On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love sent to me…

Nine People Skating

"You should go home…"

Joss rolled her eyes as John repeated what he had said two hours ago. "I'll go home when I'm good and ready too, John," she retorted.

They had been sitting out in his car for better then three hours on a stakeout that never seemed to end. Their newest number was partying hard. Ms. Susan Sullivan was a young divorcee, legal secretary, and apparent life of the party as she was in a bar having fun during Ladies Night. Shaw and Root were on the inside; Shaw was posing as a bartender while Root was just a patron, while they watched from the outside. John had tried to push her to go inside with the brunettes but she declined, finding being with him, even on a stakeout, far more enjoyable.

So far nothing had happened but also there were zero clues as to why anyone would want to harm Ms. Sullivan in the first place. The ex-husband had already moved on with someone even younger, the law firm she worked for specialized in divorce, and there was no new man in her life to speak of.

Joss glanced out the window and sighed wistfully as she could see, off in the distance, the giant Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center.

John looked her way, seeing she was looking out the window and he followed her line of vision. "What's got you down, Carter?" he asked quietly. He was still trying to figure out her comment from the other day; the flirty one, about him in jeans. John felt torn because half of him wanted it to mean something and the other half of him liked their relationship the way it was.

"The ice skating rink has been open since October and I haven't gotten a chance yet to go skating." she said regretfully. "I love ice skating but things have been so busy."

"You still have time to go…."

Joss looked away and met his gaze. "Are you volunteering on taking me?" she asked in what she hoped was not a so subtle hint that she wanted him to.

He shook his head as he looked to the bar their number had disappeared into hours ago. Again there was that undercurrent beneath her innocent enough words. "I wouldn't be much use to you Carter as I never ice skated before," he admitted.

Joss gaped at him. "I'm sorry, is my age showing because I think my hearing is going but I could swear you said that you never ice skated before and that's just unheard of?!"

He chuckled as he looked at her again. "Carter, when I was a kid I ping-ponged from base to base with my mom and dad. Then we moved to Colorado for a little while but I didn't live there long and then I moved to Washington on my Aunt's farm. Ice skating was the furthest thing from my mind," he explained simply.

"You haven't lived until you ice skated!" she assured, which earned a chuckle from him. "I'm serious!"

John didn't respond and things fell silent in the car once more as she side-eyed him; she couldn't believe he never ice skated before. She had ice skated since she was eight years old. She took Taylor out once a year until he grew old enough to find it not as enjoyable anymore with his old mom. John didn't know what he was missing but she'd show him! Joss looked away with the resolution that she was going to show John the joys of ice skating whether or not he wanted it.

John exited his car at Rockefeller Center early in the morning at the behest of Carter; she had called him to meet her here sounding urgent. He couldn't believe that in less than a week it would be Christmas; the first one he actually cared about since Jessica died.

John found Carter, in black leggings and a leather coat, waiting for him with two sets of ice skates in her gloved hands. She grinned as he came to an abrupt stop. "I just can't live with myself if I don't show you the joys of ice skating."

John stared at her and then at the skates and then back at her. "You called me here to go ice skating?" he asked. The other night Carter had found out the fact that he had never ice skated beyond appalling while he had found it amusing that she found it appalling but he hadn't really thought she'd try to get him out on the ice. He was too old to try ice skating.

She rolled her eyes. "Do I have to only call you when it's a life or death situation?" she demanded a little annoyed. "I would have let you sleep in a bit but I called to get a reservation so we could have some time to ourselves on the rink without that many people." Joss had called and asked Finch for John's shoe size and he knew unsurprisingly.

"Carter…"

Joss held out his skates. "Please John; you only live once and it would make me very happy," she tried cajoling him. He narrowed his eyes before reluctantly taking the skates and she grinned happily.

"Carter this is your Christmas gift," he threatened.

"I'll happily take it," she assured him.

John lied as he had a different item for a gift for her. He had thought long and hard on what to get Joss and he settled on something he knew she'd never get herself.

Joss put her skates on at the speed of light to beat John so he couldn't try to back out of going on the ice. She stood and waited for him to finish putting his skates on and walked gingerly with her to the ice. She swallowed a giggle at the look on his face. John clearly was a little wary about ice skating for his first time.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Just wondering what sort of health insurance Finch pays for," he commented.

Joss chuckle. "You won't need to worry about that because I'm an excellent teacher, though, then again, if you're a lousy student then you may be in trouble," she reassured, feeling giddy that she talked John into doing this.

"Carter, haven't you ever heard of the old adage that you can't teach old dog's new tricks?" he murmured as he debated on telling Carter that he wasn't going to do this. But she seemed so excited and it irritated him that he liked that he made her this happy.

She rolled her eyes. "You'll love it! Are you ready?" she asked.

"Uh-huh…."

"Doesn't sound like it, John," she retorted before stepping out on the ice and skated away a little to turn to look back at him. She waved him on. "Just put a skate on the ice and go." she instructed.

"You make it sound so easy," he grumbled.

"Well if you want to be the next Trevor Gretzky you need to get on the ice to begin with!" Joss stated, knowing John was a sports guy.

He cocked a brow up. "Who?—do you mean Wayne Gretzky?"

She frowned. "Hockey isn't my sport," she muttered. "I'm more a basketball and football fan myself. Now get your butt out here!"

