It wasn't that Jacqueline Taylor wasn't attractive...
"Do you, Jacqueline Taylor, take Templeton Peck to be your lawfully wedded husband? "
One of the first things he'd done was to ask her out on Saturday night.
"I do."
That had been after plan A: the daring rescue.
"Do you, Templeton Peck, take Jacqueline to be your lawfully wedded wife?"
Perfectly planned and almost perfectly executed. Steal the hostage bride to be, whisk her away in a catering truck to freedom.
"Answer the guy..."
It was about a six on the difficulty scale and their performance warranted about an eight. If Murdock hadn't tripped on his wedding dress on the way out, and had to run flailing and screaming after the getaway catering truck, it might've been a nine. But it didn't deserve a perfect ten. It would only be a perfect ten if they hadn't needed a plan B.
"Uh..."
Unfortunately, they had needed a plan B. An "insurance policy", as Hannibal called it. And as luck would have it, he was the insurance policy.
"Yeah. Yeah... I uh... I do."
Hannibal had been so very pleased with the brilliance of his plan, no amount of protest on Face's part would have convinced him that he was out of his ever-loving mind. Not to mention the fact that Jackie had agreed to go through with it and at least monetarily, she certainly had more to lose. She had more to gain, too. So she wasn't any help in convincing Hannibal to come up with a better plan. If BA had any opinion one way or the other, he hadn't let it be known. And Murdock's only response was to offer Face his wedding dress. So... outnumbered, outmaneuvered, and out of sane and reasonable options, Face and Jackie had gone to the justice of the peace.
Although he had hated this plan - did he mention how much he had hated this plan? - he did understand the logic. The man who'd been holding Jackie prisoner, who'd arranged the marriage that she'd skipped out on, couldn't exactly marry her if someone else already had. And of course, it was only temporary. That hadn't made his palms sweat any less, or his heart beat any more regularly. Now standing underneath the stars in the middle of the Texas wilderness, roadblocks barring their way out of the county, a hundred yards away from a broken down van that wouldn't carry them out anyway... Face was still trying to get that tight feeling in his chest to subside. He was past the point of hyperventilating now. But sleep? Oh, hell no.
He probably could've taken the watch that Murdock had volunteered for, stood by the road where they'd pulled off, to make sure that no passers-by wandered up to the van where everyone was settled for the night. But he hadn't. He'd posted a useless watch on the other side, scanning and surveying the rocky fields, scraggly trees, and wide open skies of the Texas plains.
"Hell of a way to spend your wedding night."
He just about jumped out of his skin. But he tried not to let it show too much. Hands shoved into the pockets of his jeans, standing at straighter attention than he had since he was in the service, he let out a nervous laugh. "Yeah, well... you know. Nice night and all."
"Can't sleep either, huh?"
Jackie had a good excuse for not being able to sleep. She wasn't used to crashing for a few hours here and there in a van hidden at the side of the road. Face didn't have that excuse. He didn't have any excuse that would be appropriate to offer her. After all... didn't she stand to lose more in this arrangement than he did? Didn't this make her nervous, too?
Luckily, he didn't have to come up with anything to say before she spoke again. "Want to help me polish off the last of this champagne?"
He glanced at her and raised a brow. It was a $150 bottle of champagne. But he'd lost his taste for it at his wedding ceremony. "I'm sorry, I..." He shifted a little. He was going for calm and collected... but it was coming out fidgety and anxious. So much for appearances... "Doesn't this feel weird to you?"
"Should it?"
She wasn't looking at him. She couldn't see his jaw drop. Instead, she was looking down at the bottle she was trying to open. He'd been wrong. It wasn't the $150 bottle from the wedding. It was the $150 bottle they hadn't used at the wedding because one bottle had turned out to be enough. The one in her hands was full.
"Should it feel weird?" he repeated, dumbfounded. Why should it feel weird? She was only married to someone she didn't even know! "I mean, the whole thing about..."
She glanced up with just her eyes, her head still tipped down to watch her hands, even though she'd paused in her struggle to pry the cork free. With an audible sigh, Face took the bottle from her, pointed it away from them both (that had been an embarrassing lesson to learn, once long ago...) and used his thumbs to pop the bottle open.
"Ah, thank you," she smiled, taking it from him as he offered it back.
"Uh huh." He looked away. Any other time... Moonlight, champagne, privacy... But not tonight. Not... married.
She walked a few paces, then sat down with her back up against one of the scraggly trees. "So what happened to that charming and attractive gentleman who took the time to solicit me as he was running for his life from my angry fiancée?"
"He got married," Face mumbled under his breath, a little bitterly.
She laughed. "It's not all that bad, is it?"
