Chapter 15 – The Times, They are a Changin'

"So, we're alone?" Tony raised his eyebrows suggestively and Michelle felt a blush creep up the back of her neck.

"Surprised?" she asked, making a particular point not to catch his drift.

"No." he stated calmly. "Just stating the obvious." She had just kicked off her shoes and was making her way towards the stairs when she felt an arm wrap around her waist, pulling her back against his body. She felt his warm breath in her hair before it moved down the side of her face, hovering at her ear and then heating the crook of her neck before he clamped down gently on it with his teeth. Her eyes closed synchronously when he did this and she interlaced her fingers through his and leaned back against his shoulder.

"Tony…" she began breathlessly.

"Mhm…" she felt the words against her neck and wavered slightly.

"We should wait until tonight." She managed.

He said nothing in response, but his hand slipped beneath her blouse and his lips moved further down her shoulder. She'd undone a couple of buttons in the car and he'd been feeling the need to get his hands on her ever since.

"Tony!" she lambasted pointlessly. As she broke away quickly and turned around to protest his lips sealed around hers and their bodies melded together. She didn't even realize where they were until the back of her legs bumped into the couch and she toppled onto it with her arms still around his neck

He crawled on top of her, pushing her back against the cushions as his mouth retained contact with some part of her skin. She whimpered softly without meaning to when his hands moved from her blouse to the bottom of her skirt and slid gently up the inside of her leg. Her own hands had moved beneath his shirt and her nails raked gently into his back…cursing their clothes from getting in the way.

And naturally, at that moment the front door slammed shut and Rick walked briskly into the living room. They both froze at the sound, like deer caught in the headlights.

"Oh shit um…" Rick ran his fingers through his hair awkwardly and quickly turned to the side. "Sorry…guys…I had um…yeah…" he fumbled and moved quickly into the kitchen, calling "Sorry" over his shoulder several times.

Tony hung his head dejectedly before rolling off the couch and untwisting his shirt. Michelle followed suit, her hair falling out of its ponytail and her cheeks still tinged pink both from embarrassment and excitement.

They both entered the kitchen, Michelle retying her hair and Tony's jaw cocked uncomfortably to one side. Rick had his head buried in the fridge as he guzzled a bottle of water. After a minute he turned around.

"Sorry…" he looked deeply apologetic and was now wishing he'd had enough common sense to turn around and go back outside than run into the kitchen to hide. Michelle looked slightly mortified and he felt bad. Namely since the only reason this had happened was because he'd been crashing at their place for the last month…and because he might've caught a good look at her bra.

"Don't worry about it." Michelle told him quietly, her cheeks turning slightly redder. "I'm gonna go grab a shower anyway…" she touched Tony gently on the arm before disappearing up the stairs.

Rick raised an eyebrow, feigning confusion as he glanced between his brother and Michelle's retreating back. "Aren't you gonna go with her?" he asked innocuously.

Tony smacked him affectionately across the back of the head and mumbled, "smart ass" under his breath. There was a slight smirk playing on the corners of his lips.

Rick laughed, relieved the tension had broken.

"I mean…next time you want me to make myself scarce…" Rick began. "Just lemme know."

"I'll do that." Tony reached into the fridge and pulled out water for himself as he muttered innocuously.

"I'm uh…I'm sorry I'm staying so long."

Tony turned around and faced his brother full-on.

"Don't be." He said sincerely. "I'd rather know you were here than wonder what the hell you'd gotten yourself into this time."

"I know but it's been a month…"

"Don't worry about it." Tony squeezed his shoulder firmly. "You'll be gone again before we know it."

Rick sighed heavily. "I really appreciate this."

"I know."

"Where's Tony?" Michelle asked as she emerged in flannel pants. Her hair was still dripping from the shower.

"He's putting gas in your car for tomorrow."

She smiled a little lopsidedly before sitting down beside Rick on the couch.

"What are you watching?"

"Sports reel…" he sighed heavily. "Cubs lost."

She hiccupped a laugh and he rolled his eyes slightly. "You haven't been converted yet?"

"I don't watch enough baseball to require converting." She stated easily.

Rick laughed appreciatively.

"I'm sorry about - "

"It's really not that big a deal…" she stared at him incredulously.

