A/N: I wrote Defeated as a one shot, but then I wrote King of Hearts (actually a prequel to Defeated) for the 2014 Smut Off with Miss-Murdered and I've just fallen in love with these characters so I wrote Brand New Day. Entanglement is a multi-chapter fic of the events taking place after Brand New Day. You definitely need to read those three one shots before reading this.
Warnings: Angst, language, sex
Pairings: 2x3, 1x2x3, past 1x4, past 1x5
Entanglement
Chapter One
As Trowa walked into the locker room at La Palestra he tried to shrug off the feeling that today was going to be a very bad day.
He wasn't sure why it felt so ominous - his court appearance this afternoon was to deliver opening statements in an overwhelmingly simple case - and his day had started out much the same as it always did.
At five-thirty he and Duo got up, Duo grumbling as he put on his running clothes and shoes and Trowa packing his gym bag and managing to grab Duo for a morning kiss before he left. He had taken a cab across town to the Rushmore and, as usual, he had the locker room to himself in the gym. Everything was normal.
Except that it wasn't, not really.
Trowa pulled on his jammers and had to admit to himself that while Duo had stood still long enough for Trowa to kiss him before leaving their apartment for his morning run, he hadn't kissed him back - hadn't grabbed Trowa's ass and smirked against his mouth, hadn't tried to get him to go back to bed, hadn't made any lewd comments, hadn't promised to engage in some very inappropriate office sex later.
It had been like this for the past two weeks, ever since they had followed Darlian's instructions to take Heero Yuy out and court him for MLG. That night…
Trowa was usually level headed, even when it came to Duo, but seeing his husband dancing with Heero, watching the way their bodies fit together and the lust in their eyes had pushed him to an alien place of concern - but then Heero was charming, funny in a quiet, deeply sarcastic way that Trowa loved and by the end of the night Trowa was the one who seemed to fit perfectly with Heero, at least according to Duo. They had stayed up for hours after leaving Heero, pacing and fighting and finally sleeping in separate beds for days before Duo finally came back to their bed, claiming that the guest bed pillows were too hard.
They hadn't spoken about Heero since that night, since the fight where they accused each other of boredom and wandering lust, and while Trowa knew that they likely would discuss Heero again since he had accepted a position at MLG, he wasn't eager to do it anytime soon.
He also wasn't eager to see him again, and every day he walked past that corner office and saw it empty he was able to sigh in relief. He knew Heero was an excellent lawyer and would be an amazing asset to MLG, but Trowa had absolutely no idea how the three of them would be able to sit in a room together and not think about how perfect that one night had been.
Of course, it clearly didn't matter what Trowa wanted.
As he walked out to the pool he spotted the lean, wiry body that had haunted his dreams for months.
Heero Yuy was standing on the edge of the pool, stretching.
Trowa swallowed hard and forced his gaze up, away from the sight of Heero's perfect ass, showcased criminally well by his black jammers, away from his golden skin, his trim waist and his strong shoulders, away from his wild, dark hair as it disappeared under a swim cap.
Heero turned, his blue eyes widening in brief surprise at the sight of Trowa and then darkening with pleasure and lust as they looked over his half naked body.
Trowa felt his mouth go dry and he pulled on his own swim cap and looked away.
Fuck. Heero was beautiful. His body as sculpted as any classical work of art and his dark blue eyes were practically electric.
Heero walked over to him and Trowa fought back the childish instinct to run away.
"Is Duo here too?" Heero asked.
Trowa shook his head.
"No. He's a runner and he likes to exercise alone."
That seemed to surprise Heero.
"Seems a shame to waste this gym membership," Heero said, referring to the $12,000 annual membership fees that MLG paid.
Trowa had to smirk.
"Oh, it's not wasted. He gave it to Bowen - a guy in IT, who now more or less worships the ground Duo walks on."
Heero nodded.
"It seems like there are a lot of people who feel that way about him."
Trowa shrugged.
"Duo's an easy guy to like, and he takes the time to be kind to people."
Heero nodded again and Trowa sighed. He was being ridiculous.
"I suppose this means you'll be starting work with us soon?"
"Today, actually," Heero said and smirked slightly. "It would have been sooner but I was… punished for leaving."
He didn't elaborate, and even though Trowa was curious, he didn't ask.
