Chapter 13 Ten-or What?
Standard Disclosure: I don't own Monk.
Notes: Yahoo, Randy's triple date has finally come to fruition- let the fun begin!
There's a tiny bit of suggested adult 'activities' near the end of the chapter, so be warned! ;)
A note to my gracious editor, Monkwriter; thank you so much for your help- your guidance brings clarity to my story! ~But, alas, I couldn't decide between Leland's or Adrian's POV and so, LOL, I kept them both! Sorry!
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"Trust me, Monk, you'll have fun." With a reassuring smirk under his mustache, Leland forcibly pried the house keys from Adrian's hand and prodded him out into the hallway. Leland quickly pulled the door shut behind them and engaged the deadbolt. After returning Adrian's keys, Leland motioned down the hall with his hand while simultaneously taking a step in front of the locked door. "Okay, you saw me lock your apartment and I just gave back your keys. No more delays, please. I already promised that I'll have you home early, so stop worrying. Randy's waiting downstairs with the car and we need get going."
"Leland, please, just let me go back inside for one minute." Adrian shot Leland a pleading look as he unsuccessfully tried to dodge around the Captain. Unwilling to tell Leland why today was special and why everything in his apartment had to be perfect, Adrian struggled with fabricating an excuse allowing him to stay home. "I just need to-to-"
"You don't need to do anything, Monk. Come on, the girls are waiting for us." The Captain attempted to ignore Adrian's distress and clasped him on the shoulder, propelling his down the hallway. But as they neared the stairs, Leland slowed and squeezed then removed his hand from Adrian's tense shoulder. Coming to a halt, Leland looked down and shuffled his feet. The Captain had an inkling of what was distracting Adrian and knew he should have said something when they were in Adrian's apartment, but he had chickened out. Temporarily, at least. He now mustered his courage and cleared his throat, resigned to broach the most awkward subject known to mankind. "Hey Monk, I know this is none of my business, and you haven't asked for my advice but, umh..."
"What Leland?" Adrian tilted his head and scanned the Captain's face.
Eyebrows knit together, Leland briefly looked to the ceiling after meeting Adrian's innocent eyes. Hoping to give Adrian enough hints to get his meaning, Leland hesitantly began "I feel like I should say something before we head out. I mean, you did ask for dating advice about a week ago. So you know I'm just looking out for you, right? And I just don't want to see you get your hopes up and get hurt. Anyway, it's great that you and Natalie are together, umh, really great, but you probably haven't been together long enough to be, umh, together. Okay?"
Adrian said nothing in return; a puzzled look crossed his face and was now accompanied by a shift of his shoulder.
"Damn it Monk, you're not making this easy." Leland sighed heavily as he regarded his clueless friend. Why couldn't Monk understand innuendos? Hell, he was going to have to be explicit and then Monk would freak out. This was a no-win conversation. But, for his friend's sake, the Captain felt compelled to offer some unsolicited advice.
"Listen Adrian, I don't mean to pry, and like I said, this is none of my business, but you are my friend and so I have to say what's on my mind, right? Monk, you know I'm a detective, right? Not as good as you, of course, but I have my moments. Hmm, anyway, you shouldn't be surprised that when I walked around your apartment, I couldn't help but notice a few things. Like the chocolate-covered strawberries and wine in the kitchen and the candles and fresh flowers in your bedroom. So I'm making an intuitive leap, and I just want to make sure you're, umh, not expecting something to happen so soon with Natalie?"
Damn, that blank look was still on Adrian's face. Leland had to bite the bullet and just say it. He crossed his arms and fixed Monk with his dead-eye cop-stare. "You know, sex?"
Adrian felt an unbearable heat envelope his skin, as if he had been set on fire. He quickly looked away from Leland with his mouth agape, momentarily speechless. He would never tell anyone, including Leland, any of the intimate details of his relationship with Natalie. Not that he would every use 'that word' to ever describe their physical relations; sex was meaningless and empty. No, Adrian was too respectful to talk about Natalie that way. But Adrian had found such a complete love with Natalie and did want to share his happiness with his best friend.
Adrian chose his words carefully as he slowly met Leland's unblinking stare. "Leland, thank you for, you know, worrying about me. But there's no need. Natalie and I love each other and we've, umh, we're very happy together. So, let's get going, okay?" Without waiting for a reply, Adrian twitched his shoulder and hustled down the stairs to meet Randy.
Standing alone on the landing, it took Leland a second to comprehend what Adrian had just suggested to him. With a gleeful snort, Leland trotted down the stairs and caught up with Adrian outside on the sidewalk. Roughly slapping him on the back, Leland teasingly bestowed his approval. "Damn, you are the man, Adrian Monk!"
