| Epilogue: A month and a half later. Lennie parked his car in front of the beautiful old brownstone house. It was the kind of place he�d always dreamed of living in. He still couldn�t quite believe it was theirs. The past six weeks had gone by in a whirlwind � The Monday after they had made their big decision, Lennie had walked into the 27th precinct with a feeling of nostalgia. He knew he wouldn�t be coming here every day anymore, and for the first time in his life, that thought didn�t scare him. The past couple of years he�d been dreading retirement � now he couldn�t wait for it. A quick visit to an old filing cabinet produced the paperwork he wanted, and he spent the morning at his desk filling it out, waiting for Rey to get back to the station. Telling his partner would be the hardest part of this. At long last, Curtis and Profaci got back to the precinct, and before the LT could grab them, Lennie snagged his partner. �Rey? You wanna get some lunch?� Curtis noticed that Lennie looked a lot more relaxed than last week. �Sure.� Lennie made sure the papers were buried under something else, then he and Rey headed over to their favorite nearby deli. It was a beautiful day in mid-May, so they got the sandwiches to go and pulled up a bench outside. They made small talk while they ate, and Rey quickly got the impression that Lennie was working up to something. So after downing the last bite of his sandwich, he sat back and looked at his partner. �OK, Lennie. What�s on your mind?� Lennie laughed softly. �Can�t hide anything from you, can I?� Rey shook his head. �I�m your partner, Lennie. I know you too well.� The words twisted at Lennie�s heart, forcing him to look away. �Not any more, Rey. I�m retiring.� Rey sat there looking at him, trying to read his expression. �Mike?� Lennie shook his head. �No. Mike is � history. This is my decision, Rey. And Jack�s. We�re coming out. Getting a place together.� He looked up into his partner�s eyes. Curtis was surprised to see hope and joy, rather than pain. A broad smile worked its way across Rey�s face. �I�m glad, Lennie. You look really happy.� �I am.� Rey reached out and cuffed Lennie�s shoulder. �So you�re all happy and you abandon me to life with Profaci? Come ON, Lennie, that�s not fair!� Lennie laughed. �Sorry, kid, but a man�s gotta do what a man�s gotta do.� ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ He�d finished out the week, not doing much but his own paperwork and saying goodbye to people. Then they had begun house hunting. They had sat down with a real estate agent and talked about what they wanted, and where, and prices. Lennie was still floored by Jack�s generosity. So for the next couple of weeks, he�d follow the agent around during the day to do a first scout of places so that in the few evening hours or the weekends, Jack wouldn�t waste his time on the clunkers. The minute they had driven up in front of this old brownstone, Lennie fell in love. It was in pretty good shape, needed some work but not too much. Jack had taken one look at Lennie�s face after the tour and made an offer. They had settled on the place in the middle of June. Lennie still had his apartment until the end of the month, and settlement on selling Jack�s condo wasn�t for another couple of weeks. He�d been here every day since the settlement, cleaning, repairing, and most of all painting. He laughed as he remembered their conversation � �What�s wrong with white?� Lennie groaned. �I�ve been staring at white walls all my life, Jack. I want some color. Something dramatic. Different.� Jack laughed. �So you�re taking up interior design?� He had leaned over to kiss Lennie�s nose. �You know I can�t say no to you.� They had decided that since it would probably take a while to get the whole house ready, they would focus first on their bedroom and the living room. Once those were ready, they could move in and tackle the rest as needed. The master bedroom was quite spacious, almost too big. Lennie had selected a dark blue paint, which made the big room feel smaller, more intimate. Cream color trim offset it without being harsh. The curtains were in place and brand new matching bed linens were waiting for the arrival of their new bed. He�d spent the last weeks mostly working on the two rooms, cleaning and painting. The place had beautiful hardwood floors, but they�d taken a bit of work to polish up. He found some nice throw rugs to warm things up for the winter. He�d spent his days here getting things ready, and his nights back at Jack�s apartment. And now it was the end of June and they were about