Excerpt of 'For The Good of Country'

by jadvisioness

While Don knew himself to be a firm heterosexual male, he’d come across a handful of men who had, completely unknowingly, piqued his interest. Excuse formatting problems.

Title: Excerpt of 'For The Good of Country' (a Numb3rs non-posted WIP)
Character(s)/Pairings: Colby, Ian and Don – with Colby/Ian and Don/Ian mild UST
Rating: PG-17?
Warnings: None?
Spoilers: Humvee accident

Author's Notes: This is an excerpt of a story I'm working on that is looking to be a multiple crossover. It's still in the beginning stages but... I thought I'd post this and see what kind of reaction, it any, that I'd get. When I started this, I had wanted Colby and Ian to get together with an OFC, but Don keeps wanting in on the fun as well so... /laugh.

As always: Purely for entertainment; I claim no ownership of anything other than the idea of the story I've created – everything else belongs to all the PTBs/cast/crew and etc. of the Numb3rs franchise. No disrespect is meant to all those who created the worlds that we love to play in and the characters whom we love to read/write about. To the actors/actresses/beings who portray those characters, we wouldn't love them as much as we do without your talent and dedication.

At any rate, Don fell down a flight of stairs and fractured a rib. Ian took him home after a long day at work, because Don wouldn't go home after the ER visit.

While Don knew himself to be a firm heterosexual male, he'd come across a handful of men who had, completely unknowingly, piqued his interest. He had felt so attracted to a couple of them that he'd had to take himself in hand, several times, which made him very upset, angry and disgusted with himself. Don had finally had to stop all contact with them in order for him to regain his equilibrium.

However, one of the males that he'd never been able to get out of his system was Ian Edgerton. Every time Ian showed up, it was a battle to treat him as just another agent, another male, one that didn't make it necessary to take cold showers whenever he had the chance. Yes, Ian deserved respect, but he highly doubted the FBI sniper would approve of his dick standing up and saluting him.

Even though Don and Ian were the same age, while Ian had spent time in the military, Don had been in a minor league baseball team before chucking it in and joining the FBI. After his years in the Fugitive Recovery unit, he had moved to teaching at Quantico for a short period of time before accepting a leadership position in New Mexico. That had ended when he moved back to California to be with his family as his mother struggled, and eventually lost her battle, with cancer.

While he'd heard of Ian Edgerton, Don hadn't actually met the man until he was at Quantico as a guest lecturer during his time in New Mexico. Don would never forget, no matter how much he wanted to, because it only took one moment for the image of the sniper to be burned into his mind.

**Flashback**

Many people would be surprised to know that the FBI Academy was pretty much like any other educational facility. But most people wouldn't be, to find out that, considering the high pressure of law enforcement, stress levels were higher than usual for the curricula that was being taught.

However, they would probably be astonished to learn that Quantico had its share of pranksters.

There seemed to be at least one prankster per group that came through the Academy at any given time. The time that Don Eppes met Ian Edgerton, there were two. And they seemed to be having a competition. It was that, that brought Agents Eppes, dressed in a suit, on his way to teaching an afternoon class, face to face with the FBI sniper, naked… well, mostly.

The look on the sniper's face was cold, dangerous and, Don had to admit, very scary. He'd obviously just gotten in from an exercise, his face and parts of his hands were covered in camouflage paint – smeared as if he'd had just enough time to start washing his face. Ian's hair was plastered to his head, purple lather dripping down his body to soak into the low-hanging, white towel with purple speckles that was wrapped around his waist.

Trying not to look too closely, Don realized that whatever the purple stuff was, it stained. Ian's hair had a purple tinge to it and there were streaks and dots all over his body, at least the top half. Don didn't trust himself not to look past the man's abdominal muscles, nor did he think the sniper would allow him to live if he even looked like he was looking.

When the other man spoke, in contrast to the fire in his eyes which, Don swore, would make an inferno of whoever he was looking for, his voice seemed to freeze the air around him. "Anyone run by you?"

Eppes found himself swallowing before he answered, just to get some saliva in his mouth, even though he only shook his head.

The sniper looked at him, as if he were judging his soul, before moving passed. Don found himself following the man with his eyes and he had to swallow again for an entirely different reason.

