Title : Cure for the soul.
By : GirlOfSpring
Pairing : Nell/Callen
Summary: It all started with a certain intelligence analyst who needed her music and a certain special agent who was disturbed by the noise. A Nallen story
Disclaimer : Don't own, don't own, don't own.
Note: So here it is, another chapter for you amazing readers! And yay! *party!* This story got a 100 reviews! I am so incredibly happy that it has gotten this far, it's amazing. And, as a thank you, I have a surprise for you in this chapter. So go on and read and please leave a review!
Desnouer: Jeej! Your review was number 100! So, thank you! And I do fear I am leaving you with another cliffhanger.. Please do forgive me. Until the next chapter!
Shestarsky: At first, I didn't really plan to have Hetty do it, but then I thought it would fit in quite nicely with everything else. So I put it in. And I hope you like this chapter, I did have something special planned yes. Until the next chapter!
Angelus320: Haha! And guess what you are going to find at the end of this chapter. It might be a while until the next update because I have an exam coming up, but I hope this chapter will be sufficient for the wait. Thank you for the review!
DarkDivine131: Hi! Well, I actually quite enjoyed writing Hetty in her part in the other chapter. And while the others are at the party, she is playing poker with some friends (and probably taking all their money for that). And here was quite some Nallen in the end, so I hope you like it. Thank you for the review and until the next chapter!
Bubbles: Thank you so much for the review and the compliments! I try to do my best with the characters, but I do add a small twist of my own to them. I hope you will like this chapter as well!
Angelscatie: Thank you for the review! And talking in this chapter.. I won't spoil it, you will have to read it. Until the next chapter!
Writergirl99: Haha, that might be it because in word count the last one was rather long.. And I hope you like what I did with the chapter and with Sam's wife, who I quite enjoyed writing. To me she is this rather elegant and intelligent event organizer. And I am going to have a look at that story, I haven't read it yet. But I have an exam coming up so it might be a while until I do. Until the next chapter!
Bjq: Haha, thanks for the review!
StoryAficiondo9712: Thank you for the review! And I hope you like this chapter.. Until the next!
Djrocksforever: And thank you for taking the time to leave a review! I hope you like this chapter as well.
Tmpbooth: I think explosion is indeed the right word to describe this.. So here it is, I hope you like what I did with it.
Jimi18: Thank you for your reviews! And I love Caro Emerald and her music. I just have a thing for the jazzy kind of music. Until the next chapter!
~~~|G|O|S|~~~
Rachel was pleased.
She was looking around, once again following her checklist.
All the art was shown correctly?
Check.
There was an elegant buffet with several bites for the guests?
Check.
The waiters were walking around with trays filled with champagne?
Check.
The waiters were actually properly dressed?
Double check.
The guests were arriving?
Check.
Everything was going great.
Smiling slightly, she turned around again to welcome the next guests: a young couple standing closely next to each other and looking around with interest.
As she shook their hands, she felt Sam next to her change his stance and once the couple had walked away again, she looked at her husband.
His eyes were trained on the entrance, where their newest guests had appeared.
The trio, consisting of a young, quite stunning woman and two men, had noticed them and started to walk in their direction.
She hadn't seen G yet, or the fifth person of their party, but they must be coming in as well.
Once the trio had reached them, the woman being the first followed by the two men, Rachel smiled.
"Kensi, Deeks, Eric, this is my wife Rachel." Sam introduced her to the three and Rachel extended her hand so she could shake it with the other three.
"Pleased to meet you, Mrs. Hannah" Kensi was the first to talk and as they shook hands, Rachel made a light movement with her hand.
"Mrs. Kingston actually, but none of that. You will call me Rachel, as I will call you Kensi. This goes for all of you" She nodded slightly and for a second she locked eyes with Kensi.
Yes, a woman who was sure of herself and knew what to do to get what she wanted.
Definitely not a person to treat lightly. But she hadn't expected anything less.
"I must say, Rachel, you are way too beautiful for a man like Sam."
Next to her, she felt Sam tense up slightly as if he was worried that the man with the shaggy blonde hair wouldn't be able to behave himself any better than this, but Rachel laughed at his words.
"Oh dear, such great compliments from such a handsome fellow."
He grinned happily and as they shook hands, he tilted hers upwards slightly so his lips could brush past her skin.
"Marty Deeks, at your services."
Next to him, she saw Kensi roll her eyes slightly, even if she did have a hint of a smile on her lips. No, she was merely amused, not irritated in any way.
