| All That Jazz |
| Abbie Carmichael took a sip of wine and studied the man sitting across the table from her. She had been surprised this afternoon when Jack called her and asked if she had plans for the evening. They had worked together for several weeks now, and were starting to click on a professional level. From what the gossip mill said about him, he seemed an interesting person, somebody she'd like to get to know better on a personal level. Not romantically, of course. And while his history paired him with several previous assistants, the current talk put him well outside that realm. So why was she sitting here in a very nice restaurant, sharing an excellent bottle of wine on a Saturday night? It had been quite an enjoyable evening so far. Jack was certainly an intelligent and charming 'date.' Even if he was quite a bit old for her. Although she had to admit he still looked good; the silver hair looked quite distinguished. // ouch. He'd probably hate that � // But frankly, he just wasn't her 'type.' As the waiter cleared their dinner plates, she decided she had to say something before he embarrassed them both with an after-dinner invite. When the waiter asked about desert, she ordered coffee, just to give them a little more time. When it came, she fussed with it for a few moments, not quite sure how to proceed. Finally, she looked up at him. "Jack? Look, I just want you to know I've had a lovely time tonight. I'm glad we've finally gotten a chance to get to know each other outside the office. But � I almost get the impression you're thinking of this as a date. I don't want you to get the wrong idea. I was only free tonight because Toni's out of town. And besides, I thought you were 'married?'" Jack sighed, part disappointment, but part relief. He too was enjoying the conversation, but he had to admit the 'spark' just wasn't there. He didn't know if it was because he was too old, or she was too young, or he was gayer than he thought � or whether he just loved Lennie too damned much. The sigh and his forlorn expression worried Abbie. "Jack? You all right?" He smiled softly and reached out and patted her hand. "Yeah, I'm fine. I think I'm almost glad to hear you say that. Yeah, I'm married. Sort of �" Abbie nodded. "I've seen the photos in your office, Jack. And heard the gossip. He used to be a cop?" Jack nodded. "A year ago, Lennie took a bullet aimed at me. Things got � complicated." Abbie smiled. "It's ok, Jack. It doesn't bother me." He sighed. "Sometimes it still bothers me. Not so much that I'm in love with a man, but that he gave up everything to be with me openly. Ever since Lennie retired, I've wondered if it was worth it." "He's not happy?" Jack shrugged. "Lately, he's been really restless. I know he's bored. And has too much time to think. He keeps asking what we're really doing all these late nights. He can't help imagining the worst. I guess I do kind of have a reputation �" Abbie laughed. "Yeah, I've heard it. But I can see now you really don't want that, do you?" He just shook his head. "Even after this morning, I just can't �" That got her attention. "What happened this morning?" "I wish to hell I knew. By the time I got up, he was gone. And Lennie's NOT a morning person unless he has to be. One of the few things he loves about retirement is not getting up at the crack of dawn. He left a note just saying he'd be gone all day, not to worry. But then Shadow - our cat - knocked over the trash can �" Abbie couldn't help laughing out loud. "You have a cat? I never would have pegged you for cat people!" Jack chuckled. "Well, she's really more Lennie's. A stray that wandered into our yard and adopted him when he gave her some milk. She follows him around like a shadow, hence her name �" "Oh, that's too cute!" Jack rolled his eyes. "I wouldn't have pegged YOU for the sentimental type!" They laughed together, enjoying the moment. But Abbie knew there was more to his story. "So she knocked over the trash, and �?" Jack sighed again. "An empty bottle of hair dye. All of a sudden he's worried about impressing somebody with his appearance? With the way he's been preoccupied about us lately, I couldn't help thinking it was his own 'date.'" Abbie groaned. "Jack, there are lots of reasons he might want to look younger. Especially if, say, he was trying to get a new job?" "On a Saturday?" "You never know. Or maybe he was doing it for you - to win you back from your young female assistant? The one with dark hair?" Jack blinked. He'd never in a million years have thought of that. "Oh �" "Yeah. Or any of a million other reasons. I think what you two really need is to talk. Stop making assumptions. Because you know what that does!" Jack gave a rueful grin as he remembered the admonition about making an 'ass' of 'u' and 'me.' "You're right, Abbie. I do need to talk to him." She reached out and squeezed his hand. "So go home, Jack. Don't let this hang over night. Clear the air now before you really poison it." He looked into her eyes and saw a genuine concern. He nodded. "OK. Thanks, Abbie." He reached for the check and his credit card. Abbie smiled. "I know it's not what you had in mind when you called this afternoon, Jack, but I'm kinda glad it turned out this way. I'd like us to be friends, not just co-workers." Jack smiled back, feeling a nice 'warm fuzzy' inside for this young woman. "Me too, Abbie." They got up and walked outside, looking to hail a couple of cabs. As the first one pulled up, Jack couldn't resist. "I gotta say, Tony is one hell of a lucky guy." Abbie grinned as she ducked into the cab. "I'll tell her you said that!" Jack just stood there with his jaw hanging open as the cab pulled away. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Lennie was still in a bit of a euphoric haze as he fumbled at the front door. He was gonna sing on Broadway! It barely seemed real. He couldn't wait to share the good news with Jack, if he could just get this damned door open. Suddenly he realized that he couldn't get it open because it was locked. Which meant Jack wasn't inside. His euphoric mood vanished like a soap bubble popping, dissipating into the air. He unlocked the door and made his way inside, turning on lights as he went through the living room. Shadow was curled up on the couch; her ears perked up and tracked him through the room, but she didn't move until she was sure he was going into the kitchen. Only then did she give one of those incredibly intense stretches that only cats can do, before getting up and making a bee line for her food dish. She let Lennie scratch her ears for a moment before turning her attention to the now full food dish. Lennie sighed. "At least you're usually happy to see me, little girl." His eyes finally landed on the message board on the fridge door. The note he'd left this morning was gone, replaced by another, from Jack. "Having dinner with Abbie. Don't wait up." Lennie's blood began to boil. He had the best, most exciting news of the decade, and Jack was out wining and dining the new assistant? He sure as hell couldn't blame this one on work! And what was that - 'don't wait up?' Was he being so blatant as to say he wasn't coming home tonight? What the hell was going on here? Lennie felt like he was having emotional whiplash; 10 minutes ago he'd been so happy he'd been sure his feet weren't touching the ground. Now he felt like he'd gone from 60 to zero by way of a brick wall. His head was reeling from the impact. This couldn't be. He was almost shaking with the fury that was building up inside him. Jack's coffee mug was sitting on the breakfast bar. He grabbed it, flinging it against the wall. The explosive sound of the breaking mug sent Shadow about three feet straight up into the air, her fur puffed out in the feline defense mechanism of 'make me look BIG.' She was already running when her feet hit the ground, intent on being ANYWHERE else. The crashing sound was almost a catharsis for Lennie. The anger subsided, leaving him with only an empty feeling inside. Jack wasn't here to share his good news. With a sigh, he reached for a broom to clean up the shards of ceramic mug all over the kitchen floor. // Jack's gonna kill me � that's the mug Kelly gave him for Father's Day � // he realized with a groan. Nothing to be done about it now; the single largest piece was about one inch square. Acting mostly on auto-pilot, Lennie finished cleaning up the mess, then threw together something resembling dinner. He wasn't really all that hungry; it was just something to do. When he finished eating, he cleaned up and wandered back into the living room. Shadow looked up from her favorite spot on the couch, watching him with wary eyes, not sure if it was safe yet or not. Lennie flopped down on the couch, reaching for the remote. Usually when he was feeling bad, he turned to music, but tonight it held no appeal for him. He found a baseball game on TV, and took a perverse pleasure in rooting against the Cubs. At least it kept him from thinking too much about his favorite Cubs fan and the beautiful woman he was dining with. Eventually, Shadow decided it was safe and wormed her way onto his lap, purring contentedly. "At least you love me, don't you, girl?" Lennie sighed. It had been a long day, with more than it's share of stresses. Around the 7th inning, Lennie realized he was nodding off. "Well, he said not to wait up �" Lennie gently displaced Shadow from his lap and got up, going through the nightly routine of shutting off lights and checking that the doors were locked. With a heavy heart, he climbed the stairs to their bedroom, stripped down to his underwear, and climbed into bed - alone. -~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Jack was rather surprised to find the place dark when he got home; he'd been hoping Lennie would be home by now. He parked out back and let himself in the kitchen door, turning and re-locking it behind him. Somewhat annoyed that Lennie STILL wasn't back, he stalked upstairs to change out of the nice clothes he'd worn on his 'date.' As he came into the bedroom, he flicked on the light, and was surprised to find the bed already occupied. By a dark-haired near-stranger. No. It was just Lennie. The dye job really threw Jack off. He stood there staring as Lennie's eyes opened, blinking at the unexpected light. "What the hell?" came the grumpy voice from the bed. "Lennie - uh, sorry, didn't realize you were here." Lennie scowled at him, blinking as he sat up. "You didn't see my car out front?" Jack's earlier annoyance hadn't exactly abated. "You know I park out back," he snapped