Okay here's the latest. Not pleased with the end-point for this segment but I had to cut it off someplace. Thank you so SO much livullmann, patigerr, lipamo and also Bookworm for your awesome fics as well as your feedback. Also joyce glad to see I've caught your interest with this story too! More to come soon. Hope everyone has a safe/happy 2014!
After catching their breath, twined and tangled in the backseat of the car on a blanket she'd remembered to grab, laughing, Carrie lay draped over Brody's chest. Traced his scars with the tip of her finger.
All the while he was rubbing her back, his hand caressing the bare skin beneath her unzipped sweatshirt.
The bottle of bubbly -non-alcoholic, he'd checked- was drained and resting on the floor. Even on nothing but grape juice, they'd still been fucking and laughing like they were drunk.
"So. Driveway sex...?"
"Hey. At least it isn't parking lot."
"Close enough.", Brody scoffed as Carrie rolled her eyes, leaned in to kiss him again as his hand wandered, cupped her right breast as he sat up.
Softly she moaned, straddled him as he deepened the kiss. She'd officially lost track of the time, of how many times they'd been together since she'd pulled him into her car.
Between hormones, the heat between them being preferable to the cool night air, and her hearing in less than ten hours, she was all but addicted to him and vice versa.
Soon enough he'd tossed the sweatshirt off her while her nails scratched at his shoulder, and he huffed out her name against her neck before her back arched and they fell in on each other. Spent and forced to catch their breath again.
Reaching around her for the sweatshirt Brody draped it back over her shoulders, then stretched back as Carrie lay sprawled on top of him.
"You alright?", he asked, cupping the back of her head with his hand as she nodded. Resting her chin on his sternum she grinned, traced his eyebrows with the pad of her thumb.
"Yeah. Just hit the grape juice a little too hard.", she snickered as he rolled his eyes, took her lower lip gently between his teeth.
After contentedly kissing for awhile she pulled back, curled up on his chest close enough to hear his heart. Her eyes slipping shut as he stroked her hair.
"You warm enough?", he asked, adjusting the blanket so it draped around them better.
"Mmhmm. Are you?"
"Yeah I'm good."
Smiling softly he reached for, held her face.
"You are so beautiful."
"Well we've been fucking for over an hour. Of course you're going to say that.", she snorted, then averted her eyes hoping to hide that tears were prickling in them.
"Carrie.."
"What?!"
He wasn't surprised or intimidated at her snapping at him, just continued giving her that intense, laser focused stare, waiting with infinite patience for her eyes to eventually dart back to his.
Meeting his gaze Carrie almost shuddered, it felt like he could see right through her. He probably could.
Tugging the blanket more around her, when he helped get it snugly around them both she shook her head, sighed.
"What is it? I just said-"
"It's not what you said. It's how you said it."
"How did I say it?"
"Like it wasn't just some sweet nothing bullshit to get me into bed, or something for you to say to me once I got there. You said it like..."
"Like who would, someone who's in love with you?"
"I don't know. I wouldn't know.", Carrie snorted, set to look away again but this time Brody held her face and her gaze. Didn't let her so much as try to.
"Before you I never got past pillowtalk bullshit. I never let myself get past that.", she admitted.
"Yeah, I figured as much.", Brody shrugged, smoothing her hair as she turned her head, kissed his palm.
"I remember you asked me at the fire road why you felt the way you did. As if I fucking knew how to answer you."
"Well, you did answer me."
"Only because I knew why I felt the way I did. I just churned out the reason and switched out the pronouns."
"What?"
"I gave it up to you, Carrie. Way before you gave it up to me."
Not expecting that one she tried to formulate a response, something, anything.
"Wh..when?"
"When what?"
"When did you give it up to me?"
"When I woke up at the cabin after having what must've been a nightmare, and I opened my eyes and saw you."
"Brody..."
"You kept telling me I was with you, that everything was alright, that I was safe. And I believed it. For the first time in who the fuck knows how long."
"Until the next morning when everything went to shit.", Carrie scoffed.
"But in spite of that things held true, didn't they? I'm with you. Safe. Everything's fine. At least, at this moment everything's fine."
"Well I hate to break it to you but that moment's up after the hearing tomorrow.", she sighed.
"You know, you're usually the optimist of the two of us.", Brody reminded as she shrugged, went solemn.
"Hey."
Gently tilting her chin up he thumbed a tear off her cheek.
"It'll be fine, Carrie. It will."
Sniffling, she managed a nod, soft smile before leaning in to kiss him. Deepening it, Brody took over. Settled on top and moved slowly and with her as her nails dug into the scars on his back.
Afterward, she resumed her position against his chest while he pulled the blanket around them both, kissed the side of her head.
All the while thinking about the next five months. Highly doubting they'd be able to be like this in a hospital bed.
Getting emotional at the thought of having to separate from her, again, before he knew it Brody found himself vocalizing it.
