waiting for Vasily to get out of the chair and leave the house.

Vasily just kept smiling. “Yes, you do. You should not keep Agent Kirk waiting,” Vasily instructed him.

“Um, I need to lock up,” Leonard said as he indicated towards his front door.

Vasily stood smoothly out of the chair and clapped Leonard on both of his upper arms. “Leonard, do not worry. Ilia and I will ensure your house is secured.”

Leonard nodded at Vasily and moved away from him, grabbing his keys from the side table and headed out of his apartment. He walked towards where his car was parked out the front and got in. He was sure that he was still being observed so he held off from thumping the steering wheel and expressing his annoyance verbally until he was well on his way to Jim’s.

Something was majorly up, and the fact that he had to leave his apartment with Lebedev and Vasily inside made him considerably nervous. At least when he moved in, all his personal items were carefully vetted to fit in with his back story. He had been approached by the Russians before a new identity was created for him, and that was particularly unusual in undercover work. They had tried for years to get someone in with this mob and with the pressure from Interpol it just seemed too perfect an opportunity for Pike to miss.

In the rear view mirror, staying the requisite two-to-three car distance behind, Popov was following him. Leonard conceded to himself that the man wasn’t too bad at staying out of sight, if you weren’t looking for someone to be following you. The fact that he knew he was being followed and by whom made it difficult to hide.

Leonard didn’t take any alternative route, just drove as quickly as he could towards Jim’s neighborhood. He didn’t bother with the radio in his car; it was normally turned off anyway. Too many thoughts were flickering back and forth in his head.

Once on the street where Jim’s apartment was situated, he had to circle the block twice in order to find a parking space. It seemed everyone wanted to be home this Sunday. As he finally found a vacant one, Popov drove past him seeking his own space. So Leonard took the opportunity to get out of his car, lock it and head quickly up the steps to Jim’s building, once Popov had turned the corner.

He pressed the buzzer for Jim, bouncing slightly on the balls of his feet while he waited for an answer.

“Kirk,” Jim’s voice sounded crackly over the intercom.

“It’s McCoy, let me in quick. Popov has just gone around the corner,” Leonard said as he peeked around the side of the building to check that the man hadn’t found a space quickly.

The click of the door unlatching let him know that Jim had heard him. He pushed it open and quickly ascended the stairs to Jim’s floor. He paused, holding onto the well worn wooden balustrade as he tried to get his breath back to a normal level. With final deep sigh, he let go of the smooth wood and walked the couple of steps over to Jim’s door. As he raised his hand to knock on it, the door opened and there was Jim, still in his work clothes, although his sleeves were now rolled up to reveal his forearms and the light golden hair that dusted them.

“Waiting for me, hmm?” Leonard asked.

Jim stepped back to allow him to enter the apartment, which did look slightly different in the light of day. No small pools of light and objects hidden in shadows. Now all was brightly lit from the sun streaming in from the large windows of the living area and their lack of curtains. Jim’s mismatched furniture and styles were now more obvious. It was clean though, and remarkably devoid of clutter, revealing a little more about the man.

“Gotta be prepared, Bones. Scouts honor,” Jim proclaimed as he lifted his hand up and gave Leonard the traditional salute.

“Yeah, right,” Leonard snorted as he walked past him and towards the living area.

He heard Jim shut and lock the door behind him. As Leonard walked into the living room he jumped in surprise when Bob hissed at him.

“Damn that cat!” he muttered.

Jim chuckled as he stepped up behind him and clapped him on the shoulder.

“He really doesn’t appreciate your winning ways,” Jim smiled at him.

Leonard sent him a glare over his shoulder and stepped away from Jim and into the room. He shrugged his shoulders to hide his anxiety at Jim touching him.

When there was no response, he turned back to see why Jim was remaining silent.

Jim was standing and looking down at his hand. He looked up, a little crease between his heavy brows.

“It’s not raining outside?” Jim asked.

“Huh?” Leonard replied and then he realized that Jim was rubbing his fingers together of the hand that had recently been resting on his shoulder.

“Oh, Vasily came over just after I had gotten out of the shower,” Leonard ran a hand through his hair, checking to make sure that it was dry. It was.

Jim waved towards the couch. “Sit down,” he invited.

Leonard took the invitation, knowing that they were likely to be here a while. He took the spot on the far end of the couch, sinking down into the soft cushion seat of it.

Jim walked towards him and picked up his jacket that was laying over the back of the couch. He stood with it in his hands for a moment, seemingly unsure as to where to place it. Then he appeared to make a decision and strode off quickly towards his bedroom and tossed the jacket onto his bed.

