Wide Awake and Dreaming

Nononononononono.

Jim could hear Blair's mantra as soon as the elevator doors thunked open. He detoured past the doors to Major Crimes as he headed for the men's room. Blair's voice trailed after him.

"How am I supposed to tell him? Oh man, he is going to kill me."

Jim assumed that he was the "he" in question, but for the life of him, he couldn't come up with any reason why he might kill Blair, at least not anything in the last month or so. Jim pulled himself out and aimed at the urinal, sighing as he pissed out what felt like at least 48 ounces of coffee. Blair's midterms had saved him from a horrible stakeout and gallons of bad coffee.

Someone must have said something to Blair, because he went back to his mantra of no's. Shaking himself dry, Jim tucked everything away and headed for the sink. He might as well get out there and save his guide from any more self-flagellation. Knowing Blair, the kid had signed them up to play Santa and elf at the orphans' party, or something.

As soon as Jim got into the hallway, he could hear Brown adding to Blair's recriminations. "Buddy, I'll come to your funeral, because I'm thinking Ellison is going to turn you into a grease spot on the floor."

"Brown, shut it," Megan snapped. "Sandy, Jim's not going to blame you."

"It was my friend who screwed us over! Oh man, he's going to freak. I don't even know how the hell I'm supposed to tell him about this."

That made Jim pause. Okay, maybe he'd just grab a candy bar and pick up some intel before breaking in on Blair in full panic mode. He detoured past the doors to Major Crimes and headed for the vending machines.

"I say leave the magazine on the desk and then run for it. I figure you've got about a fifteen minute head start," Brown offered. While Brown was clearly joking, his voice had an edge to it that made Jim pause before dropping his quarters into the machine and making his selection.

"Bite your bum, mate!" Megan growled.

"See, and I would just assume that Jim could track you. I'm voting for the confess and pray approach," Rafe suggested. As Jim ate the candy bar, he reviewed possible offenses that Blair's friends might have committed. His buddy with the marijuana habit might have gotten arrested, but Jim had predicted that months ago, so it wouldn't exactly be a surprise. In terms of mayhem at work, Sam in forensics had some potential, but Jim had known Sam longer than Blair. He just wasn't masochistic enough to date the woman. Besides, he wouldn't blame Blair if Sam had finally slipped round the bend.

"I just don't think you need to get so twisted up. It's not like Jim's going to spit the dummy because of one little lie."

"Yeah, right," Brown immediately answered, obviously not agreeing.

Jim swallowed the last of the candy and dropped the wrapper in the trash before heading for the squad room. Whatever was going on, he was only going to find out about it by confronting his guide - hopefully, without giving Blair a heart attack. Now that he was just outside the doors, he could hear Blair's heart chugging furiously.

"Hey, Chief," he said as he pushed through the doors. Blair stood by Jim's desk, a rolled magazine clutched to his chest and a wide-eyed, deer about to get hit by a Mac truck expression.

"Now, Jimbo, don't go getting too upset," Megan started, holding her hand out toward him as though trying to keep him from Blair. It was a bad move. Of all the people in the squad room, Megan wasn't the one to calm him down or keep him away from Blair. Her ability to put Blair in dangerous situations put her on the 'tolerate with prejudice' list, and he didn't like anyone getting between him and his guide. Looking toward the others, Jim became even more suspicious about the situation when Rafe quickly turned away to dig in a random file cabinet and Brown watched, smirking, as if waiting for him to go ballistic. More than a few uniformed cops were also loitering around the room with expressions that varied from expectant to open hostility.

"And what am I not getting upset about?" Jim asked as he detoured around Megan. Blair backed up, still crushing the glossy magazine in his damp hands.

"Oh man, I am so sorry. I never would have invited him to stay at the loft. Seriously, I don't know what he was thinking," Blair babbled, anxiety rolling off of him in waves.

Okay, clue one: it had something to do with the Bohemian 'writer' who'd lived on Jim's couch for a week before the thought of a room full of cops playing poker had driven him back out again.

"What did hippy-dippy boy do?" Jim demanded.

"Neil," Blair corrected automatically. Then his upper lip disappeared as he sucked it between his teeth and stared gnawing at it.

Jim rolled his eyes and made a sudden grab for the magazine. Blair scrambled to defend it, but he ended up with just the back cover. With a loud ripping sound, Jim managed to confiscate the rest of it. His eyes went wide when he spotted the cover: Melissa Etheridge on a motorcycle under the banner of The Advocate. Okay, this wasn't quite what he expected.

