A/N: Tom, Tom, turn around... A song actually inspired me. So, here's another chapter.

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More Cold Nights

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"Oh, for god's sake..." she mumbled and tried to wriggle away from the arm around her waist and the snoring thunder in her ear. "Please stop that!"

"Huh? What?!" The man behind her startled and then tightened his grip on her left breast. "Why are you waking me up, love?"

"Man, you're snorin'!" Barbara grumbled. "Not only that I just had wanted a bit of a cuddly afterplay and you simply fell asleep, now you also keep me from sleepin'."

"I'm sorry, Barb, but I'm so exhausted." Tommy yawned and placed a wet kiss on her naked shoulder. "I'm awake since eight this morning. Plus you've finished me off after dinner."

She chuckled. "Blame yourself. You shouldn't have to exercise your horse all morning 'cause you knew that you'd give your daughter her present after lunch. You could've guessed that she would want to learn riding it immediately."

"I've guessed that, you know." Tommy nibbled at her earlobe. "But I haven't guessed that your son would fidget inbetween with his bike the entire time. Where were you by the way? I could have done with some maternal help."

Barbara stretched like a yawning cat. "Aaah, I was at the coast with your mother. We talked about that bloody function and practised some yoga. Very relaxing, I tell you..."

"That's not fair!" Tommy grumbled and pulled her closer against his naked body. Barbara chuckled again while his hand changed over to her other breast. "What's so funny, woman?"

"I just remembered the first time you held me like this and snored like a rusty saw." Barbara grinned into the darkness.

"You mean when you've forced me to go on holidays at that caravan park and Jack was living in the other mobile home with mother so we can have some private moments for ourselves after that long day at the beach?" Tommy grinned and almost left a lovebite on Barbara's neck. "Mmmmh, I remember that too. You were embarrassed that probably everybody could hear us if we'd be making love but then blessed me with not holding back anything." He chuckled tickling into her nape. "And later you scolded me for sounding like a wood cutter." Then his voice turned soft. "And nine month later you gave birth to the most precious tomboy."

"She's a princess." Barbara objected.

"M-mh! A princess like you are, my wild one."

For a while Barbara just relaxed in his arms.

"Well, actually I don't mean that night. I was relating to the occasion where there was far more cloth between us. And we were in a tent in the North York Moors, chasing that - how did the press name him? Ranger-Hunter..."

"Oh, yes, I remember that night too." Tommy whispered and became romantic. His hand slid across Barbara's stomach. "When you'd waken me up I had very inappropriate thoughts about us."

"Me too, Tommy, me t- TOMMY!"

... a few years ago ...

They were walking in the North York Moors National Park. DI Lynley and DS Havers were led into the depth of the outstanding beauty by Andy Cabbott, a local ranger. Over the period of seven months two rangers were killed while sleeping in their tents, a third was shot and still fighting for his life in hospital so at one point the local CID had asked London for help. Both being single, so they easily could spend a few weeks or maybe months away from home, Lynley and Havers should act as the new rangers and this was how they were introduced to the staff. Preparatively they had learned about birds and plants and in Yorkshire they had learned more about the land and the tasks they would have. For another week they had walked the Moors with a local ranger they both did not like very much. Lynley was jealous how easy Cabbott could flirt with his sergeant and did not see that Barbara was not too pleased about the bloke's advances. In fact she was disgusted.

Eventually they even suspected him of being the Ranger-Hunter and discussed it in one of their secret meetings.

They had met so often without the others that after a short while their colleagues had been thinking of them as a couple. Cabbott had told her that over a pint after work but Barbara had denied it again so Cabbott had continued to flirt with her until his rival came in and Barbara, sick of the ranger, had shown an overexcitement about Tommy's arrival. The ranger had winked an eye and with a grin had whispered cheekily "I think you're a liar!"

She would let him think whatever he wanted, if he only would keep his hands to himself.

When Barbara had started to shyly flirt with her boss this evening and show open signs of affection she realised that it actually felt good. Tommy even had answered it likewise and so they finally had woven a private relationship into their roles.

Now that they walked deep into the woods where they should built up their tent and watch and count birds in a certain area they were prepared with the usual two-way-radio connected to the main ranger station and a secret one connected to their 24/7 backup. A continual GPS signal and an alert helicopter crew were their rear cover.

