Show: Cold Case/Pretender - Crossover

Title: Midnight (sequel to 'Tiger Lilly')

Author: The Raven

Pairing: Det. Lilly Rush/Miss Parker

Summary: Decisions, actions, and shooting from the hip.

Rating: R, (for all kinds of mature themes) though I do not believe in rating things.

Spoilers: Rudimentary show stuff, but nothing specific that I can think of.

Feedback: nerocorvo@f-m.fm

Disclaimer: The characters are not mine, I'm just rubbing them together to see what happens. The story however, is all mine, as is the Haiku that precedes the story...

Beta Reading: You betcha! Contact me! Pretty please? :)

Distribution: Ask and it surely will be given.

Notes: Um, I don't know a hell of a lot about NYC, except that its a rocking cool place and I loved it while I was there what, a decade ago now. I should write a story about that trip, another time maybe...

the kiss from your lips-
a juicy ripe peach to eat
in the warm sunlight

- The Raven

____________________

7 am

Lilly woke to the muted sound of the shower running and to the feel the kind of lassitude that cam only if one had been made love to beyond the realms of completely. A lazy smile played on her face as she rolled out of the bed sleepily, shuffling towards her bag with the vague aim of retrieving her toothbrush. Miss Parker it seems, has been up for some time. Lilly could see that a red silk shirt had replaced the dark blue one on the hanger and soon she heard the shower water turn off. Though Lilly was not tired, she felt very sleepy and could only hope that the shower she was now eagerly anticipating would cheer her up a little. The last thing she wanted was to appear vacant or asleep when she only had a few precious days at best with Miss Parker and that only if their luck held out.

After some minutes the bathroom door opened and Miss Parker stepped out, looking like some kind of dream creature that stepped into Lilly's reality. The statuesque woman was wearing a towel around her head and the robe she had been wearing earlier. To Lilly's eyes, she was perfect, gorgeous, delectable. Sharp blue eyes focused on her and Miss Parker smiled one of her rare smiles. "You look well fucked." The dark woman said pointedly, her throaty voice was at once hard and tender and Lilly found herself chuckling as she walked by, offering the brunette a peck on the cheek as she went. Her effort was rewarded by Miss Parker smacking her backside as she passed, causing Lilly to offer the woman a fake squeal before she shut the bathroom door. The bathroom was steamy and Lilly could pick out the subtle scent of Miss Parker in the air, shampoo and tobacco, familiar and comforting, but at the same time arousing as hell. With that thought in mind, Lilly got into the shower, determined to wake up fully and be done quickly not wanting to spend more than that was necessary on anything except Miss Parker herself.

7:45 am

By the time Lilly emerged from the bathroom, Miss Parker had coffee waiting and was herself sipping a cup of the nectar of the gods. The raven haired woman was still in her bathrobe, though her hair was dry, obviously the woman had a blow dryer in that little suitcase of hers. Lilly sat down thanking the woman with her eyes as she sipped at her coffee with relish, it was excellent, but a hotel of this caliber could be expected to do everything right. Lilly ran her free hand through her hair that she had dried using the complimentary blow dryer in the bathroom, not wanting to bother with digging out the portable one from her bag, watching the object of her obsession gaze out of the hotel window.

Without thinking first Lilly spoke, "What are you thinking?" The words left her mouth before she could take them back, but as soon as they did, Lilly no longer wanted them back.

Intelligent eyes turned towards her, seeming to look right into her, past the robe she wore, through her skin to her soul. "I was thinking about how you taste."

The words slid out of that delectable mouth in a way that caused Lilly's grip on her coffee cup to falter and it was only some quick work from her other hand that prevented her from dropping the scalding liquid into her lap. It was obvious that Miss Parker delighted in the effect that she could have on Lilly and the blonde woman could see the other woman's eyes smile over the rim of her cup as Miss Parker sipped her coffee.

"Well, you did ask." The smooth voice wrapped itself around Lilly's libido and caused a lazy smile to form on her face as she inclined her head slightly to acknowledge Miss Parker's very valid point. "Let's go for a walk!" Miss Parker suddenly announced as she finished her coffee.

Lilly smiled and rose easily, offering her hand to the dark woman. "Sounds great."

Miss Parker gripped the offered hand and stood, curling the blonde woman into her arms and bringing their mouths together for a kiss. After several long moments, the women came up for air, panting and flushed from the build up in their ever present arousal. By some unspoken mutual agreement the two women separated and proceeded to get ready, the day was still young and New York had a romance all of its own that they wanted to share with each other. 

