Title: Cocooned

Author: wolfmusic218

Summary: A week of very unexpected and painful downtime brings Reese and Carter closer.

Author's notes: IT never happened. I can't write about it. I don't want to think about it. That being said, this is for those of you who still believe in our ship.

Big thanks to my favorite rooting section: Chellero and PiscesChikk. You girls really have no idea how much your support means to me. Dinner is on me if we ever actually get to meet in person.

This is a continuation of the Having Your Cake and Casting Couch universe. You don't have to read them to follow this, but it would help to see how their relationship has progressed.

As she slowly came awake, three sensations wormed their way into her consciousness.

The first was the sound of a soft thumping under her ear. Slow, steady, strong. It was so hypnotic she almost slipped back to sleep.

The second was the feel of warm air across her forehead that ruffled the hair on her brow.

The third was what she could only assume were fingertips running very, very lightly and slowly up and down her back. At some point in the night she must have shifted over on top of him, her head resting on his chest, her arms down at his sides and hooked behind his shoulders.

He couldn't be comfortable, but she couldn't bring herself to move. She didn't want to lose the feeling of contentment that was filling her. It struck her that she wouldn't mind at all if she woke up like this every morning.

"I know you're awake." His deep voice was soft and raspy with sleep.

She smiled and buried her face in his chest, his arms tightening around her. She stretched like a cat against him, her good leg falling between his, her hips pressing down gently on him.

She stilled when a groan that sounded suspiciously like her name escaped him.

It had been so long since she'd actually woken up with a man in her bed...or in this case her couch...she'd nearly forgotten about the male morning...condition. Nearly. She swallowed, grinned, and tried not to do it again. It was so tempting, though. She could feel him under her and she wanted him; she wanted him so badly, the feeling stunned her in it's intensity.

She tilted her head up and chanced a look at him. His eyes were closed and he was breathing through his nose. Deep, calming breaths. He hadn't shaved and the stubble cast a dark shadow over his cheeks. Absently, she wondered what it would feel like against her skin.

Pressing her mouth against his clothed chest, she whispered, "Sorry". Leaning up, she planted a soft kiss under his chin. "Good morning."

He brushed his lips over her forehead. "Good morning. Did you sleep ok? "

She pushed herself a little higher on him, crossing her arms over his chest and resting her chin on her hands. She smiled up at him. "I did. You're very comfortable."

She felt his chuckle before she heard it. "Thank you, I think. You're very warm." He ran his hand, open palmed, up and down her back slowly, watching as her eyes slipped shut.

"Mmm...that feels nice." Carter peeked her eyes open. "I could get used to waking up like this."

His hand stilled for barely a second as he watched her face, trying to read if she was serious or not. When she realized how it sounded, she blushed and grinned, but didn't take back her words.

"I think..." he cleared his throat. "I think I could too. I haven't slept this well in a long time."

He ran his hand over the back of her head, tunneling his fingers through her hair. He loved the way she lowered it without thinking so he could reach her neck, allowing him to press his fingertips into the muscles he found there.

A soft moan escaped her and she arched her neck against his hand. "I see how you are; you just want to use me as a woobie."

His eyebrows shot up and he chuckled deep in his chest. "A what?"

He had absolutely no idea what she was talking about, but liked the way she was still sprawled over him and didn't seem to have any intention of moving. If they weren't careful, things could get interesting very quickly.

When she answered her voice was quiet, the memory making her face soft. "A woobie. You know, a security blanket or a teddy bear. It's what my mom called this blanket Taylor had when he was a baby. He never went anywhere without it; he slept with it for years."

His hand rubbing her neck seemed to be lulling her back to sleep. He loved that she was so comfortable with him like this. He never expected it, but he refused to question it. Not this time. Instead, he decided to go in for the kill. "So does that mean I get to take you with me wherever I go and sleep with you for years?"

He could feel her smile against his chest. She brushed her cheek against his shirt and moved her hands up over his shoulders, pressing her breasts tightly against his ribcage. "Only if you promise that we'll always wake up like this."

Reese didn't think she knew how those words touched him. "Joss." Her name was a whisper across his lips, a prayer.

"Hmm?"

His hand slipped down her back and teased the hem of her shirt, his fingers brushing over the soft skin he found underneath. "Look at me."

It took her only a moment to register the change in his tone of voice. She looked up with wide eyes and tracked his as they moved over her face. "What's wrong?"

He nervously licked his suddenly dry lips and fought back a moan when her eyes dipped to watch the movement. "What if I said I'd like that very much?"