"What's this?" Jim asked, holding up the gay rights magazine.

"Page forty-one," Blair muttered.

Jim could hear a dozen whispered conversations, as he flipped open the magazine feeling as if he had just walked into the middle of one of his childhood nightmares. When he found the page Blair had named, he stared blankly at the small picture of himself in dress blues accepting his badge when he joined the Cascade department. Further down the page, he and Blair stood in the middle of a stream, fishing. Blair's hat tilted wildly and strands of hair stuck to his lips as he struggled with a fish fighting at the end of the line while Jim smiled. Simon had caught that shot right before all hell had broken loose that trip. He read the headline. "Hero Cop Doesn't Hide His Partner or His Love." Jim blinked. "Well, fuck," he thought.

"Oh man, I know this looks bad." Blair reached out for the magazine, and Jim surrendered it easily, as he listened to a dozen conversations behind him.

"Ellison'll show the little fairy the door now."

"Do you think they might be... you know?"

"I always knew Sandberg was gay, but I'm shocked about Ellison."

"I've seen the way they touch, no surprise to me."

"Fucking fags."

Rafe clicked the file drawer closed, while he pretended not to watch the impending drama. Brown just stared. Megan looked ready to jump back between him and Blair any second. This wasn't good - not the article, but the situation - though he wasn't thrilled to be 'outed' in a national magazine, either. He had to defuse this situation quickly.

"Don't worry about it, Chief," Jim shrugged, and he could hear Blair's breath catch in shock. He turned and looked at each of the uniformed officers. Suddenly, people who had found a dozen reasons to hang out in Major Crimes decided they urgently needed to be elsewhere. The room emptied out fairly quickly as Jim glared them out the doors.

"See, told you he'd understand," Megan said, but she sounded more confused than vindicated.

"What's to get upset about?" Jim asked with a shrug as he dropped into his seat. Blair just continued to stand as if he'd forgotten how to move, but if Jim lost his cool, everyone in the station would take that as a green light to go after Blair. Jim wasn't putting up with another round of Blair-bashing. He'd had a couple of quiet talks with patrol officers in dark corners when Blair started, and he wasn't having them again.

"Oh buddy, the whole station saw that," Brown broke in. "They don't know you like we do, and they're falling for this shit. They're all down there saying that you're... you know." Brown had a slightly disgusted expression, and Jim looked up in surprise.

"That I'm what? Gay? Fucking my partner?" Jim asked as he leaned back in his chair, a picture of nonchalance. Blair made a strangled sound. Even with the distance between them, Jim could smell the dry panic on the air.

"No way, no one thinks that," Blair said, but it had the tone of a man who wanted something to be true rather than the one who believed what he said.

"Exactly," Brown exclaimed, poking the air with his finger. Jim felt a familiar annoyance brush up against him. How many times had he seen that same expression of disgust? How many times had he watched some cop in vice make a dumb-ass remark? When he worked vice, he couldn't make waves, not when some homophobic cop might choose to respond to a call just a little slow. Well, he didn't need to listen to this shit any more.

"And I should care about that, because?" Jim asked darkly.

Brown froze with his mouth open.

"No worries, mate. It doesn't change the way anyone sees you just as long as you take care of Sandy," Megan broke in. Blair choked.

"Why would you assume I'm dating Sandburg? Article aside, I'm usually on a first name basis with anyone I'm dating," Jim quickly corrected her. While he might enjoy wiping the smug expression from Brown's face, he didn't want to drag Blair into the mess with him. "Neil's not exactly the sharpest pencil in the box. He obviously made that up," Jim finished.

"But you're--"

"Before you finish that, I'm warning you, if a stereotype falls out of your mouth, you will regret it," Jim interrupted Brown who stood with his mouth still open.

"Live and let live, that's our motto," Rafe interrupted as he put a hand on his partner's arm.

"Buddy, not cool," Brown barked as he shrugged off the restraining hand. "I've been a church going man my whole life, and it ain't right," Brown waggled a finger from Jim to Blair.

"Blair doesn't have anything to do with this." Jim's voice had grown tight, and Megan instinctively moved back a step even as Blair slipped forward just a bit, always ready to defend a friend. "I told you Neil's an idiot."

