| Love is All Around |
| That evening, Jack�s heart was floating as he rode his motorcycle home from the office. It had been a good day; they�d nailed down the Maynard case, Adam had agreed to be his best man at the wedding, and Skoda and Cragen had hit it off. Life was good. He parked the bike in the alley behind the house and went in the kitchen door. What a difference a weekend made. They had knocked out the wall between kitchen and dining room to make a nice large space for cooking, eating and entertaining. Lennie, who had discovered a flair for interior design, called it a �great room.� The walls were painted a nice soft sage green, and the big mahogany dining table looked perfect instead of cramped for space. It had been the last major project in remaking the old brownstone into their dream house. Lennie heard him come in and came back to greet him with a passionate kiss. When they came up for air, he looked at Jack. �You were playing matchmaker again today, weren�t you?� Jack laughed. �Well, I wouldn�t say that. I thought they might get along, yes �� Lennie shook his head. �You know, until you showed up, I was getting really worried about Don. I could see he was getting really down about being alone. And then when Mike called �� That caught Jack�s attention. �Mike called?� �Uh, yeah. He got the invitation, but wasn�t sure they were really wanted, so he called Don on his cell �� �Ah. Did you talk to him?� Jack knew how much that would mean to his lover. Lennie nodded, smiling softly. �Yeah.� Jack hugged him. �I�m glad, Lennie. Do you think you two can figure out how to be friends again?� Lennie sighed. �I hope so. I convinced him we really wanted them to come. Especially now that it�s a wedding. I think that kinda floored him. But he did have an idea.� �About?� �The ceremony. Did you know Ben�s a judge now?� A smile crept over Jack�s face. �No, I didn�t. That could work �.� �I told Mike I�d talk to you about it, and he�ll talk to Ben. I promised I�d call him back tonight.� Jack nodded. �I like it. In fact, it�s perfect. I wonder what Adam is going to think about them. Ben was the �good boy�, I was the rebel. To find out he�s gay too �� Lennie chuckled and pulled Jack in for another kiss. Eventually they were interrupted by a soft �meow?� from below. Lennie pulled away and bent down to pick up the tiny gray ball of fur. �Hello there, little girl. Was wondering when you�d put in an appearance!� Jack was amazed at how gentle Lennie was with the kitten. He wandered over and poured some food into her bowl, causing her to squirm out of Lennie�s hands at the sound. Lennie laughed. �Why don�t you go up and get changed, and I�ll order US some dinner. Chinese or subs?� Jack slipped his arms around his lover. �I can think of something else I�d rather do.� His lips grazed at Lennie�s neck, teasing. Lennie laughed and pulled away. �Dinner first. Then I need to call Mike. Oh � and Don called this afternoon, asked if you had Skoda�s phone number �� Jack grinned from ear to ear. �I already gave his to Skoda �� �You WERE playing matchmaker!� Jack�s eyes twinkled with mirth. �I take the fifth �� Lennie laughed and shook his head. He pulled Jack close again. �Have I told you today how much I love you?� Jack kissed him tenderly. �Love you too, Lennie. Forever.� Lennie smiled and held him close. �Forever �� Dinner was forgotten as they got lost in each other�s eyes. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Don was more than a little nervous as he walked into the restaurant. He had been rather surprised late this afternoon when his cell phone had rung and he�d heard the voice of the intriguing Dr. Skoda. �Captain? May I call you Don?� �Uh sure, Doctor.� �Emil, please.� �OK, Emil. What can I do for you?� �Don, look, I don�t want to play games here. I was getting a definite vibe this afternoon, but I saw the wedding ring. Are you interested in some � extracurricular activities?� Cragen was a bit taken aback by the shrink�s direct approach. But in a way he found it quite refreshing. �You know, I�ve been thinking about that all afternoon. Yes I am.� It was a good thing Cragen couldn�t see the almost predatory smile. �Excellent. Why don�t you meet me for dinner tonight? Say Roberto�s, 7PM?� �OK. It�s a date.� // Did I just do this? // �Wonderful. See you there, Don.