"What would I say..." Her lips replaced her fingers as she leaned up to cover his in a soft kiss. When she pulled away, she smiled at him. "I would say...you wouldn't be the only one who'd like that."

"I'm not, huh?" The hands on her back moved up and cupped her face.

She shook her head slowly, watching him, waiting. When he only stared at her, his eyes darting between hers, she leaned forward and kissed him again. Slowly, thoroughly, leaving no doubt in either of their minds where this moment could lead. He let go of her face and slid his hands over her shoulders and down, coming to rest at the small of her back.

She pushed herself up closer to him, her hands framing his face, taking control of the kiss. As she nipped his bottom lip, he let out a moan deep in his throat and gripped her ass, pulling her hard against him. Nothing had changed; she could still feel him hot and hard beneath her. This time though, she was pretty sure it was because of their activities, not because he had just woken up. She smiled and giggled against his mouth, thinking about it.

"Do I want to know what you're laughing about?" he asked her between kisses. "It's never a good thing when a woman laughs while she's straddling you..."

She shook her head, still smiling. Instead of answering him, she leaned down and trailed her lips over his neck, her hand sliding down his arm and over his chest. Unbuttoning his shirt, she kissed the base of his throat and moved down, inch by inch, as each button came loose. She chanced a look at him as she did; his head was pressed back against the pillow and arm of the couch, his mouth open slightly, his eyes closed. He licked his lips occasionally. It was a beautiful sight: a man like him, always so in control, giving in to the sensations she was creating, letting her have a little bit of the control for a change.

He might have been enjoying the attention, but he wasn't idle either. His hands, at first on her rear, pulled her tightly against his him and slid up, over her hips and under her shirt. His hands on her skin felt like fire.

The second that thought entered her head, his eyes opened and caught hers as if she'd said the words out loud. The depth of his stare made her swallow hard. He wasn't smiling anymore; he was reading her, his eyes dancing between hers, his hands still on her back.

Carter leaned up, sitting on his upper thighs, her legs tucked under her. She internally winced as the cast pinched her calf, but there was no way she was going to interrupt this moment.

She should have known he'd see it. John Reese was nothing if not observant.

He said nothing, just reached his hand down and still watching her, ran his fingers around the top of her cast, his thumb dipping under it to soothe the ache. Unfortunately for her, that wasn't exactly the ache that needed soothing.

The left side of his mouth lifted in a smirk, complete with teeth.

She shook her head, grinning down at him. "Am I that transparent?"

His hand left her cast and slid up the back of her thigh; his other hand still resting lightly on the soft skin at the small of her back, "No...not with everyone. I just love to watch you, read you; you're very expressive...you have certain looks I've only seen you use with me. Don't ever play poker." His fingers traced the line of her spine up and down, lifting her shirt, and he smiled when she arched her back slightly giving him better access.

She leaned her forehead on his, her hands coming to rest on his shoulders, "Yeah, most of the time that look is exasperation." She pushed back and winked at him, "Poker? I don't think so; I'm terrible at poker." She kissed him between the eyebrows and down to the tip of his nose.

His hands moved around her back to her sides, his thumbs brushing the sides of her breasts. He cocked his head and grinned at her. "Why are we even talking about playing cards?"

She closed her eyes and grasped his hands over her shirt, bringing them up to cover her breasts. "Probably because we're trying to avoid the elephant in the room." She gasped when his thumbs brushed over her bra-covered nipples. God, she wanted his hands on her skin...

His voice dropped an octave. "Which is?"

She couldn't think when he was doing that, couldn't come up with anything besides the truth. "If we're both not naked in the next thirty seconds, I won't be responsible for my actions?"

He chuckled, "That could get ugly...we can't have that..." He pulled gently on her top and she raised her arms, allowing him to take it off.

If he'd thought she was beautiful before, he was certain of it now. She took his breath and he couldn't help but stare at her; her skin practically glowed in the low light of the living room. His fingers ached to run over it and he didn't resist the urge. Slowly, he trailed his hands up her arms, over her shoulders. He cupped her face, allowing his thumbs to trace over her cheeks and his heart gave an extra thump as she leaned into his hand, pressing a kiss to his palm.

His stomach tightened as her small hands made short work of his belt; he hadn't even felt her move. She looked up at him as she slipped the button of his pants through its hole and slowly lowered the zipper.

His jaw clenched as she ran the back of her hand over him through his boxers. She leaned down and covered his lips with hers, lingering to explore his mouth, then pulled back and whispered against them, "I need these off. You definitely need these off."

He smiled against her mouth, lifting his hips slightly, feeling her hook her fingers in his waistband and tug them down.

