For muses_w_remotes - 8.4 Columbo
8.4. "I don't thinks it's proving anything Doc, as a matter of fact I don't even know what it means. It's just one of those things that gets in my head and keeps rolling around in there like a marble."
| Columbo
[Co-written with agentfraser]
Harri had called Marc's office to find out if there was a window where their schedules would match, hoping to follow up on their date the other night. At least that was the plan. After a date it was usual to keep in contact, right? They'd even managed to stick to the no sex, although how that had happened God only knew. Probably had something to do with their serious topics of discussion. She wondered if she should feel guilty about discussing Aiden and Pat's situation, but Marc had been right. She did need to lean on someone occasionally, because she always needed to be there and strong for Aiden. Not that he'd really asked for her help lately. He'd just been looking after Pat.
It made her wonder if maybe one of Marc's other questions held some weight. Was she jealous of her best friend's new relationship? It was true that maybe Aiden and Harri hadn't seen each other as much as they used to, but they still called and stayed in touch. Maybe it all just went to prove more and more how much Harri needed a special someone of her own. It wasn't that she was jealous of Aiden, because she was happy that he was happy. Not having him around just showed her how empty her life was outside of work.
So when Marc's assistant explained that he'd called in sick, Harri decided to once again take matters into her own hands and waiting to see him would not work. She could do the taking care of him thing if he really did have a migraine. For all she knew he had called in sick to sleep with some bimbo. Either way she'd find out when she went to his apartment. Another joy of dating. He'd given her his home address. He probably hadn't been expecting her to utilise it so soon.
With a basket of goodies on her arm and a smile on her face, Harri knocked on his apartment door. A cute guy in sweats had let her into the building on his way to the gym, but not before asking if she was single. It had to be the first time Harri had ever let an easy opportunity to go, but her mind was filled with Marc. Marc and his ten inches, immaculate taste, skilled fingers and sexy mouth.
Marc thought he imagined the knocking at first. He wasn't expecting anyone and he could barely think straight after spending the last two hours sobbing his heart out and giving in to how much he missed everyone he left behind. Now he just looked like shit. He had gone to bed and planned to wallow there for at least two days. Which was why he didn't make any initial attempt to answer the door. If it was a neighbour, they could go fuck themselves. But then the knock came again and it was definitely a knock... a knock which shot a bolt of panic through him. Who the hell was knocking on his door without the doorman letting him know?!
He scrambled out of bed and caught sight of himself in the full length mirror on the wall. Oh, he looked like utter hell. His eyes were red and puffy, his face blotchy, hair sticking up all over the place. The biggest thing was, though, his eyes were blue. No contacts. No one who could be knocking on his door knew he had blue eyes. Fucking fuck of all fucks! How was he supposed to get contacts in with his eyes feeling like he had rubbed drain cleaner in them? He didn't even bother. Instead, he just grabbed up his bathrobe and located his dark Ray Ban sunglasses in the living room and shoved them on his face. Hopefully the random visitor would buy the cranky act and think the glasses meant he was hungover. He went to the door and the frown wasn't even an act this time. He pulled it open with a growled, "What?!" and then nearly fell over his feet when he saw who it was. This was Not Good.
Harri frowned with concern as she looked at him. "You're really sick." There was a hint of surprise in her voice and then she shifted on her feet, suddenly unsure of what do. She reached her free hand into the basket and pulled out some soup picked up from a deli. "Hungry?"
Inwardly, Marc's heart was pounding in his chest. It was Harri and now the glasses were just a ridiculous option. He eyed the container of soup and gave his head a slight shake. "No... would you excuse me for a minute?" He turned and bounded up the hall towards the bathroom. It was impossible to carry out a conversation with her in sunglasses. She would no doubt eventually asking him to take them off and seeing his blue eyes would lead to a whole lot of a fuck he couldn't risk. The Ray Bans were thrown unceremoniously into the sink and he managed to shove the brown contacts in his eyes. They stung like hell and caused more scratchy tears as his corneas protested anything in their vicinity. He leaned on the sink for a moment and took a few deep breaths to try and regain his composure. It was going to be okay. She thought he was sick and it wasn't exactly much of a lie. He had worked himself into such a state that he felt like shit anyway. He had already decided he was going to pull the sick card until after Christmas. It was the safest option.
He poked at the dark, puffy circles under his eyes and shook his head. Nothing he could do to save face on his appearance now. This could have gone so much worse. He went back out to where he had abruptly abandoned Harri in his expansive and modern living area and cleared his throat. "Sorry about that."
Harri hadn't made it that far into the apartment. It wasn't like he'd invited her in. In fact she'd been ready to stay waiting in the doorway until the basket started to get heavy. She was still on her feet though, and she hadn't made any attempt to sit down, or get comfortable. The basket sat on his coffee table and Harri just offered him a small smile as she looked at him. He really did look terrible. "No, I should be sorry. I should have called, but for some insane reason I thought a surprise visit would be better. It's alright if you just want to tell me to fuck off."
