Fic: Relationships: Townie, Part 2
Series Title: Relationships
Section Title: Townie, part 2
Author: Fabrisse
Pairing: Nathan/Heidi
Rating: ADULT-EXPLICIT
Word Count: ~4900
Category: Drama
Spoilers: Pre Season 1, minor for Season 2 through Four Months Ago
Summary: Heidi comes in to Nathan’s life
Warnings: Het
Betas: snopes-faith and riverfox
Notes: This came out of discussions at TwoP during the episodes Nothing to Hide and Six Months Ago about either how clueless Heidi was to the vibes between her husband and his brother or how complicit she was in the secret. Since the deleted scenes in Nothing to Hide give us Nathan at Annapolis and Angela calling Heidi a “townie” those two things have entered my personal canon. The overall story is in three parts, “Townie,” “Brothers,” and “Relationships.” Each segment will have it’s own rating, but the overall series is ADULT-EXPLICIT.
I’d like to thank linaerys for giving me permission to post “Townie” even though it is predominantly a het story.
Two weeks without a letter had happened before. They’d suddenly all come at once one Saturday. Heidi opened all of them, laid them in order, and read deeply. When she wrote back, the extra postage was phenomenal, but she’d answered every question Nathan had asked and then filled him in on the little joys of her life.
This time, it had been nearly a month since she’d had a letter from Nathan. He was no longer aboard the Roosevelt. He’d transferred over to JAG and requested an assignment in Rwanda. Mail after that was somewhat more erratic, but Nathan wasn’t. Three letters a week had come for the first two months of the new assignment. Now there was nothing.
***
The phone call was a shock. No one ever phoned her after ten at night, but the clock said half past ten.
“Hello.”
“May I speak to Heidi Abbott, please.” The voice sounded young but vaguely familiar to her.
“Speaking.”
“This is Peter Petrelli. I need to talk to you. Can you meet me at the coffee shop at the Museum of Natural History tomorrow? The one in the basement. Any time you’re free is fine.”
“It opens at ten. I can meet you then.”
“Thank you. It’s important.”
Heidi heard the click as the line disconnected. She slept very little.
***
Peter had picked her out of the crowd easily. The differences between twenty-two and twenty-five must be far fewer than the differences between thirteen and sixteen, because Heidi didn’t think she could have recognized him at all.
She found a table, and Peter bought them both coffee.
As he slid into his seat, he said, “Nathan would kill me if he knew I was doing this.”
“That’s ominous.”
“He was wounded in Rwanda.” Peter glanced at her to see if she was following him. The rest was blurted out quickly. “ It’s bad. The spine’s not involved, but the injuries to his leg - well, they’re pretty sure he’ll be able to walk again, but it was touch and go for awhile.”
Heidi sat in shock.
“When did it happen?”
“About a month ago.”
Heidi could only repeat it. “A month ago.”
“My parents got the notification and met him at the naval hospital in Naples. The Navy finally moved him back to the US about ten days ago which is when I got to see him. He’s at Bethesda. My folks are down there making arrangements for him to transfer to a private facility up here.”
Heidi nodded, trying to take in all the information.
Peter looked at her worriedly but continued. “His locker and personal stuff just arrived a couple of days ago. I heard my parents arguing about ‘some girl we don’t know’ and, honestly, I snuck into Nathan’s room while they were out and dug around until I found out what they were talking about. He has a hundred and fifty one letters from you. I counted.” For the first time since he’d started talking, Heidi registered how young and frightened Peter was.
“Nathan kept them?”
“Didn’t you keep his?”
Heidi blushed. “Yes.”
Peter looked at her with understanding. “I kept all the ones he sent me too.”
Smiling for the first time since she’d gotten to the café, Heidi asked, “How many did he have from you?”
“A hundred and ninety, but I wrote a lot last year. Dad and I weren’t getting along.”
“So he saved every letter he got.”
“No, Heidi. He saved yours. He saved mine. The most recent letter from Mom and Dad is there, and that’s it. You mean something to him which is why I felt you had to know what’s happened.”
“Did Nathan ask you not to tell me?”
“He hasn’t mentioned you to any of us. That’s why I think it’s serious. If he talks about someone, Ma tends to find the flaws and try to drive a wedge. She doesn’t care if we screw every girl we meet.” Peter blushed and talked faster as he realized what he’d said. “But she’ll be damned if we get too close to anyone. And she’s always been worse with Nathan than with me about it.”
“I thought he was joking when he warned me about your mother.”
“I get along with Ma better, and Nathan gets along really well with Dad. I think Dad would like to see Nathan settle down. Ma? It’s just the way she is.”
“Since your family is next of kin, I’m not going to be able to see him.”
“Do you want to?” Peter stared so hard that she felt he was looking through her.
“More than anything.”
He nodded, obviously weighing something for himself. “I believe you. As soon as he’s in the private facility, I’ll find out what the policy is on visitors. I’ll let you know and go with you the first time -- just to absorb any fall out.”
“Fall out?”
“I talked to some of the nurses while my parents were in with him. Nathan’s depressed. That’s on top of the pain and trauma from his injuries. I asked the doctor what Nathan needs, but he wouldn’t talk to me. The nurses say that the patients who do best have people around who love them and who work with them. That’s us.” Peter motioned between himself and Heidi. “Nathan will be mad that I brought you; he seems to think he can do it all on his own through sheer willpower. But if he cares for you as much as I think he does, then he needs you there.”
“I can do that.”
Peter closed his eyes and thought for a moment. “Nathan’s good looking. How much does that matter to you?”
“I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t noticed he’s handsome. But I haven’t seen him in nearly three years. The man I know isn’t a face to me; he’s a mind.”
“His face was injured, too,” Peter said. “It will heal. There will be scarring. I think he’ll just end up better looking - that bad boy thing some people like, you know. But right now, he has a cheek and jaw full of stitches.”
“How he looks won’t change the way I feel about him, but can I ask you a favor?”
“Anything.”
“Can you get me a picture of him with all the injuries?”
Peter was immediately wary. “Why?”
“Because no matter how much you tell me, I might still be startled when I see the stitches and casts and things. I don’t want Nathan to see me flinch.”
Peter put his hand over hers. “You’re a good person.” And in that phrase, she heard the echo of Nathan the first time they met. “There’s one other thing, Heidi.”
