-1Disclaimer: they don't belong to me, and I don't get any profit out of this, just boundless entertainment.

Note: Thanks to KS for proofing this and to everyone who has been reviewing.

Chapter 8:

It had seemed like a such a good idea at the time.

He hadn't seen Wufei at all the previous day. He had turned down an invitation to accompany Zechs to a rare plant nursery outside Cadiz, meaning that the blond had spent every inch of the long drive fretting over whether Wufei had really wanted to work, as he'd claimed, or whether he just didn't want to a full day with Zechs.

It had seemed a good idea, this morning, to invite him for breakfast, and then maybe see if it would be possible to distract him a little. Or at least to talk. He knew, because Duo had mentioned it casually, that the pair of them had planned a trip into Marbella that afternoon. It had stung, just a little, that Wufei apparently had no problem taking time away from his precious papers to spend time with Duo.

Still, perhaps it meant that he would be in a more relaxed frame of mind, and amenable to playing hooky for an hour or so.

Wufei, however, had arrived equipped with his laptop and a bag of books. Having finished breakfast, he'd immediately installed himself at a small desk and proceeded to turn on the former, arrange the latter in neat piles, and immerse himself in both.

Not precisely what Zechs had planned. Still, it maybe wasn't a bad idea. He did have plans to draw up for his latest client; for once, he could have them done early rather than having to stay up half the night.

It would be sensible to do that, except how was he supposed to do anything with that entrancing young man so close?

It didn't help that he'd had almost no sleep over the previous two nights. When he hadn't been reliving every second of their evening together in the moon-garden, he'd been agonising that he'd done something wrong. That he'd somehow rushed Wufei; that he hadn't gone far enough to please him; that the other man had been offended, somehow, by something Zechs had done.

The rational part of him claimed that didn't make any sense, though. Wufei hadn't seemed remotely offended after their date in the moon garden. He'd turned down Zechs' offer to stay the night, to save him the long trek next door, but he'd done it with a kiss, and he'd been perfectly pleasant on the 'phone when Zechs had rung him earlier.

God. He hadn't worried this much over a partner since, well, since Treize.

There had been other men since then; of course, there had. Too many of them, if he wanted to be honest with himself, in particular in that first year after the break-up. Attractive charming young men who'd moved easily in and out of his life and his bed and never caused him a moment's thought.

He hadn't felt strongly for any one of them. He hadn't permitted himself to. Having one's heart broken, very comprehensively, didn't really encourage one to go out and seek a repeat of the experience.

And then he'd met this intense, darkly beautiful young man, who was still so very much a stranger, but whom he wanted so very badly.

They'd made easy, rather impersonal conversation over breakfast, and then moved into the library where Wufei had immersed himself in that towering pile of books. And Zechs had spent his time stealing surreptitious glances at his guest.

That lovely jet-black hair was tied back a little less tightly than usual, a few silken wisps floating around his face, and stirring slightly with every light breeze, or every movement of his head. There was one particularly rebellious lock, just above his right ear, that kept drifting free, and Zechs simply ached to touch it, to curl it around one finger and watch it spring loose..

And Wufei kept raising one slender hand to push back those ridiculously adorable glasses that he had perched on his nose.

Oh, this was hard.

Zechs grimaced at the word, crossing his legs decisively. Wufei didn't seem remotely affected by his presence, absorbed in some long-lost empire, and that didn't help either.

At this rate, he was going to need a cold shower very soon, or at the very least, something very cold to drink.

'I'm going to get a drink for myself. Would you like one?' He had to repeat the question twice before Wufei glanced up.

'Yes, please.'

When he came back, holding two brimming glasses, Wufei was bent over the plans on his drawing board, apparently fascinated.

'This is nothing like I'd imagined.'

'What had you imagined?' Zechs grinned at him. 'A pretty watercolour with lots of flowers.'

'Something like that,' the other man admitted. 'This looks like an architect's plan.'

'Think of it as just that, but outside.' Zechs set his glass on the desk. Oh, God. He'd fallen so hard for this one, with his exotic beauty and his intelligence and those flashes of wit that seemed to surprise even himself. One long, golden finger traced the outline of his designs; the self-same finger that had touched him last night.

He wanted it again, so badly.

'What have I done wrong?' he blurted suddenly.

