Disclaimer: I don't own Leverage. Please don't sue me.
A/N: So I'm rewatching Leverage from the beginning and I was suddenly struck by how easy it would be to ship Eliot/Hardison from the very first episode. Personally I'm an Eliot/Parker/Hardison shipper, but my headcannon is that Hardison thought Eliot was hot from the beginning, but liked Parker too, so went with the more societally accepted option. So here's a little one-shot, drabble-y thing kind of describing that beginning. Cheers and enjoy!
The sight of four men armed with guns blocking his escape route was not a welcome sight. Hardison's mind was going a million miles an hour, trying to figure out an alternate escape path. The predominate thought running through his head, however, seemed to be, "Where the hell did muscle boy go?"
Almost as if Hardison's thoughts had summoned him, Spencer appeared, stepping out behind the guards. Hardison didn't even know how he had gotten there, but he really didn't care as Spencer began to nullify the guards. It was honestly one of the hottest things Hardison had ever seen, and that included the Tenth Doctor.
Now, Hardison, as a general rule, did not lust after men (David Tennant was the exception). But there was something incredibly sexy about the way that Spencer ("Eliot" a little voice whispered in his head) rolled through those guards, almost too fast for the eye to see. He left them bruised, battered, and unconscious, but alive. All of that power and skill, contained in a small, gruff frame, could have torn them apart, but chose to leave them breathing. And (this is what really tickled his pickle) it was all done in Hardison's defense.
This thought was so appealing that when Eliot turned to him and said, smirking cheekily, "That's what I do," all Hardison could do was nod in return and readjust himself when the hitter wasn't looking.
"This is going to be a long con," Hardison mentally groaned before turning back to his work, trying to ignore the scorching heat radiating off the man standing by his shoulder.
A/N: Well, there you go. Please tell me what you think! Hope you enjoyed.