TITLE: "A New Life"
AUTHOR: Ardeth Saunders [a.k.a., Cruecial411]
RATING: R [strong language, violence, and sexual situations]
SUMMARY: Donovan finds that sometimes even a new life brings trials and tribulations. [Sequel to "Another Life"]
GENRE: Drama/Angst
DISCLAIMER: UC: Undercover and its cast of characters belong to the writers, creators, NBC, and a dozen others. NO infringement intended. All other original characters belong solely to the vivid [and often sick and twisted] imagination of the author.
* * *
LATE NIGHTS
Mid-December, 2003
"Selena," a voice whispered, low and sexy, the words drifting into her ear. "Selena, wake up for a minute. There's something I have to tell you and it won't wait until morning."
She groaned. Please oh please. She had no desire to pull herself away from her dream or her warm bed. Uh uh, no way, no how. See ya baby. A persistently large hand took hold of her shoulder and shook it lightly. The warm heat of a male body against her and the warmer scent of his cologne suddenly embraced her. She moved closer to that source of comfort. It had been sharing her bed the better part of the month of December, and would continue to do so until New Years Eve. It was cold outside, snowing like hell, but she wouldn't budge, no matter how much he poked and prodded. In fact, he could probably lick her damn ear and she wouldn't move a muscle. She continued to luxuriate in the warmth and settled her body even more firmly into the mattress. Sooner or later, he would give up. Funny, Jane, is that what you think? Has he ever given up yet? Hmm. Perhaps her subconscious had a point there. The moment Selena Jane Larkin returned to D.C. straight from Chicago, she went directly home, unpacked, and was ready to hit the sack when her phone rang. She was surprised to hear it like that, so surprised that she nearly pissed her pants. She reached over and snagged the phone, answering on the third or fourth ring. The moment she said 'hello,' a silky voice came over the line and asked a most unexpected question, 'can I see you?' Can you see me? Duh. It took approximately three seconds to tell him that she would, indeed, see him and do so whenever he wanted. Three days later, thrilled to the bone, she met Frank Donovan at the airport. They had gone to her place and made love for a good three or four hours. After the passion subsided [for a few moments while Donovan called up his reserves], he thanked her for what she had done for him. She had tried to blow it off as her 'duty' or whatever, but it was a big deal to him, it had basically driven him to want to spend more time with her. He had, in fact, requested several weeks' leave [which had been reserved anyway for the honeymoon that didn't happen]. Of course, she wasn't inclined to complain about that. They'd spent…oh…four days or so in a constant unstoppable lovefest, hardly getting out of bed five minutes before they were back in again. When the lust had completed its cycle, they had really begun getting to know each other, finding compatibility and incompatibility, basically probing into each other's souls. It was a scary process, especially for Larkin, because apparently, Donovan was pretty damn serious about this. Of course he is, you dummy. Why would he have come all this way just to sleep with you?
"Selena," he said again, this time his lips making contact with her ear. "Give me five minutes, if you would."
She groaned. "Okay, you bastard," she said, not unkindly. "What is it?"
"The bus transporting Grant to prison crashed. There were no survivors."
At that point, Larkin came awake totally. She gazed into Donovan's face as if she had been dreaming everything. "What? She's dead? She died in the accident?" He nodded without saying anything. For a moment, she touched his cheek to make sure she wasn't dreaming. Okay. Donovan was real. Was she? She touched her face while Donovan looked on [perhaps thinking she had gone off the deep end]. She was real. "I won't believe it until I see proof."
"We'll get that tomorrow," he said. He, like she, wanted to know.
