Title: Plays Well With Others - An Interlude
Series: The Tank Top Chronicles
Author: jellie_rayneluv
Rating: R - adult content and sexual imagery and language, but nothing to be NC-17 in this Summary: Ellie decides to pay a visit to the Buy More, and whet John's appetite just a little bit.
Disclaimer: Don't own 'em. Just like to play with 'em
Spoilers: None in this note: This is the 3rd of probably five or more in a series that I am calling the "Tank Top Chronicles". The number of chapters is increasing as I think of, or someone else gives me ideas.
SPECIAL THANKS to my BETA READER brandywine00 who came up with this idea of Ellie's visit ... and her suggestion for one of the scenes in particular. You Rock!
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Two hours had gone by since Ellie had taken a long, cold shower. She hadn't realized just how worked up she'd gotten earlier, but since her arousal hadn't been completely doused, she figured it had to be a record. For her at least ... and nothing really had happened, except in her own lust-filled imagination. The human mind was truly a powerful thing.
Two hours and she was still in knots over John. Just thinking about the way he had trailed his fingers down her neck to her chest earlier that afternoon was making her giddy. She was tempted to shut herself up in her bedroom with her "little friend," the one that ran on D batteries, but that wouldn't do. Nope. Not this time. She would wait. He had asked for a rain check, after all, so he was interested. She decided to let it build up until she could have the "real McCoy."
So here she was, sitting in her living room, still wrapped up in her robe, thinking about the object of her obsession, when she was startled by a loud noise from her kitchen. Alarmed, she jumped up from the sofa and ran to the kitchen to investigate. She flipped on the overhead light and took a look around. Within seconds, the source of the disturbance was identified. The refrigerator was making a high pitched whiney noise and an occasional rattling sound. She put her hand on the side, and could feel it shaking slightly under her touch.
"Yep," she told herself. ""It's definitely on its last legs." Which was understandable, as it had come with the apartment, and was, at least in Ellie's estimation, a fifteen year old model.
She had been wanting a new one for years, but as long as the old one was serving its purpose she hadn't wanted to spend the extra money. Now she had a good reason to replace it, and what a fortunate coincidence ... the Buy More was running a sale on all large appliances this week. Ellie smiled to herself as she went to get dressed. She had an appliance salesman to see.
Within minutes she was dressed in medium wash boyfriend jean with black strappy heels, and a tight red tank top that announced that she "Plays Well With Others." She reasoned she may as well keep the game going at every opportunity. She was so enjoying getting a rise out of John. And it wasn't like she was being a tease, for she fully intended on following through with this "thing" she had started with John Casey. Whatever it was.
On the way out of the apartment, she grabbed her handbag and threw on a jean jacket that would hide her newest "message" until she was ready to reveal it to the intended recipient.
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After breaking several traffic laws, and thanking the Dear Lord that she hadn't gotten pulled over, Ellie arrived at her destination. She sat in her car for a few minutes to calm herself. She had to play this cool. There was no need in bringing unwanted attention from anyone else in the Buy More, particularly her brother, Chuck. She had to have some semblance of a plan.
Once she had gathered her thoughts, and her heart rate had returned to normal, she exited the vehicle and strode calmly and confidently into the store.
Of course, the first person she saw when she went in was Chuck, manning the Nerd Herd desk. The click of her heels on the floor alerted him of her approached and he looked up. "Hey there sis! What brings you to the Buy More? Not that I'm not happy to see you."
Ellie shrugged at Chuck. "The fridge is about to die, little brother. It's time to put her out of her misery and get a new one." She frowned, not wanting to let on that she was excited just to be here. She glanced around and spied John helping out a customer in the car stereo department. " I saw in the circulars that Buy More had some great deals on large appliances, so here I am."
"Hey, don't be sad, Sis." Chuck slapped the counter. "I know you've been itching to get a new one. They do have some top notch refrigerators on sale this week ... and you have thirty days to try them out at home to make sure they are what you want. But, I can't help you with that so let me get one of the sales people for you."
Ellie looked around the store. Jeff and Lester leered at her from a distance, and when she turned around Anna was right behind her, looking rather skeptical. "Morgan's not here, so you can't wrap him around your finger any more today."
Ellie scrunched her nose and looked down at the petite Anna. "I know that Morgan's not here. That's why I came today. Really, Anna, I am not interested in Morgan. He is all yours, with my many blessings."
Anna stared at Ellie, as she tried to surmise if this was true. She watched as Ellie looked around the store and noticed that her perusal of the area stopped suddenly. Anna also noted that Ellie was trying, and failing, not to smile at whatever, or whoever she was looking at. Anna turned to follow Ellie's line of sight. and found John Casey. 'Interesting. He's looking back at her too ... and smiling. And wow, I've never seen him smile like that before. Very nice.'
