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"Convincing Heero"Written By: Hemlock Inyx Disclaimer: This chick does not own any of the
Gundam Wing characters because they belong to Bandai and Sunrise.
I am borrowing them for this fict and will return them
in good (if somewhat sticky) condition. I also don't own Nora Robert's
Convincing Alex, on which this fict is heavily based (well more like
a fusion/translation). This fict is written out of love and not for
profit, don't sue. Thanks and enjoy! Rating: NC 17 Warnings: AU Romance/Cop Drama, Cross-dressing/drag,
humor, romance, some OOC-ness, language, and murder- not main characters.
Pairings: 1x2, 4xC for added interest. More pairings
to come. Summary: Heero is a cop, Duo is a cross-dressing man who writes for a daytime soap opera. The pair meet when Duo is arrested doing 'research' for the soapie.
" Convincing Heero" Chapter 10 Heero read over a particularly grisly autopsy report on half of a suspected murder-suicide, and tried to ignore the fact that Duo was sitting in a chair to his right, scribbling in his notebook. Duo was as good as his word, Heero was forced to admit. Though Duo did tend to mumble to himself now and again, he was quiet, unobtrusive, and once Duo had realized Heero wouldn't answer his questions-much less acknowledge his presence-Duo had directed them to Quatre. Heero couldn't say Duo was a problem. But, of course, he was a problem. Duo was there. And because Duo was there, Heero thought about him. Duo had even dressed quietly, in bone-colored slacks
and a navy blazer. As if, Heero thought, the conservative clothing
would help him fade into the background and make He could smell Duo, couldn't he? Heero thought, seething with resentment. That fresh and seductive scent had been floating at the edges of his senses all morning. Sneaking into his brain the way a good second-story man sneaks through a window. And Heero could sense him, too. He didn't need a cop's instincts to know Duo was behind him, to picture those big violet eyes drawing a bead on his every move. To imagine those never-still hands making notes, or that soft, agile mouth curving when a fresh idea came to him. Duo could have dressed in a cardboard box and made him needy. Heero was so damn cute, Duo was thinking, smiling at the back of his head. Duo enjoyed watching him work-the way Heero scooped his hand though all that gorgeous dark brown hair when he was trying to think. Or shifted the phone from one ear to the other so that he could take notes. The sound of Heero's voice, clipped and no-nonsense or sly and persuasive, depending on what he wanted from the listener. And Duo particularly enjoyed the way Heero moved his shoulders restlessly, annoyance in every muscle, when he became too aware of his presence. Duo had a terrific urge to press a kiss to the back of Heero's neck-and to see what he was reading. After a couple of scowls from Heero, Duo scooted his chair back and stopped peeking over his shoulder. Duo was cooperating fully, Heero was forced to admit. Which only made it worse. Heero wanted Duo to go away. How could he explain that it was impossible for him to concentrate on his job when the man he was falling in love with was watching him read an autopsy report? "Here you go." Duo gave Heero a cup of coffee and a friendly smile. "You look like you could use it." "Thanks." Cream, no sugar, Heero noted as he sipped. Duo had remembered. Was that part of his charm? Heero wondered. The fact the Duo absorbed those little details about people? "You must be getting bored." Taking a chance, Duo sat on the edge of Heero's desk. "Why?" "Nothing much going on." Heero gestured to indicate the pile of paperwork. Maybe, just maybe, he could convince Duo he was wasting his time. "If you have your TV cop doing this, it isn't going to up your ratings." "We'll want to show different aspects of his work." Duo broke a candy bar in half and offered Heero a share. "Like the fact that he'd have to concentrate and handle this sort of paperwork and detail in the middle of all this chaos." Heero took a bite. "What chaos?" Duo smiled again, jotting down notes. Heero didn't even see it any longer, Duo realized. Or hear it. All the noise, the movement, the rush. Dozens of little dramas had taken place that morning, fascinating him, unnoted by Heero. "They brought a drug dealer in over there." Duo gestured with a nod as he continued to write. "Skinny guy in a white fedora and striped jacket, wearing a heavy dose of designer cologne." "Pasquale," Heero said, noting the description. "So?" "You saw him?" "I smelled him." Heero shrugged. "Wasn't my collar." Chucking to himself, Duo crossed his legs and got comfortable. "A Korean shopkeeper came rushing in shouting about vandalism at his store. He was so excited he lost most of his English. They sent out for an interpreter." "Yeah, it happens." What was Duo's point? Heero wondered. Duo only smiled and finished his chocolate. "Right after that, they brought in a woman who'd been knocked around by her boyfriend. She was sitting over there-defending him, even while her face was swelling. The detective at the far end had a fight with his wife over the phone. He forgot their anniversary." "Must have been Jones. He's always fighting with his wife." Impatience rippled back. "What's that got to do with anything?" "Atmosphere," Duo told him. "You've stopped noticing it and became a part of it. It's interesting to see. And you're very organized," Duo added, licking chocolate from his thumb. "Not like Quatre over there, with all his neat little piles, but in the way you spread things out and know just where to find the right piece of paper at the right time." "I hate having you stare at me when I work." Heero slapped Duo's hand away from the autopsy report. "I know." Un-offended, Duo grinned. He leaned in a little closer. There was something in Duo's eyes besides humor, Heero noted. He wasn't sure if he'd ever seen desire and amusement merged in the same expression