Summary: Sometimes Helen's taste in music can surprise Nikola. Sometimes it doesn't surprise him one bit.
Setting: After Chimera. Nikola hangs around for a while to make sure everything's all fixed.
Disclaimer: I own nothing except the laptop this was written on. I don't own Sanctuary, any of the songs/music mentioned, or (unfortunately) Amanda Tapping.
A/N: I regret nothing, as usual. Except neglecting yet more revision to write this.
Part II ~ Hot Summer Night
~
On a hot summer night, would you offer your throat to the wolf with the red roses?
Helen froze as the sound of a man's voice filled her room, introducing a dialogue she knew all too well. Though why it was now coming from the speaker beside her bed she didn't know. She did, however, have a hunch.
She wrapped her gown tight around her to fend off the breeze drifting in from the window, which tonight offered a view of a thick fog rolling over the river and its banks, given silver highlights by the pale moonlight. Leaving her book in her chair by the fire, Helen stood listening to the entire introduction as she wondered what was going on this time. After just under a minute the speech gave way to music, and she heard a knock at the door.
As the lively strains of the song pumped softly into her room, she made her way over to her bedroom door, suspecting the identity of her visitor already.
Her suspicions were confirmed as she opened the solid oak door to see Nikola leaning against the door-frame, holding out a small posy of red roses to her, and smirking.
"On a hot summer night, will you offer your throat to the vampire with the red roses?"
"Nikola…" Wearily, she said his name in a low voice, just loud enough to make herself heard over the music.
"Well, why should Heinrich and his friends get all the glory? My version is much better." His expression was smug, his eyes glittering in excitement, and Helen nearly laughed.
"That's a matter of opinion."
"Now, Helen, you know those aren't the words." He all but purred, clearly enjoying himself. "I'll repeat it, shall I? On a hot summer night, will you offer your throat to the vampire with the red roses?"
She shook her head, but smiled. "I take it you won't leave until I reply?"
"Once again, the great Doctor Magnus is correct." He smiled, showing perfectly-white canines. "Well? Will you?"
She sighed. "Will he offer me his mouth?"
"Yes." Nikola grinned, eliciting a smile from Helen despite her tired state.
"Will he offer me his teeth?"
Nikola leant in closer, pivoting on the door-frame, to speak his line. "Yes."
"Will he offer me his jaws?" she continued, unconsciously tracing his jawline with her eyes as she spoke.
"Yes..." the movement of his jaw caused by his speech caused her to look away, up into his gleaming eyes. She looked away for a second, hating that she had been caught looking, before she spoke again.
"Will he offer me his hunger?"
Nikola's grey eyes fixed on hers, unflinching. "Yes."
"Again." She managed to steady the tremor in her voice caused by their close proximity. "Will he offer me his hunger?"
His voice was barely audible as he hissed "Yes." and leant in a little closer, inches from her now.
"And will he starve without me?" She could see Nikola's eyes flicker down to her exposed neck, seeking out her pulse point, before he forced his gaze back up to her. It was her turn to watch him look guiltily away, and she relished it in the moment it took for him to continue.
"Yes."
Then he looked at her with such a strong sense of anticipation that she shivered, and she remembered the next line. Hesitant to deliver it, she paused, searching in his eyes for the answer before she asked the question, unsure of what she even wanted it to be. She thought she knew – he'd made it clear enough over the years, but never like this...
He shifted his hand to brush hers, sensing her reluctance. "Helen..." he murmured. "You know I won't leave." And she didn't know whether he meant to remind her of his promise to stay until they completed, well, whatever this was... or whether he was suggesting something else. Something stronger, spurred by her earlier almost-admission. When she finally managed to speak, it was in a whisper.
"And... does he love me?"
She felt Nikola's breath on her lips as he whispered back. "Yes."
"Yes?"
He grinned at the questioning tone she'd added, leaning out slightly to bring the roses up to chest height, offering them again.
