Chapter 56: Hangover
Gus woke up around noon with a wicked hangover. She stumbled into the apartment, half hoping to find Flack passed out on the couch on in her office, and half relieved when she didn't. She wandered into the kitchen and found a note leaning against the coffee maker, she smiled to herself, "well he knew I would find it," she muttered.
Sunshine, drink some water with your coffee and call me after you've had some aspirin, Mac will kick my ass if I don't make sure you're alright -F
Gus read the note and turned the coffee maker on and started chugging water. She texted Flack while drinking her first cup of coffee.
Blue Eyes, my liver says it's fine and hydrated, tell Mac to chill. See you tonight at the precinct -G
Gus went and showered, she heard her phone ping on the vanity and checked it as soon as she stepped out.
G, Tell your liver it needs a run, meet me in park at 1 -F
She responded, F, Remind your liver it hates to run unless chasing something, c u tonight -G
A minute later her phone pinged, Liver says also will run if being chased. If no run, then food b4 shift? Please?! -F
Gus grinned to herself, she had the feeling someone was feeling bad about turning away...Sorry Blue, meeting the girls! -G
"Damn girls" Flack muttered sitting on the couch reading the text.
"You going fruity on me Cuz?" Bobby asked.
"Hardly," Flack snorted.
"Since when do you text, grandpa", Bobby teased, he didn't think his cousin even liked technology.
"Trying to stay hip," Flack sneered, putting the phone down.
"Good luck with that," Bobby retorted picking up the Blackberry,
"They sure do hook New York's finest up with some sweet phones, good to see you are finally using it."
"Gimme that," Flack said swiping the phone back as Bobby was trying to see what he had been texting, "it's for official business," he said.
"Official business like text flirting with your incredibly H-A-W-T partner?"
"Don't you have a job to go to? Seeing as you are being a slacker and not going to college?"
"You didn't go to college," Bobby said stiffening up.
"I joined the force instead, dumb ass."
"Whatever, it's my off day. I'm going to go take a shower. Do me a favor and tell your partner she should wear skirts more often," Bobby retorted walking up the stairs.
Flack threw a shoe in his direction, thinking he had to move out soon before he killed his cousin.
Gus met Stella for a bite before their shifts, Lindsay snuck away to meet them for a late lunch break.
"Gus, oh my god, I am so glad to see you. I can't believe Danny actually hit you!" Lindsay said hugging Gus and gesturing to her cheek.
"He told you about that? I did ask him to do it," Gus shrugged, it has not really that big a deal, she couldn't help it that Messer threw a good enough punch to still be seen.
"You don't have to be quite so into your cases, Gus," Stella replied.
Gus bit back a retort. "I know."
"What happened, why did they put you on an undercover assignment?" Lindsay asked.
"I fit the bill and knew about abused women," Gus shrugged.
"Did you nail the jerks involved?" Stella asked, her eyes flashing.
"I did what I could, I think the feds have the case now, racketeering and all that," Gus was uncomfortable with talking about the case any more, she just wanted to forget it.
"I heard they questioned you twice," Lindsay said biting into her club sandwich.
Gus laughed as she got mayonnaise everywhere, "I'm rubbing off on you, Linds, here," she said handing her a stack of napkins, "now I want to hear all about these subway parties," Gus said steering the discussion away from was happy to get through the rest of the meal without the conversation turning back to her.
"Wow, look at the time" Stella said suddenly, "we need to get to the work."
They all filed out and rushed back, splitting at the hallway. "See ya, glad you're safe," Stella said.
"Later Gator, we need a girl's night," Lindsay called over her shoulder.
Gus walked to the pit. Flack was already there.
"Look at Princess, waltzing in, thinks she can show up whenever now that she is all undercover and in the D- " Lafferty was cut off by Flack in his face, "give me an excuse Lafferty, really," he sneered.
"Chill out, both of you. I was less than a block from here and I am ten minutes late, you want to turn me in you go ahead, but then I might have to talk about a certain coffee break yesterday, Lafferty," Gus said squeezing between Flack and Lafferty and dumping her bag under her desk.