ready to move in. They�d decided to get all new bedroom furniture as part of �starting over,� and would use their old beds in the guest rooms. It was Friday, and the furniture store was supposed to deliver their bedroom this afternoon, as well as the nice big comfy sectional sofa for the living room. Then this weekend they�d move his stuff over, next weekend they�d tackle Jack�s. He was NOT looking forward to moving all those books � // and your music collection is any smaller? // Lennie unlocked the front door and wandered in, feeling very much at home. Tonight would be their first night here, in their new bed, in their new home. It was a wonderful feeling � Yesterday he�d found a local market and laid in a good supply of groceries. He smiled as he noticed the coffee pot Jack had given him sitting on the kitchen counter � that had been the first thing he�d brought over. Followed by his stereo and an assortment of CD�s, to keep him company during the day. He grabbed a soda from the fridge and went out to sit in the one chair in the living room to wait for the delivery guys. Finally about 4 o�clock the furniture truck arrived, and he directed them upstairs with the bedroom set. Once that was in place, the sofa was parked in the living room, and he was alone again. He looked around � it still seemed kind of bare, it would be better this weekend when he got his entertainment center moved over to hold the TV and stereo. The wall above the sofa just begged for some kind of painting, but he still hadn�t decided what belonged there yet. But it was starting to look like home. He went upstairs to see the bedroom. The set they had chosen was a dark wood which just intensified the cozy ambience of the room. He made the bed with the navy blue sheets and the cream and blue bedspread. They�d have Jack�s nice blue comforter for when it got really cold. The room suddenly looked real. // Our bedroom // He stuck his head into the attached bathroom. In anticipation of this evening, he�d brought some stuff over and parked it in here. He set out the big, thirsty blue towels and put the soap and shampoo in the shower, then went back to the main bedroom to stash the bottle of lube and the wipes on the new nightstand. He took a quick shower, then went back downstairs and curled up on the sofa to wait for Jack. He hoped his lover wouldn�t be late tonight � ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Jack sat in Adam�s office, listening to his friend rant. A judge had handed down a decision Adam disagreed with this afternoon, and Jack had been listening to the likely repercussions ever since. He glanced at his watch and decided that enough was enough. He stood up. �Adam. Give it a rest. It�s Friday afternoon, Judge Wilson is an idiot, and there�s nothing we can do about it right now. Except go home to my first night in my new bed in my new home with Lennie. Who is waiting for me.� Schiff looked up, surprised by Jack�s interruption. Then he laughed. �You�re right of course.� Looking at Jack, he shook his head. �You�re really doing this?� Jack nodded. �I�ve already done it, Adam. The day we bought that house together.� �I hope it makes you both very happy, Jack. Now get out of here.� Jack chuckled as he went back to his office to change. Suit banished for another weekend, he went down to the garage and started his bike. The ride was more than twice as long as he was used to, and come winter he was probably going to regret that, but he didn�t care. The new house was home in a way nothing had ever felt like home before. He really hadn�t seen much of the place in the two weeks since they closed; Lennie had been doing most of the work so far. But now that their bed was in place, they�d do the rest of the work together. He pulled the bike into the alley behind the house and parked it, following the path around the side of the house to the front door. He pushed open the front door and called out. �Lennie? I�m home.� �In here.� Jack followed Lennie�s voice to the living room and smiled. His lover was stretched out on their new couch wearing nothing but a silk robe tied loosely around his waist. The deep blue of the robe stood out against the rich burgundy of the sofa, which matched the curtains over the windows. Accents were in gold and cream. The overall effect was one of great elegance. But Jack barely noticed it; his eyes were glued to Lennie. �Oh, wow �� He came over to sit beside his lover, and realized that the sofa was deep enough to allow him to perch on the edge rather than beside Lennie. �You look gorgeous!