“Yes.”
“I love him, too. After the first visit or two, we’ll stagger, okay, so we each get our time with Nathan. I’ll keep the ‘rents away from you, but I need to know that I get to see my brother alone sometimes.”
Heidi was startled by the intensity in Peter’s voice and eyes. “Of course.”
***
The first time Heidi went to see Nathan, Peter went in ahead of her and took half an hour before he returned to the waiting room. After telling her he still hadn’t softened up Nathan, he went back in and took another hour. When he returned to the waiting room, he was pushing Nathan in a wheelchair.
“I’m going to go outside and read. I’ll be back in an hour.” Peter took off.
The silence went on for a long time, and then they both started to talk at once. She let Nathan go ahead.
“You don’t need to be here. It will take a few months, but I’ll be fine.”
“Were you planning on writing? Or just going to let me assume you’d died. Because, Nathan, after a over a month without a letter, that was beginning to be a real fear.”
There was a spasm around his mouth, maybe he tried to smile. “My accomplishment today was using a bed urinal successfully. That may be my accomplishment for the week. I’d rather not share that.”
“Fine. Don’t. Tell me you’re alive. After three years, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to worry.”
“I’m alive.” Nathan’s temper began to fray.
“I’m glad.” Heidi’s tone matched his.
“I don’t want you here.” The tension was palpable.
Heidi looked at her watch. “Peter will be back in fifty minutes. I think I have a deck of cards in my purse. Gin or rummy?”
Nathan stared at her. “Gin.”
She dug in her purse, shuffled, and dealt a hand in silence. They’d each drawn about five cards, when Nathan started to talk. “Peter said he’s the one who found you and dragged you here.”
“He didn’t drag me. He seemed to think that keeping letters means something more than it’s a bother to throw them out.”
Nathan knocked and showed his hand. Heidi added up her points while Nathan shuffled.
“I reread your letters a lot. You showed me the kind of New York that a native never sees.”
“I hope it kept you from being homesick.”
Nathan picked up the cards he’d dealt. “It gave new meaning to homesickness. I wanted to see things with you. Show you the things only a native knows.”
“You did exactly that. Although it would have been better with you in person.”
“I don’t know about that. I get moody.”
Heidi drew a card. “I noticed.”
“I was due to serve two more years, but I’m being invalided out. I never expected to go for a full twenty on active duty, maybe switch to the Reserve at the end of those two, but being in the Navy was important to me.”
“Law school, then?”
“Well, at least I know you read my letters.” Heidi raised an eyebrow at him. “ Yes, I’m filling in forms and reading LSAT books. I think I’ll be good at it. And if I don’t learn to walk without some form of aid, it’s a profession that won’t care much.”
“I reread yours, too, Nathan. Often. You’re good at showing the absurdity of things.”
“Heidi. It wasn’t fair not to write you as soon as I could. They had me on good drugs for awhile, but it’s no excuse.”
“No, it isn’t.” She’d put down her hand and wasn’t even pretending to play cards any more.
“I hate being weak. I didn’t want you to see me. But I wanted to see you, talk to you. I feel like there’s this whole unfinished conversation because I haven’t written you.” Nathan looked broken.
Heidi put her hand over Nathan’s. He spoke again. “I got nine letters from you yesterday. It took the Navy that long to forward them. I looked at the dates and I opened the first one right away. I’d planned to have one every day as a reward for physical therapy.”
“That’s sweet.”
“I think you’re the only person who has ever called me sweet.”
“You’re the only person who considers me a reward.”
“Not true. That’s how Peter introduced me to the idea you were here. As a reward for putting up with all the pain of being moved.”
“He’s a very intuitive young man.”
“Yes.”
“He loves you, Nathan.”
“I know. I love him too. Especially this more adult Peter. He’s standing up to our folks and demanding time with me. He brought you along because he thought I needed it.”
“Did you? Need it?”
Nathan squeezed her hand. “Yes. I’ve fallen in love with you.”
Heidi let out a breath she hadn’t known she was holding. “I love you, too.”
“If I haven’t put you off me entirely, will you come visit?”
“I’ll put your surliness down to pain. This time.” Heidi tried to look stern, but only succeeded in looking radiantly happy.
“Thank you.”
“Peter and I will work out a schedule. You’ll have a visitor every day.”
“Tell you what. Dad and Ma are planning to come on Sundays, and on Friday there’s a movie night for all the patients. So you and Peter work out the other days of the week.”
“Don’t you want me to meet your parents?”
“Not until I can stand again.”
“I’ll hold you to that.” She looked out the window and saw Peter beginning to trek back up the hill. “Is it okay to kiss you?”
“Just keep away from the stitches.”
***
The day Nathan got his hardware off was on one of Heidi’s visiting days. When she arrived, he was walking, with a nurse supporting him, around his bed.
“I can’t believe something so simple is so tiring.”
Heidi grinned. “It’s a start. It’s great to see you up, however briefly.”
Nathan grinned back at her as he settled into the bed.
The nurse quietly left.
As she walked over, Heidi noticed Nathan’s focus slide down her body. “Quiz: what color are my eyes?”
Not lifting his gaze above her chest, Nathan answered, “An arrestingly vibrant blue. And they are not going to distract me from the beauty of your body. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you without a bra before.”
Heidi blushed and took the hand he was holding out to her. “So much for being subtle.”
“I was supposed to be subtle?” Nathan pulled her across his body into a kiss.
“I was trying to be subtle.”
“Ah.” He began to unbutton her sweater and mouthed his way down her throat. “I’m not.”
Heidi laughed. “No, you aren’t, but then I can’t say I didn’t issue the invitation.”
Nathan looked up at her with amusement. “What, exactly, am I invited to do?” He began to crack up when she blushed a very deep red.
“Make love to me.”
“I see, Miss Abbott. Where should I start?”
“Um…”
“I could just give in to my oral fixation.” Nathan weighed her breast in his hand, then bent his head to her nipple. He sucked for a moment then licked her whole breast.
“That’s good.” Heidi could barely breathe.