The first couple hours of the shift were blissfully quiet. Then calls started pouring in, "what the hell is the deal?" Gus wondered.
"Halloween, don't you look at the calendar?" Parker replied.
"Great," Gus groaned, part of internal calendar permanently stuck on August 2005.
Flack and Gus were out in the city for the rest of the night. One call to the next, all of them bizarre. Flack lost it after one call, a report of a dead guy in a tub at a party that turned out to be a party gag. "Next time, you better hope you are dead, maggot!" he said pinning the kid to a wall.
"Flack, let him go, we got another one," Gus said hanging up her phone.
"For real dead this time?" He snapped. Gus just stared at him, not taking his attitude. "Sorry," he apologized quickly.
"Pussy whipped," retorted the kid who had just been pinned to the wall.
This time it was Gus who snapped and threw him to the wall by his throat, "you have officially made it to the top of my shit list kid," she said with a squeeze and lowering him back down.
"Hey, that's harassment!" the kid squeaked rubbing his throat.
"Yeah, you go tell someone a girl hurt ya', alright?" Gus said walking out slamming the door behind her.
"What was that all about?" Flack asked her.
"Guess I'm still too hungover to deal with punks 14 hours into my shift."
"Gotcha, told you to drink water," Flack said with a smirk, he didn't think he had ever actually seen her admit to a hangover.
"Bite me," she hissed.
"Ironically, our next call."
"What?" Gus couldn't deal with riddles and a still throbbing head. "Bite marks, like a vampire," Flack bared his teeth.
"That's a good look for you, Flack," Gus said shoving him playfully.
They arrived on scene only to find Angell already there with Hawkes. "Surprise, surprise," Gus said under her breath.
"What?" Flack didn't get the surprise.
"You're telling me you don't think there might be something going on between those two? Are you blind? Wait, I forgot, male." Gus said walking up to the other female detective. "Angell, you got this one, because I'm beat."
"We're good," Hawkes said, "heard about your UC antics."
"Don't start, Sheldon," Gus said walking back to Flack who was still smarting over the male comment. "Let's go, blue eyes," Gus said dragging him back toward the car, "these two got it covered."
In the car on the way back to the station, Gus looked down at herself, was that...she lifted up her shirt and sniffed, scraping at the red substance before hesitantly tasting it, "Flack how long have I had Caro syrup down the front of me?" she said into her shirt.
"You got it when you throttled that kid by his neck, I was a little scared to tell you though," Flack said drumming on the wheel.
"Happy freaking Halloween, this was a new shirt," she grumbled.
Flack choked back a laugh, "so sometimes you are a girl."
"I'm always a girl, in case you hadn't noticed," she shot back trying to remove the sticky residue.
Flack grabbed her wrist, "you're making it worse, sunshine." Gus slumped against the window. "Still nursing the hangover?"
"Not enough grease. God I want this day over as much as I want a cheeseburger," she responded glumly.
They arrived back at the precinct, Gus went to work on the case files, she hated leaving without them done no matter how long the shift was. Flack had disappeared. "Figures," she muttered, filling out reports. Her phone buzzed a bit later, it was Flack. "Leave me the paperwork, I see," she answered.
"Meet me on the roof, sunshine," he replied hanging up.
Gus looked at her phone, dumbfounded, closed the case file and headed for the roof. Flack was up there with a paper grocery sack. "What the hell, Flack?" she started.
He put a finger to her lips. "Don't ruin my peace offering for last night."
"I was drunk last night Flack, I don't know what you are talking about," she said gulping, the buzzing starting in her ears again.
He shook his head and reached in the bag pulling out a packaged men's shirt, "I give you a new shirt," he reached in pulling out a smaller sack, "a cheeseburger, hold the mustard," he handed her the second bag delighting in the grin spreading across Gus' face, "and best of all," he gestured to the sun rising in the distance, "a new day."
Gus just said, "nice," and bit into the burger, "this is the best hangover burger ever," she said wiping the grease off her chin, "but where the hell did you find a clothing store open before dawn?"
"It was from my locker, but I had to go the the Bronx for the burger."