"Very nice to meet you Marty." Rachel smiled and let go of his hand to meet the third person of their group. The first two had shifted to Sam and were talking with him.
The third man, wearing glasses in front of a pair of piercing eyes, seemed to be a bit more nervous.
"Uhm.. Hello." He said slowly, as if he wasn't sure those were the words he was supposed to say.
She took his hand in a soft grip while shaking it.
"Hello. Then you must be Eric, if I am not mistaken."
"Yes, I am. Ma'am. Mrs. Kingston. Ma'am."
"Just Rachel, unless if it makes you feel uneasy. We are all friends here, there is nothing to worry about."
He seemed to relax a bit and she nodded approvingly.
"I hope you will enjoy the evening, Eric."
This time, he smiled back at her before letting go of her hand.
At that moment, she saw somebody else walking towards them.
G was guiding a very young, very tiny woman towards them.
She was walking slightly in front of him and Rachel noticed how he had his hand close to the small of her back to steer her, yet he never touched her.
They weren't really talking either and once they reached them, Rachel noticed how the girl was doing her best to keep a distance between them.
How peculiar.
Even more so because G could barely tear his eyes away from her. Yes, she was quite the appearance, wearing a dress that made her almost look fairy-like.
And she would eat her shoe if she wasn't the woman that had been the cause for the slight changes her husband's best friend had been going to.
"G! How wonderful of you to join us tonight." She smiled, indeed very happy to see him.
She kissed him lightly on the cheek as he did the same to her.
"Rachel, stunning as ever. How are you?" He had torn away his eyes from the woman and was looking at her, smiling slightly, even though it didn't really reach his eyes.
He was bothered by something, annoyed even.
"I am fine, thank you. And up until now the whole event is going great, so I have nothing to complain about."
He nodded at her words.
"And who is this lovely, young lady?"
Rachel stepped sideways so she was standing in front of the young woman.
"Nell Jones. It's nice to finally meet you ma'am."
"Rachel, please call me Rachel."
And these must be all the people that worked with her husband. He had told there would be five that would come, G included.
It was great to put some faces to the people that worked with Sam.
"Well, I hope you will enjoy the party tonight. We have champagne and something to eat and later on we will present some of the art work."
In the background, a band started playing some music and people started dancing.
"And, of course, you can dance."
The others smiled and slowly started going their own way.
G stayed with her and Sam as Eric and Nell walked towards a waiter with the drinks while Marty was pulling Kensi to the food.
Rachel smiled again and turned towards her husband.
"Sam, dear, could you get us some champagne?"
He looked up at her, before nodding silently and disappearing towards a waiter to get them the drinks, effectively leaving her alone with G.
His eyes had followed Eric and Nell, a frown on his face that was slowly turning into a scowl.
"Oh dear, is it that bad?" Rachel said softly, putting her hand lightly on his arm.
That got his attention and he looked her in the eyes with a mixed look of confusion and nervousness.
"Have you at least told her she looks beautiful?" She asked, perfectly sculpted eyebrows raised slightly as she asked him the question.
"What are you talking about?" He tried, feigning ignorance.
"G, dear, you know I love you. But don't take me for an idiot. Even a blind man can see you are attracted to that girl. It's a miracle your co-workers haven't noticed anything yet, even if Sam is a bit suspicious. But let me tell you something: at least tell the girl she looks beautiful. Just.. Trust me on this. Us girls like hearing that from handsome men."
"What are you talking about?"
Sam had returned, holding three glasses of champagne in his hands.
"Take Sam, he tells me I am beautiful." Rachel took a glass from her husband as G did the same. She stood on her toes for a second and kissed her husband on the cheek as an arm slid around her waist.
"And I mean it every day." He grinned before kissing her softly on the lips.
~~~|G|O|S|~~~
Nell and Eric were both holding glasses of champagne. Hers was almost empty already, his had been barely touched.
Eric seemed to be just a bit nervous and Nell frowned slightly when she noticed the way he kept looking around.
"Eric, stop worrying. These are all normal people and we can just have a fun evening and enjoy ourselves for once."
How the tables had turned. That afternoon he had been the one convincing her to come to the party because it would be fun and now she was doing the same to him.
"I know. It's just.. All these people must be very rich and famous and we are just so.. normal."
Nell shrugged slightly and took the final sip from her glass, emptying it.
"Yes, that's the way people are. There are so many of us. Statistically, some of us are bound to be normal."
Eric looked at her, before relaxing a bit and smiling.
"Yes, you are right."
A bit further away the saw Kensi and Deeks standing next to the buffet, discussing something with great persistence.
