I know, I know - took me long enough. :)
They're not mine, obviously...
"You look exhausted, Parker," Nathan says as they walk into the station, unwrapping layers as they go. "How much sleep did you get?"
She resists the urge to look up at him and shrugs. "A few hours."
"Last night?" he asks. He holds the door to the bullpen open for her, crooks his elbow so she can pass under his arm easily.
"This week," she says. He follows her into what used to be their office and watches her hang up her scarf and coat. She leaves her hat on for extra warmth, her blond hair spilling out from under the green wool.
Nathan leans against the doorframe, frowns. "Take a nap," he says. She cocks an eyebrow at him and he huffs a short laugh. "You heard Julia, she's gotta wait for that guy to thaw out before she can do anything."
"What about the paperwork?"
He holds up his hands. "Believe it or not, these work." He wiggles his fingers and she laughs, relents. "I'll wake you up in a couple of hours."
"With lunch and coffee?"
He grins, nods. "With lunch and coffee."
She crosses to the couch, pulls the afghan from the back of it, and curls up with her head on the arm, the hat still pulled down over her hair. The thick green wool is enough to the cold out, but she's still able to feel Nathan's hand rest on her head lightly before he leaves and shuts the door behind him.
It makes her smile.
…the jeans skim down her thighs, the denim hitching against her smooth skim as they leave her legs completely. His mouth trails a line up the inside of her leg, leaves her skin before it reaches the one place she wants it. She groans in frustration and feels him smile against her abdomen.
Fingers find the sides of her underwear, hook in the lace, and pull. They're gone before she knows it and she lays bare before him. He pauses, rests his chin on her stomach, and looks at her, an eyebrow arched.
She reaches out, threads her hands through his hair and nods. He keeps his eyes locked with hers as his head moves lower…
"Audrey?"
She sits up, panting, flushed, and Nathan, thinking there's something wrong, sits down and reaches for her. She pulls her legs away from his reach, wraps her arms around them, and shakes her head. I need a minute, her posture says and he nods, waits.
Eventually, her heart rate regulates and her blush recedes and she finds herself finally able to look her partner in the eyes…barely.
"Bad dream?" he asks and she nods, because it's the only thing she can manage. He stares at her a minute longer, seems to believe her. "Julia called. She's got some results for us."
"How long was I asleep?" she asks, her voice hoarse.
"A couple of hours."
She frowns, considers the last two dreams she's had, and wonders if there's something else at work. Nathan, as if sensing this, leans back and adopts the expression of a man piecing together a puzzle.
"What's going on, Parker?" he asks.
"I'm not exactly sure, but I think we've finally found a trouble I'm not immune to."
His eyebrows go up in surprise. "Oh?"
"Insomnia."
"Funny," he says, standing and heading for the door.
"Oh come on," she says, following him, grabbing her coat and scarf on the way by, "it was a little funny."
Nathan shakes his head, leads the way out of the station. She meant it as a joke, but a small part of her thinks that maybe it really is a trouble – her dreams are occasionally vivid, but not to the point where she finds herself on the verge of an orgasm in her office. An orgasm provided by her partner and best friend, Chief of Police Nathan Wurnous.
A trouble would at least save her the life-altering embarrassment.
"Hey wait," she says as they reach the Bronco and Nathan opens her door for her. He looks at her, waits for her to continue. "Where's my lunch and coffee?"
He points to the inside of the truck where a white bag and a Styrofoam cup sit waiting for her. "Chicken soup, bread, and coffee – from Rosemary's."
"Marry me, Nathan," she says, getting into the truck and immediately opening the bag. She has a bite of bread in her mouth when he climbs into the truck and turns to grin at her.
"In your dreams, Parker."
She manages not to choke on the bread, thankfully.