“Right, what was so urgent that we had to meet?” Jim said as he leaned against the doorway to his bedroom.

Bones looked up from where he could see the jacket lying haphazardly on the corner of the bed. “Come over here and I’ll tell ya. Not interested in shouting across a room,” Leonard told him.

Jim gave a wry twist to his mouth and a little tilt of his head, but then he was moving across the room and sat down on the couch on the opposite end from Leonard. He sat at an angle so that he could face him, arm resting lazily along the arm rest and legs crossed. He looked like a very relaxed sultan surveying his kingdom.

“So, why do I get to miss out on the fun with the others today?” Jim asked.

“As I said, I got a morning visit from our friendly Russian mobster. They insisted that I call you and had to meet you. Today. At this time and pass on a little more useless information that we know is bogus. Then I had to make sure that you stayed with me for the rest of the afternoon,” Leonard said the last bit almost sotto voce and looked away from Jim and towards the cabinet he had along the wall that housed his television and VCR. There also seemed to be some cords hanging out of a drawer that he recognized as belonging to a Nintendo.

“So he doesn’t want me on the raid?” Jim mused.

“Seems so. Are you gonna alert Pike?” Leonard asked.

“We already assumed this was gonna be a trap,” Jim checked his watch. “They would be setting things up right now. Be under radio silence. So can only wait and see.”

“Right,” Leonard said.

He bit his lip and looked around the room a little more. The pair of them sitting in an uncomfortable silence.

“You know you made this worse yesterday,” Jim finally broke the silence.

“What?” Leonard asked as his head snapped around to look toward Jim.

“With your ignoring me at the café. I got nothing but shit from Sulu afterward. I had done a good job of letting him know that nothing happened between us, but no, you had to go and act the part of the offended maiden,” Jim told him.

“Now look here, you infant! I wasn’t the one trying to play footsie under the table,” Leonard growled. He gesticulated with one pointed finger towards Jim to emphasize his annoyance.

“Poke that at me again, and I will bite it!” Jim stated. “And don’t call me infant!”

“Well, excuse me, but threatening to bite off some one’s appendages speaks volumes for someone’s maturity,” Leonard said as he directed a disdainful look towards Jim.

“Yeah, well. This is all your fault anyway,” Jim said as he sat up straighter in his seat and glared right back at Leonard.

“You kissed me!” Leonard hissed as he leaned forward towards Jim.

“You were the one who had his mouth on my dick!” Jim responded likewise, leaning forward so that they were now nose to nose. “And you can’t blame me about that, I was in the bathroom when you came in. That was all you!”

“You pushed, kid, and kept pushing. You want to play with fire you’re gonna get burned,” Leonard continued to speak in a lowered, hushed, and angry tone.

“I pushed?” Jim protested. He emphasised the word by bringing a hand up that he had previously braced on the couch to push at Leonard’s chest. “You were the one who kissed back and kept at it! You are older than me and should know better!”

Leonard narrowed his eyes and glared at the hand that had just dared to touch him.

“I done warned you, kid,” Leonard said through gritted teeth.

“Bring it, old man,” Jim dared him.

Leonard contemplated the man in front of him: the narrowed blue eyes, the flush of pink on his cheeks from his anger, and then down to the pursed lips. It was those lips that tempted him and had just dared him.

Leonard moved swiftly to close the gap between them. He raised up both his hands to hold Jim’s face in place as he planted an angry kiss on those lips. Jim drew in a little involuntary breath and before Leonard’s eyes closed, he noted the widening shock in Jim’s. Such a bright, startling blue framed by thick, long, dark lashes.

Jim’s lips softened under his and then the kiss changed as he pressed back, not just with his lips but with his whole body. Leonard found himself being pushed back into the corner of the couch, being thoroughly kissed and with a lap full of Jim.

“Jim,” he moaned when Jim stopped trying to suck his soul out through his tongue. Instead Jim tried his best vampire impression on Leonard’s neck, nipping and licking and sucking at different parts of his skin as it took his fancy. Leonard’s hands had roamed down his back and found Jim’s ass. Right where he expected it to be. As he squeezed and held on, Jim pressed forward and they both groaned.

“Bones,” Jim replied as he lifted his head up to look at Leonard with a heavy lidded gaze.

Leonard glanced down, lowering his lids. “Damn it,” he muttered.

“That’s one way to put it,” Jim chuckled. “What the fuck is it that we can’t keep our hands off each other?”

“Lust, one of the seven deadly sins,” Leonard told him, still keeping his eyes lowered, although this meant that he could see, as well as feel, Jim’s impressive tenting of his pants.