Nathan finished unbuttoning her sweater. He slid his hand under her skirt while he continued to brush his lips over her breasts. He stopped when he reached the tops of her thigh-high stockings. Nathan chuckled then ran his tongue between her breasts and nibbled up to her ear. “I’ll bet … the rest of you … tastes as good as your mouth does.” He kissed her deeply, probing with his tongue.
“As much as I’d love that, I, uh…”
Nathan pulled away and looked at her. “Talk to me.”
“You’re talking about oral sex, right?” Nathan nodded a small smile playing about his lips. “I don’t feel right about it.”
“Is it a religious restriction or something?” He was honestly puzzled.
“No. Nothing like that.”
“You don’t like it? Receiving it, I mean” Nathan wondered how vague he could be.
“I haven’t, not that often, but I’ve liked it.”
It took him some time to parse this. “If I’ve understood you correctly, you have no problem with my wanting to, how to put this, taste you. Which leads me to believe the problem is in giving head? Sorry, I need to use real words or at least real euphemisms.”
Heidi sighed a little. “I know the words, I’ve just never had the occasion to use them.”
"Okay, then. My problem is I don't know whether you'd prefer it if I said 'I enjoy cunnilingus and do not expect reciprical fellatio.'" Heidi began to giggle. Nathan continued, "or 'my feasting on your pussy doesn't mean I expect you to suck my cock.'" That got a shiver from her. Nathan grinned wolfishly. "You like blunt talk."
"I don't usually like vulgarity, but with your voice, " she blushed, "it's a turn on."
Nathan traced her ear with his tongue. "I'd like to tell you how much I love it when you smell of sex. How excited I’ll get when I feel your clit harden against my tongue. I love the musky scent and the salty taste and..." Heidi squirmed and her breath hitched. He slid the hand that rested on her thigh higher and found she wasn't wearing panties. "Invitations, indeed." He lowered his voice, "I want to make you come so hard you'll have to hold a pillow over your face while you scream."
"Nathan?"
He continued exploring her jaw and neck, "Yes?"
"Narrow bed, bad leg, how?"
Nathan propped himself up on one arm and looked at her. "If you take your skirt off, you could sit on my face.” Heidi looked a little shocked, so Nathan added, “I'd like that."
Heidi scrambled off the bed to get her skirt off as Nathan lay back and made himself comfortable. When she began to take off her shoes and stockings, Nathan said, "Leave them on."
***
Nathan told the truth when he said he liked oral sex. Heidi’s thighs were quivering from the sensation of his lips and tongue on her most sensitive areas. She’d already had one orgasm - he’d mouthed at her mons and just growled deep in his throat. He’d taken his time bringing her to a second peak, eased her over the edge until she felt like she was flying forever.
Now he was playful, thrusting his tongue into her, stroking and kneading her rear, teasing her clit with little flicks and kisses. Heidi was writhing on top of him wondering how he could breathe, wondering how long she could keep quiet because she was clenching and coming and finally bit her arm to muffle the scream.
Nathan pushed her thighs back and slid her down his body. She had no idea where he’d gotten the condom or when he’d pulled it on, but Heidi was impaled on his thick cock while her inner walls were still clenching from her orgasm. One small part of her admired his physical therapy program because once he’d thrust into her, Nathan sat straight up and held her close.
His hands slid under her open sweater and pulled her more tightly to him. He bent to flick his tongue against her nipples, then mouthed his way up her neck. Her wet nipples brushed against the hair on his chest and sent a jolt of sensation through her. Nathan’s hands guided her hips just enough that she knew to grind down against his thrusts.
Heidi saw the pink healing scars on his chin wet with her juices, his eyes dark with desire. She ran her hands through his hair and pulled him close for a deep kiss.
“Sweetheart, can you wrap your legs around me?”
She nodded and complied, suddenly he was driving deeper into her and the movement was pressing against her clit; Heidi threw her head back and gasped as Nathan sucked at her shoulder. He brought her mouth back to meet his just as his whole spine vibrated. Two rough deep thrusts and a low groan breathed into her ear let her know he’d come. He lay back, still buried inside her, and slipped his fingers between them. Nathan’s eyes were fixed on her face as his fingers drove her wild.
Heidi convulsed and collapsed against him and knew she could never again live without Nathan as her lover.
***
A little later, they lay together sweaty and sated. Heidi's hand was wandering over Nathan's body, and he took it and kissed the palm. "I'm a bit sensitive right after I've come." He looked at her and asked, "What's up?"
Heidi looked up at him and her face brightened. "That was wonderful."
"Okay."
"But I was thinking about what you said, you know, about reciprocating."
"And?"
"Do you like it? Oral sex?"
"My RIO used to say 'it takes all kinds to make the world,' so there's probably some guy somewhere who hates getting blown. I'm not that guy."
Heidi nodded. "So you've thought about it, with me, I mean?"
Nathan held her a little closer and tilted her head up. He traced his finger over her lips. "I've fantasized about you in dark red lipstick and watching my cock slide into your mouth. I've never fantasized about making you do something you don't want to do."
"I doubt you were celibate while you were gone."
Nathan adjusted the bed so he could look at her more comfortably. "I was on a ship for over two years. Most of the time my choice was right hand or left hand. In Rwanda, well, the situation wasn't one where I wanted sex -- or food most of the time. But no, I wasn't a monk."
"That came out wrong. Your past is yours. But I want to tell you about my past, and it feels weird not knowing anything about yours."
"You don't have to tell me anything."
"I know."
Nathan thought a moment. "There are a few things that I want you to know. The big one is that I did, occasionally, sleep with other women while I was gone. Other than that... No venereal diseases. I've never paid for sex - not that I haven't been tempted. I've never slept with a virgin. And I spent my early teens at all boys schools, so I've given a few blowjobs in my time." He watched her closely.
"Oh. Somehow I never thought of men." Heidi’s face went blank.
"Are you shocked?"
"A little."
Nathan explained. "Two hundred horny pre-teen and teen boys with the nearest girls twenty miles away? We made do. Mostly hand jobs. The boys who were known to suck dick weren't treated well. I was lucky. The guys I went down on didn’t talk.” He thought for a moment. “And I fucked one of my classmates, so I guess I have slept with a virgin."
Heidi swallowed. "Were you ever, er..."
"Did I get fucked?"
Heidi nodded.
"No. The guy I fucked, it was right before Christmas. It was supposed to be my turn in January, but his parents transferred him in the middle of the school year. Never found anyone else I trusted."