"On a hot summer night, would you offer your throat to the vampire with the red roses?" His grin was back in place, and she found it hard not to mirror it as she spoke her final line.
"Yes." As she'd spoken the words, Helen took hold of the flowers' stems, clasping her hand around Nikola's to take them from him. He stayed for a moment before removing his hand and speaking, trying – and failing – to keep a straight face as he did so.
"I bet you say that to all the boys."
The stillness between them was practically humming with a strange feeling, a tenseness she couldn't quite place which seemed to fill the air until she remembered to breathe again. In an instant, what was between them was broken.
She chuckled, and he looked at her, amused and curious, for a few beats while she set the posy down on a convenient dressing table.
"You got tired of Elgar, then?" The intensity of the moment was passing, and she moved a little further into her room, tightening the cord around her gown reflexively as he stepped in with her, smiling as if he couldn't quite believe what had just happened. Well, that made sense: neither could she.
"Kinda. I'm glad I did though."
She chuckled, reaching for the crystal decanter full of wine she kept beside her bed, before her hand stopped as she remembered something.
"Don't tell me you finished your wine already? That wasn't cheap, you know."
"I got... distracted." He shoved his hands into his pockets and seemed to survey her for a second.
"By my music library?"
"Well, yes." He moved a little to lean against the back of one of her armchairs. "I must say, Helen, I never took you for a Meat Loaf fan."
She raised an eyebrow. "Really? Why's that?"
"No particular reason. Although, I was under the assumption you weren't a fan of music these days."
"Ah, but Nikola, you know I'm always a fan of anyone interesting."
"Really?" it was his turn to raise an eyebrow, as he tilted his head slightly, viewing her with added interest. "Him? I didn't think he was your type."
"Nikola!" she admonished, but her eyes glittered as she continued. "You don't know a thing about 'my type'."
He shook his head a little, chuckling. "My my, Helen. You are full of surprises today."
"Thank you, Nikola."
"Oh, you are most definitely welcome." She could see his eyes dropping to trail up her legs, which were thankfully covered from the knee up.
"Nikola..." A gentle warning. He dragged his gaze back up, albeit slowly.
"Yes, Helen?" His words dripped with undisguised mischief. She laughed, her tiredness practically gone now, erased by Nikola's strange appearance. Her lips felt a little dry though, from the lipstick she'd not had a chance to refresh all day, and she licked them as discretely as possible while she reached to pour some wine. It felt odd to be in Nikola's presence without at least one of them drinking.
"Nikola, what are you doing here?" She leant in a little, and he stared as she closed the gap to speak quietly. "In my bedroom?"
Okay, she'd admit she liked teasing him. It was so easy. Plus the fact that she'd had several glasses of wine already to try and forget about what had happened inside Adam Worth's little world. Or maybe it was his behaviour there that was making her flirt back, had made her participate in his little 'duet'. She hadn't failed to notice his reaction to Worth's taunts about Ashley. She took a sip of her wine, refocusing her thoughts on Nikola, and how he was now looking at her curiously. He replied, speaking slowly, once she'd made eye contact again.
"Well..." She licked a drop of wine off her lips reflexively and he smirked, distracted – as if he were in some kind of ridiculous... fanfiction story! Helen thought. She waited, and he tilted his head, apparently listening to the music, which had since started over.
"...I see the shooting stars falling through your trembling hands..."
She groaned. After 1328 plays, she definitely knew what was coming. What she did not expect, however, was Nikola to sing along with the next line.
"You were licking your lips, and your lipstick shining." No amount of eye-rolling on her part could have stopped him as he moved closer, smiling in an almost predatory manner as he came to within an inch of her and she stayed put, unflinching. "I was dying just to ask for a taste."
