The Talent Show

Pairing: Chris/Vin

Disclaimer: The guys do not belong to me, and I make no profit from writing about them. This story is Chris/Vin, and contains adult themes and adult language.

Warning: Those who are fans of Mary Travis will not appreciate this story.

The team meeting was just coming to a close, and Chris Larabee shuffled his papers to stuff them back into a folder. Buck was already on his feet and JD close behind when Chris raised his hand to stop them.

“Just one more thing,” the tall blond said, motioning everyone to stay seated. “I had a meeting this morning in Judge Travis’s office.”

The other members of Team Seven looked at each other. If this was a work assignment, Chris would have explained it during the regular meeting.

“Seems like Mary Travis and her women’s auxiliary club have planned a fund-raiser for the children of agents killed or wounded on duty. She’s approached the Judge and he’s given his blessing. The meeting in Orin Travis’s office this morning was for him to explain it to the senior agents to request their cooperation from each of their teams.”

“So what do we gotta do, Chris?” Buck spoke up, grinning. “Are we gonna get all dressed up and go dancing with the ladies at a ball or something?”

Vin visibly cringed at the thought of being forced to put on a tuxedo. Ezra, on the other hand, stretched out an arm and pulled an imaginary piece of lint off his immaculate, expensive suit jacket as he straightened his shoulders and sat up taller.

“Oh, man,” JD exclaimed. “Casey’s gonna be pissed if she has to get all dressed up for a fancy ball!”

“Wait! Just hold on,” Chris interrupted. “It’s not a ball or a dinner dance.”

Ezra’s head snapped up.

“Surely you aren’t going to ask us to… build a playground or something?” he shuddered in horror.

“Now brother Ezra,” Josiah grinned, “there’s nothing wrong with a little manual labor to help out the less fortunate.”

Ezra glared at him.

Nathan was sitting there jotting down a list of medical supplies he’d need to take to the work site to have every possible first aid provision at hand.

“I hope it’s not a golf outing,” JD whined. “I hate golf.”

Chris was shaking his head, rolling his eyes at them as he caught Vin’s crooked grin.

“Maybe iff’n ya’d all just listen a minute, we’d know what we’re in for,” Vin’s soft drawl drew their immediate attention.

Looking a little sheepish, they all firmly shut their mouths and gave their undivided attention to their leader.

“What we’re going to do, gentlemen,” Chris spoke firmly as he made eye contact with each of them in turn, “is… a talent show.”

“What!?”

“You’ve got to be kidding!?”

“Great! I haven’t played the saxophone since college!”

“Oh, good Lord.”

Chris watched their reactions with a combination of amusement and trepidation. The word from Travis was that everyone on every team was expected to participate. Chris tried to avoid making eye contact with Vin, knowing how the team’s sharpshooter and his lover of six months would dread anything that would place him in the limelight.

“How soon do we need to let you know if we intend to participate?” Nathan asked.

“Actually, it’s not a question of whether you intend to participate,” Chris informed them, looking around the table. “It’s a matter of indicating just which type of act you intend to perform.”

Vin tensed visibly and Chris couldn’t help looking at him. Vin’s eyes were screaming, “No!” in no uncertain terms.

“Well, hell, Chris,” Buck laughed, waggling his eyebrows. “It’s gonna take me awhile to decide which of my many talents to showcase!”

“Oh, god!” JD groaned. “Not the Elvis impersonation!”

“That’s exactly what I’m thinking!” Buck grinned as JD shook his head.

“If you need to know now, Chris, I’ll probably be singing,” Josiah told him. “I’ve got a new arrangement of ‘How Great Thou Art’ that just begs for a large concert hall.”

“I’ll start polishing my saxophone,” Nathan added. “I used to be part of a jazz group in college. Hope I remember enough not to embarrass myself.”

“Or Raine!” Buck teased.

“Before things get out of hand,” Ezra injected, “let me be the first to offer to emcee this, er, prestigious event. My talents lie in my voice – and not my singing voice.”

“Hey, Ez,” Buck shook his head. “I’ll bet you’ve got a great singing voice.”

“You’ll never know, now will you?” the southern replied.

“Thank you, Ezra,” Chris nodded at him. “I’ll pass that along. Who else?”

“I’ll do stand-up comedy!” JD grinned, as everyone sagged in their chairs.

“Boy, don’t you even think about that!” Buck went to swat his shoulder.

“Hey, my jokes are funny!” JD protested. “I’ve got some new ones you haven’t heard. Besides, Casey thinks I’m funny.”

“Funny looking,” Buck told him.

“All right, settle down,” Chris spoke up firmly, trying to maintain control. “Let’s see, we have Nathan on jazz saxophone, Josiah singing gospel, JD with a comedy act, Ezra as emcee, Buck as Elvis….”

“Okay, Junior,” Buck turned to Vin, who was trying to disappear into his seat. “What are you gonna be entertaining us with?”

“I ain’t doin’ it,” the sharpshooter said softly but firmly.

“You have to do it!” JD protested. “We all have to do it, don’t we, Chris?! Travis said everyone has to participate, right?”

Vin glared at him.

“Well, I ain’t.”

“Vin…,” Chris said warningly.

“Unless the Judge wants to set a target up on stage and have me shootin’ a rifle from the back of the auditorium over the heads of the audience to hit the target, I ain’t got any other talent,” Vin announced. “An’ I’m pretty sure there’s regulations against that sort a thing at these affairs.”

“Oh, come on, Vin,” JD pressed. “You can do something else, right?”

“No.”

The posture of their sharpshooter was tense and his closed face made it clear that he didn’t want to talk about it anymore.

“Hey, Junior, why don’t you sing or something?” Buck teased him. “Just don’t get out that harmonica I’ve heard you blowin’ through. We don’t want the show to end early as the patrons rush for the exits.”

“Shut up, Bucklin,” Vin nearly snarled. “I’ll do somethin’ else to help out. Build scenery or somethin’. But I ain’t gettin’ on stage an’ there ain’t nothin’ I kin do, anyway. So what talent are you doin’, Chris?”

The two men exchanged looks and the other five men around the table could feel the sparks flying. Vin was obviously angry at Chris for putting him in this situation, and Chris was upset at Vin for challenging him.

Chris cleared his throat. “Well, as it turns out, team leaders are exempt.”

Vin’s body tensed to a rigid stillness, and only the flashing of his blue eyes let them know how pissed off he was over this turn of events. It was one thing that Chris was his lover in private. That was something they did a good job of to separate home and off-duty from work and supervisor/subordinate. But to Vin this was pushing the line to have his supervisor require him to participate in a charity event.

“If we’re done here, I got work ta do,” Vin declared, shoving his chair roughly away from the table and stalking out.

Vin,” Chris called after him, but the Texan didn’t stop. The others looked at each other, back at Chris, and shrugged. They got up and headed back to the bullpen.

“You want me to talk to Junior for you, stud?” Buck asked, hanging behind the other men. He knew the two men were close, and while he was still trying to get past his initial jealously that the young Texan had replaced him as Chris’s best friend, he had to be grateful to the man for bringing back the Chris he knew before the terrible loss of his wife and child. He was okay with being Chris’s oldest – and second best – friend, once he realized that Tanner had done for Chris what he couldn’t. He told himself Chris’s relationship to Vin was closer than he could continue to be, merely by not having been a part of Sarah and Adam’s lives as he himself had been before their deaths.

“No,” Chris shook his head sadly. “I’ll do it. After all, it’s my job.”

“You know that boy isn’t doing this to give you a hard time, Chris,” Buck reminded him.

Chris sighed heavily.

“I know.”

“But you also know how Vin hates anyone looking at him. Hell, at Inez’s he can practically disappear. He sits in the corner, not movin’, seems to hardly be breathin’, and then when he finally does speak up it startles the hell outta the rest of us. If that boy has another talent besides shootin’, it’s making himself disappear.”

“I just can’t stand that he’s going to hate me,” Chris admitted to his oldest friend. He ran his hand through his straight blond hair.

“Junior’s not going to hate you,” Buck told him. “Well, not for long, anyway. But that boy is plenty pissed right now.”

“Tell me about it,” Chris shook his head.

“Give him time,” Buck told his friend as they both made their way toward the door of the conference room. “He’ll calm down.”

“But what am I going to do?” Chris looked truly upset. “I’m supposed to require everyone to perform. If I let Vin get away without being on stage, I’m going to get the backlash from other teams and maybe Travis himself. I’ve been so careful to not permit any appearance of favoritism with anyone on the team.”

“I don’t have an answer for that,” Buck told him, then grinned. “That’s why they pay you the big bucks, stud.”

Chris snorted.

“Hell, tell Travis that Vin wants a series of bull’s-eyes set up around the stage, and his talent will be shooting them from the balcony. Put the decision back in Travis’s hands and let him make the call,” Buck suggested.

“You’re so helpful,” Chris rolled his eyes.

As Buck headed toward his own desk, they both noticed that Vin never looked up from his computer screen as the two men walked through the main office. Buck and Chris exchanged glances and Buck gave Chris a rueful expression as he shrugged. Chris sighed again.

“Vin! My office,” Chris said as he entered his private space.

Vin shoved himself away from his computer and stood up. He didn’t look at anyone else as he made his way toward the senior agent in charge, although he knew that everyone was watching him.

“That boy is not happy,” Josiah declared in a deep rumble.

“That’s for sure,” Nathan agreed. “I hate to see Vin put on the spot like this. He’s not going to want to make things awkward for Chris, but it’s going to kill him to be on stage with everyone looking at him.”

“Surely he could do something, right?” JD claimed. “Everyone can do something….”

“JD. Son,” Buck shook his head sadly. “Vin can shoot. Vin can shoot amazingly well. Vin can shoot the wings off a fly at half a mile. And Vin can ride. He controls that wild beast that he likes to call a horse that the rest of us know is demon spawn. But none of those things translates to a stage, and you know how Vin feels about being the center of attention. Hell, he don’t even want to be the center of attention among us, never mind up on a stage in front of an audience full of strangers.”

“Maybe something can be worked out,” Josiah said. “I don’t think it’s fair to put people on the spot like this.”

Buck frowned. “You make a good point, Josiah. This whole thing smells just a little too fishy to me.”

“Let’s not get too worked up yet,” Nathan advised. “Chris may be able to work something out.”

“Mr. Tanner did offer to build sets or something,” Ezra reminded them. “Surely there could be some accommodation made.”

“Yeah,” JD piped up. “Besides, there must be other teams out there who have people with no talent.”

“JD!”

“Well, you know what I mean,” JD blushed furiously. “You know I’m not saying Vin doesn’t have talent. I’m just saying that Vin doesn’t have stage talent.”

“You don’t have stage talent, but you’re not letting it stop you!” Buck snorted.

“Hey! I resent that!” JD’s eyes widened, and the rest of the men started laughing.

The tension was broken, and they all decided they’d better get to work before Chris came out and started yelling at them.

Vin, meanwhile, stood stiffly just inside Chris’s office. Chris looked at his young lover and sighed. God, he hated that Travis had put him in this position. Damn that Mary Travis. This whole thing had her fingerprints all over it. He knew that she still held out hope that he would someday become hers. She had never let go of the fantasy that Chris would be her new husband and her son Billy’s new father. He had seen Mary’s cold and calculating looks toward the long-haired Texan. While Chris and Vin had been very careful about hiding their relationship, Mary’s nosiness and investigative skills had obviously made her suspicious. Chris knew that at least he had Orin Travis’s support, as long as Chris and Vin kept their relationship out of the workplace. Nothing had been specifically discussed, but Chris was relieved that neither of them would be forced to leave a job they each loved.

“Vin…,” Chris started, not really knowing what to say.

“No, Chris,” Vin’s soft rasp interrupted him. “I’m sorry. I stormed outta that meeting an’ I had no call ta do that. Weren’t you’re fault this happened.”

“We’ll work something out, Vin,” Chris said, running his hands through his hair.

“I don’t want’cha doin’ anything ta get yourself in trouble,” Vin shook his head. “I ain’t asking ya for special favors. It ain’t right for me ta have you get me outta doin’ this if ever’one else on th’ team has ta do it.”

“I don’t like it, Vin. As soon as Travis told me about it I didn’t like it. I mean, the idea of a talent show could be kind of fun and different. But it stops sounding fun when suddenly everyone is forced to participate.”

“I ain’t mad at ya, Cowboy. We’ll come up with somethin’. Hell, it ain’t like I haven’t done harder things before in my life.”

“This sucks, though. You do so much for the kids in your neighborhood, Vin. It’s not right that you should be forced to do this, too.”

Vin sighed and shrugged. Chris could see that he was struggling not to let Chris see how upset he was. Damn Mary Travis to hell.

“I better get back ta work,” Vin said.

“Vin…,”

“Like I said, ain’t your fault. I know ya did th’ best ya could.”

Chris watched as the lean sharpshooter turned and left his office. What a fucked up mess.

Before Chris could turn back to the folder on his desk, there was a knock and Buck’s head popped in. The big man walked over and plopped down on Chris’s couch, his long legs stuck out straight in front of him.

“I see you’ve got the knocking part down finally,” Chris looked at him from under raised eyebrows. “Next we need to work on waiting to be acknowledged.”

“This stinks of a rat!” Buck exploded, completely ignoring Chris’s comment. “A platinum blonde rat. I didn’t make the connection right at first until one of the guys said something. You know, I’ll bet Mary did this deliberately. You know she’s always trying to get her hooks into you. I’ve seen how she’s always had it in for Vin, too. Hell, we’ve all see it. She knows you’re his friend. That boy’s always hanging around your ranch and visiting that devil horse of his. She wants him out of your life so that she can move right in. What do you want to bet that she insisted to daddy-in-law that it be a requirement for everyone, just knowing how traumatic this would be for Vin.”

“You’re joking! You don’t seriously think this is the reason, do you?” Chris’s head snapped up sharply.

Buck looked disgusted but shook his head. “I do think so. I know that she sees that boy as a rival for your attention. And that woman has her claws out for anyone who gets between herself and what she wants. Right now what she wants is you, and what she sees in her way is Vin.”

“I don’t know what to do,” Chris admitted. “I’m supposed to make everyone perform, but I’ve got the feeling that Orin wasn’t all that thrilled about it, either.”

“That woman has too much power, if you ask me,” Buck huffed angrily. “How come she’s allowed to call the shots around here? That’s what I want to know.”

“We’d better get back to work, Buck,” Chris told him. “This isn’t going to be solved right this minute.”

Buck stood up, nodding. He looked at Chris, seeing the look of worry in his eyes as they strayed out his office window toward the lean sharpshooter’s desk.

“Don’t worry,” Buck smiled softly. “Junior ain’t gonna stay mad at ya. He knows it ain’t your doin’, and he’ll be okay. He’s just gotta work it out by himself for awhile.”

“I know,” Chris sighed. “I just wish I saw some way out of this mess. Hell, I wish we weren’t in this mess to begin with.”

“Shit,” Buck grinned. “Vin could always come down with the ‘intentional’ flu the night of the show!”

“Intentional flu?” Chris raised his eyebrows.

“Yeah, you know. A similar strain of the intestinal flu,” Buck’s eyes were sparkling as his huge grin lit up his face. “After all, everyone knows how that boy catches every germ in a fifty-mile radius!”

Chris laughed, and Buck could see the tension leave his face as his whole body relaxed. Buck vowed secretly to plot some sort of revenge against that meddling woman. She had no business pulling this crap on anyone, but least of all Vin. That boy had brought his best and oldest friend out of a three-year period of anger and depression and pain. The members of Team Seven rejoiced as they saw the difference in their leader after a scrawny-assed, smart-mouthed, long-haired, blue-eyed Texan had wandered into their team and transformed their senior agent back into the person Buck had once known. Back to the person he was before, when Buck and Chris were both younger, before tragedy had struck Chris to the core of his being. Buck had stuck by Chris’s side as he tried to keep Chris among the living, when his soul was nearly dead. And he’d be damned if he let Mary Travis come between Chris and the man who had rescued his soul.

+ + + + + + +

The rest of the morning passed quietly, and since it was a Friday tradition, all the team headed over to the saloon together for lunch. Vin was quiet, but not excessively so, and they were relieved to see that he wasn’t still tense or angry. That allowed the other men to relax and fall into their usual teasing patterns. The mood was lively as they unwound from a tough week. Everyone was glad for the weekend, and Chris invited the team out for a Sunday afternoon barbeque and to watch the game together.

He had plans for Vin for tonight and Saturday, however, that didn’t include the team. A long horseback ride up into the base of the mountains where they would camp over night. Chris knew that Vin would need the outdoors and some space and open air to sort through his anxiety about this stupid talent show fiasco.

Unfortunately, Chris’s plans for the evening had somewhat of a setback. About 3 p.m. Travis called that he’d just received word they needed clarification on an earlier budget report. Chris had thought everything was perfectly clear, and Travis had accepted the report. But the auditors had asked for a meeting with AD Travis and he’d asked Chris to come along.

From the window in his office, Chris could see Vin get up, twist to stretch his back, and then head to the break room. He decided he could use a cup of coffee, especially if he was headed into a late Friday afternoon meeting.

“Hey, cowboy,” Chris said softly, coming up behind Vin.

Sparkling blue eyes met his, as Vin turned and gave Chris a crooked grin.

“Pour you some of this coffee?” he offered.

Chris shuddered.

“Might as well,” he said, reaching for his mug stored on the counter. “Got bad news. Gonna be a late night.”

Vin tipped his head to the side, questioningly.

“Travis called. He needs me to sit in on an auditor’s meeting in a few minutes. Might take a few hours. I’m hoping not, but realistically, these are auditors. I’m sorry, Vin.”

“That’s okay, Chris,” Vin shook his head. “It ain’t your fault. I know how these suits like their meetings. Gotta have every cent accounted for.”

“I wanted us both home early.”

Vin moved just slightly closer as he handed Chris the coffee and returned the carafe to its holder on the warming plate. Chris ached to reach out and pull that lean, perfect body against his. He didn’t know how he was so lucky that Vin seemed so forgiving of everything that was happening, from last minute meetings to this stupid talent show.

He was tempted to give Buck the green light to go ahead with some sort of revenge on Mary Travis, after her father-in-law pulled him into a stupid, pointless meeting after this earlier news. Sometimes he could swear that they did that just to justify their salaries.

“I know,” Vin pouted. “I was hopin’ for some makeup sex.”

Chris felt his pants getting tight at the thought of Vin’s idea of makeup sex.

“Um,” he finally shook himself. “Have we actually fought?”

“I thought we did, sorta, at least,” Vin’s blue eyes were wide and innocent. “Didn’t you think so? I guess iff’n we didn’t actually fight, then I don’t suppose we have anything to make up….”

“We fought!” Chris insisted, panicked at the thought of missing out on whatever Vin had in mind. Nobody was more wildly creative in bed than Vin Tanner.