“Understandable. You are fine, even when you haven’t shaved this morning and looking a mess,” Jim said as he moved his hands up to mess Leonard’s hair up even more. “I’ve just never wanted to kiss a man like I do you.”

Jim gripped gently onto Leonard’s hair and titled his head back. Leonard realized he wanted him to look back at him, so with a sigh he opened his eyes up.

“Don’t think you are as straight as you think you are,” Leonard drawled out. “And would you stop calling me that damn ridiculous name?”

Jim pondered the request, looking upwards as he thought upon it with a little wry twist of his lips that then spread into a sly smile. He looked back at Leonard with a decidedly sassy look and said one word. “Nope!”

“You’re incorrigible,” Leonard complained.

“You should feel honored, I don’t nickname just anyone, “ Jim said as he loosened his grip on Leonard’s hair and started to lightly massage his head.

“I heard about Burly. At least you haven’t called me by a pastry name,” Leonard said.

“True, ‘Cupcake’ does suit him, although he has let himself go lately and I might have to rename him ‘Muffin’ instead,” Jim mused.

Leonard just shook his head at Jim and the look of pretend innocence on his face.

“Why did you ever think you were straight?” Leonard replied.

“I’m a Federal Agent!” Jim declared. “We are all manly in our defending of everyone else’s liberties and all that shit.”

“Sulu is a Fed too you know,” Leonard pointed out.

“He’s a fabulous one though,” Jim said.

Leonard dropped his head forward onto Jim’s chest so he could quietly laugh at Jim’s earnestness.

“I think he could kick your ass if he ever heard you say that,” Leonard managed to get out, around his chuckles.

“True,” Jim conceded. “Hey, did you know that one of his hobbies is fencing?”

“Jim, I just met the man and the only interactions I had before that were you two following me everywhere,” Leonard said as he sat back up again. “So, no, I did not know the man fences.”

“Oh, yeah, right. Well... anyway, he fences. I mean that should have given me a clue, eh?” Jim continued.

“Kid, you had no idea I was into men so I think you shouldn’t jump to conclusions,” Leonard lectured gently.

“You like chicks too though. I know they are all different. I mean I’ve been out enough with Sulu and his buddies to figure that out,” Jim said.

Leonard let out an involuntary moan when Jim managed to find a particularly sensitive spot on his head.

“Huh?” Jim queried as he stilled his fingers and looked towards them like they had their own mind.

“You’ve been petting my head since you stopped kissing me,” Leonard explained.

“Oh. Yeah. Seems so,” Jim said. “And don’t start on the laying of blame ‘cause see how well that turned out last time. Although you kissed me first.”

Leonard just rolled his eyes at Jim.

“What? You totally did!” Jim defended himself.

“Are we always gonna end up arguing?” Leonard asked.

“Probably. Although we could skip the yelling part and just go to the making up part?” Jim offered.

“Didn’t we both agree this was a bad idea?” Leonard asked.

“Yeah, but then we both ignored it and well, it was, well...pretty good,” Jim said.

“Do you always leap before looking, kid?” Leonard asked.

“Pretty much,” Jim admitted. “It’s even better when I know I have something nice to land on,” Jim continued as he lowered his head so that his lips were brushing Leonard’s.

“Idiot,” Leonard responded.

Then Jim seemed to figure out how best to stop Leonard insulting him.

They necked like teenagers for a while, just learning what the other one liked and what caused the best noises or reactions. Breathing heavily, Leonard leaned his head back onto the couch, Jim’s hands still in his hair. Jim was smiling down at him. He looked so young and carefree in that moment.

“Now what was that about not fucking things up?” Jim asked.

Leonard sighed. “If we let it fuck things up it can fuck things up. So far we have been kinda distracted.”

“Yeah, but it’s a nice distraction,” Jim responded, wriggling a little on Leonard’s lap.

“Stop that!” Leonard ordered him.

Jim in retaliation just wiggled a little more, creating a delicious friction. Leonard smacked him on the ass and then proceed to push him off his lap and back onto the couch.

Jim laughed as he sprawled back along it. “Alright, alright. I’ll keep my hands off, if you keep yours off? Deal?”

Leonard nodded.

Jim straightened himself up on the couch, staying on the middle seat closer to Leonard.

“So,” Jim said, looking around the room. He then burst into laughter when his stomach rumbled.

“Lunch?” he asked Leonard.

“Sure,” Leonard agreed.

Jim jumped up from the couch and started bustling around in his kitchen. Obviously looking for something to eat.