The look he shot her was answer enough. Just how much champagne had she drunk before coming to him with that bottle to make it "not that bad"? She put one knee up, her other leg out in front of her, resting her arm on her knee and dangling the bottle over her other leg. It was a relaxed pose. How could she be so relaxed?
His expression must have said enough because she didn't wait for him to speak. "Come on, Face, there's nothing you can do about it right now..." Her voice had taken on a softer tone, almost an understanding one. "As soon as this is over, you can go right back to being free and single. I promise."
He eyed her skeptically. He knew that. He wouldn't have agreed to this, otherwise. He knew it because he'd been assured by Hannibal that this was going to work. The trust that had developed between all members of the team in the past several years was palpable. He probably would've jumped off a cliff at Hannibal's request, knowing that if it was a member of his own team asking him to do it... there was a plan in place - maybe one he didn't even know about - to keep him from dying when he hit the bottom. Still, jumping off a cliff would've been marginally less difficult.
Reluctantly, he sighed. A few slow steps closed the gap between them as he sat down a couple feet away from her. She offered him the bottle and he took it. "Not exactly the proper way to drink an expensive bottle of champagne," she apologized.
He smiled slightly as he tipped the bottle up, taking a sip. It ended up being more of a gulp. She was right. Hard to drink champagne from a bottle and savor it...
Five gulps later, he could already feel the alcohol clouding his brain. This was some potent stuff, if it was able to do that. His alcohol tolerance combined with his metabolism made it no small feat.
Half a bottle later, he was feeling no pain. A little dizzy, but still perfectly coherent, he was aware of her unsteadiness as she laughed hysterically at a joke that he hadn't even thought was all that funny.
It was three-quarters of a bottle later that he realized he was kissing her. The kiss wasn't quite ready to close when he figured out what he was doing. "Woah, no no no..." he laughed tensely. "Woah, no. Bad idea."
She laughed too, but hers was much less anxious. "Why's that?" He could hear the slight slur in her voice, through the smile and mingled with the sound of her amusement.
"No, 'cause I'm drunk, and you're drunk, and we have to uh..." She leaned forward again, bringing her lips to his and finishing the kiss. He held his breath, feeling the tingling trail her fingertips left along the side of his neck as she moved her hand up, into his hair. She held him there until the kiss closed, then pulled away slightly, looking up at him, eyes glistening in the moonlight. It took him a minute to put his derailed thoughts back on track. "We have to be able to annul this thing tomorrow and uh..."
Her fingers raked his scalp, ruffling his hair and spreading the tingling sensation. The look she was giving him was the look he should'veordinarily been giving her right about now. The you-aren't-really-going-to-pass-up-this-opportunity-are-you? look. It seemed strange to see that look aimed at him. That cunning, predatory look. Very rarely did it ever cross his mind that he was playing the part of the prey.
His eyes lowered, following the edge of her shirt from her neck... past her collarbone... down to the swell of her breast and where her other hand was absently fidgeting with the edge of the low-cut V. He could feel that tingling travel, from his scalp where she was touching him... all the way down his spine.
His eyes slid closed involuntarily as he felt her lips brush his again, hesitantly... inviting... The vision of her remained on the backs of his eyelids. Other visions, too. More intimate. More... expressive. He felt his breathing deepen a little, involuntarily, and he ran his tongue over the back of his teeth as that tight feeling in his chest moved down... past his stomach... settling in his groin.
"Aw, hell, who's gonna know..."
He met her kiss, pressing into her, his hand moving to her knee and traveling up, slowly, along the outside of her thigh. Hesitation now forgotten, he let his other hand roam as well, up her other side, from her waist to her breast, rubbing with his thumb through her dark blue top. Very slowly, he left her lips to kiss along her jaw, pausing at the pressure point just below her earlobe. Her breathing hitched, and he smiled. "You like that?" he whispered, tracing the edge of her ear with the tip of his tongue.
A soft moan answered him, and her warm fingers on the side of his neck, lightly stroking up and down. His thoughts moved to practicality as he kissed and caressed his way down, along her collarbone. Her tight jeans were going to be a trick to get off in this position...
He maneuvered his way out of his jacket and with one hand, blindly spread it on the ground. Slowly, carefully, he guided her down until she was resting on it. Once she settled, he was free to explore further. His hands moved gently, barely touching her as he traced the swell of her breast, down past her waistline, to the edge of the long shirt. He could feel her grip on his sweater, and she pulled up. He took the hint, and paused his exploration for long enough to whisk his shirt up over his head. She sat up, meeting him in a kiss before he had a chance to untangle his hands from the sleeves. Once he'd completed the task, he reached for the bottom of hershirt, breaking the kiss for just long enough to guide it up and over her head.
One arm slipped behind her as she lay back again, in time to find the clasp of her bra. With one hand to brace himself, he used the other to flick the clasp of her bra. He got it on the first try, and a slight smile crept across his face. Just like riding a bike...