Vin laughed softly.

“You’re too easy, cowboy.”

“Not too easy,” Chris growled. “Too hard.”

Vin laughed at Chris’s discomfort.

“Having problems there, Lar’bee?”

“Smart-mouthed, long-haired, pain-in-the-ass Texan,” Chris growled.

Vin just chuckled, the sound low and raspy as he teased, “Huh. I thought you liked my ass, Cowboy…”

Chris just groaned, then pushed Vin away from his embrace and forced himself to take a couple steps back to lean against the counter.

“Well, best be gittin’ back ta work,” Tanner drawled. “Would hate for th’ boss ta be mad at me.”

Chris glared at him, wondering again how that slender, beautiful young man had come to be the most important person in his life. After Vin had left the room, deliberately walking slow enough to give Chris a good long look at that perfect ass, Chris had to grin and shake his head. That ‘kid,’ as Buck called him, knew exactly what he was doing and exactly how to get Chris all hot and bothered. God, was he in love.

+ + + + + + +

Unfortunately, Chris’s plans for the weekend really were sidetracked with Travis’s emergency budget meeting. By the time he got out of the office and made the long drive home, it was far too late to head to the mountains to camp out. Chris got home to find the chores done, the horses taken care of, and leftovers warming in the oven. Vin was asleep on the sofa, a fire burning low in the fireplace.

“Hey,” Chris called softly, brushing his fingers through the long, tangled curls. It was a testament to just how safe Vin felt here that he came awake slowly, and not swinging.

Sleepy blue eyes opened, and Vin’s crooked half-grin warmed Chris’s heart and soul. He was tempted to ravish Vin on the spot, but knew that the younger man had been dead asleep and needed his rest. There would be time for making love this weekend, but tonight it was enough to pull Vin tightly to his side and sleep. No, not ‘enough,’ he thought to himself as he drifted into sleep. It was perfect.

+ + + + + + +

Chris and Vin deliberately shied away from any mention of the upcoming talent show over the weekend. Chris was still afraid that Vin was upset about it, and in truth every time he thought about it, it made him angry. He strongly suspected that Buck was right. Mary Travis had done everything she could to get her hooks into him, and she was probably convinced that this was one more way she could make Vin look bad and herself look better.

Sunday afternoon when the rest of the guys came over for the barbeque, things were fine until after they’d all eaten and were sprawled around the deck. Vin had gone into the kitchen and brought out another six-pack, carrying his own long-neck and passing around the rest to the guys in various deck and lounge chairs. After everyone was taken care of, Vin settled into a chair next to Chris.

Suddenly JD stood up. “Could I have you guys’ attention? I want to go over my routine for the show.”

Chris felt Vin stiffen beside him, and everyone else froze. Vin could feel his cheeks redden as suddenly he felt everyone’s eyes looking at him. He focused on pulling off the wrapper around his beer bottle.

“Kid…,” Buck growled warningly, nodding his head toward their sharpshooter and rolling his eyes.

“What? What did I do?!” JD asked, puzzled.

“Nothin’,” Vin shook his head.

“It’s all right,” he added, looking around at the rest of them. “Go ahead and do your stuff, JD.”

“What’s Irish and sits in the sun?” JD grinned, then continued without waiting for an answer. “Patio furniture! Get it? Paddy O’Furniture…?”

The others groaned, but that only encouraged the youngest member of their team, and he was off on a serious of equally bad jokes.

The men were still a little tense at the thought of the pressure Vin was feeling over this talent show. He was good at covering his feelings, and gave JD some praise for his efforts. Soon the other men were laughing and joking, teasing JD at his never-ending store of bad jokes. The funny part was, many of them were so bad they were funny, and the laughter eased the tension as they all relaxed again.

Right after JD finished his monologue it was time for the game to start, so everyone grabbed up their empty bottles, deposited them in the recycling bin on their way to the fridge to grab a new one, and Buck and JD loaded up on the bags of chips and snacks as they made their way to the den. It was a fun and relaxing afternoon spent in good company, and the home team even won.

Finally all the men left, and Vin was finishing washing the dishes while Chris went around the house straightening up. Both men liked having the place neat, unlike Buck and JD’s loft that had been nicknamed the CDC. While neither man was particularly fond of cleaning, they’d grown into a habit of taking a few minutes every night to make sure the dishes and clutter and mail and any laundry or other things were taken care of. It made the weekly division of bigger chores like vacuuming and cleaning the bathrooms a lot easier.

Chris had finished checking all the doors and windows and setting the alarm. He came up behind his lean Texan, wrapping his arms around the man’s slender waist. He nuzzled Vin’s hair out of the way and softly kissed his neck.

“Come to bed,” Chris said in a tone that was almost a demand. Vin shivered in anticipation.

“Awful bossy, ain’t ya?”

“Need you.”

Vin turned and wrapped his arms around Chris’s shoulders, pressing his lean body next to the slightly taller man. He rested his head against Chris’s chest.

“Need you, too, Cowboy.”

Chris tightened his hold around the slender waist, pulling Vin close. He groaned.

“We don’t get this to the bedroom, I’m about to throw you over the kitchen table and fuck you right here.”

Vin gasped and a shudder ran through him.

“I ever tell ya I like bossy?”

Suddenly, strong arms shifted from Vin’s waist and the thin sharpshooter was scooped up and slung over broad shoulders. Vin squeaked in surprise and for a moment struggled against being held. Chris knew the reason Vin was wary of being grabbed and held, and it briefly flashed through his mind that maybe he was doing the wrong thing by grabbing Vin.

To break the tension he swatted Vin playfully on the ass.

“Quit squirming, pard,” he ordered as he moved from the kitchen through the hallway. Then teased, “Dang, for such a skinny guy you sure weigh a ton.”

It wasn’t true. Vin barely weighed a hundred and forty pounds, and he probably weighed even less now since he’d been sick not too long ago. There was a lot of room in those slim fit jeans, but Chris wasn’t complaining. He liked knowing he could pull the younger man close to him and slip a hand beneath that soft denim to find even softer, warm skin.

As they reached the bedroom Chris turned the dimmer switch on the overhead lights just to the lowest setting. He continued across the room, rubbing his hand in soothing circles over Vin’s butt.

“Wouldn’t hurt you, kid. Won’t ever hurt you. Didn’t mean to scare you,” his voice was soft and reassuring.

Vin drew a shaky breath as Chris gently lowered him to the large mattress and stretched out over top of him, holding himself above the younger man with straight arms.

“I know,” Vin whispered.

Long, slender fingers reached up and brushed against Chris’s face as deep blue eyes met green.

“Ya…, ya didn’t scare me,” Vin lied. At Chris’s raised eyebrow he flushed a soft pink that only served to make him look even more adorable. “Well, mebbe ya jist startled me a little, ‘s all.”

“Didn’t mean to startle you either,” Chris said gently. “At least, not in a bad way.”

“I know. And ya didn’t really. I’m sorry for makin’ ya have ta think all th’ time how I’m gonna react. Don’t mean ta make ya go on th’ worry. I know ya’d never hurt me, Chris. God, ya don’t do nuthin’ but make me feel good. You’re about th’ only one hasn’t never hurt me.”

Chris flinched, and his eyes darkened.

“Hey,” Vin murmured, reaching up and capturing Chris’s face between both of his slim hands. “It’s okay… it’s okay. I’m okay. I love ya, Chris. I love ya so much an’ I cain’t b’lieve that ya love me, too. But I know ya do, an’ know ya wouldn’t do anything but take care a me. You’re so good ta me, Cowboy. Cain’t tell ya what that means ta me.”

Chris rolled off Vin onto his side, and wrapped his strong arm around the narrow back.

“God, Vin. It’s not okay. It’s not okay that people hurt you. You never should have been hurt when you were a kid, and I’m sick to think what men did to you when you were barely a teenager, living on the streets. I know you haven’t told me everything that’s happened, but some stuff comes out in nightmares, baby. I just want you to know that you can tell me anything. I know you worry that I get upset, and you hate thinking about it or talking about it. But I will listen, Vin. I can do that much for you.”

“I know. I do.”

Vin pulled away enough to stretch up and capture the blond’s mouth with his own. Their need took over as Vin’s talented tongue and mouth caressed the soft lips, nipping and soothing them alternately. Chris felt the passion surge though him and his own mouth became more insistent.

“Mmm….,” Vin murmured. “Love ya, Chris. Gotta have ya. Gonna never let ya go.”

Chris rolled Vin over to lay on his back, but did it slowly enough that Vin wasn’t startled. Their eyes locked as their hands moved over warm flesh as clothing was removed. Finally just looking wasn’t enough, and Vin lifted his head just as Chris lowered his, their mouths meeting in a sensuous kiss. Even in this they were in perfect unison.

Vin clutched at Chris’s back, loving the feel of the hard muscles that rippled over the satiny skin. His breath quickened when Chris pulled back just enough to move his own large hands from toying with the ladder of ribs on Vin’s side to his chest. His thumbs circled the tiny nipples, then pinched and twisted them gently between his thumbs and forefingers.

Vin sucked in a breath, but his chest raised up to not break the contact. Chris grinned at the erotic sight. Nothing turned him on more than making his Texan writhe with passion.

“Chris! Oh, God, Chris!”

Chris’s mouth swooped down and latched onto one taut nipple. While the fingers of one hand toyed with the remaining one, lips and tongue and teeth nipped and pulled and licked and gently bit the other. When Vin’s breathing increased to panting with arousal, Chris switched sides. He started to suspect that he could make Vin come just from paying attention to his chest.

Realizing that Vin really was fighting for control, Chris decided to end his suffering before things got really painful. He shoved up on his hands, leaving Vin whimpering slightly at the abandonment.

“Hang on…, I’ve got you…,” Chris murmured. “Just a little bit longer, I’ll make it all good.”

“It’s already good,” Vin looked up at him. “I got you, and ain’t nothing better than that.”

The deep blue eyes were shimmering with love. And trust.

God, what had he done to deserve this much love from this man. And this much trust from a man who had learned early and painfully not to trust anyone.

“Love you, Tanner.”

“Love you, too. Now move, before I have ta shoot you.”

“Always the sweet talker.”

“Ya don’t love me for my talkin’.”

“Yeah, I kind’a do,” Chris shook his head, his hands making soothing motions on Vin’s skin, keeping him aroused but letting him come down gently from being over-stimulated. Chris wanted this to last.

“Huh?” Vin frowned, clearly puzzled.

“Your voice is the sexiest damn voice I’ve ever heard, and you can turn me on just by opening your mouth and saying something. Hell, one time I thought I was gonna have to throw you on the kitchen table and fuck you when you started reading the grocery list, it was so hot.”

Vin grinned, laughing lightly at the image Chris was painting.

“Well, now you’ve cracked the code. That was my little secret.”

“I should’a known you weren’t all innocent.”

“Hey! I’m innocent.”

“Sure you are,” Chris rolled his eyes.

“Well, I was. Found out kind'a by accident. When we were all just talkin’ late one evening about one of the operations, and noticed you was gettin’ a little… uncomfortable. Decided ta see how far I could take it.”

“And..?” Chris persisted, remembering that day very well.

“Let’s just say, I pitched my voice a little deeper and before I knew it, I noticed you had to vanish for awhile into the men’s room.”

“You did, huh?” Chris laughed, suddenly tickling the bony ribs of his young lover. Vin’s giggles were music to his ears. Would anyone in the ATF believe the boyish sounds he was wringing from this normally intense, highly focused and well-trained sharpshooter?

Chris stopped when he realized that Vin was becoming breathless. He didn’t want their fun to cross the line into something that was upsetting or painful.

“Shh…, sorry….”

Vin caught his breath, and smiled softly up at Chris.

“It’s okay. I’m okay. I’d let you know if I wasn’t. Ya did know, and ya stopped.”

“Yeah, but I never want to take it so far it’s not fun any more.”

“You won’t. I trust you.”

Chris grinned, then the grin turned to a leer. Vin’s eyes widened.

“Uh…, Chris…?”

“Decided I’m gonna make it up to you.”

“Make it…up?” the word ended on a near squeak.

“And speaking of up…”

Chris looked down and saw that Vin’s shaft was erect and swelling rapidly. He swooped down and took Vin’s cock into his mouth. He licked the heavy vein underneath, knowing what would drive his lover to the edge. He relaxed his throat to take even more of the heavy length.

Vin’s thighs started to tremble as he thrust into Chris’s willing mouth. The blond held onto the lean hips tightly, neither one of them wanting Chris to choke but at the same time Vin was fighting hard not to go too far. Long fingers threaded through Chris’s blond hair, but he resisted the urge to press Chris’s head down as he thrust up. Just when he was at the brink of coming, Chris pulled off with a final suck on the rounded head, causing Vin to cry out at the sensations overwhelming him.

Chris pressed up with his forearms, then got on his knees between Tanner’s thighs. He lifted the slender legs over his own thighs, and pulled Vin’s ass higher. Reaching above them to the head of the bed, he grabbed the lube off the top of the dresser and then snagged a pillow to place under Vin’s back for extra support. Uncapping the tube, he spread some of the lotion on his fingers to warm it before pressing gently against Vin’s opening. He worked one, and then two fingers into Vin, slowly getting the ring of muscles to relax.

The two men were sweating, and a fine sheen glistened their skin. Both men were making soft sounds of passion as their experience as lovers led them toward what each one knew would excite the other.

As Chris soothed over the strong muscles of Vin’s legs, Vin reached up to tweak and pull the flat oval nipples on Chris’s chest. He ran his fingers lightly across Chris’s chest, then traced down to run a finger tantalizingly around the navel of Chris’s flat belly. His hands reached for the long, thick cock jutting from the nest of curls before Chris swatted them away.

“Unh uh, no touching,” he gasped, fighting for control. “I’ve got plans for that.”

“Well, hurry up, goddammit.”

Chris knew that Vin was ready enough so that it wouldn’t tear him, although normally he would have continued to prepare Vin’s opening enough to get three fingers inserted. They were both so close to the edge right now, however, that he knew they couldn’t wait. He placed the blunt end of his cock against Vin, and grasping the sharp hip bones, he pressed inside Vin in one long, slow push. The younger man gasped, biting his lip with his teeth while his body adjusted to the pressure. Finally with a couple gasps, Vin relaxed just enough to where Chris knew he was okay. Vin’s eyes slitted open, and he nodded when he saw Chris looking down at him with concern.

Chris slowly drew out, stopping just before the head of his cock pulled from Vin’s body. Then without warning he slammed back in, snapping his hips forward into Vin’s ass. Vin gasped, his eyes widening, but his hands grabbed Chris’s wrists with a fierce grip, and he held his breath as Chris pounded into him.

Slowing his motions after a few minutes to give them time to catch their breath caused Vin to cry out. He was so close to coming, and this was near torture. Chris moved his hands off Vin’s hips long enough to take Vin’s hands from their death grip on his wrists, and lift them over his head. He placed Vin’s hands around the smooth decorative columns of the headboard, pressing firmly as they circled the wood to reinforce that they were to stay there. Vin only nodded his agreement – nothing was going to make him do anything that might prevent Chris from doing whatever he had in mind.

Chris raised up on his knees, sitting back on his heels which made him that much higher. He held Vin’s hips firmly, but scooted his knees under Vin’s ass to help support his back. None of their movements had caused Chris to slip completely from Vin’s body, but now he took special care to slowly and with excruciating deliberation press into Vin’s body and withdraw until only the head of his cock was inside. Over and over, with measured precision, he worked Vin’s body until the younger man was moaning and writhing beneath him.

Vin became gradually more vocal, alternating between pleading for relief and cursing Larabee for his slow torture. Chris stared down at Vin, and the erotic sight of that slender, finely muscled body glistening with sweat nearly sent him over the edge. Vin was so tan, and the contrast between Chris’s pale hands and arms against Vin’s dark tan was beautiful. The light against the golden, damp skin only served to highlight the packed muscles over the taut belly and smooth chest. The nipples were pulled flat, and Vin’s shoulder muscles were rigid and defined as they flowed into the strong arms. As Vin’s body was stretched tight, it only served to emphasize just how strong and beautiful his lover was. Chris had never seen anything so erotic.

“God, Vin. So beautiful…, so hot…. Damn, Tanner. The things you do to me…”

Chris wasn’t sure whether the younger man even heard him, he was muttering and his head was thrashing back and forth, damp hair tangling further. Finally Tanner must have had enough, because he clenched his muscles tightly around the dick impaling him. Both men cried out as that sensation sent Chris over the edge. He pounded into Vin over and over, using his strong hands to pull Vin’s hips into his groin as he pounded his own hips into Vin. He varied the angle of Vin’s body, twisting it from side to side. Then he raised up even higher, supporting Vin’s lower body with his powerful thighs as he continued his assault on the smaller body.

Chris knew immediately when he hit the small nub inside his partner’s body. Vin tensed and his body clenched around Chris’s cock. Chris stilled, his face almost contorted with the effort. Vin held his breath, then released it with a harsh cry as thick, creamy ropes of cum splashed against his tan, flat belly. Both men cried out, Chris held Vin’s hips tightly, then thrust another few times into Vin’s body as his own release flooded into the younger man.

Carefully Chris pulled out from Vin’s body as his cock softened enough that he hoped it wouldn’t hurt the younger man. He noticed that Vin couldn’t keep from wincing, though.

“You okay?” he asked gently, flopping over beside the younger man.

It took another moment for their breathing to settle back toward normal. Hazy blue eyes looked over at Chris, as the older man raised up on an elbow to look down on his lover. He threaded his fingers through the long, sweat-soaked tangles, brushing the fine hair off Vin’s face. He knew that the love he felt for his partner was shining through his eyes, because he could see it reflected in Vin’s own eyes. They smiled almost shyly at each other.

“I’m fine, Chris. God, I love you so much. Had other lovers; couple times I even thought I was in love. But it was nothing – nothing – like this.”

Chris leaned over and kissed the perfect nose, then grinned.

“I know what you mean. Never thought anything could feel like this. I loved Sarah, you know that. But this is just as incredible. In some ways, even more incredible. I never thought I’d find that kind of love again, but what I did find was so much more.”

A faint shadow crossed Vin’s face, and he lowered his eyes.

“Hey,” Chris reached two fingers and turned Vin’s face back toward his own. “It’s not a competition, Vin. I don’t compare you two. I swear it. If you want to know the truth…”

“What?” Vin whispered, suddenly wary.

“Sometimes…,” Chris looked away.

“Chris?” The near panic was evident in the raspy voice.

The response itself was nearly a whisper.

“Sometimes I think I love you more.”

The admission hit Vin like a blow to his stomach. He wasn’t sure what to do with that information.