Marc blinked tiredly but a smirk appeared on his lips. "You mean, you thought I was playing hookie with a replacement blonde between the sheets?" he asked. He shook his head. "I don't take sick days unless there is a reason..." The sash on his silk robe had fallen loose so he unhooked it and re-tied it at his hip. His voice sounded like he had been crying or perhaps had a dry throat. If she didn't suspect the former, all the better. He closed the door behind her and then gestured towards the large modular leather sofa set right in the middle of the room facing the wall-sized television. It was extravagant even for the expensive tastes he had always had, even in his old life. Still, it was good for watching porn. He sat down and hugged his arms around his middle, trying his damnest to not look vulnerable. "What did I do to deserve dragging you away from your own work schedule today?"
"Plague my thoughts all the bloody time," Harri admitted with a wry smile. She took a seat near him and couldn't resist the urge to reach out and brush her fingers through his hair a bit to try and neaten it. "I can't help if I thought you might not have been alone, but I was still going to come over anyway. It did also cross my mind that you were sick." Harri crossed her long legs over and tilted her head. "Do you need anything?"
"I know I should be bothered that you thought I was getting fucked rather than really sick but I'm not," Marc decided with a shrug. "I do have that little issue that some believe I'm into medical kink because I fucked a nurse on a hospital bed, but that was one time and I was really bored." This was when his eyes landed on the photo album lying open on the coffee table within reaching distance, filled with photos of his old self and everyone in his life. He literally leapt up off the sofa and closed it over abruptly. When he turned back to her, he had a disturbed frown on his face, but forced it away. She had spooked him, to say the least. It was the first time someone had shown up to this apartment without being invited. He really needed to get his shit together. "I'm good. How have you been?"
"I've been fine." Harri uncrossed her legs and shifted to the edge of the sofa, like she was ready to get up and go if he decided her being here was too much trouble. It certainly seemed like too much trouble and as much as she had always tried to get her way no matter what, she also knew when she was being given signals. Leaving her at the door, leaping up off the sofa like she'd burned him... these were all signals pointing to bad. She knew blokes hated being sick, but even Aiden didn't act like he was hooked up to electrodes that shocked his balls anytime Harri spoke. "Marc... if you really do just want to be left alone, please just say something. I know I'm a pushy cow, but I can respect someone's privacy if that's what you need."
Marc sat back down beside her and pushed his fingers through his hair. "It's not that. It's not you. I've just got a lot of shit going on right now. Mergers and investors and everyone wanting everything done before Christmas. Plus my British chapter demanding my arse back in London, though there is no way they're getting me back there so soon. My company nearly got drowned by a case of fraud last year. We're still wading through it to try and climb back on top of things." The lines of his briefs were spewing themselves out in his mind. He would even be able to name names if she questioned him. They would mix in the same circles at some point. Cash and status demanded it. "And I hate Christmas." That wasn't in the brief but it was a good attempt to delude himself, anyway.
Harri frowned, her mouth forming a thin line. She didn't move though, not to leave anyway. Instead she touched her fingers to Marc's cheek, and smiled. "Should I start calling you 'Scrooge'? I didn't think I'd ever find someone who worked harder than me, but here I am sitting beside him. So you're up to your eyeballs in shit, London wants your arse, and now I've just crashed your quiet time." Harri kept smiling as she leaned in to kiss his forehead. "I'm sorry, love. So now that I know you hate Christmas, how do you feel about bubble baths with genuine blondes?"
And yet another hurdle was thrown at him. The tattoo of the Aussie and Scottish flags on his hip that he covered with heavy, sweat-proof make up any time there was a possibility he was going to get naked. He could slap a waterproof medical dressing over it and plead some sort of injury or he could just turn the bath down. He rubbed his finger against his temple, trying to push away the little niggle inside him that was telling him to outright come clean with her - he was SS and he was blond and he had fucking blue eyes. But no. No letting the emotions rule. "Sure, sounds good. Not too hot, though. I've got some stitches on my hip that are dressed. Don't want the bastard coming off."
Harri let out a breath she hadn't even realised she'd been holding. At least he'd given her the bath. Maybe she was just coming on too strong. She didn't know, she had no way to judge what to do in a dating situation. If they even were dating. This was all too bloody hard. At least when she was just fucking someone she knew where she stood. Hell, she even knew where she stood with Cameron. Not that she'd actually told Cameron about Marc yet. Oh well, their fling was nearly was over anyway. She stood and held her hand up to indicate Marc should stay where he was. She wasn't even going to ask about the stitches. He'd tell her if he wanted to. She could draw the bath and get it prepared. She stalled a few steps away from the sofa. "Where is your bathroom?"