"I know…I just…I feel like this is proof I overstayed my wel - "

"Stop worrying so much." She assured him firmly. "We want you here…both of us…"

He smiled slightly and seemed to consider what he was about to say next.

"You have good taste by the way…" he bit his lip, hiding a smirk.

She raised her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

He grinned and smacked her knee teasingly.

"I've always had a thing for black lace."

She stared at him wide eyed and felt the color returning to her cheeks.

He laughed loudly as she swatted him playfully on the arm.

"My turn to shower…" he declared and his leapt out of her reach and bolted for the stairs. She shook her head slowly.

"Stay up there if you know what's good for you." She warned menacingly. He winked and was gone.

Tony's hands slid languidly down her arms, following the descent of her shirt as it uncovered inch after inch and bare skin. She clamped down hard on his lower lip as he removed the shirt completely and her nimble fingers went to work on his own. His hands moved across her bare stomach, caressing it gently before slipping beneath her skirt and moving between her legs. She gasped hard and bucked her head back against the wall. By the time he was finished her lips had moved to his neck and his shirt had fallen to the floor…

They were both down to their underwear: him black boxers and her some midnight blue bra and panty set that only further emphasized her pale skin, dark hair and bright eyes. For a while longer they tumbled around on the bed together, taking their time removing the last few articles of clothing before she pushed him onto his back and started to work her way down his chest. He felt his muscles clench and gritted his teeth as the sweat started to emanate from his pores. His breathing turned labored when she hit her mark and his head fell back against the pillow…

They were at CTU. He was standing over her desk and conversations were being had. They argued a lot…over Jack. She would tell him something and he would go on the defensive. She got irritated by his constant presence, (or need to keep an eye on her) and he felt emasculated as a result. She told him off for not obeying the chain of command and he reminded her, resentfully, that whatever happened when they walked out of the office would be entirely different.

Next they ended up in a deserted hallway.

"Tony, I appreciate your looking the other way on this, but you don't have to help me cover for Jack anymore." She told him emphatically.

"I'm not doing this for Jack." He replied, conveying the meaning behind the words with the way his eyes lingered and held her gaze. Obviously he was doing this for her, and only her. She couldn't possibly think otherwise…

They were back in the bedroom, but things were quiet. She was sleeping and he was trying to get his head to stop spinning long enough to get some sleep. He found himself kind of wishing she would wake up so they could start round two…it seemed like they never saw that much of each other anymore and when they'd had a day like they'd just had…with her spending so much time with Jack, he couldn't help but get a little territorial. He couldn't help but feel an irrefutable desire to leave his mark.

They were back at CTU again, and he was not feeling angry or frustrated or jealous anymore. He wanted to comfort her and he wanted it to be one of the things only he could do for once. Jack was worried about his family, not her. On the other hand, she was all he'd been thinking about all day. He'd been thinking about putting this huge mess behind them so he could take her home and not think for a while.

"…Ultimately, we're here to try to help people, right? I don't know anyone who does that better than you." He told her gently and she seemed to feel better about the whole thing. So did he.

He was sweating hard and his breathing was ragged as he pounded out a steady rhythm and she moaned and groaned incessantly. Her nails dug painfully into his back and he winced slightly before biting down into her neck in retaliation. The sheets had fallen to the floor and she released him long enough to bring his hand to cover her mouth and mute the noises she was making. Now they had all the time in the world for this; now it was nothing but them, a bed, and sex. Nothing was making it awkward, nothing was making it uncomfortable; they as they were at that moment, worked.

Slowly, everything morphed back to CTU as he ran into one of the IT rooms to find Jack clutching his dead wife's body. He was still sweating, but for a much different reason this time. He'd just seen her taken away in handcuffs and realized not only was she a traitor and a murderer, but she had been screwing him…in more ways than one…

Back in bed she kissed him lightly, rousing him from sleep and mumbling something about having to get to work. Their shift started at eleven that night. His stomach churned as if he was having an out of body experience; knowing full well what the hours would uncover. His skin crawled when she slipped her tongue into his mouth and her hand wiggled its way beneath his boxers.