“Do you have anything edible in those cupboards?” Leonard asked.

“Of course I do,” Jim said as he bent down to rummage though the cupboard under his island.

“Anything that isn’t suitable for a cat?” Leonard asked as he looked over towards the dining table where Bob was sitting, tail swishing and glaring at Leonard.

“I have food for me too,” Jim said as he popped his head up so he could glare at Leonard. “Bob can eat anything though.”

“Always hide it right at the back of all the cupboards?” Leonard asked.

“Not looking for food here,” Jim said as he bent back down.

Leonard sent him a puzzled look, but then figured that asking the man what he was doing would mean they would still go round in conversational circles for a while. So Leonard got up and headed over towards the kitchen area, standing on the opposite side of the island to Jim.

“Found it!” Jim proclaimed as he stood up and brandished an appliance towards the couch.

“Right here, Genius,” Leonard pointed out.

“Shit, Bones! Don’t scare a guy when he’s in the kitchen,” Jim said as he placed the appliance down on the bench and plugged it in, turning the switch on.

“Is that a griddle maker?” He asked.

Jim turned towards him with a look of surprise on his face. “You’ve never seen one? Never had grilled cheese?”

“Nope,” Leonard admitted.

“You are in for a treat then! The ‘World Famous Jim Kirk Grilled Cheese’,” Jim grinned at him.

“Well, then. Go on and dazzle me, farm boy, or is standing in the middle of the kitchen part of the service?” Leonard asked as he leaned against the counter top of the island.

Jim poked his tongue out at him and headed over to his fridge. He opened it and Leonard got a good look at what he had inside. It wasn’t that different from his own fridge, a couple of beers, a few staples and not much else. Jim pulled out some butter, sliced cheese and then a small wrapped deli package.

“I was gonna ask if you liked meat but well,” Jim waved down towards his groin with one hand while a sly smirk played upon his face.

“If you persist in bad puns I won’t play hide the salami with you later,” Leonard snapped back.

“How did you guess, Bones?” Jim said as he waved the packet in the air.

“Do not tell me that is salami in there?” Leonard asked.

“Not only are you a doctor, you’re a psychic too!” Jim said as he put it down on the counter.

“Damn it, Jim!” Leonard muttered.

Jim laughed and grabbed two plates and the loaf of bread out of the cupboard before turning back to the Island. He started to prepare the sandwiches, buttering the bread and then putting on the cheese. Bob decided to join them on the island, jumping up with ease and heading straight for the cheese.

“Oh no you don’t,” Leonard said as he grabbed the cat around the middle and tossed him back onto the kitchen table.

“Thanks, Bones,” Jim said as he opened the packet and pulled out a couple of slices of salami and put them in between two slices of cheese. “Trying to fend off Bob can be interesting at times. Figured out early on not to leave a loaf out on the bench. Plastic appears to be something he doesn’t mind chewing through.”

“Anything else I can do?” Leonard asked.

“Nah, all done,” Jim said as he moved over and opened up the maker and put the sandwiches in to cook.

“Beer okay?” he asked. At Leonard’s nod he opened the fridge and pulled out two beers and offered one to Leonard.

Leonard took the beer and opened it.

“Why don’t you go back to the couch. I’ll put the TV on as we might be here a bit,” Jim offered as he started to put the food back in the fridge and the cupboard.

Leonard walked back over and sat back down in the same spot he had earlier vacated. Jim finished up in the kitchen and wandered over to pick up his remote. He turned on the TV, idly flicking through channels trying to find something for them to watch. Nothing seemed to grab his interest, so he left it on the first channel, leaving the sound down low.

“How did you end up being a doctor and a Fed?” Jim asked as he took a sip of his beer.

“Start off with the simple questions, don’t ya?’ Leonard responded.

“Fine, I’ll share and then you can,” Jim offered.

“Kid, that presumes that a, I want to know your life story and b, what are we teenagers?” Leonard responded.

“We could sit here in complete silence waiting for my phone to ring and be told that they found nothing and that the ATF and the DEA hate our guts for pulling them on a wild goose chase on a Sunday, or we could kick back like a couple of friends having a chat,” Jim said.

“Fine,” Leonard grouched. “You tell me yours.”

“Once upon a time there was this incredibly handsome young man...” Jim started.

“Oh for the love of God,” Leonard interjected. “Can you not be serious about anything?”

“Are you able to lighten up or were you born with ‘old man syndrome’?” Jim smiled at him in a way that could only be described as a smirk.

“You are going to tell me some ridiculous story without a grain of truth in it aren’t you?” Leonard asked.