"It's unnatural. Bible says that homosexuals do not inherit the kingdom of God. It's not right."

"And it's also not our business," Rafe broke in to head off Jim's impending explosion against the bigotry. "Jim's a big boy, and he's old enough to make his own choices." Rafe emphasized the word "big" as he got between Jim and Brown.

Brown had locked gazes with Jim, but as Rafe forced him to step back, he looked around, hoping for an ally. Jim could feel the heat radiating off Blair, as he stood behind Jim's chair. Megan had taken a step forward and had her hands fisted as though ready to hit someone, and Rafe continued to push his partner back and away.

"Just saying what I believe," Brown said mulishly, unable to believe that they could all just accept this.

Jim stood up suddenly. "We have a problem here?" He asked as his chair scraped across the floor in the otherwise perfect silence of the room. For a second, Brown stared back, and then he held up his hands in surrender.

"Your life, your business. Just keep it away from me. I don't want no part of that," Brown said as he turned around and went back to his desk.

"He's just, you know," Rafe offered with an apologetic smile, and a shrug. Jim hated that he could lose a friend over this, but he could feel his skin itch with a need to pull the prejudice out so that he could hit it, hurt it. At least now, it would come at him, and not Blair.

"Oh man, just let it go. You just caught him off guard," Blair hissed, and Jim made himself relax to reassure his guide.

"That was the point," Jim offered with a smile and wink as he sank back down into his chair.

"That was... what?" Blair voice rose nearly an octave.

"I hate that kind of prejudice. Brown and some of those uniforms thought that this was the worst thing that could happen to a man." Jim thumped the magazine that Blair still held to his chest. "Newsflash, Darwin, this isn't that big of a deal."

"So, you just... all that just to prove some point?" Blair demanded. Jim smirked as he glanced over toward Brown. Maybe he'd given the man something to consider before making assumptions about people.

"It served its purpose," Jim answered. "Look, I had a hell of a night. I just need to drop this off with Simon, and then I'm headed home for some serious sleep. Are you riding with me?" Jim turned to his computer and pulled up the reports he'd typed while sitting in the back of a dimly lit van for eight hours. Between sleep deprivation and Brown, his head throbbed.

"Uh, sure," Blair answered. Jim took a deep breath and started a quick and dirty edit of his paperwork while Blair gathered up papers from the desk.

***

As they walked, from the elevator to the garage, Jim kept his hearing dialed up, listening to at least a dozen conversations all centered on his sexuality. Even with the dark undercurrent of homophobia in some of them, he felt pretty damn good as he strode to the truck with Blair trailing behind.

"Man, I'm so sorry about this mess. Are you going to set them straight tomorrow?" Blair asked as they turned the corner to the employee parking. This time of day, the garage was so silent that the sounds of voices from far away echoed against the cold concrete. For a moment, Jim was so lost in the echoes of the faint conversations that he didn't process the question.

"Don't worry about it, Chief. It's no big deal. The only person who should apologize is Brown for his attitude."

"Yeah, who would've thought," Blair agreed. "So, you really aren't furious?"

"It's not like you can control your nutty friends," Jim slowed a bit so that Blair would walk beside him. "Besides, it's not like he made up all of the stuff about us out of the blue."

"Oh man, just because I have long hair and can occasionally express my feelings--"

"Wasn't talking about you, Chief."

"I... what?" Blair stuttered to a stop, which was a first for him. Jim cocked an eyebrow as he looked at his partner.

"What?" he asked when Blair seemed unable to form words.

"You mean... You really are...? " Blair blinked fast, and Jim had to resist smirking. He rarely got to surprise Blair, and he enjoyed the rare treat of his guide looking absolutely flabbergasted.

"I thought we covered this?" Jim asked. Blair had an adorable expression of utter bewilderment.

"But... Carolyn and half the female criminals in Cascade," Blair paused, "And I did not just say that because that's such stereotypical shit that I'm a little horrified it's rattling around in my subconscious. Lots of people like both, but man, I really didn't think you fit into the category, especially, you know, given your choices lately." Blair leaned back against a silver car, the color draining from his face.

"Yeah, and if I did have an interest in some guy, how exactly would I explain you? Hey, don't worry about him, he's just my roommate - who lives with me, vacations with me, works with me, and goes to all the Jags games with me? Come on, Chief, no guy is going to go for that. It's just easier to date women."