“I…, I don’t want this to be a competition, either, Cowboy,” Vin reached up and pulled Chris’s face down for a quick kiss. He stared into the green eyes, searching for the truth and hoping Chris could understand the truth of his own words. “And I don’t want you feelin’ guilty. I don’t think that ‘more’ is the word. Maybe. I mean, maybe it’s just different. A man an’ a woman in love is different. And when they’re married, then have a child…. That’s a wonderful, special thing.”

“What I feel for you is just as special, Tanner,” Chris insisted.

“I’m not saying it’s not. I’m just saying that ‘just as special’ can be ‘as special’ or ‘as much,’ without one being ‘more special’ than the other.”

“You’re confusing me,” Chris grinned, and the tension was broken as Vin grinned back.

“I want you to love me as much as I love you,” Vin said, simply and honestly.

“I do. But I also don’t ever want you to feel like you’re second best.”

“I don’t. You don’t ever make me feel that way. Hell, I know if Sarah and Adam were alive, you’d have never given me a second look.”

“Well, I might have looked. But I wouldn’t have acted on it. I just don’t want you thinking that what I had with Sarah was totally perfect. We fought, and there was a lot about the job she didn’t understand. But it’s not only the job, Vin. We fought about laundry, who was going to get the groceries and why wasn’t I home all weekend to mow the grass and putter in the yard.”

Vin burst out laughing.

“What’s so funny?” Chris glared down at him, but it only made Vin laugh harder.

“Jist thinkin’ a you, out in the yard with plaid shorts, black socks and sandals, pushin’ a mower.”

“I do not wear plaid shorts and black socks!”

Chris had to laugh, when he thought of what Vin’s imagination had come up with, but then he grew serious again.

“I need you to know how much I love you, Vin Tanner. I overheard Casey talking to Nettie in the kitchen one weekend about a mushy chick-flick she’d dragged JD to. In the movie, the couple were soul mates; kindred spirits. If you ever tell anyone I said this, I will shoot you, Tanner. But when she said that, all I could think of was that we, you and I, are kindred spirits.”

Vin’s eyes widened and unshed tears flooded the deep blue depths.

“Damn,” he whispered. “An’ I thought I was the poet.”

“You are. You are my poet. You are everything that is good to me.”

The corners of Vin’s mouth twitched in a shy smile.

“Not to mention,” Chris added, placing a kiss on Vin’s forehead, nose, and each cheek before continuing, “not to mention, you come up with some of the greatest, most fantastic, mind-numbing, toe-curling, bone-melting sex I have ever had in my life!”

Vin blushed, turning pink and looking faintly embarrassed.

“On a regular basis, I might add.”

“You bring out the best in me,” Vin offered. “Bring out my ‘creative’ side. An’ iff’n you’d like, I got a few more ideas of things we ain’t tried yet.”

Chris’s eyes widened.

“M…more…?”

Vin laughed out loud at the expression on Larabee’s face.

“Yep! Sure do.”

“Holy shit, Tanner. Much more ‘creative’ and you’ll kill me.”

“But I could make sure you’d die a happy man.”

“Oh, hell yeah. But happy ain’t near enough the strongest word for it.”

Chris shoved himself off the bed after another long, sweet kiss, to get a cloth to clean them up. Tanner was already more than half asleep. He smiled to himself as his young lover pushed his hand away. How one man could go from deadly sharpshooter to smoking hot lover to petulant four-year-old in the span of a few hours could make his head spin.

But he wouldn’t have it any other way. Because whatever the word was for what they shared, he knew he was the luckiest man in the world to have this man, Vin Tanner, as his lover and partner. He looked down at his now-sleeping partner.

“Mine,” he whispered.

No word had ever sounded as sweet.

+ + + + + + +

Everything was fine between them on the ride in Monday morning, although Vin was still teasing Chris about getting him an apron for their chores next weekend. Things settled into a regular routine at work, and nothing was said about the talent show by anyone in the office. Chris began to hope that the tension had just blown over.

However, the easy mood between them didn’t last long. Mary Travis managed to show up right after the Wednesday morning briefing. All the men were still in the main bullpen before Chris went to his office.

“Oh, Chris!” she trilled as she exited the elevator. “I’m so glad I caught you before you got busy. I need to go over some of the benefit plans with you.”

“Mary,” Chris said, keeping his voice neutral.

She shot a triumphant look at the men, her gaze lingering on their long-haired sharpshooter.

“Shall we go to your office where it will be more private?” she commanded, sweeping in front of him and making Vin step backwards to keep from being run into. “I need to go over the lineup of the acts from your team. Well, at least most of them. It’s such a shame that all your men aren’t willing to do their part to help those less fortunate!”

With a final sneer of disdain toward Vin, she turned and stalked into the team leader’s office.

Chris tried to get Vin’s attention, but the younger man had seated himself at his computer and was logging into his email account. Chris sighed heavily and turned to follow his boss’s daughter-in-law. Sometimes he wished he had never met the woman.

“Why, that witch!” Buck exploded as soon as the door was shut. “Excuse my language, but you can rhyme that with whatever you want.”

“Don’t worry, Mr. Wilmington,” Ezra’s green eyes were hard. “I am quite capable of rhyming, not to mention coming up with a few other choice adjectives of my own.”

“Mary doesn’t have any reason to say that! She can’t demand that we all perform at this benefit!” JD was distressed to see that someone he looked up to so much was having such mean-spirited and sarcastic comments made about him.

“That woman doesn’t know a tenth of what Vin does to help people,” Josiah looked angrily at the closed door. “If she thinks that having a high-society event for rich folks in tuxes and ball gowns is helping the poor, than she’s got another think coming.”

“Let it go, J’siah,” Vin’s soft voice broke through the tension and he finally turned around and looked at them. “She’s doin’ the best she can, I reckon. And if y’all raise some money for th’ kids who’ve lost their folks, that ain’t a bad thing. It ain’t like they cain’t use every dime, no matter where it comes from.”

Nathan sighed and nodded his head, looking at Josiah. The big man grinned, a little sadly.

“You’re a better man than I am, Vin. You’re much more forgiving.”

“Hell, J’siah, that ain’t nothin’. That ain’t near ta bein’ the worst thing been said about me, and reckon it won’t be th’ last. Don’t even begin ta come close ta the worst way I been treated.”

The room grew quiet as they all contemplated the truth of that statement.

“Still,” Buck exploded. “What say we invite Miss High and Mighty to come along the next time you plan a little playground renovation in Purgatory, Junior. Hell, we’ll even offer to throw in the gloves and paintbrush!”

Everyone laughed at that, and the stress was broken. They turned back to work with an easier frame of mind, and it was also a stroke of luck that Vin was downstairs getting some paperwork handled at the shooting range when Mary left Chris’s office.

The blonde woman came out ahead of Chris, laughing a forced laugh and looking even more severe. Ezra and Buck couldn’t help noticing that her eyes went directly to Vin’s empty chair, and she frowned in annoyance and frustration. The two agents caught each other’s eye and couldn’t help smirking.

“Something wrong, Mrs. Travis?” Ezra asked solicitously.

“Why, no, Ezra,” she seemed startled by the question, then frowned with suspicion. “Why do you ask?”

“Oh, no reason. It’s just that you seemed a little, oh, disappointed right now when you looked around the office.”

“No. No, not at all.”

“Sorry, my mistake.”

She gave him a cold, calculating look, which he returned with an innocent smile. She glared another moment before pasting a brittle smile on her face as she turned back to Chris.

“Thanks again for all your help,” she cooed. “This has just turned into such a huge project that I couldn’t do it without everyone’s cooperation. Although I suppose it can’t be helped if some people refuse to support such a worthy cause out of their own selfishness. It’s too bad that your entire team isn’t willing to do their part.”

Mary left with a final sniff and toss of her head, and five pairs of eyes turned back to Chris. He suddenly realized that Vin’s chair was empty, and looked around the office.

“Where’s Vin?

“Down to the shooting range,” Buck answered, thinking to himself that it was a stroke of luck that the supervisor had called when he had. “Tom called that the box of cartridges for the new rifle came in, and Vin went down to get them and check them out.”

“Oh, okay.”

“Did you want us to send him in when he returns, Mr. Larabee?”

“Uh, no. No, that’s fine. I just wondered where he went.”

“I’ll bet you did,” Buck muttered under his breath after the door shut behind the tall team leader.

“Something about that woman and the way she treats Vin just bugs the crap out of me,” Nathan muttered.

“I’m about ready to put that blonde barracuda in her place one of these days,” Josiah muttered darkly. “She’s got no call for the way she’s acting.”

“Preacher, the day you go Old Testament on Mary Travis had just better be the day I’m sitting right there with a front row seat to watch!” Buck laughed.

“Hey!” JD piped up. “Maybe you can do that in your act, Josiah!”

Vin walked in as they were still laughing, and he looked around at them, puzzled. They filled him in, and while he grinned, the humor never reached his eyes. The rest of the morning he was even more quiet than usual, but never admitted that anything was wrong.

Just before lunch the leader’s door opened and Chris called out, “Tanner! My office.”

Vin shoved his chair back with a sigh, and he headed into the private office without looking at anyone else. The discussion was short, and ended with Vin leaving the office and shutting the door hard behind him, just missing hard enough to be considered slamming. He wouldn’t look at anyone, and no one dared ask what was going on.

At 12:30, Buck stood and stretched, and the others started getting up and shutting down computer programs after saving their work.

“Everyone ready to head over to the Saloon for the Wednesday lunch special?” Buck grinned.

“I’m sure hungry!” JD shoved his arms in his jacket.

“You’re always hungry.”

“He’s just a growing boy.”

“I’m not a boy!”

“Junior? You coming?” Buck asked gently, standing near the corner of Vin’s desk.

“Nope. Ain’t hungry.”

“Vin, are you sick?” Nathan went into sudden alert mode.

“I’m fine, Nathan. Really. I ain’t sick. Jist ain’t feelin’ like eatin’ right now, and wouldn’t be good comp’ny. B’sides, I want to go back down to the range and work with the new rifle again. Might do that instead.”

“Chris?” Buck knocked on the team leader’s door and opened it.

“Well, I see we’ve managed to remember the knocking part,” Chris snapped. “Maybe one day you will manage to learn to wait until you’re acknowledged before barging in. Didn’t we just have this conversation on Friday? It’s getting old.”

“Hell, Stud,” Buck tried to grin but couldn’t help feeling like he was missing something important. “It’s lunch time. Didn’t figure whatever you were doing was so important you’d miss Inez’s Wednesday lunch special.”

Chris frowned and shoved his hand through his hair.

“As a matter of fact,….”

“Ready, Chris?!” an overly perky voice trilled behind Buck, causing the big man to jump.

“Mary!”

“Yes,” she smiled up at him, a fake demure look on her face but her eyes glittered with a hard triumph. “Chris and I have a lunch date to work on more of the details for the show. Things are coming along, although I’m extremely disappointed that Team Seven will be one of the only teams in which not all members have agreed to participate. Still, at least most people care about orphaned children. I would think that everyone would, but apparently not….”

Chris slowed slightly as they walked past Vin’s desk, but the younger man never gave any indication he knew they were there.

“Come along, Chris. I made reservations.”

Chris tried to hold the elevators for the rest of his team.

“No thanks, Boss,” Buck said, a little coldly. The five of them stood watching as Mary and Chris entered the first car.

“We’ll take the next one down,” Josiah said, his voice pleasant but his eyes telling Chris he wasn’t happy.

“We’ll bring something back for you, Vin,” JD called, and Chris frowned. Apparently he only then realized that the five were going to lunch but Vin was still at his desk. His eyes widened but the doors closed before he could say anything.

“Thanks, fellas, but ya ain’t gotta do that,” Vin said. He came to stand beside them as they waited for the next elevator car.

“Nonsense, Mr. Tanner,” Ezra said, straightened the lapels on his trench coat. “If you don’t eat, you’ll get weak. If you get into a weakened state, you’ll become ill. If you become ill, Mr. Jackson will have to focus on getting you healed. And Mr. Larabee will develop an even worse attitude. And if Mr. Larabee develops an even worse attitude he will shoot someone. And I refuse to let that someone be me.”

“Well, hell, Ez. You’re all heart,” Vin had to grin. “I’d hate ya ta get shot jist ‘cause I didn’t have lunch. I reckon ya’ll could bring me one a Inez’s tuna melts. For some reason that just sounds good ta me t’day.”

“One tuna melt it is!”

“And if we can stop the human garbage disposal here long enough,” Buck winked, nudging JD in the ribs, “we might even sneak you back some fries.”

“Chili fries?” Vin’s eyes widened hopefully.

“Ugh! Chili fries and a tuna melt!” Nathan shuddered.

“Our young Texan does seem to have a cast iron stomach,” Josiah grinned hugely.

“Yeah. Until it comes to keeping down any form of medication!” Nathan rolled his eyes.

“Hey! It ain’t my fault that shit they’re always givin’ me in hospitals makes me puke!”

“Um, stop. Eating. Soon!”

“Sorry, Bucklin. No more pukin’ stories b’fore lunch.”

“Junior!”

+ + + + + + +

As the next weeks went along the on-going tension between Chris and Vin escalated, and it only got worse as the talent show drew closer. The others in the office couldn’t help noticing, and it was even more obvious that Mary Travis managed to make more and more frequent visits to Chris’s office. She started by coming once or twice a week, then once a day, and as the talent show date drew nearer it became at least twice a day, and often more. Chris was ready to pull his hair out. He kept telling her that he was not the co-chair of her committee, but Mary insisted that she needed his feedback and input on her plans.

“Mary’s sure doing her best to keep Chris under her thumb, ain’t she?” Buck whispered loudly after Mary made her third trip into the team leader’s office in one day.

Ezra noticed Vin’s shoulders stiffen, but he refused to look up from the report he was proofreading on his desk.

“Our esteemed leader will no doubt be the most relieved person in the ATF when this so-called benefit is over with,” he commented.

“What do you mean?” JD looked puzzled. “Chris isn’t even performing! The rest of us who are, are the ones who are nervous.”

“JD,” Josiah shook his head in mock consternation. “What we’re all talking about is the number of unscheduled appointments that Mrs. Travis manages to make to Chris’s office to discuss the details.”

“Well, what’s wrong with that? Mrs. Travis and Chris like each other, right? They’re dating. It just makes sense that Chris would want to spend all the time he can with Mary!”

Vin stood up abruptly and walked away from them without saying a word. The others took in the tension of his muscles when usually Vin’s movements were fluidly graceful. He headed toward the break room without glancing back.

The men just shrugged and went back to work. They attributed it to Vin feeling the pressure to perform, and suspected that he felt like he was letting Chris down by not getting up on stage. They all knew that if there was any guilt to be passed around, Vin would help himself to a heaping pile and then take on seconds and thirds. They had all tried to convince him that he shouldn’t feel badly for not doing this one thing, and they also all knew that he did far more than anyone else on their team, and possibly even the entire Denver ATF organization, to help the more unfortunate members of the community.

The fact that Vin actually went out to where they were and met them, talked to them, and worked directly with them seemed to mean nothing to Mary Travis. She got in her underhanded digs at every opportunity, making sly comments about people “too self-absorbed by their own petty insecurities to make a difference in the lives of orphaned children.”

“If we make it through this damn show before I pop that self-righteous, pompous ass of a she-wolf in the mouth, it’ll be too soon!” Buck exploded after her last trip through their office.

“Calm down, Buck,” Josiah tried to placate the angry agent. “This will all be over soon.”

“Well I for one cannot wait. Enough is enough.”

“I’m just sick of Chris being led around by the nose,” JD looked a little hurt that his other hero wasn’t putting Mary in her place.

“I suspect he’d like to tell her off good, JD,” Nathan shook his head sadly. “But with Orin Travis being our boss, not to mention she’s the mother of his grandson, Chris probably feels like he’s got to toe the line until this is all over with.”

“I’m going home,” Buck muttered, grabbing his jacket. “If Chris can spend untold unnecessary hours on this stupid benefit, I suppose I’d better go practice so I don’t embarrass Team Seven even further. Would hate to get the queen all riled up at us even more.”

“I’m sorry, Bucklin.”

“What?” he looked over, startled.

“It’s all my fault. I apologize ta all a ya’ll.”

“Vin, what are you talking about?”

“This isn’t your fault.”

“How could you be to blame?”

The young man sighed heavily.

“Mary Travis had her heart set on everyone participating. Because I ain’t, she’s takin’ it as a personal insult ‘r somethin’. An’ she’s takin’ it out on Chris. I reckon he’s lettin’ her drag him around ‘cause it keeps her off’a me.”

“Like that’s working!”

“Buck. I mean it. I think this means a lot ta Mary, ‘n she wanted to see each person doin’ somethin’. An’ since they won’t let me shoot a target across a room full a dignitaries an’ socialites, she sees me as her failure.”

They snickered at the thought of Vin perched in the highest rafters of the auditorium with a rifle, shooting at targets on a tastefully lit theatre stage. They were also happy to see that Vin seemed a little less tense, and they resolved to get through this as best they could. The others decided that they were done for the day, and packed up to leave, also. Buck stuck his head inside Chris’s door to let him know, and received his blessing. None of them had any idea how agonizing these last weeks had been for their team leader.

Because while the other members of Team Seven saw and recognized the tension between their leader and sharpshooter, they all attributed the anxiety to Mary’s pushing at Vin to perform and her insistence that Chris practically co-chair her committee. They had no idea how bad things were getting between Chris and Vin outside of the office.

Chris was consistently being pulled away from his work, away from lunches with the guys, and she tried to get him to give up their traditional after-work gathering at the Saloon. He gave in to her just enough so that she couldn’t run to her father-in-law and complain, yet it was far more often than he wanted to. He grew to hate the sight of that platinum blonde hair yanked back into a severe bun as she strode through the office as if she owned it. And him.

Vin was more and more absent from his life, and it was driving Chris to distraction. He knew that no one could know of the true nature of his and Vin’s relationship, and yet he wasn’t a highly trained detective without being able to clearly see the resentment, and even jealousy, that Mary directed toward Vin. As far as she knew, they were just very close, best friends. To her, however, Vin represented a threat to the picture she had of herself and Chris being happily married. Her secret goal was to have Chris propose within the next six months, be married within the next year, have Chris adopt Billy officially, and then hopefully within a year and a half she planned to be pregnant with Chris’s child. And no one, especially not a half-literate, long-haired, scruffy, no-account Texan nobody was going to spoil her plan.

Larabee never thought he would see the day when he prayed for a case, any case, to come up and demand their full attention. Wasn’t it just his luck that the criminals were being amazingly well-behaved right now.

While Chris tried to juggle keeping Mary happy, in order to keep Travis happy, he knew that the men in his team were increasingly irritated with his allowing Mary to dictate the amount of time he put into her stupid fund-raiser. They were angry at him for allowing the hurt they could see that she was inflicting on Vin.

And then there was Tanner himself.