Her fingertips felt like fire on his sensitized skin. She gently stroked over his shoulders, down his chest, all the way to his abs, still locked with him in a deep, slow kiss. He chose not to use his hands, and instead kissed his way down, one inch at a time, along the loose strap of her bra to the top of the dark-colored cup. She arched up a little, and he heard a low moan escape her as he pulled the strap gently down her arm, exposing her soft breast to his slow, gentle probing. He covered every inch of her chest with kisses, and moved down slowly, fingering the button of her jeans as her she buried her hands in his hair, holding him.
She shivered as he traced the waistband of her jeans with his tongue, teasing and sensitizing her skin. "Cold?" he smirked, raising his eyes for just a moment to look at her face.
She grinned as she tipped her head down to meet his gaze. "Hot," she corrected in a breathy whisper.
His smile grew.
The jeans were not as difficult to get off as he'd feared. He left them at her ankles, letting her kick them the rest of the way off as he slowly moved back up. Up along her calf... past her knee... the outside of her thigh and then... the inside. As his kisses moved up one leg, gentle caresses moved up the other. Her legs spread wide as he reached the apex of her thighs and once again used his tongue to trace her panty line. The soft moans coming from her were encouraging, the scent of her sex intoxicating, and as he sat up a little to look at her, sprawled out on his jacket on the ground wearing nothing but a heart shaped pendant on a chain and pair of lacy black panties, he could feel the blood rushing to his groin. The sight of her in the moonlight would've been enough to make any man hard.
She reached for his jeans, and he sat back a little as she rose up, unbuttoning... then unzipping. Her hand slid under the waistband of his boxers and cool, gentle fingers caressed him. His eyelids dropped involuntarily, a low moan escaping from somewhere deep inside of him. Could anything in the world feel as good as this did?
She stepped up the pace, not him. He knew his way around this game and it was always safer to go slow and let it build. But he wasn't about to argue if "slow" wasn't her venue of choice. With his jeans and boxers down just past his thighs, he was the one who ended up on his back this time. He groaned as she took his shaft in both hands, gently pulling and massaging as he hardened. He was convinced. Nothing else could feel this good...
His hands roamed over her hips, callused palms caressing the smooth, soft curve of her thighs as she straddled him. Staring up at her, he grinned, hands moving over her front and to her hips, taking possession. His eyes ran down her torso, and the view hehad with her seated at his waist.
She massaged his chest as she began to rock back and forth a little, letting the tip of his cock brush the damp spot on her panties. His eyes slid closed, paying close attention to the sensations as her nails scraped lightly along the valley between his pectoral muscles. A quiet, barely audible moan escaped him as he felt her warm breath against the side of his neck. "Mmm... yeah..."
One hand dropped from her to give himself a few long, satisfying strokes, just enough of a promise to keep the nerves on alert. He watched her eyes as he did it, and saw her smile as she lowered one hand down between them, trailing her fingertips lightly alongside his own hand. "Impatient?" she teased.
He chuckled quietly. "Nah, I could do this all night..."
"You think so?"
His hand left hers and found her thigh. "I know so," he smirked, running his fingers up and down her soft skin gently. His hips thrust up against her hand, ignoring her weight.
She leaned down over him again, holding her weight on one arm as the other pulled aside the one bit of fabric that separated them. His lips immediately moved to kiss and lick at her neck, sucking gently on her skin, as his arms circled her. He held her while she rocked back and forth, rubbing her wet slit against his shaft. A few fingers of her lower hand tickled him lightly, and he heard his own voice darken as the soft moan turned into something more akin to a growl.
The heady scent of pheromones, the feel of her hot breasts rubbing gently against his chest, the warmth of her sex against his... it all swirled around him, filling him with a raw, primal lust. He ran his hands up and down her back gently, kissing and sucking along her collarbone and licking in one long pull all the way up the center of her throat. "So how long do you want to do this?"
"Hmm..." He opened his eyes to see her smile, and he returned it. "All night sounds good to me..."
She withdrew her hand from between his legs and simply rubbed against him, getting wetter by the second. Her hand now roamed over his abdomen, fingering along the edges of his abs.
He wanted nothing more, in that moment, than to grab her hips and thrust her down onto his shaft. But he kept that part of him under control. His grip was more of a guide, his own hips moving to try and angle his hot, hard shaft to her opening. "Mmm... right there..."
She shifted a little, smiling as she stared into his eyes. Slowly, torturously, she slid down onto him, her wet, hungry slit slowly taking him in. He groaned loudly as his hips arched up, arms pressed hard against the ground as he felt himself slide up into her heat. "Nnn yeah..."