� The phone clicked. So now he walked into the lobby of Roberto�s, looking for the man he had just met this afternoon. He was scared, nervous, and yet excited. VERY excited; he�d had a hard-on ever since that call. But he�d never done anything like this, just meeting a stranger for sex. The only thing keeping him from bolting out the door was the fact that this guy was a friend of Jack�s. He found that was enough for him to trust Skoda. A hand touched his elbow and he almost jumped out of his skin. �Don?� �Emil.� He couldn�t stop the rush of blood up his neck. Skoda smiled. �Sorry, didn�t mean to startle you.� He shook his head. �It�s ok.� Skoda gave him an appraising look; the man was obviously very nervous. �I take it you don�t do this often?� Cragen shook his head. �Uh, no. At least not with a virtual stranger �� Skoda nodded. �May I make a suggestion? My place is just around the corner; perhaps it would help you to relax before dinner �� Cragen�s heart was pounding. Sex before dinner? This was so unlike him. And yet there was something liberating about the idea, something enticing. And it had been quite a while � �Sounds good to me. Lead on.� Skoda gave him his most charming smile then turned toward the door. Not a word was said as they walked the couple of blocks to the doctor�s apartment. Once the door was locked behind them, Don didn�t even have a chance to look around to see what the place said about its occupant. Skoda moved close, well into his personal space. Don�s eyes were locked onto the other man�s, his cock throbbing with anticipation. Skoda closed the gap and kissed him, hard, finding Cragen�s mouth open and accepting. He pushed Cragen against the wall, leaning against him, grinding his hips against Cragen�s. The sudden, rough passion caught Don off guard. He quickly recovered, pushing back, knowing now that they were both hard and ready. It excited him like nothing he�d ever felt before. His hands reached for Emil�s shirt, pulling it out of his pants, unbuttoning from the bottom up. This was a man who worked out; his hands felt firm abs, ok, maybe not washboard, but firm. As his hands slid upward, he found already taut nipples. // you like it rough, Emil? Ok, you get it rough. // He pinched hard, twisting slightly. Skoda made a noise deep in his throat, almost a growl. That predatory grin was back on his face. He pressed his hips tight against Don again, expressing his pleasure. Don twisted again, pulling hard, and was rewarded with a hissed intake of breath. Skoda suddenly let go of him and shrugged out of his sport coat, ripping off the tie and shirt as well. Don dropped his own suit coat at the same time, his hands then ripping off his tie as Skoda�s hands went for his buttons. Once his shirt had joined the discards, Skoda leaned in and claimed his mouth again. Don had the feeling that tongue was trying to push all the way into his soul. And he wanted it. Oh lord, how he wanted it! It had been far too long, and not just since Lennie had broken it off. This primal need was worlds away from what he�d shared with Lennie. It had been almost as if both of them knew it wasn�t real, both were holding back. Tonight, he wasn�t holding back. The warm touch of hands on his torso sent an electric thrill through his system. Skoda�s arms wrapped around him, sliding down his back, hands coming to cup his ass. He leaned into it, hips grinding, as both of them groaned. �So Don � you like to pitch or catch?� Hot breath beside his ear. Cragen hesitated; he hadn�t done either for quite a while. �Pitch.� A deep bass chuckle. �Oh good, I was hoping you�d say that �� Skoda led him back to a bedroom. Again, Don didn�t have much chance to look around. He was pulled down onto the king sized bed with the shrink on top of him, kissing him while his hands worked at Cragen�s belt. Skoda pulled away, sliding down, taking Don�s pants and underwear with him. First glance at Don�s throbbing cock brought a grin to his face. As Skoda bent back over him, Cragen reached up and pulled him down. They wrestled briefly for dominance, with Cragen ending up on top. His turn to undress his partner. Skoda grinned up at the man above him, thoroughly enjoying the battle. Hands opened his fly while Cragen�s teeth gnawed at a taut nipple, pulling on it as he slid away, taking pants and underwear with him. Don also liked what he saw, and quickly bent down to suck it into his mouth before Skoda could move, wringing a deep moan from the shrink. Don only sucked him for a few minutes. This was good, but he wanted more. He let go, much to Skoda�s dismay. �Where�s the lube?