� He bent down to claim Lennie�s mouth while his hand slid down the exposed chest. By the end of that kiss, the hand had undone the belt and was greedily stroking the hard cock below. Jack sat up and looked down at him again. �Stunning.� Lennie chuckled and sat up. �You�re overdressed.� Jack blushed and quickly stripped off his shirt while Lennie�s hands worked at his pants. He had to stand to kick them off along with his shoes. Lennie got up and grabbed another scrap of blue fabric from the couch, draping it over his shoulders. �Lennie?� �Shh.� Warm lips silenced him with a kiss. �You�ve given me so much, I wanted to give you something �� Lennie pulled him back down onto the soft couch. When he pushed the back pillows away, there was plenty of room for them to lie together. Jack laid on top, feeling the warmth of Lennie beneath him and the soft silk on his back. He worked his way down, kissing the beloved body beneath him, finally taking the hard dick into his mouth. Lennie sighed as Jack engulfed him, the heat of his mouth almost like fire. But he wanted to feel Jack in his arms. �Jack? Turn around, will you? I want some too �� Jack laughed and got up, repositioning himself in the classic 69 position, pleased to note that it was quite comfortable here. The couch was more than long enough for their 6 foot long bodies, and deep enough, too. He felt Lennie�s hands wrap around his buns, pulling his cheeks apart, teasing at his ass while a talented tongue tormented his cock. He groaned with his pleasure then dove back in, giving as good as he was getting. After a while, both of them were writhing, moaning, backs arching as climaxes neared. Jack lost it first, unable to withstand the combination of a mouth on his cock and fingers in his ass. Lennie followed shortly after. Jack crawled off, taking refuge in the corner of the L-shaped sofa, his legs pointing down the unoccupied side. Lennie lay there panting for a while before crawling up to lean against Jack. Warm lips found his. �Now that�s a nice thing to come home to.� Lennie chuckled. �Though you�d like it. Welcome home, Jack.� Jack held him tight. �We are home, aren�t we? Finally.� Lennie sighed happily, nodding. �There�s a cooked chicken in the fridge for dinner.� �You�re going to spoil me.� �That�s the idea �� �Too bad we don�t have a TV yet.� �Tomorrow. I figured we�d put mine out here and yours in our bedroom.� Jack nodded. �Makes sense.� Eventually they got up and wandered into the kitchen, still wearing just the robes. No table yet, but there was a built in breakfast bar that would work for the moment. Lennie dug out the dishes he�d brought over and hacked up the rotisserie chicken. Amazing the things you could find in a grocery store deli these days. Some potato salad and 3-bean salad completed the meal. They�d been so busy earlier they hadn�t noticed the summer afternoon thunderstorm come through. But by the end of dinner the rain had stopped. Lennie looked out the kitchen window. �You want to go for a walk tonight since we don�t have TV? I�d like to see a bit more of what�s around.� Jack chuckled. �Sure. But you�d better go get some clothes on. Mine are still down here somewhere �� Lennie ran upstairs and changed, bringing Jack a short sleeved shirt while he was at it. They walked out their front door and down the street, hand in hand. For once the rain had actually cleared the air instead of just making it feel muggier. It was a beautiful summer evening as they walked down the quiet residential street. A few blocks later they came to a more commercial area, small shops, some still open on this summer evening. They stopped and got ice cream cones for desert, sitting for a while at a small table outside. They continued down the street until Lennie stopped dead in his tracks. They were in front of a music shop which was still open. Lennie�s eyes lit up like a kid in a candy shop as they walked in. CD�s, records, old and new, new and used lined the place. It was an eclectic mix to say the least � classic jazz and blues, underground rock, you name it, it was there. Jack almost had to laugh as Lennie buzzed from one pile of stuff to another. The guy who ran the shop came over, and he and Lennie started talking quite animatedly. He steered Lennie to a stack of hard-to-find rarities he had stashed in the back of the shop. It seemed Lennie had found a kindred spirit. Jack wandered back to the front of the shop as they chatted. It was then that he noticed the sign in the window. With a smile, he headed back to his lover�s side. Lennie grinned at him. �Hey, Jack! Can you believe this place? Oh � David, this is my partner, Jack.