Much later, Don wondered if the academy was going to implement any rules regarding pranksters, especially when it came to stealing clothing and filling shower heads with purple food coloring just before sniper evaluations.

**End Flashback**

Don sighed, And now he's here in my apartment, sleeping in the guest room. However, before he could do much more, his body gave itself over to its exhaustion and he dropped into sleep.

Ian had suspected for some time that Don was interested in him. However, the sniper had no wish to turn Don's world upside down with disrupting the firm heterosexual view of his sexuality that the lead agent obviously worked very hard to maintain. While Ian knew there was something between them, obvious attraction combined with… for lack of a better word or term, 'connection,' Ian wouldn't be the one to act on it.

The man yawned, stretching his long, toned body out on the bed. No, he wouldn't act on whatever it was that drew him to Don, not with Colby still in the equation. Definitely no, if Colby was still available, still interested in him after all this time; Ian would wait.

His mind finally began to settle down from the day and, as his eyes grew heavy, the sniper allowed himself to reminisce over his and Colby's time together, slowly falling into slumber.

The first time he met Colby Granger, the big blonde had been sitting under one of the few trees at base camp, reading a letter, a book in his lap. Considering the pristine condition of the paper, Ian assumed it had arrived in the mail package that had been on the same transport he'd come in on. And when the blonde had raised a bottle of beer that had been hiding on the other side of him, Ian caught sight of a box sitting close to the tree near the man's back, confirming Ian's assumption.

The sniper continued to study the blonde; while Ian had seen his share of soldiers, all shapes, colors and attitudes, this one had a very quiet, strong feel to him – something that wasn't common among men of his size and build. And while Ian was certain that the man wasn't knowingly projecting the image, he'd bet that anyone who didn't know the blonde would think of him as the perfect, stereotypical big-dumb meathead. His physique, being that of a linebacker for some football team, or just simple cannon fodder, would certainly back up that impression.

"Something I can do for you, Sir?"

While Ian had traveled in fatigues, his rank was far above the solider in front of him; there wasn't much traffic near them at the moment and since Ian opted not to introduce himself to the blonde, it was a reasonable question.

Just enjoying the view, the sniper mused inwardly. "Nope, sorry." Ian started walking passed the blonde, heading to the post's headquarters, looking into the box as he did so.

Over the next four days of Ian's mission, he couldn't take his mind completely off the man he'd met. Although Ian had always been attracted to the opposite sex, over time he'd found himself increasingly drawn to men. While he'd only been involved in a handful of relationships over his lifetime, two having been formed in the military, they weren't something he fought against or specifically pursued either. However, there was something… something very… there was something Ian couldn't give words or voice to that was drawing him to the big blonde, making his previous casual attitude seem tawdry.

While the sniper knew Granger wasn't a saint – he couldn't be and be a soldier – he also knew, based on the titles of the books he'd seen, that the soldier wasn't the meathead either. He wondered how many people actually knew the big blonde and if there was a way he could be one of them.

After Ian's mission was complete, the sniper was waiting on transport to his next destination when he met up with Granger again. The soldier was sitting outside a small bar, hands occupied with another book. While the last had been something light hearted, this one appeared to be on the other side of the spectrum. Next to him were two other books of different subject matter.

Definitely still waters running deep, he couldn't help thinking. Before the other could call Ian on his presence again, the sniper walked up to the soldier and introduced himself this time.

Over the course of the next two days, Ian had gotten to know a bit about Colby Granger. He found that, unlike a variety of military personnel overseas, Colby wasn't into getting his rocks off just for the sake of doing so or drinking to get drunk. While he was quiet, it wasn't because he didn't have anything to say or that he wasn't intelligent – the books were proof of that – it was that he preferred to listen to the majority of conversations around him instead of participating in them, mostly due to his lack of interest with the topics.

And, unlike Ian, Colby came from a somewhat large family; a family with five generations of military history. However, while the sniper had met soldiers who were simply doing what was expected of them, Colby actually believed in what he was doing; believed that he was making a difference in the world. If Granger hadn't followed in the footsteps of his military relatives, the man definitely would have gone into law enforcement, perhaps even something like firefighting or search and rescue.