God. Chris raked his hands through his hair and then pressed them to his temples to try to stop the throbbing. He was getting an ulcer, and he couldn’t remember the last time he didn’t have a headache.

Vin was growing more and more distant, and Chris knew he had no one to blame but himself. While Vin still went to lunch with the guys or to the Saloon after work if Chris was tied up with Mary and her incessant planning, if Chris was able to come Vin was nowhere to be found. He would say that he needed to work on the range to practice with his new rifle, although Chris had checked in with Tom Stewart and learned that Vin’s first try with the rifle was a perfect score. Either that or Vin would have to go running at that time. Or work out in the gym. Or just had other, unexplained errands to run or places to be.

It was the same after work. More times than not Chris would come home to find the house dark and no sign of Vin’s jeep in the drive. Sometimes if Chris was going to be out after work with Mary, he would find out that Vin had come, taken care of the horses and done the chores in the barn, and then gone back to the apartment he still kept in Purgatory.

Chris tried to press him, but Vin insisted he was fine. Chris almost hoped they would have a huge fight just to clear the air, but it was hard to fight with someone who acted outwardly as though everything was all right.

They didn’t even make love very often, and that, more than anything else, had Chris tied in knots. He knew what Mary was doing, trying to wedge herself between himself and Vin. What killed him was that she was succeeding. She might only think that she was driving Vin away so that Chris was losing his best friend. What she didn’t know was that while Vin was his best friend, the slender, quiet, beautiful man was also his lover, his soul mate, the other half of his heart.

While Chris was distant from Vin over this, Vin was also distant from Chris not just at home, but also at work. Gone were the shared comments and trips to the break room for coffee. If Chris noticed Vin going for a fresh cup and followed, Vin would head back to his desk immediately. The only time he might stay were the times one of the other teammates were there, but even then it was barely a couple minutes longer.

It had been a slow morning when Chris noticed Vin on the phone near lunchtime. For once Mary Travis was nowhere in sight. Chris smiled to himself. Maybe he and Vin could sneak away, just the two of them, for a quiet lunch. He was realizing just how much he missed being alone with Vin.

The office was fairly empty, so he shoved back from his desk and opened the door to the bullpen. Chris strode across the room just in time to hear the end of Vin’s conversation.

“…Okay, Cole. Yeah. Sure, that’ll work. I’ll see you later. ‘Kay. Bye.”

Chris’s eyes narrowed.

“Who was that?”

Vin’s stormy blue eyes met his, and Chris couldn’t help but see the challenge in them.

“A friend,” he said shortly.

“What kind of friend?” Chris asked tersely. He heard the demand in his voice but couldn’t stop it.

“Did you need somethin’, boss?”

“Vin…,” Chris’s features softened. He longed to reach out for his partner, knowing full well that could never happen in their office.

“I’ve gotta be somewhere,” Vin announced, standing up so abruptly his chair almost hit Chris. “And seein’ as how it’s lunch time, I’ll be takin’ off.”

“Vin…, don’t…”

Just then the elevator doors opened. Buck, Josiah, JD, and Nathan got off, their voices filling the office space.

“Chris, Old Dog, look who we found!” Buck’s jovial tone held a hint of sarcasm. He might not be aware of the true nature of their relationship, but he knew Chris had been treating his best friend pretty badly.

“Chris!” Mary trilled. “I was hoping you hadn’t run off to lunch without me.”

Chris could only stare at the closed stairway door through which his lover had disappeared. With a sigh and forced pleasantness, Chris greeted the platinum blonde.

+ + + + + + +

Several times over the next few days, Chris would see Vin on the phone only to have him hang up abruptly whenever Chris left his private office. Nearly every time his jealousy took over and he demanded to know who Vin was talking to.

Vin would give him a long, hard stare before turning away. No one demanded anything from the Texan that he didn’t want to divulge. Chris immediately regretted his tone of voice but couldn’t change it now.

“Did you have a question about work, Lar’bee?” he drawled, a hard edge to his voice.

“Was that Cole again?” Chris lowered his voice, but the others in the office sensed the tension between the two friends and since it was the end of day, they immediately headed out.

Once they left, Chris sighed heavily and ran his fingers through his hair.

“Vin, I’m sorry. I hate this. Being away from you all the time….” He reached for the smaller man, but Vin flinched away and Chris winced.

“Please, Vin.”

“What do you want me to say?”

“That you love me?”

“I do. Always. Jist don’t like feelin’ like second best.”

“You’re always my first choice, Vin. Mary’s just a friend.”

“That’s you talkin’, not her.”

Chris’s cell phone rang. It was Mary, of course, wanting another meeting. Chris began to tell her no, but Vin waved him off.

“Jist go,” he told the blond as Chris held his hand over the phone. “I’ve got plans anyway.”

Chris frowned as he watched Vin finish locking up his desk and left before Chris could finish his phone call with Mary. As the younger man slipped away, he couldn’t help feeling like Vin was slipping not only out of the office, but also out of his life.

+ + + + + + +

When Chris got home that night, he was almost surprised to see Vin’s jeep parked in the driveway in it’s usual spot.

‘Fuck,’ he muttered to himself. When had it happened that he would be surprised that Vin would be with him. What was he doing to screw up the best relationship he had. Determined to make things right, he grabbed his briefcase and strode up to the house.

Not seeing Vin around, Chris figured that he must have gone out to the barn to settle the horses for the night. He figured he’d get a quick shower, and then whip up something nice for dinner. His face broke into a grin at the thought of what he had planned for after that.

He was at the stove checking the oven for the baked potatoes and the meatloaf he knew Tanner loved when Vin came in. The younger man had a wary look about his eyes, and wasn’t his usual relaxed self.

Trying to lighten the mood, Chris forced a grin.

“Go get cleaned up. Dinner’s ready in about fifteen minutes.”

“Smells good,” Vin admitted reluctantly.

“Made my mom’s meatloaf. I know you like it, and we haven’t had it in awhile.”

Vin snorted under his breath and turned to leave.

“What was that about?” Chris demanded, feeling anger rising.

“What?” Vin turned to face him.

“Rolling your eyes.”

“Bein’ the good little wife, Chris? Ya know I’m pissed at ya, so ya come home and bake a cake? Ain’t that a little beneath your dignity?”

“This has nothing to do with my dignity.”

“Well, it has to do with somethin’, and I don’t like it.”

“I’m trying to apologize!”

“So that’s what this is?” Vin’s own anger was rising. “You do whatever you want to ignore me in public, but then you turn around and decide it’s okay to be nice to me – as long as no one’s around to see?”

“That’s not fair, Vin!” Chris exploded. “You know what our lives have to be like in public.”

“I do know. But that doesn’t mean I need my face rubbed in it every single day.”

Chris felt like he’d been punched in the gut. But this wasn’t his fault.

“It’s not much longer, Tanner. Just grow up a little about this.”

The minute the words left his mouth, Chris wished he could take them back.

“Grow up! Grow up? While I’m doin’ that, how about you grow a pair.”

Turning his back and stomping up the stairs, Vin left Chris alone in the kitchen.

‘So much for this bright idea,’ Chris thought to himself as he slumped against the kitchen counter. The anger left him as he knew that Vin had a point. He was letting Mary Travis ruin his relationship with Vin, and the mindset of the ATF – not to mention the country – didn’t give them much choice in how much he could openly acknowledge the truth of his commitment to Vin. The whole thing sucked, and he couldn’t see any solution. The smell of smoke brought him out of his gloomy thoughts.

“Fuck!” he exploded. Their dinner was ruined. He opened the windows and used a towel to fan the smoke out of the kitchen, throwing the burnt meatloaf and potatoes in the sink.

The rest of the evening didn’t go any better. Vin was clearly upset, and Chris bit his tongue rather than risk making things worse. He knew he was only making excuses, and that wasn’t going to help make things better if Vin felt like he was trying to justify and excuse what he was doing with Mary. If he was honest with himself, he wasn’t sure exactly what he was doing with Mary. He had to ask himself what he was willing to lose in order to keep up appearances to the team, their friends, the public. The whole thing made him angry, and when Vin went up to bed without saying good night, he knew that Tanner was pretty upset and angry, too. Finding Vin on his side facing away from Chris, and wearing flannel sleep pants and a long sleeved tee-shirt, let Chris know for sure that he wasn’t forgiven.

And the truth of it was, he knew that he didn’t deserve to be forgiven. Because he knew that things between himself, Mary, and Vin were only going to get worse before they got better. All he could hope for at this point was to minimize the situation and work on damage control.

+ + + + + + +

The next evening Chris was getting his shirt and tie on after a quick shower, when Vin came into the bedroom. Vin looked startled, not realizing that Chris was already out of the shower, and turned to leave.

“Vin, don’t go.”

Vin’s back stiffened. He stopped walking, but didn’t turn around.

Chris tried not to sigh.

“I’ll be home early, Vin. This isn’t gonna be a late night.”

“Ain’t sayin’ I’ll be here when you get in,” Vin murmured.

Chris felt his anger flare. He knew it was wrong; knew it was his own guilty conscience, but kept lashing out at Vin as a defense mechanism. He hated how he felt and how he was reacting, that his temper was getting out of control. It seemed like his words had a mind of their own.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Vin turned and looked at him.

“Jist what I said. I ain’t sure I’ll be here when you get back.”

“Where are you gonna be instead?” the blond hissed, hating the tone in his own voice but unable to stop it.

“Look, Chris, I ain’t leavin’ ya. I’ll be back here tonight later, but I’m sayin’ I don’t know that it will be before you get home.”

“So what are you doing?”

“Meeting a friend.”

“A friend? Cole?”

Vin’s eyes flashed in anger.

“Yeah, as a matter of fact.”

“So this is your way to get back at me for goin’ out with Mary?” Chris demanded. “You know this isn’t a real date, Vin. We’ve gone over this before. She’s just a friend.”

“What? You can go out on ‘non-dates’ with ‘just friends’ and I can’t?” Vin said mockingly. “Jist think a’ this as me goin’ on a non-date with a just-friend. I’m sure that’ll ease your mind.”

“Look, Vin, you know why I’m going out with Mary. You know we have to keep up appearances and you know why the two of us have to keep our relationship a secret.”

Vin’s shoulders slumped and he looked at the floor. He shook his head and then looked back at Chris sadly.

“I’m not tryin’ to fight ya, Chris. I’m not doin’ this tonight to get back at you for all the time you’re spendin’ with Mary, and I’m not goin’ out with Cole to make you all jealous. Cole’s a friend from a long time ago, in town for business, and since we run into each other it’s been nice to catch up.”

“I’m sorry, Vin. I know it’s hard that I’m spending time with Mary – as a friend – a lot of the time lately.”

“Yeah, but at least my friends wouldn’t exclude you from coming with us,” Vin muttered sarcastically.

Chris’s anger flared again.

“Look, Tanner, it’s not like you couldn’t come with me…”

Vin barked a laugh, rolling his eyes and then put a hand up.

“Jist stop, Lar’bee. You expect me t’ believe that you and me and Mary will all hold hands and skip uphill singin’ Kum Bay Ya as one happy little band?”

Chris snorted.

“Kum Bay Ya, Tanner?”

“My point, smart-ass, is that Mary don’t like me at all, an’ she never will. Which is fine that you’re still friends with her. I don’t care. I ain’t sayin’ that you have to choose between us. I ain’t givin’ you no ultimatum that it’s her or me.”

“That’s what you want? Me to choose?”

“No! Damnit, Larabee. God, you’re thick sometimes! Listen t’ me. I jist said I wasn’t demandin’ you give up your friendship with Mary.”

Chris’s green eyes searched the face of his lover, seeing the emotions chasing across the features he knew so well.

Vin sighed heavily, his anger gone as suddenly as it came. Instead he just seemed tired.

“I’m okay, Chris. I ain’t jealous. I ain’t makin’ ya choose. I ain’t goin’ out on ‘dates’ ta make ya jealous. I’ve had a lot of experience not gettin’ what I want, an’ not bein’ able to show how I feel. This is just one more time in a long line a’ times.”

“Vin…,”

“No, Chris. Ain’t your fault. It jist is what it is. I’ve had to hide my feelings all my life. But, this time, for the first time, I don’t want to. I don’t want to hide the fact that you’re mine, and that I belong to you.”

Chris crossed the room and enfolded the younger man in his arms. Vin let his head rest on the taller man’s shoulder.

“You are mine,” Chris said, kissing the soft curls.

“Don’t wanna fight no more, Chris. You mean too much ta me, an’ I don’t want us to spend our time t’gether fightin’.”

“I don’t either, Tanner. And I am sorry.”

He pushed back from the younger man, holding onto Vin’s upper arms.

“But I promise you this,” he said seriously, pausing until large blue eyes met his own, “when this damn talent show is over, no more letting Mary rope me into these things.”

Vin shook his head.

“That ain’t gonna work, Cowboy. She’s always gonna find some place you have to go with her or somethin’ she needs you to do.”

Chris’s mouth tightened in grim determination.

“No. Maybe it will look too suspicious if I cut her off entirely, so maybe once every three months I’ll agree to escort her to one – and only one – function. No more of these days and weeks of hours of time spent planning behind the scenes. You mean too much to me to risk losing you, Tanner. We may have to keep up appearances, but that doesn’t mean that I have to spend more time with her than I do with you. That ain’t never gonna happen.”

“Even if Travis intervenes?” Vin asked, only half teasingly.

“If Travis is the kind of man who puts his daughter-in-law’s social life before the job, than he’s not the kind of man I want to work for.”

“You ain’t givin’ up this job for me, Lar’bee. I ain’t never gonna ask that.”

“You wouldn’t have to ask. I love this job, but I love you more. This isn’t the only thing I can do, and we’ve got the land and barns and could start our own horse ranch. I still want to do that some day down the road, but if it’s sooner rather than later, that’s okay, too.”

Vin smiled shyly, and drew his arms around Chris’s trim waist.

“Nobody ever offered t’ give up anything for me, b’fore. I don’t want’cha givin’ up your career, but I do like the sound a’ what ya said.”

“A couple more days, Tanner, and then this whole sorry fiasco will be behind us.”

“Speakin’ a bein’ behind,” Vin said, pulling away and looking pointedly at the clock. “You better get goin’ before Mary sends out the posse.”

Chris’s cell phone rang shrilly, and Vin snorted while Chris pulled it out. The grimace on his face confirmed the younger man’s suspicions that it was in fact Mary calling him, and he rolled his eyes at the glare Chris shot his way.

“Hey, don’t be sendin’ them green daggers my way,” Vin laughed, holding up his hands. “She’s your non-date!”

“Tanner!”

Vin scooted out the door before Chris could grab him, laughing as he made his way to the kitchen. With another glare at his watch, Chris realized that he did have to leave, and would have to get back at Tanner some other time. When Vin had said ‘behind,’ it was Tanner’s ‘behind’ he couldn’t help thinking of. Chris smiled to himself. Oh, yeah. Tanner and his behind were going to get some attention real, real soon.

+ + + + + + +

The Friday morning the day of the show, Chris woke up determined to have it out with Vin. He didn’t want to wait until the event was over. He needed to apologize to his Texan, and beg his forgiveness. When Chris had fallen asleep late last night after tossing and turning until nearly three a.m., he’d realized that nothing – not Mary Travis, not Judge Travis, not keeping secrets – nothing was worth losing Vin over. He was consumed with guilt over the way he had so easily let Vin down. He knew that Vin was suffering from Chris’s treatment, and yet Vin had said nothing. He’d been kicked and shoved to the side his entire life. No one had ever considered his feelings or cared about how he felt. He’d never complained because he’d learned early that complaining only got you beaten, screamed at, or both. The skinny, scared little boy had learned to keep his pain to himself and make himself invisible. And Chris, goddammit, had let him continue to do it even now.

No more.

Chris threw the covers back and shoved himself determinedly out of bed. The sheets on Vin’s side of the bed were cool, but Chris figured he was in the kitchen or maybe out in the barn. After finding the bathroom empty as well, Chris made a pot of coffee strong enough that even Vin would probably find it acceptable, smiling to himself as he thought of the ways he would make it up to his young lover.

Frowning when Vin didn’t come in nearly half an hour later, Chris put on his jacket and went down to the barn. The horses were fed and taken care of, but there was still no sign of Vin. As Chris walked back up to the house, he froze. Vin’s jeep was gone.

Shit.

Not only had Vin gotten up without him noticing, he’d taken care of the horses, showered, dressed for work, and left. Damn, sneaky, silent, half-Indian half-ghost, reincarnated old west tracker….!

Chris slammed back a hot cup of coffee, nearly scalding his mouth. He raced through the shower and threw on his clothes, barely grabbing his briefcase and keys as he flew out the door. He hoped to get a chance to see Vin before the others got in there. Knowing Vin, he’d be half-way through a half-dozen donuts and half a pot of that dark sludge he called coffee before the first member of the rest of the team hit the parking deck.

Chris felt his headache increase in force when he’d walked in to a dark, deserted office. He’d seen Vin’s jeep downstairs in the parking deck, but there was no sign of the younger man.

Damn it all to hell.

He was probably back down in the shooting range. Chris didn’t have time to go down there, and he knew that calling would be useless. Tom had long ago given Vin his own key to the range, and the former Army Ranger would have his safety goggles and earplugs firmly in place. He’d never hear the phone.

Sighing heavily, Chris sat down at his desk, reached into the top drawer and pulled out a large bottle of aspirin. The only thing saving them all was the fact that this infernal benefit would be over and done with tonight. And then, Chris vowed, never again. If Mary thought that this was only the beginning of the way they were going to spend their lives, she was in for a rude awakening. Chris had no intention of ever going through something like this. And if Mary managed to bend the Judge’s ear to the point of messing up his team, then Chris had as little respect for the older gentleman as he was feeling for himself right about now.

Chris looked up every time he heard the elevator, but there was no sign of the sharpshooter until everyone else on the team except Ezra was there. Chris couldn’t help feeling like Vin was purposefully avoiding him, and he knew he deserved whatever silent treatment he was getting. He’d screwed things up between himself and the most important person in his life, and didn’t know how long it was going to take to earn Vin’s trust again. It was going to take a hell of a long time for him to forgive himself.

“Vin!” JD called as soon as the door to the stairwell opened.

“Dang, Junior,” Buck exclaimed, astonished. “You took the stairs?!”

“Jist didn’t feel like bein’ cooped up ‘s all,” Vin muttered.

Chris’s stomach twisted when he heard that. He couldn’t help feeling like that comment was directed at him. Was he cooping Vin up? Vin clearly realized Chris felt jealous of or threatened by his friendship with Cole. He’d made it clear he didn’t want Vin to spend time with the man, and that he was worried they had been lovers in the past. Or would be again.