They couldn't hear what the two were talking about, but it looked like Deeks was trying to convince Kensi to do something she absolutely didn't want to.
Nell finally heard the word 'dance' drift in their direction, which made her understand what Deeks wanted to do and Kensi refused to.
Dance.
She looked at Eric before making a small movement with her hand to the other people that were dancing.
"How about it, hotshot?"
The song had a happy, no worries melody which could be fun to dance to with a friend.
Eric seemed to mull it over for a second before giving in.
"Alright, but don't do anything weird."
~~~|G|O|S|~~~
G had wandered away from Sam and Rachel, looking at some art as he did.
Husband and wife were allowed to have at least some alone time, he wasn't that desperate to hang out with other people.
But for the last two minutes he had been standing in front of an abstract, colorful painting, but he hadn't really registered anything in front of him.
Rachel's words were holding his thoughts elsewhere.
He hadn't told Nell she looked beautiful.
But it was obvious, she simply was the most beautiful woman of everybody present.
But what if he were doing this undercover?
If he would have to get close to a woman for the job, he would definitely tell her she looked beautiful. They usually did appreciate that.
But he wasn't doing this undercover. He was being himself here, and that was what was making his so hard. He never got close to a woman as himself.
Every single time he had picked up a woman, he had pretended to be somebody else. Even if he was out on his own, it was easier to pretend it wasn't him.
But he couldn't do that with Nell.
Scratch that, he couldn't do that to Nell.
He shook his head with a sigh and turned around, his eyes scanning the area to find her.
It wasn't easy to spot her.
She was on the dance floor with Eric, dancing and laughing as she did a funny move.
Eric seemed to be slightly embarrassed but in the end, he laughed as well.
They were just having fun as two normal adults.
Then, the song came to an end and was replaced by something slower and more mellow.
For a second, he saw them look at each other as if they were discussing what to do next: continue dancing or stop?
In the end, they stepped closer to each other and Eric's hands slid around her waist as her hands came up around his neck.
They weren't exactly pressed up against each other, but they were still too close for his like.
He grumbled slightly and turned around again, staring back at the painting.
This was crap.
He was forcing himself to stare at the painting, but his mind was playing tricks on him as he kept seeing Nell and Eric.
Pressed up against each other.
Whispering in another's ear.
Softly kissing-
"Well good evening."
His thoughts were interrupted by a voice and he looked to his right. A woman had joined him in front of the painting.
She had short, blonde hair and big brown eyes, a small nose and a friendly smile.
Wearing a black dress, she was quite beautiful.
But, as he was looking at her, he noticed that she didn't have the petite form he had grown to like.
She was rather tall, even more so with her heels and all her features had a slightly rounded form to them.
He could only compare her to Nell, and think that she came nowhere near the petite analyst.
"Hello" He said curtly, before looking back at the painting.
She didn't seem too impressed by his words and looked back at the painting as well.
"The use of color in this painting is quite striking, don't you think?"
He didn't respond at once, still staring at the painting.
"Might be, if you are into that combination of yellow and purple."
He turned around without saying another word and walked over to the people that were still dancing.
The song was coming to an end.
~~~|G|O|S|~~~
Nell was still holding her hands in Eric's neck as they were dancing.
It was nice and quite relaxing after the not so calm dancing earlier.
"Thank you Eric."
"For what?"
She looked up in his eyes and smiled slightly.
"For convincing me to come."
After pushing the thoughts about G to the back of her head, she was actually having fun.
"It's good to get away sometimes."
Eric nodded slightly at her words and the continued dancing in silence until the end of the song.
Nell stepped away from Eric and grinned up at him, but suddenly she felt another hand on her arm.
"You wouldn't mind of I steal your dance partner for a moment, wouldn't you Eric?"
A look of surprise passed his face, before shrugging and stepping back.
"No problem."
Then he left.
Nell looked up in the pair of familiar blue eyes as the hand on her arm slid to her hand and G's other hand came down to rest on her hip.
Another slow song started playing.
"G, what are you doing?"
For a brief moment, she had tried to step away from him but the grip he had on her was gentle but still firm.
"What does it look like?"
He had pulled her against him and automatically, she raised her free hand to his shoulder.
Her other hand was linked with his as he slowly started to slide across the dance floor with her.
Nell was pressed up against his firm chest and she could smell his subtle cologne, mixed with his own smell she had gotten to know.
Even with the heels, she wasn't tall enough to look over his shoulder, so she turned her head slightly and kept her eyes directed to her right, avoiding his eyes.