Tony launched himself upright, his breathing ragged and the sweat from the dream protruding from his pores, leaving him with slick skin and clammy palms. He felt nauseous and his stomach was clenched tightly as he pushed off the covers and tried to gulp in fresh air. His brow was dripping wet and he couldn't seem to get himself to push the vivid nightmare out of his head. He could still feel her all over him…

What the hell was that?

He hadn't had a dream about Nina in an eternity…well…in the last two years at least. In his disheveled state he started feeling a little panicky and reached a free hand across the mattress in desperate search of his companion.

His breathing started to level when he felt her perfectly cool and smooth skin by comparison. His fingers found their way into long, curly hair instead of the thin, short kind he had felt in his dream. For a few seconds he caressed it before pulling her towards him a little aggressively and pressing a kiss against her head.

"Mhm…" she groaned a little. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing…" he gasped, his heart rate still erratic. "Sorry…go back to sleep."

Too late. She was up.

Great, now he felt guilty. They didn't get a lot of sleep to begin with, and because of some stupid dream he had to go and ruin hers. It's not like he had reason to doubt she would be there when he woke up, but everything had felt so real he could've sworn it had just happened…

The thing was, it had happened. It had felt real because it had happened, every painstaking moment of it and he had relived everything he had felt through each and every second. He had lived through it and it had tormented him that someone he had spent hours and hours in bed with could end up being something so…

He and Jack had been going over a file that morning and Nina's name had been in it. That had to be why he'd had the dream. He wasn't subconsciously thinking about Nina all the time still…she'd just been forced into his thoughts yet again.

Michelle snuggled into his chest and he immediately felt like he was being suffocated. He tried to squirm away without her realizing. She snapped awake half a second later as a result.

"Are you okay?" she sat up completely and reached out a hand to feel his forehead. Her hand traveled down his body. "You're sweating like crazy…"

"I'm alright." He assured her in a raspy voice. "It's just too hot in here."

She frowned and pulled away a little.

"I'll get some water."

"No." he latched onto her wrist and pulled her back. "Go back to sleep. I'll get it myself."

She obeyed reluctantly and he exited the bedroom.

A few minutes later he was on his second 12oz glass when she emerged in the kitchen, her housecoat wrapped around her and her hair tumbling endearingly around her face. He felt a big wave of sickness wash over him at the sight. Sickness at how guilty he felt for thinking he could push her away by acting like a jerk. She knew him better than that.

"What happened?" she asked him softly, coming to stand beside him. With the water glass in hand she noticed him shaking and her brow furrowed with concern.

"Tony…" her voice grew stern. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He brushed her off and downed the rest of the glass. "Bad dream…not a big deal."

The glass landed on the counter with a light clank before he went to fill it again.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" she volunteered.

He looked conflicted, and didn't answer.

"Was it about work?"

"Kinda." He muttered without thinking and immediately knew it had been a mistake.

She bit her lip, remembering she'd awoken to being pulled into his embrace.

"Was I in it?"

"No." he blurted out without thinking again.

His shaking hand put down the glass again and she crossed the room slowly and drew him into her arms. He sighed heavily into her hair, feeling suffocated again and tempted to pull away.

"Are you okay?"

"It was just a dream, Michelle" He mumbled flatly and she pulled back far enough to allow him a view of her raised eyebrows.

"I know, I just…"

He moved his arms and leaned back against the counter, breaking the contact slightly.

"Just go back to bed, alright? There's no reason for both of us to be zombies tomorrow…"

She looked slightly hurt but nodded and tucked her hair behind her ears, her gaze was lowered to the floor as she did this.

"Okay…fine." She met his eyes at the last possible second before disappearing back up the stairs.

The sound of footsteps on the stairs ten minutes later made Tony spin around again. He sighed heavily when he realized it wasn't Michelle.

"Hey…" Rick scratched the back of his head, his hair messy and disheveled. He yawned and squinted at the light from the kitchen. His runners were hanging in his left hand and he wore track pants and a grey t-shirt.

"Why are you up?"

Tony shrugged. "Couldn't sleep." He glanced at his brother's attire. "Are you going running?"

"Couldn't sleep either." Rick shrugged. "It clears my head."

Tony said nothing.