"Nikola," Helen's traitorous voice was husky for no good reason, and she doubted very much that, if she were to reach for one of the many weapons in arm's reach, she'd be able to hold it steadily with her trembling hands. "What. Are. You. Doing. Here?" Each word was emphasised firmly, but she suspected it had been wasted on him; his eyes lingered on her lips for a second before snapping back up to her slightly-narrowed blue eyes. He maintained the distance between them as he spoke properly to her at last.
"Well, Helen, if you must know... I came to tell you how I feel about you. Through the medium of song." He smiled, and her stomach flipped. "The things I do for you."
She instinctively took a step back but he caught her hand, gently keeping her close, and something in her knew that the best way to deal with this was not to run away. His expression had lost its usual confidence, and she knew this was the side of Nikola few people had seen – maybe only one person now alive. She'd glimpsed it after he was devamped, briefly, and when Afina had turned out to be everything Helen had expected, but never like this – exposed intentionally and unashamedly to her. She fought the impulse to bolt out of the door, get on her bike, and ride as far from here as possible. Or maybe even just jump out of the window. She'd survived worse falls, she was sure.
Nikola caught her glance at the window, and laughed softly. "Please, just hear me out, Helen. This is..." an exasperated sigh. "Not easy for me. As you well know."
"Nikola, I... I do know. I really do, but-"
"Helen, please!" His plea cut through her muddled excuses, and she inhaled sharply, face a blank mask, to steel herself against him. God knows she didn't want to hurt him... But there he was, starting again, and she could think of only one way to stop him – and maybe it wouldn't be so bad, wouldn't have too awful a consequence...
"Helen, I-"
Before he could finish she set her glass down and darted in to press her lips harshly against his, silencing him with her kiss. His hand reaching round to the small of her back was a factor she hadn't anticipated, causing her to relax into him unintentionally. His kiss was tender, gentle... loving – she couldn't help but reciprocate, leaning into it and softening against his lips as his hand on her back pulled her close against him.
It was Nikola who pulled away first, his expression changing from one of happy shock to a mask of knowing disappointment.
"You took the words right out of my mouth." He took a step back, his hand dropping from her like a stone, or like an uninspired simile from a writer's pen. "As was no doubt your intention."
"Nikola, I'm sorry." Helen prayed he knew she was sincere her apology at least. "I can't... Not after today."
His smile reappeared in an instant. "Not today? Some other time, then."
Helen could have laughed out loud in relief, but settled for a smile. "We'll see."
"Of course, next time it'll have to be 'Paradise by the Dashboard Light'. I hear that's an interesting song..." He was edging closer again, beginning to grin, and this time she did laugh.
"More your usual style, as well."
He pouted in mock hurt. "Helen, you wound me. I would never say I loved you just to get you into bed." Despite the dangerous territory they were veering into, she laughed at that, causing him to smirk again. "Though that would be an added bonus."
And suddenly he'd taken her hand in his, and his thumb was stroking it softly as he stood in front of her, further away than before; she found herself wanting to draw him closer, but resisted – her wanton urges would not help defuse the situation, regardless of how good a kisser Nikola was.
"I really was just about to say I love you. I swear it's true." He chuckled at the sound of Meat Loaf saying the same thing a second later.
"Nikola... You know I can't."
"Well," he flicked a hand dismissively. "I can wait to say it if I must." That predatory glint was back in his eyes. "But there are some things that can't wait. That kiss wasn't pure distraction, Helen."
No, it wasn't. She knew it - couldn't deny it any more. Not if he was willing to hide his feelings a little longer. There was something between them not entirely one-sided and not entirely platonic. Might it be worth the risk of losing him? Her mind threw out his earlier words: "You know, I won't leave." and she smiled a little.
He cocked his head slightly, the corners of his mouth twitching at her smile, waiting on her response. She licked her lips again, and pulled him close, his delighted expression visibly only for a second before he decided it was his turn to render her speechless.
And then you took the words right out of my mouth. It must have been while you were kissing me.
You took the words right out of my mouth, and I swear it's true;
I was just about to say I love you.