Since the murdered rangers had been stabbed in their sleep the Met, the SIS actually, had provided them with protective sleeping bags and a small alarm device for the zipper of the tent. It was quite bizarre. And stupidly dangerous.

Now they had set up the tent, counted birds, waited for the first of three nights, then ate some sandwiches and emptied the thermos flask of tea. Time for bed.

"We never should have agreed on that." DI Lynley said when he crawled into the tent. "It is too dangerous."

While DS Havers had changed into her nightwear inside he had done so on the outside, giving her a bit of a privacy. The dark green tent was too small for two persons to change into pyjamas anyway.

"Yah, let's call a cab and drive home..." Barbara muttered under her breath with the sleeping bag already closed up to her nose. Lynley set the alarm of the small lock.

Awkwardly they arranged themselves on the camping mats and turned off the small torchlight that dangled from the low ceiling.

"Sleep well, Barbara." Tommy whispered and yawned. "Let's hope nothing will happen tonight."

"Mh. Good night. Literally." She also yawned and turned her back at him. "Maybe t'morrow we'll call it off. Hare-brained idea, this whole thing."

"It's understood, Sergeant." Tommy grinned. She was right, this was a foolish idea. "First thing tomorrow, we walk back to the station. We'll have enough time to think about some fake reason to stop observing birds and then we'll talk with the Chief Super."

"First thing tomorrow will be a coffee, Sir!"

"Of course. Coffee." He yawned again. "It was a long day. Now let's just get some sleep."

Barbara felt good. She was half asleep and it was still dark but she knew she was in that tent in the heart of the Moors. It was comfortably warm. It did not feel as if she was fully wrapped in her sleeping bag anymore so she probably had wriggled her upper body out of the warm but safe thing. When she realised that it was still night she knew something must have woken her up so her heart started to suddenly race. Maybe, she thought, someone trying to enter the tent had made some noise. Barbara cautiously moved and then felt two arms around her. She noticed a warm breath at her ear. The intense smell of his typical scent made sense now. He was spooning her.

Tommy had encircled Barbara's waist, his hand laid on her stomach - she could feel it even through the thick cloth of that 007 sleeping bag - and his other arm was under her head. Barbara knew that he was still sleeping because he restarted to make an annoyingly loud sound into her ear.

"Oh, for god's sake..." she mumbled and tried to wriggle away from him. Not that she did not like it, but a few more hours of sleep before they head back to the HQ would be nice. On the other hand she could enjoy his warmth and his scent and the soft grip of his arm a bit longer. Maybe she could keep lying that way and still fall asleep again.

She moved a bit and he stopped snoring again. She could endure this.

All the more with his lips suddenly at her ear, nibbling at her earlobe. "Why're y'wakin' me up, luv?" he sleepily whispered. Obviously he was not fully awake because otherwise he never would have tightened the grip of his hand on her breast.

A soft involuntary moan escaped her lips when additionally his body pressed into her back. Awake or not, he definitely liked the situation.

"Oh, wow..." she breathed. She liked it too.

"Get back t' sleep, m' dear." his low voice hummed onto her neck. "We've a long walk ahead of's t'morr..."

He must be dreaming! Barbara thought and tried to keep as still as possible. I must be dreaming!

Maybe she could keep this situation up with punctuated motions. A smug smile played around her lips when she felt his body go limp again. Again Tommy started to snore and she softly harrumphed while stretching her shoulders into his chest.

It worked. Again he tightened his grip and nuzzled in her hair.

"Hmmm. Smells good." His lips left a wet kiss at her neck. This was too much. He actually had kissed her. Barbara did not dare to move anymore and then slowly drifted back to sleep. That is until she heard him snoring again.

After about fifteen minutes that seemed like hours she loudly said "Oh, please stop that!" and with a jolt Tommy finally was awake.

"Huh? What?!" He realised his position in an instant and quickly skidded to the other side of the tent. With incoherently stuttered words of apology he rearranged his sleeping bag around him and turned his back to her. He pretended to be fallen asleep within minutes. In fact he almost could not at all. His heart raced, his body was burning and his mind circled around the feeling of her body against his. She must have felt it. he thought slightly blushing and almost chuckled with some inappropriate thoughts bouncing through his mind.

They had mentioned the incident only months later when Tommy finally dared to confess that he really had enjoyed that night.

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A/N: Thanks for all your reviews!