Riptide, Nick Ryder/Cody Allen, Challenge #1: Virgin, oddmonster

[riptide-asylum.livejournal.com]

Title: Ole Green Eyes
Author: oddmonster
Fandom: Riptide
Genre/Rating: NC17
Pairing/Characters: Nick/Cody
Crossposted: pier56, smallfandomfest
Word count: 4212
Beta: the stunning tinx_r, who makes everything work like clockwork
Notes/Warnings: References events in the episode "Boz and Baxter"; takes place in the Horizons universe.
Summary: Will Denise's help with the Mimi jeopardize Cody's newfound happiness?




Two-thirds of the Riptide Detective Agency had spent the morning getting their asses handed to them on the beach, dropping three quick sets of volleyball to Eddie and Cantrell before they lost the court to the next set of contenders. As the game progressed, Cody's serves had gone wilder and wilder, until finally he'd pegged an old woman trying to read her paperback. They'd hurried over to apologize, and after Nick dazzled her with the full wattage of his grandmother-pleasing smile, she'd agreed not to sue them both to kingdom come.

Walking home across the burning sand, Cody had tried to figure out why his game was so off. They'd just finished working on a project for Baxter Corp and, even better, gotten paid for it. Cody's enthusiasm had been dimmed when he returned to the Riptide and found Denise's message for Nick. Something about a cable that had snapped, but Cody's attention wandered, playing back over the past few week: the undeniably attractive Baxter Corp pilot working so closely with Nick. His Nick. Her note, asking Nick to call her about the cable, had just fueled Cody's doubts.

"...plus we can beat Eddie and Cantrell in our sleep, big guy. But today it was like you were playing for them, or something. I mean, when Cantrell spiked that one shot down that knocked me on my ass, pal, you could have blocked that."

Cody kept walking, his eyes on the water.

"Cody? Cody? Hey, what's with you, man?"

He shrugged off Nick's questioning hand and scanned the ocean horizon, unsure how to express the feeling in the pit of his stomach. They walked a few more steps until Nick finally rounded on him, blocking his way forward. "What's going on, man?"

The volleyball in Nick's hands gleamed like an oversized pearl, or the obscene and delicate egg of some strange beach-bird. Cody found himself unable to look up from it as he struggled with an answer.

"Guys, guys! Guys!" They both turned at the shout. Murray hurried down the promenade, before leaping onto the beach, racing to meet them. He got about twenty feet before he really felt the scorching sand, and his quick step turned to a hot-foot dance. Exchanging a smile, Nick and Cody caught up with him and, hoisting him between them, carried him back to the relative safety of the blacktop. All three of them were sweating profusely.

"Thanks, guys. You know, I wouldn't have thought there'd be such a difference in temperature between sand and you know, asphalt or tarmac, but boy, my feet could really tell, right away."

Nick tossed the volleyball to Murray, who caught it low, with both hands. "What are you doing out here, Murray? You know too much sun makes you sick, and it's blazing out here."

"Well usually, Nick, that's true, except right now I'm testing out my latest invention: The Solarinsky."

The two of them stopped and stared at each other with a grimace. Murray went on a few more paces before he caught their expressions. "Yeah, the name needs work. But what it is, is a hat with a built in water reservoir and a mirror. See, the sun's rays bounce off the mirror and--"

Cody held a palm up. "Boz, you came all the way out here to tell us about a hat?"

"Oh! No, there's something else. But if you two want Solarinskys of your own..."

Nick and Cody made apologetic noises of refusal and the three of them resumed walking back to the Riptide. The heat of the day had forced most of the locals inside, seeking shade, and as a result, the waterfront was thronged with pasty tourists and out-of-towners, making the most of the late September sunshine. They wove their way along the promenade through various groups of sun-worshippers and small children simultaneously eating and wearing ice cream.

"I came out here to tell you we're invited to a party at Straightaway's tonight! Baxter's throwing it to celebrate the success of the new mapping project. Isn't that boss?"

"Okay, Murray," Nick said, "But what's so important about a party that you came all the way out here to find us? Except for testing the--you know," he gestured at Murray's headgear with a wry smile. "That thing."

"Oh! Because she asked me to!"

"She, Murray? Who's 'she'?" Cody asked. Nick laid a restraining hand on his arm, his expression one of both concern and warning.

"Denise, of course! She stopped by the boat to tell us specially, and she wanted to make sure you guys could come."