For a few seconds, the music surrounded them as they danced in silence, until Nell realized something.
G wasn't relaxed, he wasn't relaxed at all.
His stance was tensed and she could feel the muscle in his shoulders tighten up under her fingers.
Even if she wasn't completely comfortable with this, neither was he.
Something was off, someway.
In the end, he sighed and she felt how some of the tension left his body.
"You know something, Nell?" He said softly. He was leaning his head slightly against hers and she felt his breath on her ear.
Her skin tingled and she felt the desire rise to turn her head and kiss him. Everything to get closer to him.
But she forced herself not to look into his eyes and neither did she respond to his words.
"You.. You look beautiful. You are beautiful. The most beautiful woman in here, if I can say so."
That, she hadn't expected.
She looked up into his eyes and noticed that he was much closer than she had first thought.
She could see the lines of blue in his eyes as he locked his with hers.
Had he really just said that?
His hand let go of hers and she felt how his fingers softly touched her cheek.
His fingers were warm and for the briefest second, she closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling.
Then, just as sudden as it had come, the feeling left again and she searched his face for something, anything.
He only sighed and his lips touched her forehead.
"I just wanted you to know that."
Then, he let go of her, before turning around and walking away.
She was left in the middle of the dance floor, with still the song playing in the background.
But then, she felt anger rise.
Anger with him, for being the person he was and never doing anything.
Anger with herself for being insecure and even more so for wanting him.
And having already had two rather big glasses of champagne, she did something she normally wouldn't have done.
She followed him.
~~~|G|O|S|~~~
He had been holding her and he had really enjoyed it.
Then he had told her she looked beautiful and then he just had to walk away or he would kiss her.
Simple as that.
So for now, he just needed to get away from the other people.
He walked paste the paintings to the one the furthest away, where he could see nobody and nobody could see him.
With a hand, he leaned against the wall while he pressed his fingers against his closed eyes.
He shouldn't have done that.
Yes, had should have told her, but the look in her eyes had been too much. She had been flattered, happy even with his words.
"G Callen, you are a complete prick!"
He looked up, surprised when he heard his name, but he was met with a slap in the face.
In shock, he brought his hand up to his burning face and stared at the woman in front of him.
Nell had put her hands on her hips and was looking up at him with a furious glare.
What?
What had he done?
"You just keep doing weird things at random moments, or saying thing when I am not expecting them. And the fact that I can't stop thinking about kissing you isn't really helping. But the next time you do something like that to me, I-"
He stepped towards her, sliding one hand in her hair and the other past her neck as he crushed his lips on hers.
~~~|G|O|S|~~~
Nell was feeling slightly lightheaded, but the feeling of G's lips on hers was amazing.
For a second, she incoherently mumbled something, before she caved.
The kiss was raw and filled with passion and pent desire.
G's grip was strong and she felt wanted, needed, as the heat raced through her veins. She pressed herself against him, her hands gripping the fabric of his smoking as she pulled him closer.
He moved and she was pressed against the wall he had been leaning against just mere seconds ago.
He was towering over her, his lips never leaving hers. Nell moaned softly, as such opening her mouth.
His tongue found access and the kiss became a hot battle of lips, tongues and clashing teeth.
Nell felt one hand leave her neck and slide down towards her leg, which she lifted slightly when she felt the rough fingers stroking her skin.
Her core was burning and she wanted him closer, always closer.
But they were human and in need of air.
For a second, they broke apart and she felt her hart racing as she was breathing heavily.
They break didn't take long though and his lips found hers again.
She felt a rumble rip through his body as he moaned, which made a shiver run down her spine.
"No no no, I am sure we have put up the right painting."
Nell stiffened as she heard the voice come closer.
It was Rachel and she was around the corner, talking to somebody.
Panic filled her and before G could stop her, she had slid out from between him and the wall.
They locked eyes and she felt her face burn red with embarrassment at what just had happened.
"Oh God. I just- I-" She didn't know what to say as she looked at G, who had noticed her anxiety.
"Nell.."
His voice was low and husky, sounding like a bedroom fantasy.
His eyes were burning with icy fire but Nell stepped backwards. Her legs were still trembling from the intensity of their kiss.
"I'm sorry."
Then, she turned and ran.
~~~|G|O|S|~~~
*Pam pam PAM!*
Please leave a review!
And it is going to be at least two weeks until the next update. I have my first exam at Uni in 10 days (not that I am counting :p) and I really have to study because I really have to pass it. So, until then! And wish me luck!