"With your body?" The tension was easing out of her. She sounded genuinely puzzled.
"Not to talk." Nathan hugged her closer. "You went to all-girls schools all your life. Can I imagine lesbian shower scenes?"
"I practiced kissing with my freshman roommate a few times, but my boarding school was in a city. We had access to boys." Her teasing tone was finally back.
"Damn. There goes my fantasy."
"Pervert." Heidi hit his shoulder and laughed. "Where are you applying to law school?"
Nathan ran his hand over her breast. "How did we get from sex to law school?"
"If we start anything now, the nurses will walk in on us when visiting hours are over."
He looked at the clock. "True. You'll have to come early on Wednesday."
"I came pretty early today." Heidi grinned. "Law schools?"
"NYU is my first choice; whichever SUNY will let me in if I don't make NYU."
"Have you ever thought of Johns Hopkins or Georgetown?"
"No."
"Could I talk you into thinking about them?"
Nathan looked at her. "Most law schools won't accept transfer credits from the correspondence courses available aboard ship. NYU will. So will SUNY. I'd lose a whole year if I went to a school that didn't accept them. Besides, my housing is cheaper here."
"Manhattan’s cheaper?"
"I inherited a house from my grandmother last year. Nothing to pay except taxes and utilities."
"I can see how that would be a help."
"Why did you ask?"
"My father's running for lieutenant governor. He wants me in Maryland to help with the campaign.” She clarified for his benefit, “Just for family support, not running the offices."
"Law school wouldn't start until September. I should be out of here by March. I can be with you in Maryland for the spring and summer, if that's what you're asking."
"Yes. That was what I was going to ask you."
"Once the campaign is over, you'll come back."
"Well, I'd have to find a place to live."
"And I have a very large house with lots of room."
Heidi grinned. "Living in sin should be fun."
Nathan kissed her. "What about marriage? Couldn't that be fun?"
"Marriage?"
"I wanted to wait until I was walking to ask you. I wanted to wait until I had a chance to have Peter get the ring out of my safe deposit box. But, since it came up now..."
"Yes." Heidi kissed him. "You already have a ring?"
"The house wasn't the only thing my grandmother left me. When you come here on Saturday, I should have it for you. Or if you want a new ring, you and Peter could go shopping." He saw her puzzled look. "He has my credit card."
"I'd be honored to wear your grandmother's ring."
***
“Got it.” Nathan hung up the phone.
“Got what? And what all that about Vanity Fair?” Heidi asked.
“My mother’s on her way, and Pete’s excuse to get to a phone was that I’d requested a book. He grabbed Vanity Fair.”
“How soon will she be here?”
“Less than an hour.”
“Damn. No time to … do anything interesting.”
Nathan grinned and kissed her. “It’s not usually a selling point, but I can be fast.”
“Let’s see your speed, flyboy.”
***
When Angela Petrelli came in to her son’s room, he was playing cards with a very pretty, if subtly disheveled, woman. Peter rushed over to the bed, looked at both hands, and said, “Heidi’s going to win.”
“She usually does.” Nathan kissed his brother then watched as Peter went over and kissed Heidi’s cheek.
“I brought that book you wanted.”
“Nathan told me he’d asked for it. I think it’s really sweet that he wants to read my favorite novel.”
Nathan looked at Heidi with appreciation. “Ma, I’d like you to meet my fiancée, Heidi Abbott. Heidi, my mother, Angela Petrelli.”
Angela extended her hand like a declaration of war. “Fiancée. Where did you meet?”
Nathan interrupted. “I was at Annapolis. Heidi came to one of the mixers. Her parents lived there.”
“Didn’t we buy you some extra bookshelves at Abbott’s Hardware?”
“Yeah, Ma, we did.”
Angela turned back to Heidi. “Has your family been in lumber long?”
“Yes. That’s why we own the largest chain in the Delmarva region. One of my many-times-great grandfathers started out supplying lumber to Lord Fairfax.”
The tension in the room was thick. Angela added to it. “So you’re a townie?”
Heidi’s jaw flexed. “Yes. Annapolis born and bred.”
Nathan looked at Peter who picked up his signal and said, “I’m going to get some coffee in the cafeteria. I’ll bring it back for everyone - except you Nathan. What kind of herbal tea do you want?”
“If it says Zinger, I’ll drink it. Heidi, Peter’s going to need some help carrying it back.”
Heidi made as if to say something, then seemed to think better of it. “I’d like some coffee. It makes the drive back to town easier.” She walked to the door with Peter.
When they closed it behind them, Peter said, “Walk away quickly. It’s always better if you don’t actually hear the explosion.” He looked at her. “Nathan will win. Most of the time, Ma does. But Nathan always wins on the things that are really important to him.”
“Are you sure I qualify?” Heidi teased.
Peter gave a lopsided grin. “He wouldn’t let you win at cards if you weren’t important.”
She let Peter judge how long “getting coffee” needed to take, and they made their way back to Nathan’s room about twenty minutes later. Angela was sitting in the visitor’s chair, but she rose when Heidi and Peter returned.
After they put the hot drinks on a side table, Angela walked up to Heidi and kissed her on each cheek. “Nathan tells me that you’re Catholic so we don’t need to worry about that. I’ve always wanted a Maryland girl in the family.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Petrelli.”
“Angela, please.” She patted Heidi’s cheek absentmindedly. “You and Nathan will have very pretty children. Finish your coffee, Peter. I’ll let you drive home.”
Peter kissed Nathan on the cheek, then walked over to Heidi and gave her a huge, impulsive hug. He kissed her quickly on the lips. “I think I’ll like having a sister.”
After he left, blushing, Heidi met Nathan’s eye and they both cracked up.
***
Nathan was allowed to go home the first week in March. Heidi had been in Maryland for over a week, and Nathan was going to join her right after Easter.
The news was good. The bones had healed cleanly. His scars were beginning to fade a bit. Several of his tendons had stretched badly, and while the doctors told him that tendons always healed, they also cautioned him that it could take several months. For now, he was on a cane. They told him he would need it through the end of May at the very least and possibly much longer.
He looked at the ugly metal and plastic thing in his hand and resolved that his first stop in Manhattan would be at a shop that sold walking sticks.