"Of course she did." Cody felt his already sour mood worsen. Denise was the last person he wanted anywhere near his boat right now. Or anywhere near him. Or Nick. Cody's eyes went back to the water as Murray babbled excitedly about the upcoming party.

Earlier that week, they'd helped Baxter work out the remaining bugs in his sea-mapping aviation software. Nick had flown the Mimi, and Denise a chopper over identical routes while Cody and Murray chugged along below them on the Riptide. The topographic data collected by each chopper had matched perfectly with what Murray came up with over the same distance. The project had been a complete success....until Mimi threw a piston and dropped out of the sky like a big pink turkey.

Nick had brought her down without incident, and Denise had helped him with the repair. The Riptide had arrived just in time to watch Mimi limp back to the pier, Denise's helicopter following cautiously in her wake. Baxter Corp had thrown a new piston into the deal, gratis, and Nick and Denise had spent the better part of two days fitting it

She'd been around so much this week that Cody was starting to wonder if that was the only thing she'd replaced. He and Nick had only been whatever they were--lovers, he guessed started to cover it--for a couple of months now. He couldn't blame Nick if his head was turned by a green-eyed, blonde chopper pilot with cheekbones you could ski off of.

But just because he didn't blame him, didn't mean it didn't hurt like hell.

---

That night, Straightaways was packed to the rafters, the main room filled with friends and neighbors (and the ubiquitous Pier 56 Merchants Association), all laughing and toasting 's latest success, as well as their own local jacks-of-all-trades.

Nick and Denise were in close conversation on the far side of the room, heads bent together just next to the booth Cody thought of as "theirs"--his and Nick's. Denise gestured broadly, all white teeth and tanned, muscular arms peeking out of a gauzy beige dress. She really was an attractive woman, Cody thought. Except for the fact that she scared the pants off of him.

And not in a good way.

Denise tucked a stray blond lock behind her ear, one glittering earring sparkling merrily under the hot gold lights, and Nick smiled, nodding emphatically.

Sickened, Cody turned and headed for the restroom, pulse pounding at his temple. That should have been *his* smile.

Cody elbowed his way through the crowd, feeling an uncomfortable pressure behind his eyes, as if his own walls were closing in. He bent over the sink, running the water just to have something to focus on besides his own pale, sweating reflection in the mirror.

For the thousandth time, He saw Denise hop from the Mimi's cockpit, grinning slyly as Nick jumped down beside her. Watched her leaned across Nick to pat the Mimi's worn metal plating, and saw Nick's face light up all over again. Cody dropped his head onto his chest, defeated.

"Hey. Cody, you all right, man?"

Cody resisted the urge to flinch as Nick put a concerned hand on his back. "Don't worry about it, buddy," he managed.

Nick's hand started moving in small circles between his shoulder blades and Cody wrenched away, reaching for a paper towel.

"Cody, come on. Out with it."

Cody didn't turn around. He couldn't face looking at Nick right now; he couldn't confront everything they stood to lose at this moment.

Nick grabbed his arm, spinning him around and pushing him up against one wall of the restroom. With a quick look around, he kissed Cody, hard and desperate, his lips soft and warm against Cody's own. Cody clung to the kiss like his last breath of air, then pushed Nick away.

"Talk to me, baby," Nick said softly, eyes searching Cody's face. "Don't do this. Not now."

Cody blinked hazily, needing more of Nick's kiss, needing more of Nick to anchor him, reassure him that what they'd found hadn't been taken away by Denise or anyone else. "Need to get out of here, buddy," he managed. "I need some fresh air."

Nick nodded, seemingly relieved. "You got it, big guy. Let's take a walk. I can't stand parties, anyway." He held the door open for Cody, and gestured for him to take the lead.

The two of them detached themselves from the gathering easily. Murray was dancing with a tall, angular redhead in a pink miniskirt, and waved a distracted farewell across the room before gesturing to his watch and raising his eyebrows.

Nick sketched a wave, smiling. "Yeah we know, Boz. We won't wait up."

Cody chuckled and headed for the foyer, checking only once that Nick was still behind him. Denise was nowhere to be seen.

Outside, a wind had picked up, and it rushed through the palm leaves fringing the darkened waterfront with a noise like a thousand disappointed sighs. Cody tugged at his tie until it hung loose around his neck. He closed his eyes as he walked, letting the cool night air soothe him. Outside, in the dark, with Nick matching him step for step, his fears seemed less real. But even with his eyes closed, Cody still saw it all. Nick and Denise huddled over an open manual in the salon, heads so close they nearly touched. The two of them mock-fighting over some grubby little engine part, hands grasping, mouths open wide in laughter.