Too soon it was time for Ian to move on and they promised to keep in touch.

A few months later, Ian had been setting up his sniper nest near a well traveled 'road' for the first of a handful of missions in the area, when there was the distinctive sound of an RPG. Before the sniper could pinpoint the source of the noise, there was an explosion far off to his right.

Using his binoculars, he saw that a humvee, probably at the start of a regular patrol, had taken a direct hit and was enveloped in flames. Ian was much too far away to offer assistance and, despite his need to help, his mission was highly classified and he was incommunicado, complete radio silence.

Focusing the field glasses even further, he could barely see the driver struggling with something as the passenger was desperately trying to get them both out of the vehicle. Biting his lower lip to keep himself silent as he watched the drama unfold, Ian saw the flames around the humvee increasing, two unknown soldiers' lives getting closer and closer to being ended.

As two other military vehicles came into view, barreling down the road to reach them, the passenger freed himself and started working on the trapped driver. Seconds ticked by, the other vehicles getting closer, the flames getting hotter and higher. Finally, the driver was free and they both struggled to make it away from the enflamed vehicle.

Just as the other vehicles reached them, the humvee exploded.

Ian continued to watch the area, his eyes darting back to the activity near the burned vehicle, until the two vehicles left with the injured men, leaving the bombed humvee to the scavengers.

When Ian's missions in the area were complete and he was back at the base camp, Ian was able to ask after the two men he'd seen and was shocked to find that Colby had been the driver. Finding out that he had been sent to the closest military hospital with a burn unit, Ian made sure he was aboard the first available transport that was heading that way.

While they each suffered a mixed degree of burns, the passenger, Dwayne Carter, would be having a longer stay in the hospital due to his third degree burned hands. Colby was being discharged to start his medical leave two days after Ian made it to the hospital, the only third degree burned area being his left upper arm. While Colby obviously wanted to make sure that Dwayne was taken care of, Carter seemed just as adamant that Granger go home to visit with and be cared for by his family while he had the time.

That night, Ian and Colby were bunked at a hotel off base, awaiting transport to the airfield that would start their journey back to the states. Not an hour after they'd both sacked out for the night, Colby woke up from a nightmare of being surrounded by flames, knowing that he was going to die.

Ian had woken at almost the same time, hearing his friend's distress and was beside him instantly. Being a solider meant having nightmares; there should be no shame in it, but some felt it. Whatever comfort was offered should also be accepted with no shame, but, again, some felt it. As Ian talked his friend out of the panic that came with the situation, he used one hand to rub down Colby's back, the other wrapped around his chest, lightly holding him close, rocking him slowly, back and forth.

As sense returned to Colby's blank eyes, Ian didn't attempt to pull away nor did Colby make to move out of the sniper's loose embrace. Raising his head, his face damp with sweat, his body trembling with reaction, Colby leaned into Ian's strong body, resting his head on the other's shoulder, forehead against Ian's neck.

Ian stayed beside the soldier, offering his strength and warmth to the somewhat rattled man; both of them soaking in the warmth and companionship of the other, not daring to think about anything else. However, Colby soon fell back into sleep, his body still using his energy reserves to heal, using the sniper almost like a body pillow, and while Ian had no problem with the situation, he knew that if anyone walked in on them in this position it would be tantamount to admitting to being gay or bisexual and getting them both dishonorably discharged.

Slowly Ian disentangled himself from Colby's body and moved back to his own bed, already missing the large blonde's warmth.

Two days later they landed stateside and decided to rent a room for a day or two before setting out for their individual destinations. Having arrived at a time when there was some type of conference in the area, they were lucky to get any accommodations, needless to say just the one room with two double beds.

In sleep, Ian smiled to himself back in Don's guest room. Those three nights and two days spent with Colby, only leaving their room for meals and to get medical supplies when Colby's stash ran out, were a real bright spot in his life. While he'd figured that the solider had depths to him, he had been surprised by him overall. Despite appearances, they each had an unexpectedly tender side, something each of them had rarely, if ever, encountered in someone else and they reveled in it, shamelessly.

Please let me know what you think :)