Section Title: Townie, part 2
Author: Fabrisse
Pairing: Nathan/Heidi
Rating: ADULT-EXPLICIT
Word Count: ~4900
Category: Drama
Spoilers: Pre Season 1, minor for Season 2 through Four Months Ago
Summary: Heidi comes in to Nathan’s life
Warnings: Het
Betas: snopes-faith and riverfox
Notes: This came out of discussions at TwoP during the episodes Nothing to Hide and Six Months Ago about either how clueless Heidi was to the vibes between her husband and his brother or how complicit she was in the secret. Since the deleted scenes in Nothing to Hide give us Nathan at Annapolis and Angela calling Heidi a “townie” those two things have entered my personal canon. The overall story is in three parts, “Townie,” “Brothers,” and “Relationships.” Each segment will have it’s own rating, but the overall series is ADULT-EXPLICIT.
I’d like to thank linaerys for giving me permission to post “Townie” even though it is predominantly a het story.
Two weeks without a letter had happened before. They’d suddenly all come at once one Saturday. Heidi opened all of them, laid them in order, and read deeply. When she wrote back, the extra postage was phenomenal, but she’d answered every question Nathan had asked and then filled him in on the little joys of her life.
This time, it had been nearly a month since she’d had a letter from Nathan. He was no longer aboard the Roosevelt. He’d transferred over to JAG and requested an assignment in Rwanda. Mail after that was somewhat more erratic, but Nathan wasn’t. Three letters a week had come for the first two months of the new assignment. Now there was nothing.
***
The phone call was a shock. No one ever phoned her after ten at night, but the clock said half past ten.
“Hello.”
“May I speak to Heidi Abbott, please.” The voice sounded young but vaguely familiar to her.
“Speaking.”
“This is Peter Petrelli. I need to talk to you. Can you meet me at the coffee shop at the Museum of Natural History tomorrow? The one in the basement. Any time you’re free is fine.”
“It opens at ten. I can meet you then.”
“Thank you. It’s important.”
Heidi heard the click as the line disconnected. She slept very little.
***
Peter had picked her out of the crowd easily. The differences between twenty-two and twenty-five must be far fewer than the differences between thirteen and sixteen, because Heidi didn’t think she could have recognized him at all.
She found a table, and Peter bought them both coffee.
As he slid into his seat, he said, “Nathan would kill me if he knew I was doing this.”
“That’s ominous.”
“He was wounded in Rwanda.” Peter glanced at her to see if she was following him. The rest was blurted out quickly. “ It’s bad. The spine’s not involved, but the injuries to his leg - well, they’re pretty sure he’ll be able to walk again, but it was touch and go for awhile.”
Heidi sat in shock.
“When did it happen?”
“About a month ago.”
Heidi could only repeat it. “A month ago.”
“My parents got the notification and met him at the naval hospital in Naples. The Navy finally moved him back to the US about ten days ago which is when I got to see him. He’s at Bethesda. My folks are down there making arrangements for him to transfer to a private facility up here.”
Heidi nodded, trying to take in all the information.
Peter looked at her worriedly but continued. “His locker and personal stuff just arrived a couple of days ago. I heard my parents arguing about ‘some girl we don’t know’ and, honestly, I snuck into Nathan’s room while they were out and dug around until I found out what they were talking about. He has a hundred and fifty one letters from you. I counted.” For the first time since he’d started talking, Heidi registered how young and frightened Peter was.
“Nathan kept them?”
“Didn’t you keep his?”
Heidi blushed. “Yes.”
Peter looked at her with understanding. “I kept all the ones he sent me too.”
Smiling for the first time since she’d gotten to the café, Heidi asked, “How many did he have from you?”
“A hundred and ninety, but I wrote a lot last year. Dad and I weren’t getting along.”
“So he saved every letter he got.”
“No, Heidi. He saved yours. He saved mine. The most recent letter from Mom and Dad is there, and that’s it. You mean something to him which is why I felt you had to know what’s happened.”
“Did Nathan ask you not to tell me?”
“He hasn’t mentioned you to any of us. That’s why I think it’s serious. If he talks about someone, Ma tends to find the flaws and try to drive a wedge. She doesn’t care if we screw every girl we meet.” Peter blushed and talked faster as he realized what he’d said. “But she’ll be damned if we get too close to anyone. And she’s always been worse with Nathan than with me about it.”
“I thought he was joking when he warned me about your mother.”
“I get along with Ma better, and Nathan gets along really well with Dad. I think Dad would like to see Nathan settle down. Ma? It’s just the way she is.”
“Since your family is next of kin, I’m not going to be able to see him.”
“Do you want to?” Peter stared so hard that she felt he was looking through her.
“More than anything.”
He nodded, obviously weighing something for himself. “I believe you. As soon as he’s in the private facility, I’ll find out what the policy is on visitors. I’ll let you know and go with you the first time -- just to absorb any fall out.”
“Fall out?”
“I talked to some of the nurses while my parents were in with him. Nathan’s depressed. That’s on top of the pain and trauma from his injuries. I asked the doctor what Nathan needs, but he wouldn’t talk to me. The nurses say that the patients who do best have people around who love them and who work with them. That’s us.” Peter motioned between himself and Heidi. “Nathan will be mad that I brought you; he seems to think he can do it all on his own through sheer willpower. But if he cares for you as much as I think he does, then he needs you there.”
“I can do that.”
Peter closed his eyes and thought for a moment. “Nathan’s good looking. How much does that matter to you?”
“I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t noticed he’s handsome. But I haven’t seen him in nearly three years. The man I know isn’t a face to me; he’s a mind.”
“His face was injured, too,” Peter said. “It will heal. There will be scarring. I think he’ll just end up better looking - that bad boy thing some people like, you know. But right now, he has a cheek and jaw full of stitches.”
“How he looks won’t change the way I feel about him, but can I ask you a favor?”
“Anything.”
“Can you get me a picture of him with all the injuries?”
Peter was immediately wary. “Why?”
“Because no matter how much you tell me, I might still be startled when I see the stitches and casts and things. I don’t want Nathan to see me flinch.”
Peter put his hand over hers. “You’re a good person.” And in that phrase, she heard the echo of Nathan the first time they met. “There’s one other thing, Heidi.”
