"Okay. Thanks. Goodbye." Blair hung up the telephone and turned to face the two far too handsome men standing next to him. "There was a flood in the hotel. Something about someone using a water sprinkler as a sex toy...I do *not* get that. Anyway, the conference has been canceled. Guess I'm not going anywhere."
"Let me get this straight, boss." Blair grinned at Montana's nickname for him. "You didn't go to Chicago because of plane trouble. Now the whole conference is canceled because...because of a sex-induced flood?"
"Yeah. Does sound like greater forces are at work here. Had any visions lately, Jim?"
Jim stood there silently.
"Tiger?" Montana stepped closer to him. "What's going on? Jim?" He touched Jim's shoulder. "Boss, what's wrong?"
"I don't know." Blair moved to Jim's other side. He wasn't blinking, but it didn't feel like a zone. "Jim. Jim. Listen to my voice, Jim. Feel my hand. Montana, stroke his arm. That's right. We're both here, Jim. Jim, follow my voice, follow Montana's touch."
Jim blinked. "Wha...Chief...I..."
Blair gestured to the couch with his head as Jim sagged in their arms. They set him down gently, with Blair at his head and Montana at his feet. "Jim, where were you? Do you remember at all?"
"It's...I don't know. That conference...you...us...all of us. I just saw the jaguar. The panther. He...morphed into me and smiled when you said something about a higher power. Then he disappeared and I heard you." Jim smiled and touched Blair's face. "I guess maybe you're right, Chief."
Blair shivered at his touch. Had they only made love together for the first time that morning? He bent to kiss his cheek. "You okay, Jim?"
Jim shook his head, smiled and reached out a hand to Montana. "I need to get used to this. But anything that brought you into our lives, babe, has to be a good thing."
"That's what I think, tiger." Montana took Jim's hand and held it as if it were something precious. "No matter what happens."
This was all very nice, but it wasn't getting what they needed done. And those two would moon at each other forever if he let them. Well, he'd be happy staring at them, too. "Okay, do you remember *when* the panther showed up? Not when it changed but when it appeared?"'
"Chief, do we have to do this now?"
Montana grinned at him. "Why even bother arguing, Jim?"
"Form's sake. Can't let him *know* where he's got us."
Blair had to laugh. "Okay, okay. Sooner we get this done, sooner we can...well, anyway, let's get this done. When did you see the jaguar?"
"As soon as you picked up the phone to call the conference. When you were going to change your schedule so you could come home sooner. It just strolled in and took a seat...right here on this couch, actually."
"Jim...you weren't looking at the couch."
Jim couldn't shrug with his hands occupied, but he looked like he wanted to.
"That's what I saw, Chief. I could hear your conversation with the guy in Chitown. God, those two were idiots. 'Get a clue' should be a safeword. But I couldn't move or say anything. Just stare at the jaguar like an idiot until you guys brought me out."
"I guess he just wanted to know if I were going or not." Blair grinned.
"Yeah, well...let's hope he doesn't come back while I'm in the middle of a gun fight."
"He won't."
"You sound certain, Chief."
Blair blinked. "I am. He's your spirit guide. He's supposed to help you, and getting you killed won't help you."
"Got a point there. Think he'll save us from Simon again?"
Jim gave Blair another kiss and sat up.
"Simon? Oh, Jim's captain. Why does he have to know anything?" Montana stood up and got himself another cup of coffee.
"He's also our friend, babe. He's going to notice another person living here."
"Good point."
"And he's bound to notice something's up between Blair and me. The man *was* a detective before someone tied him to a desk."
"Uh, Jim." Blair grinned at him.
"Chief?"
"There was a pool on us. And nobody guessed today or this morning."
"No?"
"No. Because the latest date was two years ago. I think they put the pool money in escrow or something. I overheard Rafe and Henri talking about in the men's room."
Montana was doubled over in laughter. "I guess you don't have to worry about coming out *there*."
Jim just shook his head. "I'm heading out for the station. Chief, why don't you help Montana get settled or something and we'll meet for lunch? I'll drag Simon with me."
"Sounds good to me, Jim. I'm off for the week anyway." Blair pulled Jim's head down for as deep a kiss as he could manage. Montana sobered enough to do the same, although he could just pull Jim close. Blair licked his lips as he watched his two men kiss. Two pairs of muscular arms wound around their equally muscular torsos as their lips met.
Blair knew these men intimately. He'd touched their bodies and their souls and knew them for his own last night and this morning. To his own surprise, he knew Montana as well as he knew Jim...and in some ways, he knew Jim as poorly as he knew Montana. And right now, he knew them both as beautiful and more so in each other's arms.
Then the two men parted. Blair suppressed a sigh of regret as Jim stroked his curls one more time, smiled at Montana and left the loft.
Montana collapsed in one of the chairs with a happy grin on his face. "You know, that man is the best pick up I've ever made."
"Right, Dr. Jones. Mine, too. What do you want to do now?"
"I don't know, boss. Jim's gone. We're alone. Why don't you have your way with me?" Montana's grin grew to enormous proportions as he grabbed Blair and pulled him onto his lap.