"Just up the hall, second door on the left. I just need to go take my insulin, but I'll be right back," Marc said and pointed his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of his bedroom. "I'm a crap sick person, so I apologise if I'm acting like a total tosser right now," he added by way of a hasty explanation. He was finding this to be the most draining time of his transition and he really would just be fucking glad when Christmas was over.
Harri waved off his apology as she removed her jacket and left it on the sofa before following his directions. It was times like these she wished she could get away with making a call on her cell to Aiden. Although knowing her current luck so far today she'd wind up waking Pat up from a nap, or even Aiden. They both needed their rest. She tried to push away the gnawing guilt that still had her wanting to just turn around and run. Marc didn't want her here, but he wasn't going to say. Maybe the date really had made him feel obligated. Harri pulled a face. There was nothing worse than feeling obligated to someone. She placed the plug in the bath and started the taps to get it filled. She squirted in some rather expensive looking bubble bath and then waited. She avoided looking in Marc's medicine cabinet. She wasn't that bad just yet.
Marc dropped down on the side of the messy bed and pushed his face into his hands. He indulged in about thirty seconds of feeling blank and flat before going over to his medical kit on his dresser and dragging out a bunch of things to dress the 'stitches'. The tattoo was neatly covered and sealed to prevent moisture seeping into it. He was going to have to get it removed and he made a note to make an appointment ASAP. If this was going to continue with Harri, she wasn't going to keep buying the dressing lie. His stomach was still bruised from the missed vein the other day, too. God, he was a fucking mess. He scrubbed his hands over his face again with a moan to gather himself and then padded back up the hallway to where she was in the bathroom. He was drawing the sash from the robe out when he appeared in the doorway. "You really are pushy, you know," he told her with a smirk.
Harri turned her head to look at him, her chin resting on her shoulder as she hugged her arms tight around her middle. She smirked back at him and arched an eyebrow slightly. "A quality you might grow to be quite fond of?" she ventured. Her eyes dipped to where she could see the bruise on his stomach and she uncurled her arms as she twisted in her place on the toilet seat and motioned him forward as she curled her fingers. "Will I seem less pushy if I say please?"
"Pushy I'm not foreign to. It was a quality I favoured in my-" Marc stopped just briefly in hesitation. "In my ex. She was a workaholic like you, so you're old hat to me." He dropped the robe and hooked his thumbs in his expensive underwear to push them down his thighs. "An old friend of my mine also has the same quality. She would slash your balls off at ten paces if you fucked her over."
Harri tilted her head. "So I'm old hat? That's rather... well, it's a little disappointing." Harri reached out to place her hands on his hips, careful to avoid the plaster and kissed the bruise on his stomach. She managed to keep her gaze above his waist line, and looked up at him. "So I'm your type?"
"I don't have a type," Marc said with a laugh. "I really don't." Wow, that must be one honest truth he had offered all morning. Marc hadn't been in operation long enough to have a type. While he had just compared her to Izzy, they weren't alike at all. Just had the same ballsy attitude he did love. Ali harboured it, too. He appreciated strong and foreceful women more than any wispy piece of T&A that threw herself at him. "And I don't believe for a minute that you would appreciate me slotting you into any one typecast, anyway."
"You're right, I wouldn't. I was just checking." Harri stood up and started to strip out of her clothes. The bath was half full, and she did a quick temperature check before increasing the flow of the cold tap to make it just like Marc had wanted. She moved back over to him and slid her arms around his waist. This was a small, personal test. How much nudity Harri could take before she tried to turn it sexual. "As much as it pains me to admit I don't want to fuck anything up with you. Even if I know the making up would be rough and incredibly satisfying."
Marc tested the water with his hand first just to make sure he was going to fry his balls off and then sunk down into the water. Like the rest of the apartment, the bath was huge and made for two complete with spa jets lining the edges. He had to admit, this part of things he did like. "You were worried showing up here would fuck things up? It would take more than that, babe," he assured her. "I'm wondering how long I can make you wait to get laid before you get shitty and piss off anyway, though," he said with a smirk.
Harri waited for him to settle before she followed him into the bath, careful not to stick her feet in awkward places. "I wasn't worried until you ran off and left me at the door," she replied softly. "And if I was going to get shitty and piss off because you're not fucking me--I wouldn't be here now. I wouldn't even be trying for... intimacy."
"I haven't been feeling well all morning. I didn't think you would appreciate me throwing up on you," Marc offered and relaxed into the warm water. He exhaled slowly and closed his eyes briefly, hearing the bubbles crackle around his ears. He opened his eyes again and gave her a small smile. "So, what from here?" he asked.
"Oh, I don't know. If it's good enough for Aiden and Pat..." Harri trailed off as she placed her hands on Marc's knees. She watched him relax, but his question made her look away. "I have no idea. I didn't really let myself think that far. We did make it through your non-sex date, so I was hoping you had an idea."