“Yes.”
“I love him, too. After the first visit or two, we’ll stagger, okay, so we each get our time with Nathan. I’ll keep the ‘rents away from you, but I need to know that I get to see my brother alone sometimes.”
Heidi was startled by the intensity in Peter’s voice and eyes. “Of course.”
***
The first time Heidi went to see Nathan, Peter went in ahead of her and took half an hour before he returned to the waiting room. After telling her he still hadn’t softened up Nathan, he went back in and took another hour. When he returned to the waiting room, he was pushing Nathan in a wheelchair.
“I’m going to go outside and read. I’ll be back in an hour.” Peter took off.
The silence went on for a long time, and then they both started to talk at once. She let Nathan go ahead.
“You don’t need to be here. It will take a few months, but I’ll be fine.”
“Were you planning on writing? Or just going to let me assume you’d died. Because, Nathan, after a over a month without a letter, that was beginning to be a real fear.”
There was a spasm around his mouth, maybe he tried to smile. “My accomplishment today was using a bed urinal successfully. That may be my accomplishment for the week. I’d rather not share that.”
“Fine. Don’t. Tell me you’re alive. After three years, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to worry.”
“I’m alive.” Nathan’s temper began to fray.
“I’m glad.” Heidi’s tone matched his.
“I don’t want you here.” The tension was palpable.
Heidi looked at her watch. “Peter will be back in fifty minutes. I think I have a deck of cards in my purse. Gin or rummy?”
Nathan stared at her. “Gin.”
She dug in her purse, shuffled, and dealt a hand in silence. They’d each drawn about five cards, when Nathan started to talk. “Peter said he’s the one who found you and dragged you here.”
“He didn’t drag me. He seemed to think that keeping letters means something more than it’s a bother to throw them out.”
Nathan knocked and showed his hand. Heidi added up her points while Nathan shuffled.
“I reread your letters a lot. You showed me the kind of New York that a native never sees.”
“I hope it kept you from being homesick.”
Nathan picked up the cards he’d dealt. “It gave new meaning to homesickness. I wanted to see things with you. Show you the things only a native knows.”
“You did exactly that. Although it would have been better with you in person.”
“I don’t know about that. I get moody.”
Heidi drew a card. “I noticed.”
“I was due to serve two more years, but I’m being invalided out. I never expected to go for a full twenty on active duty, maybe switch to the Reserve at the end of those two, but being in the Navy was important to me.”
“Law school, then?”
“Well, at least I know you read my letters.” Heidi raised an eyebrow at him. “ Yes, I’m filling in forms and reading LSAT books. I think I’ll be good at it. And if I don’t learn to walk without some form of aid, it’s a profession that won’t care much.”
“I reread yours, too, Nathan. Often. You’re good at showing the absurdity of things.”
“Heidi. It wasn’t fair not to write you as soon as I could. They had me on good drugs for awhile, but it’s no excuse.”
“No, it isn’t.” She’d put down her hand and wasn’t even pretending to play cards any more.
“I hate being weak. I didn’t want you to see me. But I wanted to see you, talk to you. I feel like there’s this whole unfinished conversation because I haven’t written you.” Nathan looked broken.
Heidi put her hand over Nathan’s. He spoke again. “I got nine letters from you yesterday. It took the Navy that long to forward them. I looked at the dates and I opened the first one right away. I’d planned to have one every day as a reward for physical therapy.”
“That’s sweet.”
“I think you’re the only person who has ever called me sweet.”
“You’re the only person who considers me a reward.”
“Not true. That’s how Peter introduced me to the idea you were here. As a reward for putting up with all the pain of being moved.”
“He’s a very intuitive young man.”
“Yes.”
“He loves you, Nathan.”
“I know. I love him too. Especially this more adult Peter. He’s standing up to our folks and demanding time with me. He brought you along because he thought I needed it.”
“Did you? Need it?”
Nathan squeezed her hand. “Yes. I’ve fallen in love with you.”
Heidi let out a breath she hadn’t known she was holding. “I love you, too.”
“If I haven’t put you off me entirely, will you come visit?”
“I’ll put your surliness down to pain. This time.” Heidi tried to look stern, but only succeeded in looking radiantly happy.
“Thank you.”
“Peter and I will work out a schedule. You’ll have a visitor every day.”
“Tell you what. Dad and Ma are planning to come on Sundays, and on Friday there’s a movie night for all the patients. So you and Peter work out the other days of the week.”
“Don’t you want me to meet your parents?”
“Not until I can stand again.”
“I’ll hold you to that.” She looked out the window and saw Peter beginning to trek back up the hill. “Is it okay to kiss you?”
“Just keep away from the stitches.”
***
The day Nathan got his hardware off was on one of Heidi’s visiting days. When she arrived, he was walking, with a nurse supporting him, around his bed.
“I can’t believe something so simple is so tiring.”
Heidi grinned. “It’s a start. It’s great to see you up, however briefly.”
Nathan grinned back at her as he settled into the bed.
The nurse quietly left.
As she walked over, Heidi noticed Nathan’s focus slide down her body. “Quiz: what color are my eyes?”
Not lifting his gaze above her chest, Nathan answered, “An arrestingly vibrant blue. And they are not going to distract me from the beauty of your body. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you without a bra before.”
Heidi blushed and took the hand he was holding out to her. “So much for being subtle.”
“I was supposed to be subtle?” Nathan pulled her across his body into a kiss.
“I was trying to be subtle.”
“Ah.” He began to unbutton her sweater and mouthed his way down her throat. “I’m not.”
Heidi laughed. “No, you aren’t, but then I can’t say I didn’t issue the invitation.”
Nathan looked up at her with amusement. “What, exactly, am I invited to do?” He began to crack up when she blushed a very deep red.
“Make love to me.”
“I see, Miss Abbott. Where should I start?”
“Um…”
“I could just give in to my oral fixation.” Nathan weighed her breast in his hand, then bent his head to her nipple. He sucked for a moment then licked her whole breast.
“That’s good.” Heidi could barely breathe.
Nathan finished unbuttoning her sweater. He slid his hand under her skirt while he continued to brush his lips over her breasts. He stopped when he reached the tops of her thigh-high stockings. Nathan chuckled then ran his tongue between her breasts and nibbled up to her ear. “I’ll bet … the rest of you … tastes as good as your mouth does.” He kissed her deeply, probing with his tongue.