Heero gestured to the water.
"What's your normal workout?"
"6000 yard freestyle ladder."
"Every day?"
"No, every other. I do cardio on Tuesdays and Thursdays."
Heero nodded.
"Sounds good."
Trowa felt like he had missed something, but before he could ask what Heero was talking about, the other man approached the edge of the pool.
"Ready?"
Heero arched an eyebrow at him and Trowa realized that Heero had just given his workout approval and fully intended to join him.
Trowa pulled on his goggles.
"Sure."
Without speaking, they dove into the water and for the next two hours Trowa pushed himself - trying desperately to focus on his body, the water, anything but the sleek body in the lane next to him.
They didn't speak, didn't pause, didn't acknowledge each other in any way until they finally hauled themselves out of the water.
When they did, Heero smirked at him, breathing heavily, his chest rising and falling and his abdominal muscles flexing with the effort and Trowa angrily, painfully ripped off his swim cap and his goggles.
What the hell was wrong with him?
"That was good," Heero said and followed him away from the pool, all the way to the hot tub in the locker rooms and he sat down across from Trowa, their feet and knees bumping together.
Trowa had to nod. As furious with himself as he was, he had to admit that it had been a great workout. He knew his times had been good, his form even better than normal - and that had everything to do with the fact that Heero Yuy had been his lane partner.
"I don't normally work out with anyone," Trowa felt the need to say.
Early on in their relationship, Trowa had tried to run with Duo - he didn't particularly enjoy running, but he was willing to try it out if it meant more time spent with the long haired man of his dreams. Duo, however, wasn't used to a running partner and he didn't seem to want one - he set a hard pace and whenever Trowa did keep even with him, Duo would just run faster, as though it was some competition or he simply needed to be free of Trowa's presence. After three attempts, Trowa had given up and returned to his normal workout routine of swimming and cardio.
"It's better than working out alone," Heero said.
Trowa arched an eyebrow, he had pegged Heero for the independent, anti-social type.
"There was a senior partner at Z&P that I used to work out with," Heero offered and then shrugged. "It was a lot more competitive than this was, and the view wasn't nearly as good." He said the last with yet another smirk and Trowa had to shake his head.
Heero Yuy was damned confident and too damned sexy.
Trowa got out of the hot tub after only a few minutes and grabbed a towel on his way to the showers.
Heero, not at all surprisingly, fell into step beside him.
For the first time ever, Trowa resented the private showers at La Palestra and fondly wished for the gang showers of the YMCA he had swam at as an associate. There he would have had the chance to admire Heero's naked body under the hot water.
Here, Trowa had to content himself with the memory of Heero's body and the knowledge that he was naked in the stall next to him.
He wished they had taken the time to shower or bathe together that night. The hotel room had had an enormous bathtub, even bigger than the one at their apartment, and the three of them could have easily drowned in it. He would have loved to feel Heero's slick body, his powerful thighs and his -
Trowa abruptly realized he was stroking himself, hand tight on his hard cock and he felt like a guilty teenager.
That only lasted for a moment, until the full weight of his treacherous thoughts hit him and he thought of Duo.
He scrubbed his body with clinical detachment, cranking the water temperature low and shivering under the icy spray.
And of course Heero was there, towel wrapped low on his slim hips and his biceps flexing as he dried his hair with another towel, when Trowa stepped out of his shower.
He swallowed hard and looked away.
This was ridiculous. He had seen gorgeous, half naked men before who weren't his husband and he had been able to look away. He had been able to compare them to Duo, to his teasing smirk and his eyes and his sexy laugh and the way his entire body seemed to melt when he reached orgasm.
But forcing himself to think about Duo only made him think about Heero more - because Heero's face was so intense during sex, his firm body so powerful and his mouth felt so incredible wrapped around Trowa's cock.
Trowa walked past Heero and towards his locker. This had to stop.
"Is there anyone I should look out for at work?" Heero asked, stopping in front of the lockers across from Trowa.
Trowa looked over, a mistake, since Heero had pulled off his towel and was in the process of putting on black boxer briefs that looked exactly like the pair he had worn that night. His cock, soft and nestled against dark curls, was incredibly distracting.
"Trowa?"
He looked up at Heero's amused expression, and felt like a complete moron.
Heero pulled the briefs up.
"Sorry, what?"
