bad ideas
The Queen of Swords should be intensely perceptive, a keen observer, a subtle interpreter, an intense individualist, swift and accurate at recording ideas; confident in action, gracious and just in spirit… If ill-dignified, she will be cruel, sly, deceitful and unreliable.
title: Bad Ideas
with: Stella/Danny
rated: R (for sex and language)
herein: Just a Friday night at Sullivan’s, set shortly after the close of S2
disclaim: they own me, not the other way around
note: inspired by the queen of swords card
Tonight Sullivan’s is hot, air hanging stale throughout the crowded bar. The air conditioner is working, hypothetically, but Stella feels like she’s suffocating in the press of bodies. Beside her, Danny will not quit moving, and she’s ready to shove him out of the booth. He’s getting too close to drunk, and she’s still too far from it.
Across the booth, Lindsay and Hawkes are wrapped up in talking about the double in Chelsea they’ve been working together all week. Hawkes is on lead. Both of them are studiously ignoring the boredom radiating off Danny. He’s flat and on edge at the same time. Stella’s seen this face a little over a year ago, after Minhas. It’s not a good look for Danny.
“You know,” Hawkes says, leaning forward a little. “Since I was over at St. Luke’s, I stopped in to say hello to Flack.”
“How is he?” Stella asks. She hasn’t been by to see Flack for a few days. From the corner of her eye, she watches Danny stare out across the bar.
“He’s healing well.” Hawkes smiles, leaning forward a little. “Doctor Barret plans to work him off the heavy painkillers over the next week.”
A lull settles over the conversation, and finally Lindsay asks if Mac’s coming.
“Nope,” Danny says, thigh pressing into Stella’s as he shoots a tight smile at Lindsay. “Said he had to catch up on paperwork. The burdens of running a crime lab and all that.”
Mac and Danny have been on the same case for days while Stella runs solo with a sudden string of arsons. She’d told Danny to invite Mac tonight, and noticed Danny tense-a fight or flight response he can’t quite suppress. Stella thinks of Pavlov’s dog and smiles in a way that makes Hawkes raise an eyebrow at her. She shakes her head and finishes her cosmopolitan.
Hawkes keeps his eyebrow raised. He’s not an easy man to fool, not that she’s trying to fool him. He clears his throat. “Well, shall I get us another round?”
Hawkes is also too tactful to call Stella out in public. He collects their orders, and Lindsay lets him out of the booth.
“So Montana, got any big plans this weekend?”
“Not really.” Lindsay shrugs and crosses her arms. “I’m going to take it easy. You know, run a few errands and catch up on some sleep.”
“Sure, sure.” Danny’s eyes have a predatory flash as he watches her across the table. “After such a big case I can see how you’d need a break from all the excitement.” Stella suppresses the urge to elbow him, and after a few seconds Lindsay excuses herself to the bathroom.
As soon as Lindsay’s up, Stella does elbow him, but not as hard as she’d like.
“Ow.” Danny turns to her, full of mock hurt. “What was that for?”
“Leave the poor girl alone.”
Danny tilts his head in an almost-shrug, and his eyes skate away from hers. “She can take care of herself.”
“Of course she can.” Stella means it, too. She doesn’t doubt for a second that Lindsay can handle herself and can handle Danny’s bullshit. But she also remembers her shock when Aiden nearly tampered with evidence, and well, if Lindsay can’t handle it, it’s better they all find out now. Stella shakes her head. “Danny, didn’t your mother ever teach you it’s not nice to screw with your co-workers?”
“Hey, leave my mother out of this.” He smiles, and it’s not a nice smile. “What makes you think I’m screwing with her?” That predatory flash is back on his face.
“I’ve worked with you long enough to know how the twisted Messer mind works.”
“That so?”
Stella thinks it should bother her to be leered at like this, but it doesn’t. This is Danny, and everything is always right there on Danny’s face. He can talk circles around you if you’re not looking, but it’s always there on his face. Stella always looks.
“Oh, that’s so.”
“Let’s get out of here,” he says, and underneath it is fear and pleasepleaseplease.
“Now?” Stella cranes her neck and catches sight of Hawkes, who’s still waiting at the crowded bar.
“Yeah.” Danny puts his hands over hers, thumb stroking the inside of her wrist. “Right now.” His voice catches in the middle, and she knows she’s not supposed to hear that any more than she’s supposed to look-any more than she’s supposed to remember how bad his hands shook last week in the locker room.
Any more than he’s supposed to notice that she goes pale with anger when someone pays her pitifully close attention, or when Mac is systematically obtuse.