"You drove to the Bronx for a burger."
"Nope," he said reaching back into the bag, "I drove to the Bronx for two burgers" he said wiping ketchup off her nose, "you better not change into that shirt until after you've eaten."
"I'm not taking your shirt, Flack!"
"It will look better on you," he said, biting into his own burger, "happy All Saint's Day by the way."
Gus grinned at him, "I knew it."
"What?" he said feeling for condiments on his face.
"You are so a good catholic boy."
"Not so good, sunshine," Flack said trying to figure out if he should kiss that bit of mayo off her face...damn it she got it.
"I should probably go before I crash out. Thanks for the food," Gus said wiping off her face. "You want a lift?"
"Just let me go change," Gus said before giving Flack an unexpected hug and cheek kiss. "Thank you," she said, quietly.
"What was that for?"
"You drove to the Bronx for a cheeseburger and gave me a new day, what more could a girl want?"
"Anything for you, sunshine," he said to her retreating figure.
Chapter 57: Suffer Injustice
The next couple of weeks were slow as far as homicides went. Gus was ready to climb the walls, actually hating the fact that the NYPD was up to full homicide staff. She was pacing around the pit one night, making everyone nervous.
"Princess, you got to chill, this is a good thing, I promise," Parker said trying to catch her as she lapped by his desk.
"Switch to decaf," Thatcher remarked.
"Not if you want to keep your face," Gus growled.
Suddenly a call of shots fired at a warehouse came in, "I think maybe you and Flack should take this call, huh Broussard?" Parker said.
"Yes, thank god!" Gus said, checking her clip and flying toward the car.
"She always like this?" Parker asked Flack.
"Pretty much," Flack shrugged following in her wake.
"Maybe you don't want to act so excited about someone getting shot when we get to the scene, okay, sunshine?" Flack joked on the ride over.
"I'm not excited, I'm just a little pent up," Gus furrowed her brow, that wasn't exactly what she had meant to say, mind you it was the truth.
Flack refrained from comment, not knowing if he wanted to open that can of worms three blocks from a crime scene.
They arrived on scene to find a frazzled older society type woman berating a security guard, a rapidly deflating giant Nutcracker balloon and a dead guy that looked like he could have been an alien.
"Hey Flack, you know that new day you got me a coupla weeks ago, I think I need another one, because Halloween is back," Gus quipped.
"Hilarious, you want the frazzled one or the beat down one?"
"I'll take the guard, go charm the old lady, blue eyes." Gus walked over to the security guard, "Sir, Detective Broussard, NYPD, I have questions, so many questions..."
By sunrise, the CSI's were all on scene, including Hawkes who Mac had insisted perform the 'autopsy' on the balloon.
"This job is never boring," he said with a smile.
"You can say that again."
Gus replied shaking her head, and she thought New Orleans was weird. "So paintballer, huh?" Gus asked Danny.
"Big time sport here," he replied, "got some nice gear on him."
"Further proving my theories on men and their guns."
"You're one to talk Broussard," he teased.
"I need coffee," she replied, wandering off.
Returning with two cups and handing one to Flack he took it saying, "Stella and Danny found some blood in the alley, leading to the apartment building next door, so guess it's your favorite time, sunshine."
"Gee and I was just thinking I hadn't had a door slammed in my face in a while," she grinned taking a huge drink of coffee.
"Odds or evens?" Flack asked.
"Flip a coin," she replied.
They met up after questioning anyone that was actually in the building.
"Anything?" Flack asked her.
"3 indecent proposals, 4 numbers, 1 paranoid off his meds and I'm out of cards. You?"
"2 marriage proposals, 3 custody disputes, 6 screamers and a crackpot with a government conspiracy theory about aliens, also no cards left."
"You win," Gus said sighing.
"Means you buy breakfast," Flack replied playfully nudging her.
After a quick breakfast, they checked back in with the lab. Stella informed them they had matched the blood in the alley to a big time paint baller named Cyrus Menlo, who was missing.
"I'll put out an APB," Flack said, getting on his phone.