Neither Larkin nor Donovan slept well that night. While they were trying to bore each other to sleep, Larkin finally asked how he had come upon his information. Donovan, the consummate worker, had brought his phone along. Cody had heard about it on the wire and thought it was information Donovan wanted to hear. When Donovan had first heard the words, he felt fifteen different ways at once. Of course, the most prevalent was relief. If the bitch were dead, she would never cause him further problems for the rest of his life. There was little left in his life that she could destroy. She couldn't touch Larkin, because she knew everything already. She knew it and didn't give a shit. The team, for the most part, was still clueless, but they hadn't asked when Larkin had called him Martel just a little while ago. Likely as not, the team wouldn't give a shit, either. However, for the time being, he kept his past hidden, only shared with others who knew of it [including Larkin]. How many times in so many days had he thanked her for deleting the shit? How would he ever repay her? There actually wasn't a way to repay what she had done. Then again, she hadn't exactly asked for it. She wasn't the type and he appreciated the hell out of that. Larkin was also the only person he knew who wouldn't use her knowledge to blackmail him for something in the future. All others would have [with the exception of the team]. She had basically set out to protect him and he was blown away by that gesture. No one else in her position would have, especially after what had transpired between them before he broke off his engagement. He would forever feel like a shit for what he had done to her. He couldn't imagine what motivated her to forgive him and allow him back in her life. For the first time in years, he felt free; felt as if he would finally have the life denied him so many years ago. Of course, he didn't want to jump the gun just yet. Although there had been news of a crash, he wouldn't be satisfied until he saw the accident site, examined it, and then spoke to the coroner to get an accurate account of bodies. Until then, he was left brooding in bed, wondering, hoping, and praying that she was gone. It was an awful thought, but one he couldn't drive out of his mind. When it came to Kira Grant, he simply didn't give a fuck. There was no way the bitch had the right to share a planet with everyone else.
Donovan felt a slight shift beside him as Larkin turned onto her back. A moment later, he heard her sigh. He smiled a little; she was still awake. For a moment, he thought she had gone to sleep. Unlike him, it didn't usually take long for her to drift away, but she was as troubled as he. Slowly, he turned onto his side to face her. When she realized that he too, was awake, she turned slightly to face him. His eyes were gazing into hers so very intensely. She loved his eyes most of all. They had more character in them than some people had in their entire bodies. Even in the dark, they shimmered with a life seemingly all their own. She had no idea what motivated his desire to come to her as he did. She knew what he said and understood how touched he was, but he didn't deserve such a bad rap. Would she have done it for just anyone? She had to be very honest with herself. No way. It wasn't due to the fact that they'd had a 'thing.' The most hideous beast ever born had ruined his life; she had the technology and knowledge to fix it. God. I wish he wouldn't look at me like that. She noticed that he could look at her for an hour at a stretch. At first, she had felt very uncomfortable under that steady gaze, but now she enjoyed the shit out of it. She reached out to him and ran her thumb along his bottom lip. She moved her hand up and over to his cheek. She found herself thinking that it wasn't fair for a man to have such soft skin without trying, even through the stubble covering his cheeks. After a long moment, she leaned toward him and gave him a very gentle kiss on the lips. Both of them were thinking: is this a good night type thing or something else? They hadn't been together long enough to read every cue they gave off. However, both of them received their answer as soon as the kiss deepened. Larkin felt her body drifting down to the bed as Donovan's leaned over hers. Her arms went around his neck and her hands went into his hair. She loved running her fingers through the thick silkiness. Once the kiss was broken, he gazed down into her eyes and ran his hand along her face. God, she was beautiful.
Nonchalantly, he threw the covers off their bodies. He broke the gaze as his lips and tongue made a sensuous trail down her throat. His large hand cupped her breast and she felt her nipple hardening beneath it. The moment his lips began to move lower, he slipped his hand aside and drew the nipple between his lips, not quite suckling it, but grazing it with his teeth and teasing it with his tongue. When he didn't repeat the same process on her other nipple, she let out a long sigh of disappointment that was quickly buried in another breathless kiss. During the kiss, his hand slid down the length of her body. Before long, he settled it between her legs. He certainly doesn't hesitate to go for the gusto. His hand caressed her slowly, tenderly, as if he were afraid he'd cause her harm. She wanted to remove his hand, but couldn't touch him. He had the same effect on her that he had had when he first made love to her. She moaned softly within their heated kiss as he slipped his middle finger inside her, not necessarily entering her, but ruthlessly manipulating the tiny bud that had begun to swell the instant he kissed her. His tongue inside her mouth matched each flick of his finger. She had just begun to feel the tingling sensation she experienced just before her climax. It was coming and coming soon. Apparently, he sensed it as well. Just as she had been on the verge, he completely withdrew his finger and ended the kiss. She was about to ask him what the hell he was doing, but his mouth and tongue began making another trail down her body. She couldn't argue with that, couldn't complain. Oh hell no. As soon as he reached her lower abdomen, he whispered something against her flesh. She couldn't quite make out the words, but it sounded like 'let me in.' At first, she had no clue what he was talking about, but then it hit her. Duh, Jane! She parted her thighs and he slid down between them. He ran his tongue along the inside of each thigh, placing a nibbling bite here and there. She moaned again and heard a word leaving her mouth, 'please.' She repeated the plea again when she felt his warm breath just inches above her. Without half a pause, he ran his tongue along the outside of her. By this time, she had closed her eyes tightly and was consistently licking her lips and chewing on them. Uh God. He was such a dirty rotten bastard for doing this to her. Yet, it felt pretty damn good. Another first for her, she had no idea how to react or what to do. His fluttering tongue was killing her ever so passionately. It didn't fail to escape her that he had yet to touch the moist heat inside.