Looking between the two, Randy broke into a smile "What did I miss?"
Leland playfully shoved his shoulder against the blushing detective and laughed "Nothing, Randy. Nobody's missing anything!"
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'When will it be over?' Like a mantra, Adrian kept replaying the same question over and over in his head during the ride to Natalie's house. First he had to endure Leland's incessant teasing, which Randy eventually joined in on. And then there was the actual car ride. For some inexplicable reason, Randy had wanted to make today's outing extra special and so had rented a limousine for the afternoon. Even after they had arrived and as he followed Randy and Leland up the steps and across Natalie's front porch, Adrian's trepidation continued. What else would Randy and Leland throw at him today?
But when Leland open Natalie's front door and called out a greeting, Adrian heard Natalie's welcoming voice and his thoughts suddenly shifted; the excitement of seeing Natalie immediately dissolved all his apprehension over today's impromptu date. No matter what happened in the next few hours, today would still be perfect.
"Hey ladies, hope you're ready for a little fun?!" Randy called as he and the Captain stepped to the living room, leaving Adrian to close the front door.
When the men enter the living room, women jumped from their seats and the room was quickly filled with a confusion of friendly embraces and mingled greetings.
Adrian hesitated in the foyer, an unexpected nervousness filling his chest. His feet pinned to the floor, he scanned the living room for Natalie. She was across the room, her attention on straightening the smallest wrinkle at the hem of her blouse. That small gesture brought a lump to Adrian's throat; she couldn't possibly be more perfect. As if in slow motion, Adrian watched as Natalie looked up and to the doorway.
There amid the laughter and welcoming hugs of their friends, her sparkling blue eyes met Adrian's. Even before they uttered 'hello' or their hands touched, this one glance was all they needed; a declaration of love passed between them. Adrian remained in the entranceway waiting patiently while Natalie ushered the four friends out the front door. And, as the two other couples crossed the porch and made their way to the limo, Natalie remained in the foyer, standing before Adrian. They shared a smile and their fingers entwined. Long before the tender kisses and the dizziness from shallow breaths and before their clothes were carelessly disregarded and the sweet mingling of sweat, this simple single touch consummated their relationship. Adrian took her hand and brought it to his face, softly kissing her palm.
"I missed you too, my love." Natalie answered, easily reading the devotion on his face. She took a step closer and tipped her head toward the door as her face broke into a full grin "You know, I could just lock the door right now. We can stay home if you want. What do you say?"
Before Adrian had a chance to agree to this intriguing suggestion, Randy reappeared on the porch. With an eager look on his face and a hopeful inflection in his voice he questioned "You guys okay? We need to get moving, so are you ready?"
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After a half hour drive, the limousine finally neared their final destination; the Shoreline Amphitheatre, a sprawling venue with soaring white tents and with rolling green lawns. Well know for featuring first-rate musicians and plays, the group was happily relieved and complimented Randy on his arranging this outing.
"This is great Randy! What are we seeing?" TK's question was echoed by Sharona and Natalie as they all scanned out the window, trying to read the marquee.
"A play I never heard of before, called 'Lend Me a Tenor.'- Before you ask, don't worry, it's not an opera! Anyhow, this play is supposed to be really funny and it got good reviews." Randy pulled the tickets from his pocket and handed a pair to Natalie and a pair to the Captain.
Leland shook his head skeptically as he read the marquee. "I've never heard of these actors. I guess we'll see how good it really is!"
When the limo came to a halt near the entrance, Randy jumped out and held the door for his friends. He first offered his hand to Sharona and helped her from the car. When she was safely on the sidewalk, Randy reached into the limo and retrieved a large bag that had been next to his seat. He turned and gave the bag to Sharona and then reached back into the limo, offered his hand to Leland. "Captain?"
Swatting Randy's hand away, Leland huffed when he pulled himself from the rented car. "Thank you Randy but I got it." Leland helped TK from the car and Adrian and Natalie also exited the limo. The friends then strolled toward the entrance gate, ready to enjoy an entertaining afternoon.
After they had handed their tickets over and had entered the venue, curiosity got the better of Adrian. He turned to Sharona and pointed to the bag "What did Randy give you?"
Sharona smirked as she held the bag open "A Blanket. See, we have lawn seats, umh, which means we don't have seats. Ha! Looks like you're going to have to sit on the ground, Adrian!"
Adrian rubbed his brow and stared toward the green expanse of lawn. He hadn't looked at the tickets so this was an unexpected and unwelcome surprise.
Randy turned to Leland and whispered "Did you think Monk knows that this place was built on a landfill?"