This time, she returned his moan with something that sounded vaguely like his name as she began to rock back and forth, sliding herself up and down on his shaft. His breathing came heavier, deeper. His lips parted, and he panted hard, but managed to get his body back under control. Not yet. He had a firm grip on his control. He prided himself in that. His eyes opened, and he looked up at her, then slowly moved his hands to her again. He ran his hands down the outside of her thighs gently, caressing her soft skin. His hips moved against her, but slowly, matching her rhythm.
She moaned and reached up to caress her own breasts, pinching her nipples, giving him a show as his hands caressed her thighs. Watching her tease herself, the feel of her sliding up and down on his shaft, the sound of her quiet moans... he almost lost it right then. He groaned, tossing his head back, his hands moving up to her sides, past her hips.
He let her keep control of the pace, and she increased it slowly as he held her waist. Slowly, his hands came up, to her ribcage, and he brushed his thumbs back and forth over the sides of her breasts, watching her face. She smiled, her eyes dark with lust, and breathed in deep, filling her chest and offering her breasts to him.
Her own hands slid away, her head arcing back. She moaned as she moved faster and faster, clenching and releasing around him at a measured pace. She slid her hands down along his arms and up over his shoulders, holding onto them for balance as she bounced up and down on him a bit harder.
The sight of her in the moonlight sent jolts of excitement shooting down to his groin, and he moved up against her, thrusting deeply, groaning as he felt the sensations build. He could come whenever he let himself, and he knew it. But he held off, waiting to see if she intended to ride him to release or if she was going to take a little more... prodding.
He concentrated on that thought as he watched her, his eyes locked on her breasts as she bounced up and down over his shaft. He brought his hands around and cupped them, feeling their weight. Oh yeah... She was hot. She was so hot. He looked back up at her face as he felt his control slipping. That perfect... measured... always-present control... "Come on..." He squeezed her gently, not nearlyenough to hurt her. He was determined not to let go of that control until he had conquered hers first.
She bit her lower lip. She moaned again, louder and louder as she rocked faster and faster, both of them feeling the tension rise, rippling through muscles and along nerves. She held tightly to his shoulders and managed a whimpering groan as her muscles locked, trying to hold it back. His eyes were like fire, staring up at her, and a thin sheen of perspiration had begun on his forehead. Staring down at him, her mouth twisted into a wicked smile. "Hold it," she dared him, trying to make her words sound less like a desperate gasp and more like a challenge.
A low groan, and his eyes rolled back. She had to be kidding. Holding onto his patience with the barest tips of his fingers, he arched up into her, hips lifting her up off of the ground and grinding hard. It was pure, stubborn pride that kept him from letting go in that moment. But even his pride wouldn't hold him for long if she kept squeezing him like that...
Suddenly - finally! - she gasped as he found that one spot... that one place that caught her totally off guard. He knew from the sound that he'd put her over the edge, and as her insides clamped down hard around him. He smiled in smug satisfaction at his work. But the feelings of victory lasted only for a moment before his thoughts were gone, focused again on that burning, tightening pressure spasming around his cock. Ever-steady hands shook a little as he held her hips and pulled her down hard as he thrust up one last time. Then, like a rubber band stretched too tight, he snapped, shooting deep into her body. He groaned loudly as he felt the release in every muscle, every nerve of his body.. Damn, that felt good...
It took only a few moments for the strongest waves to pass. Then she leaned forward until her head touched his shoulder, moaning and panting quietly as they both came down. She lay down against him, and he smiled faintly, stroking his hands slowly up and down her back. "Good for you?" he whispered.
She nuzzled his neck, nibbling slightly before giving a contented sigh and a quiet answer. "Rise and shine, ladies."
...
What the hell...?
"Check out time... ten a.m..."
Aw, shit.
"I can't handle this another night, Hannibal." Good god, he had a headache... And he hurt. Everywhere. Cramped muscles... blurry thoughts... darkness... too damn much champagne...
He cringed at the blinding light as the side of the van slid open, announcing that it was, in fact, morning. "Up and at 'em, Lieutenant." No, it could not possibly be morning. But it was morning.
Hannibal mumbled something else to him, but he couldn't make sense of it. Before he had his bearings, before his feet could even find the ground, Jackie was standing beside him. Mere inches away. "Good morning, honey!" she smiled cheerfully.
He stared at her. She was not hung over. He sure as hell was, though. Where had the bottle ended up? That would probably explain a lot... Sliding out of the van and to his feet, he watched her for a long moment. If she was not hung over, she had not been drinking with him. Either that or she had a metabolism that was even more incredible than his. Not likely. He blinked a few times, trying to reacquaint himself with his surroundings, with reality. He'd figure out later where the break was between memory and dream. For right now... he just needed to pretend that nothing was wrong...
... and think about baseball.