"I never knew there was this whole lifestyle of paintballers," Gus shrugged.
"To each his own," Stella said, "let's go tell Mac."
The trio trooped into Mac's office. While updating him, Lindsay came through to tell them that trace found at the scene was not GSR but cocaine made to look black.
"Get outta here, you need a Master's degree in chemistry just to run drugs these days!" Flack said.
"Or at least to make them," Gus quipped."May have been a drug deal gone wrong," Mac said, giving them each their assignments.
Gus was finishing up with a clerk from the court and was about to deliver a warrant when she nearly ran into Mac and Flack standing on the street, in a heated discussion. "If, did you say if?" she heard Flack say sternly. That was his angry voice she thought, trying to listen but not be seen. "So you think there was more cocaine at that raid and one of my guys skimmed from the stash?"
"I'm just asking questions Don!"
"No you're not just asking questions, Mac, come on I know you, you wouldn't be asking questions if you hadn't already checked it all out. And I'm telling you drugs from that raid wouldn't last six months on the street, so what is this, my interrogation?"
Gus could see Flack's eyes burning even from the distance. "You're overreacting," Gus heard Mac say. She didn't want to hear the rest of the conversation, knowing those could be fighting words and she didn't want in the middle. She slipped into the precinct unnoticed.
Flack stormed in a few minutes later, falling into his desk chair, slamming drawers and swearing.
"Crap," Gus muttered, "what's up?" she asked leaning over her desk.
"Nothing," he sneered. She caught his eyes in her own staring him down. Flack groaned inwardly, he did not want to get into this with her, but she wouldn't back down. "Mac," he sneered finally.
"Musta ticked you off good , you're madder than a cottonmouth!"
Flack couldn't help but grin at her colloquialism, "you could say that. Though I'm not quite sure what you just said. Mac has his head stuck on my narcotics bust from a couple of months ago."
"The one when you first got back in the field? While I was all gimpy?"
"The very same. And he wants to see my memo book."
"And that's bad because?"
"Well let me see your memo book."
"Fine," Gus shrugged tossing it to him.
He flipped it open, "Sunshine, what the hell is this?"
"My memo book."
"It's al notations and symbols and what is this, Latin?"
"Trick I learned from a prof, took all his sessional notes in Hebrew, made it fun if his records were subpoenaed."
He shook his head, "well the rest of us use English, so everything is in there and he wants to see my book to check on my guys, he doesn't trust my word!" Gus just studied him. "What you don't trust me either?" Flack couldn't believe this, though he should have figured, he felt himself getting madder by the second.
"I didn't say anything," Gus calmly replied, hating his anger.
"I guess I can't expect you to take my side on this!" Flack sneered at her.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Gus snapped at him.
"Blood, water," he gestured.
"Partners, trust," she sneered back, wanting to smack him upside the head. This conversation was starting to garner attention, Gus didn't like that. She got up and walked over to his desk, sitting on the edge. "Let's go take a walk" she suggested, leaning towards him.
"How about a drive?" He responded, he had to go see a guy anyway, figure out what was going on.
"Whatever." Gus could care less as long as they got out of the building.
In the car, Gus didn't ask where they were headed, it was obviously out of the city. Flack suddenly said, "this doesn't mean I think you're uncle is right."
Gus cut into him, "suddenly why is it about Mac being my uncle?"
"Because he is not my favorite person right now and I don't like you being in the middle."
"In the middle of what?"
"Whatever is going down."
"So you think something is going down?"
"I don't know, but I am about to try to find out." He pulled up to the gatehouse of a prison showing his credentials.
Gus turned to him, not sure what to say, "remember I make my own choices and Mac and I don't share a speck of DNA."
"Just wait here," he said to Gus as he got out of the car.
Gus closed her eyes briefly and then called out, "Flack, hold up."
He came around to her side, she lowered the window, "this ain't a social call, sunshine."
"I kinda got that, hon, I just wanted to say, I have your back. No matter what."
"Maybe, maybe not," he said walking away.
"Dammit!" she said slamming her fist into the dash as soon as he was out of sight.
