Roomies

Ch 5

Sunday, April 5th cont…

Nick wasn't surprised when Ellie turned in early for the night. The rest of dinner had been quiet, him not knowing what to say and her being too embarrassed to talk after her little display of appreciation. As soon as she finished the last bite, she stood up from the table, throwing a mumbled goodnight his way, and shuffled to her room. When he heard the door click he hung his head, cursing himself for not being able to keep control.

He quickly got everything from dinner put away and dishes in the sink, he'd take care of those in the morning after breakfast. He really wasn't tired but he really had no reason to stay up without Ellie. Walking down the hall, he thought about knocking on her door again but instead shook his head, continuing past her room to go into his. Stripping down to his boxers, he laid down in bed, his mind wondering back to the past couple weeks of staying with her.

They spent pretty much every waking moment together since he started staying, watching movies, playing games, and working out, alternating who picked what each day. He knew she was attractive, hell he was practically drooling over her this morning and again at dinner tonight, and was pretty sure she appreciated his looks too if her reaction to him shirtless was any indication. He also knew that he liked her but didn't know if she reciprocated his feelings. After all, she was a hard ten and he was a soft seven.

The more he thought about it though the more he realized how foolish he was being. She didn't hesitate to offer her spare room to him and didn't even second guess telling him he could stay even though they didn't know how long it would be for. When he started getting stir crazy she was the one who suggested he take over her living room to work out so he wouldn't be bored and even joined him even though she would much rather be reading. Thinking back to their partnership overall and everything she has done for him in the past he realized he didn't just like Ellie Bishop, he loved her.

With that realization he shot straight up in bed. There was no way he was getting to sleep now, not when Ellie was just across the hall and he could so easily walk across and tell her. He scrambled out of bed, not even bothering to pull on a shirt, and marched across the hall. In a rush, he opened her door without even thinking of knocking but stopped short when he saw her standing next to the bed. She was standing there, eyes wide and mouth open but that wasn't what caught his attention. She was wearing one of his shirts again but this time it wasn't a tee shirt, it was his black button up bought for McGee's wedding but he never worn and, since he wasn't the suit type, paid no attention when it suddenly went missing. If he thought she was hot before now she was on fire.

"Woof." His eyes went impossibly dark as he looked her over. Her arms had crossed under his gaze but it only served to push her chest up, drawing his eyes to the very open collar of his shirt.

Ellie felt like her entire body was flushed as his eyes trailed down her body and she shifted nervously, clearly remembering the first time those words were said when it came to them and that shirt. No matter how badly she wanted to look him over, she kept her eyes trained on his face, trying and failing not to stare at the beard she had developed an appreciation of.

"Nick, what are you doing in here?" She tilted her head, staring him down.

"I uh…" Nick trailed off. He didn't have a plan other than to come in here and lay his heart out to her but now he didn't know where to start. She was still standing there expectantly, waiting for him to say something when finally, he did the only thing he could think of.

Crossing the room quickly, he pressed his lips to hers, cupping her face in his hands. Ellie let out a small whimper as she moved her arms to wrap around his neck as his moved down to her hips, deepening the kiss. After what seemed like forever, Nick broke away first to catch his breath, leaning his forehead against hers.

"What was that for?" She whispered, still breathing heavily. Staring into her eyes, Nick brought one hand up to push the hair out of her face, cupping her cheek and tilting her face up.

"I love you Ellie." A gasp left her lips as his words fully registered with her brain.

"You – you love me?" Nick could only nod, holding his breath for her response. If this didn't go the way he hoped he didn't know how he could stay here much longer. Finally, a smile graced her features as she breathed out her next words. "Well then, it's a good thing. 'Cause I love you too." This time, he was the one smiling as she leaned up, pressing her lips to his.

The kiss turned heated, his hands sliding up her (his) shirt to caress the skin at her hips as hers moved over his chin, taking in the scruff there before trailing them down his chest. Her hands left a trail of fire across his stomach and he flinched when she reached the waistband of his boxers.

"Ellie, are, are you sure?" Her smiled seemed innocent but her eyes told a different story as they got three shades darker.

"Oh yeah. Very sure." She grabbed his hands in hers, walking backward until her knees hit the edge of her bed. He took great pleasure in painstakingly slowly unbuttoning his shirt, letting it fall to the side as he lowered her to the bed. This time when her head was tilted back with eyes closed and a moan escaping her lips it was because of his lips trailing down her neck, his scruff brushing her skin a feeling that she wanted to feel all the time.

They lay next to each other on the bed, both of them panting and sweat slowly trailing down his chiseled abs. Instead of getting up this time, she curled up next to him, placing a kiss over his heart before laying her head on his chest. He leaned down, pressing a kiss to the top of her head and intertwining their fingers.

"So Torres, turns out you were right."

"I'm right about a lot of things Bishop, you'll have to be more specific." She could tell he was smirking so she smacked him lightly with the hand laying on his chest and laughed.

"This was the one thing better we could do while we're cooped up together for a month." His loud laugh broke through the relative silence of the room, startling her. She sat up quickly, the sheet falling down around her hips. He went quiet as his gaze drifted down to appreciate the view.

"What can I say, I'm a smart man." Ellie giggled, moving over him and pulling him up for a kiss. They were just getting into it when the sound of her stomach growling made them both pull apart. Nick looked at her in amusement as she turned her head, embarrassment written all over her face. "Sounds like you worked up quite an appetite there Ellie." She laughed along with him until he started to get up.

"Hey, hey, hey," she protested, grabbing his hand and trying to pull him back down to the bed. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To get you a snack. I found some bacon brown sugar chips earlier." He sing-songed as her eyes lit up.

"Well don't let me stop you!" Laughing, he crawled out of bed, not bothering with getting dressed as he walked towards the kitchen. She sat up against the headboard, eyes never leaving him. "I can feel you staring Ellie!"

"That's kinda the point Nick!" When he came back less than a minute later, he tossed her the bag and jumped back on the bed causing a shriek to escape from her mouth. She tore open the bag and started eating, only pausing when she felt him staring at her. "Why are you staring at me?" Nick was laying on his side next to her, head propped up on his hand. His eyes hadn't left her since he came back in the room.

"You're just so adorable" The sparkle in his eyes quickly turned dark as he whispered his next words, "and I love you so much."

"The chips can wait." Ellie threw the bag somewhere in the vicinity of her nightstand before attacking his lips. "I love you too." She whispered on his lips between kisses as she climbed on top of him, hands immediately going to his face as he placed his on her thighs.

"So, the beard really does it for you huh?" He asked when they broke for a breath.

"Oh yeah. Definitely." She spoke in a breath, rubbing her hands over the scruff. "And seeing me in your shirt does it for you?" Her voice was quiet this time, almost shy.

"If you have to ask I think I didn't prove it to you well enough." She gasped as he flipped them over, now hovering above her. Her gasp quickly turned into a moan as he started placing kisses down her neck, his beard leaving a tingling sensation behind as his mouth trailed lower.

She would never reveal to him that ever since she ended up with his button-up, (he had left his bag from the store at her house after McGee's wedding) she constantly wore it to sleep in and she regularly kept shirts he left at her house for the same reason, although most of those she actually washed and secretly returned.

After that night, she promised to wear his shirts around the house as long as he kept the beard.

At the end of the month when the self-isolation order was lifted and his apartment was livable again, he went back and packed up all of his belongings and moved them into Ellie's place permanently. Now he has a much better reason to stay.