8:05 am

Miss Parker and Lilly were out of the hotel in record time considering the activities that they had been engaged in for most of the night and the morning as well. New York was putting on one of those days that made its citizens fall in love again with it and its visitors swear that they believed in love at first sight. Out of the corner of her eye Lilly saw Miss Parker pull her mirrored sunglasses from somewhere in her coat and cast her glance around.

"Somewhere out there, a cappuccino needs me." She declared imperiously and turned to face Lilly, her expression mostly hidden by her sunglasses and the tight mask of control she wore in public.

Enthralled by the transformation, as she was by virtually everything the day woman did, Lilly only smiled slightly before she spoke, "I know of a nice place not far from here. We can go there and then decide what we want to do with our day."

Miss Parker indicated that Lilly should lead the way and the two women started to walk quickly finding a matching stride for their different length legs to follow. After a few hundred feet Lilly gave in and pulled out her sunglasses as the sun's glare started to bounce off the cars, buildings and streets. The sunglasses offered an additional benefit, she would be able to be more open about looking at Miss Parker, something that she was compelled to do all the time now as the woman was her newest addiction, not that Lilly had many vices, but Miss Parker was definitely one of them.

8:23 am

The cafe turned out to be a charming little nook that Lilly had remembered from a previous trip to the Big Apple and with its intimate booths and discreet service it was clear that Miss Parker was delighted in her own understated way. As she sat across from the leather clad woman Lilly stretched her legs out and quite deliberately laid them basically on top of Miss Parker's longer leather clad legs. Outwardly, the brunette looked poised and deadly but Lilly now knew enough about the woman to know that it was a facade, thought not an unnatural part of her nature, but a facade nonetheless.

As Miss Parker sipped her cappuccino with what looked like hedonistic pleasure she turned her eyes to Lilly, making no secret of just how probing her gaze was. The cool eyes raked over Lilly's upper body seeming to pause with uncanny accuracy on places where Lilly's pale skin had been marked by the raven haired woman's passions. The effect was at once unnerving and extremely arousing though to be honest, Lilly could not recall a moment since she first met Miss Parker where she was not somewhat aroused and at least vaguely unnerved.

"If you keep looking at me like that, I think we'll be having a very short walk today." The smoky alto of Miss Parker's voice wrapped itself around Lilly's ears and the blonde woman blushed slightly at the tips of her ears.

"I can't help myself and even I could, why would I want to?" Lilly's reply rolled smoothly off her tongue in sharp contrast to how she actually felt inside, which was not smooth at all and very hotly turned on. Miss parker laughed at her response, her amusement and interest quite present in her tone and her sharp eyes focused on Lilly as she did so.

"I like the effect I have on you." Miss Parker said in an even lower voice as she watched Lilly react again to her.

A sharp and annoying chirping noise interrupted the moment and Miss Parker's face suddenly became very still, "It's mine." She said in a flat tone of voice and fished out the phone from her coat before it could ring again. "Parker!" Lilly winced inwardly at the tone, feeling just a tiny bit sorry for whoever it was that had called the woman. "Let me put it this way Broots, you have not seen me angry yet and unless you want to, you'd better make damn sure that next time you call, you have a reason for it." The words fell from Miss Parker's mouth in a deadly tone of voice and Lilly could see that the dark woman had herself under incredibly tight control as she spoke into the phone.

After a few more moments, Miss Parker unceremoniously hung up the phone and caused it to vanish into her jacket once more. "Idiots, I am surrounded by idiots." Miss Parker muttered as she dug out her cigarettes and lighter. "Present company excluded." She added in a low tone of voice before she lit her cigarette, the action automatically causing Lilly's groin to tighten noticeably.

As Miss Parker was enjoying her cigarette an employee of the cafe came over and very discreetly said, "I'm sorry Ma'am, but this is a non smoking cafe." At the words, Miss Parker glanced at the intruder, her eyes as deadly as Lilly had ever seen them. The server visibly flinched and then added in a timid voice, "Please, I don't make the rules..." The young man trailed off as Miss Parker continued her scrutiny of him before she very deliberately dropped her cigarette into the cold dregs of her cappuccino.