'I'm not sure that I understand.' Wufei's eyes, lifted from the desk to meet his, were clear and candid and a little curious.

'If I've done something to upset you, I wish you'd tell me.'

'Of course you haven't upset me!' Those dark eyes, fixed on his, were very wide. 'I wasn't sure if I'd done something. You've been very quiet since I got here.' One shoulder lifted in an impossibly graceful shrug. 'I didn't want to disturb your work, so I thought perhaps I should leave you in peace.'

Zechs smiled at him, a smile of pure relief. Maybe one day they'd get this communication thing right. 'I was terrified of disturbing that ferocious concentration of yours. I thought I'd get a detention at the very least, if not a slap on the wrist.'

'Well, I could probably give you a slap if you really wanted one,' Wufei mused, and then looked surprised and just a little shocked at what he'd just said.

'We're a right pair, aren't we?' Sure, now, that he wouldn't be rebuffed, Zechs succumbed to temptation and brushed that wandering lock of hair behind Wufei's ear. The other man's mouth curved into a smile, and he leaned into Zechs' hand. 'Forgive me? I'm a little rusty at this sort of thing.'

'I find that hard to believe,' Wufei said frankly. 'Sorry! I'm not doubting you, but you're so….ahem, well, it's hard to believe why someone like you would be single.'

With anyone else, he would have murmured something charming and complimentary about how he'd been waiting for exactly the right person. Wufei deserved more than that.

'I've had one long term boyfriend who broke my heart when he left, a not very commendable period of sleeping around for a year or so afterwards, and then a few short term relationships which didn't work out.'

'Why did he leave? The long term one?'

'He was offered a very good job in the United States. He's a lawyer; he spent some months working as a liaison with the American Embassy in Madrid, and they offered him a permanent position in Washington.'

'You didn't think about going with him?'

'I might have, if I'd been asked.' It was still there; the old bitterness, even after so many years. Four now, almost. 'He just assumed I would accompany him. Perhaps if he'd given me the choice, or even talked about it with me, I'd have considered it. I was just presented with a one-way ticket and informed that we were moving to another continent. The thing is, a couple of years earlier, I'd probably have done it. He was older; we'd been together since we were young. I suppose I was accustomed to him being the one to take control.'

'You seem quite good at making your own decisions.'

'Well, I've changed in the past few years. Anyway, I'd just started my own landscaping business; I didn't want to walk out on that. And we'd been having problems; I won't go into all of that, but Treize liked to be in charge. He wasn't very keen when I began to take over my own life a little.'

'That was it? He left and you never saw him again?'

'Not quite, no. We tried to do the long distance thing for a few months, then he met someone else and that was that.'

'I'm sorry.' Those beautiful dark eyes were warm with compassion. 'That must have been so very hard for you.'

'At the time, yes. Treize was my first love, my first lover. We'd been close friends for years, before anything else happened. He'd been there for me when my parents died. I'd got into the habit of depending on him, probably too much.'

'Do you still love him?'

'No.' Zechs smiled faintly. 'Is that direct enough for you? I did, once, but I promise, it's over. And you? If you don't mind talking about it,' he added, when Wufei didn't immediately answer.

'I don't mind. There just isn't an awful lot to tell. A few very short term boyfriends when I was a student, and then Trowa.' He paused, taking off his glasses and sliding them into his shirt pocket. 'Since we said we would be honest with each other, I have to tell you this. I'm not sure if I'm entirely over him, as they say.'

Zechs nodded; it wasn't entirely unexpected.

'This …. thing, between us.' The young man spread his hands confusedly, and his voice rose, almost to a wail. 'I don't understand it. We've only just met. I'm not used to reacting like this to someone, to a stranger.'

'How are you reacting, exactly?'

'You know.' Wufei glared at him; he was just too cute when he did that, with wisps of hair floating against the smooth skin of his cheeks, and that lovely mouth pulled into a thinly disapproving line.

'Like this?' They were standing close enough that Zechs just had to lean forward to kiss him, making it long and lazy and very thorough.

'Yes, well, exactly like that,' Wufei flustered; he didn't draw away though.

'Were you thinking of Trowa while I was kissing you?' Zechs took advantage of that preoccupation to pull of the nasty little hair elastic, letting all those glorious waves of ebony silk spill over his shoulders. So much better…

'I most certainly was not,' he snapped indignantly.