� �Nightstand.� Don got up and retrieved the tube while Skoda rolled over. Cragen looked at him. �Nope. Get up. Lean over the side of the bed.� He used his command voice. Skoda rolled over and looked up at him, a bit surprised, then grinned and got into it. �Make me.� Cragen yanked him up and off the bed, kicking his legs apart like a perp�s, and landed a sharp swat to the tight buns presented to him. It sent a shiver up Skoda�s spine. Cragen snarled at him, �You like that, don�t you? You like it rough?� �What�s it to you, cop?� He landed another swat, and was rewarded with a sharp intake of breath. �Shut up, punk.� Skoda just grinned in anticipation. Don reached out and began caressing Skoda�s balls from behind, reaching forward and grabbing his cock as well, then suddenly landing another swat, and another. Each time, he felt the cock in his hand jump with excitement. Finally he couldn�t take any more. He put some of the lube onto his hand and slipped a finger inside. Tight, but opening up easily. He wouldn�t need a lot of foreplay. He added a little more lube to a second finger and slipped it in. Skoda groaned as his cock was stroked while fingers fucked his ass. Then they were gone and a dick was pressing up against him. He pushed back, and felt the pain/pleasure of being impaled. Cragen quickly pushed all the way in, and was soon fucking him for all he was worth. The air resounded with smacking sounds as their bodies crashed together again and again. Both were quickly covered with sweat as they lost themselves in the ever growing passion, grunting and groaning, coherent speech long gone. As Cragen felt himself getting close, he reached around to grab Skoda�s cock, pulling it in time with their rhythm, bringing the man to a shattering climax at about the same time Cragen lost it himself. They both cried out, bodies tensing, the last few thrusts all but jerked out of their bodies. They tumbled to the bed, quiet for the moment. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Lennie slipped his cock out of Jack�s ass and fell gracelessly to the bed beside his lover. Jack chuckled softly and pulled him close. �Damn you�re good.� Lennie was happy to lay there with Jack holding him. He could stay here forever. But there was something he was supposed to do � His stomach rumbled, reminding him they had gotten distracted before dinner. He kissed his lover. �So. Dinner?� Jack laughed. �You and food. OK, what do you want?� �Just call out for subs already. I�m starving.� Jack kissed him and sat up, reaching for the phone. It was enough to remind him � he was supposed to call Mike. Jack hung up the phone and looked at him. �They�ll be here in half an hour.� �Great. Enough time for me to call Mike.� Their eyes met; Jack knew how important this was to Lennie. He reached out and caressed his face. �You want some privacy?� Lennie sat up and shook his head. �No. Actually, I�d rather you be here.� Jack caught his hand and kissed it. �Then here I stay.� Lennie sighed happily. Now where was that number � he had to get up and find his pants to get the wallet where he�d tucked it. Jack piled the pillows up and leaned against them, inviting Lennie to sit in front of him so he could hold him through the call. Lennie found his hands shaking as he punched out the number. On the third ring, a familiar voice answered. �Hello?� Lennie smiled. �Mike? It�s me � Lennie.� Mike�s heart skipped a beat. // He really did call back! // Maybe there really was a chance they could be friends again. �Hey, Lennie. Long time no hear!� Lennie chuckled. �Yeah, I know. But no more of that from now on, ok?� Mike nodded, smiling as he felt Ben�s arms slip around his waist from behind. �I hear you, Lennie. So, you talk to Jack?� �Yeah. He loves the idea. Just what we were looking for. What does Ben think?