The young man seemed to relax visibly until Miss Parker stood up and reached into her coat, causing him to step back a pace. At this point Lilly simply did not know what to expect so she almost laughed when Miss Parker pulled out a roll of money and peeled off a few bills to pay the man. The young man stood for a moment, caught completely flat footed and then gently took the bills from the dark woman's hands.

In a voice dripping with sarcasm Miss Parker said, "Keep the change." At that the young man fled her presence and Lilly could see that Miss Parker was now more amused instead of very annoyed, though the blonde woman could also see the tension curled around the woman's shoulders.

"Come on..." Lilly said and tugged at Miss Parker's sleeve before turning to walk towards the sign she had just glimpsed at the back of the cafe confident that the woman would follow her.

A few moments later Miss Parker said, "Very thoughtful, but I'm sure there are smoke detectors in there."

Ignoring the brunette's words, Lilly ushered Miss Parker into the restroom before turning to face her, "They won't be able to detect this though." Lilly said softly as she moved to the dark woman and gently took her face into her hands drawing the coveted lips to hers for a kiss she'd been dying for since the moment their last kiss had ended. Miss Parker reacted at once, crushing Lilly and opening up her mouth to her and moaning silently into Lilly's mouth as she did, the vibration causing an answering chord to bubble up from Lilly's chest. A few eternities later, Lilly drew away from Miss Parker feeling flushed and breathing hard but gratified to see that the raven haired woman no longer looked tense, or at least not tense in a bad way.

"Lets blow this joint!" Lilly said quietly, grabbing Miss Parker's hand and pulling her out of the bathroom, only letting go of the hand once they had exited the cafe so that the woman could have her much craved for cigarette now that they were finally outdoors.

10:00 am

By midmorning, Lilly had persuaded a somewhat reluctant Miss Parker to simply relax and let the day happen. The other woman had wanted to do 'something' but like the whole venture to New York City, everything was unplanned, so there were no tickets for anything at the ready, no reservations for anything made and no itineraries planned ahead of time. To Miss Parker, it all sounded somewhat less than ideal. To Lilly, it sounded perfect, a telltale difference in their personalities. Both women were borderline if not total control freaks, but Lilly preferred a more relaxed approach to life whereas Miss Parker was very structured in her approach to it. However Lilly had simply asked Miss Parker to enjoy the day and smiled at her and the dark woman had melted at the request and acquiesced without another word. It gave Lilly a great deal of inner joy to realise that Miss Parker seemed to care about her, her willingness to compromise and act out of character were a testament to that and Lilly was determined to reward the brunette for it somehow.

As they walked, with a vague idea of eventually getting into a taxi and maybe doing something very touristy Lilly was drawn to a street stall, attracted by the show of colour and glitter of shiny objects. Her companion did not seem to mind the interruption and swiftly pulled out a cigarette as she waited glancing idly at the almost grotesque display of knickknacks and baubles as she smoked. Meanwhile Lilly was looking over the wares that the vendor had packed onto his stand, her gaze eventually alighting on something that she wanted. The vendor was efficient and friendly and soon she was done with her impulse shopping quickly stuffing her purchase into the pocket of her blazer as the two women walked away from the stand.

"How about some lunch?" Lilly suggested as they walked down the street after all, it had been many hours since they had eaten their very early morning breakfast and New York certainly offered a cornucopia of options. A brief flash of straight white teeth told Lilly that Miss Parker was a willing participant which left Lilly wondering where they should eat, she was not so familiar with New York City. "Know of anywhere?" She asked as she tried to attract the attention of a passing taxi, figuring that they had done enough walking and Miss Parker might have ideas that were beyond the next few blocks.

11:07 am

It was a little early for lunch in New York City, but it was also New York City, where virtually anything was possible and and almost all things were available. With that in mind, Lilly found herself sitting with Miss Parker in a cozy Italian restaurant that had a homey air, but no prices on the menu. As far as she could tell, everything on the menu looked delicious though the menu was only in Italian, so Lilly was mostly guessing. Miss Parker had however had assured her that everything on the menu was exquisite and that if she did not see something she wanted, she could simply ask for something she liked and the Chef would make it for her without hesitation.

Miss parker, it turned out, spoke perfect Italian, a little fact that made Lilly's toes curl with delight and when the raven haired woman had placed their order, Lilly had found herself bitting the inside of her mouth in effort to not moan outloud at the sound  of the sultry tones she'd come to crave articulating the foreign language so perfectly. Thus begun a lunch experience unlike anything Lilly had ever had, enhanced by the fact that she was having it with a woman than she desired more then she had ever desired anyone or anything, at any time, ever.

