1 TITLE: In Front of You: Chapter 3
AUTHOR: Kansas J. Miller
PARING: CJ/Simon
RATING: PG-13, cause I dropped an F-bomb.
SUMMARY: He really loved her—and it would have frightened Simon if not for the fact that she loved him, too.
SPOILERS: Contains references to all Simon episodes, excluding the Simon scenes in "Posse Comitatus"—Simon did not go to NYC, which is a good thing!
***
Simon woke up slowly, the warm May breeze from the open window nudging him out of a comfortable sleep. He was instantly aware of her scent; it was distinctly CJ—a floral mixture of her shampoo and perfume. But upon opening his eyes, Simon realized that only the sweet smell had lingered on his sheets; CJ was no longer in his arms.
Panicking only slightly before he heard the clatter of dishes from the kitchen, Simon shook the rest of the sleep from his mind and got out of bed with a smile. She was here, he thought with insane joy; CJ was actually here—for him, with him.
As he pulled on his boxers, Simon pondered why he felt so lucky. Yes, it had been quite some time since he'd met a woman he liked, but there was just something so special about CJ. He'd been initially horrified at the irony of being assigned to guard a woman he could so clearly fall for. But as he headed down the short hall towards the kitchen, Simon knew that CJ's had been his best detail yet.
The perfection of it all struck Simon as he leaned against the doorframe, watching CJ mutter under her breath at the coffee machine. She was gorgeous; Simon reveled in her slim frame, dressed in his oversized West Point shirt as she fought with the machine. It had worked out wonderfully—she was saved from the trouble of a stalker and Simon could care about her as he chose.
"I went to fucking Berkeley!" CJ cried to herself, laughing nonetheless and hoping that when Simon got up he didn't really need coffee. CJ had awakened pleasantly at 5 o'clock in the morning, right on schedule with her built in alarm. Being in Simon's arms was so comfortable and so safe, but never since college had CJ been able to stay still for longer than ten minutes after waking up. It was useless, and she'd slipped reluctantly out his embrace in search of coffee.
"Do you need the manual?" Simon teased, breaking the silent image of CJ standing defiantly in front of the renegade coffee maker. CJ spun around, surprised that Simon was up—it was but 5:30.
"If I woke you, I'm sorry," she offered, padding over the linoleum towards the grinning, taller man. Simon wrapped his arms around CJ as she settled her forehead against Simon's neck. "Mmm," she sighed, "I love that you're tall."
"You told me," Simon grinned, squeezing her tightly. "You said I made you feel feminine."
CJ absently tugged on Simon's well-muscled arm, smiling shyly up at him. "Few men ever make me feel this attractive…."
With a smile Simon kissed CJ's nose before letting his lips find her mouth. There wasn't a thing about CJ he found unattractive, and as she allowed him to deepen the kiss, Simon hoped she understood that.
Giving in to the mutual need for air, Simon pulled back and cocked his head towards the coffee maker. "Come on Ms. Berkeley, I'll show you how it's done…"
***
"So, how old is your little brother?" CJ asked, resting her chin in her hands as she watched Simon cook her an egg. He turned around, looking to where CJ sat.
"Anthony? He's a junior in high school," Simon said, letting his eyes linger on CJ. "Are you sure you don't want this scrambled?"
Smiling, CJ nodded. "Fried is the only way to go. And we should have introduced Anthony to Hogan—she's completely dateless for this prom tonight."
Setting down the freshly friend egg in front of CJ, Simon also brought his own plate—full of bacon, toast and three scrambled eggs—over to the table. "It's tonight?"
"Yes," CJ responded, watching with surprise Simon's huge meal. "How do you stay in shape if you eat THAT for breakfast?"
Laughing, Simon tried to entice CJ with a crisp piece of bacon, which she refused. "I eat like a normal person. You," he pointed out with a smile, "eat like a bird. Tonight I'm going to take you to my favorite restaurant. All you can eat Italian buffet—more food than you can dream of—all delicious…"
CJ swallowed her bite of egg and nodded her eager agreement. "Okay… but it has to be after I see Hogan. I promised her that I'd come help her get dressed."
Simon nodded and they ate their breakfast in companionable silence, both acutely aware of each other. It was just breakfast, CJ mused, breakfast in a man's kitchen. Yet to her rapidly beating heart, the world could explode with happiness at a moment's notice. Simon wished he could read CJ's mind, wondering exactly what had her smiling down at the table so sweetly. Unable to resist tangling his fingers in hers, Simon wondered just how much faster things could happen. They were simply eating a meal together, and yet he could not wait for his next moment with CJ. He loved her: he really loved her—and it would have frightened Simon if not for the fact that she loved him, too. *
AUTHOR: Kansas J. Miller
PARING: CJ/Simon
RATING: PG-13, cause I dropped an F-bomb.