"I thought I did that already...oh, yeah..."
"I only got to watch this morning."
"Pouting is so not a good look for you, man." Blair grinned as he reached up to kiss that very same pout.
"mmmm. It worked, didn't it?" Blair jumped as Montana put his hand directly on him. "And it seems to be working for you, too, boss. Looks like having your way with Jim wasn't quite enough for you."
"I guess not." Blair kissed him again. Then he slipped beside Montana in the chair and began to take off the other man's shirt. Montana squirmed enough to help him and then settled back, which permitted Blair to nuzzle his chest. Like Jim's, it was smooth and hairless and wonderfully firm, and quite delicious to play with.
Unlike Jim, he wasn't supersensitive, but that was fine. Blair had a lot of fun watching him jump in the chair as he took delicate bites at his nipples. "Oh, God, Blair...easy...oh..."
Blair just grinned and worked his way down to his jeans, which looked painfully tight. So, he *had* to remove them, didn't he? Of course he did. It took some work, but the reward...Montana Jones reclining naked on the chair, nipples and penis fully erect and aroused...was sufficient.
Blair rearranged him tastefully, spreading his legs to expose him properly. Since he was already kneeling, he simply bent forward and took him in his mouth, sucking up the pre-cum that was already leaking.
Montana was a mouthful indeed, but Blair could handle that. He put his tongue and his hands to use, leaving no portion of Montana's anatomy unlicked or stroked. He even pulled gently on individual hairs on his testicles. Montana made wonderful little sounds when Blair did that.
He made a bigger sound when Blair pulled off, not that Blair didn't want to continue, but..."We have to go upstairs. It'll be more fun on a bed, and anyway...Jim's sort of anal."
"Please, boss. You have to..."
Blair looked at those beautiful eyes, pleading with him. And took him back into his mouth again. He would have smiled if his mouth had not been so beautifully filled.
It took a little effort to bring Montana back up to speed, but judging from his sounds, it was worth it. Blair could feel his orgasm growing...hell, he could feel his *own* orgasm growing and no one had touched him yet. And there it was as Montana cried out wordlessly and poured himself down Blair's throat.
Blair made certain there would be no stains left on the furniture by inhaling all that Montana had to give him. Then he climbed back up that mountain of man and kissed him hard and deep. He reveled in those moans as well. Then he pulled free. "Now we go upstairs."
It seemed all Montana could do was nod. He quite docilely preceded Blair up to the bedroom, which meant Blair had one of the finer views he could imagine. And it was all his, or would be very soon.
As soon as Blair stepped into the loft, Montana, his lassitude left behind, grabbed him. "This may take some time, boss, but I'm going on a dig through your clothes to find *you*."
Blair grinned. He wasn't wearing *that* many layers - only three or four. He also actively cooperated in the "dig", lifting his arms and moving his hips as necessary.
But when he was naked, his clothes a pile near the bed, he wriggled from Montana's grasp, pushed him on his back and straddled him.
He was about to bend to kiss him when Montana began to stroke his chest, playing with the little curls and tweaking his nipples. He alternated that with running his fingers up and down Blair's sides, making him shiver with desire. The arousal that had wilted while he had undressed came back, harder than ever, but every time Blair tried to touch himself, Montana would smile and gently move his hands away. Then he'd return to his subtle torture.
Blair permitted Montana to continue for a while, until he could stand it no more. Then he pushed away those hands and covered him with his body. His mouth was even with Montana's throat, so he nuzzled it, gently nipping at his Adam's apple.
Montana began to make those wonderful noises again. This time Blair could feel them vibrating against his mouth, and then all the way down to his groin. He began to play with Montana's nipples again, this time gently, respecting their sensitivity. Ah, more groans, and yes, he was coming to life again. Blair suppressed a giggle. This was so not the right time for a laugh.
When he sensed the moment had arrived, he slid down the bed until his mouth was even with Montana's crotch. He gently kissed his testicles, just to see him jump again.
Montana obligingly bent his knees and spread his legs wide, displaying himself joyfully, a tremendous grin on his face. Was it only a couple of hours ago that Jim had been in nearly that identical position?
Jim had leaned back against the pillows in the same way, exposing his most vulnerable areas to Blair, all under Montana's watching eyes.
But there the resemblance ended. Montana was playing. Jim had given himself to Blair in a moment of sweet and calm surrender. Blair would never in his life forget the look of pure joy radiating from Jim's face as he finally entered him - a joy that went beyond mere sexual pleasure. A joy that said that he was where he wanted to be, where he belonged.
But that was then. Now he wanted to play with his other new toy. He picked up the lube from a fold in the blanket with a grin that matched Montana's.
He glanced around for the package of condoms he'd used earlier...there it was. Jim had put one on him that morning, but Montana was in no position to do the same. He tore open a packet and rolled the contents over his erection. Then he looked at the lube in his hand and decided he needed to make Montana howl some more.
He crawled between those nicely-spread legs and began to kiss and nibble his way down to Montana's anus. As soon as his tongue touched the muscle there, Montana let out a yelp that was pure music to his ears. He was soon doing more than yelping. He emitted little moans and groans as Blair licked and probed and made himself totally familiar with this particular piece of territory.