12:50 pm

As the two women sat sipping the last of their superb cappuccinos, the finish of what had been the perfect meal, Lilly had pretty much decided that what she wanted was Miss Parker back in the hotel room, now. The pull she felt in her lower abdomen had become demanding and Lilly was very glad when Miss Parker had asked for their bill, which she had paid without even a glance, Lilly having only seen a glimpse of the platinum coloured card that Miss Parker had handed the server.

When the bill came back, Miss Parker signed with a silver pen that she had produced from her coat and then the woman had risen and said simply, "I need a cigarette!" With that Miss Parker had buttoned up her jacket and started for the door with Lilly only a step behind her.

1:10 pm

Sitting in a taxi, Miss Parker turned to Lilly and said, "Where to?" Her blue eyes were sparkling with good humor and Lilly felt her breath catch at the sight.

Leaning over Lilly whispered directly into Miss parker's ear, "I want you."

The effect was instant, though if Lilly had not been practically sitting in Miss Parker's lap she might not have noticed it so easily. Miss Parker tensed slightly and Lilly clearly felt the catch in the brunette's breath when the words registered. Lilly was very pleased not only at being able to effect the dark woman in this way, but also in that she was becoming more adept at reading Miss Parker's reactions and responses. Miss Parker turned to the driver her voice sharp as razor as she gave the man instructions before dismissing him completely and turning her attentions back to Lilly moving closer so that the length of their thighs were touching.

Enveloped by sensation and by Miss Parker's scent and her presence, Lilly could only clench her hands as her frustration built to astronomical levels. As if sensing her desperate need, Miss Parker again acted out of character and moved her arm so it was on top of the backrest behind Lilly's head thus allowing her hand to caress the back of Lilly's neck as they were whipped through the streets of New York by the taxi driver. The caress caused shivers to travel through Lilly's body and in a few more moments, the blonde woman was not able to control herself anymore as she half turned so as to face the dark woman. Raising her hand she gently touched the other woman's beautiful face, allowing the pad of her thumb to caress the coveted mouth for a heartbeat of time, knowing that if she was not careful she'd lose control, and that could lead to unforeseen delays and she could not handle any delays right now. Thankfully, the ride to the hotel was over relatively quickly and the women were soon walking into the front lobby of the hotel towards the elevators. 'Just a few more minutes.', was all that Lilly was able to think, her mind a complete blank except for those words swirling around in her head.

1: 45 pm

When the hotel room finally relented to Miss Parker's frustrated ministrations with her key card, it banged open from the combined weight of the two women who had been plastered to its outside. Startled out of her erotic haze by the loud noise Lilly managed to fumble the 'Do Not Disturb' sign onto the door before slamming it shut and flipping the internal latch. In the few seconds it took her do that, Miss Parker had not moved from the wall where Lilly had left her leaning. When Lilly turned to face the raven haired woman, she felt something inside of herself howl for release, something feral and wild that would not take no for an answer. Without a second thought or another moment going by, Lilly grabbed Miss Parker, bringing their mouths together with such force and passion that Lilly could detect the faint taste of blood as they kissed desperately.

Moving quickly yet smoothly, Lilly coaxed the dark woman to lean against the wall and dropped to her knees in front of her, easily undoing the heavy button and strong zipper of her skin tight leather pants their silk lining making it easy for her to push them down over Miss Parkers perfect legs. Strong fingers wove their way into Lilly's hair as she moved silken panties out of her way and nuzzled her way into the center of Miss Parker's desperate need. Moaning from deep in her chest at how wet the other woman was, Lilly felt hands tighten in her hair and encouraged Miss Parker to widen her stance slightly. The leather pants pooled around her ankles gave Miss Parker some trouble, but the woman did not seem to be concerned and it was clear that Miss Parker, in addition to being drop dead sexy and deadly as a scorpion, was also very flexible.