It’s rude and it’s obvious, but they duck out the back without saying goodbye. They make it past the bathrooms and into the alley, still hand-in-hand because Danny hasn’t let go of her. Apparently Stella is closer to drunk than she thought, close enough to do this. Not drunk enough to forget what a bad idea this is. This is a bad idea, all of this with her and Danny, and the only thing that would make it worse would be if Mac had come out with them tonight.
Danny stops and stares at her because, jesus, she said that out loud didn’t she.
“I think I may be a little drunk,” Stella says, frowning.
“Me too.” Danny’s eyes are wide with shock and arousal. “And you’re absolutely right.” He leans in to kiss her, pressing the words into her mouth, and he walks her back toward the wall.
She didn’t mean to say that. The few times they’ve done this, they never have talked about Mac, never actually said the words, but it was bound to happen. Still, Danny’s proven to be just as clever with his hands and mouth as Stella expected, sending little sparks across her skin when his hands graze beneath the hem of her shirt.
“Danny.” Stella can’t help rocking forward when he shoves his hand down the front of her pants, but she pushes his shoulders back. “Danny, I don’t feel like fucking in an alley.”
“No, you’re absolutely right. Again.” Danny presses forward, wrapping one arm around her back and rubbing her clit almost too hard. “We shouldn’t fuck here. If we’re going to fuck in public we should do it at the lab.”
Stella wants to laugh and she wants to smack him, but she doesn’t. She gasps and bucks against his hand. His other arm slips against the brick as she arches back.
“Not funny,” she manages, digging her fingers into his shoulder-hauling him closer.
“Not meant to be.” Danny’s sharp little teeth graze her neck.
“Fuck.” She twists into his hands and hooks an elbow behind his neck. “I know.”
“You do. You think he’d even notice?” Danny’s panting too, breath hot against her throat as he rubs her off and rubs himself against her hip. “You think if we fucked in his office he’d notice?”
“Oh-god.” She fists a hand in his hair and kisses him hard-to stop him from talking. When she comes, it’s short and sharp, and it leaves her aching for more. Danny holds her up for a moment, making a careful little space between them. Stella gets her balance again, and her hands drop to his belt.
“Stella.” Danny’s voice is strained, and he tries to step away from her. “You don’t have to. It’s okay.”
“I know.” Stella tugs him back closer. He’s trembling, like he might bolt if he was physically capable of doing so. She kisses the back of his jaw and makes a soft noise before opening his pants. “It’s okay. Shh, I’ve got you.”
Danny shudders, one arm wrapped around her waist, the other still braced against the wall, and he buries his face in her neck as she strokes him. He whimpers, hot and humid breath dampening a patch of her shirt. All of that kinetic energy never leaves him, and he’s still trembling slightly. Stella wants to stretch him out in bed and take him apart piece by piece, and she’s fairly sure he’d let her.
Stella quickens the pace, and Danny whines, his arm tightening around her waist. A few moments later he comes, shaking again and baring his teeth against the top of her shoulder. She holds on to him until he’s finally still, and they stand like that for a full minute before Danny backs away.
There’s a bit of come on her hand, and Stella carefully fishes a tissue from her pocket. Danny wavers, then takes her hand and licks it the rest of the way clean. It’s her turn to shudder.
“Let’s-” Danny clears his throat and doesn’t meet her eyes immediately. “Let’s go back inside for a few minutes, so Hawkes and Monroe don’t think we’re total bastards.”
Or so they’ll know exactly what we’ve been doing, Stella thinks. She runs a hand through Danny’s sweat-damp hair. “Okay.” It’s highly unlikely that Lindsay or Sheldon will say anything, and she needs another drink anyway. “Then we can go back to your place and try this again with air conditioning?”
Danny laughs, and it’s almost natural. “That sounds like a plan.”
Hawkes sees them coming, and his eyebrows raise up higher than Stella thought they could go. She smirks. It’s nice that something can perturb him.
“We thought you’d left us,” Lindsay says. Stella slides into the booth next to her, and Danny sits next to Hawkes.
“Nah, I decided I needed a smoke, and Stella wanted some fresh air.” Danny props his elbows on the table. His left arm is patterned with fine red scratches where he braced it between Stella’s back and the brick wall.
“It is a bit hot in here tonight,” Hawkes says mildly.
“You still smoke, Danny? I didn’t know that.” Lindsay’s so earnest that Stella’s torn between patting her on the head and kicking her under the table.
“No, I quit a while back, but I always end up having, like, five a year.” Danny shrugs. It’s a beautiful lie because it’s true-except it’s not.
“Oh, I remember that-you quit right after Mac hired you.” Stella laughs. “You think he’s twitchy now, you should see him going through nicotine withdrawal.”
“Twitchy?” Danny’s voice goes flat. “I am not twitchy.”
They fall back into their usual pattern of conversation from there. It takes about twenty minutes before Danny gets bored and starts rubbing Stella’s ankle beneath the table. If the frisson weren’t making her ache, she’d kick him.