"Zip it Randy. If Monk knew that, he would be begging us to shoot him!" Leland hissed. Turning to Adrian, the Captain brought a grin to his face and gently cajoled "you're not afraid of a little grass, are you buddy?"
"Grass? On the ground?" Adrian twitched and looked to Natalie. Would he really have to? He hadn't minded sitting on a blanket with her the other day, but they had been alone and, well, Natalie had distracted him quite a bit. But today would be completely different; it was out in the open and they would be surrounded by strangers!
Natalie looped her arm through Adrian's and returned Sharona's smirk "Don't you worry about him, Sharona, he'll be fine. Captain, stop teasing! Let's just find a spot to sit." With a quick flick of her free hand, Natalie shooed Sharona and the rest of the group forward, urging them to claim a spot on the lawn.
Natalie then met Adrian's gaze and, having read his discomfort, offered a slow wink "We can ignore the people around us, right? Besides-" she stood on her tip-toes and placed her mouth to his ear "you enjoyed being on that blanket with me the other day, right?"
A warm rush surged through Adrian as Natalie's lips grazed his ear. He leaned back and scrutinized her with eyes half shut. Surely she wasn't suggesting they, hmmm, engaged in similar activities today? He was unable to stifle a shoulder twitch and his words came out strained, "Natalie, we can't, umh, it's not possible with all these people –"
"Ssh, relax. I was just saying to leave yourself open to new experiences. You never know how fun something may be unless you give it a chance." Natalie took his hand and led him over to their friends, who were already sprawled across most the blanket.
A corner section of blanket had been left for them and so, yielding to Natalie's gentle hand on his shoulder, Adrian reluctantly settled on the ground. Drawing his arms around his bent knees, he laced his fingers together and looked up at Natalie. She held her hand out in a 'stay' motion and then stepped from his view. Suddenly Adrian felt Natalie pressing against his back as she slipped her legs on either side of him and drew her arms around his midsection, pulling him backward. He turned his face to the right and, out of the corner of his eye, caught Natalie's amused smile.
"This isn't so bad, is it?" She chuckled as she laid her chin on his shoulder, gently rocking him in her arms.
"No, nothing is ever bad with you, Natalie."Adrian sighed as he started to relax in her embrace; he was safe here.
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Adrian eventually closed his eyes, a look of contentment etched on his face. It didn't matter to him that they were still at the amphitheatre and the actors were still up on stage, delighting the rest of the audience. Having reclined further into Natalie's arms, Adrian was enjoying the warmth from her body and the feel of her hands lightly caressing him. It didn't take long before he surrendered to the fantasy that clouded his mind.
He turned his face to look at her and, as their eyes met, her couldn't help but kiss her. He turned his body to her and deepened the kiss, wanting to taste her, wanting to possess her, wanting to claim her completely. He let his hand lightly trace along her chin and down her neck but then his caresses became more forceful when his hands roamed the curves of her body. He pulled at her clothing and eagerly helped her remove his. Then he lay her down, pinning her with his weight. Without shyness or shame, he looked into her eyes and -
"Hey Monk, wake up man! You're missing the best part of the play." Leland unceremoniously kicked Adrian's foot, startling him out of his daydream.
Adrian's head snapped forward and he blinked several times, a faraway look in his eye. He and Natalie weren't -? It had seemed so real. He sighed and leaned his head back, settling against Natalie's shoulder. He felt her move and he turned his face to look at her.
"Hey sleepyhead, have a good dream?" Natalie smiled as she traced her hand along his jaw.
Adrian immediately averted his eyes and felt a blush wash over him. Fighting the urge to twitch, he answered her with an indecipherable mummer.
Adrian's embarrassment was obvious, causing Natalie to tease him. "That good, hmm? You'll have to tell me later."
After a pause that lasted forever, he shamefully met her gaze and whispered "Natalie I can't, you know, talk about it."
"When we get home, we're going to talk about it" Her voice also a whisper, Natalie adamantly insisted. She tightened her embrace and put a quick peck near his ear, playfully adding "But, don't worry, that won't be the first thing we do when we get home."
A mix of thoughts and emotions took hold of Adrian as he stared straight ahead, attempting to relax again in Natalie's arms. Torn between his desires and fears, he let out a loud sigh in frustration. Adrian then felt her hand across his chest and heard her soft voice, full of comfort and promise "Don't worry love; everything will be more than okay. And you'll thank me later."He let out another sigh, this one quiet and thoughtful. Natalie was right; he was always thankful for the challenges she made him confront. She was the reason he was a better man. He closed his eyes once again and patiently waited for the play's end.
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End Notes: Okay, one more chapter~ let's get our favorite couple home!