He withdrew for a moment and her tensely wound up body began to relax a little. Uh God. Would he finally come inside her now? Just when she thought he was finished, she felt two of his fingers moving to open her. She wanted to protest, had even opened her mouth to do it. Oh, no no, please don't…don't…doooooon't. However, the words never left her, and when his tongue touched her inside, her legs immediately went around him while her hands plunged into his hair. His tongue made slow, swirling little strokes, and she thought she might die if he didn't stop. His lips encircled the most sensitive part of her sex, drawing it between his lips, and suckling it none too gently. She was certain her nails digging into his scalp weren't doing anything for him, but oh God, he was doing a multitude of shit for her. He wouldn't stop until she came and at that point, it wasn't that far away. Her body had begun to quiver and her back arched up off the bed almost severely. All the while, he continued mercilessly, not letting up for one second. Her climax was sudden, abrupt, and overwhelming. She cried out loud and high with the force of it. It struck her again and again, as he wouldn't stop. Oh Jesus, he could not keep this up all night.
After he'd left her a quivering, panting mess, he withdrew slowly and she allowed her hands to slip out of his hair. She wondered how many injuries she'd given him. He placed a scattering of moist kisses along her lower abdomen as his body moved back up the length of hers. Eventually, his lips took hers again and he kissed her deeply. She groaned a little when she felt his hardness against her. Before she had the opportunity to move, he broke the kiss and came up to his knees. She made moves to meet him, but he took hold of each side of her waist and shook his head firmly. It was obvious who wanted to be in control tonight. He had barely laid his hand on her thigh before she parted them for him again. Leaning over her, he took hold of one leg, intending to draw it around him. Instead, she threw as much of it as she could over his shoulder. Apparently, she didn't only fold her body like a pretzel when just sitting down. He slipped into her slowly and she released a small cry. Tonight, he leaned his body on his hands and she saw that he had closed his eyes the moment he began moving with her. Her hands grasped his arms and she cried out 'uh uh uh' with each driving thrust. His own groans and growls left him, mingling with hers, and she allowed an incoherent curse to leave her mouth as she felt yet another mind bending release. His body began to get slick with sweat as he fought back his own release. His face was drawn into an impassioned grimace that could have been pained or euphoric. It was hard to tell. The moment he opened his mouth and drew in a hissed breath, she knew it would not be long. Her hands moved to slip beneath his arms and her nails dug into the soft flesh she found there as she felt yet another trembling release. She couldn't stand much more. Her eyes closed tightly and her head moved from side to side as she kept denying and fighting. He couldn't do this to her, couldn't keep sending her over again and again. It wasn't supposed to feel like this. It wasn't supposed to be like this. She dug her nails into him a second time when her body betrayed her again. This time, he opened his mouth and called out a growling string of words in a language alien to her: Ich kann nicht glauben, was Sie zu mir gemacht haben. [I can't believe what you've done to me.] A moment later, his body stilled, and a groan escaped him as he met his sweet release. His head tilted back ever so slightly. She continued to run her hands up and down his sides as his body worked through his release. She felt many, many strong bursts of fluid exiting him and entering her. Without losing his connection with her body, he helped ease her leg off his shoulder. He didn't want to put his full weight on her, but damn, she had worn him out. After a few moments, he withdrew from her and lay on his side. She lay against him, her lips delicately trailing over his chest.
"What language was that," she asked, her face searching his in the dark.
"It's German."
"German," she asked, "Where did you learn that?"
He smiled a little. "My great-great grandmother was German and I learned the language from her. I slip into it during very intense moments."
"What you said…what does it mean?"
"Basically, I was musing aloud, saying that I can't believe what you've done to me," he said.