Marc laughed. "The universal hurdle of intimacy to throw up in front of someone. Well-known, tried and tested. Still, preferably avoided if possible," he said and cleared his throat. "I don't have much more commitment experience than you do." Two marriages don't count, he added silently to himself. "Are you sure you want to even bother here? I don't exactly have a pristine reputation."
"Didn't we already cover that?" Harri asked with a small smirk. "I'm here because I want to bother. If I didn't, I wouldn't be here. It's that simple. I don't need someone with a pristine reputation. I need someone who can keep up with me."
Marc pointed to his tired eyes. "Maybe I don't have the stamina to keep up with you. But hey, if you're going to stick around, you really need to know my health can and will hit rock bottom now and again. This isn't a totally uncommon event for me. It's just... different this time to most of the other times."
"Why is it different?" Harri couldn't help but ask that question. She let out a sigh and rolled her eyes a little. "You can keep up, the question is really do you want to bother with me. You still haven't actually said yes, or no."
"I've got a lot of people to miss at this time of year," Marc admitted, albeit evasively. He sat up a little in the bath and pushed some of the bubbles away. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't. I don't do anything I don't want to do. Ever."
Harri moved, careful no to disturb the water. Her fingers wrapped around his arms and moved in a bit closer to him. "You have to be here, it's your place. So again, the question is--what do you want to do? I'll admit that I do want to get on with the sex, but I'm enjoying this; even if I was thrown by you being sick. I can be good at this."
Marc titled his head and analysed her with a small smirk on his lips. "I could have told you to fuck off," he pointed out. "I could have told you to fuck off out of my office that day. Hell, I could have called security. I have done that on women before, believe it or not. I enjoy your company. I don't see any reason to tell you to fuck off until you piss me off. You don't piss me off, which is more than I can say about a lot of the people I sleep with. This sick thing? I apologise. It's not something I ever get used to and it shits me when it happens."
Harri smiled as she leaned in even more and brought her lips close to his. "I'm just a pushy cow who's company you enjoy, then?" She kissed him, keeping it brief. "I can live with that for now." At least she thought she could. When she finally talked to Aiden about all this it might be a different story completely. She still wasn't sure what to make of it, but right now she just wanted to enjoy the bath with Marc.
"Let's put it this way. If you weren't a pushy cow and just another nice rack in a nice package, I probably wouldn't have glanced at you a second time. Neither of us are here because we have to be, it's because we want to be. That alone gives us the upper hand." His fingers swept through the bubbly water as he continued to watch her. A smile appeared on his lips but he didn't immediately elude to what he was thinking. "Why me? Besides the cock. You fed me the ten inch cock line and fair enough at first, but it's not my cock keeping you here now."
"No, it's not. I think it's because you're not easy. Well, you are. We both are as far as sex is concerned. Personality wise you're not. I thought you were a bastard at first, but you proved me wrong. I guess I just want to try and see how many layers you'll show me. You make me smile, and laugh. You offered to help me while I help Aiden. No one else has really done that." Harri let out a sigh. "You frustrate me, but mostly it's in a good way."
Marc held up his hand. "I am a bastard, Harri. A total bastard. I just know how to use that to my advantage. I know how to use a lot of things to my advantage. And the layers... I feel a Shrek quote coming on," he sniggered and splashed her with a soft flick of water. "I could be someone or something totally different to what you think, you know. Same cock, though, so it's irrelevant, no? You could have anyone. Why pick someone who could cause you any number of headaches? Someone who might just be enjoying running you around in endless circles right now?"
"Because you're not enjoying it," Harri pointed out. "If you were enjoying it, I don't think you'd be here in this bath. We'd still be in your sitting room and you'd still be jumpy and acting like your balls are on fire."
Marc scooped up a handful of water and swept it through his hair. "Secrets," he said. "I have a lot of them. That album was one of them. I'll show you one day," he promised. But it would be one day when he did end up in a sobbing mess looking at it.
"I'm not asking you to reveal them all to me right now. I just want you to know that I'm not nosy. I wasn't even going to look at the album. You can trust me, even if you have no reason to."
Marc was silent for a few moments. "There is a reason I can't show you. I have my fingers in a lot of pies. I was feeling nostalgic and got it out. Big mistake, but no matter. Shit happens." He pushed his wet hair out of his eyes. "So, tell me something about you that I don't already know."
Harri bit her lip as she leaned back in the bath again and gave it some serious thought. "I had a boyfriend once, a genuinely serious relationship. It was before I met Aiden. He still doesn't actually know about it. It ended badly, so I guess it might explain my reluctance to get back into dating, however many years have lapsed."
"Why haven't you told your BFF?" Marc asked curiously.
"I don't know. It's just something I've always kept to myself. Until now--so now you have a secret of mine." Harri gave him a smile. "One step at a time, right?"
Marc smiled. "One step at a time," he agreed.