“Bones, you besmirch my honor and the good name of Kirk!” Jim responded.

“I didn’t have to, from what I hear tell, you’ve been doing that well enough on your own!” Leonard replied as he took swig from the bottle in order to hide his own smirk.

“I saw that!” Jim said as he pointed towards Leonard’s mouth. “I got a smile from the grumpy Dr. McCoy! Oh, shit!” Jim exclaimed as he heard a sizzle coming from the kitchen. He bounded up and off towards the griddle to rescue the sandwiches.

Jim brought back two plates, with a sandwich on each and he offered one to Leonard. They ate in silence while the TV quietly played a sitcom in the background.

Leonard leaned forward to place the now empty plate, save for some crumbs, on the low coffee table.

“Not bad, Jim,” he said as he leaned back into the couch, sinking into the cushions.

“See, told you it was good,” Jim said around a mouthful of food.

“Who taught you manners? Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Leonard lectured.

“Yes, Mom,” Jim retorted.

Leonard glared at him.

“See now that’s the Bones I know and love,” Jim smirked as he continued to chew loudly.

“If I talk will that shut you up?” Leonard snapped.

“Maybe, so how did you go from doctor to Fed?” Jim asked.

“Oh for the love of,” Leonard grumbled as he rubbed a hand through his hair. “Pike.”

“You too, huh?” Jim asked.

“I thought you already were in the Omaha Field Office when you got transferred? Causing trouble in Iowa,” Leonard said.

“Oh, Pike was the one who got me to apply for the Academy when I was bumming back in Riverside after college. Had a little altercation with some other fellows he had out on a training course, nothing much,” Jim said as he placed his now empty plate on the coffee table next to Leonard’s.

“Of course it was nothing much,” Leonard muttered.

“Whatever, man,” Jim responded. “Omaha didn’t really suit my investigative style, so Pike was appointed SAC here and he asked for me to transfer. So I did. Thus ends my tale. Your turn now.”

“And to think that tale apparently started with an ‘incredibly handsome young man’,” Leonard said as he took another drink from his beer.

“Stop avoiding and spill,” Jim retorted.

“Fine, okay. I was in my residency when the shit hit the fan on my marriage. I had been approached while at Ole Miss about joining the Feds. My father had worked for them on a consultative basis many years ago and they had apparently had their eye on me. I said no back then ‘cause I saw my life going in a different direction. It didn’t quite end up the way I hoped and Pike got back in touch with me and offered me a job. I had nothing else and it looked attractive. So like you, here I am,” Leonard said,

Jim was frowning as he contemplated something.

“What?” Leonard asked. “You are thinking hard there, kid. That worries me.”

“So you weren’t overseas working for Médecins Sans Frontières that last time? That fits with the time it take to graduate from the Academy,” Jim asked.

“Do you want a medal or a Happy Meal set?” Leonard offered dryly.

“Can’t I have both?”

Leonard closed his eyes and shook his head at Jim’s question. He then opened them quickly when he felt the couch dip slightly. Jim was now sitting right next to him on the couch, legs tucked under himself.

“I thought we agreed to keep our hands to ourselves?” Leonard asked.

“Bones,” Jim cajoled as he leaned forward so that Leonard could feel his breath on his cheek. “Am I touching you with my hands?”

Leonard looked at him out of the corner of his eyes, resolutely keeping his head facing forward. “Don’t trust ya,” he admitted.

Jim smiled and closed the distance so that he could run the tip of his nose up Leonard’s cheek. The sound of the smooth skin of Jim’s nose connecting with the scratchiness of Leonard’s stubble was loud enough to be heard over the TV set.

“What the?” Leonard exclaimed as he moved his head away in shock.

“I still don’t get it,” Jim admitted.

Leonard just looked at Jim a little warily, waiting for him to expand upon his statement.

“See, here you are. A guy,” Jim said as he waved towards Leonard’s body.

“Oh I can see how you aced your biology lessons,” Leonard responded.

“Shut up! I was brilliant at anatomy, particularly on the female form,” Jim proclaimed.

“I bet you thought you were,” Leonard said.

“Hey! I can provide references. Anyway, I’ve only ever been interested in women before. How did you know you were interested in guys? Sulu doesn’t do it for me,” Jim asked.

“Jim, do you want to do her?” Leonard asked as he pointed at the screen.

“Blanche is an awesome woman, but she’s a bit old for me,” Jim replied.

“Not attracted to any of the others there?” Leonard persisted.

“Do you have an old lady fetish I should know about?” Jim looked at him with a hint of concern.