Encouraged by strong hands pressing her harder into the apex of Miss Parker's legs, Lilly stopped thinking all together and simply felt, acting out her passion as she moved her mouth and her tongue, lapping up the copious moisture, relishing and reveling in the moment and falling for Miss Parker for the thousandth time since the two had first met. In what felt like no time at all, long and elegant fingers tightened painfully in her hair and Lilly heard the brunette's breathing become disjointed as her movements became frantic. Then, in a sudden rush of moisture and sound Miss Parker was moaning and moving against Lilly's mouth, her composure completely fractured and her legs shaking from the effort it took to remain standing. When Miss Parker had finally stilled and all that was to be heard was her harsh breathing Lilly moved to sit back on her haunches and looked up at the woman above her. Passion clouded blue eyes looked down at her, seeming to evaluate her, study her and caress her.

That perfect mouth spoke, "You have far too many clothes on." Miss Parker's voice caused a vibration in Lilly's loins and the blonde woman closed her eyes involuntarily in response.

"So do you." Lilly's voice was so hoarse that the last word she spoke was barely audible at all. Clothes were quickly removed and in no time at all the two women were lying in bed, legs, arms and bodies entwined together seamlessly. The only sounds were New York's busy traffic and their combined breathing as their bodies moved together on the freshly changed crisp white sheets.

4:20 pm

With her head pillowed in the valley between Miss Parker's breasts Lilly finally realised that she had found Nirvana. The skin beneath her face glistened with a sheen of sweat and Lilly could hear the dark woman's steady heartbeat under her ear. Elegant hands were resting on Lilly's back, their long fingers writing nonsense as they moved in caress as the women lay in a comfortable silence. After an endless series of moments Lilly gently raised herself so as to be able to look at Miss Parker. The woman was resting peacefully with her eyes closed and her face very relaxed and seemed to be perfectly content to act as Lilly's mattress not even bothering with what would appear to be a compulsory cigarette. Lilly had learned over the past day or so, that Miss Parker was by no means a chain smoker, so much as she sometimes chain smoked, though at other times, she barely smoked at all. It was yet another intriguing facet of the brunette's very complex personality. Lilly liked the volatile unpredictability that was Miss Parker, it complimented her own rather methodical and contemplative personality perfectly, or so she speculated anyway.

Finally, Miss Parker opened her sapphire blue eyes, their sharpness and the intelligence that they radiated stealing Lilly's breath yet again. Lilly was not a stupid woman, she knew that she had it bad for this woman in her arms, she knew that in Miss Parker's presence, the rest of the world simply vanished completely. Without warning Miss Parker yawned, bringing one of her hands to cover her mouth as she did, both women still had sleep debt to pay and the peaceful serenity of the situation was gradually lulling them to sleep. Lilly kissed the skin between Miss Parker's breasts and raised herself off the woman's body, the slickness of their mutual sweat having created a seal that meant Lilly was literally peeling herself away from the woman.

Even though they had spent the past hours making love, Lilly's body stirred restlessly at the movement as she rolled off to the side and pulled the covers up over them. However sleep seemed to be called for and the blonde woman knew that a nap would be just the thing to recharge their batteries and make the evening less sleepy and more pleasant. Not that Lilly minded sleeping with Miss Parker, she loved doing anything with the woman but in order to do things that she really, really loved doing with the brunette she'd need to gather her energies. The cadence of Miss Parker's breathing was gradually lulling her to sleep and the last thought that Lilly had before she fell asleep was that Miss Parker not only made a great mattress, but she also made an excellent pillow.

7:30 pm

The annoying chirp of a cell phone penetrated Lilly's dreamless sleep, dragging her towards wakefulness as her consciousness recognised it as being her own phone. Training finally won over desire and Lilly rolled over in the bed groping around for the phone on the end table before she realised that the phone was on the floor, next to the bed, clipped to her pants. Now fully awake, but not at all pleased Lilly finally managed to get to the phone as  Miss Parker move in the bed and curl around her from behind. The raven heard woman was mumbling swear words and Lilly smiled softly to herself before flicking the phone open to answer it.

"Detective Rush!" Her voice was hoarse from sleep and her throat felt like she'd been drinking glue but the words came out somewhat clearly regardless. Frowning slightly as she heard her caller talk, Lilly closed her eyes and half tuned the voice out. "I'm on vacation right now, I'll be back to work on Monday, can you call then?" Lilly had managed to clear up her voice a little, but it still sounded like she was suffering from a mild cold. "Okay, thanks for calling. You too, bye!"