Harriet Ryan & Marcus Fraser
Original Character
Words: 4475
All muses referenced with permission
| Columbo
[Co-written with agentfraser]
Harri had called Marc's office to find out if there was a window where their schedules would match, hoping to follow up on their date the other night. At least that was the plan. After a date it was usual to keep in contact, right? They'd even managed to stick to the no sex, although how that had happened God only knew. Probably had something to do with their serious topics of discussion. She wondered if she should feel guilty about discussing Aiden and Pat's situation, but Marc had been right. She did need to lean on someone occasionally, because she always needed to be there and strong for Aiden. Not that he'd really asked for her help lately. He'd just been looking after Pat.
It made her wonder if maybe one of Marc's other questions held some weight. Was she jealous of her best friend's new relationship? It was true that maybe Aiden and Harri hadn't seen each other as much as they used to, but they still called and stayed in touch. Maybe it all just went to prove more and more how much Harri needed a special someone of her own. It wasn't that she was jealous of Aiden, because she was happy that he was happy. Not having him around just showed her how empty her life was outside of work.
So when Marc's assistant explained that he'd called in sick, Harri decided to once again take matters into her own hands and waiting to see him would not work. She could do the taking care of him thing if he really did have a migraine. For all she knew he had called in sick to sleep with some bimbo. Either way she'd find out when she went to his apartment. Another joy of dating. He'd given her his home address. He probably hadn't been expecting her to utilise it so soon.
With a basket of goodies on her arm and a smile on her face, Harri knocked on his apartment door. A cute guy in sweats had let her into the building on his way to the gym, but not before asking if she was single. It had to be the first time Harri had ever let an easy opportunity to go, but her mind was filled with Marc. Marc and his ten inches, immaculate taste, skilled fingers and sexy mouth.
Marc thought he imagined the knocking at first. He wasn't expecting anyone and he could barely think straight after spending the last two hours sobbing his heart out and giving in to how much he missed everyone he left behind. Now he just looked like shit. He had gone to bed and planned to wallow there for at least two days. Which was why he didn't make any initial attempt to answer the door. If it was a neighbour, they could go fuck themselves. But then the knock came again and it was definitely a knock... a knock which shot a bolt of panic through him. Who the hell was knocking on his door without the doorman letting him know?!
He scrambled out of bed and caught sight of himself in the full length mirror on the wall. Oh, he looked like utter hell. His eyes were red and puffy, his face blotchy, hair sticking up all over the place. The biggest thing was, though, his eyes were blue. No contacts. No one who could be knocking on his door knew he had blue eyes. Fucking fuck of all fucks! How was he supposed to get contacts in with his eyes feeling like he had rubbed drain cleaner in them? He didn't even bother. Instead, he just grabbed up his bathrobe and located his dark Ray Ban sunglasses in the living room and shoved them on his face. Hopefully the random visitor would buy the cranky act and think the glasses meant he was hungover. He went to the door and the frown wasn't even an act this time. He pulled it open with a growled, "What?!" and then nearly fell over his feet when he saw who it was. This was Not Good.
Harri frowned with concern as she looked at him. "You're really sick." There was a hint of surprise in her voice and then she shifted on her feet, suddenly unsure of what do. She reached her free hand into the basket and pulled out some soup picked up from a deli. "Hungry?"
Inwardly, Marc's heart was pounding in his chest. It was Harri and now the glasses were just a ridiculous option. He eyed the container of soup and gave his head a slight shake. "No... would you excuse me for a minute?" He turned and bounded up the hall towards the bathroom. It was impossible to carry out a conversation with her in sunglasses. She would no doubt eventually asking him to take them off and seeing his blue eyes would lead to a whole lot of a fuck he couldn't risk. The Ray Bans were thrown unceremoniously into the sink and he managed to shove the brown contacts in his eyes. They stung like hell and caused more scratchy tears as his corneas protested anything in their vicinity. He leaned on the sink for a moment and took a few deep breaths to try and regain his composure. It was going to be okay. She thought he was sick and it wasn't exactly much of a lie. He had worked himself into such a state that he felt like shit anyway. He had already decided he was going to pull the sick card until after Christmas. It was the safest option.
He poked at the dark, puffy circles under his eyes and shook his head. Nothing he could do to save face on his appearance now. This could have gone so much worse. He went back out to where he had abruptly abandoned Harri in his expansive and modern living area and cleared his throat. "Sorry about that."
Harri hadn't made it that far into the apartment. It wasn't like he'd invited her in. In fact she'd been ready to stay waiting in the doorway until the basket started to get heavy. She was still on her feet though, and she hadn't made any attempt to sit down, or get comfortable. The basket sat on his coffee table and Harri just offered him a small smile as she looked at him. He really did look terrible. "No, I should be sorry. I should have called, but for some insane reason I thought a surprise visit would be better. It's alright if you just want to tell me to fuck off."