Content that Ellie had an obvious interest in someone with whom Morgan could not compete, Anna whirled back to Ellie. "Okay, Ellie. I believe you are being sincere."
"Thanks Anna," Ellie replied before switching her attention back to Chuck. She grabbed his hand just as he was picking up the phone to call for sales assistance. "You know what, Chuck? I'm just going to go over and get John to help me. Most of the other "green shirts" kind of creep me out, Ya' know?"
Chuck set the phone down. "I understand. Go," he shooed her away. "Go make John's day."
Ellie almost choked when those words left her brother's mouth, but she quickly recovered before walking toward the handsome salesman. "Oh, I plan to little brother, I really do," she murmured so no one could hear.
***********************J
ohn was just finishing up a rather sizable sale when he saw Ellie standing at the Nerd Herd desk speaking to Anna and Chuck. She was looking for someone. Her gaze fell on him and he couldn't help but smile at her. "I guess she found what she was looking for,' he mused.
Then he could have sworn that he had heard Chuck say "Go make John's day." 'Oh, if you only knew Bartowski,' he thought to himself as he intently watched Ellie coming his direction.
He cleared his throat as one Ellie Bartowski stopped abruptly at his side. " So, Ms. Bartowski ... to what do I owe the pleasure of seeing you again today?"
Ellie blushed remembering the earlier encounter . "Well, John ... it seems that I am in the market for a new refrigerator."
John looked Ellie up and down, wondering if that was the only reason she had dropped in, not that he minded a nice fat commission, but he hoped there was more to it. "A refrigerator, you say?"
"Mmm, Hmmm," she replied as she flipped her hair over one shoulder and glanced coyly at him. "Can you lend assistance to a lady in need?"
John placed one hand on the small of Ellie's back and led her to the kitchen appliance section, occasionally surveilling the area to see if anyone was watching. "And exactly how dire is this 'need' of yours? If, you don't mind me asking."
Ellie put a hand over her heart and patted her chest. "Oh John, it is most dire, I assure you. Why, it's just a matter of time before the old girl combusts, I'm sure."
They continued on until they reached the massive array of new refrigerators. "What exactly are you looking for in your new 'fridge, Ms. Bartowski?"
"Well, I'm looking for something big and sturdy yet sleek and efficient." Ellie looked at him with something less than innocence in her eyes, like she wasn't only speaking of appliances. "I'm thinking one with the freezer drawer on the bottom."
"One door on top, or two?" he asked.
"One, I think. I like the idea of one huge, flat surface. I don't want any gizmo's or gadgets to get in the way." she replied.
He wanted to ask, 'get in the way of what,' but held his tongue as he had a mental flash of pressing Ellie up against a big shiny surface, one with lots of room to spread out. He had an idea of exactly what she meant.
"Good, that's good. Keep to clean lines. No need to have something to cluttered or complicated." John took a few steps away, stopping in front of the perfect model. "I think I have just what your looking for."
"Oh, I'm sure you do," Ellie all but purred as she ran her eyes over John's body. How he managed to make the Buy More uniform look sexy was a mystery. 'It must to be a gift,' she decided. She took a few steps of her own to stand beside John. She ran her hands over the sleek stainless steel surface in front of him. "Tell me all about this model."
John proceeded to tell her all about the cubic area of the inside of both the refrigerator and the freezer drawer, opening them up for her inspection. Then he gave her the outside dimensions of the unit as well, sneaking up closer to her than was necessary to make a sale. He pressed his body against her and she could feel the impressive length of him against her hip. "Do you think you can accomodate the size?" His voice dropped a notch. "You older model was much smaller than this one."
Ellie gulped. He was right in more ways than one. She nodded quickly. "Yep, I've taken all the measurements of the space. This one will fit very nicely." She pushed her body into his, to let him know she understood what he was asking, beneath the obvious question.
"That's good. It's helpful to know these things before hand so there aren't any problems with installation." John took her hand and pressed it against the stainless steel surface. "Go ahead and give it a feel. The manufacturer promised that the surface will be warm to the touch, not cold like the older models." He left his hand on hers as she began to stroke up and down on the appliance's matte silver surface. "They also say that it is smudge proof, fingerprint proof and dent resistant. It can really take whatever you dish out."
He looked around again to make sure that no one was in the vicinity, before he leaned in to her ear. "I'd be more than happy to come over and help you test that claim, once it's been delivered, that is."
Ellie sighed, "And how would you propose to do that, John?"
"Oh, come now, Ellie," he laughed. "I think you have a pretty good idea of exactly what I mean."
"I do," she agreed. "But I'd like to hear you say it."