Flipping shut the phone Lilly allowed it to drop to her pants, still a little annoyed but also glad that it had not rung more, on a normal day she could field as many as 30 phone calls. Her colleagues and boss knew that she was taking time off, so they would not be calling unless it was truly urgent, she did not have much in the way of family, so that did not count usually, so all in all it had been very good with regards to the phone ringing. This call wasn't urgent, just some prosecutor asking her for detail on a case, non urgent so long as she spoke to him before the following Friday. Dismissing the phone from her mind Lilly gently rolled over so that she was facing the now mostly awake Miss Parker who had her arms loosely wrapped around her and was nuzzling the blonde's neck sleepily.

"Hi sleepy, are you hungry?" Lilly's stomach was protesting slightly from not having been fed for a good number of hours.

"Sure... You decide." Miss Parker's voice was just above a whisper as she spoke and Lilly could not help but smile as she buried her nose in the brunette's hair. Miss Parker, the cuddler, it was cute beyond words and Lilly was determined to enjoy it to its full extent. That is, after she'd visited the bathroom and ordered some food. Miss Parker's body language clearly indicated that she was in no mood to go out, or to get dressed, hell, maybe even to get up, so Lilly simply kissed the top of the adored head and slid out of the bed and padded softly to the bathroom.

8:45 pm

Thankfully room service was well equipped and efficient, meaning that the two women were soon able to enjoy a well made and tasty meal in the privacy of their hotel room dressed in little more than the hotels complimentary bathrobes. Lilly had even managed to find a radio station that played a mixture of R&B and Jazz, it made for very soothing background noise and tonight Miss Parker seemed even less talkative than usual, meaning she did not talk at all. The silence was not strained however and the two women seemed lost in thought as they ate. After she was done, Miss Parker rose and moved over to the hotel room's mini bar where she carefully scrutinized the selection on offer. A moment later, she snatched up a glass and poured herself a neat scotch before turning to Lilly and asking her a question with her eyes. Lilly spotted the miniature bottle of Wild Turkey in Miss Parker's hand and nodded her head slightly, it was not the finest of the fine, but neither was it the worst of the worst.

Returning to the low table Miss Parker handed Lilly her drink and seemed to look right through her before speaking, "I have to go back tomorrow." Her voice was almost toneless with just a hint of frustration evident in it. Lilly paused mid sip when she heard that and looked at Miss Parker, easily seeing through the brunette's tight control.

Seeming to sense a question in Lilly's gaze, Miss Parker continued, "I have to leave early, I really don't want to needless to say, but I have to. People will be suspicious, they always are, but any little thing, like a too long trip or a too short one for that matter, can trigger investigations and this... is none of anyone's godamned business." With the words Miss Parker tossed back her drink and slammed her glass down onto the table with some force.

Only slightly startled but not showing it, Lilly quickly tossed her drink back and set her glass down before she rose and turned towards Miss Parker. "Want to take a bath with me?" She asked, not allowing their impending situation to drag what little they had left down.

Miss Parker barked with laughter and then said, "You're un-fucking-believable Detective, you know that?" The words were clipped and harsh and Miss Parker looked like she wanted to explode, her thoughts already having gone down the dark path of her personal reality.

"Yes I know, I'm just incredible! Now come on, let's get wet together!" With the words, Lilly took Miss Parker's hand and directed her towards the bathroom, "I'll get rid of this crap and you go get the bath ready, now move it! It's not good to keep a woman waiting you know..."

Miss Parker stalked off to the bathroom without another word. Shaking her head slightly at the other woman and resolutely pushing down thoughts of her leaving, Lilly quickly stacked the remnants of their meal onto the cart it had come on and pushed the lot out into the hallway.

9:30 pm

After some speculation regarding the size of the bathtub the women had decided that a shower would probably be more feasible. It was a luxury hotel in many ways, but the bathtub was simply not large enough, not to be romantic or comfortable, or interesting anyway. Without further ado Miss Parker had dropped her robe to the floor and walked over to Lilly, her fingers deftly undoing the belt of the robe the blonde woman wore.

"Coming?" She asked in a low voice as she openly leered at Lilly's nude form, her eyes clearly conveying her approval and her lust.

"Not yet!" Lilly said as she stepped into the shower, pulling Miss Parker along as she did.