Marc blinked tiredly but a smirk appeared on his lips. "You mean, you thought I was playing hookie with a replacement blonde between the sheets?" he asked. He shook his head. "I don't take sick days unless there is a reason..." The sash on his silk robe had fallen loose so he unhooked it and re-tied it at his hip. His voice sounded like he had been crying or perhaps had a dry throat. If she didn't suspect the former, all the better. He closed the door behind her and then gestured towards the large modular leather sofa set right in the middle of the room facing the wall-sized television. It was extravagant even for the expensive tastes he had always had, even in his old life. Still, it was good for watching porn. He sat down and hugged his arms around his middle, trying his damnest to not look vulnerable. "What did I do to deserve dragging you away from your own work schedule today?"
"Plague my thoughts all the bloody time," Harri admitted with a wry smile. She took a seat near him and couldn't resist the urge to reach out and brush her fingers through his hair a bit to try and neaten it. "I can't help if I thought you might not have been alone, but I was still going to come over anyway. It did also cross my mind that you were sick." Harri crossed her long legs over and tilted her head. "Do you need anything?"
"I know I should be bothered that you thought I was getting fucked rather than really sick but I'm not," Marc decided with a shrug. "I do have that little issue that some believe I'm into medical kink because I fucked a nurse on a hospital bed, but that was one time and I was really bored." This was when his eyes landed on the photo album lying open on the coffee table within reaching distance, filled with photos of his old self and everyone in his life. He literally leapt up off the sofa and closed it over abruptly. When he turned back to her, he had a disturbed frown on his face, but forced it away. She had spooked him, to say the least. It was the first time someone had shown up to this apartment without being invited. He really needed to get his shit together. "I'm good. How have you been?"
"I've been fine." Harri uncrossed her legs and shifted to the edge of the sofa, like she was ready to get up and go if he decided her being here was too much trouble. It certainly seemed like too much trouble and as much as she had always tried to get her way no matter what, she also knew when she was being given signals. Leaving her at the door, leaping up off the sofa like she'd burned him... these were all signals pointing to bad. She knew blokes hated being sick, but even Aiden didn't act like he was hooked up to electrodes that shocked his balls anytime Harri spoke. "Marc... if you really do just want to be left alone, please just say something. I know I'm a pushy cow, but I can respect someone's privacy if that's what you need."
Marc sat back down beside her and pushed his fingers through his hair. "It's not that. It's not you. I've just got a lot of shit going on right now. Mergers and investors and everyone wanting everything done before Christmas. Plus my British chapter demanding my arse back in London, though there is no way they're getting me back there so soon. My company nearly got drowned by a case of fraud last year. We're still wading through it to try and climb back on top of things." The lines of his briefs were spewing themselves out in his mind. He would even be able to name names if she questioned him. They would mix in the same circles at some point. Cash and status demanded it. "And I hate Christmas." That wasn't in the brief but it was a good attempt to delude himself, anyway.
Harri frowned, her mouth forming a thin line. She didn't move though, not to leave anyway. Instead she touched her fingers to Marc's cheek, and smiled. "Should I start calling you 'Scrooge'? I didn't think I'd ever find someone who worked harder than me, but here I am sitting beside him. So you're up to your eyeballs in shit, London wants your arse, and now I've just crashed your quiet time." Harri kept smiling as she leaned in to kiss his forehead. "I'm sorry, love. So now that I know you hate Christmas, how do you feel about bubble baths with genuine blondes?"
And yet another hurdle was thrown at him. The tattoo of the Aussie and Scottish flags on his hip that he covered with heavy, sweat-proof make up any time there was a possibility he was going to get naked. He could slap a waterproof medical dressing over it and plead some sort of injury or he could just turn the bath down. He rubbed his finger against his temple, trying to push away the little niggle inside him that was telling him to outright come clean with her - he was SS and he was blond and he had fucking blue eyes. But no. No letting the emotions rule. "Sure, sounds good. Not too hot, though. I've got some stitches on my hip that are dressed. Don't want the bastard coming off."
Harri let out a breath she hadn't even realised she'd been holding. At least he'd given her the bath. Maybe she was just coming on too strong. She didn't know, she had no way to judge what to do in a dating situation. If they even were dating. This was all too bloody hard. At least when she was just fucking someone she knew where she stood. Hell, she even knew where she stood with Cameron. Not that she'd actually told Cameron about Marc yet. Oh well, their fling was nearly was over anyway. She stood and held her hand up to indicate Marc should stay where he was. She wasn't even going to ask about the stitches. He'd tell her if he wanted to. She could draw the bath and get it prepared. She stalled a few steps away from the sofa. "Where is your bathroom?"