Heero actually chuckled. It should have made Trowa furious, should have embarrassed him further, but instead he found himself sighing and smirking.
"I asked if you had any advice for me. On the people at MLG."
"Oh. Right. You don't need to look out for anyone. Well, not with Relena in England," he smirked again at the look of pain that crossed Heero's face at the mention of her name, "and Treize Khushrenada seems content to stay over there as well. Everyone else is - they're great at their jobs and for the most part decent human beings. You should make an effort to stay on the good sides of Stacey, Bowen, Gina - she's your secretary - Vandy, Bill and Mackenzie."
"Who are all of those people? Bowen is the IT guy?"
Trowa nodded.
"Stacey, Bill and Mackenzie are the best paralegals - Stacey, by far, is the best, but Bill and Mac know their stuff. And you met Vandy."
"Why do I have to stay on his good side?"
"His uncle is the head of HR - trust me when I say that the road to Senior Partner is littered with the corpses of Junior Partners who treated Vandy like shit."
"What do I need to do to stay on their good side?"
Trowa considered the question, considered the information he and Duo had spent years accumulating - and he sighed again.
"Get dressed. I'll take you shopping."
Heero arched a questioning eyebrow.
"Trust me. Start off treating them right and you won't regret it."
Trowa looked at his cellphone and bit back a curse as he looked at his calendar.
Now he knew why he had felt this day would be terrible - he was scheduled to meet Duo and Helen, Duo's mother, for lunch.
He bit back a curse, wishing Duo had reminded him that morning but knowing that it was his own fault for forgetting. If he had known, he would have worn one of the ties she had bought him over the years.
With a sigh he dressed in a suit he remembered her saying she didn't care for much - she thought navy didn't suit him as well as it did Duo.
After he had dressed he grabbed his brush and hair gel and styled his hair. Duo called it his "Sex Me, Your Honor" hair. Trowa normally let his long bangs fall forward, usually covering almost one of his eyes, but on days when he had to appear in court he took the time to style it, brushing it back into a pompadour that left his face uncomfortably open.
Duo claimed that Trowa won half of his court cases with his hairstyle alone - he teased him constantly about being so sexy he distracted everyone from the judge to the jury to the opposing counsel to the bailiff.
Heero's eyes narrowed.
"Why don't you wear your hair like that all of the time?"
"Wouldn't be fair to you mere mortals," Trowa said and Heero chuckled. "It's my court hair."
"You're distractingly sexy with your hair in your face," he said, "but this… I'm glad I never had to face you in court."
Trowa rolled his eyes.
"You're Heero Yuy. You would have been fine. Even I can't be that much of a distraction for you."
"You'd be surprised," Heero muttered, heat in his eyes and Trowa had to look away.
"It's almost nine. I have a lunch date at eleven-thirty. We should be able to get this done before then."
Heero fell into step beside him as they left the locker room.
"Lunch date?"
Trowa nodded.
"Duo. And his mother."
Heero's lips twitched.
"I take it she doesn't approve?"
"Approve?"
"The way you said it - does she not approve of his sexuality?"
Trowa had to laugh.
"Helen knew Duo was gay at least five years before he did. No, she approves of that."
"She doesn't approve of you?" Heero sounded shocked.
Trowa flagged down a cab and instructed the driver to take them to Bendel's.
"I'm not a doctor, a politician or the prince of Denmark." Trowa sighed. "She's learned to accept me, and honestly, I think every man short of - maybe - Jesus isn't good enough for Duo in her mind."
"Why the maybe?"
Trowa smirked at him.
"She thinks he was a bit of a prude and probably wouldn't have been very good in the sack."
Heero chuckled.
"We get along - and we've had years to practice being nice to each other in front of Duo - but I can't say that I ever look forward to these luncheons."
"How often do you see her?"
Trowa shrugged.
"We do lunch every few months, New Year's, her birthday, she comes out to our house on the Cape for a few days in the summer." He sighed. "It's not that often, and she loves Duo - and she understands that I love him too."
They arrived at Bendel's and Trowa put all thoughts of Helen at the back of his mind.
"Gina – your new secretary – is crazy about her dog," Trowa told Heero as they walked into the boutique.
"Then why are we at Bendel's?" Heero asked, a look of disdain and mild alarm on his face as he sniffed the air.