Those moans changed tempo and pitch to tell him it was time to move on to the next step. He pulled out and took another look at the man in Jim's bed. The playfulness was gone. Montana's grey eyes were filled with pure passion as he grasped his own weeping member. He was enticing as hell.
Blair smiled and began to coat his fingers with the lube. He applied them to Montana, who thrust himself on them, swallowing them up. Blair considered, took out his fingers, applied more gel to both himself and Montana and sheathed himself in Montana's body.
And then all thoughts, evil or otherwise, shut down. All there was in the universe was the joining of their two bodies in an embrace of pure fire. Blair could barely sense himself moving, or the way Montana answered. He just...burned. And when release came, it came for both of them with the screams of a hawk and the howls of a wolf echoing with their own voices across the loft.
Blair stayed there as long as he could, until all was finished and he could send messages to his body again. Then, pausing only to remove the condom and wipe himself clean, he crawled up Montana's length until he was high enough to kiss him. Montana sighed, gathered Blair into his arms and rolled to his side. They lay like that for a long time, the stillness broken only by occasional small kisses in odd places. Eventually, they slept.
*********************
He was alone. He was in Jim's bed in the loft - okay, maybe it was supposed to be *their* bed but that had happened like less than a day ago and he wasn't used to thinking like that - and he was wrapped up in Jim's blanket, which was good because he was naked, and he was alone.
Which meant that Montana had gotten up first and decided to do...something. But had at least thought to wrap him up. Blair listened for a moment. Yes, he was downstairs, and something was wrong. He could hear a murmured one-way conversation, but it was more than that. Blair could not put his finger on it.
He dressed quickly and walked down the stairs. Montana had just put his own cellphone away. Blair took one look at him, with his eyes darting back and forth and his hands shaking and ran to where he was standing.
Blair guided him to one of the couches. When he had him seated, he gathered him into his arms. Immediately, Montana began to take deep sobbing breaths and clung to him tightly. Blair could feel the man shiver and hear his heart beat far too quickly.
For a long time, all Blair could do was stroke his back and murmur to him. Eventually, the only thing keeping him from panicking himself was the need to take care of Montana. As if sensing this, the man in his arms began to calm down until he could pull away slightly and look at Blair with dull dry eyes.
"Ready to talk now?" Blair answered that gaze with his own, never taking his arms away.
He stared off into the distance. "What am I doing, boss? What the hell am I doing?" His voice was edged by sobs.
"You tell me." Blair stroked his hair.
"I...I loved my life in New York. I loved the university and my co-op and all the friends I had there. And...my daughter is there. And...I just met you guys."
"Yeah." Blair told his stomach to stop fluttering. It would be fine. "I know."
"And all I can think of is how soon can I get rid of all of that...except Sarah. What am I doing? How can I do this? I mean, how can I fall in love with Jim and with you so fast?"
"Same way we fell in love with you? You aren't going to leave us?"
"I...I don't know. I can't. I don't know if it's fate or our genes or the spirit world run amuck, but I can't. But...my *life*...I'm forty-five years old. I've been a married man, a divorced man. Ten years ago, I realized I was gay and had a daughter anyway. How many times can I start over?"
"Just once more, man." Blair tried to keep the pleading out of his voice.
"No warning. I...was talking to Denise...my ex. She thinks I'm insane and she's worried about me. And she's right. Boss, what am I supposed to do?"
"What do you think?"
"I don't know! I knew it this morning. I knew it twenty minutes ago. I don't know now."
"You could go ho...go back. Think about it there."
Blair could not believe those words could hurt so much.
"Leave you? I'd feel like my heart was being torn out of my chest. Even the thought...oh, God, I am insane. I *never* felt this way about Denise, and I did love her. Do love her."
"Okay. Nothing has to be permanent. You could rent out your co-op, couldn't you? And take a leave from NYU? Like you said, you can do lectures at Rainier with no problems."
"I know. But all of a sudden it's hit me. I'm not going back. I picked up a guy at an airport and I'm not going back home."
"You *are* home, man. Everything else will work out." Blair put all the confidence he could dredge up in his voice.
"I don't know. I *need* to know."
Blair nodded. "Okay. I know what to do. I wish I had music or candles, but I'm not letting you go."
"What...what do you mean?"
"Just...breathe. Just make your breaths even." Blair demonstrated. Montana looked confused but followed along. Gradually, Blair deepened and slowed his breathing. Montana did the same, relaxing in Blair's arms.
"Okay. Now let your mind go. You're...someplace wild and free. Just listen to my voice and follow me there. Can you see it...can you see where you are?"
"Yeah." His voice was full of wonder. "It's beautiful."
"What do you see?" Blair was surprised that it was that easy.
"I'm in a clearing of a forest. It's...a northern type, the kind you see here. But there's a cat, a black jaguar. He's prowling the edges. And now...oh, so beautiful. It's a wolf. Clearly an alpha, strong and confident. And his eyes...so blue. And a hawk, now. Graceful, free. It's landed on the wolf. Its eyes are grey. It's looking at me."