'That's good. Sweetheart, what exactly is bothering you most? That you might still have feelings for Trowa or that you're attracted to me?'

'Both, really.' Those lovely cheeks warmed slightly; either at the endearment, or the question, but he answered doggedly. 'I don't want you to think that I'm, well, that I'm leading you on or something, while I still have … while I still like my ex boyfriend.'

'I don't think that at all. It's perfectly natural that you still have some sort of feelings for Trowa; you were together for a long time, and you're still friends. I rather envy you that, actually. Treize and I didn't part terribly well.'

Wufei shrugged. 'I suppose it was a fairly amicable separation, as such things go. There was no one else involved at the start; we still saw one another a great deal, and I thought that we'd get back together at some point.' He shrugged. 'Then he got involved with Quatre and that was that.'

'It wasn't Quatre's fault,' Zechs said quietly.

'Oh, I know that. It would have been someone else, if not him, I'm sure.' He closed both hands around his glass. 'I spoke to my cousin Meiran this morning. I told her a little about you.'

'What did she say?'

'She was delighted. She thinks it's high time I moved on and forgot Trowa.'

'Didn't she like him?'

Wufei nodded. 'They were good friends, actually. She just never thought he was right for me.' He took a sip of his drink. 'She had all sorts of silly girly notions about romance and how a couple should behave if they're in love.' He gave Zechs a sharp glance. 'She didn't think Trowa lived up to any of that.'

'I suppose the important thing is whether you thought that,' Zechs said gently.

'I was happy; I thought we were well suited. Even if we didn't do a lot of, well, romantic things, I suppose. And that wasn't Trowa's fault; he's a good person.' He shot Zechs a quick look, daring him to disagree.

Zechs nodded, liking the way he defended his ex. It was rather refreshing. 'I know, I've met him, remember? If you don't mind me saying this, perhaps you're better suited as good friends than lovers? It doesn't mean that you can't be happy with somebody else.'

'With you?'

Zechs sighed faintly, sinking back into his chair. 'Wufei, has anyone ever told you that extreme candour of yours can be a little disconcerting? You know I can't answer that, not yet. It's far too soon. All I can say is that the attraction between us is very definitely real and mutual and I haven't stopped thinking about you since we met. It's a very long time since I've felt this strongly about someone. I'm as much at a loss as you are, if that helps at all?'

'Perhaps,' Wufei whispered, giving one of his decisive little nods. 'It does a little, actually, knowing I'm not the only one who is … feeling like this.' Reaching down to tangle both hands in the silky blond hair, he slipped onto Zechs' lap, sliding his mouth over his.

'You don't think I'm too easy?' the blond teased. 'I did say I'd prefer to wait a little while, for us to know each other.'

'I don't think you're easy at all. In fact,' one hand slid down between them, gently fondling between Zechs' legs, 'I think you have the potential to be just the opposite.' He laughed suddenly. 'Where are all these corny lines coming from? I've probably absorbed them from Duo, by osmosis.'

'And would you be remotely interested in exploring that potential?' Zechs gazed up at him, mouth curling into a smile to let Wufei know he was carrying on the pun.

'Possibly,' Wufei teased back, pushing Zechs back into his chair and sliding on top of him. 'I could be very tempted indeed.'

'Yeah, looks that way all right,' a cheerful voice observed from the doorway. Duo was watching them with a broad grin on his face. 'Ooops. Looks like I should have knocked there. Sorry.'

He didn't look remotely sorry, curse him. Wufei, on the other hand, turned every imaginable shade of red and stumbled off Zechs' lap.

'Oh, don't mind me,' Duo said brightly. He wasn't remotely discomfited by any of this, which Wufei would probably take to mean that it was a regular occurrence for him to walk in on Zechs with someone. Damn. 'Hey, Wufei. I guessed you'd be here if you weren't at home. I've been trying to call you all morning; your cell-phone must be on the fritz or something.'

Wufei, colour returning slightly to normal, retreated behind his phalanx of books for safety, looking like he wanted to disappear inside one of them. 'I called my cousin in Australia this morning and used up all my credit. I thought you were out on the boat until lunchtime?'

'Customers got seasick so we called it short,' Duo informed him. 'I thought we might head off to Marbella early; do the shopping and then grab something to eat.' He winked. 'That is, if you're still interested in coming with me. If you'd rather stay here, I'll totally understand. I wouldn't bother going myself except I've been told that I need to wear something conservative and smart for Heero's presentation on Friday, and not show off too much skin.'