"Because she's also crazy about designer accessories," Trowa told him and picked up a rhinestone dog collar and handed it to Heero.
The other man regarded it and Trowa skeptically.
Trowa shrugged.
"You don't have to do it. I wouldn't have bothered with any of this over the last five years if not for Duo. He figures that while yes, their job is to do their job well, everyone will do their job better if they know you care about them."
Heero looked at the price tag on the collar and sighed.
"Fine."
Trowa scrolled through his list as Heero paid for the exorbitant dog collar and arranged to have it delivered to the office.
"Florist next," Trowa told him and led the way out of the store and they climbed into a cab and headed to Belle Fleur.
"I appreciate this," Heero said as they sat in the cab, waiting for traffic to move.
Trowa shrugged.
"It's not a big deal."
"All the same. This is… not the way I was treated by colleagues at Z&P."
Trowa sneered.
"Well, we're Satan's spawn at MLG, so I'm sure that accounts for the difference."
Heero chuckled.
"So that's how you've thought of me all this time?"
"Don't flatter yourself – I didn't think of you at all."
Heero arched an eyebrow.
"Well, obviously, I did – but only because of that night. I didn't know who you were."
"Would it have made a difference?"
Trowa nodded.
"Yes. Duo's rule was that we didn't get to know 'him' – it was supposed to be a one night stand and neither of us wanted to complicate things."
"What was your rule?"
"No talking." Trowa shook his head. "I didn't want to think about Duo's voice and some stranger – his voice is one of the things I love the most about him."
Heero nodded, seeming to understand.
"I'm sorry to have complicated things."
Trowa looked over at him.
"You aren't sorry in the least."
Heero smirked.
"No, I'm not really."
They arrived at Belle Fleur and Trowa consulted his notes again.
"MacKenzie likes roses – but she hates yellow. Bill prefers orchids. Stacey prefers anything exotic."
Heero frowned.
"You said she was the best of the paralegals?"
Trowa nodded in agreement.
"Shouldn't I get her something… more…permanent?"
Trowa smirked. As first year associates he and Duo had spent seven months trying to figure out what perfume Stacey wore so that they could buy some for her as a gift. Duo had filched one of her scarves and gone to every high end perfume counter in the City and a few in Paris before they finally found the right perfume in London. Stacey had accepted it with a sigh and patted them on the head, as though they were cute but stupid children. She had instructed them to stick with flowers in the future.
"Stacey likes expensive gifts that are like men – the moment they start to wilt she throws them out."
Heero's lips twitched.
"I see."
Trowa nodded.
"She likes to be appreciated, but she doesn't want to feel that she owes you anything."
Heero nodded.
"I understand. Does she have a color preference?"
Trowa shook his head.
"Just not orange."
Heero sighed but started to look through the pre-made arrangements. Trowa trailed behind him.
"What about Duo?"
"Does he dislike orange? No, he doesn't like it much either, though," Trowa said, thrown off by the non-sequiter.
"I meant, does he like flowers?"
"Oh. No. They remind him of funerals, and he doesn't like things that are temporary."
Heero nodded, seeming to file that information away.
"And you?"
"Me?"
"Do you like flowers?" Heero asked.
"Yes," Trowa answered cautiously, hoping that Heero didn't plan on actually buying any for him.
"Any preferences?"
"Yes," Trowa responded vaguely. He could only imagine what Duo's reaction would be if Heero gave him flowers.
But Heero just nodded, as if Trowa had given him the answer he wanted, and selected flowers for Stacey and MacKenzie and an orchid for Bill.
"Two more stops," Trowa told Heero once he had paid for and arranged the delivery of the flowers.
Trowa took him to Martinez Cigar store for Vandy – who didn't smoke cigars but loved to give them to his uncle Lou – and then to A.C. Gears to get something for Bowen. The IT guy didn't trust anyone to pick out gifts for him, so he instead sent over an updated wish list every week to A.C. Gears so that anyone at MLG who wanted to curry favor with him would know what to get him.
By the time they were finished shopping and had arranged to have everything delivered to the office it was eleven, and by the time they made it to the office it was eleven thirty.
Duo hadn't texted him to ask where he was, which meant that - hopefully – lunch had been cancelled or Trowa had the date wrong – or that Duo was pissed enough that he had decided not to wait.