back. Jack's snippiness immediately set Lennie off. "So how was your dinner with tall, dark and beautiful?" The venom in his voice sizzled. "It was just dinner. What the hell was I supposed to do with the evening, wait around for you? And just what the hell were YOU doing all day, Mr. hair dye? Impressing some young stud?" Lennie's anger spilled over as he threw back the covers and got out of bed. Jack had admitted being with someone else, and HE was the one who was jealous? Lennie would give him jealous �. He got right up in Jack's face. "Yeah. His name's Anthony. He's gonna cast me in a Broadway show. You may have heard of it - 'Chicago?' A certain shyster lawyer named Billy Flynn?" His face was twisted in an ugly sneer. Jack's stomach turned inside out. He knew how much Lennie loved Broadway. A chance to actually perform in a show? Not just a little role, but a starring role? That didn't make sense. Lennie wasn't a professional singer. But he was damned good � if this kid was playing on Lennie's dreams just to get him into bed, Jack was going to kill the bastard with his own hands. He reached out, holding Lennie's shoulders in his hands. "Lennie? That can't be right. They don't cast unknowns in a role like that! I can't believe you'd fall for a line like that!." Then another idea occurred to him, and his grip suddenly became painful. "Or is it just a game you two play? An excuse to leave me for a younger lover?" Lennie pulled away angrily. "Why the hell not, Jack? Haven't you already done it with that Carmichael bitch?" All of Lennie's hurt showed plainly on his craggy face at that moment. "God damn it, Lennie! How many times do I have to tell you? It's not like that. Why won't you believe me?" His voice broke with the frustration. "They why were you with her tonight?" "Why not? You have dinner with people you used to work with. Why can't I? And besides, after I found the bottle of hair dye, I went nuts. I was sure you were trying to impress someone younger. And since you seemed to have decided that we were together, I decided why not? I wanted some company, and if things had turned romantic, I would have let it, I was so frustrated with you." "So it WAS a date!" Lennie couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Only because you pushed me into it! But you know what? I couldn't go through with it. And neither could she. We're friends, nothing more." Lennie suddenly realized something he'd said. "You found the hair dye?" His voice had lost the anger at last. Jack sighed. "Shadow knocked over the trash chasing a bug this morning �" Lennie groaned. "You weren't supposed to see that." "Like I can't see it now? Or I just couldn't see it FIRST?" Jack stopped; he didn't want the anger to take over again. He reached out and took Lennie's hand, his fingers tracing his partner's wedding ring. "Lennie, please, tell me what's really going on? Tell me you just made up Anthony to make me jealous?" Jack's voice was pleading. "You're really not involved with Abbie?" The truth was finally starting to seep in. "I swear it, Lennie. I won't say I wasn't tempted, but the way it turns out, even if I wanted to, she's not interested. She's taken. Tony was out of town this weekend, that's the only reason she even had time for me. Lennie, you've got to believe me. I don't want anybody but you!" Jack looked so sad, so confused, that Lennie's jealousy vanished in a puff of green fairy dust. "You really thought I had a younger lover?" Jack shrugged. "What was I supposed to think, Lennie?" Lennie sighed. Maybe he should have told Jack from the beginning. But it had been such a long shot at such a cherished dream, he hadn't dared jinx it. "I'm sorry Jack. Um, I told you the truth already, mostly. The Broadway thing is real. At least for one night. The PBA is putting on the show for one night as a benefit. The auditions were today. That's why the dye job. I was afraid of jinxing it if I told anyone �" Jack slowly sank down onto the bed. "And Anthony �?" Lennie managed a small smile as he sat beside him. "He's the director. Just met him today. I'm sorry about that, it just pissed me off so much that I thought YOU were the one cheating but you were accusing ME of cheating �" Jack sighed with relief. "So he's not your lover?" "Nobody but you, Jack. Nobody but you." He reached out to touch Jack's arm, and found himself pulled into a passionate kiss. After a few minutes, they separated to look at each other. Jack smiled. "So let me get this straight - you really ARE going to play Billy Flynn?" Lennie grinned. 