He couldn't let it go. Part of him wished he'd never seen half of what he had, and the other part was terrified there were other things he hadn't seen. Worse things. Things he thought were for him and Nick alone now.

Nick put a hand on his arm and Cody's eyes flew open.

"You keep walking with your eyes closed, you're gonna go in the harbor again," Nick cautioned.

Cody kept walking. "Hey," Nick tugged him to a halt. "I save all my best material for you, you know. Now are you ready to tell me what's wrong?"

Cody sighed. "You forgot my birthday?" he tried.

"June 24. Two months from now." Nick moved his hand to Cody's shoulder and pulled him closer. "Nice try, man. But seriously, Cody, will you just tell me already? Enough with the moping."

Cody searched Nick's face. Nick's eyes never lied. His mouth? Sure, sometimes. But not once in fifteen years of friendship had Cody ever looked in Nick's eyes and not known him to the bone. The thought that what they had between them could be lost caused his gut to clench. It would be so simple to ask him, right now, what was going on between him and Denise. But Cody was terrified he'd see the answer, no matter what Nick said. And he didn't know if he could face it.

"Let's...let's just go for a walk, Nick, okay? I...let's just walk."

Nick opened his mouth to argue, then shut it. "Okay," he said quietly. "Anything you want, man."

They walked in silence along the pier, a larger distance between them than normal. A couple of times Cody saw Nick look over, as if he was about to speak, but each time nothing came of it and the silence between them lengthened. The pier was deserted, flanked by shuttered storefronts and darkened neon signs. They kept walking, out onto the streets of Redondo, where the lights were much brighter, but the storefronts just as shuttered. A homeless guy extended his hand but Cody brushed past him without a glance. He felt Nick's absence as his partner stopped and emptied his pockets for the guy.

Cody kept walking, perversely satisfied at ignoring Nick's shouts for him to stop, listening to his jogging footfalls approach.

After that the two of them stayed uneasily abreast of one another. Cody didn't realize how far from Pier 56 they were until he sensed the looming silent bulk off to his left, standing as though in mute judgment of him.

He and Nick had made it out to the Mimi's helipad, and now stood just in front of the archway opening onto the landing pad. Cody rolled his shoulders uncomfortably at the old rustbucket, glaring morosely. He'd always had the uncomfortable suspicion that she watched everything they did.

"So that's what this is about," Nick said.

"Yeah Nick," Cody answered. "I guess it is."

They stared at each other in the darkness. Nick was the one who finally broke the silence.

"Denise? And me? Cody, that's crazy talk. For one," Nick ticked the point off with his fingers. "she's just a friend."

"A friend."

"Yes, Cody, a friend. Just a friend. Look, are you gonna be like this every time she comes around? Because she's a good pilot and a great mechanic, so I could sure use her help now and again. She knows helicopter engines like the back of her hand--" Nick closed his mouth with a snap, dropping his eyes.

"Unlike me," Cody finished for him.

"I didn't say that, Cody."

"You didn't have to."

"Oh will you..." Nick grimaced. "You know what I mean. Don't be like this."

"Be like what? Be concerned that you have a beautiful woman hanging off you?"

"A what?" Nick's eyes widened. "Cody, she's not a beautiful woman, she's a chopper pilot."

Cody smirked. "Oh really?"

The two of them stood on the tarmac outside the Mimi, glaring at each other. A car drove past the slip, headlights raking the Mimi's tarnished side. Neither of them turned to look.

"Nick," Cody said finally. "What's for two?"

"What?"

"You said 'For one, she's just a friend.' Is there a for-two?"

Nick dropped his arms to his sides, then spread them wide. "Cody? I love you. There's nobody else for me now. Nobody.What we got--Cody, I'll be damned if I'm gonna waste any more time looking at another person ever again."

He stared at Cody, as if daring him to object. Cody took a step closer, ducking his head. "You really mean that, Nick?," he whispered.

Nick relaxed, all the breath rushing from his chest at once. He put a hand on Cody's chest. "I love you, Cody. There's no one but you, pal. It's just us now. You and me. Nobody else."

Cody slid an arm around Nick's back, pulling him close, but Nick stopped him with a pained expression. "We can't, babe. Not out here."

Cody released him reluctantly, nodding.

"You uh, you wanna come inside?" Nick smiled, indicating the Mimi with a nod.