But, as they walked down the hallway towards Trowa's office he saw Duo and Helen in Duo's office, Duo perched on the edge of his desk and explaining some story with broad hand gestures while Helen sat primly in a Chanel suit in one of the armchairs in front of him.
Trowa sighed.
"Introduce me," Heero said.
Trowa arched an eyebrow.
"Why?"
Heero shrugged.
"Parents love me. Plus, I made you late."
Trowa debated it, but Duo looked up and spotted them. His smile faltered for a moment, but then he grinned broadly and stood up, gesturing towards them, and Helen stood.
"Sure," Trowa said and led the way.
Helen was the epitome of well-preserved beauty. She was sixty, but she looked at least a decade younger and her silver-blonde hair was cut into a bob that accentuated her features. Her physique was trim, her clothes conservative and expensive, and her jewelry – purchased by Duo for her birthdays and Christmases ever since his father and brother had died when he was ten – was immaculate.
Trowa had seen photographs of Helen proudly wearing department store jewelry that Duo, as a teenager, had worked his ass off to buy her. He had had two jobs growing up – working the stockroom at a grocery store and bussing tables at a bar – and he had used the money to help pay for his education and to try to take care of his mother. They had never been poor, even after Duo's father had died they had lived a comfortable, middle class life. But Duo had always tried to take care of his mother, to make sure that she lived the life he felt she deserved.
Helen regarded Trowa with an arched eyebrow, taking in his suit with narrowed eyes.
"Helen." He stepped forward and kissed the air near her right cheek.
"Trowa. You are looking well." She looked towards Heero, smiled broadly and held out her hand. "And you must be Heero Yuy. I've heard ever so much about you."
"Mother," Duo warned, but Heero shook her hand and even smiled slightly.
"I hope it's all good things – your son and his husband are some of the best lawyers in the country and I'm going to have to work very hard to keep up with them."
Helen looked at Duo fondly.
"Yes, Duo has always been an over-achiever."
"Trowa too," Duo added.
"Mhm." Helen said noncommittally. "Are you joining us for lunch today, Heero?"
Duo looked over at Trowa, a slightly panicked expression on his face. It was the exact opposite of the relief Trowa felt at her question – Helen was clearly in top form today and he wouldn't mind having Heero there to take the brunt of her attention. But Duo's expression clearly said that he did not want a guest.
"I'm afraid not," Heero said and sounded genuinely disappointed. "It's my first day and I need to get settled in. Perhaps next time?"
Helen nodded.
"I will certainly hold you to that."
Heero started to walk towards his office and Trowa fought down the desire to retreat with him.
Heero looked over his shoulder and caught his eye. He smirked slightly, amused and sympathetic, and Trowa appreciated that at least.
When he turned back to Duo, however, he found his husband regarding him with narrowed eyes.
Trowa looked at Helen.
"Are we taking you to the Waldorf today?"
She looked between them, picking up on the tension.
"Of course we are," Duo said and stepped forward to take his mother's arm and escort her out of the office.
Trowa took a moment to set down his gym bag and his briefcase in his office and then caught up with them at the elevator.
"I'm so happy Heero Yuy is working with you, Duo," Helen said as they stepped into the elevator.
"Mother," Duo sounded exasperated.
"You know how I've always felt about him. It was always such a disappointment to me when you –"
"Mother. We've been over this already. Several times."
There was a note of anger in Duo's voice, which was unusual – he never seemed to be upset with his mother, even when she was treated Trowa horribly.
He wondered just what Helen was talking about and why Duo seemed so upset about it.
But when he looked at Duo over Helen's head, there were no answers on his face or in his eyes. He seemed just as frustrated with Trowa as he was with his mother.
-o-
It was eight by the time Trowa made it home.
When he walked into the apartment he could smell something amazing and he sighed happily.
Duo was clearly still upset with him, but at least he was still willing to make Trowa's favorite meal, dry-rub pork tenderloin.
He walked into the kitchen, Duo's domain and the main reason they had purchased this apartment in the first place, and saw Duo dressed in shorts, a t-shirt and an apron.
Trowa set down his bags and approached Duo from behind, wrapping his arms around his waist and kissing the side of his neck.
"It smells amazing," he said. "Thank you."
"Don't worry about it. I always make this for you after you suffer through lunch with my mother."