"Which, I'm guessing is what you could use right now…" Rick suggested with a raised eyebrow. "C'mon…get dressed…come with me…"

Tony laughed hollowly. "You'll kick my ass."

"Obviously." Rick snorted good naturedly. "But it's good…you'll wipe yourself out so you're to tired to think about anything…"

Tony hesitated and Rick slapped him on the back.

"C'mon…I'll go easy on ya…"

Tony rolled his eyes. "Alright…gimme a minute."

They ran for over half an hour before coming to a small playground. The sun was just beginning to rise and Tony was dripping with sweat. Rick, much to his chagrin, was barely breathing heavily.

"Someone's out of shape…" he teased, moving over to the monkey bars and preparing for a few chin-ups. "You need to workout more."

"I workout."

"More…" Rick emphasized. "Otherwise people will think you're getting old or something."

Tony groaned and slumped down on the bench.

"You said you'd go easy."

"That was easy."

"That was sprinting for thirty minutes."

Rick laughed and hoisted himself up without much effort. He had a good pace going and Tony mumbled something about a "showoff".

A few minutes later Rick joined him on the bench.

"So what's the deal?"

"Huh?"

"Are you normally up at 4:30 every morning?"

"It was just a…dream."

"Girl?"

Tony stared at him, obviously offended. "I'm married, genius."

"It's not like I asked if you're cheating on her…you said it was a dream…"

"And why do you assume it's about a girl?"

"Because I know you." Rick remarked flatly. "It's also the reason you told Michelle to leave you the hell alone right before I got down there."

Tony turned and stared at him.

"Saw her in the hall…" Rick explained easily. "Anyway who was it? That redhead you were dating when I left?"

"Hannah?"

Rick groaned. "Right…oh man she was so annoying…what the hell were you thinking with that one?"

Tony shrugged. "She was fun, she was pretty…"

"She was a self-righteous, instigator…"

"Hey…"

"She was. Every time she saw me I got a lecture…she had this holier-than-thou attitude that made me want to…" Rick tapered off, obviously miffed.

"Anyway, was it her?"

"No. Definitely not."

"Then…"

"Nina Myers." He waited patiently and Rick shook his head.

"No idea who that is…"

"Worked at CTU when Jack Bauer was the Director…" he paused. "You know…?"

"I know who Bauer is." Rick stated flatly. "I was in Germany for a few weeks every year…I heard about the Drazens. That's why I e-mailed you."

Tony sighed heavily. "They had this uh…thing when he was separated and then he went back to his wife and we started…dating."

"And…"

"And she was still in love with him…"

"Ouch."

"And was working for the Drazens and ended up murdering Jack's wife and kidnapping his daughter and…yeah. It was hell."

"Did he kill her?"

"No. She was arrested. And then a year and a half later we found out she'd sold the plans to CTU to a terrorist group from the Middle East so they could blow it up."

"Fuck." Rick shook his head. "Did they?"

Tony nodded uncomfortably. "We lost thirty people…it was rough…We spent the first hour afterwards running around trying to figure out who was still alive…"

"And…Michelle was working there then?" there was a hint of anxiousness in his voice that Tony rather appreciated. Rick and Michelle had definitely bonded over the last couple of weeks.

"Uh huh…for a little under a year."

"Jesus Christ. What happened to Myers?"

Tony bit his lip. "She had connections to one of the guys behind it. We cut a deal and she was pardoned and exiled to Africa. Which is why, I guess, she was on my mind..." He finished awkwardly. "An FBI agent spotted her and flagged one of the files. She was making contacts with a known Arms Dealer in Algeria."

"Why didn't they pick her up?"

"They couldn't confirm it was her…and even if they could've there was no proof she knew what he was. This guy they were tailing was known to dabble in biohazard weapons and he the top priority. "

"Well…is it possible it wasn't - ?"

"It was Nina." Tony cut him off. "It was Nina and she knew exactly what she was doing. And now I'm worried and Jack's worried that she's up to something and we lost our only chance stop her because of…"

Rick sighed heavily and leaned back against the bench.

"Sorry."

"Who saw the file?"

"Only Jack and me."

"Why didn't you tell Michelle?"

Tony looked at him exasperatedly. "Why do you think?"