� David nodded and offered Jack his hand. Jack took it, smiling. �I see Lennie�s going to be spending a lot of time here.� �He�s got excellent taste. And knows his stuff. You guys local? Don�t think I�ve seen you in here before.� Jack laughed and wrapped his arm around Lennie�s waist. �We�re just moving into a house a couple of blocks from here. Hey Lennie - did you notice the sign in the window?� Lennie shook his head. �Help wanted.� David�s eyebrows raised. �Lennie? You looking for work?� Lennie couldn�t believe his luck. �Uh, yeah, sort of. Just retired from the NYPD, been trying to figure out what to do with myself after we finish fixing the house up.� �You were a cop?� �Homicide detective.� �Geez. This place is awfully boring compared to that.� Lennie smiled at Jack. �Boring is just what I need right now.� David grinned at him. �Can�t pay as much as you�d like.� �That�s just less for my ex to lay claim to. Besides, he�s the breadwinner.� David laughed. �So when can you start?� Lennie looked at Jack, who shrugged. �Um, the next week we�ll be pretty busy moving, but how about the week after that?� �You got it! Stop by one day next week and we�ll work out a schedule.� Lennie was practically floating as they walked back home. Jack wrapped his arm around his lover�s waist, supremely happy to be together. As they came to their house, Jack remembered something. �Oh, hey, I stopped by your place today at lunch to pick up the mail like you asked. It�s in my saddlebags.� �Great, thanks. I just didn�t want to lose anything important in the confusion tomorrow.� Lennie unlocked the door as Jack ran around back to retrieve the mail, but he waited for his partner to return before entering. They had already brought over a small table for the entryway, a place to drop keys and mail and such. Lennie did a quick sort through through the mail, tossing most of it onto the table for later. One piece caught his attention � it appeared to be a card. The return address was in Maine. Jack came up behind him, arms wrapping around his waist. �What�s that?� �I�m not sure � it�s from Maine � the writing looks like his.� Jack hugged him. �So open it, you�ll never find out if you don�t.� The card was a photo of a kitten and a puppy curled up together, sound asleep, entirely too cute for words. Lennie�s fingers trembled as he opened it. It was blank inside, except for a note in Mike�s precise Catholic school script. Lennie, I know I�m probably the last person you expected to hear from. But I wanted to let you know that I�m ok, and I think just maybe this time I�m going to make it. I�m seeing a therapist, and I think I�m really getting somewhere. But most of all, I wanted to thank Jack for bringing me and Ben together. He�s been such a pillar of strength. He�s got a quietness, a calmness that I think is starting to rub off on me. And it turns out he�s one of us, Lennie. He takes care of me the way Jack takes care of you. I think I�m beginning to understand the love you two have. It�s a very special thing. I hope you two are very happy. Love always, Mike Lennie stared at the card, tears stinging behind his eyes. Jack hugged him again, dropping a gentle kiss on his neck. �Sounds like he�s got a chance. I�m glad.� Lennie smiled softly. �Jack? Were you playing matchmaker?� Jack laughed. �Not really. Now that I think about it, I had a few suspicions, but no, I didn�t know Ben was gay. I was focusing on the �starting over� part.� With a sigh, Lennie put the card down and turned around, still wrapped in Jack�s arms. He captured his lover�s face and kissed him. �I�m glad for them, but tonight is about us. Come to bed?� Jack kissed him again, losing himself in the warmth of Lennie�s mouth. �Bed sounds wonderful.� He stopped into the living room to pick up his robe, then followed Lennie upstairs to the bedroom. He gasped as he saw the room for the first time. �Lennie, this is perfect!� Lennie laughed. �Not quite. It�ll be perfect when we�re naked in our bed.