The dark woman laughed and without hesitation stepped into the shower after Lilly, wrapping herself around the smaller woman in the as the hot water from the very effective shower head soaked them both. Detective Lilly Rush was not a shy woman, not was she prone to hesitation once she had made a decision. So having already made her decisions about Miss Parker, she reached for the tiny bottle of the woman's body soap that was resting on the edge of the bathtub. After quickly soaping up her hands Lilly proceeded to run them along the raven haired woman's back relishing the feel of the soft skin lubricated now by soap and water. Miss Parker shifted her stance slightly and threw her head back clearly inviting Lilly to continue her soapy explorations with her body language. Smiling slightly, Lilly ran her hands to the front of Miss Parker's body, caressing her abdomen and then moving up to her breasts, paying them special attention as she moved. Lubricated by the soap Miss Parker easily turned within the circle of Lilly's arms, lifting her own hands to draw the blonde woman's face closer and then kissing her. Wrapping her arms around Miss Parker more firmly, Lilly felt as though she might faint from sensation. After a few blissful moments, Lilly managed to coax her hands to continue their ministrations of Miss Parker body. Boldly she moved down to Miss Parker's perfect derriere, allowing her hands free reign as she soaped the delicious flesh.

The response to her touch was fierce and Lilly hissed with pleasure when she felt Miss Parker's sharp teeth close on her shoulder the teeth digging in even harder as Lilly slid her hands between the firm cheeks of her prize. Concentrating hard, Lilly forced herself not to flinch from the pain Miss Parker was inflicting, in fact if she was honest, it wasn't at all unpleasant, rather it was placing extra emphasis on her pleasure. Breathing very hard now Lilly slid her right hand further down, her fingers brushing up against the sensitive flesh she easily distinguished with her fingertips, gauging reaction, checking for response. Instantly Miss Parker's teeth released her shoulder and the woman sagged against her, moaning feverishly into her ear, the strong hands digging into her back in an erratic, mindless way.

Spurred on and now aroused beyond all reason, Lilly gently probed deeper, wrapping her free arm securely around the shaking brunette's body and kissing the side of her neck as they moved together, her tongue worshiping the alabaster column. As they moved Lilly could feel the tensions start to gather in Miss Parker's body and tried to brace herself as well as she could, it would be most unromantic for them to fall and be knocked unconscious or something more serious. Ignoring her straying thoughts Lilly refocused, now moving her tongue and mouth on Miss Parker's neck in tandem with her probing fingers, each gentle thrust earning her a sigh or a moan as Miss Parker excitement gathered quickly.

Suddenly Miss Parker became still, her body seeming to hold itself for long moments while only Lilly moved, then the woman sagged in Lilly's arms, a cry escaping from her lips as her fingernails slid across Lilly's back as she gasped and shook and completely relied on Lilly to keep then both standing. Long moments passed before Lilly gently moved her hand away and wrapped it around the still shaking Miss Parker while she gently kissed the woman, tenderly supporting her as she recovered her scattered wits. Smiling internally, Lilly filed what she considered to be vital anatomical information into her mental 'Miss Parker File' and decided that she would try to find a place with a proper bathtub the next time the two were together. Lilly had decided already days ago that nothing would or could keep her from this woman in her arms and that there would always be a next time, no matter what happened.

11:02 pm

Lilly glanced at the clock before turning her attentions back to the woman who was now dozing in her arms. Miss Parker for once, looked less than immaculate. The two women had moved directly from the shower to the hotel room bed, ignoring everything including towels as they did, so it was no surprise that they looked less than their usual coiffed selves. Lilly was charmed at seeing this more human side of the enigmatic woman who rested in her arms and Lilly was also determined to stay awake for as long as possible, she'd sleep later but not now when time with this beautiful woman was running out.

As she lay watching Miss Parker's restless sleep, Lilly could not help wondering about the woman's life, the one that she knew so little about. As far as Lilly could tell it was filled with danger, intrigue and manipulation and it was also prone to being quite ugly and unpleasant. Earlier in the day Lilly had asked Miss Parker about her gun, curious about how the woman carried it across state lines and into city jurisdictions. The dark woman had told her that she was licensed to carry it in all the 50 states and in every jurisdiction, not to mention both Canada and Mexico and that she'd never had any problems because of it. Lilly had not pried any further but she had also been very curious about such a gun license as she'd only heard rumors about it. Maybe she would look it up when she got home, or maybe not... Lilly had a very strong feeling from Miss Parker that many people were watching, searching and looking for specifically targeted inquiries and activities and that it was probably best for Lilly to keep under their radar if at all possible.