"Don't leave.", he said gruffly. But hearing the words he realized his mouth had gotten ahead of his brain. Unfortunately Carrie hadn't realized that.
Sitting up she shook her head, glared at him.
"Shit. Carrie..."
"Are you trying to make all of this more difficult for me?"
Swearing under her breath she grabbed and zipped her sweatshirt, pulled on her jeans.
"Look, don't. Jesus...it just slipped out, I-"
"Well that slip up? It made me feel even fucking shittier than I already do!"
Reaching for the door handle Carrie fought off his touch. When he was persistent, she cringed. Yelled at him to fuck off before opening, slamming the car door.
"Motherfucking...Carrie. CARRIE!", he yelled but she ignored him, took off up the driveway and inside the house.
Swearing again, Brody punched the back of the seat until his fist ached. Afterward, defeated he tugged on his jeans.
Wrapped the blanket around himself tightly he tried his best to get comfortable in the now very uncomfortable backseat. Mentally scolding, cursing himself out until he finally fell asleep.
...
After curling up beside and managing to get a few more hours of sleep beside Farrah, careful not to wake the girl up Carrie slipped out from under the blanket and then into the bathroom. Showering, she got changed into her outfit for court, then went downstairs to get started on the pancakes she'd promised to make.
Peering out the front window she noticed that her car, that she'd left the keys in after fleeing last night, was no longer in the driveway.
"Fuck. FUCK.", she spat, tears filling her eyes. Knowing with Brody's tendency to run from conflict between them, that he could have driven to fucking West Virginia by now.
Deciding to channel her frustration and anger into energy to put towards pancake making, she walked over to the kitchen. Started retrieving bowls, pans, Bisquick and blueberries from the cupboards and making lots of noise. Enough to rouse Dana who yawned, wandered into the kitchen as she rubbed her eyes.
Seeing her out of the corner of her eye, Carrie nearly dropped the pan.
"Dana? What the..what are you doing here?"
"Crashed here last night after I dropped my dad off.", she shrugged, getting a coffee mug from the top cupboard before starting a pot.
"Well feel free to make yourself right at home!", Carrie scoffed, appalled at seeing her so comfortable here. Enough to rummage through Maggie's kitchen and know her way around it so well.
"Hey your sister said I could. I mean I did babysit your kid all afternoon."
"Next time I'll just slip you a crisp twenty. Send you on your way."
"My rate's double that at home.", Dana snorted as Carrie rolled her eyes, then sighed. Knowing Farrah must've gotten along halfway decently with the teenager if they collaborated on a drawing and spent the afternoon together. And that Dana had volunteered to stay yesterday, had done so without being prompted.
Keeping that in mind she spoke up again.
"Thank you. For watching Farrah."
"It wasn't awful or anything. She's a good kid.", Dana shrugged, pouring coffee for herself.
"Yeah. She is.", Carrie said softly, willing herself not to tear up.
"She showed me the drawing the two of you worked on.", she said, remembering she'd have to wrangle the sketch into her suitcase somehow.
"Yeah, she said she was going to give it to you. For your 'assignment'."
Hearing the way she emphasized the last word Carrie's features hardened.
"I'd rather she see it as that than know I'm doing a stint in the fucking psych ward.", she snapped as Dana frowned, sipped some of her coffee.
"She said you were doing all this to protect someone. Farrah did."
"She's right. I'm protecting Brody. Trying to."
"She said there was someone else too."
"Isn't my doing all of this for one person enough?!", Carrie deflected getting a shrug, nod, but still a cold stare from the teenager.
"I guess. But shit, going to all this trouble? You must've really come to love my dad when you set up cameras and fucking watched his every move." Dana spat as Carrie shook her head, set the spoon down and turned towards her.
"As much as I'd love listening to you berate, belittle me right now, I have to finish Farrah's breakfast. She'll be downstairs in about eight minutes and shouldn't have to hear over pancakes how much you hate me."
"I don't hate you.", Dana said, getting a skeptical look.
"You don't.", Carrie snorted.
"No. I don't, like you. Or trust you. But I don't hate you."
"You don't?", she asked, less aggressively.
"You got my dad sympathy instead of a death sentence. I'm still not completely sure how but-"
"Nothing was guaranteed. It was a gamble. I wasn't sure if any of it would do any good at all. Gain Brody anything."
"It did though. It did.", Dana sighed.
"And I guess, in spite of everything you did, all the surveillance and shit, I guess I kind of owe you.", Dana shrugged as Carrie rubbed the bridge of her nose, shook her head.
"No, Dana."
"You knew my dad was innocent and you proved it. You were like, the only other person who cared enough to-"
"Dana, enough. You don't owe me. I was just doing my job. And I don't need anyone indebted to me for that. You understand? It's unnecessary. Unwanted."
"Well what do you want?"
"I want some help getting these fucking pancakes ready.", Carrie snorted as Dana moved closer, started ladling batter onto the griddle.