…
((to be continued, one way or another))
thanks for reading; feedback always appreciated
title: Bad Ideas
with: Stella/Danny
rated: R (for sex and language)
herein: Just a Friday night at Sullivan’s, set shortly after the close of S2
disclaim: they own me, not the other way around
note: inspired by the queen of swords card
Tonight Sullivan’s is hot, air hanging stale throughout the crowded bar. The air conditioner is working, hypothetically, but Stella feels like she’s suffocating in the press of bodies. Beside her, Danny will not quit moving, and she’s ready to shove him out of the booth. He’s getting too close to drunk, and she’s still too far from it.
Across the booth, Lindsay and Hawkes are wrapped up in talking about the double in Chelsea they’ve been working together all week. Hawkes is on lead. Both of them are studiously ignoring the boredom radiating off Danny. He’s flat and on edge at the same time. Stella’s seen this face a little over a year ago, after Minhas. It’s not a good look for Danny.
“You know,” Hawkes says, leaning forward a little. “Since I was over at St. Luke’s, I stopped in to say hello to Flack.”
“How is he?” Stella asks. She hasn’t been by to see Flack for a few days. From the corner of her eye, she watches Danny stare out across the bar.
“He’s healing well.” Hawkes smiles, leaning forward a little. “Doctor Barret plans to work him off the heavy painkillers over the next week.”
A lull settles over the conversation, and finally Lindsay asks if Mac’s coming.
“Nope,” Danny says, thigh pressing into Stella’s as he shoots a tight smile at Lindsay. “Said he had to catch up on paperwork. The burdens of running a crime lab and all that.”
Mac and Danny have been on the same case for days while Stella runs solo with a sudden string of arsons. She’d told Danny to invite Mac tonight, and noticed Danny tense-a fight or flight response he can’t quite suppress. Stella thinks of Pavlov’s dog and smiles in a way that makes Hawkes raise an eyebrow at her. She shakes her head and finishes her cosmopolitan.
Hawkes keeps his eyebrow raised. He’s not an easy man to fool, not that she’s trying to fool him. He clears his throat. “Well, shall I get us another round?”
Hawkes is also too tactful to call Stella out in public. He collects their orders, and Lindsay lets him out of the booth.
“So Montana, got any big plans this weekend?”
“Not really.” Lindsay shrugs and crosses her arms. “I’m going to take it easy. You know, run a few errands and catch up on some sleep.”
“Sure, sure.” Danny’s eyes have a predatory flash as he watches her across the table. “After such a big case I can see how you’d need a break from all the excitement.” Stella suppresses the urge to elbow him, and after a few seconds Lindsay excuses herself to the bathroom.
As soon as Lindsay’s up, Stella does elbow him, but not as hard as she’d like.
“Ow.” Danny turns to her, full of mock hurt. “What was that for?”
“Leave the poor girl alone.”
Danny tilts his head in an almost-shrug, and his eyes skate away from hers. “She can take care of herself.”
“Of course she can.” Stella means it, too. She doesn’t doubt for a second that Lindsay can handle herself and can handle Danny’s bullshit. But she also remembers her shock when Aiden nearly tampered with evidence, and well, if Lindsay can’t handle it, it’s better they all find out now. Stella shakes her head. “Danny, didn’t your mother ever teach you it’s not nice to screw with your co-workers?”
“Hey, leave my mother out of this.” He smiles, and it’s not a nice smile. “What makes you think I’m screwing with her?” That predatory flash is back on his face.
“I’ve worked with you long enough to know how the twisted Messer mind works.”
“That so?”
Stella thinks it should bother her to be leered at like this, but it doesn’t. This is Danny, and everything is always right there on Danny’s face. He can talk circles around you if you’re not looking, but it’s always there on his face. Stella always looks.
“Oh, that’s so.”
“Let’s get out of here,” he says, and underneath it is fear and pleasepleaseplease.
“Now?” Stella cranes her neck and catches sight of Hawkes, who’s still waiting at the crowded bar.
“Yeah.” Danny puts his hands over hers, thumb stroking the inside of her wrist. “Right now.” His voice catches in the middle, and she knows she’s not supposed to hear that any more than she’s supposed to look-any more than she’s supposed to remember how bad his hands shook last week in the locker room.
Any more than he’s supposed to notice that she goes pale with anger when someone pays her pitifully close attention, or when Mac is systematically obtuse.
It’s rude and it’s obvious, but they duck out the back without saying goodbye. They make it past the bathrooms and into the alley, still hand-in-hand because Danny hasn’t let go of her. Apparently Stella is closer to drunk than she thought, close enough to do this. Not drunk enough to forget what a bad idea this is. This is a bad idea, all of this with her and Danny, and the only thing that would make it worse would be if Mac had come out with them tonight.