"Whoa... wait... I think I slipped into an alternative universe. You've dated men? Not just the feelings but actual dating?"

Jim didn't answer; however, he couldn't hide a small smirk as he shrugged. He loved being the one to put Blair off-balance. "Never marched in a PRIDE parade, but there've been men I liked. I'm more interested in personality."

"What? Criminal?" Blair shot back. Jim blinked in surprise, at this riposte, and the sudden tension he could read in every tight muscle in Blair's body.

"No," Jim answered cautiously, "strong. I liked Caro because she was intelligent and definitely had her own opinions."

Blair crossed his arms over his chest, all the nervous energy bottled under a layer of anger and defensiveness that Jim couldn't quite decipher.

"Right. Strong and opinionated." Blair stopped, his mouth a thin, taut wire.

"If you have a bug up your butt, spit it out, Chief."

"Man, I'm your roommate, how could you have never mentioned this?"

Jim's smugness melted away as he confronted Blair's anger. In his most irrational moments, he feared that Blair would figure it out and turn on him as other friends had, but he had always dismissed that possibility as a nightmare. He thought he had learned to trust that Blair wouldn't hurt him, but now... Jim set his jaw as he waited for the attack.

"You have a problem with me liking men?" Jim demanded, bracing for whatever followed.

"Man, you suck," Blair managed after several seconds of faint spluttering.

Part of Jim wanted to turn it into a joke, to point out that under the right circumstances he had no problem sucking. He might have done it, except that Blair's anger stung so much more than the condemnation of... fuck, just about anyone. He didn't give a damn if Brown thought he would go to hell, but he needed Blair's acceptance almost as much as he had once wanted his father's approval, which explained why he still hadn't told the old man.

"It's been a long day, Sandburg, so let's just drop it," Jim suggested coldly.

"Drop it?" Blair voice rose to a near squeak. "Drop it? Oh man, not a chance. I mean, if you aren't into guys, that's fine, but you're into guys and you still--" Blair snapped his mouth shut as he turned his back and started stomping toward the truck.

"Hold on there, Chief," Jim took a couple of running steps to catch up with Blair, catching his guide by the arm and turning him back around. Jim was shocked to see the profound misery on Blair's face.

"Chief?"

"Oh man, just... I just need some space right now."

"Chief? Talk to me." Jim felt the familiar panic that curled around his spine every time Blair hurt, and he couldn't decipher all of the mixed signals Blair was giving out... he couldn't figure out how to fix this.

Blair stood silent, shaking his head with an indecipherable expression on his face. "It's my problem. I just need some time to process, that's all."

"You aren't upset that I'm bi." Jim said slowly as a theory formed based on the miserable expression on Blair's face. Blair just kept shaking his head as he pushed against Jim's arm. Jim tightened his grip on Blair, reeling him in until Jim could feel the heat from Blair's body. Gripping Blair's arms, he held his guide still as he looked down into tear-brightened eyes. Blair turned his head as he took a deep breath in an obvious attempt to control his emotions. "You aren't upset because I like men."

"Of course not," Blair answered softly. "It's just that... look, it's stupid." Blair strained against Jim's embrace, but Jim just held tighter.

"I was afraid," Jim blurted against every instinct he owned. Blair stilled, and Jim tugged him closer so that he could slip his arms around Blair in a hug. "You never know how friends are going to react." Jim gave a short snort of bitter laughter considering the scene in the squad room. "I couldn't risk losing you."

Jim sighed, his own eyes growing warm as Blair's arms slipped around his waist. "Big, stupid sentinel," Blair muttered into Jim's chest as he tightened his hold. "Loved you the first time you smiled at me."

Jim sucked in a breath as the fear he'd carried curled in his guts evaporated. Laying his cheek on Blair's head, he just let himself enjoy the feeling of Blair in his arms. "Then I loved you first." Jim teased.

Blair poked him with a sharp finger in the ribs. "If this is going to turn into one of those pointless arguments, can we have it at home?" Blair pulled back, and this time, Jim allowed him a few inches of freedom so that he could see his guide's face.

"Home sounds good, Chief." Jim ruffled Blair hair before letting him go. Just like always, Blair made grunting noises of frustration as he slapped Jim's hand away and tried to save his hair.

"Bully."

"Geek."

"Your geek," Blair said with a smile before he turned and headed for the truck.

Jim smiled and followed. "Are you, Chief?"

"Oh, yeah. Wait 'til we get home, and I'll show you."

