Disclaimers: not mine, never were, probably never will be <sob> But I bet they have more fun!

Notes: This is for Wolfling, who gave me the title, and Noon, who helped me figure out where to go when the guys were being plot prima donnas. :)

Summary: Awwwww. Twoo luve. :)

Warnings:

Coming to Terms by Owlet

Door opened. Door shut. A jacket flew through the air in roughly the direction of the hook, and fell to the floor unhindered. A backpack hit the floor with a thump, keys flew through the air with a *jingle* and hit the table with a *jangle*, sliding off to join the backpack with a *crash*. Blair ignored the chaos he was leaving behind, and wandered further into the loft, the same dazed expression he had worn the whole ride home still firmly on his face.

Jim hid a grin as he restored the loft to order behind him. He was so cute when he was absolutely flabbergasted, Jim thought smugly. That would teach him to pull that kind of stunt at the station. He'd know better next time.

Next time he would know to do it at home.

Jim couldn't quite stifle his chuckle at that thought, and the smile he had been wearing since that heart-stopping kiss in the bullpen grew ever wider. For a guy who had just simultaneously embarrassed himself and outed himself in front of every co-worker he had by kissing his male partner senseless, he reflected, he was feeling pretty good.

Now if he could just finish what they had started...

"Jim, we need to talk."

Blair had stopped next to the couch, facing away. Now he turned, and his expression a combination of confusion and belligerence struggling to mask desire. Jim felt himself getting hard at the mixture of anger and arousal, the blue eyes of his partner dark and large, that expressive face tense and set.

"Jim," Blair began, voice carefully controlled, "what the *hell* was that?"

Jim grinned; he couldn't help it. "If you didn't know what that was, Sandburg, we really do need to talk."

Blair glared. "Ha. Ha. Seriously, Jim, what did you think you were doing? Half the station probably thinks we're lovers now!"

Jim shrugged, moving past Blair to lock the door. "Chief, that's been SOP for a while now. Considering how active the rumor mill has been the past year, I seriously doubt anyone will be surprised. Heck, they've had to re-start the pool five times." He turned around to face Blair's stunned face--almost as stunned as when Jim had kissed him. He frowned. "You didn’t know?"

"No, I didn't know!" Blair started to pace, hands flying as he tried to find the words. "Jim, this is really important, okay? We have to talk about this."

Jim shrugged, hanging up his own jacket. "So talk."

Blair glared at him. "Come on, man, don't do this."

"Do what?"

"Pull away! Draw back, hide, repress, whatever it is you're doing--this is serious stuff. We have to talk about this."

Jim sighed and leaned against the counter, watching Blair pace. Blair was going to worry himself into an early grave at this rate. Well, might as well get it *all* out in the open. And, for once, it was remarkably easy to let the words flow

"Chief, I'm not trying to hide. You want to talk, talk. All I know is that I didn't have a problem with what I did, and I didn't think you did either. In fact..." he stopped, braced himself, and went on, "I've wanted to do that for a while."

Blair went absolutely still, facing away from Jim. Jim could see him breathing deeply, slowly, steadily. Meditation-breathing, Jim thought of it as. *Oh god, he doesn't want me like that, I've said the wrong thing--I was so sure, dammit--"

Blair's shoulders started shaking.

Jim almost panicked. "Jesus, Chief, please, don't..." He stopped. He sniffed the air. He focused his hearing on the figure of his Guide, who looked like he was having a minor fit in the middle of the floor. He sighed in disgust.

"That's not exactly the response I was hoping for, Chief," he growled, as Blair abandoned control and whooped with laughter, turning to face his Sentinel.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I just..." Blair snickered, meeting his eyes. "I just...if you had any idea..." With an effort he got himself back under control, that broad expressive face alight in a huge grin.

"Jesus, James, do you have *any idea* how long I've been waiting to hear that?"

Jim looked at Blair incredulously, and Blair sobered, seeming to draw the light to him, turning his face into a play of shadow on skin and his eyes into luminous pools. "Jim...do you love me?"

"Yes." It was the simple answer, the only answer, had been the answer for years. And Blair nodded like he had always known the answer.

"Are you in love with me?"

"Yes." Again, it had always been the answer.

Blair smiled. God, he was beautiful. Jim thought he was going to speak, but instead he stepped closer, reached up to lightly touch Jim's face. Jim closed his eyes and leaned into the caress, feeling it scorch like wildfire across his nerves. God...

He felt the fingers lightly trail across his cheek, brush across his eyelids, slip down to his mouth. They lingered there, and Jim tilted his face to increase the sensation. He felt heat flare through him as one fingertip teased inside his mouth, and he carefully nipped at the callused skin, feeling the individual ridges against his tongue.

Blair moaned, and Jim felt him lean forward, pressing his forehead into Jim's chest while Jim nibbled on the fingertip. When he was finished with that one he released it, catching Blair's hand before it could fall and wrapping it around his waist. He bent his head and kissed the top of Blair's head, the silky-coarse curls tickling his nose with their scent and texture.

"I love you," Blair mumbled against his chest. "I love you, and you have exactly ten seconds to take me to bed before I jump you where you stand. And I do *not* want our first time to be on the floor of the kitchen. *Not* good karma, man."

Jim smiled, and nuzzled Blair's hair. "Sorry, Sandburg, not tonight. Much as I want to, we'd fall asleep on top of each other."

Blair made a disappointed sound and nipped at the faint rise of Jim's nipple beneath his shirt. "Aw, come on, man--what about that line in the bullpen?"

"What line?" Jim arched slightly, as Blair nipped harder, his nipple pebbling under the onslaught.

"That if I wasn't coming, that you could fix that for me," Blair muttered as he paid closer attention to Jim's nipple. Jim was panting now, breathless, but he managed to edge his hands between the two of them and put some space between them.

"Blair, do you really want our first time to be when we're too exhausted to see straight?"

Blair hesitated for a long moment, then sighed. "No. Dammit. You know, Jim, you shouldn't make promises you can't keep." Blair gave his partner a look that tried to be angry. "Very uncool, man. *Very* uncool."

Jim smiled, and then leaned in and kissed him lightly, just a light pressure, easy sampling of the tastes and textures of Blair's mouth, a claiming, a surrender, a promise. "I know," he murmured as he released Blair's mouth for a moment, tugging at the lower lip with his teeth. "I promise, I'll make good."

He paused, taking in the sight of Blair pressed against him, lips swollen and moist, eyes brilliant and teasing and full of love. His breath caught. He asked tentatively, "Would you sleep with me?"

Blair smiled.

And his answer was very nonverbal.

The End