"Just up the hall, second door on the left. I just need to go take my insulin, but I'll be right back," Marc said and pointed his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of his bedroom. "I'm a crap sick person, so I apologise if I'm acting like a total tosser right now," he added by way of a hasty explanation. He was finding this to be the most draining time of his transition and he really would just be fucking glad when Christmas was over.
Harri waved off his apology as she removed her jacket and left it on the sofa before following his directions. It was times like these she wished she could get away with making a call on her cell to Aiden. Although knowing her current luck so far today she'd wind up waking Pat up from a nap, or even Aiden. They both needed their rest. She tried to push away the gnawing guilt that still had her wanting to just turn around and run. Marc didn't want her here, but he wasn't going to say. Maybe the date really had made him feel obligated. Harri pulled a face. There was nothing worse than feeling obligated to someone. She placed the plug in the bath and started the taps to get it filled. She squirted in some rather expensive looking bubble bath and then waited. She avoided looking in Marc's medicine cabinet. She wasn't that bad just yet.
Marc dropped down on the side of the messy bed and pushed his face into his hands. He indulged in about thirty seconds of feeling blank and flat before going over to his medical kit on his dresser and dragging out a bunch of things to dress the 'stitches'. The tattoo was neatly covered and sealed to prevent moisture seeping into it. He was going to have to get it removed and he made a note to make an appointment ASAP. If this was going to continue with Harri, she wasn't going to keep buying the dressing lie. His stomach was still bruised from the missed vein the other day, too. God, he was a fucking mess. He scrubbed his hands over his face again with a moan to gather himself and then padded back up the hallway to where she was in the bathroom. He was drawing the sash from the robe out when he appeared in the doorway. "You really are pushy, you know," he told her with a smirk.
Harri turned her head to look at him, her chin resting on her shoulder as she hugged her arms tight around her middle. She smirked back at him and arched an eyebrow slightly. "A quality you might grow to be quite fond of?" she ventured. Her eyes dipped to where she could see the bruise on his stomach and she uncurled her arms as she twisted in her place on the toilet seat and motioned him forward as she curled her fingers. "Will I seem less pushy if I say please?"
"Pushy I'm not foreign to. It was a quality I favoured in my-" Marc stopped just briefly in hesitation. "In my ex. She was a workaholic like you, so you're old hat to me." He dropped the robe and hooked his thumbs in his expensive underwear to push them down his thighs. "An old friend of my mine also has the same quality. She would slash your balls off at ten paces if you fucked her over."
Harri tilted her head. "So I'm old hat? That's rather... well, it's a little disappointing." Harri reached out to place her hands on his hips, careful to avoid the plaster and kissed the bruise on his stomach. She managed to keep her gaze above his waist line, and looked up at him. "So I'm your type?"
"I don't have a type," Marc said with a laugh. "I really don't." Wow, that must be one honest truth he had offered all morning. Marc hadn't been in operation long enough to have a type. While he had just compared her to Izzy, they weren't alike at all. Just had the same ballsy attitude he did love. Ali harboured it, too. He appreciated strong and foreceful women more than any wispy piece of T&A that threw herself at him. "And I don't believe for a minute that you would appreciate me slotting you into any one typecast, anyway."
"You're right, I wouldn't. I was just checking." Harri stood up and started to strip out of her clothes. The bath was half full, and she did a quick temperature check before increasing the flow of the cold tap to make it just like Marc had wanted. She moved back over to him and slid her arms around his waist. This was a small, personal test. How much nudity Harri could take before she tried to turn it sexual. "As much as it pains me to admit I don't want to fuck anything up with you. Even if I know the making up would be rough and incredibly satisfying."
Marc tested the water with his hand first just to make sure he was going to fry his balls off and then sunk down into the water. Like the rest of the apartment, the bath was huge and made for two complete with spa jets lining the edges. He had to admit, this part of things he did like. "You were worried showing up here would fuck things up? It would take more than that, babe," he assured her. "I'm wondering how long I can make you wait to get laid before you get shitty and piss off anyway, though," he said with a smirk.
Harri waited for him to settle before she followed him into the bath, careful not to stick her feet in awkward places. "I wasn't worried until you ran off and left me at the door," she replied softly. "And if I was going to get shitty and piss off because you're not fucking me--I wouldn't be here now. I wouldn't even be trying for... intimacy."
"I haven't been feeling well all morning. I didn't think you would appreciate me throwing up on you," Marc offered and relaxed into the warm water. He exhaled slowly and closed his eyes briefly, hearing the bubbles crackle around his ears. He opened his eyes again and gave her a small smile. "So, what from here?" he asked.
"Oh, I don't know. If it's good enough for Aiden and Pat..." Harri trailed off as she placed her hands on Marc's knees. She watched him relax, but his question made her look away. "I have no idea. I didn't really let myself think that far. We did make it through your non-sex date, so I was hoping you had an idea."