Danny stops and stares at her because, jesus, she said that out loud didn’t she.
“I think I may be a little drunk,” Stella says, frowning.
“Me too.” Danny’s eyes are wide with shock and arousal. “And you’re absolutely right.” He leans in to kiss her, pressing the words into her mouth, and he walks her back toward the wall.
She didn’t mean to say that. The few times they’ve done this, they never have talked about Mac, never actually said the words, but it was bound to happen. Still, Danny’s proven to be just as clever with his hands and mouth as Stella expected, sending little sparks across her skin when his hands graze beneath the hem of her shirt.
“Danny.” Stella can’t help rocking forward when he shoves his hand down the front of her pants, but she pushes his shoulders back. “Danny, I don’t feel like fucking in an alley.”
“No, you’re absolutely right. Again.” Danny presses forward, wrapping one arm around her back and rubbing her clit almost too hard. “We shouldn’t fuck here. If we’re going to fuck in public we should do it at the lab.”
Stella wants to laugh and she wants to smack him, but she doesn’t. She gasps and bucks against his hand. His other arm slips against the brick as she arches back.
“Not funny,” she manages, digging her fingers into his shoulder-hauling him closer.
“Not meant to be.” Danny’s sharp little teeth graze her neck.
“Fuck.” She twists into his hands and hooks an elbow behind his neck. “I know.”
“You do. You think he’d even notice?” Danny’s panting too, breath hot against her throat as he rubs her off and rubs himself against her hip. “You think if we fucked in his office he’d notice?”
“Oh-god.” She fists a hand in his hair and kisses him hard-to stop him from talking. When she comes, it’s short and sharp, and it leaves her aching for more. Danny holds her up for a moment, making a careful little space between them. Stella gets her balance again, and her hands drop to his belt.
“Stella.” Danny’s voice is strained, and he tries to step away from her. “You don’t have to. It’s okay.”
“I know.” Stella tugs him back closer. He’s trembling, like he might bolt if he was physically capable of doing so. She kisses the back of his jaw and makes a soft noise before opening his pants. “It’s okay. Shh, I’ve got you.”
Danny shudders, one arm wrapped around her waist, the other still braced against the wall, and he buries his face in her neck as she strokes him. He whimpers, hot and humid breath dampening a patch of her shirt. All of that kinetic energy never leaves him, and he’s still trembling slightly. Stella wants to stretch him out in bed and take him apart piece by piece, and she’s fairly sure he’d let her.
Stella quickens the pace, and Danny whines, his arm tightening around her waist. A few moments later he comes, shaking again and baring his teeth against the top of her shoulder. She holds on to him until he’s finally still, and they stand like that for a full minute before Danny backs away.
There’s a bit of come on her hand, and Stella carefully fishes a tissue from her pocket. Danny wavers, then takes her hand and licks it the rest of the way clean. It’s her turn to shudder.
“Let’s-” Danny clears his throat and doesn’t meet her eyes immediately. “Let’s go back inside for a few minutes, so Hawkes and Monroe don’t think we’re total bastards.”
Or so they’ll know exactly what we’ve been doing, Stella thinks. She runs a hand through Danny’s sweat-damp hair. “Okay.” It’s highly unlikely that Lindsay or Sheldon will say anything, and she needs another drink anyway. “Then we can go back to your place and try this again with air conditioning?”
Danny laughs, and it’s almost natural. “That sounds like a plan.”
Hawkes sees them coming, and his eyebrows raise up higher than Stella thought they could go. She smirks. It’s nice that something can perturb him.
“We thought you’d left us,” Lindsay says. Stella slides into the booth next to her, and Danny sits next to Hawkes.
“Nah, I decided I needed a smoke, and Stella wanted some fresh air.” Danny props his elbows on the table. His left arm is patterned with fine red scratches where he braced it between Stella’s back and the brick wall.
“It is a bit hot in here tonight,” Hawkes says mildly.
“You still smoke, Danny? I didn’t know that.” Lindsay’s so earnest that Stella’s torn between patting her on the head and kicking her under the table.
“No, I quit a while back, but I always end up having, like, five a year.” Danny shrugs. It’s a beautiful lie because it’s true-except it’s not.
“Oh, I remember that-you quit right after Mac hired you.” Stella laughs. “You think he’s twitchy now, you should see him going through nicotine withdrawal.”
“Twitchy?” Danny’s voice goes flat. “I am not twitchy.”
They fall back into their usual pattern of conversation from there. It takes about twenty minutes before Danny gets bored and starts rubbing Stella’s ankle beneath the table. If the frisson weren’t making her ache, she’d kick him.
…
((to be continued, one way or another))
thanks for reading; feedback always appreciated