� Mike glanced at his lover, giving him one last chance to back out. The news of the wedding had really thrown him for a loop. Mike knew that Ben still wasn�t completely over the fear of losing him to Lennie. Even agreeing to go to the housewarming party had been hard for him. But knowing that it was turning into a wedding had somewhat calmed his fears, once he�d gotten over the initial shock. Ben hugged him and nodded. �He�s in, Lennie. Sounds like a plan.� �Aw, that�s great, Mikey. I can�t wait to see you again. Can you guys come down a couple of days early? Be nice to have some time to visit before the big day.� �We�ll see what we can do, Lennie. No judge, no bailiff, no court. But I think maybe Waterville can do without us for one Thursday!� Lennie laughed. �Must be nice to be so important!� �Ah, it�s no big deal. But we have to figure out what to do with Max �� �Max?� �Our dog. German Sheppard. He�s just an overgrown puppy.� Lennie laughed. �Bring him along. We�ve got room. Of course Shadow won�t like it, but she can hide up here if she needs to.� �Shadow?� �Kitten adopted us a few weeks ago.� �You? With a kitten?� Lennie laughed. �What can I say, I�ve turned into an old softie.� �Oh, lord, no, not that!� Mike laughed with him. Just then the doorbell rang. �Listen, Mike, I gotta go, I think that�s our dinner. We�ll pin things down when we get a little closer to the big day, ok?� �You got it, Lennie. Hey � do me a favor, will ya?� �Sure, Mikey.� �Tell Jack I said Thanks.� �You got it, Mikey. Catch you next time.� �OK. Bye Lennie.� Mike hung up the phone and turned around in Ben�s arms. After a long kiss, he leaned back and caressed his lover�s face. �Thanks, Ben. This means a lot.� �I can see that, Michael. I�m sorry if I overreacted to the invitation. I guess I�m scared to go back there and face all the people I used to work with �� �With me at your side.� Mike cocked his head, his brow furrowing. �Or is that the problem?� Ben felt the heat rising up his neck. �I � I guess it is. I�m just getting used to it here, where it was expected. Back there � they all knew me � knew Paul �� Mike pulled him close. �It�s ok, babe. Don�t worry. Nothing about that has to come out. Remember, they�ve pretty much accepted Lennie and Jack being together. They�ll accept us, too.� Ben looked into the green eyes, drawing comfort from the certainty he found there. �You�re probably right.� Mike laughed softly. �Of course I am.� His face suddenly got serious. �That�s not all you�re scared of, is it?� Ben looked away as Mike�s hand trailed down his cheek. �Babe, listen to me. I promise you, once you see them together you�ll know that even if I wanted Lennie back, which I don�t, I wouldn�t stand a snowball�s chance in hell. I�m telling you, I�ve never seen two people so completely in love. It � it�s beautiful. And besides, like I said, I don�t want that anymore. I love you, babe. Let me show you how much �� Mike pulled him in, claiming his lips possessively. Ben felt all his fears and doubts melt away as his world narrowed to the two of them, locked together in that moment. The solid, reassuring presence of Michael�s warm body pressed against his instantly dissipated the autumn chill, sending his internal temperature soaring. His hands slid up beneath the soft sweater, seeking the warmth of the flesh below. Mike let go of Ben�s mouth, moving his lips along the jaw line, finally teasing at an earlobe with his tongue. �How about we make it an early evening?� he whispered. �Oh, yes,� Ben sighed happily, eagerly following Mike up the stairs to their bedroom. Clothes were quickly cast aside, but neither of them noticed the chill in the air as they fell onto the bed. Mike lay on top, covering Ben�s face and neck with soft kisses. Ben moaned at his touch. But as good as it felt, it wasn�t quite what he wanted tonight. He wrapped his arms tight around Michael and rolled them over so that he was on top. Mike was surprised at his lover�s sudden move. �Ben?� He looked up into the soft blue eyes. �Shh. Let me �� // let me make up for being so stupid earlier � // Mike smiled softly. �Sure, babe. I�m all yours.