“As much as I’d love that, I, uh…”
Nathan pulled away and looked at her. “Talk to me.”
“You’re talking about oral sex, right?” Nathan nodded a small smile playing about his lips. “I don’t feel right about it.”
“Is it a religious restriction or something?” He was honestly puzzled.
“No. Nothing like that.”
“You don’t like it? Receiving it, I mean” Nathan wondered how vague he could be.
“I haven’t, not that often, but I’ve liked it.”
It took him some time to parse this. “If I’ve understood you correctly, you have no problem with my wanting to, how to put this, taste you. Which leads me to believe the problem is in giving head? Sorry, I need to use real words or at least real euphemisms.”
Heidi sighed a little. “I know the words, I’ve just never had the occasion to use them.”
"Okay, then. My problem is I don't know whether you'd prefer it if I said 'I enjoy cunnilingus and do not expect reciprical fellatio.'" Heidi began to giggle. Nathan continued, "or 'my feasting on your pussy doesn't mean I expect you to suck my cock.'" That got a shiver from her. Nathan grinned wolfishly. "You like blunt talk."
"I don't usually like vulgarity, but with your voice, " she blushed, "it's a turn on."
Nathan traced her ear with his tongue. "I'd like to tell you how much I love it when you smell of sex. How excited I’ll get when I feel your clit harden against my tongue. I love the musky scent and the salty taste and..." Heidi squirmed and her breath hitched. He slid the hand that rested on her thigh higher and found she wasn't wearing panties. "Invitations, indeed." He lowered his voice, "I want to make you come so hard you'll have to hold a pillow over your face while you scream."
"Nathan?"
He continued exploring her jaw and neck, "Yes?"
"Narrow bed, bad leg, how?"
Nathan propped himself up on one arm and looked at her. "If you take your skirt off, you could sit on my face.” Heidi looked a little shocked, so Nathan added, “I'd like that."
Heidi scrambled off the bed to get her skirt off as Nathan lay back and made himself comfortable. When she began to take off her shoes and stockings, Nathan said, "Leave them on."
***
Nathan told the truth when he said he liked oral sex. Heidi’s thighs were quivering from the sensation of his lips and tongue on her most sensitive areas. She’d already had one orgasm - he’d mouthed at her mons and just growled deep in his throat. He’d taken his time bringing her to a second peak, eased her over the edge until she felt like she was flying forever.
Now he was playful, thrusting his tongue into her, stroking and kneading her rear, teasing her clit with little flicks and kisses. Heidi was writhing on top of him wondering how he could breathe, wondering how long she could keep quiet because she was clenching and coming and finally bit her arm to muffle the scream.
Nathan pushed her thighs back and slid her down his body. She had no idea where he’d gotten the condom or when he’d pulled it on, but Heidi was impaled on his thick cock while her inner walls were still clenching from her orgasm. One small part of her admired his physical therapy program because once he’d thrust into her, Nathan sat straight up and held her close.
His hands slid under her open sweater and pulled her more tightly to him. He bent to flick his tongue against her nipples, then mouthed his way up her neck. Her wet nipples brushed against the hair on his chest and sent a jolt of sensation through her. Nathan’s hands guided her hips just enough that she knew to grind down against his thrusts.
Heidi saw the pink healing scars on his chin wet with her juices, his eyes dark with desire. She ran her hands through his hair and pulled him close for a deep kiss.
“Sweetheart, can you wrap your legs around me?”
She nodded and complied, suddenly he was driving deeper into her and the movement was pressing against her clit; Heidi threw her head back and gasped as Nathan sucked at her shoulder. He brought her mouth back to meet his just as his whole spine vibrated. Two rough deep thrusts and a low groan breathed into her ear let her know he’d come. He lay back, still buried inside her, and slipped his fingers between them. Nathan’s eyes were fixed on her face as his fingers drove her wild.
Heidi convulsed and collapsed against him and knew she could never again live without Nathan as her lover.
***
A little later, they lay together sweaty and sated. Heidi's hand was wandering over Nathan's body, and he took it and kissed the palm. "I'm a bit sensitive right after I've come." He looked at her and asked, "What's up?"
Heidi looked up at him and her face brightened. "That was wonderful."
"Okay."
"But I was thinking about what you said, you know, about reciprocating."
"And?"
"Do you like it? Oral sex?"
"My RIO used to say 'it takes all kinds to make the world,' so there's probably some guy somewhere who hates getting blown. I'm not that guy."
Heidi nodded. "So you've thought about it, with me, I mean?"
Nathan held her a little closer and tilted her head up. He traced his finger over her lips. "I've fantasized about you in dark red lipstick and watching my cock slide into your mouth. I've never fantasized about making you do something you don't want to do."
"I doubt you were celibate while you were gone."
Nathan adjusted the bed so he could look at her more comfortably. "I was on a ship for over two years. Most of the time my choice was right hand or left hand. In Rwanda, well, the situation wasn't one where I wanted sex -- or food most of the time. But no, I wasn't a monk."
"That came out wrong. Your past is yours. But I want to tell you about my past, and it feels weird not knowing anything about yours."
"You don't have to tell me anything."
"I know."
Nathan thought a moment. "There are a few things that I want you to know. The big one is that I did, occasionally, sleep with other women while I was gone. Other than that... No venereal diseases. I've never paid for sex - not that I haven't been tempted. I've never slept with a virgin. And I spent my early teens at all boys schools, so I've given a few blowjobs in my time." He watched her closely.
"Oh. Somehow I never thought of men." Heidi’s face went blank.
"Are you shocked?"
"A little."
Nathan explained. "Two hundred horny pre-teen and teen boys with the nearest girls twenty miles away? We made do. Mostly hand jobs. The boys who were known to suck dick weren't treated well. I was lucky. The guys I went down on didn’t talk.” He thought for a moment. “And I fucked one of my classmates, so I guess I have slept with a virgin."
Heidi swallowed. "Were you ever, er..."
"Did I get fucked?"
Heidi nodded.
"No. The guy I fucked, it was right before Christmas. It was supposed to be my turn in January, but his parents transferred him in the middle of the school year. Never found anyone else I trusted."