“Just proving a point, Jim. I’m not attracted to every woman or every man. It’s an arbitrary thing and I’d say you are the same. You don’t want to sleep with every woman and up ‘til now you hadn’t been attracted to another man,” Leonard said.

“Hmm,” Jim said as he considered what Leonard had said. He was then saved from answering when there was a phone ring.

Jim quickly got off the couch and headed for his bedroom where Leonard could see him pull a cell phone out from his pocket.

“Kirk here,” he said once he had checked the number and pressed the button to answer the call.

Leonard watched as Jim looked concerned as he listened intently to what he was being told from the other end of the phone.

“What?” he asked, a complete look of shock on his face. “Say that again!”

There was another pause while he listened some more.

“Bullshit!” Jim exclaimed. “Yeah, McCoy’s here with me, I’ll tell him. Sure, see you tomorrow.”

Jim hung up the phone and tossed it back on the bed where it landed on his jacket.

“Damn,” Jim said as he walked back into the room, running a hand through his short hair.

“What?” Leonard asked when he could not hold back his curiosity.

“Novikov didn’t send us on a wild goose chase,” Jim told him as he flopped back down on the couch next to him.

“What?” Leonard repeated.

“It wasn’t a wild goose chase. The information he gave you was correct. Fuck,” Jim breathed out the last word.

“What game is he playing?” Leonard asked.

Jim just shook his head. They both sat there for a while contemplating the change in the game.

“Fuck,” Leonard matched Jim’s final word when he eventually chose to break the silence. “Why did he not want you or possibly Popov there?”

“No idea. The only thing I can think of is that he is protecting you in a way,” Jim responded.

“I’m not sure,” Leonard disagreed. “The man is not dumb. He is obviously playing a deep game that we haven’t cottoned on to yet.”

“From what Sulu said, ATF and DEA are ecstatic. They are both off busy counting the hoard they confiscated. Plus Novikov ratted out a couple of his own guys and there is no way that they can fight the charges. He wanted you and me and Popov away from all the action and he had a reason for it,” Jim said.

“He’s gonna suspect that you will tell me the truth about what happened,” Leonard mused.

“Yup,” Jim agreed.

“Well, I should probably head home,” Leonard said as he started to rise from the couch.

Jim reached over and grabbed him on his wrist. “What are you gonna do when you get there?” he asked.

“What I planned on doing this morning, read a book, just sit around and relax. Maybe watch some TV,” Leonard replied.

“You could do that here,” Jim offered.

Leonard could feel the temperature in the room rise as they looked at each other.

“I could,” Leonard offered, his voice sounding scratchy even to himself.

Jim slowly stood up from the couch and with his spare hand, slid it around so it was resting at the base of Leonard’s spine.

“I’m sure I could be a good host and find something to entertain you with,” Jim said as he tilted his head up slightly.

“You reckon?” Leonard asked.

Jim started to walk backwards carefully, tugging on Leonard’s wrist and pushing with his other hand to make Leonard follow him.

“I reckon so. Might be a good idea to work on that little issue that has been distracting us both a bit.” Jim had rounded the coffee table and was now heading towards his bedroom door.

“Could be a good plan,” Leonard conceded.

“I have the best plans,” Jim announced. “Plus there is an even better reasoning.”

Jim had paused as he reached the doorway and pulled Leonard close so that they were standing body to body.

“What would that be?” Leonard asked.

Jim leaned over to whisper in his ear. “Means Popov has to wait out there even longer.”

Leonard laughed. “That has to one of the most interesting reasons I have ever heard for having sex!”

“Bones, you wound me!” Jim mock innocently proclaimed. “Who said anything about sex?”

Leonard just raised an eyebrow towards him.

“Fine, I meant it, but I didn’t say it! C’mon, I have great plans and the first reason is the best one. We can only let this fuck things up if we let it fuck things up and avoid the fact that the pair of us have been pretty well hard since before lunch. I’m sure you don’t want a case of blue balls to deal with when you get back to your apartment. Particularly if it is bugged. I mean I have already had to jerk off to thoughts of you and would rather the real thing,” Jim said in his normal rapid and quick fire way.

“Real thing, hmm? So would you let me fuck you?” Leonard asked.

Jim considered it. “Maybe.”

Leonard licked his dry and cracked lips. “Would you like to fuck me?”

Jim looked up at him quickly from where his eyes had been focused on Leonard’s lips. Leonard could hear the little indrawn breath that Jim made as he heard what Leonard was offering.

Jim didn’t give him a verbal reply, but if the way he started to kiss Leonard was any indication he seemed to like that offer.