Cody grinned, and pulled himself up the rungs to the pilot's window, the tails of his sports jacket flapping behind him, caught by an upswell of the nighttime ocean breeze. He crawled through the window, hearing Nick start on the rungs below, and dropped through the cockpit hatch to the hold below with a loud thump.

"So much for keeping a low profile," he said. Nick landed catlike behind him and Cody turned to give him a dour look. But even in the dark hold, Cody could see the love Nick had for him as his partner stepped in close, hands on his hips.

"Nick..." Cody sighed. "Nick, I..." He gave up and met his partner's eyes.

Nick laughed deeply. "I know, big guy," he said. "Me too. Now c'mere."

Cody gladly closed the gap between them, pushing his body up against Nick's own, feeling the heat of Nick's skin through their thin cotton shirts. Nick cupped his jaw and pulled him into a long kiss. Cody moaned as Nick's tongue slid over his own, flickering and gentle. When they parted, Nick leaned his forehead against Cody's, panting. He chuckled. "Man, we should have done this years ago. Cody, I love you so much. Don't you ever forget that, you hear me?"

Cody pulled back to leave a soft kiss on Nick's forehead. "I'll try, Nick, but you're gonna need to remind me." Cody tightened his arms around Nick, and Nick squeezed him back, nuzzling gently at Cody's jaw.

Outside, Pier 56 had gone quiet with the evening, and inside the hold, the only sound was Nick's sigh of contentment as Cody rubbed his scalp, fingers woven in his dark hair. He looked up suddenly. "You know something, Cody, there's one thing Denise and I never did in the Mimi," he said. His eyes were dark with hunger and Cody felt his heart pound in his chest. He was still getting used to having that look turned on him, but he'd quickly learned to enjoy the results.

"Just one thing, Nick?" he whispered.

In answer, Nick pushed him backwards, gently depositing him on the pillow-covered bench they used for tourists. He kissed Cody softly, teasing, pulling away when Cody leaned up for more, his hands deft and sure along the buttons of Cody's shirt. Kneeling in front of him, Nick mouthed Cody's chest, sliding his arms around his torso underneath shirt and jacket. He sucked one nipple until it pebbled against his tongue and Cody shivered. Nick sat back on his heels, an anticipatory smirk on his face.

"What?" Cody panted.

"I always wanted you here, you know," Nick whispered.

Cody was silent for a moment, breathing heavily, then he grabbed Nick, pulling him close, kissing him harder now, needing to feel Nick against him. Nick chuckled in the darkness.

He tugged Nick's shirt from the waistband of his slacks, hands shaking on the buttons. Nick trailed kisses from cheekbone to temple as Cody got his shirt undone. Cody smiled and nipped at Nick as he undid the slacks, pushing them and the briefs down over Nick's hips in one movement. They both moaned as he slid his open palm firmly along Nick's cock. Cody closed his fingers around Nick's shaft and stroked him with long, gentle pulls. Nick collapsed against Cody's neck, whimpering as Cody gently nipped at his earlobe, hand still moving rhythmically. He slid his other hand against Nick's muscular ass, holding him firm. Captive.

Nick scrabbled at the button of Cody's own trousers, then, as Cody thumbed Nick's wet slit, Nick clenched his hand against Cody's bare side, arching with a moan.

"Ssh," Cody whispered. He bent his head to mouth Nick's neck, and felt the groan Nick suppressed.

"Cody," Nick panted softly in the darkness. "Stop for a minute, man. Come on, give me a chance here."

Cody chuckled, but released Nick and sat back with a wolfish grin. Nick took a deep breath, but before he could speak, Cody reached a hand out, pulling Nick towards him, into a long, sweet kiss. When they broke apart, Cody whispered to him, rubbing his forehead against Nick's own. "Fuck me, Nick. Right here."

Nick looked at him for a second, then kissed him back, hard and bruising. "You got it, babe." He managed the button on Cody's pants this time, and Cody stood so Nick could tug them down. He lost the shirt and jacket, too, as Nick divested him entirely of pants and briefs. He lay back down on the Mimi's bunk, resting on his elbows. And looked up at Nick expectantly.

"Cody," Nick whispered, on his knees. "You are so damn beautiful."

The longing in Nick's eyes made Cody shiver. "Need you, Nick. Now."

Nick pushed up off his knees and popped the cover off the first-aid kit, removing a small bottle. Cody raised an eyebrow.

Nick shrugged. "Aloe."

"I'm not even gonna ask."