"With your body?" The tension was easing out of her. She sounded genuinely puzzled.
"Not to talk." Nathan hugged her closer. "You went to all-girls schools all your life. Can I imagine lesbian shower scenes?"
"I practiced kissing with my freshman roommate a few times, but my boarding school was in a city. We had access to boys." Her teasing tone was finally back.
"Damn. There goes my fantasy."
"Pervert." Heidi hit his shoulder and laughed. "Where are you applying to law school?"
Nathan ran his hand over her breast. "How did we get from sex to law school?"
"If we start anything now, the nurses will walk in on us when visiting hours are over."
He looked at the clock. "True. You'll have to come early on Wednesday."
"I came pretty early today." Heidi grinned. "Law schools?"
"NYU is my first choice; whichever SUNY will let me in if I don't make NYU."
"Have you ever thought of Johns Hopkins or Georgetown?"
"No."
"Could I talk you into thinking about them?"
Nathan looked at her. "Most law schools won't accept transfer credits from the correspondence courses available aboard ship. NYU will. So will SUNY. I'd lose a whole year if I went to a school that didn't accept them. Besides, my housing is cheaper here."
"Manhattan’s cheaper?"
"I inherited a house from my grandmother last year. Nothing to pay except taxes and utilities."
"I can see how that would be a help."
"Why did you ask?"
"My father's running for lieutenant governor. He wants me in Maryland to help with the campaign.” She clarified for his benefit, “Just for family support, not running the offices."
"Law school wouldn't start until September. I should be out of here by March. I can be with you in Maryland for the spring and summer, if that's what you're asking."
"Yes. That was what I was going to ask you."
"Once the campaign is over, you'll come back."
"Well, I'd have to find a place to live."
"And I have a very large house with lots of room."
Heidi grinned. "Living in sin should be fun."
Nathan kissed her. "What about marriage? Couldn't that be fun?"
"Marriage?"
"I wanted to wait until I was walking to ask you. I wanted to wait until I had a chance to have Peter get the ring out of my safe deposit box. But, since it came up now..."
"Yes." Heidi kissed him. "You already have a ring?"
"The house wasn't the only thing my grandmother left me. When you come here on Saturday, I should have it for you. Or if you want a new ring, you and Peter could go shopping." He saw her puzzled look. "He has my credit card."
"I'd be honored to wear your grandmother's ring."
***
“Got it.” Nathan hung up the phone.
“Got what? And what all that about Vanity Fair?” Heidi asked.
“My mother’s on her way, and Pete’s excuse to get to a phone was that I’d requested a book. He grabbed Vanity Fair.”
“How soon will she be here?”
“Less than an hour.”
“Damn. No time to … do anything interesting.”
Nathan grinned and kissed her. “It’s not usually a selling point, but I can be fast.”
“Let’s see your speed, flyboy.”
***
When Angela Petrelli came in to her son’s room, he was playing cards with a very pretty, if subtly disheveled, woman. Peter rushed over to the bed, looked at both hands, and said, “Heidi’s going to win.”
“She usually does.” Nathan kissed his brother then watched as Peter went over and kissed Heidi’s cheek.
“I brought that book you wanted.”
“Nathan told me he’d asked for it. I think it’s really sweet that he wants to read my favorite novel.”
Nathan looked at Heidi with appreciation. “Ma, I’d like you to meet my fiancée, Heidi Abbott. Heidi, my mother, Angela Petrelli.”
Angela extended her hand like a declaration of war. “Fiancée. Where did you meet?”
Nathan interrupted. “I was at Annapolis. Heidi came to one of the mixers. Her parents lived there.”
“Didn’t we buy you some extra bookshelves at Abbott’s Hardware?”
“Yeah, Ma, we did.”
Angela turned back to Heidi. “Has your family been in lumber long?”
“Yes. That’s why we own the largest chain in the Delmarva region. One of my many-times-great grandfathers started out supplying lumber to Lord Fairfax.”
The tension in the room was thick. Angela added to it. “So you’re a townie?”
Heidi’s jaw flexed. “Yes. Annapolis born and bred.”
Nathan looked at Peter who picked up his signal and said, “I’m going to get some coffee in the cafeteria. I’ll bring it back for everyone - except you Nathan. What kind of herbal tea do you want?”
“If it says Zinger, I’ll drink it. Heidi, Peter’s going to need some help carrying it back.”
Heidi made as if to say something, then seemed to think better of it. “I’d like some coffee. It makes the drive back to town easier.” She walked to the door with Peter.
When they closed it behind them, Peter said, “Walk away quickly. It’s always better if you don’t actually hear the explosion.” He looked at her. “Nathan will win. Most of the time, Ma does. But Nathan always wins on the things that are really important to him.”
“Are you sure I qualify?” Heidi teased.
Peter gave a lopsided grin. “He wouldn’t let you win at cards if you weren’t important.”
She let Peter judge how long “getting coffee” needed to take, and they made their way back to Nathan’s room about twenty minutes later. Angela was sitting in the visitor’s chair, but she rose when Heidi and Peter returned.
After they put the hot drinks on a side table, Angela walked up to Heidi and kissed her on each cheek. “Nathan tells me that you’re Catholic so we don’t need to worry about that. I’ve always wanted a Maryland girl in the family.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Petrelli.”
“Angela, please.” She patted Heidi’s cheek absentmindedly. “You and Nathan will have very pretty children. Finish your coffee, Peter. I’ll let you drive home.”
Peter kissed Nathan on the cheek, then walked over to Heidi and gave her a huge, impulsive hug. He kissed her quickly on the lips. “I think I’ll like having a sister.”
After he left, blushing, Heidi met Nathan’s eye and they both cracked up.
***
Nathan was allowed to go home the first week in March. Heidi had been in Maryland for over a week, and Nathan was going to join her right after Easter.
The news was good. The bones had healed cleanly. His scars were beginning to fade a bit. Several of his tendons had stretched badly, and while the doctors told him that tendons always healed, they also cautioned him that it could take several months. For now, he was on a cane. They told him he would need it through the end of May at the very least and possibly much longer.
He looked at the ugly metal and plastic thing in his hand and resolved that his first stop in Manhattan would be at a shop that sold walking sticks.