'That must cut out most of your wardrobe then,' Zechs gibed, stealing a look at Wufei. Duo's chatter seemed to be relaxing him a little; at the least, he no longer looked as if he might burst into flames from sheer embarrassment.

'Pretty much,' the long-haired man agreed amiably. 'Wufei, you're coming to the party on Friday, right? Cool! Oh, Zechs, d'you mind if I borrow your car for a couple of hours? Heero had a load of samples to take into work with him, so he brought ours. '

'Of course you can.'

'Cheers.' Duo perched on the edge of Wufei's desk, flicking one finger against the other man's loose hair. 'Your hair looks great down, you know. You should have it like that more often. Now, I'm going to run up and take a shower, if that's OK, 'cause our water tank is on the blink as usual, and you two can decide if you want to run into town with me or stay here and carry on with whatever you were doing. I promise, I'll knock before I come back in so don't feel you have to behave yourselves for my sake!'

'Oh dear,' Wufei muttered, burying his head in both hands. 'One of these days, I swear I am going to spontaneously combust from the things he says.'

'Exactly,' Zechs said softly. 'Wufei, is there any point in me telling you that I don't make a practice of this sort of thing? Or at least, I haven't lately. The one time I do, Duo bloody Maxwell has to walk in on me.'

'Of course I believe you.' Wufei flashed him a small grin. 'Would you mind very much if I asked you to buy a very large padlock for your front door?'

'Not at all,' Zechs promised, deciding not to share that locks wouldn't be much of a barrier for Duo in any case. 'I'll get one the next time I'm in town. Do you want to go with him today?'

Wufei hesitated. 'There are a few things I need to buy that the local shops don't sell. That's why I agreed to go with him in the first place. I suppose nothing is terribly urgent, though. I don't know; perhaps you'd prefer me to go and have a little time alone to think about all of this?'

'I absolutely don't want you to go,' Zechs said, very firmly. 'I don't want you ever to go. But I have work to go and I shan't do a tap if you're here to distract me.'

'You're an awful hypocrite,' Wufei teased. Thank all the gods in creation, he stood up and slid back on top of Zechs' again, teeth nipping at the pulse point in Zech's throat. It almost undid him; that little friction that fluttered down every nerve ending in his body. It made him want to sweep Wufei upstairs and consign Duo and his designs and the rest of the world to perdition.

He'd apparently forgotten all about inconvenient ex-boyfriends; forgotten that this sort of attraction had been bothering him. 'You're always telling me I need to relax.'

'I am, aren't I?' Zechs threw his head back, offering his throat to Wufei's warm, suckling mouth. 'But I need to have this ready to be couriered to a client by tomorrow morning. If I could have a couple of uninterrupted hours to work, I could be finished by the time you come home. Then I can have the whole evening to spend with you. Would that do?'

'I suppose I could accept that.' The kisses slowly drifted along his jaw, each one delicate as the brush of a butterfly's wings, just skirting the corner of his mouth. 'One question. How long does Duo normally take in the shower?'

'You've seen how much hair he has.' Zechs groaned as Wufei's tongue probed sweetly between his lips. 'At least thirty minutes. Probably longer. Plenty of time.'

'Plenty of time for what exactly?' Wufei teased, lifting his head in an act of utter, wanton cruelty.

'For absolutely anything you like.' Zechs meant it in all sincerity; if Wufei just wanted to stay on his lap and kiss him, that would be fine. Even if it meant he had to spend an hour standing under a cold shower afterwards.

'I don't think thirty minutes will be time enough for everything I'd like.' Wufei rubbed that delicious body against him. 'And it certainly wouldn't be enough to clean up, and get changed before Duo comes down.'

'He's been known to take very long showers.' It came out as a ragged, breathy gasp. It was just too much, all of it. That mouth on him, and the irresistible hardness thrusting against his own erection, and those slender, talented hands sliding under his shirt.

'Long is…good.' Wufei's voice wasn't much steadier than his, but the fingers sliding under his waistband and fondling between his legs were firm and knowing and almost too pleasurable to be borne, especially when that lush, lovely mouth brushed over his, and his lovely Chinese pirate set to pillaging in earnest.