He wasn't in a better mood on the way back to the precinct. He said nothing the entire way and neither did Gus.
Back in the lab, Danny showed them a photo of a missing person.
"No idea," Gus said.
"I think I talked to her, she was the alien conspiracy chick."
"Ah the one that won you breakfast," Gus cracked almost getting a smirk out of Flack.
Stella and Danny looked at the pair of them. "Let's go talk to her again," Stella said to Flack and then turned to Gus, "you want to come do crackpot detail, Gus?"
Gus didn't want anyone else to pick up on the tension between her and Flack, "Nah, I got some paperwork. Have fun though."
Gus was sitting at her desk when Flack came back again. He didn't acknowledge her, and it was like a knife to her heart. He was standing talking with the guys about the Rangers game that he had watched with her the night before, when Mac came in.
Gus felt both cornered and another stab to the chest.
Mac barely glanced her way. "Don, do you know why I'm here?" Mac asked.
Flack went to his desk, started to open a drawer, slammed it shut and then sat down, "do you care about the consequences?"
"I know this isn't easy for you."
"I'm not talking about me, I'm talking about the hundred of arrests this cop has made."
Gus inched her chair back and over towards Parker's desk, "can I just hide under your desk for a few minutes?" she whispered.
"And miss this?" Parker whispered back, straining to hear. Gus gestured and Parker finally caught up, "oh yeah, I forgot, kind of sucks for you, family versus partner, glad I'm not in your shoes!"
"Thanks Parker, you always know just what a girl needs to hea-" she trailed off seeing Flack throw his memo book on the edge of the desk and Mac take it.
"Dammit!" she growled, scooting back to her desk hearing the last bit of Mac's speech, "because he disrespected the badge that you and I wear."
Mac gave Flack one last look and briefly moved his eyes over to hers. Flack stared after him and then turned to Gus with a look that completely wounded her.
He looked beyond crushed. She willed him to talk to her, but she could tell by his eyes that he was shutting her out. Gus couldn't handle this. What had happened at the prison, what was in the book? More or most importantly, what was going on in Flack's head and how could she comfort him?
She got up and went around to the side of his chair, crouching down. He didn't even look at her. Guscouldn't remember a time she had felt so close or so separated from someone.
It might not hurt so much if she could stop caring,"You once asked me if I could try to trust you, now I am asking you to do the same thing. Forget for a second I am related to who I am, and tell me as someone you trust. What is going on?"
Flack just shook his head.
Gus felt like begging, "I can't force you to tell me, but I don't think I can handle you not telling me." He remained silent, still refusing to look at her. "How dare you!" she hissed under her breath, it was impossible to have this conversation here.
"How dare I what?" he hissed back.
She closed her eyes and the slowly stood up, "for somebody who always complains about me not letting you in..." she trailed off , paused and said, "I guess I know where I stand then." She turned and walked away, refusing to look back, her body language clearly pointing out to Flack that she could shut down better than him.
He caught up with her in the hallway on the way to the lab outside her old office, she was slumped against a wall, her eyes closed. "I'm sorry Gus, I want to but I don't think you can understand," Flack said to her.
She turned away, rubbing her face with her hands, "you're right, I can't understand if you don't tell me. But if you think I don't have any idea what it's like to be out there entirely on your own, then maybe I was wrong about..." she threw her hands up, "everything, maybe I was wrong about everything!"
Flack was at a loss, "Gus it's not fair for me to ask you to make a choice between me and family."
"Did you ever consider for a second that maybe you are as much my family as he is? Or that maybe that I might just look at things a little different than Mac does?" she stared at him, feeling like she had nothing left to lose at this point. He studied her with deep blue eyes.
"No, I guess not," he finally said, rubbing his head.
"Well why don't you consider that for a minute!" Gus said storming back to her desk.
"Dammit!" he shouted, wanting to hit at something, but choosing instead to head back into the pit. He knew that his world was about to get shaken up and he wanted, no, he needed, Gus by his side for it.
"I'm sorry," he mouthed sitting down to work on paperwork. "I know," she said, deep in her own paperwork.