Her thoughts interrupted by the feeling of Miss Parker shift in her arms and come partially awake Lilly looked down at the woman and smiled, quickly turning her focus back to the here and the now, everything else could wait, indefinitely if need be. Kissing the dark hair under her lips softly Lilly watched as blue eyes opened and gradually focused on her, their sharpness not dimmed by sleep at all. Lilly smiled a brief smile and wrapped her arms around Miss Parker even tighter feeling her heart swell and tears start to gather behind her eyes in response to the surge of emotion and feeling. With a deep sigh, she scooted down in the bed so that she could be eye to eye with Miss Parker and continue her examination of the woman in her arms, her absolute obsession, her fantastic passion, her only true addiction.

11: 51 pm

Miss Parker had woken up completely and had eventually slid out of the bed to wander off to the bathroom leaving Lilly alone with her thoughts for a few minutes. Coming to an abrupt decision Lilly rose quickly from the bed and went to her jacket, pulling her earlier purchases out when she reached it. Next, she went over to Miss Parker's jacket, confident that she would be able to locate a pocket in it that Miss Parker was likely to go into the next day. With a pounding heart, Lilly carefully slid her hand into the coat, quickly locating the dark woman's cell phone. 'Good enough.' Lilly thought as she removed her hand and quickly slid a tiny gift box into the pocket. With considerable speed and grace Lilly moved back to the bed, trying desperately to calm the beating of her heart as she did, the sound of it almost obscuring the sound of the bathroom door opening.

As Miss Parker moved back towards the bed Lilly's eyes watched her every move, her heart clenching painfully with awareness while she did. Abruptly, Lilly came to a decision when the raven haired woman sat down on the edge of the bed and reached for her cigarettes. 'It was time to act and to talk.' Lilly's mind informed emphatically. Lilly could not be sure when she would see the other woman again, or to be completely honest, if she would see her again, so she was going to follow her heart for once and not her over analytical and cautious mind. Life had taught Lilly the hard way some very painful lessons, that there might not be a tomorrow and later might very well be too late. With a pounding heart, Lilly gathered her courage and watched Miss Parker smoke her cigarette, the act itself so erotic that Lilly could feel the moisture gathering between her legs in sync with the throbbing that was making itself known. Miss Parker finished her cigarette quickly and seemed to be staring into space and Lilly could feel her heart start to climb out of her throat, it was pounding so hard in her chest.

A few moments later Miss Parker turned and looked at Lilly, her blue eyes narrowing slightly before she said, "Are you ok? You look like you're going to be sick..." The undertone of concern was evident in the dark woman's measured tones and as Miss Parker spoke she slid onto the bed fully and moved to touch Lilly gently with her hands.

"Um..." Was all Lilly could say as she tried to say what was on her mind but found herself paralyzed by fear. 'Try again idiot!' Her mind yelled at her, causing Lilly to close her eyes and swallow hard.

"What's going on Blondie?" Miss Parker asked again, her voice warm and the pet name sounding very natural as it fell from her lips. Gathering her courage and tightening her grip on Miss Parker's hands Lilly finally opened her eyes and looked at Miss Parker.

"I don't know a lot about anything and I don't know what is going to happen, but I do know this... I've fallen in love with you." The words escaped Lilly's mouth in a breathy rush and the relief of having said them made the blonde woman swoon as adrenalin poured into her system.

Reacting instinctively, Lilly curled her arms around herself protectively and buried her head in her knees, somehow not sure if she had done the right thing and a little fearful of the consequences. Moments seemed to trickle by like hours as Miss Parker simply sat in silence, the stillness causing Lilly to start a vocal internal panic. Suddenly Miss Parker moved, her strong hands pulling Lilly's arms away from her sides and coaxing her head up so that the brunette could look at her.

Saying nothing Miss Parker moved in to kiss Lilly tenderly, her gentle mouth easily taking possession of her and her long arms coaxing Lilly to finally relax. When they pulled away from each other, Lilly looked into the face of her lover, trying to read it but failing miserably, mostly due to her overanxious and slightly fearful state. However Lilly could see no rejection in the beautiful visage of Miss Parker and the woman was slowly opening Lilly's body up so she could wrap their bodies together. Sighing with heartfelt relief, Lilly quickly wrapped herself around the dark woman her eyes catching a glimpse of the clock near the bed as she did, 'Midnight, and all's well.' Her mind intoned as Miss Parker renewed her efforts to kiss Lilly senseless.

The End (for now)