Intrigued now, she looked up at him. "What have I done," she asked, smiling a little.
"You've touched almost every facet of my life and made me truly feel again," he told her. "Selena, how am I ever going to repay you for what you've done for me?"
She kissed his lips ever so gently. "Let's see…perhaps you could assault me repeatedly with that gigantic tool of yours and give me ten thousand orgasms?"
He returned her kiss, both of them chuckling within it. "I think that's been covered already, don't you?"
"Hmm, maybe. Think you can sleep now, Hot Stuff?"
He laughed. "Yes. I'm completely exhausted."
* * *
The next morning, both Larkin and Donovan made their way to the scene of the accident. Donovan had gotten directions from Cody just moments ago. According to Cody, the police had yet to clear the scene, so all of the wreckage should still be there, relatively untouched. Larkin drove them out and they immediately noticed a crew of county and city cops milling about, taking photos, etc. The two of them left the car and walked toward the group of police officers.
"Excuse me, but this is a closed crime scene," an officer said as she approached the couple.
Larkin, not the most chipper of people right at that moment had a smart remark, "Goody for it," she said sarcastically. She whipped out her identification. "FBI." She nudged Donovan with her elbow. "Show her your ID, Slim."
What the hell is she doing? First it was babe and now it's slim. She had taken a superior tone to the cops and he knew from experience that they hated it. Sighing, he dug out his ID [lucky I brought it] and flipped it toward the female officer. The PO sighed in aggravation and allowed the two agents through [superior assholes…hate those fuckers]. At the edge of a steep ravine, both Larkin and Donovan saw where some type of vehicle had burst through a guardrail, digging grooves into the side of the ditch, and then it had nose-dived into the bottom of the ravine. The bus was a burned out hulk. The sickening smell of smoke mixed with another smell assaulted Larkin's nostrils. Nausea attacked her and she had to back away a little. Someone had definitely burned to death down there. She moved away quickly. If she didn't, her insides would be outside in a big way. Donovan followed her back up to the top of the ravine. She approached one of the cops.
"How many people were in the bus when it wrecked? How many bodies did you remove," Larkin asked.
"Four; the driver and three female inmates. You can probably get a list of the inmates from the coroner."
Without waiting a millisecond, Larkin took off for her car. If Donovan's legs weren't relatively long, she would have left him behind. They climbed into the car and she directed it back toward the city. "There was definitely a wreck down there," she said, "and deaths. Jesus."
"And the number of inmates matches what we know. Once we confirm the number of bodies, then we'll have the answers we seek."
She nodded. "God, I hope so."
The coroner's officer was a bit more receptive to the two agents and didn't give them much fuss or muss. He offered to give them a count of the bodies, but it wasn't good enough for Donovan. He wanted to go himself. There was no way in hell Larkin wanted to do that. She stood back and waited. It was true that she was an FBI agent, but her division didn't have to come in contact with bodies that damn often. Her side was the 'softer' side. The smell of seared flesh had already tainted her senses and it was an odor she didn't want to encounter again. When Donovan returned, he nodded solemnly. She immediately knew what it meant. The right number of bodies was there. Hallelujah.
* * *
New Years Eve, 2003Donovan thought he must have been an idiot to book a flight back to Chicago on New Years Eve. The damn airport was almost to capacity. It had taken nearly four hours to check in. After that gory process, he and Larkin had walked over to his terminal to await the flight. He hated goodbyes; he had never been good at them. He gazed down at Larkin, and she reached over and grasped his hand tightly. Apparently, she wasn't good at goodbyes, either.
"Two weeks," he asked.
She nodded. "Two weeks. I finally begged them into letting me have vacation time," she said with a smile. God. What are we doing? A long distance relationship?
He squeezed her hand tightly. "I'm glad the begging worked," he told her. "So, what I'd like to do now is give you one last kiss and then send you away."
"All right." He didn't want to walk away from her and she didn't want to watch him. "Two weeks," she added, basically reminding herself as well as him.
"Until then." He leaned down and kissed her deeply. When the kiss was broken, he touched her cheek. "Go, Selena," he whispered down to her.
Larkin released his hand. "I'm going."
She turned and moved away from him. With a smile, he watched her until she was out of sight. God. He had just experienced the best three weeks in his life since Taryn died, and now it was over. Two weeks seemed too damn long. Slow down, Donovan. Slow down.
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To be continued…