A good while later Flack spoke up,"you do keep all the case files in English, right, Broussard?" Gus knew that she often called him by his last name, but something seemed wrong when he did it to her. She would give anything for a sunshine right about now.
She nodded, saying "but here's something you might want to look up Accipere quam facere praestat injuriam" she wrote it on a post-it and leaned over to stick it on his desk, "it's still a two way street, Flack," she whispered, sitting back down and feeling like she could fall apart.
Flack pulled up a translation page, 'it is better to suffer an injustice than to do an injustice' he read. "Do you always have to be right, sunshine?" he smirked at her.
She smiled back, "no, I just usually am." Her face clouded, seeing Mac walk in the door with two uniforms. Flack followed her gaze, his eyes turning to steel.
They both watched, along with most of the squad as Mac stripped Detective Truby of his shield and weapon.
Chapter 58: Take Me Home (NWS)
"I wonder if snitching runs in the family?" Lafferty said behind her back as she was heading back into the pit.
"You wanna say that to my face Lafferty, or maybe take this out of here?" Gus said turning to him, ready to take his head off.
"You couldn't handle what I would do to you, princess," Lafferty replied, leering at her.
"You couldn't handle me and I am sorry you think that snitching and integrity are synonymous, by the way that means 'the same' in case you didn't know," Gus said, ready to start swinging, she just didn't care anymore.
"Princess, you are walking on very thin ice and I don't think you can swim," he sneered down at her, clenching his muscles. Gus tightened her fists.
"Reel it in, both of you!" Flack snapped from behind them.
"Oh look your prince is here, good to know he has someone's back around here," Lafferty shot off giving both Flack and Gus a look.
"Screw off Lafferty," Gus snapped at him.
"He ain't always gonna be around to save you, princess," Lafferty sneered.
"Let's go, Gus...now!" Flack said halfway to the door, his eyes ice blue.
Outside, in the cold rain Gus couldn't contain her emotions, "I'm not a frigging puppy dog, Flack, I'm not just going to come whenever you call."
"I'm not saying you are, I just know how you can get and I have heard how Lafferty can get, so I decided to diffuse the situation, besides I needed a to get out of there."
A few shots later at a hidden booth in Sully's and Gus leaned across the table to grab Flack's hand. "You did the right thing, even if it doesn't feel that way right now."
"Separating you two, nah that felt fine."
"Flack," shaking head, "you know what I mean."
"Yeah, I know. It just feels like I am giving up a brother."
"He made his own bed, Flack. You can't cover for something this big." He seemed so dejected, so ruined, Gus was at a loss. "I'm not saying it is going to be easy, but you'll get through this. And Flack?"
"Yeah?"
"I'll really do have your back, no matter what." "You can't say that, you don't know that!"
"I'm saying it, I know it."
"What if Mac has something against me now, how can you choose me over him?"
"It's not about that. I am my own person. It wouldn't be the first time I've had a difference of opinion than him. He hated that I didn't go to med school or at least neuro-psych, he practically endorses the belief that my education is hoodoo voodoo."
Gus looked at him, he still seemed disbelieving. "Fine, believe me or don't but you were the one that forced me to believe in partnership. You are doing a crap job of following your own belief system though." She threw some money down and said, "goodnight Flack, if you want to talk for real, you know where to find me," and she walked out.
Flack followed behind a couple of minutes later, his long strides catching quickly up to her, "Gus, it's just...Mac and you and-"
Gus stopped him and turned, grabbing both his arms,"this isn't about Mac, this is about us. You and me, no one else. What is so hard about that?" she stared at him her eyes practically on fire.
Suddenly she was loosing herself in his blue eyes and then falling into his arms, kissing hungrily at him, not caring who saw in the middle of the sidewalk or that it was raining on them.
Flack broke away and looked around,"you sure this time, Gus, because I really can't handle you running off again."
"I'm sure this time,'" she said pulling his head back down, "now take me home out of this rain, Don."