John edged closer to her, and once she was pinned between him and the giant LG refrigerator he gave her a small preview.
"Well, it will start with making sure your apartment is secure, so we won't have any surprise interruptions. Chuck and Sarah? Out. Morgan door and front door? Locked. You and me? Naked as the day we were born."
"Check, check and check. Then what?"
Ellie asked."Well, I don't want to give away the whole scenario," he exclaimed. "But I'm thinking that after I've had some fun involving chocolate syrup, whipped cream, your perfect breasts and other parts, lower parts," he sighed and so did she, " ... and my mouth, then I'd press those perfect breasts of yours up against that shiny steel surface and take you there where you stand."
He was going to say something else but heard footsteps approaching. He moved away from Ellie quickly and went into salesman mode once more. "So you see, this model has one of the highest energy star ratings out there and will drastically cut your electricity bills ... not to mention one of the best warranties in the industry. Of course, we offer a thirty-day trail, so you can get it home and try it out. Make sure it meets all your needs, because here at the Buy More customer satisfaction is guaranteed."
When he finished his schpeil, he saw that Big Mike had joined them. "Well, hello there, Ms. Bartowski. I hope that Mr. Casey here is delivering satisfactory service to you this afternoon."
Ellie looked at John and then to Big Mike and smiled. "Oh hey there, Big Mike. I can assure you that John here has sealed the deal. Why, he's been so helpful, that I think I may even check out the new grills while I'm here. You now barbecue season is coming up."
"Excellent, that's just excellent," bellowed Big Mike as he slapped John on the back. "Keep up the good work, son, and you'll make employee of the month for sure."
John forced a smile at Big Mike, "That's would be just great, sir. Well, I better show her the grills now."
They both sped to a different area, where all the big gas grills were displayed. Along the way Ellie slipped of her jacket and tucked it over her arm. Ellie moved in front of John as they reached a model called "The Beast Master."
"You've got a good eye there, Ellie. That's one of the best on the market." John handed her a brochure so she could read up on it. He didn't really care if she bought the grill or not, he just wanted to watch her for a minute.
Ellie read the brochure silently for a moment. So far she was impressed with what she was reading, and she really did need a new grill. Devon had taken theirs when he moved out. Well, it had been his in the first place, so that was fair.
When she got to a rather interesting section of the brochure she started to read aloud, putting a certain suggestive inflection in her voice as she did so, and improvising just a bit. "The Beast Master has adjustable settings to suit your needs. With one touch of the knob you can have instant full heat for searing in all the juices. With another twist of the knob you can go to slow, steady, all-day warmth to get your meat nice and succulent, so it melts in your mouth."
As she said the last words she pivoted on her toes to look at John. He was watching her intently, and couldn't help but miss the message on her tight red shirt. "Plays well with others," he read out loud as he quickly slid to her side. He clutched her hand in his and pulled her away from the grill, leading her to, what she guessed, was the Home Theater room.
John promptly locked the door behind them, and in a move so fast it made Ellie's head spin, he engulfed her in his arms and kissed her. She reacted on instinct, sliding her arms around his neck and returning the kiss. She bent one knee up to lock it around John's body. He took the hint and lifted her up, one arm at the small of her back, the other caressing her firm ass, as he managed to stumble to the nearest wall. He pressed her against the wall, deepening the kiss. He ran his tongue over her teeth, curling it up against the sensitive spot on the roof of her mouth.
She moaned into his mouth as she joined the fray. She wanted to devour him right then and there, but knew she couldn't. She could feel her own body's response to John's intimate proximity, just as she could feel his reaction to her. She wanted this, but not here. Not now. She broke away from the kiss. "John, we have to stop this now...before someone gets suspicious."
John begrudgingly had to admit she was right and slowly released his grip on her body, setting her back on her feet. "So, the refrigerator can be delivered tomorrow between twelve and two. I have to work nine to six."
"Okay," Ellie said. "I'll be home tomorrow afternoon, so the delivery time is okay ...for both the fridge and the grill, by the way ... but I have to work six to six." It was her way of letting him know they wouldn't get to test out the manufacturer's claim tomorrow.
After some schedule checking, it was determined that it would be three days before had any overlapping off time. So a date was made.
Before they left the room, John gently took Ellie by the arm, and stopped her. "Are you playing a game, Ellie? With me?"
She looked up at him and saw something hopeful in those big blue eyes of his, and her heart skipped a beat. "I don't know, John. I know it started out that way. But now? I'm not sure."
He leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to her temple. "Okay, Ellie. I just want you to know one thing..." He unlocked the door, glancing back once before he walked away to write up Ellie's order. "I play for keeps."
Ellie left a moment later and went to check out, still contemplating the meaning of John's parting words ... "For keeps, oh, my."