Jim reached over and rubbed his hand over Blair's thigh, before starting the engine. "I'm going to hold you to that."

***

The ride to the loft went by quickly, as Blair practically bounced in the seat beside him. Jim wanted to reach out and hold him still for just a minute, but that led to other thoughts of holding Blair down, and would have meant stopping and delaying that pleasure. Instead, he stepped a little harder on the accelerator.

A few minutes later, Jim pulled into his space and killed the engine, wondering how fast they could both get upstairs and into the loft. Blair interrupted that train of thought with his query.

"What are you going to do? Today, you just told them it was none of their business and Neil made it up. Which was true - I get that - but tomorrow, it really will be true. Won't it?"

"But it still won't be any of their business."

"Right," Blair seemed to deflate a bit, and he caught his bottom lip in his teeth.

"What's bothering you, Blair? If you don't want to do this..."

"No! Trust me, I'm right there with you, man. I-"

Jim reached out and tugged him off balance, and pulled him close. "Let's just leave it at that, and we can worry about the rest later." He leaned Blair against the side entrance, and leaned down to stop the conversation the best way he knew how - by giving them something better to do.

He nibbled gently on Blair's bottom lip, and used his tongue to soothe the small indentations that Blair had left with his worry. Then, he braced himself on the truck, his hands on either side of Blair, and deepened the kiss. He felt Blair's arms wrap around him, and tug him even closer, and the small part of his brain that was still rational told him that they should move this somewhere a little more private, but quickly. He broke off the kiss and screwed his eyes shut, trying to will himself not to give into the sounds and scents and sight of his very aroused guide pressing up against him.

He cleared his throat, trying to regain some semblance of control, but his words still came out like a throaty growl. "There's a perfectly nice loft just up those stairs, with a nice big bed. What do you say we get there? Now."

Blair's reply was a breathless, "Right," as he took off up the stairs like a shot, with Jim right behind him.

Running up the steps and tight pants while seriously aroused was not something he would ever recommend, but even that did little to cool his ardor at the realization that this was finally happening. The last of his patience snapped the moment he heard Blair's key scrape against the cylinders in the lock. He rushed forward, herding Blair into the apartment, as he snatched the keys and tossed them toward the basket near the door.

The moment that he kicked the door shut behind them, he and Blair began to tear at each other's clothes. He stripped off Blair's flannel shirt, and tugged up the henley that he wore underneath, while Blair fumbled open the buttons of Jim's shirt. Jim's shirt caught at his cuffs, and Blair got tangled awkwardly in his shirt.

Blair chuckled wryly against Jim's mouth, the leaned against his chest. "Man, we suck." He struggled to pull his shirt over his head and toss it aside.

Jim laughed, feeling the tension between them ebb a bit, as he undid the buttons at his cuffs. "I hope so, Chief." Blair groaned at the bad pun, and Jim patted his ass, urging him up the stairs to the loft.

He kept his eyes on Blair's ass, as he followed him up the stairs, and the moment he saw Blair standing awkwardly next to his bed, he was ready to pick up where they had left off.

Jim leaned against the smaller man, pressing them both down onto the bed, and began to rub and squeeze Blair's cock through his pants. Blair made needy little moans against Jim's lips and bucked his hips up into his hand.

Jim moved to straddle Blair's hips, then unbuckled his belt and unbuttoned and unzipped Blair's pants. He continued to stroke Blair's erection through the white cotton of his boxers, as he kissed his way down his guide's body, nipping at the edge of his jaw, the place where his neck met his shoulder, and just above his left nipple.

"Jim, please, man. Come on. Come on" Blair begged and Jim took mercy on both of them, and stripped off the rest of their clothes as quickly as possible. Then, he lay over his guide, and rubbed his erection against Blair's, coating both of them in the damp slickness of pre-cum and sweat. Blair's arms wrapped around him, and he brought his hands up to tangle in the long curly hair spread over his pillow. Blair tilted his head back, into Jim's hands, arching his back, and exposing the long column of his neck. Jim leaned in to gently suck on the pulse he could see jumping there, then growled, and twisted them both, so that Blair lay on top of him.

Jim reached over and pulled open the drawer beside the bed, then looked into Blair's eyes. "Fuck me."

"Yes. Fuck!" Jim felt himself harden even more, as Blair hissed his reply. "I'm not gonna last, man."