Gus had no recollection on the cab ride back to her place other than a bemused cab driver and fogging up windows in the back seat of the cab, both of them kissing with hunger and desperation. Flack and Gus separated long enough to pay the driver and to get upstairs. Gus fumbled with the lock, ready to break down the door. She was letting herself fall this time, no matter what. She slammed the door shut behind Flack, pouncing about ready to tear his clothes off.
He caught her by the wrists, "you still sure, sunshine, this isn't just anger?"
"You're killing me here" she said kissing his neck and nibbling on his ear.
"You ain't the only one," he groaned as her tongue flicked expertly around the edge of his ear.
"So what is the damn problem?" her voice was husky with need.
He peeled her off of him and took her hand gently leading her to the bedroom,"sorry to disappoint you, sunshine, but I have been waiting a long damn time for this, and we're gonna take it real slow," he grinned evilly at her, his eyes full of passion.
He caught her in a kiss that left her breathless and leaned her slowly back on to the bed, "you okay with that?" he moaned, his eyes burning into hers. Gus gulped and could do more than nod as he slowly, one at a time, undid her buttons.
He groaned, following the buttons with a series of kisses down from her face, to her throat, her chest, her cleavage, her impossibly flat stomach. It was taking everything out of him to keep himself under control. Despite the fact that he had seen her in various states of undress, her being unashamed or unaware, it was completely different this close, this intimate.
Sure he had been with plenty of women, gorgeous women but none of them seemed as real to him as Gus did. He wanted to drag this out for as long as possible, he just wasn't so sure of his sustainability at his point, especially now as he fumbled with the button on her pants, and she wordlessly arched up to help them off. Not a word had been uttered since he laid her on the bed, it didn't need to be though. They had constant conversations without saying a word on a daily basis.
Flack realized that Gus was down to her underwear, matching and far too sexy for the office if anyone had consulted him, no wonder the guys were always trying to look down her pants. He also realized he was still fully dressed save his shoes. He unclipped his shield, creds and piece, lying it on the bedside table by hers, struck by the sight for a second. This brought partnership to a whole new and complicated level. His thoughts were broken by Gus who had swung up to her knees, and was undoing his tie, he helped her get it off and then let her take over the unbuttoning...
Gus felt like her skin was about to catch fire, as she fought with Flack's buttons. She finished with the last one and shoved the shirt from his body, lingering slightly against the front of his trousers, feeling the heat and hardness straining within. She untucked his undershirt and worked it slowly up, leaving a trail of kisses behind it, up his toned stomach and chest, over his scars, up to his neck. He caught her mouth with his, tongues probing, dancing. She reached for his belt buckle as he flicked off her bra. In wordless seconds, both urged on by moans and desire burning through them the rest of their clothes vanished. Flack looked deep into Gus' green eyes wanting to remember this moment for as long as possible, her light hair spilling over the dark pillows. A sound caught in her throat. "What?" he asked, tenderly.
"Safety first,"
"The safety's are on both guns I checked."
Gus rolled her eyes and cracked a smile, "Not what I mean blue eyes," she reached over and around him for the nightstand drawer, he took the opportunity to trail down the profile and underside of her breast with light kisses. "That tickles," she said handing him the foil wrapped package.
"Not exactly what a guy wants to hear, sunshine," he said, sliding up on top of her and then deep into her.
"Oh God," she groaned, it better than any of her most graphic fantasies, a perfect fit it seemed.
"That's more like it," Flack said thrusting and groaning himself. Their wordless communication continued, as they writhed on the bed, both searching and savoring something they had wanted for so long. Groans, moans, and sighs punctured the shadows of the room until
Gus made a chocking noise, "I can't hold on," she uttered.
"Just let go, sunshine," Flack whispered into her ear, and then moved back enough to stare down at her and to leverage a deep thrust. Her eyes went impossibly wide and almost turned black, a guttural noise caught in her throat, her legs wrapped tightly around Flack's waist, her whole body going tense and then quivering beneath him. It was enough to send him over the edge, nanoseconds later he groaned, deep in his chest and felt a powerful release and then a euphoric peace.
He leaned down to cover her face with kisses. He carefully rolled off of her.
She flung her arm over her head, "Wow, that was way better than I ever dreamed."