With kisses and moans, hands roaming and clothes shedding they somehow made it to the bed.

There was laughter and adjustments to be made. New touches and places to discover on each other. At times, Jim hesitated and Leonard just waited for him to initiate where they needed to go next. Like he had presumed about Jim’s character, he thought about it quickly, made up his mind and then went full bore towards it.

Leonard had to make Jim slow down when it came to the actual act. He made sure that there was enough lube, even if Jim made inappropriate comments to start off with and then the sight of Leonard prepping his own ass caused him to seemingly lose the power of speech. The initial feeling of the incredible pressure as Jim entered him was something he hoped to not forget soon.

Leonard discovered that Jim expressed himself though kisses. His legs got bent right back close to his body while Jim leaned forward to kiss and bite gently at him. When he could feel that Jim was close, he got his hand involved on his own dick to help himself along. That was the final straw and Jim was coming, groaning his ridiculous nickname. As Jim tried desperately not to fall forward while the aftershocks of his orgasm were wracking his body, Leonard worked quicker and quicker on himself and with a final groan he joined Jim with an orgasm.

Later they lay, dozing on the bed together. Sheets were messed up, around and over them. They were both sticky and Jim pulled off the condom and tied it before dropping it on the floor.

How long they dozed, Leonard was unsure, but there was the sound of the news on the TV and the light had definitely faded to dusk. Jim was pressed up close to him, head on his chest and shoulder, arm draped across him and one leg over his. The rough hair of Jim’s leg was rubbing against him as Jim moved a little in his sleep. Leonard smiled sleepily down at Jim. He wouldn’t need to see his references, the kid could back up his mouth with his actions. Although his mouth was kinda good too.

“Jim,” he quietly said as he rubbed a hand up and down Jim’s arm, trying to gently wake him.

“Wuh? Another couple of minutes,” Jim mumbled.

“Jim, it’s late. I should be heading home,” Leonard said as he pressed a kiss onto Jim’s head. He could still smell the dried sweat in his hair.

Jim blinked up at him blearily. He then yawned.

“Late?” he queried. “Oh, fuck. It is.”

Jim lifted his arm up to rub at his eyes. Another yawn was needed and then he was smiling at Leonard.

“Wore you out good, huh?”

“Wasn’t just me, kid,” Leonard smiled back at him.

“Hmm, maybe,” Jim agreed as he moved up Leonard’s body so that he could kiss him again.

“You really like kisses, dontcha?” Leonard asked when they finally parted.

“Like kissing you,” Jim admitted. “It’s bit different from girls. Although I totally get the complaints about the beard rash.”

Leonard laughed quietly at the perturbed look on Jim’s face. “Got a taste of your own medicine, eh?”

“You’re one to talk,” Jim retorted. He then rubbed his rough cheeks back and forth over Leonard’s chest. “I’m nowhere near as stubbly as you today. At least I managed a shave!”

“Stop that!” Leonard cried as he tried to hold back laughter from the tickling sensation. He pushed at Jim’s shoulders to get him up and off of him.

Jim laughed too as he allowed Leonard to push him away. He rolled onto his back and raised his arms up so that he could cradle his head in his hands.

Leonard tore his eyes away from the flex of Jim’s biceps and glanced back down at himself, noting the dried residue from their earlier activities.

“Ugh,” he said as he idly flicked at a dried speck.

“You can use the shower if you want,” Jim offered.

Leonard flicked a glance towards Jim. “You sure?”

“Wouldn’t have offered if it wasn’t and I’ll be a good boy and not offer to join you,” Jim said as he stared up at his ceiling.

Leonard snorted.

“Hey, give me kudos for that. If I do what I really want, you won’t be leaving here tonight,” Jim stated as he kept staring upwards.

Leonard opened his mouth to give some smart retort, but thought better of it when he realized that Jim was trying to not push and give him space. It was the thought that he was seriously considering Jim’s offer that had him rolling out of the bed and heading towards the bathroom. He had spent a nice time with Jim, just hanging around and the sex was, well, the kid’s head was already swelled enough so Leonard didn’t want to finish off that thought.

“Towels?” he asked as he walked into the bathroom.

“There’s a dry one on the rack, the one over the shower I used this morning,” Jim told him.

Leonard shut the door and stepped into the shower stall.

He washed himself quickly under the warm spray. It should have felt odd to wash using someone else’s toiletries but for some reason that he didn’t want to ponder it in too much depth. It felt okay to be using Jim’s soap and shampoo. With a towel wrapped around his waist, after a cursory drying off while he stood on the bath mat, he stepped out into the bedroom. Jim was nowhere to be seen, but Leonard’s clothes were folded neatly over the end of the bed that was mostly made back into the state it was before the two of them messed it up.