Duo wiggled free and started to plate the meal – the pork, fresh sautéed green beans and mashed potatoes.
Trowa sighed happily. The torture of lunch was almost worth it, for the sake of this meal.
"How was court?" Duo asked.
Trowa shrugged.
"Fine. It's not a complicated case – Mueller is the opposing council, so I'm tempted to just let one of the associates take over but…"
"But you enjoy making him lose too much," Duo finished for him, smirking slightly.
Trowa nodded in agreement and poured each of them a glass of wine.
He helped Duo set the dining room table and then sat down to eat.
After his first bite he closed his eyes and sighed happily.
"Thank you," he said again.
"Stacey was pleased with the flowers Heero gave her," Duo said after a few moments of eating in silence.
"Good," Trowa said. "It took him almost twenty minutes to pick them out."
"They were from Belle Fleur," Duo continued and his tone clued Trowa into the fact that this conversation was notgoing to end well.
"Stacey always preferred their arrangements," Trowa said.
Duo nodded.
"I know. It took us years to figure that out."
"You're angry that I told Heero about Belle Fleur?"
Duo shrugged.
"Belle Fleur, Martinez, A.C. Gears, Bendel's…"
"What was I supposed to do? Tell him to go to Macy's?"
"Why not?" The question was surprisingly open question, without any malice.
Trowa considered. Why not indeed?
"Perhaps I should have," he allowed. "If he was any other Junior Partner I would have."
"But he sucked your cock so you wanted to be nice to him," Duo said.
Trowa sighed and set down his fork.
"That wasn't why."
"Oh?"
"I like him. He's… a friend."
Duo arched an eyebrow.
"Really? You two been hanging out all this time?"
"No. Of course not. We worked out together this morning – and we both enjoyed his company before," Trowa added, referencing the night of their anniversary and the night only a few weeks ago when they had taken Heero out.
Duo was clenching his jaw hard enough that a muscle jumped.
"You worked out with him?"
"His membership kicked in, it was a random coincidence – but it was nice to be able to work out with someone."
Duo nodded.
"Sure. I get that."
"And what the hell was your mother talking about today? About Heero?"
Duo shook his head.
"It was nothing. It doesn't matter."
That made Trowa arch an eyebrow. There was very little they didn't tell each other, and the fact that Duo was trying to avoid telling him this only made him more curious.
"Tell me."
Duo sighed and fidgeted with his wine glass.
That was a very bad sign.
"When we first moved in together… you know she wasn't your biggest fan."
"She still isn't my biggest fan," Trowa muttered.
"She just – she likes you, Tro."
"But she doesn't think I'm good enough for you."
Duo gave him a look.
"She's wrong about that. We both know that."
Duo looked sincere, and Trowa was grateful for that. He could sense another fight brewing and he knew that Duo would likely be sleeping in the guest room again tonight, but at least he still took Trowa's side over his mother's.
"What was she talking about today?" Trowa prompted him again when it was clear Duo had no intention of elaborating.
"It was – when we moved in and I told her I thought you were, you know, the one for me, she sort of… compiled a list of eligible bachelors she thought I should date instead of you."
Trowa could only stare at him.
"You never told me about this."
Duo gave him a look.
"What the hell would I have said? Hey Tro, love the new apartment and I'm certain you're the love of my life but my mother wants me to go out on blind dates with the Fortune 500 – do you mind?"
"Duo, this isn't a joke. Your mother – wait. Heero was on that list?"
Duo sighed.
"Yeah. He was on the list. So were like twelve other guys you know and –"
"Are you serious? Who else?"
Duo glared at him.
"It doesn't matter.I don't want anyone on that damn list. I want you."
"Do you?" Trowa had to ask, thinking back over the last two weeks. "Do you want me – do you still want this – us?"
"Of course I do!"
"Duo. We haven't had sex since before we took Heero out."
"I was out of town last weekend and we've been busy as hell –"
"You don't want to have sex with me. Is it because I'm not Heero?"
"No! It's because I'm not Heero and you clearly wish I was –"
"I absolutely do not wish you were him," Trowa assured Duo. "I want you."
"Just me?" Duo asked, and it brought Trowa up short.
He swallowed hard.
"And you?" he asked. "Do you want just me?"
Duo stared at him, reluctant to answer.