Flack slid his eyes over to her, not turning his head, "You too huh?"
"Since practically the first day I ran into you," she laughed, feeling a sense of contentment and belonging she had never even imagined she could.
"Don't go anywhere," he said sliding out of the bed.
"You have made me physically incapable of movement," she sighed.
"Good to know," he called from the hallway.
He returned a few minutes later, to find Gus sprawled face down and dead asleep. He cocked his head to the side and said, "shoulda guessed you weren't the cuddling type" and slid in beside her.
Sometime during the early morning hours, she became the cuddling type or he did. Either way Gus woke up to sunlight streaming in and she was curled up by Flack's side, facing away from him but pinning his arm to the bed.
She had a moment of terror upon realizing that last night hadn't been a dream. She froze and stiffened still not opening her eyes.
"Gungher," Flack stirred, and then turned to spoon her, inhaling the scent of her.
"Don," she whispered.
"Nhuh?" he said into her hair, not fully awake.
"If you are considering the possibility of chewing your arm off to escape or want to otherwise pretend last night never happened, I can just not turn over or open my eyes and let you slip out," Gus babbled moving away from him slightly.
"Not a chance, sunshine, I am firmly attached to both of my arms," he said pulling her back to him and kissing her neck.
Not the only firm thing, Gus thought to herself with a smile and flipped over to kiss him, sliding her leg over his straddling him, "Well in that case," she said into his neck...
The second time was even better. Still wordless, but intense, contentedly slow at first, until both of them reach the same conclusion of the point of no return. They remained in an embrace afterwards, Flack muttering, "did we just, at the same...?". Gus nodded, a grin spreading across her face lighting it up. "Nice timing" he smirked.
"Don't be so full of yourself."
"I wasn't, I'm aware you were here too," he said not want to slip out, but knowing he needed to.
Gus solved it for him, "coffee" she demanded, pulling out of his embrace.
"You ever thought of seeking help for your addiction, sunshine?" he asked, slipping into his boxers and undershirt.
"Thought I just had," she smirked, snuggling into the covers with a satisfied grin. Flack shook his head with a grin and headed to the kitchen.
The coffee was dripping into the carafe when both of them had the same instant realization, Gus skidded into the kitchen, in an over sized t-shirt, "Holy crap, Flack we-" she started.
"Slept together, twice," he finished, pouring her a mug of coffee.
"What does this mean?" she asked after her first gulp.
"Mean why does it have to mean something? Stop analyzing, Gus."
Gus looked panicked, did that mean he just wanted it to be a one time thing, that she was somehow supposed to just deal with a one night stand with her partner, because that could be weird and how was she supposed to not look like they had slept together at work and oh man everyone was going to have a field day with this- Gus' thoughts were interrupted by a deep kiss.
"I didn't mean it that way. I was trying to say..." he stopped, what was he trying to say? He studied her chewing on her lip, brow furrowed, hair mussed, glowing. His heart caught in his throat.
"I am saying I care about you a hell of a lot, Gus, and this has been a long time coming. And we will deal with consequences as they come up. We are a team, a partnership and this is just a deeper level of that," he looked so intense Gus actually backed up a couple of steps.
"Somehow I doubt Thatcher and Lafferty are having this same conversation this morning, Don," Gus said with a grin.
"Only because you are way sexier and more irresistible than either of those two goons," Flack said, covering her mouth with his, deftly wrenching the coffee mug from her hand and putting it on the counter.
"So are you, but Flack?"
"Huh?" he questioned, his hands sliding up her t-shirt, happy to discover there was nothing beneath it.
"I think you need to go home, otherwise we won't make it to work or everyone will know what we have been up to the second I walk in and after yesterday..." she trailed off, reaching for her mug.
Remembering his last hour or so at the precinct, a storm cloud gathered in his eyes, "yeah, that." he shrugged, "you're right again, sunshine, I'll see you at the house, and promise me you won't wear anything low cut."
Gus smirked, "I promise, blue eyes," she said scooting past him and heading to the shower, "you can see yourself out," she called not looking back.