He dressed and then went in search of Jim. As he walked back into the living space, there was a flash of a ginger tail as Bob took himself out of the window.

“Hey Bones, I get the feeling Bob doesn’t approve of you,” Jim said from where he was leaning back against the counter in the kitchen. He had found an Academy sweatshirt and some tracksuit pants that had seen better days to put on while Leonard had been showering.

“I do worry about you and that cat. First time I meet him he gives me the evil eye, this time he avoids me. If I didn’t know better I think he might almost be like an over-protective parent,” Leonard said as he walked toward Jim.

“Yeah, well,” Jim said as he waved his hand towards where the cat had been. “I think he’s just jealous.”

“Yeah?” Leonard asked.

“Yeah,” Jim responded as he stepped towards Leonard, wrapping an arm around his waist and pulling their bodies together. “Bones, I like you smelling like me,” Jim murmured as he rubbed his nose along Leonard’s cheek.

“Kid, I smelt even more like you before I had a shower,” Leonard groaned as Jim started sucking the skin of his neck, using his teeth to nip gently every so often.

“Shut up, Bones,” Jim said as he lifted his head and sucked Leonard’s lower lip into his mouth.

Leonard did shut up as he was a little preoccupied with his mouth again.

All of a sudden Jim let go and pushed him away. Leonard looked at him confusedly.

“You need to go, man. Otherwise I’m dragging you back in there,” Jim said as he pointed towards the bedroom.

Leonard took a deep breath and nodded slowly, dropping his head down as he tried to compose himself. “Yeah, I should.” He looked back up at Jim. “Really, should be going.”

Jim just bit his lip as he stood away from Leonard, the tension evident in his shoulders.

“Right, going,” Leonard said as he turned and headed for the front door. He could hear Jim following closely behind him.

As Leonard reached the front door, Jim’s arm reached around him to start undoing all his security measures, chain and the dead bolt.

“Well,” Leonard started to say his farewells.

“I’ll walk you down, check on our friendly Russian,” Jim said as he stepped back and collected his keys from the bowl.

Leonard didn’t trust his voice so he just nodded again and waited for Jim to open the door. They walked in silence towards the stairs. The general hum of people living their own lives could be heard. Leonard stopped when he reached the stairwell and turned back towards Jim, who was following close behind.

“It’ll be odd if you guys don’t try and send me in to meet with Vasily at some stage without a wire on, especially now,” he said quietly.

Jim nodded. “I’ll mention to Pike tomorrow that we discussed it.”

“Good,” Leonard told him. “I’ll arrange a meeting with Vasily tomorrow morning, to express my fears about the information he is passing on to me and that you guys want me to wear a wire. If I tip him off about it, that should work in our favor to try and figure out just what the hell he is up to.”

“Yeah, but this isn’t the best place to discuss it,” Jim told him.

Leonard nodded. “I just had the thought is all.”

“It’s a good thought, now you have to get home,” Jim pointed down the stairs.

Leonard turned and headed down them, taking Jim’s advice. The pair of them walked in silence once again.

He reached the outer door and pushed it open, stepping out into the cool night. Leonard shivered slightly at the contact of the air on his bare skin. He could see a little way down the street that Popov had found a closer space for his car and was sitting inside it, watching the door to Jim’s building. Leonard turned back to say goodbye to Jim, who was standing and holding the door open with one arm.

“Well, seems he did wait around all this time,” Leonard said quietly.

“I reckon we should give him something to report since he’s waited oh so patiently,” Jim smiled at him.

Before Leonard could fully parse Jim’s meaning, Jim had grabbed his t-shirt, pulled him close, and proceeded to give Popov an eyeful of his kissing talent.

Leonard leaned in, a needy noise coming from the back of his throat as Jim’s talented tongue worked it’s heady magic on him. He could feel the temperature of his skin rise again and the thought did cross his mind that he could stay a little longer. His dick was agreeing very much with that idea. Two years of nothing but his own hand for company and it was eager to get to know Jim some more.

“Fuck. Bones,” Jim said as he rested his forehead on Leonard’s. “Go now. Really, go now or so help me...”

Leonard could feel that he was worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. Jim really was temptation incarnate for him.

He stepped back and then, as he felt the step under his heel, he turned and quickly jogged down the steps and away from Jim, heading towards his car and his own troubled thoughts to be worked over with a quiet glass of bourbon in the still of his own apartment.

Part six this way