'Yup. One night only, on the real Ambassador Theatre stage. On Broadway!" His earlier euphoria was returning now that he could share the moment with the one he loved. "My god, Lennie! That's amazing! When is the show? We have to get Mike and Ben down here � and Julia has to come up from Florida � and" Lennie laughed and cut him off with a kiss. "OK, ok, calm down! We've got some time, a month of rehearsals. We'll let everybody know. But right now I think I'm gonna take a cue from Billy." His rich baritone rang out: "All I care about is Love!" Jack laughed and felt himself pulled down to the bed beside Lennie. Then Lennie's arms were around him, holding him close as they kissed. Jack vaguely realized that with the schedule he had been keeping up lately, they hadn't made love in almost a month. He decided that it was well past time to make it up to Lennie. They spent a long time just kissing and caressing, enjoying the physical closeness after the unintentionally long abstinence. Somehow, Jack's shirt vanished and his shoes were kicked off. He sighed happily when Lennie's hands finally opened his belt and tugged at his fly. He was eager to get rid of his pants, they had gotten quite confining all of a sudden. Looking up at Lennie, he was thrown off for a moment by the dark hair, but decided that he kind of liked it. He reached up and ran his fingers through the darkness, pulling Lennie down on top of him, capturing his mouth hungrily. They were both getting quite aroused, hips moving in tandem as they came together. Jack slid his hands down Lennie's back, inside the waistband of his shorts, teasing at his backside. Lennie squirmed up a little higher to help Jack reach his target, fingertips sliding between the cheeks to rub over that tight pucker. Eventually Lennie knelt over Jack, his shorts pulled down around his thighs as Jack sucked his cock while one finger probed inside him. "Oh, god, yes! Jesus, Jack, that's good! Oh, shit, don't ever stop �." Jack was happy to comply, working a second finger inside. Lennie groaned happily as Jack's long fingers massaged his prostate. He hung onto the headboard for dear life as Jack took him to the peak of passion, his entire body arching as the spasms took him. When Jack had licked up the last of Lennie's sweet essence, he eased his fingers out and gently urged his lover to lay beside him. Lennie was happy to let Jack ease him down onto the bed. He was spent. Wasted. Deliriously happy. He lay there, grinning like an idiot at Jack, who smiled back at him, one hand tracing lazy patterns on his chest. They were together again at last, as it was meant to be. All the petty doubts and jealousies of the past weeks seemed a million miles away, and totally unnecessary. They kissed lazily and lovingly. As Lennie recovered and responded more passionately, Jack decided it was time for round two. He broke away and sat up, reaching for the bottle of lube on his nightstand. Lennie grinned and settled comfortably on his back as Jack greased up his cock. "You ready for some more, love?" "Always want more of your love." Jack laughed and moved into position, scissors style, lifting one of Lennie's legs onto his shoulder. He applied a little of the lube to Lennie, who was already relatively relaxed from their earlier play, then pushed in easily. Lennie moaned with pleasure as Jack filled him to completion. Jack began a gentle thrusting motion which sent gentle waves of pleasure through them both. It was slow and tender, with lots of touching, caressing, kissing. Jack watched with delight as Lennie's already spent cock slowly came back to life. Once it was hard again, Jack caressed it with his hands, regretting that he just wasn't limber enough to get it into his mouth from here. But then, they'd already done that, so this was just fine. Finally, they both began moving faster as they grew closer to completion. Jack shifted, lifting Lennie's other leg so he had a better angle to thrust hard and fast as the explosion took him. Lennie followed him moments later, his contractions clamping down on Jack, sending him even further into oblivion. When the stars in his eyes cleared, Jack gently disengaged and reached for a hand wipe to clean himself up. He tossed it in the trash and grabbed a second one for Lennie, then settled down beside him and tugged the covers up over them, content and happy. Until Lennie noisily cleared his throat. "Hey. You turned it ON, you turn it off." Jack opened his eyes and realized the overhead light was still on; he'd thrown the wall switch when he'd come in not expecting Lennie to already be in bed. Grumbling, he got up, shut it off, and settled back down. Lennie pulled him close. "I'm sorry, Jack. If I hadn't been so obsessed with the Abbie thing �" Jack hugged him. "I overreacted too, Lennie. Forget it. It's over. Besides, there really wasn't ever a chance that anything could happen." Jack's grin told him there was something he didn't know. "Oh? And why not?" "Well, she's taken. She only had time to meet me tonight because Tony's out of town. I told her Tony was one hell of a lucky guy, and she said, and I quote: 'I'll tell her you said that!'" It took a beat before the words registered. "Her? As in Toni with an i? She's dating a woman?" Jack chuckled. "It would seem so." He took a deep breath. "So will you stop worrying about this, already? Besides at least for the next month, you'll be too busy to worry about who I'm screwing on the side �" "Hey! Don't even joke about it, ok?" He realized that Lennie really meant it. His voice got soft. "Yeah, ok, love. I hear you." "I love you, Jack" "You too. Now go to sleep." As they drifted off, they felt a small bounce as Shadow hopped up onto the bed. Sensing that the tension was over, she decided it was safe enough to curl up against Lennie's back and soon her soft purring faded to silence too. Continue on to Chapter 5 send me some feedback Back to the main Story Index Disclaimer: These characters belong to Dick Wolf and NBC; I'm just borrowing them for fun, not profit. |
| Chapter 4 |