A couple of seconds later he didn't have to, as Nick crawled on top of him, bearing him down against the bunk, heat and strength and kisses--those kisses made Cody forget his own name. He couldn't get past the fact of Nick, on top of him in the Mimi, loving him hard and strong, his sweat-soaked skin sliding over Cody's own.

Nick. His.

The bruise of Nick's hipbones against his skin felt incredible, Nick hard and hot, sliding wetly over his belly. Cody groaned into Nick's mouth and felt a gentle nip on his bottom lip in response. With a sly look down, Cody snaked a hand towards Nick's erection but Nick caught his hand, bringing it back up, kissing the palm. "Need that," Nick whispered in explanation. "Need it for you."

Cody lay back on the narrow sofa and closed his eyes, anticipating the cool of the gel against his pucker. He never got tired of Nick's finger in him, probing so gently, even though they were well past gentle explorations now.

Cody threw his head back as Nick added a second finger and moved in him, stretching him slowly. Nick's fingers grazed his prostate and Cody bucked, grabbing at the wall and the edge of the sofa as pleasure overwhelmed him. A moan escaped him, and Nick slid his fingers out, fast; before Cody could complain, Nick was on top of him, mouth and hands and...Nick. He cried out wordlessly, and Nick's mouth descended on him, sucking at his lips with a fierce desperation.

Cody felt Nick's blunt cockhead nudging at his entrance, and he rolled his hips back with a hiss, needing to be open to Nick in this place. His lover's breath was ragged in his ear, and he heard the soft groan as Nick pushed, the greased tip opening Cody, a welcome invasion. Reaching for Nick's hips, Cody returned his partner's kisses with intensity, until Nick slid all the way into him and Cody was undone, needing to give in to the feeling of Nick overwhelming him, making him his, here in the place that was Nick's alone.

Nick's kisses turned gentle, soft wet lips against his own, then Nick pulled back and took the first stroke. They both groaned. It was too much, Nick on top of him, inside him, fingers gripping his thighs hard, grinding him against the worn couch, all force and need and heat. Cody arched with a groan, fighting to breathe as the sensation of Nick's cock, sliding hot and hard inside him invoked waves of pleasure that radiated from his spine, igniting him from inside. "Nick, please," he whispered, and Nick grinned, pushing off his chest, holding himself up on his arms, his strokes fast and deep.

Orange carbon streetlight streamed through one of the Mimi's windows, illuminating Nick's bare chest, the sweat glistening in his thick dark chest hair. Nick was smiling softly, eyes focused and intense. His thick, full lips were pursed in concentration, and Cody needed them, suddenly. Needed to taste and feel and earn the pure love in Nick's eyes. He reached up and pulled Nick down, crushing his lips with his own, sliding his tongue over Nick's, feeling Nick's grin against his mouth.

That grin sent Cody over the edge.

He broke from the kiss to arch with a cry, Nick's cock hard and hot inside him, explosions of pleasure bursting over and through him; Nick responded, stroke slowing, drawing out the moment with a grimace, eyes closed, wet lips parted. Cody hung on tight, entranced by the sight of Nick being pulled over his own edge--Nick pulled over the edge by fucking him, hard and sweet in the place that was so purely Nick's.

Cody thrust against Nick as hard as he was able, collapsing finally, spent and boneless on the couch, Nick sweaty and beautiful and all his, at last. He lay on the rough woven wool, hands playing lightly over Nick's skin, sliding wetly across his back. Sleep tugged at the edges of Cody's consciousness and he fought to stay in the moment, fought to continue feeling Nick's exhaustion, his possession, their completeness.

Nick broke the silence at last. "You should get jealous more often."

Cody chuckled, his hands still moving on Nick's skin. "If this is how you react to it..."

Nick took a deep breath, the rise of his chest compressing Cody's. He placed a kiss just behind Cody's ear and started whispering. "Get real jealous, baby. Growl and pace and--"

Cody bit gently at Nick's jawbone, a little more force than necessary, and Nick grunted. Cody felt Nick's laugh pull his softening cock out and he felt the loss keenly. Leaning up, he stole a kiss, and Nick moved a hand up to tangle softly in Cody's hair. It felt like bliss, Nick's calloused palm warm against his scalp. Cody stole another kiss, and Nick's fingers shifted lazily, tugging at his hair. They broke apart reluctantly.

"Hey Nick?"

"Yeah, babe?"

"What else didn't you do with Denise?"

Nick smirked. "Let's go back to the boat, and I'll show you."