Had he thought he was keeping Vin safe and out of the public view in order to keep the shy Texan only to himself, and then flaunting his false relationship with Mary just for appearances? Since when had Chris cared a fuck for what anyone else thought of him. This was one more thing he realized he’d have to clear up with Tanner.

Talk turned to the night’s performances. No one was surprised when JD was flying high on adrenaline and excitement. His over-anxious nerves infected everyone else, too, though, and soon the office was buzzing with jokes and teasing and threats to boo each other off the stage. JD was trying to cajole everyone else into singing or at least humming their instrumental parts, while everyone else was trying to keep him from running through his stand-up comedy material.

Suddenly JD froze, a panicked look on his face.

“Vin,” his voice was slightly strangled. “You…, you are coming tonight….? Aren’t you…?”

There was dead silence as everyone waited for his answer. Chris found himself holding his breath. He’d never even considered that Vin wouldn’t show up, and yet he wouldn’t blame him one bit if he didn’t come. Why should he, after Mary had done nothing but ruin the night for him with her incessant harping on the fact that Vin wasn’t performing.

“Sure, JD. I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I’ll be there ta support all a’ ya. An’ I won’t be booin’, neither. I’m proud a’ all a ya’ll.”

JD exhaled a relieved breath, and then laughed self-consciously when he realized how loud it had come out. Buck sighed, too, and even Ezra realized he’d been anxiously waiting for Vin’s answers. Nathan and Josiah were pleased that they would all be together tonight to support each other. No one was really surprised, though, that Vin would be there to support his friends - his family - on this big night.

And then hopefully, every man thought privately to himself, they could put this whole crazy experience behind them. Mary might think that this was only the start of a series of events she could plan to involve them all and keep them under her heavy-handed control, under the guise of benefitting the less fortunate. No one, she assumed, could in good conscious say no when asked to contribute to an event to raise money for a good cause. What Mary didn’t realize was that she wasn’t dealing with just anyone. Team Seven would humor her once, and only once. After that she would find out just how formidable this team could be.

By early afternoon Chris could see that no work was going to be accomplished the rest of the day. Everyone was too keyed up and nervous. He was going to have to go home and get into his tux, anyway, before the performance, and Mary had informed him that they would be part of a larger group who had reservations at an elegant restaurant for a pre-show meal. Chris sighed heavily. He wondered briefly what Vin would wear tonight. If he showed up looking at all scruffy or in an inexpensive suit, he knew that Mary would have a field day tearing him down. Chris began to almost hope that Vin would show up in jeans, flannel shirt, and cowboy boots. It would serve that pompous crowd right to try to mock him, and Chris would be very close to hitting a woman for the first time in his life.

Chris strode out of his office.

“Conference room. Now.”

The agents exchanged looks and shrugged, then pushed themselves to their feet and followed the tall blond into the meeting room. They all took their seats and looked up questioningly at Chris.

“As you all know, these haven’t been the most productive weeks we’ve ever had as an ATF team,” Larabee began.

He raised his hand to stop the muttering and eye rolling and comments people were making under their breath.

“And I, as team leader, have dropped the ball. I owe you all an apology. But mostly I owe one to Vin.”

“What?”

“Chris, you didn’t mess up.”

“You don’t owe me nothin’.”

“I do mean that, and I do owe every one of you an apology. In my willingness to be accommodating to what Orin Travis asked as a favor to his daughter-in-law, I let myself be sucked into participating way more in the planning phase than was ever anticipated. Partly because we didn’t have a pressing case, I let the situation go on too long, and it got out of hand.”

“I was actually beginning to hope for a breaking case,” Nathan admitted, and they all laughed sheepishly; clearly Nathan wasn’t the only one.

“I also apologize to Vin. I let Mary continue to make her nasty and sarcastic comments toward him when I should have stopped it at the start. She had no right to do that.”

“Chris…”

“No. Let me finish. Mary was very public in disparaging Vin in front of all of you. I’m ashamed of myself for letting that happen. At the very least I can apologize to Vin in front of all of you. And also to make a public vow and promise that I will never, ever, allow that woman to do anything even remotely close to the behavior she’s exhibited these past weeks. I’m sorry to all of you, for the way I’ve acted, and for the way Mary’s acted. And I’m mostly sorry to you, Vin.”

There was stunned silence, and then Buck led everyone in cheering for Chris’s statement. He jumped up and slapped Chris on the back, and everyone in the room was grinning broadly. Even Vin, though not outwardly laughing, had a calmness about his soft smile that Chris had begun to wonder whether he’d never see again.

The tension in the room and the team was really and truly gone by then, and there was a feeling of overwhelming relief that this latest episode was merely a blip against the strength of Team Seven. They were back whole again, and their connection to each other would be even stronger.

“Now, all of you, go home! Go practice or warm up or do whatever you need to do to prepare. Good luck to all of you tonight. I’m proud of every single one of you, and I’ll be watching from the audience, rooting for you all to do your best. Now go!”

There was a hurried scraping of chairs as no one needed to be told twice. JD and Buck were anxiously encouraging each other to quickly shut down their computers to get out of there fast so they could get home. The others were rushing, also.

“Vin. Wait?” Chris asked.

Vin stopped and half turned.

“You all right? I mean, really all right?”

“I’m fine, Cowboy. I admit I was a little surprised ta see ya lettin’ her lead ya around like that, but I reckon I understand why ya did it.”

“Vin, I promise you. It will never happen again.”

Chris couldn’t quite bring himself to ask Vin to trust him. He wasn’t sure he deserved to ask that. He also wasn’t sure what he would do if Vin wasn’t ready to answer that.

The younger man just nodded.

“I believe ya, Chris. I’ll see ya tonight, okay?”

“Aren’t you going home now?”

“Naw. I got some things ta take care of here. You go on and get ready for your dinner. I’ll see ya at the show.”

“It’s a deal.”

Vin turned to leave when suddenly Chris grabbed his arms, spun him around to push his back to the wall and then leaned against the slim ,hard body with his own as his other hand snaked out to close the conference room door. He pressed his mouth against the younger man’s soft, full lips, kissing him hard as he grabbed Vin’s upper arms to pull his body even closer.

Finally they parted for air and Chris pulled back slightly. Vin gasped at the unexpected fierceness of the kiss, and the immediate reaction he felt as his entire body tingled from the touch of his lover. Vin had a slightly dazed look to his eyes and Chris grinned to himself knowing he had put that look there. He loved nothing better than to shock the hell out of his young Texan.

“I mean it, Vin. Mary can go to hell for all I care, and next time she tries to pull something like this I’ll tell her that myself if she won’t back off any other way. You are so important to me and I really fucked this up. I almost fucked us up, and I couldn’t live with myself without you in my life. You are my life Vin. Forgive me?”

“Well,” the tip of Vin’s pink tongue slipped out and licked those luscious full lips. Chris couldn’t take his eyes off Vin’s mouth, and he felt his knees go weak while all the blood in his body seemed to shoot straight to his groin. “I could mebbe think a ways for you ta make it up ta me…”

“You… could…?”

“Mebbe. Mebbe think a two ‘re three ways. Mebbe even more.”

“M… more?”

Chris remembered a few of the suggestions Vin had made in the past. His young lover was nothing if not inventive. Suddenly Chris wanted nothing more than to rip Vin’s clothes off and fuck him senseless on the conference room table. Even with a lock on the door, though, it wasn’t like no one else had keys. It also wasn’t like they wouldn’t be heard. For someone as innately quiet as Vin was, to the point where sometimes even his teammates jumped in surprise if he spoke up at their table in the Saloon, he could be surprisingly vocal in their love-making. Vin had a variety of moans and whimpers, gasps and curses, and Chris loved wringing every one of them out of the younger man. Not to mention, he had to admit, he could get pretty loud himself.

Vin easily slid out of Chris’s grasp and stood in front of him. He reached up and patted Chris’s cheek, smiling, delighted to leave Chris speechless.

“Later, Cowboy.”

And then he was gone.

+ + + + + + +

The evening of the Talent Show was a festive occasion. Several women wore glittering gowns, and men showed up in tuxes or dress suits and ties. Chris and Mary made an elegant couple, and several heads turned their way as they entered the lavish auditorium. They nodded to people they knew, and chatted with acquaintances as patrons milled around the aisles. Evie and Orin Travis made their way over.

“So are your people all ready for their big performances?” Orin asked Chris.

Larabee cringed inside, waiting for Mary to make some snide comment about Vin. Thankfully Evie was complimenting Mary on her new dress and as she preened for the older woman, she was enough distracted that she didn’t hear Orin’s comment.

Before Chris had a chance to answer, the lights flickered to indicate everyone should take their seats. Chris had been looking around for Vin, wondering whether his lover would even show up after all. Just as he ushered Mary into their row near the front of the auditorium, he saw Tanner slip into an aisle seat about halfway back. His heart skipped as he saw that Tanner was wearing the suit that Chris loved to see him in. It was charcoal grey, the bright white shirt set off his tan, and the blue tie perfectly accented his sky blue eyes. Vin’s hair was slicked back into a tight ponytail, in what he always referred to as his gangster bodyguard look. With his hair pulled back off his face, it accented the high, hard cheekbones and gave him the look of a slightly exotic high-fashion model.

Tanner looked incredibly hot, and Chris felt all the blood rush to his groin. He had to pull his gaze away from the younger man, and felt his face flush as he hoped that no one noticed his growing problem. Before he sat down he tried to discreetly adjust himself, but it wasn’t before he saw the looks that Vin was getting from several women – and also from a few men! Nobody cleaned up better than Vin Tanner, and clearly Chris Larabee wasn’t the only one who realized that. With an effort he focused his attention toward the podium just off to the side of the stage where a spotlight beamed to indicate the program was about to start.

Ezra Standish was an incredibly poised and gifted emcee. He opened the evening with gracious remarks about the purpose of the funds being raised, introduced the organizational committee, and thanked everyone for attending. Mary Travis beamed as she accepted the applause from everyone in the auditorium, and insisted on tugging Chris to his feet to accept the ovation.

The crowd settled and the program began. There were a few less than stellar performances, and some performers were clearly nervous. For the most part, however, the agents from the several branches of the federal government did an outstanding job.

Team Seven began their evening with Ezra’s own piano performance, which was the third act of the evening. He smoothly went from being emcee to performing. His nimble fingers clearly weren’t only talented with cards, but also on the keyboard. Apparently Maude had determined that the ability to be the center of attention in social gatherings was a plus, and had insisted on Ezra taking piano lessons as a child to enable him to provide entertainment at parties. He had complained to her about being forced to take lessons, knowing she had an ulterior motive behind them. However, he secretly enjoyed playing the piano, and the high quality grand piano in his apartment was not just for show. Tonight Ezra looked relaxed and confident, and played with poise and excellent control. His smile to acknowledge the applause was as sincere and genuine as Chris had ever seen.

Most of the acts were musical, and many were classical performances. Buck’s Elvis impersonation leant some comedy to the evening, and he was surprisingly good. As much as Mary might think that her wealthy friends would only appreciate serious acts, their enthusiastic applause indicated otherwise.

After a violin solo, JD was next. Chris took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. He had a sinking suspicion that this could be the worst act of the night, and he knew what ribbing he’d get from the other team leaders over the next weeks after this was over. JD started out nervously, his jokes falling flat. Suddenly Chris heard a laugh that he would recognize anywhere. Vin. JD grinned nervously, and told another joke. Vin’s laughter caused other people around him to laugh as well. Some of the jokes were so bad they were funny, but they became more funny as bad joke after bad joke came from the young agent. JD stood straighter as he grew more confident, and suddenly his jokes flowed as he got into a rhythm. The performance grew stronger, and he ended with the entire audience laughing and clapping enthusiastically.

Josiah’s was the final act before intermission. He’d decided that the gospel number might be considered politically incorrect, so had changed his mind on what to perform. His powerful rendition of “Do You Hear The People Sing” from Les Miserables left the crowd in chills. His face had a faint sheen of sweat, and the look of relief when he finished was priceless. Chris was immensely proud of his team.

As the audience made their way to the lobby where refreshments were being offered for sale, he tried to find Vin. At one point he saw the younger man talking to a very-relieved Josiah, and another time Buck was hugging him after Vin must have congratulated him on his performance. Just when Chris started across the room to meet up with them, Mary appeared and firmly grasped his arm. She demanded his attention as she had them mingling with her other committee members and their spouses.

The lights flickered to indicate that intermission was nearly over. As Chris and Mary made their way back to their seats along with the rest of the audience, Chris noticed Vin standing by the stairs to the balcony. When he saw that Vin was talking to Eric Sutherland, another young, tall, extremely handsome agent, his heart dropped into his stomach. First he had to worry about Cole. Now Eric, who in the past had actively pursued Vin as a romantic partner, was now …, what? Flirting? Clearly. Asking him out? Very possibly. And what if Cole was even half as good looking as Eric?

Chris realized that he needed to be done with Mary Travis once and for all tonight. Vin was far too important to him, and it was time to back up that conviction with actions. Consequences be damned.

Mary and Chris were in the middle of the throng of patrons when they passed where Vin was standing with Eric. The two men were smiling and laughing, and Vin looked relaxed and happy. Not to mention drop dead gorgeous. Eric’s shiny dark hair was bent over next to Vin’s. Both men were tall and handsome, with bright white teeth setting off dark tans when they smiled. As they stood together on the stairs they looked like they were posing for a photo shoot. Chris watched as they said goodbye to return to their seats, and his eyes followed as Eric turned away and walked up the stairs. When they got toward the main doors of the theatre, Chris lost Vin in the crowd without being able to make eye contact.

Mary never stopped chattering to him, while she interrupted herself to greet others in the crowd as they made their way to their seats.

“Chris!”

“Huh? What?”

“You’re not listening to me!” she hissed, then turned and smiled, waving at someone across the theatre.

Chris gritted his teeth and made what he hoped was a patient smile. It came across as more of a sneer, and Mary’s eyes widened in shock before they narrowed slightly in anger.

“Don’t make a scene,” she hissed between closed teeth as she smiled and nodded to other friends behind them.

“I’m. Not. Doing. Anything,” Chris told her as they settled into their seats.

He turned around to look over his shoulder, hoping to get another glimpse of Tanner. He really needed the younger man now. He needed to feel grounded, and if nothing else, this experience had taught him that he had to follow his heart. Wherever it led.

But his heart wasn’t there. Vin’s seat on the aisle was empty. Clearly Vin was too upset or angry to stay. Vin must have had all he could take of watching Mary cling to Chris’s arm, and maybe he just couldn’t stay any longer. Fancy events were never Vin’s style, but Chris would have thought he would have at least stayed to watch the final member of their team perform. The younger man tended to be on edge and even panicky in crowded spaces, but he should have been about to stay at least as long as the final act, even if he hurried out the minute the final curtain fell.

Chris frowned, not sure whether to be angry or upset, and if he was angry he wasn’t sure who to be angry at. At Mary, for the way she pushed herself into taking over Chris’s life? At himself, for letting her do it? At Vin, for not sticking around to even support his friends?

Chris had another thought that felt like a punch in his gut. What if Vin left to meet Cole? This mysterious friend from the past may have called Vin to meet him. He might have called or texted Vin, wanting to get together, and Vin may have left the theatre in order to go out somewhere alone with Cole. It took all of Chris’s self-control to prevent him from getting up to go track down his Texan, by phone or in person if that’s what it took.

The lights dimmed, and he tried to focus on the stage. There was a magician from the FBI who was actually very good. When Eric Sutherland played the guitar and sang a country song, Chris couldn’t help admitting how really talented he was. On the other hand, Chris sighed in relief that at least Vin hadn’t left with Eric. Not that he wasn’t still convinced Vin hadn’t gone with Cole, but it reinforced his thinking that if Chris didn’t protect Vin’s heart, and protect his relationship with Vin, there were a lot of men lining up to date the very sexy Tanner.

After another handful of acts, Nathan was the final Team Seven member to perform. He came out looking surprisingly confident, wearing a black suit with a black shirt and a red tie, carrying a shiny gold saxophone. Another agent from Team Two walked on stage with him, taking a seat at the piano. Nathan performed a jazz solo that was magnificent. Chris looked over a few rows, and saw Raine’s face glowing with pride and happiness. She had every reason to be thrilled with her husband’s performance, and Chris briefly wondered whether their future children would be taking music lessons sometime down the road.

Three more acts performed, and the audience stirred slightly, shifting in their seats as Ezra took the microphone for what they assumed would be the concluding remarks of the evening. He thanked everyone for their generous support, and asked for another round of applause for all the performers. Chris was relieved. Finally this portion of the evening was drawing to a close. Maybe he could think of a way to politely escape from Mary’s clutches and go track down his Texan. He scowled when Ezra once again called for their attention.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” he called, raising a hand. People settled back down, and everyone re-focused their attention on the stage.

“If you will be so kind as to indulge me, I have one more act to announce. We have a last-minute addition to the program, but I hope it is a surprise you will enjoy. Please direct your attention to the stage one more time…!”

He grandly gestured toward the stage, then the light on Ezra went out and the stage went dark.

The curtain opened to a black stage, then suddenly a spotlight illuminated the lone figure standing hipshot with his back to the audience.

Chris’s mouth went dry as his jaw hung open. He would know that jean-covered ass anywhere.

The lean figure was wearing black cowboy boots, slim jeans that fit snuggly over his long legs and perfect ass, a blindingly white short-sleeved western shirt, and a black cowboy hat. His right thumb was hooked into his belt, and the left hand touched two fingers to the brim of his hat. His face was nearly in profile, tipped down and to the side. Shiny chestnut curls glistened with gold and red highlights in the stage spotlight, as they peeked out from under the hat brim. The slim back tapered from broad shoulders down to a narrow waist, and the arms were tanned and muscled.

Oh.

My.

God!!

Vin Tanner. Was on stage.

“Close your mouth, Chris,” Mary Travis hissed at him.

Chris snapped his jaw shut, and spared a quick glance at her in disgust before his attention was once again riveted to the stage. He was done with that woman, now and forever.

‘What the hell was Vin doing?’

Music started, and Chris recognized the lively beat of “The Grundy County Auction.” Buck loved country music, and he had once put this disk in Chris’s truck CD player as a joke. Chris had been giving Vin a ride into work when the jeep was in the shop – again – and Vin had smiled and clearly enjoyed the song. Chris decided then to leave it in his truck, and never mentioned it or gave Buck a hard time about it. Which of course drove Wilmington crazy.

As the music started, Vin’s head rose up, he did a complete spin on his heels, then tossed his hat off the stage behind the side curtain. A beautiful young woman entered the stage from the other side. She was wearing short white cowboy boots, a short white flippy western skirt, and a high-necked, open shouldered, ocean blue halter leotard. Her glistening straight black hair fell nearly to her waist, some at the top pulled up into a high, half ponytail, held with a sparkling wide rhinestone clasp. Matching rhinestone gem earrings shone brightly at her ears.