� Jack kissed him, tugging the shirt out from his pants. �Well, then �� Words disappeared as they undressed each other, taking time to enjoy every moment. When they were finally ready, Lennie turned down the covers and pulled Jack down onto their new bed. Bodies touching all the way down, they wrapped themselves around each other, never wanting to let go. Hips ground together as hands caressed every inch of skin. Jack rolled on top, straddling Lennie�s hips, tracing kisses down his neck, shoulder, chest. He allowed his tongue to gently trace the scar on the left side of the chest, placing a soft kiss over it. Lennie sighed, knowing exactly what Jack was thinking. That fateful day, painful as it had been physically, had brought them together, and Lennie wouldn�t trade it for anything. His fingers wrapped themselves in Jack�s hair, pulling him back up for a kiss. Jack smiled and returned to Lennie�s chest, now focusing on the sensitive nipples, enjoying Lennie�s reactions as he licked, sucked, and nibbled. After he had given both sides a thorough workout, he slid off, lying beside his lover, pulling him into another kiss. �So how do you want it tonight?� A soft smile curled Lennie�s lips. �Been thinking about that. It hasn�t been that long since our little �appetizer� down on the couch, so I�m betting we�re good for a long haul tonight. Nothing says we can�t have it both ways.� It had turned out that both of them really liked receiving, and some nights they actually had to toss a coin to see who got bottom. Jack purred. �I like the sound of that.� �I thought you would.� Lennie let his hand roam down to caress Jack�s hard-on. As his mouth moved to tease Jack�s nipples, the hand slipped further back, caressing the heavy balls and rubbing the space behind, just barely teasing at Jack�s opening. His fingers slipped in as he took Jack�s cock into his mouth. �Oh, god, Lennie, you�re good.� His voice was heavy with his desire. Lennie�s hands and mouth brought Jack right to the edge, then backed off. He let go and reached over to the nightstand for the lube, then lay down beside Jack. �Your turn.� Jack kissed him and got up as Lennie rolled onto his back, legs spread wide. Lennie handed him the lube, silently telling him what he wanted. Jack nodded and took the lube, greasing himself up. They had done this enough lately that Lennie didn�t need the extensive foreplay to loosen him up. Jack moved into position, holding Lennie�s legs in the air, and pressed in. It felt like coming home � He thrust slowly, savoring every moment. Lennie had been right; staying power would not be a problem tonight. As close as he had been a little while ago, just the act of changing places had calmed him down enough to almost start over again. He let go of Lennie�s legs as his lover wrapped them around him, pulling him down. They kissed so sweetly Lennie thought his heart would explode. It felt so good, so unbelievably good. He whispered into Jack�s ear. �Let me know when you�re getting close, love, we�ll switch again.� Jack nodded, not sure he�d have the willpower to stop. But knowing he�d soon have Lennie inside him should be enough. Just thinking about it was getting him close. He picked up the pace, his heart beating rapidly, his breathing getting shallower. �It�s now or never, love,� he sighed as he reluctantly slipped out, shaking. Lennie pulled him down, holding him close. �I�ll make it worth it, lover.� He reached for a wipe, gently cleaning Jack off, using the moist coolness to slow him down a little. Then he found the lube where Jack had abandoned it and greased himself up, moving into position. Jack whimpered as Lennie pushed in. �Oh, god, at last �� Lennie chuckled as he began thrusting, feeling the hot, tight channel grip him. He couldn�t believe he still had any control after everything they�d done so far, but he was able to hold back enough to make it last. Teasing, fast and hard, then slow and sweet. By the time he realized he wasn�t going to be able to hold back any longer, Jack was writhing below him, begging for release. He pounded into Jack as he stroked his lover�s cock, sending them crashing into oblivion. Both were exhausted, their skin covered with sweat, eyes glowing with an inner light. Lennie flopped gracelessly down beside Jack and was immediately pulled into his lover�s arms. Soft kisses found his face. They lay there for a good while, their hearts still pounding. At long last, Jack sat up and reached over Lennie for the wipes, gently cleaning them both up. He shut off the light and pulled the covers over them as he laid back down in Lennie�s arms. �Welcome home, Jack,� Lennie murmured sleepily. �Home,� he sighed. �Our home.� �Mmmm. Ours. Love you.� �Love you too.� Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime Say the word and I will follow you Share each day with me, each night, each morning Say you love me, like I love you Love me - that's all I ask of you Continue on to "Corner of the Sky" Return to the Story Index Send me some feedback Disclaimer: These characters belong to Dick Wolf and NBC. I'm just borrowing them for fun, not profit. |
| All I Ask of You |
| Chapter 9 |