A Bid For Love

coherent."
    The snitch took the packet and nodded. "Yeah, that bitch is getting to me." The grin looked tired.
    Scott raised his brows in question as Danny wandered down the street and Asher returned to his side.
    "Kratom. A plant from Southeast Asia, perfectly legal and available in any herbal shop." Asher's broad shoulders lifted under his suit coat. "It's been used for years as an opiate substitute, but I only give him enough at any one time to ease his morphine withdrawal. The medical community is actually starting to view it as a viable remedy."
    "God! You're..." The words to describe something that glorious wouldn't make it past Scott's throat and he settled for a brief squeeze of Asher's hand. "Just about everything you do makes me love you more. When I think there's no way I could feel it any deeper, you come up with something new."
    Another shrug, along with a bit of color rising across high cheekbones. "It seems...a waste to trust intel to a man who's strung out. Just protecting the network." Asher glanced away for only a moment, then a shy smile curved his lips. "I can't stand to see him strung out when the remedy's so simple."
    "Like I said, babe, you just make me love you more every minute." Scott grinned and opened the car door. "So, was this our last call of the day? We have just enough time to check in at the office and head home if it is."
    "That sounds perfect." Asher settled into the driver's seat and reached for Scott's hand. "We survived our first day back, love."
    Pure contentment eased through Scott as he twined his fingers with Asher's. "Yeah, we did. I think we can do this, baby. I think we can make it work." He tilted his head back and grinned up at the roof of the car. "Damn, this all feels so good. Us together, like this. I swear it's a dream I don't want to wake up from."
    "Well, then let's dream a little longer." Asher pulled out his cell phone and hit a speed dial. "How does Italian under candlelight on my very private patio sound for tonight?"
    "Like my dream is just continuing, darlin'. Walkin' in high cotton."

    * * * *
    Whoa. Candlelight, dinner on the terrace, Asher's fingers caressing his hand across the table...and an errant foot teasing over his calf. If Scott hadn't died and gone to heaven, he'd found the closest damned thing to it on planet Earth. His smile felt atomic. "You don't miss a trick, do you, babe?"
    "Well, you did an excellent job in Italy of proving you're stellar boyfriend material. I decided I should do the same. My methods are a bit less flamboyant, but I believe you'll get the gist of the matter." Asher offered a smile of pure seduction if ever Scott had seen one. "I thought a simple romantic evening at home might show your efforts weren't wasted."
    "Aw, darlin', I never thought so. I've watched you for years, planning any number of dates. You just never put this much of yourself into it before." Scott raised those elegant fingers to his lips. "Thinking dessert can wait. You're heaps sweeter on my tongue."
    "Now that's one of the best plans you've ever come up with." Asher rose, all lithe grace, setting fire low in Scott's belly. Lord, Asher was just purest sex when he moved so easy and smooth. And then circling the little table to lean over Scott, those lips more luscious than any dessert could be. They settled warm and firm over Scott's. "The tiramisu will keep for an hour or so, I'm sure."
    Clearing the dishes together, setting the kitchen to rights...simple house chores never seemed so blessedly hot. Scott wrapped his arms around Asher's waist from behind as his lover rinsed the last of the recyclables. "I could get used to this. Actual dishes instead of takeout. I might even have to learn to use a stove." He unbuttoned the suspenders from pleat-perfect trousers, easing them off Asher's shoulders, grinning against the warm hollow of his lover's ear. "I bet you look damn pretty in a frilly apron."
    Even the "f-off and die" glare he got for his sass looked sexy.
    "No joke, honey. I think I've found heaven." He molded his form a bit tighter to Asher. "Can I stay the night again? I really don't want to leave and go sleep in my bed alone." He grinned against dark gold hair. "Not that I'd get any sleep, thinking of how you feel like this."
    "Well, I can't very well beat you for your smartass quip from two counties over, can I?" Asher turned, slipping broad hands beneath Scott's waistband and squeezing his ass until Scott's knees shook. His lover's too-talented