Vin held an arm straight out, and the beautiful dancer ran toward him. She did a little hop and executed a perfect roundoff-tuck before Vin caught her as she landed right beside him. They picked up the beat of the music and flew around the stage, with a series of complicated, perfectly synchronized dance steps. The lively music and energetic performance of the dancers got the crowd into the routine. Several audience members began clapping to the beat.

Chris couldn’t begin to clap, although he wanted to. He felt paralyzed by the shock. Not only was Vin Tanner… Dancing. But he was good. Damn good.

Mary made a snort of disgust beside him, but Chris barely noticed. If he gave it a second thought, it was pretty clear that she was perhaps the only one in the audience who wasn’t completely enthralled by the performance on the stage. As it was, Chris couldn’t take his eyes off Vin Tanner.

The two dancers were relaxed and smiling at each other – white teeth and bright eyes sparkling, shiny hair catching the stage lights. Vin looked completely at ease; like he was having the time of his life and not the least bit nervous. About the fact that he was on stage. In front of hundreds of people. With the spotlights on him.

Dancing.

Chris was in complete awe. And judging by the faces and reaction of the crowed, apparently so was nearly everyone else.

Vin and his partner’s moves were intricate and extremely complicated. Booted feet were flying in complex patterns as they danced across the stage. Show-stopping heel spins and perfectly coordinated toe stands dazzled the audience. Vin was an excellent partner, expertly releasing and catching the stunning dancer as she whirled across the stage. The steps were intricate and difficult, but clearly synchronized to perfection. The lively music and the fact that the couple on stage were obviously enjoying themselves drew the audience even further into their performance. It was magical to witness, and later on the team would agree with complete certainty that no one there that night would ever in a million years have expected to have seen that spectacular performance from their sharpshooter.

Chris had never been so in love and so proud of anyone in his entire life. The music built to a climax at the end, and the final moves completely stunned the crowd. Vin and his partner performed a complex series of steps and spins as they moved to opposite sides of the stage. They then ran toward the center about three or four steps, then each did an aerial cartwheel with Vin landing directly behind the girl. Vin’s black hat flew in from behind the side curtain as both dancers were still airborne. He grabbed the hat without even looking as his booted feet hit the ground. Vin slapped the hat on his head as he went to one knee, and his partner sat on his upraised knee in one motion to the exact beat of the music. It was all so fast and so perfectly timed that the crowd was enthralled. The choreography during the final counts of the music had been a blur of motion, and with the ending chord, Vin’s arm wrapped around his partner’s waist and her arm was around his shoulders, while their outside arms raised stretched up in a perfect “V”. Smiling faces shown with happiness and relief as the crowd leapt to their feet. They exchanged smiles with each other and Chris felt a twinge of jealousy as the beautiful dancer gave Vin a quick kiss on his cheek before both dancers rose to acknowledge the applause.

It was the only standing ovation of the night.

Vin presented his partner to the side as she curtsied and he bent slightly at the waist, ducking his head. As they acknowledged the applause, they grinned and waved. Chris could see that Vin was blushing faintly, although it could have been from the exertion of the energetic and extremely fast choreography moves. Then the dancers smiled at each other, and the young woman spun once in a circle, then did a cartwheel over Vin’s thighs to repeat the bow on the other side.

Chris was still in shock. That little bastard had pulled the biggest prank on Chris Larabee in the history of the bureau. And Chris was going to get his revenge. It was the goddamndest stunt that scrawny little Texan had ever pulled.

Their connection was so strong that it was as if Vin heard his thoughts as clear as day. A grinning Tanner caught his eye and winked. Chris smirked and shook his head, then nodded, smiled, and raised a hand in salute.

Waving and laughing the two dancers ran off the stage as Vin held his hat up to acknowledge the applause.

Chris swore he could hear Buck and JD’s enthusiastic whistles and calls of appreciation. He finally was able to pull his eyes away now that Vin was off the stage and look around him. Everyone in the crowd was smiling and cheering. He saw Josiah’s toothy grin, Nathan and Raine smiling and laughing. JD looked stunned, his jaw dropped and eyes wide in disbelief. Casey had a dreamy, star-struck look in her eyes, as though she had just seen her favorite actor up close. Buck was whistling and cheering loudly while clapping enthusiastically. He couldn’t have been more surprised or more happy.

Ezra appeared on stage as the dancers ran off the other side.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I believe that with this rousing, standing ovation, we have a clear winner for the People’s Choice Award of the evening. Please welcome back to the stage, our very own ATF sharpshooter from Team Seven, Vin Tanner, and our visiting FBI special agent from Amarillo, Texas, the very lovely and equally talented…, Miss Nicole Parker!”

Faintly blushing now, Vin came onto the stage with Nichole. His hat was gone, and both dancers were smiling as they waved to the crowd. They took turns shaking hands with Ezra, and he presented the trophy to Nicole as Vin stood to the side and smiled down at her.

‘Nicole!’

Chris sucked in a breath.

“Cole!” he gasped.

“What?” Mary frowned beside him.

“Huh?” Chris looked down in puzzlement. “Oh. Nothing.”

So this was the mysterious Cole that Vin had been talking to on the phone! All the evasions, mysterious phone calls, and unexplained disappearances, must have been times when Vin had been meeting with her to plan and rehearse their performance. Chris still couldn’t believe that Tanner had pulled it off. This dance was far too complicated and intricate to have been thrown together at the last minute. It was also clear that Vin was a naturally talented, gifted dancer. No one could learn that many advanced dance skills in a short period of time. Chris was so proud of him and so dumbfounded and spellbound to see his shy, reserved Texan just glow on stage. As he looked around the audience again, it was clear that he wasn’t the only one who was greatly impressed.

“Well, I’m sure I didn’t expect that,” Mary Travis sniffed. “I thought it was clear that the evening was supposed to be a more sophisticated event. I should have demanded that the acts be cleared first with a panel to verify that they were in good taste.”

Chris looked down at her, stunned. Then he grew angry.

“What the hell are you talking about?” he hissed.

“Keep your voice down,” Mary’s eyes flashed as she pasted a fake grin on her face in case anyone was looking. “People are looking at us.”

“My voice is down,” he glared into icy blue eyes. “But I’d like an answer to my question.”

“It’s just that this is an event for high society. It’s not for the… common masses.”

Chris gripped her arm as people in their aisle made their way out.

“Look, Buck did his Elvis impersonation. JD told horrible jokes, not to mention the magician and polka accordion acts from other teams. So I have to believe that the only ‘person,’ and not the ‘act,’ that you have a problem with is Vin Tanner. And if you would get off your high horse and look around, you’ll see that people are smiling and happy. And smiling, happy people make generous donors. You berated him and got your nasty little sarcastic digs into Vin, and now he’s not only done your little talent show, but he won the trophy for most outstanding performance of the night. You should be happy and congratulating him, but instead you’re still on his case. He’s done what you asked – no, what you belittled him into doing. So you can just leave him the hell alone.”

“Chris….,”

“No. No more, Mary. No more.”

With that he turned and walked out of the theater, leaving her open-mouthed in shock until she realized people were staring. She snapped her jaws shut and glared at a couple before catching what she was doing, when she pasted a bright smile on her face and hurried to follow him.

Several minutes after leaving her behind, Chris vaguely noticed Mary moving among the guests as they slowly made their way to the exits. The crowd was invited to adjourn to the adjoining ballroom for an evening of socializing, dancing, and hors d’oeuvres. There would also be gift baskets to bid on, tastefully arranged on a skirted table.

Larabee turned away and felt some of the tension leave his shoulders as he saw the widely grinning faces of his team.

“Wow! Did you see that!?” JD exclaimed.

“Yes, Mr. Dunne,” Ezra rolled his eyes. “We all saw.”

“Hot damn, Old Dog,” Wilmington exclaimed. “Whoever knew that boy could dance! Damn, but that was some fancy moves.”

“I always suspected that the young man with the heart of a poet might also have the soul of a dancer,” Josiah intoned.

“You did not,” Nathan huffed.

“I did, too!” he insisted. “Anyone who’s seen that boy move knows how graceful he is. Boy can glide into a room silent as a ghost. Even holding a rifle, he makes it look like poetry in motion.”

The team continued to praise Vin’s amazing performance. They were all laughing and talking and congratulating each other on their performances, trading teasing remarks but also clearly proud of themselves and each other. Performers from other teams came to congratulate the members of Team Seven, and were themselves congratulated. It was a happy, excited group who mingled, relieved and pleased with their success.

Chris craned his neck to find Tanner, but couldn’t see him above the crowd. Mary, however, had plastered herself again to his side. She might be upset with him, but not so upset that she wouldn’t keep up the appearance of the two of them as a major power couple within the bureau. He did his best to ignore her without making it obvious. Right now was not the time or the place for a confrontation.

Chris felt a heavy hand slap down on his shoulder. He turned and found himself looking into Buck’s grinning face.

“That boy sure knows how to pull a surprise, don’t he?” Buck laughed. “I see you lookin’ around for him. I’m sure we’ll find him. I think he knows better than to vanish before the party starts. But, hot damn did that boy look fine! What Junior does for tight jeans should be illegal!”

Buck leered and waggled his eyebrows suggestively at Chris. Larabee felt a moment of panic, wondering whether Buck had guessed the nature of his and Vin’s relationship. When Buck suddenly threw back his head and laughed at his own joke, Chris was able to breathe again.

“Don’t you tease him to death, Buck,” Chris warned him, grinning. “You know he can make you pay. In real painful ways.”

Buck gulped and looked around nervously, then laughed.

“Naw. Don’t worry about it. I’ll only kid him a little. Don’t want him thinkin’ back too hard on his days on the reservation. Or his time in Special Forces with the Rangers.”

Two women came up to Buck then, each taking an arm, and led him away, each of the three of them complimenting the others on their fine performances from earlier in the evening.

Suddenly he turned and there was Vin. The young woman with him was even more exquisitely beautiful up close. She had thrown a matching white jacket over her blue leotard, and the white and blue combination was stunning on her. She was tan, and her eyes were an unusual bright gray. She was model-gorgeous, and the two young agents made a striking couple.

“Chris, I’d like you ta meet Cole Parker. Cole, this is my boss, Chris Larabee.”

Chris’s smile faltered just a bit when Vin introduced him as his boss. ‘Well, what did you expect him to say? Your lover?’ he thought to himself.

“It’s so nice to meet you, Chris,” Cole’s voice was warm and held a tiny trace of Texas drawl. “Vin’s told me so much about you.”

She looked innocent enough, and her voice didn’t hold any hint of underlying meaning, but as she made eye contact with first him and then turned to smile at Vin, Chris suddenly knew for a fact that she knew just what his relationship was to Vin. Especially when Vin turned only the faintest shade of pink. The three smiled at each other, grinning with their shared secret.

“You are a beautiful dancer, Cole. That was a remarkable performance.”

“Why, thank you. You’re too kind. And I had an excellent partner.”

“I see that,” Chris smirked, nodding thoughtfully at Vin. Tanner was going to pay, and by the widening of his eyes and the faint blush on his cheeks, the younger man knew it. “I’ll admit that was a shock. It was a performance I was not expecting to see, and one I won’t ever forget.”

Just then the other team members found them, returning from mingling with other performers and accepting congratulations from the audience members. They crowded around Vin and Cole, slapping him on the back, congratulating him, and being introduced to Cole.

“Darlin’, you were a pure vision of delight,” Buck gushed, reaching for and then kissing her hand.

“Wow, Vin! You were incredible!” JD exclaimed. “And you, too, uh…?”

“Cole. It’s actually Nicole, but my friends call me Cole.”

“That’s a very unusual nickname,” Josiah smiled, clearly enchanted by her beauty and poise.

“I think my mom wanted to shorten my name to Niki, but I was such a tomboy that when my dad started calling me Cole, it just fit. I started joking with him later that I was the son he always wanted.”

Buck placed a hand on his heart in mock horror.

“You? A tomboy? I find that hard to believe of one so lovely as yourself.”

She smiled at him, but Chris could see that she wasn’t taken in completely by his charm.

“Miss Parker,” Ezra broke in smoothly. “I am very pleased to make your acquaintance. A quite stunning performance, truly.”

“Yours was amazing, too,” Cole smiled at him, her gray eyes shining. “All of you were just great. Vin has told me so much about you all. I’m thrilled to finally meet you in person.”

“So, how do you and Vin know each other?” JD asked.

The others tensed, knowing that Vin’s childhood history was a generally painful one, and that he kept his past life exceptionally private.

“We were friends when we were kids,” Cole answered easily.

“Really?” JD exclaimed. “I didn’t know Vin lived any place long enough to make friends!”

Buck jabbed him sharply in the ribs, and the younger man let out an oomph of surprise. Chris saw the shadow of pain that briefly crossed Vin’s face at the thoughtless comment. The other team members looked anywhere but at their sharpshooter.

“Hey! What did you do that for!?”

“It’s okay, JD,” Vin told him, a faint smile on his face that didn’t look completely forced. “I was in a foster place next to Cole’s parents’ ranch. Used to go over and hang out around the horses as much as I could get away with. Finally Cole’s dad offered me a job and the place I was stayin’ was glad to get the money. Worked out for all of us.”

“How did you find each other again?” Josiah asked, steering the conversation in another direction. “Vin hasn’t mentioned you, and I’m sure it’s easy to lose track of old friends over the years.”

“We did lose touch. I hadn’t seen Vin in years. We ended up at the same training conference about four months ago. It was wonderful to see him so unexpectedly, and we figured that we probably wouldn’t see each other again for years. When I suddenly got transferred to Denver on a temporary assignment, I called him. That was just a couple weeks ago.”

“Tell me you’re not a sharpshooter, too!” Buck exclaimed, looking from Vin to Cole and back. He was flirting wildly, turning on the famous Wilmington charm to full force.

They all laughed.

“Nope, not a sharpshooter,” Vin drawled. “But she knows her way around a gun. Rifle. Shotgun. Pistol. Moving targets. In the rain. In the dark….”

“Okay, okay! I get it!”

“Hopefully Buck won’t need any more warning,” Nathan rolled his eyes. “Good thing we’re not in the old west, or I’d be prying buckshot out of his behind from fathers and brothers on a regular basis.”

They all laughed at Buck’s wounded look.

“Not a sharpshooter, but still a damn good marksman,” Vin continued, shaking his head at Buck. “By the way, the session where we ran into each other was on advanced martial arts and hand-to-hand combat.”

“Ouch!” Buck winced.

“I just want to say to you all, I’m immensely proud of you,” Chris told them after the laughter died down. “You all did a fantastic job, and we made a great showing for Team Seven. You did us proud.”

“Here, here!”

Cole continued to charm the men around her, and she complimented Raine on her beautiful gown. Other members from Cole’s FBI team came over, and introductions, congratulations, and compliments were exchanged among them all. It was a lively group, and everyone was having a good time.

Everyone, that is, except for Mary Travis. It was clear that she was extremely annoyed at being ignored and not the center of attention. She finally excused herself with a huff, and left to mingle among the other patrons. Chris watched her go with a feeling of relief, and Buck caught his look and grinned. Chris shrugged and rolled his eyes, laughing.

Chris was surprised at how much he was actually enjoying the evening. Vin was close to him, and while he longed to put his arms around the younger man and hug him and tell him how proud he was, he kept his slight distance. He loved seeing how happy and relaxed Vin was. They were surrounded by their friends, and while he wanted nothing more than to physically touch his lover, he was content for now just to be near him.

“So, Junior,” Buck leered, “lookin’ good in your jeans there, son.”

“Buck, you are so full of crap,” Vin rolled his eyes.

“You should wear those jeans more often. At least, wear them without a flannel shirt hanging over them like you usually do. Right, Chris?”

“What?” he gulped.

“Just admirin’ the view, is all,” Buck tried to look innocent.

“Well, you keep it up, I’ll be admirin’ the view through my scope.”

Vin didn’t look like he was joking.

“Uh…, right. Good point. Keeping my thoughts, and my eyes, to myself,” Buck stammered.

“Still, you guys make a really cute couple,” JD laughed, putting his arm around Casey and hugging her to him. “Don’t they, guys?”

“Yes, they most certainly do,” Josiah agreed, and the others nodded and smiled approvingly.

“Hey, maybe we could double date some time!” JD continued.

“I’m afraid I’ll be leaving soon,” Cole shook her head, while Chris noticed that Vin visibly relaxed.

He was sure no one else would have noticed, but he himself had tensed at the thought of Vin going out on a date with Cole. They did make a stunning couple, both model gorgeous. Suddenly he had a pang of regret. He’d dismissed Vin’s reservations about the times he would go out with Mary. He knew that Vin could trust him, and was a little miffed that Vin was clearly not happy about it. Now he knew for certain that he would have been very jealous and extremely upset if it had been Vin going out night after night with Cole while he stayed behind. He straightened his shoulders and resolved that he wasn’t going to do that to Vin ever again. He knew Vin trusted him, but that didn’t mean he had to put that trust to a test. Vin was worth more than that; he deserved more from him.

“Ladies and gentlemen, if I could please have your attention!”

Evie Travis stood on the platform next to the now-silent small orchestra, and the crowd quieted while people gave her their full attention. Mary appeared at Chris’s side, and put her hand on his elbow to stand close as she smiled to those around them.

“I am very pleased to announce that this has been a tremendously successful event. I am also ecstatic to report that we have raised twenty percent over our goal.”

The crowd cheered and applauded at the exciting announcement.

“I want to thank each of you personally for your extremely generous donations. Not only of your money, but also of your time. I am truly indebted to all the agents across all the branches housed in our federal building for donating your time and your talents to this very worthy cause. We have some extremely talented individuals here, and I am in awe of the variety and truly amazing gifts you have shared with us tonight. Thank you all very, very much. You are my heroes.”

The crowd roared in approval, and the applause went on for quite some time. Finally Evie waved again, and turned to the ensemble. After she whispered to their director, she once more took the microphone.

“I have a special request for an encore performance from our People’s Choice winners. If you could entertain us with one more routine as a special favor to me, please welcome to the dance floor, Vin Tanner and Cole Parker!”

“Hey, that’s you!” JD shouted unnecessarily, shoving Vin toward the center of the room.

Vin glared at Chris, but he just shrugged and shook his head. He couldn’t help it if Vin had found a fan in Evie Travis.

Cole looked at Vin and dimples creased her cheeks as she smiled and shrugged, tilting her head to one side.

“They’re playing our song.”

She grabbed his hands and they hurried out to the center of the room, with Cole smiling and laughing as they acknowledged the cheers of the crowd. The band smoothly moved into the rousing strands of “Down At The Twist and Shout,” and the lead singer gave a nearly perfect imitation of Mary Chapin Carpenter. The dance they performed was only a slightly less complicated version of their earlier stage choreography.