John tentatively got onto the ice and he had his arms spread out and he was waving them around trying to keep his balance as he barely moved forward. "You look like a baby fawn trying to learn how to walk," Joss teased as she laughed. All the stress from the week faded away as she skated close to him. His sexy spicy cologne filled her nostrils and she took another slow deliberate inhalation. Mmm, she definitely could get used to this; spending her free time with him that didn't involve bullets, bad guys, or pesky nosy friends.

"Carter…" he warned as he latched a hand onto her forearm and refused to let go.

"Oh come on John; you got to admit you look like Bambi!" she retorted. He chuckled as he shook his head. Spending time with this woman, outside of working, was becoming a necessity in his life. That could be the only explanation as to why he allowed her to talk him into ice skating in the first place.

Joss moved slowly with John, who clearly wasn't stable on the skates yet, and couldn't believe she talked him into ice skating with her. When she called him here she had kept her expectations low figuring he'd tell her no and that'd be that. But instead he had been hesitant and then with a little persuasion he agreed. Maybe she should try that approach with asking him to dinner that wasn't remotely friendly in any way. She glanced at him and grinned.

"What?" he muttered, sensing her look rather than seeing it.

"Nothing," she replied.

John's death grip on her forearm never loosened but he did move forward a little quicker and she took that as her cue that he was ready to move on the ice a little faster so she skated quicker with him.

"You find this relaxing, Carter?" he asked after a while.

She nodded. "I love ice skating."

John didn't respond as he concentrated on keeping upright rather than falling on his ass in an embarrassed and painful heap. He couldn't wait until this ice skating excursion to make her happy was over and he was back on solid, non-slippery, ground again.

They, both, skated around as it grew steadily busier with more and more people on the ice. Joss caught sight of a group of kids with one woman as their chaperone. She supposed they were out of school already.

"Are you having fun John?" she asked after looking up at him.

He didn't have the heart to tell her that after today he would never put a pair of ice skates on ever again. "It's interesting," he said instead.

Joss rolled her eyes. "Translation: you hate it. Why did you come on the ice with me if you knew you'd hate it?" she wondered.

"For you," he answered, risking a glance her way, taking his eyes off the ice beneath him. "You said the other night you wanted to skate and I figured if I said no then you wouldn't either."

"So you did this for me?"

"Yes," he agreed readily. "But hopefully you're ready to get off the ice because we are in the middle of the rink and there is no way in hell I can make it back on my own." he commented dryly as he looked back.

She chuckled. "What, the man in the suit couldn't figure out a way back himself? The same man that figures out whatever he has on hand to take down a would-be killer." she retorted playfully as she continued skating with him further out on the rink.

"Oh I could but not without falling on my ass a few dozen times on the way," he muttered.

"Can't let you get a bruised butt or you'd never hear the end of it from Shaw and Root," she teased and earned herself a look for her trouble.

Joss was about to give him good news that she was ready to pack it in but watched as a young girl who could be no older than ten years old accidentally bump into John from behind which was a domino effect as he wasn't steady on his skates and he desperately grabbed a hold of her and with his forward momentum and his strength, she lost her footing too and they tumbled down to the ice together with John breaking her fall.

She couldn't help the laughter as she buried her face in John's chest and laughed as the kid didn't seem too apologetic over knocking them over as she skated off with barely a mumbled apology.

"Glad you find this hilarious, Carter," he grumbled as he fought to control his own mirth at their situation. His butt didn't hurt but his back sure did though his ego wasn't wounded because Carter had fell with him and her soft warm body was on top of him which made feeling anything aside from her a near impossibility.

Joss lifted her head up and stared down at him. "Had you seen the look on your face you'd understand. But thank you for breaking my fall," she purred as she slowly realized that she was lying on top of John and it felt comfortable. She felt his gloved hands on her hips as they stared at each other.

Her lips parted slightly as his eyes darkened as they dropped to her mouth. There was no denying or deflecting that was a look of pure desire. John wanted to kiss her and she wanted him to. She bent her head down so their lips were close.

"Joss," he whispered and the moment was broken as the woman and the children she noticed earlier, all except the little red head that knocked John over, skated over to them to help them up all the while apologizing profusely for what happened.

Joss was more miffed by the interruption than the fact that the girl knocked them over but she hid her longing behind a smile as it took nearly all four girls, the woman, and Joss to help John to his inexperienced feet.

The little girl with red hair skated over to the other side of the rink as her mother and friends were helping the couple up that she knocked down. She grinned as she saw the brunette still standing there.

"I knocked them over like you wanted." she said looking back at the scene as it took nearly everyone to help the man up. She felt bad for hitting the man but they didn't get hurt so she didn't feel that bad.

Shaw grinned. "Good job too, kid; you took both down, here's your other half of our agreement." Shaw murmured as she handed the girl the other ten bucks.

"Thanks, lady!" the girl said with a smile.

"Don't tell anyone about this," Shaw stated with a twist of her lips. The girl nodded before skating off to meet up with her other little kiddy friends.

Shaw eyed Carter and Reese as they were standing on the ice stupidly looking at each other. "Just friends," she muttered with a snort. "I know exactly what to get them for Christmas now," she said to herself with a wicked grin before shoving her gloved hands into her pockets and walked away.

AN: Devious Shaw is a lot of fun to write especially when her prey is John and Joss.

Thank you for reading!