SUMMARY: He really loved her—and it would have frightened Simon if not for the fact that she loved him, too.
SPOILERS: Contains references to all Simon episodes, excluding the Simon scenes in "Posse Comitatus"—Simon did not go to NYC, which is a good thing!
***
Simon woke up slowly, the warm May breeze from the open window nudging him out of a comfortable sleep. He was instantly aware of her scent; it was distinctly CJ—a floral mixture of her shampoo and perfume. But upon opening his eyes, Simon realized that only the sweet smell had lingered on his sheets; CJ was no longer in his arms.
Panicking only slightly before he heard the clatter of dishes from the kitchen, Simon shook the rest of the sleep from his mind and got out of bed with a smile. She was here, he thought with insane joy; CJ was actually here—for him, with him.
As he pulled on his boxers, Simon pondered why he felt so lucky. Yes, it had been quite some time since he'd met a woman he liked, but there was just something so special about CJ. He'd been initially horrified at the irony of being assigned to guard a woman he could so clearly fall for. But as he headed down the short hall towards the kitchen, Simon knew that CJ's had been his best detail yet.
The perfection of it all struck Simon as he leaned against the doorframe, watching CJ mutter under her breath at the coffee machine. She was gorgeous; Simon reveled in her slim frame, dressed in his oversized West Point shirt as she fought with the machine. It had worked out wonderfully—she was saved from the trouble of a stalker and Simon could care about her as he chose.
"I went to fucking Berkeley!" CJ cried to herself, laughing nonetheless and hoping that when Simon got up he didn't really need coffee. CJ had awakened pleasantly at 5 o'clock in the morning, right on schedule with her built in alarm. Being in Simon's arms was so comfortable and so safe, but never since college had CJ been able to stay still for longer than ten minutes after waking up. It was useless, and she'd slipped reluctantly out his embrace in search of coffee.
"Do you need the manual?" Simon teased, breaking the silent image of CJ standing defiantly in front of the renegade coffee maker. CJ spun around, surprised that Simon was up—it was but 5:30.
"If I woke you, I'm sorry," she offered, padding over the linoleum towards the grinning, taller man. Simon wrapped his arms around CJ as she settled her forehead against Simon's neck. "Mmm," she sighed, "I love that you're tall."
"You told me," Simon grinned, squeezing her tightly. "You said I made you feel feminine."
CJ absently tugged on Simon's well-muscled arm, smiling shyly up at him. "Few men ever make me feel this attractive…."
With a smile Simon kissed CJ's nose before letting his lips find her mouth. There wasn't a thing about CJ he found unattractive, and as she allowed him to deepen the kiss, Simon hoped she understood that.
Giving in to the mutual need for air, Simon pulled back and cocked his head towards the coffee maker. "Come on Ms. Berkeley, I'll show you how it's done…"
***
"So, how old is your little brother?" CJ asked, resting her chin in her hands as she watched Simon cook her an egg. He turned around, looking to where CJ sat.
"Anthony? He's a junior in high school," Simon said, letting his eyes linger on CJ. "Are you sure you don't want this scrambled?"
Smiling, CJ nodded. "Fried is the only way to go. And we should have introduced Anthony to Hogan—she's completely dateless for this prom tonight."
Setting down the freshly friend egg in front of CJ, Simon also brought his own plate—full of bacon, toast and three scrambled eggs—over to the table. "It's tonight?"
"Yes," CJ responded, watching with surprise Simon's huge meal. "How do you stay in shape if you eat THAT for breakfast?"
Laughing, Simon tried to entice CJ with a crisp piece of bacon, which she refused. "I eat like a normal person. You," he pointed out with a smile, "eat like a bird. Tonight I'm going to take you to my favorite restaurant. All you can eat Italian buffet—more food than you can dream of—all delicious…"
CJ swallowed her bite of egg and nodded her eager agreement. "Okay… but it has to be after I see Hogan. I promised her that I'd come help her get dressed."
Simon nodded and they ate their breakfast in companionable silence, both acutely aware of each other. It was just breakfast, CJ mused, breakfast in a man's kitchen. Yet to her rapidly beating heart, the world could explode with happiness at a moment's notice. Simon wished he could read CJ's mind, wondering exactly what had her smiling down at the table so sweetly. Unable to resist tangling his fingers in hers, Simon wondered just how much faster things could happen. They were simply eating a meal together, and yet he could not wait for his next moment with CJ. He loved her: he really loved her—and it would have frightened Simon if not for the fact that she loved him, too. *