The two dancers whirled and spun on the floor, and Chris was as mesmerized this time as he had been earlier as he watched his lover. He knew Vin was graceful. Knew he had the body of a dancer. But to witness these performances in person was a memory he would treasure the rest of his life.

After the song was about half over, the two dancers waved the crowd onto the floor. They continued in a complicated version of a Texas two-step while some couples began to polka and others to just dance together to the lively beat. Casey grabbed JD’s hand and ran for the floor, and even Nathan and Raine went to find a corner of the parquet.

Buck in his Elvis costume was spinning a receptionist from Team Four who had sung an opera selection. Ezra was dancing with an Asian agent from NCIS, and he looked enthralled with her. She had also played the piano for her talent, but Chris suspected they were not comparing notes on the great Classical composers. Josiah was dancing with Orin’s secretary, Mrs. Potter, who looked up at him with adoration. Larabee hoped that Josiah wasn’t starting something he wasn’t prepared to see through, because it had been clear for quite some to the rest of the team that Gloria had somewhat of a crush on the older, distinguished-looking agent. They all knew – to Ezra’s horror – that Josiah had a crush on Maude, Ezra’s mother.

Chris was surprised at how much he was enjoying watching his team celebrate such a successful night. His only wish was that he could be the one out on the floor, dancing with Vin, although he could never keep up with this lively beat and Vin’s complex footwork. He knew he would feel clumsy and awkward next to someone who possessed so much grace, although he’d danced at weddings and other occasions with Sarah. It wasn’t the sort of thing that they loved to do or did on a regular basis, but he was good enough not to embarrass himself at special events if the music wasn’t too fast and they could do simple dance moves.

He sighed heavily, as a wave of regret washed over him.

Mary clenched Chris’s arm tighter, and looked down her nose at the couples circling the dance floor.

“Hmmph,” she snorted. “Not exactly the music I was hoping the orchestra would be playing.”

Chris frowned in disgust.

“Seems like people are enjoying themselves, Mary,” he pointed out. He realized that she wasn’t upset about the music as much as she was about how extremely successful Vin Tanner’s performance had been. He had been not only the star performer at the show when she’d been so nasty and hateful to him about not performing, but he’d actually stolen the show! Chris knew that Mary was furious at feeling like he was showing her up, but rather than graciously complimenting him and thanking him for his efforts, she was still determined to put him down.

“Even Orin and Evie Travis are dancing,” he pointed out with a little smirk of satisfaction as he saw her face harden.

Orin and Evie were not only dancing, they were smiling and laughing. They were clearly having a wonderful time, and Chris watched as they danced close to other couples to share comments. At one point they danced close to Vin and Cole, and Chris witnessed the older couple talking with the young dancers. Vin’s shy smile and blush, with Cole’s graciousness, made it clear that they were complimenting the talented couple on their amazing performance. It was obvious that everyone was having a great time, people were enjoying themselves, and there was a lot of laughter and fun.

“Well, hopefully this is the only piece of this nature they’ll play, and then turn to something …, more appropriate.”

Chris’s jaw hardened as he clenched his teeth. He wasn’t going to even give her the satisfaction of responding.

The song ended and the couples applauded heartily, while the orchestra members took a bow and then started on their next piece. Many couples remained on the floor, while others headed to the seats or the refreshment table.

Buck immediately grabbed another female and was off dancing, Nathan and Raine stayed on the dance floor, while Ezra escorted his partner to the refreshment table. Josiah managed to escape from Mrs. Potter while her back was turned, and came over to stand with Chris and Mary.

Cole and Vin came over, as well. Mary tried to ignore them, but Chris was disgusted by her attitude. He got a sneaky grin on his face.

“There you are,” he smiled at the dancers. “Mary, I don’t believe you were properly introduced before. I’d like you to meet Cole Parker. Cole, Mary Travis.”

The beautiful younger woman held out her hand and smiled.

“It’s so nice to meet you. This is a lovely event that you coordinated.”

“Thank you. I did have a hard-working, dedicated team. Didn’t I, Chris?” she smiled adoringly up at him and clenched his arm possessively.

“Cole and Vin, you two really stole the show tonight,” Chris continued, and Mary’s fingers dug into his arm. “Winning the People’s Choice trophy is quite impressive. Don’t you agree, Mary?”

Vin was smirking. His blue eyes sparkled and he was barely able to keep himself from laughing out loud. He knew exactly what Larabee was doing, and caught the older man’s eyes before turning to his friend.

“Yes. It was a very… nice… performance,” Mary managed to get out through clenched teeth.

Chris had to clench his jaw not to snap at Mary. She was being extremely rude to Vin. Seeing the two next to each other – the man he loved and the woman who wanted him to love her – it became impossible not to compare them. Vin was slim and strong with rock-hard muscles, and had the body and the face of an angel. Mary was slender, but somehow it seemed that her look was more calculated and controlled, forced by a strict diet and exercise routine.

Vin was sexy as hell wearing ripped jeans, a tiny tank top, and a flannel shirt. Chris had never seen Mary in anything other than expensive and/or designer outfits. Even the rare times she had worn jeans, it was clear they were very expensive. Chris stared at Mary’s perfect coif, twisted and coiled into an elegant formal style. While her hair gleamed artificially blonde, he couldn’t help but make the comparison between her sprayed and shellacked hardness to Vin’s soft, silken waves. Vin used a shampoo that Chris loved when he buried his face in Vin’s hair, reminding him of cedar and sandalwood and the outdoors. That and Vin’s natural scent was enough to drive Chris crazy. He was more enchanted by that than Mary Travis’s ridiculously expensive perfume.

“Chris, it was so nice to meet you finally,” Cole smiled up at him. “Vin has spoken so highly of you. I’m glad to know that he’s got such good friends and has made a real home here. After we lost touch as kids, I never knew what happened to him and had no way of finding out. But I’m afraid I need to say good night. We have a very early meeting in the morning, and then we’re hopeful that my assignment will come to a successful conclusion very soon.”

“I enjoyed meeting you as well. I always like meeting friends of Vin’s. Nice to know that he’s been able to reconnect with a childhood friend. If you do have time before you have to leave town, we’d love to take you to dinner.”

“Thank you so much. I’ll keep that in mind, and I’ll let you know how things go. If I have time before I have to catch a flight, I would love to accept your invitation.”

“I’ll walk you out to your car,” Vin told her, and they said good-bye. Chris followed them with his eyes as they made their way to the other Team Seven members so Cole could say good-bye to each of them, and they also visited briefly with her FBI team members. He was impressed with how poised Vin looked, how relaxed and confident.

‘Mine,’ he thought to himself and smiled. ‘That perfect man belongs to me.’

“Oh,” Mary grinned brightly up at Chris, pulling him sharply from his pleasant thoughts. “I spoke to the Carlson’s. We’re going to a late dinner with them tonight after this benefit concludes in a few moments.”

Chris stared down at her in anger and shock.

“What did you say?”

“Chris! Keep your voice down,” she hissed, looking around them to see whether anyone had overheard them.

“What have I said to you about making plans for me, without consulting me first?”

She laughed, but it sounded nervous.

“Now, Chris. You know the Carlson’s are important donors. You don’t want to make them upset.”

“I’m not going to make them upset.”

She smiled in triumph.

“I’m not. You are.” He continued, and Mary gasped, her eyes widening in shock.

“I made it perfectly clear that as soon as this benefit was over, the days of my letting you coerce me into these events are over. This reception is over now, and so is my commitment to you. I will not be letting you make my decisions and schedule my time for me. I told you that several times, so don’t look all shocked and hurt.”

“This dinner is a continuation of the night,” Mary pressed on. “And I don’t see what the problem is. We only had a light meal earlier, and this is just dinner.”

“No, Mary. Nothing is ‘just’ for you. You keep pushing and pushing, and I’m through letting you run my life. If I decide that I want to spend time with you, I will do the asking. “

Her eyes narrowed in anger and high spots of color flooded her cheeks.

“And that goes for Billy, too,” Chris added. “No more of you sending a child to ask me to spend time with him or the both of you. It’s sneaky, and it’s unfair to Billy.”

“How dare you….,” she sneered.

Chris put a hand up to stop her tirade and smiled, but it was a shark’s grin.

“Now, Mary. You need to keep up appearances, right? People may stare.”

She looked around furtively, and forced her breathing to calm down while she pasted a fake smile on her face. The people who had been stealing glances their way turned back to others around them.

“I’m going home now. Without you. This has been a successful benefit event and I congratulate you on that. But I’ve held up my end of the bargain and now it’s over. This is the last time I’m going to put up with you pressuring me – and forcing Orin to pressure me. No more letting you dictate what I’m going to do or be part of.”

“But…, but…, what am I supposed to tell the Carlsons?”

Chris gave her a nasty smile.

“I have no idea, but that’s not really my concern, is it? You’re the expert on telling people what to do. Make up something. Good-bye.”

With that he turned and walked away, leaving Mary open-mouthed as she stared at his retreating back.

“Something wrong, Mary?”

Startled, she turned sharply.

“Orin!”

“You looked a little distressed.”

She couldn’t make out what was behind his expression.

“That Chris Larabee is so arrogant!” she blurted hotly. “We’re supposed to have dinner tonight with Rick and Janet Carlson. He just left! What am I going to tell them?”

“Did Chris suggest the dinner, or agree to it before you invited them?” Orin asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Well…, no. But he should have! They’re important donors!”

“Then I suggest you go soothe their feelings and come up with another plan.”

“But.., He…, Make him come with me!” she insisted.

Orin’s face hardened.

“Excuse me?”

“I’m sorry,” she shook her head, flustered. “It’s just that….”

“It’s just that you want Chris to do whatever you want, and you’ve decided that I’m supposed to insist that happen. You want me to order him.”

“Yes! I mean, … no. No. Of course not.”

“I didn’t think so. Have a good evening, Mary. Perhaps we’ll see you and Billy for dinner next Sunday evening.”

“Yes. Thank you. That would be very nice.”

Orin Travis turned away before Mary could see him smirking. Before he got back to Evie, he was chuckling out loud. She looked at him with a puzzled expression, but he just shook his head and turned to the two couples she was visiting with. ‘I wonder if there’s some way I could give Chris Larabee a raise for this,’ he speculated to himself.

+ + + + + + +

Vin was just coming back inside from seeing Cole to her car when Chris reached the door.

“Hey, Cowboy.”

That cocky little smirk and honey-on-sandpaper drawl shot a jolt of passion straight to Chris’s groin.

“Hey, yourself,” Chris’s shark grin made Vin swallow hard. At the sight of Vin squirming, Chris’s leer widened.

“I am gonna make you pay for that little stunt you pulled. You know that, right?”

Vin lifted his chin.

“An’ jist what about your little stunt. Lettin’ Miss Mary lead ya around like a whipped puppy.”

“Whipped puppy! Whipped puppy! I’ll whip-puppy your ass.”

Vin laughed out loud, his eyes shining with mischief. Chris tried to glare at him but couldn’t keep it up.

“Come on,” he laughed, shaking his head. “Let’s go home. Partner.”

“Like th’ sound of that, Lar’bee.”

They waved at Buck and Ezra who were each still dancing with their respective partners for the moment, and at JD who was at the buffet table with Casey. Josiah nodded at them, and returned to an obviously engrossing conversation with an FBI profiler who had performed a cello solo earlier. Nathan and Raine had said their good-byes to Chris and Mary earlier as they were leaving, and had run into Vin and Cole in the parking lot. Neither man looked back to see how Mary Travis was going to make her regrets to the Carlsons.

+ + + + + + +

The ride home was a comfortable one. Chris was even a little surprised at just how relieved he was to be out from under Mary’s thumb. He couldn’t believe that he’d let her pressure him into doing whatever she demanded. Vin was far too important to risk letting Mary come between them, and he wanted to spend every possible moment with his young lover. If they couldn’t do something together, it was going to be a rare event that he did something alone, and never to this extent.

“You were pretty amazing up there. You know that, right?”

Vin smiled at him softly, reaching his hand over for Chris to hold on the bench seat between them.

“Surprised?”

Chris snorted.

“Surprised? More like astonished, shocked, stunned.”

Vin laughed.

“Mary had to tell me to close my mouth.”

Vin chuckled and snorted.

“I really wanted to keep this a secret. Wanted to surprise you.”

“Well, you did!”

They grinned at each other, then Chris grew serious.

“Thought for awhile you were gonna leave me.”

“Wouldn’t do that, Chris. Knew you were bein’ foolish, but kind’a hoped it was temporary.”

“I’m not going to ever do anything like that again, Vin. I promise you that. And I’m sorry. I never should have let things get this out of hand.”

“Mrs. Travis is a powerfully persuasive woman.”

Chris barked a harsh laugh.

“And here I was gonna call her a bitch.”

Their laughter died down, and companionable silence again settled on the dark cab. They were nearly to their exit of the expressway and ready to pull off onto the quieter route leading to the ranch. Chris reached his right hand across the space between them, and Vin threaded his long fingers through Chris’s. They rested their hands on the seat between them, occasionally squeezing gently or rubbing a thumb over hard knuckles. The two men couldn’t stop exchanging glances and relieved grins.

They went straight to their bedroom when they arrived home, so Chris could get out of his tuxedo. Vin placed his suit in the closet, which he’d earlier hung in Chris’s truck after changing for his performance. Chris pulled on sweatpants and a sweatshirt, and Vin changed from his jeans and western shirt into sweatpants, a soft long-sleeved Henley, and a flannel shirt. The boots were kicked off and he wore thick woolen socks while Chris slid his feet into soft moccasins. Chris started a fire in the fireplace, and Vin entered the room with a couple beers snagged from the fridge.

It took Chris’s breath away to see again how beautiful Vin was. Dressed up, he was stunning. But here like this, his hair waving softly around his face accenting the strong jaw, high cheekbones, and huge blue eyes, he was simply beautiful. All the fancy clothes only reinforced how gorgeous he was; but when he was wearing sweatpants and a Henley shirt he was even more naturally stunning. Most of the people they’d been around tonight would kill to look so fabulous wearing outfits costing several times what Vin had spent on his clothes.

“So, how is it you know Cole?” Chris asked Vin, once Vin had handed over a beer.

Vin went still at the question, and Chris regretted his intrusion when he saw the shadows pass over Vin’s face. He felt badly for dampening their relaxed mood.

“Sorry. Not my business.”

Vin’s mouth turned up in a half-hearted smile.

“No. It’s okay. You got a right to ask. Hell, you were jist askin’ ‘cause ya care about me. I ain’t ever gonna be mad about that.”

“I hate to bring back sad memories.”

Vin smiled wryly and shrugged.

“Bein’ with Cole and her folks…, that was a happy memory. They got me away from a bad situation.”

He shrugged again and sighed heavily before continuing.

“Unfortunately, th’ next place was worse.”

“Ah, Vin….”

Chris set his beer down and went over to his lover. He stood behind Tanner as the younger man stared into the flames. Chris wrapped his arms around the slender frame and hugged him close. Vin rested his curly head on Chris’s shoulder and Chris put his cheek on the soft tangles.

“Tell me?”

There was a short pause while Vin traveled back in time in his thoughts.

“I must have been about eleven or twelve. Place I was put wasn’t much more than a shack. Always kind of wondered if it bothered the Parkers that they lived next door, since this place was a dump and the Parkers’ house was the closest thing I’d ever seen to a mansion.

“Cole was a tomboy then. She was nice ta me, and bein’ the new kid, and a foster kid at that, well… it wasn’t fun. But she accepted me an’ treated me like a regular kid.

“They had horses. Man, did they have nice horses. Th’ place I was stayin’ didn’t pay no attention ta me or care much whether I showed up or not. I started getting’ off th’ bus at her stop and I’d walk along th’ fence. Th’ horses would come up ta me. I’d take my time, wander slow.”

Chris squeezed him tighter. He could well imagine that scene. His mind pictured a lonely, skinny boy with huge blue eyes, a dark tan, and wild, sun-streaked hair. Talking to the horses and having them come up to him for the attention they both needed from each other.

“Anyway, after a few weeks of this, Cole invited me up ta th’ house. Her mom had milk and cookies for us. I probably ate like a pig. I embarrassed myself eating so fast but I was so hungry, ya know?

”Her mom started giving us sandwiches and fruit after school. I kind of wondered about it, but was too hungry to care much about whatever excuse she made. I think she said that she wasn’t hungry earlier, and wanted to have her lunch with us after Cole got off the bus.”

Chris had to struggle to keep his body relaxed. Vin was talking about his past, and the older man would do nothing to discourage that. If Vin knew he was upset, he might stop talking. If Vin had survived living it, Chris could survive hearing it.

“Cole’s dad was around sometimes,” Vin continued with a sigh, staring into the flames as he relived the past. “He was real good about not getting too close to me. He was real nice, but he was big, you know? I think he knew I was afraid of him.”

Vin snorted.

“Of course, one day he forgot. Reached for a bridle on th’ hook next to my head. I flinched so hard I about put myself through the wood of the stable. Guess he figured it out for sure then.”

“What happened?” Chris asked softly.

Vin blew out a long breath.

“I was so ashamed. I know my face got hot and I would have run out of the barn except he was between me an’ th’ door. He asked me if I was okay. I could’a cried, he was so kind ta me. After that he gave me a job. Th’ people I was with thought that was great. They were glad ta have me gone, an’ real glad ta take th’ money.

“Wasn’t much longer that I was taken from there. Never occurred ta me th’ Parkers ever said anything to th’ social workers. I mean, lots a’ people knew I was gettin’ hit, but nobody ever did anything about it.”

“Vin, I’m just so sorry.”

“I know. You wanna know the damndest thing? I jist found out from Cole that her folks wanted me. They tried to get me, but the paperwork didn’t go through fast enough. I was sent to another place but by the time they got th’ okay, I’d run off. Never did get caught. Kind’a figured they didn’t look very hard, but don’t know for sure.”

“And you were how old?” Chris asked, the concern and compassion clear in his voice.

Vin shrugged.

“Twelve. Mebbe thirteen by then. It was still a couple years before I got ta Denver.”

“God, Vin.”

Vin hugged Chris’s arms closer around him, long fingers clenching strong forearms.

“It’s okay, Chris.”

“No, it’s not okay.”

“But it’s over. Can’t live in a what-if world. After I found out, it did make me a little sad to wonder what my life could have been like if they’d have gotten me, I guess. A little. But I ain’t wastin’ time on it.”

“You could have told me. You should have told me,” Chris said firmly.

“Seems ta me you were a little preoccupied.”

Chris sighed heavily at the truth of that statement. He regretted this entire episode with Mary and her damn social functions. He was upset and frustrated and guilty. While he was telling Tanner that he should have come to him, it was his own damn fault for not being there for his partner even if he had wanted to come to him. What a fucked up mess.

“ I know, and I’m sorry about that. I’m so sorry, Vin.”