"Want it. Want you inside me, Blair."

Blair grabbed a condom and rolled it carefully over his thick cock, and Jim could see the beads of sweat building along Blair's hairline, as he struggled to control himself. He smiled and took a deep break, drawing in the musky scent of his partner's arousal. His head spun with intoxication, and he almost zoned, until he felt the cool touch of Blair's lubed fingers circling his entrance grounding him, and the low, almost sub-audible commentary he was babbling drawing him back.

He smiled as he filtered through the words of encouragement and amazement that Blair couldn't seem to control as he prepared to fuck him. Then there was pressure, and the low, slow burn as Blair pushed inside of him, and Blair's breath seemed to stutter in his chest, and words failed them both.

Blair paused, their bodies fused in the intense silence. Jim could hear their hearts beating with just a millisecond between them so that the sound became one elongated beat that filled Jim's senses. Then Blair started pulling back so slowly that Jim would swear he could feel every cell in his body.

All his senses flared. "Blair," he groaned out and pushed up to meet him halfway.

"That's it. Yeah. Oh, man, so good." Blair slid one hand between their bodies, and began to pump Jim's shaft in time to the frantic motion of his hips. The feel of Blair around him, inside of him, the taste and smell and sound of him, right where he wanted him, needed him - it was too much, and Jim couldn't hold out any longer. He gripped the sheets in his hands, and tightened his legs around Blair's hips, driving him that much deeper, as he shouted Blair's name and came.

A moment later Blair arched up and tumbled over the edge after him, and then collapsed onto Jim's chest. Jim brushed the long sweaty hair away from his guide's face, and gently kissed his forehead. Blair slowly opened his eyes and gave Jim a shy smile, then slid down to lay next to him.

A few minutes later, after they had caught their breath, and Jim was about to drift off to sleep, Blair spoke. "You know, for two smart guys, we can be pretty stupid."

"How's that, Chief?" Jim turned from his back to his side, so that he could look down at Blair.

"Well, this article, man. I'm your roommate, who lives with you, works with you, goes on vacation with you. Neil stayed here a week and had it all figured out. Half the cops at the precinct were freaked out, because they already suspected it was true," Blair paused. "Either that, or they else they just refused to even consider it because you were big, bad Ellison. Yet, here we are, and we were totally clueless to the possibilities."

"Not so clueless anymore, Darwin." He reached over to flick Blair's nipple to prove the point.

Blair smiled slyly. "I thought you were on a first name basis with the people you were dating," he said as he reached over and returned the touch. "Are you ever going to call me 'Blair'?"

"You don't like the nicknames, Chief? Besides, we're not dating."

"What?" Blair sputtered.

"I think we're past the dating phase. We're already living together and sleeping together, but if you want to go back to just dating...." Jim teased, as he ran his hand down Blair's chest to play in the trail of hair below his naval.

Blair chuckled and tilted his head up to capture Jim's mouth with his own. A warm hand cupped Jim's cheek, and Jim couldn't remember any male lover ever before touching his face. "No way, man. I've got you, now. You're not going anywhere," Blair answered when he finally finished the kiss, but Blair's hand lingered.

Jim nipped at Blair's lower lip, then twisted to pin Blair's body to the bed with his own. "I'd say, I've got you - and I'm right where I want to be."

"And this isn't just--" Blair blushed and let his words trail off into silence.

"What?"

"Oh man, I know it's stupid, and I'm losing testosterone points for even thinking it."

"Spit it out, Chief."

"This isn't just to prove some point or some one time thing?"

Jim looked down at Blair and saw the honest fear reflected there. "Chief, if Neil is smart enough to see that we're right together... well, let's just say that I'm smarter than any hippy-dippy friend of yours."

Blair smiled. "Oh yeah, man, totally."

Jim rolled to the side and settled in next to his guide, feeling fatigue and post-coital heaviness pull at him. Blair shifted a bit, and Jim slipped an arm around his waist, pulling his guide close as he settled in for a long sleep.

"Besides, I have to keep you out of trouble. It's a lot easier with you up here," Jim teased as he closed his eyes, enjoying the fact that he still felt stretched and well used and the warm body in his arms. Idly, he fingered Blair's nipple.

"Funny, man."

"Of course, sometimes your brand of trouble isn't such a bad thing," Jim added after a minute. Blair didn't answer, but as Jim floated up into sleep, he felt warm fingers tangle with his.