"Well it's not like it's your fault…"

"And Michelle had enough Nina Myers talk to contend with before we even starting dating. She doesn't need it now. Trust me."

Rick shrugged. "I guess."

After a few seconds of nothing Rick spoke.

"This thing with Nina…was it…y'know…serious?" he ventured carefully. Tony understood the question. He wanted to know if he'd been in love with her. If only there were a simple answer to that.

"I think at the time…I kinda wanted it to be …" he shrugged innocuously. "Things changed."

Rick grinned a little. "I like Michelle."

Tony laughed. "I noticed…"

"No I mean it…out of everyone you ever dated she wins hands down…"

"Yeah well…that doesn't do her much justice all things considered."

Rick smiled.

"Hey uh listen, I was thinking if you needed any extra help at CTU for a while…with Tactical or Field Ops I'm just doing nothing and I'm kinda going crazy already so…"

"You'd need clearance."

"I have clearance." Rick reminded. "I probably have a higher level of clearance than you do."

"We'd need to get someone to authorize it…"

"Well hey, if it's too much hassle, don't bother but…I mean I'm good at this stuff, Tony. I could help."

"Yeah…" Tony bit his lip as it occurred to him that if all went as planned they'd be short one Head of Field Ops and his partner in a few weeks time. "I just dunno if us working together would be the best idea…"

"Tony…" Rick looked at him seriously. "I know we don't agree all the time but I'm a professional. It would work. We could try it for a while and if not…I mean Bauer's going to Mexico soon right - ?"

"How the hell did you know that?"

Rick shrugged. "I told you. I have clearance. I did my research."

Tony scowled a little. "I'll talk to Chappelle this week Alright?"

On Jack and Chase's final day at CTU before Mexico, Tony and Jack spent the entire afternoon in the Conference going over specifics again and again. Once they'd crossed the border, there wouldn't be much, if any, regular contact and they needed to make sure all the bases were covered. After the initial contact the plan was to more or less remain in Mexico as it was likely the Salazars had access to information on border crossings and would be monitoring it carefully. If Jack was constantly going back into the States they could become suspicious.

It was mid-November.

"So uh…what'd you tell Kate?" Tony stated as five-o-clock drew nearer.

Jack looked slightly surprised at the question. He shrugged.

"That I was going away for work, didn't know how long I'd be and I couldn't say anything else."

"And she was okay with that?"

Again, Jack shrugged. "I guess she understood what I meant. She's been a little quiet these last few days so I'm hoping she might…I mean it's not like I want to leave her, or Kim. We're supposed to have dinner tonight. They'll be fine…Kim's older now and she's busy with school and they have each other."

He sounded a lot more sure of this than he actually felt.

"I haven't left Kim since Teri." Jack lowered his eyes. Tony nodded sympathetically.

"Look, you're not gonna be gone forever. Kate'll be around and you'll get to come back in a couple of months and if anything serious happens - "

"You may or may not be able to get in touch with me." Jack finished flatly.

"If anything serious happens we'll find a way to get in touch with you….even if I have to drive down there myself. Alright?"

Jack sighed. "Yeah, okay."

"So, Chase is ready?"

"Yes." Jack nodded firmly. "He's a good kid. He'll be fine. I told Michelle she's got a good eye."

Tony laughed a little. "I'm sure she appreciated that."

A small grin played across Jack's lips.

"Rick's coming in tomorrow?"

"Yeah. It shouldn't take him too long to get the hang of everything."

"He knows what he's doing." Jack insisted easily. "I wouldn't worry too much."

As they rose from their chairs, gathering up a few papers, Tony turned to Jack.

"You need anything before you leave in the morning, call me alright?"

"Yeah. Thanks Tony."

"Yeah…" Tony scratched the back of his neck and glanced at the ground. "Listen Jack, take care of yourself down there, okay?"

"I will." The clasped hands briefly as they stepped outside the Conference room doors. As he started to walk away Jack mumbled a brief "I'll be in touch," before disappearing completely from sight.

He bumped into Michelle on her way out of IT.

"You're going?"

He nodded and Michelle hesitated for a second before touching his arm gently and leaning in a little.

"Be careful, Jack." She told him softly.

He smiled slightly. "Thanks."