He had to laugh when she didn't even pull his pants all the way off, just left them to bunch around his ankles. "In a hurry?"

"Shut up." She kissed the middle of his chest and smiled when he sucked in a quick breath as her hand slid over his erection slowly, with purpose, her grip firm. She swore she heard him mutter something that sounded a little bit like a curse in a foreign language. "Problem, John?"

He opened his eyes and nodded. "We're not doing this here."

She startled and stopped her movements. "What?"

He pulled her hand off of him so he could think and brought it to his mouth. "Not here, Joss; not on the couch. I want you; let me take you to bed."

That voice...saying those words...she could only nod as he sat up and kicked his pants off onto the floor.

They both heard it at the same time...the buzzing. She looked down at his pants and then back at him, a smile teasing her lips.

Shaking his head, he stood and gathered her into his arms. "Ignore it."

"John..."

He leaned down and kissed her. "Joss, ignore it...if I can, you can." He lifted her and she wrapped her legs around his waist. One arm held her under her rear, the other kept her cast up.

"What if it's Finch?" she asked, pressing her face into his neck, her lips finding his pulsepoint. "What if it's something important?"

"This is important." Her lips brushed along his jaw, causing his eyes to close as he turned towards her bedroom. He stopped and pulled back to look into her eyes. He pressed her against the wall in the hallway, only feet from her room. "Tell me you want this, too..."

The look in his eyes caused her heart to clench. "God John...of course I want this, but we have time. I don't want to be the cause of someone getting hurt because I couldn't control my libido."

He let go of her rear and let her legs slide down his, her cast thumping on the floor. "You're serious."

She nodded, hating the pained look on his face.

"Joss...no. Just...no...we might not get another chance." He lifted her arms over her head and his mouth came down hard on hers. She could feel the desperation in his kiss, his desire to stay here, to finish what they'd only just started. She wanted it too, she told him so as she kissed him back with just as much fervor, but she knew he'd regret it if he didn't make the call.

When he pulled back, she cupped his face in her hands. "Don't say that. We will. It's who you are, John. It's what you do...you know that. I know that. If we're gonna do this, have this in our lives, we're going to have to get used to interruptions, aren't we?" She brushed her thumb over his bottom lip.

His eyes tracked hers, testing her sincerity. When it hit him that she was serious about...them...he smiled and leaned in to kiss her softly. "You're right. I really hate that you're right at the moment..." He pressed his hips against hers stressing his point. "...but you're right."

Joss drew her hands down his arms, taking his hands in hers and leading him back to the living room. Her eyes traced his body from his feet to his eyes as she handed him his pants. "You might want to put these on or I might change my mind."

"That's not nice." He narrowed his eyes at her as he stepped into them, the corner of his mouth turning up. He reached into his pocket, withdrawing his earpiece and placing it in his ear.

She shrugged and grinned as she turned her back on him and walked towards the kitchen. "Want something to drink?"

"Water, please." He tapped the earpiece. "What is it, Finch?"

Carter leaned her hands on the counter in the kitchen as Reese made his call. She'd already had a full glass of ice water and she was still warm. Overheated, really. The things that man could do to her. The things she wanted him to do to her. And yet she'd stopped him. She kept repeating in her head that it was the right thing to do. She understood him better than he probably knew. He would carry a lot of guilt if he stayed with her and someone got hurt or worse, killed. She didn't want even more guilt piled on him, especially because of her...because of...whatever this was.

"It was Finch."

She jumped, startled out of her thoughts by the low rasp of his voice in her ear and his warm hands at her waist. She hadn't even heard him come into the kitchen.

She turned to face him, his hands never leaving her. "I figured it was. Tell him he has the worst timing."

Reese leaned his forehead on hers, breathing her in. "I did, trust me. I'm sorry."

She shook her head against his, ran her hands down his arms and took hold of his hands. "Stop. I already told you I understand. Just do me a favor?"

"Anything."

She leaned up on her toes and kissed him quickly. "Go take care of business...so you can come back here...and take care of business."

The groan that escaped him made her giggle, but he smiled and kissed her hard, pulling her to him. The giggling stopped when she could still feel him against her. She took a deep breath, reminding herself she was doing the right thing by sending him away.

Cupping her face in his hands, he kissed her again, this time softly, and brushed his nose against hers. "I promise. When I'm done, I'll be back. And you'll need more than ice water to recover when I'm finished with you."

He pulled away and turned on his heels, walking from the kitchen. Before turning the corner, he looked over his shoulder and winked at her, loving the way she stared at him wide-eyed and slack-jawed.

tbc