� He sensed that this was important to Ben, so he settled back to enjoy. Ben worshipped his body with hands and lips, every touch a caress, an expression of his love. He slowly, tantalizingly worked his way down Michael�s body. But instead of taking Mike�s huge cock into his mouth, he licked all around it, working still further down. His tongue teased at the sensitive spot where leg met groin, wringing a moan from deep in Mike�s throat. They had recently discovered how much Mike liked that. He spent a long while teasing at the inner thigh before finally sucking the heavy balls into his mouth, one at a time. �Oh, Christ, Ben! You tryin� to kill me? Oh, MAN!� Ben chuckled softly as he continued driving Mike insane, his tongue going everywhere except that huge, dripping cock. Mike�s hips bucked, trying to intensify the contact. Instead, the tongue slid further back, inadvertently rubbing behind the balls, frighteningly close to the one spot that was off limits. Ben backed off immediately, not wanting to scare his lover. �Oh, god, Ben, don�t stop now!� Mike�s frustrated cry was unexpected. Either he hadn�t noticed or didn�t mind the proximity. Ben decided to take advantage of the moment, intentionally focusing on the perineum, but still not going all the way back. Mike drew his legs up, wanting more. He felt all tingly in a way that was new and exciting. He was vaguely aware of what was happening, knew he should be afraid, but right now he felt too good to be afraid. He was so hard, so hot, and Ben was driving him crazy with desire. Every nerve in his body screamed �More!� Ben was surprised by Mike�s subconscious vocalization, but determined to give him what he wanted. One hand slipped in, reaching back to rub gently around the area while his tongue returned to tormenting Mike�s balls. Mike was groaning loudly now, thrashing around. Ben realized his lover was on the edge. His mouth enveloped Mike�s aching cock as his finger just barely pressed into the tight pucker. Mike screamed as the orgasm shook his entire body. Not sure if the scream was pleasure or pain, Ben quickly let go and squirmed up to the head of the bed, pulling Michael into his arms. �It�s ok, love, it�s ok,� he murmured reassuringly. Mike realized Ben was worried about him. Breathing heavily, he managed to pant, ��sOK, babe. Good. REAL good!� Relief flooded through Ben as he realized Mike was all right. He held his lover close as he recovered, his hands gently stroking and caressing. Finally, Mike�s breathing calmed and green eyes met blue. He smiled softly. �Babe � did you just do what I think you just did?� Ben nodded. �It wasn�t intentional, Michael. You were thrashing around so much ... but after the first time you begged for more, so �� Mike leaned over and silenced him with a kiss. �It�s ok, babe. Really. I mean, REALLY. I think maybe �� Ben gently brushed back the heavy dark hair. �Michael, you don�t have to do this for me.� Mike just gently shook his head. �I know, but I have to do it for me, babe. If you�re willing?� Ben smiled softly. �Whenever you�re ready, my love.� Mike nodded. �Not yet � but soon.� Ben nodded and pulled him under the covers. Now that the heat of passion had cooled, they were both starting to feel the autumn chill. He spooned in behind Michael, holding him close as they drifted off into a contented sleep. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Lennie sighed as he crawled into bed. What a day. It had been so good to hear Mike�s voice again. It sounded like he was doing really well up there in Maine. But it would be strange to see him with Ben Stone. And even stranger to have Ben performing their wedding. // wedding! // Lennie Briscoe, getting married again. Who�d�a thunk it? He chuckled softly. Jack slipped into the bed beside him, spooning in behind, his arm wrapped over Lennie�s chest. �Something funny?� Lennie smiled, snuggling in closer. �Just amazed at the way things turn out. Mike with Ben Stone. Us getting married. I wonder if your buddy Skoda called Don �� �If I know Emil, he did. Who knows, maybe they had dinner tonight.� Lennie smiled. �That would be nice. He�s been alone too long.� Jack sighed. �I know what that�s like. Glad it�s over. For good.� Lennie rolled over onto his back, pulling Jack down into a kiss. �You better believe it, lover.� Jack yawned and settled his head on Lennie�s shoulder. �I do, Lennie. I do.� Continue on to Chapter 3 Send me some feedback Return to the Story Index Disclaimer: These characters belong to Dick Wolf and NBC. I'm just borrowing them for fun, not profit. |
| Chapter 2 |