“Don’t matter none.”

“It does matter. You matter. And I’ve done a damn poor job of showing you that. But no more, Tanner. I mean it. I told Mary tonight that I’m done with her meddling and her planning things for me to do with her. She’s not going to make her nasty comments about you or send her kid in to get me to play daddy, and she’s not going to make her little threats to tell the judge. I’m ashamed of myself.”

“Hey. You got nothin’ ta be ashamed of. Ms. Travis is nothing if not, well, pushy. I ain’t wantin’ things ta be worse for us if she gets after th’ truth. She’s like a pit bull, and nothin’s gonna be gained by her nosin’ around in what ain’t her business. And it sure as hell could’a become her business if you’d a’ created a scene or had a fight about it in th’ office. I mean it. Don’t beat yerself up over this. Its done an’ over.”

“You’re right that it’s done and over, but whether there was an ‘us’ or not, I wouldn’t be lettin’ her lead me around by the nose like some prize bull.”

Vin snorted.

“You think that’s funny, do ya?”

“Yeah, I do. But what’s even more funny is, she wants ya at her beck and call every time she crooks a finger at ya, but what probably attracted her to ya in th’ first place was that you’re not th’ kind a’ person who does that.”

Chris smiled at the compliment. The ironic thing, and what he wouldn’t tell Tanner, was that Chris would do anything at the crook of Vin’s finger. Then again, the smart-assed Texan probably knew that all along.

“What do you say we forget this whole sorry mess?” Chris suggested.

“That’s what a like about you,” Vin drawled, looking up with a mischievous grin. “Always got a plan.”

“Hah,” Chris snorted and rolled his eyes. “But at least two good things came out of it.”

“What? That you learned you ain’t gonna let Miss Mary brow-beat you into marryin’ her?”

Chris about choked, and had to struggle to stop coughing.

“Okay, three things,” he finally managed. “That, and that I got to see the most amazing dance performance I’ll ever see. You shocked the hell outta me.”

“An’ the third thing?” Vin asked, blushing as he steered the conversation away from himself.

“That I got to meet Cole. I really do want to have dinner with her before she leaves for the airport. I want to get to know your friend better. Maybe even see about meeting the Parkers one day.”

Vin stilled, his eyes wide with shock.

“Really?” he whispered. “You mean that?”

“I mean that. With all my heart.”

Chris grinned. He gently took Vin’s empty beer bottle and set it down beside his own on the end table. He circled the small waist of his lover, drawing the younger man to him for a sweet, gentle kiss.

Vin turned in Chris’s embrace, his arms going around Chris’s neck as Chris’s tightened around his back and waist. They kissed for long moments while Chris rubbed slow circles on Vin’s back. This man meant the world to him, and he came way too close to fucking up the best thing that ever happened to him. He wasn’t going to make that mistake twice.

They kissed, slowly and sweetly. Then Chris broke apart and looked into hazy blue eyes.

“Will you promise me something, too?”

“What?”

“That if you have people show up from your past, or something triggers a memory, whether that makes you happy or sad, that you tell me? Even if I’m being an asshole, you’ll get my attention and let me know I need to focus some attention on you when you need it.”

“’Kay.”

“You’re just saying that to shut me up. I’m serious.”

Vin smiled.

“I love you so much, Chris. Never knew what that felt like before. Never thought it was anything I could hope to have.”

“You do have it, baby. And I’m so sorry. For everything that happened this week. For putting you second.”

“It’s okay. It’s over.”

“It’s not okay. But no more. I realized I can’t – won’t – do anything to risk losing you.”

“Thought you knew I ain’t goin’ nowhere.”

“I know, but I pushed it too far. Took you for granted, took our relationship for granted, and that was a big chance. Won’t do that again.”

“Well then, I reckon everything really is okay.”

Breaking away and looking into slightly dazed blue eyes, Chris said softly, “Thank you.”

Vin frowned.

“For what?”

“Forgiving me.”

“Hell, I don’t know much about relationships, and I don’t know much about bein’ with someone who you love, but I reckon that’s the way it works. Ain’t nobody perfect, and I ain’t makin’ no promises that I won’t fuck something up in the future. But it’s nice ta know that you’ll be there ta forgive me, and that it won’t wreck everything between us. Leastwise, unless I do something truly awful.”

“But I’d fight like hell to keep us together, and work out whatever happens bad between us.”

“Sounds like a plan. I like a man with a plan.”

“You do, huh?”

“Uh huh. How about if that plan includes takin’ this horizontal.”

“Now who’s the man with the plan?”

“You about ready for me to make it up to you?” Chris whispered, his voice husky with desire.

“Hell, what do you think?” Vin replied, pressing his groin into Chris’s. Both had been half-hard before, but this had them straining against the confines of their loose sweatpants.

They pulled apart and smiled at each other, truly relaxed and happy for the first time in way too many weeks.

“Could we…, maybe…?”

“What, Vin?” Chris cupped the face of his over between both his hands, tilting it slightly up in order to see into those blue eyes. He saw the hesitation in his expression. “Tell me.”

“Wanna love you…, in front of the fireplace. I love bein’ with you in bed, but tonight…, want to see you by fire light.”

Chris grinned happily.

“Love that idea, Tanner. Wish I’d thought of it myself.”

“I’ll check the locks, you set the alarm?”

“Sounds good.”

They made quick work of settling the house for the night, and each made a quick stop in the small hallway bathroom in record time. Chris was already in front of the fireplace when Vin came into the room.

With a childishly happy grin, Vin nearly ran across the distance and jumped into his arms with a loud whoop of delight.

“What’s got you so happy,” Chris laughed, infected by Vin’s mood.

“Got ya back, is all,” Vin told him, smiling.

“I shouldn’t have worried you. I never left you, but I let you down and I’m sorry.”

“Shh…,” Vin said, shaking his head and putting a finger on Chris’s lips to stop him. “We cleared that up. I’m jist happy it’s all over now.”

“It is,” Chris asserted firmly. “And we’re not going to go through that ever again.”

They pulled cushions off the sofa and spread a blanket over them, and got the throw pillows arranged in front of the fireplace. Chris thought to himself that nothing was sexier or more erotic than a naked Tanner by firelight. They both slowly pulled off their clothing, each one watching the other with open hunger as skin was slowly revealed. This was a night for sensuality, for taking it slow. For appreciating what they had in each other, and for celebrating what they had found in each other. By the dim light of the flames, Chris admired the perfect body of his lover illuminated by the soft glow. The sight of strong muscles sculpted over that compact frame with not an ounce of fat was one that never failed to take his breath away.

Chris lay back on the cushions, pulling Vin down beside him. They held each other and kissed and stroked skin over hard muscle and bone. Chris marveled at the smooth softness of Vin’s tanned skin. He tanned so easily, and even when his tan faded in the winter his skin was much darker than Chris’s own pale skin. Now that Vin could take advantage of the privacy of the ranch, he loved to sleep in the sun wearing nothing at all. That was fine with Chris, and Vin barely had tan lines other than when he might wear his indecently threadbare cut-offs to wash his jeep or Chris’s truck. Chris loved the feel and sight of his hands caressing the deeply tanned skin of his lover. He traced the scars, kissing them gently as the two men explored further in their passion.

While their two hard shafts rubbed each other, their kisses grew more intense and breathing became more ragged. Chris smoothed over the hard ribs, then traced down the bony spine. He pressed on Vin’s lower back at his waist, loving how narrow it was compared to the relative broadness of his powerful shoulders. Vin was so fit and in shape. Model gorgeous, thin yet strong, and muscular without being bulky. Chris couldn’t quite believe that after loving Sarah’s soft curves he would have fallen so totally and completely in love with a man, who’s body was all sculpted muscle over hard bone.

Chris’s large hands moved lower to cup the firm ass. He pulled Vin on top of him, their bodies connecting from chest to ankles and feet. Vin clutched at Chris’s shoulders and upper arms, while he kissed Chris’s neck and collarbones. Long limbs tangled when their swollen, rock-hard shafts twitched and filled until both men were in danger of coming.

“Want to see you,” Chris said, pushing Vin upward.

Passion-filled eyes met his, and Vin pushed up gracefully. He straddled the older man, knees wide on either side of Chris’s narrow hips. His arms straightened, while his hands lay flat against Chris’s chest. Thumbs toyed with flat oval nipples, raising them into sharp points while Chris hissed in pleasure. His cock nestled between Vin’s cheeks, and Chris felt the sparks of passion igniting and pooling every ounce of sensation to the center of his body.

Vin moaned when Chris twisted his hips. He threw his head back, long hair cascading down past his shoulders. He bit his lip as his face tensed in concentration, his chest rising and falling rapidly as his breathing increased.

Chris grasped the thin wrists and lifted them off his chest. Vin instinctively knew what he wanted. He straightened up, then lifted his body off Chris’s groin. Chris moved his hand beneath their bodies and grasped the base of his cock to keep from coming, as the movement caused Vin’s thigh to brush against his overly sensitive shaft.

Vin raised up, then turned around so that his back was to Chris. His feet were tucked on either side of Chris’s shoulders as his knees were at Chris’s hips and his ass was on Chris’s waist. The older man reached for the small jar of ointment. He rubbed gentle, soothing circles around Vin’s back. He winced at the slight curve at the base of Vin’s spine, hating that it caused him pain at various times. He paid more attention to rubbing that area at the base of Vin’s spine.

Chris took the thick salve, coating the fingers of one hand. He circled the tiny opening, causing Vin to flinch before settling back. Vin leaned forward a little more, giving Chris easier access. He arched his back, with his spine curving upward but his ass open toward Chris. The older man groaned at the site. It was so incredibly erotic to have Vin so vulnerable, so sexy and uninhibited around him. Vin could be so tightly controlled, so silent and reserved. Yet when they were alone, Vin lost all self-control and became like a wild creature. It led to the most bone-melting sex Chris had ever experienced in his life.

Chris pressed a finger into the tiny opening. The warmth and velvety softness had him biting his lip for control. He moved his finger around, gently loosening the opening until he felt the ring of muscle start to give. Without removing his finger, he pressed a second finger inside. Vin’s hands tightened on his thighs, gripping until Chris would have bruises the next day.

Chris pulled out, and Vin whimpered at the loss. Chris used one hand to add another pillow behind his head, raising it so that he had a better view of Vin’s ass. He dug his hand into the jar, scooping up more of the creamy lotion. He pressed three fingers at once into Vin’s opening, swallowing hard at the erotic site. It nearly took his breath away to see his hand going into Vin’s body. He pressed and twisted his fingers, moving in and out and around in the tight heat.

Once more Chris removed his fingers. He gripped Vin’s ass cheeks, alternately spreading them wide and then pushing them together. He groaned at the sight of hiding and revealing that tempting opening. His hands were wide and pale on the firm, tanned cheeks. He took one hand off the rounded butt and slapped it. Not hard, but it startled Vin and he squirmed. Chris gasped when the motion caused his own dick to jump and twitch against Vin’s belly.

Again and again, with an unpredictable rhythm, Chris would push his fingers into Vin’s tiny opening, often without warning. Vin would clench his ass around the invading fingers, and both men were sweating with the intense effort and concentration it took to hold off from the coming orgasm that was building with increasing momentum. He twisted his hand, causing Vin to whimper at the sensation. Then he would abruptly pull out, sometimes widening his fingers as he went to increase the drag on Vin’s skin from the inside. The younger man gasped, then cried out when that was followed by a stinging slap to his ass.

Over and over the older man kept up his assault on Vin’s ass, shoving his fingers inside, then withdrawing them only to grip the ass cheeks tightly. He circled them, together and apart, together and apart, then would slap the other cheek and slam his fingers inside.

“Now, Chris! Gotta come.. need… now… “

Vin’s harsh pants, and Chris’s groans and mutters filled the room.

“Wanna see you, Vin. Turn…”

Nothing more needed said when Chris spoke. Vin abruptly pulled off of Chris, turning around and resettling himself on the lean hips. Vin’s hands went to Chris’s chest, pulling and tweaking the flat nipples into peaks of hardness. Chris gripped the base of his cock, the swollen head finding Vin’s opening. Both men were rock hard, Vin’s cock was pressed up tightly against his flat belly, rising from its nest of soft curls.

Vin was well prepared, and the moment the head of Chris’s cock broke through Vin’s opening, Chris dug his heels into the cushions and snapped his hips upward. Vin gasped at the sudden invasion, and tensed until his body could adjust to the feeling of fullness. Having three fingers at his opening was nothing compared to taking all of Chris’s heft and bulk from his long, thick cock.

Chris knew the moment Vin was okay, because the pain had passed and the tension had changed to one of need. He gripped Vin’s wrists, pulling them away from his chest. He moved them toward Vin’s hips, and the younger man complied. He leaned backwards, and Chris cried out as the change in the angle of his cock trapped inside that tight hot heat nearly sent him over the edge.

Vin grasped Chris’s thighs as he leaned backwards. His damp hair hung in tangled strands down over his shoulders as his head flung backwards. His throat was corded with muscles from the strain of keeping from coming, while he trembled from the sparks of passion coursing and snapping along every nerve ending. Chris gripped the slender hips with hard hands, pulling them forward and then pushing them away. Vin’s body arched, his spine curved with his chest out and high, but his ass also arched backwards. It pulled his taut stomach and belly even flatter, the muscles in stark relief against his skin. Chris sucked in a breath at the sight of the way the firelight accented and traced every cluster of muscle along abs and chest and shoulders and arms.

Chris loosened his grip slightly. One hand went toward Vin’s ass, kneading the firm flesh. The other hand went to Vin’s belly, pressing into the flat muscles between his sharp hip bones. His finger traced and pressed into the shallow dip of the tiny navel, and he increased the pressure when Vin flinched and sucked in a harsh breath. The last thing he wanted to do right now was to tickle his lover. The fingers pressed into and traced the line of abs, then both hands went up to Vin’s chest. Chris pulled at and gently twisted the small nipples. He pulled and released them, then grabbed them to twist from side to side. With the thumbs on either hand, he pressed them into Vin’s chest, then pulled and twisted again. Vin’s head was thrashing from side to side, and he was making soft, keening sounds deep in his throat.

Vin rocked his hips on Chris’s cock, and squeezed his ass cheeks together. That motion nearly sent Chris over the brink of passion. He groaned, knowing that neither of them could last much longer.

“So tight…,” he gasped. “So hot…. Perfect….”

Strong fingers clenched the narrow hips. He lifted Vin’s body, pulling out nearly totally. Then snapped his hips upward as his hands brought Vin’s butt down on his groin. Faster and faster they built a rhythm, lifting off and out before slamming back down. Over and over this happened, and then Vin moved his hands from Chris’s thighs to grip on his calves just below his knees. That changed the angle until Vin was leaning back even further. His chest and ass were stuck out while his taut, flat belly was pulled tight. Chris nearly stopped breathing. He’d never seen anything so erotic and sexy.

Vin clenched his ass around Chris’s cock, gripping and releasing, and the sparks of passion shot through both of them. The change in angle had Chris’s dick hitting the small pleasure nub inside the younger man, and he let loose with a frantic, breathless curse in what Chris could only guess was a Native American language.

Chris gripped the narrow hips tighter, and he held Vin with a bruising grasp as Vin was lifted to his knees. The older man pulled his own knees slightly higher, in order to get a better grip on the floor. He pistoned his hips upward, shoving his dick into the smaller body over and over. Both men were soaked with sweat, causing each of their strong bodies to shimmer in the glow of the fire light. Again and again Chris slammed into that perfect ass. He raised his head to look down, seeing his thick flushed cock pull nearly out from where their bodies joined, only to disappear again into the gorgeous body of his sexy young lover. It was an exotic sight, excruciatingly intense and powerful.

Finally both men lost all thought. The molten pleasure built from deep within them. With a final squeeze of Vin’s ass just as Chris slammed into him, the younger man exploded over Chris’s belly and chest with long thick ropes of creamy cum. The sight and scent propelled Chris immediately after, as he filled Vin with his own release. It was a feeling of flying and falling at the same time, like being surrounded by and engulfed in a cloud of fireworks. He felt himself emptying into the younger man with wave upon wave, his body shuddering from the powerful intensity. Both men tensed, barely breathing, as their bodies shook and trembled from the violent orgasm.

With a final gasp, Vin collapsed onto Chris’s chest. The now-softened cock slipped from his opening, and Vin whimpered briefly at the feeling of loss. Chris’s arms came around the slender back, hugging his lover to him and making soothing circles over the soft, damp skin. Vin’s hands clutched at his shoulders briefly as he calmed, finally pressing a kiss against Chris’s warm neck.

It was several long minutes before the two lovers’ breathing slowed. Vin shivered, and Chris gave a low chuckle. The head of tangled curls raised up and ocean blue eyes glared at him as Vin frowned. Chris just laughed again, pulling a throw blanket from nearby them over them both. Vin sighed and settled against his lover, reluctant to move from the warmth and comfort of the strong arms surrounding him. There would be time soon to part and get cleaned up, but for now he would enjoy the safety and comfort and protection that enveloped him in the loving embrace of his partner. His eyes sought out the slowly dying flames from the fire, and Chris drank in the pleasure of seeing how the soft light flickered over the face of his amazing lover.

“Damn.”

The quiet whisper broke the silence, and Chris squeezed the broad shoulders as he smiled.

“Damn doesn’t being to cover it.”

He felt Vin’s grin against his chest without having to see it.

“I love you, Christopher Adam Larabee.”

“I love you more, Vincent Michal Tanner. Forever and always.”

“’To infinity and beyond,’” Vin added to Chris’s delight, quoting from the Toy Story movie Buck and JD watched over and over, like the big kids they were.

They both laughed softly, feeling giddy and happy and still almost unable to move.

Finally Vin rolled off Chris, knowing he had to be heavy on the other man. They scooped up clothes, checked the locks and shut off lights and put out the fire. Slowly they made their way upstairs for a quick shower before getting into bed, both knowing they could shower together and nothing more might happen tonight. Although, as Chris thought of it, his lover had remarkable recuperative powers, and his cock twitched faintly at the image of Vin blowing him off in the shower, with Chris’s hands threading through the long hair made darker and longer from the weight of the water.

“You remember the discussions we had about your performing when the beginning of this talent show mess first started?” Chris spoke up into the comfortable silence as they made their way down the hall.

“Yeah…?” Vin replied, instantly wary, stopping slightly behind Chris.

“With a talented performance like this, there would be no question who won the People’s Choice Award.”

The answer was a swat on his bare ass from the tee-shirt Vin was carrying, then suddenly he was tackled from behind and had a naked Texas wildcat clinging to his back. With peals of laughter ringing in his ears, he stumbled into the bedroom and collapsed onto the bed.

‘Yeah,’ he thought as he grabbed a handful of naked Tanner, ‘where were those judges when you needed them.’

The End

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