Marc laughed. "The universal hurdle of intimacy to throw up in front of someone. Well-known, tried and tested. Still, preferably avoided if possible," he said and cleared his throat. "I don't have much more commitment experience than you do." Two marriages don't count, he added silently to himself. "Are you sure you want to even bother here? I don't exactly have a pristine reputation."
"Didn't we already cover that?" Harri asked with a small smirk. "I'm here because I want to bother. If I didn't, I wouldn't be here. It's that simple. I don't need someone with a pristine reputation. I need someone who can keep up with me."
Marc pointed to his tired eyes. "Maybe I don't have the stamina to keep up with you. But hey, if you're going to stick around, you really need to know my health can and will hit rock bottom now and again. This isn't a totally uncommon event for me. It's just... different this time to most of the other times."
"Why is it different?" Harri couldn't help but ask that question. She let out a sigh and rolled her eyes a little. "You can keep up, the question is really do you want to bother with me. You still haven't actually said yes, or no."
"I've got a lot of people to miss at this time of year," Marc admitted, albeit evasively. He sat up a little in the bath and pushed some of the bubbles away. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't. I don't do anything I don't want to do. Ever."
Harri moved, careful no to disturb the water. Her fingers wrapped around his arms and moved in a bit closer to him. "You have to be here, it's your place. So again, the question is--what do you want to do? I'll admit that I do want to get on with the sex, but I'm enjoying this; even if I was thrown by you being sick. I can be good at this."
Marc titled his head and analysed her with a small smirk on his lips. "I could have told you to fuck off," he pointed out. "I could have told you to fuck off out of my office that day. Hell, I could have called security. I have done that on women before, believe it or not. I enjoy your company. I don't see any reason to tell you to fuck off until you piss me off. You don't piss me off, which is more than I can say about a lot of the people I sleep with. This sick thing? I apologise. It's not something I ever get used to and it shits me when it happens."
Harri smiled as she leaned in even more and brought her lips close to his. "I'm just a pushy cow who's company you enjoy, then?" She kissed him, keeping it brief. "I can live with that for now." At least she thought she could. When she finally talked to Aiden about all this it might be a different story completely. She still wasn't sure what to make of it, but right now she just wanted to enjoy the bath with Marc.
"Let's put it this way. If you weren't a pushy cow and just another nice rack in a nice package, I probably wouldn't have glanced at you a second time. Neither of us are here because we have to be, it's because we want to be. That alone gives us the upper hand." His fingers swept through the bubbly water as he continued to watch her. A smile appeared on his lips but he didn't immediately elude to what he was thinking. "Why me? Besides the cock. You fed me the ten inch cock line and fair enough at first, but it's not my cock keeping you here now."
"No, it's not. I think it's because you're not easy. Well, you are. We both are as far as sex is concerned. Personality wise you're not. I thought you were a bastard at first, but you proved me wrong. I guess I just want to try and see how many layers you'll show me. You make me smile, and laugh. You offered to help me while I help Aiden. No one else has really done that." Harri let out a sigh. "You frustrate me, but mostly it's in a good way."
Marc held up his hand. "I am a bastard, Harri. A total bastard. I just know how to use that to my advantage. I know how to use a lot of things to my advantage. And the layers... I feel a Shrek quote coming on," he sniggered and splashed her with a soft flick of water. "I could be someone or something totally different to what you think, you know. Same cock, though, so it's irrelevant, no? You could have anyone. Why pick someone who could cause you any number of headaches? Someone who might just be enjoying running you around in endless circles right now?"
"Because you're not enjoying it," Harri pointed out. "If you were enjoying it, I don't think you'd be here in this bath. We'd still be in your sitting room and you'd still be jumpy and acting like your balls are on fire."
Marc scooped up a handful of water and swept it through his hair. "Secrets," he said. "I have a lot of them. That album was one of them. I'll show you one day," he promised. But it would be one day when he did end up in a sobbing mess looking at it.
"I'm not asking you to reveal them all to me right now. I just want you to know that I'm not nosy. I wasn't even going to look at the album. You can trust me, even if you have no reason to."
Marc was silent for a few moments. "There is a reason I can't show you. I have my fingers in a lot of pies. I was feeling nostalgic and got it out. Big mistake, but no matter. Shit happens." He pushed his wet hair out of his eyes. "So, tell me something about you that I don't already know."
Harri bit her lip as she leaned back in the bath again and gave it some serious thought. "I had a boyfriend once, a genuinely serious relationship. It was before I met Aiden. He still doesn't actually know about it. It ended badly, so I guess it might explain my reluctance to get back into dating, however many years have lapsed."
"Why haven't you told your BFF?" Marc asked curiously.
"I don't know. It's just something I've always kept to myself. Until now--so now you have a secret of mine." Harri gave him a smile. "One step at a time, right?"
Marc smiled. "One step at a time," he agreed.
Harriet Ryan & Marcus Fraser
Original Character
Words: 4475
All muses referenced with permission