before. And Heero certainly hadn't realized how the combination could make his blood hum. "You look very sexy plowing your way through all this, gun strapped to your side, hair all messed up from raking your fingers though it. That keen, dangerous look in you eyes." Mortified, Heero shifted in his chair. "Cut it out, Maxwell." "I like the way your eyes get all dark and intense when you're taking down some important tidbit of information over the phone." "For all you know, that was my dry cleaner." "Uh-huh." Duo took Heero's coffee to wash down the last bite of candy bar. "Tell me something, Hee-ro. Are you annoyed that I'm here, or are you nervous that I'm here?" "Both." Heero rose. There must be something he had to do someplace else. "That's what I thought." Duo hooked a finger around the strap of Heero's holster. He wasn't afraid of the gun Heero wore. In fact, Duo was counting on talking Heero into letting him hold it one day. So that he could see how if felt. How he felt when he was forced to draw it. "You know, you haven't even kissed me." "I'm not going to kiss you. Here." Duo lifted his eyes, slowly. There was a definite dare in them. "Why not, everyone thinks I'm 'Miss Duo Maxwell,' here." "Because the next time I kiss you…" watching Duo, Heero slid a hand around his throat, his thumb caressing Duo's collarbone, until his cocky smile faded away. "…really kiss you, it's just going to be you and me. Alone. And I'm going to keep right on kissing you, and all sorts of other things, until there aren't any more rules. Any more reasons." Was that was he wanted? Duo thought it was. Right now, when his skin was humming where Heero's fingers lay, Duo thought it was exactly what he wanted. But there was something else, some complex mixture of yearning and fear, so unfamiliar it caused Duo to step back. "What's wrong, Maxwell?" Delighted by Duo's reaction, Heero let his hand slid down Duo's shoulder and away. "Who's making who nervous now?" "We're supposed to be working," Duo reminded him. "Not making each other nervous." "Today, when I go off the clock, so do you." "Yuy." Heero's eyes stayed on Duo's face for another moment before flicking behind him. "Captain." "Sorry to interrupt your social hour," he said sourly. "I need that report." "Right here." Even as Heero was turning to reach for it, Duo was offering his hand to Trilwalter. "Captain, it's so nice to meet you. I'm Duo Maxwell. I wanted to let you know how much I appreciate the department's cooperation today." Trilwalter scowled at Duo a moment, then, remembering, stifled a sigh. "Right. You're the writer." A sneer twisted his mouth. "Soap operas." "Yes. I am." Duo's smile made the fluorescents overhead dim. "I wonder…if I can have just a moment of your time? I know you're very busy, so I won't keep you." Trilwalter didn't want any part of Duo. Heero knew it, Duo knew it, and so did any of the cops hovering close enough to hear. But riding a desk had taught Trilwalter that diplomacy was often his only weapon. Besides, once he had made his feelings known, Duo would be out of his hair and off finding another precinct to haunt. "Why don't you come into my office, Ms. Maxwell?" "Thank you." Duo shot a grin over his shoulder at Heero as he followed Trilwalter. "You going to let Duo go in there alone?" Quatre murmured. "Yeah." Heero bit back a chuckle as he heard the glass of Trilwalter's door rattle. "Oh, yeah. And I'm going to enjoy it." Ten minutes later, Heero was surprised by a burst of laughter. Swiveling in his chair, Heero spotted Trilwalter leading Duo out of his office door. The two of them were chuckling together like two old friends over a private joke. "I'm going to remember that one, Duo." "Just don't tell the mayor where you heard it." "I know how to respect a source." Still smiling, Trilwalter glanced over at the slack-jawed Heero. "Detective, you take care of Ms. Maxell. Make sure she gets what she needs." "Sir." Heero cut his eyes over to Duo. He merely batted his lashes, managing to look about as innocent as a smoking gun. "I have every intention of making certain Ms. Maxwell gets exactly what she needs." Duo laid his hand on Trilwalter's "Thank you again, Donald." "My pleasure. Don't be a stranger." "Donald?" Heero said, the moment the captain was out of earshot. "Yes." Duo made a production of brushing dust from his sleeve. "That is his name." "We use several names for him around here. What the hell did you do in there?" "Why, we chatted. What else?" Glancing over his shoulder, Heero noted money changing hands. The odds had been even that Trilwalter would chew Duo up, then spit him out, within ten minutes. Since he'd lost twenty on the deal himself, Heero wasn't particularly pleased. "Sit down and be quiet," Heero told him. "I've got work." "Of course." Before Duo could take his seat, Heero's phone rang. "Yuy. Yeah." Heero listened a moment, then pulled out his notepad to scribble. "I hear you. You know how it works, Boomer. It depends on what it's worth." Nodding to himself, Heero replaced the pad. "Yeah, we'll talk. I'll be there. In ten." When Heero hung up the phone and grabbed for his jacket, Duo was right behind him. "What is it?" "I've got someplace to go. Quatre, let's hit it." "I'm going with you." Heero didn't even glance back as he started out. He was already working on tucking Duo into some far corner of his mind. "Forget it." "I'm going with you," Duo repeated, and snagged Heero's arm. "That's the deal." It surprised Heero when he tried to shake off Duo and he wouldn't shake. Duo had a good grip, Heero noted. "I didn't make any deal." He could be just as tough and cold-blooded as Heero, he thought. Duo planted his feet, angled his chin. "Your captain did. I ride with you , Detective, wherever you may be going. A day in the life, remember?" "Fine." Frustration vibrated though Heero as he stared Duo down. "You ride-and you stay in the car. No way you're scaring off my snitch." "Want me to drive?" Quatre offered as they headed down the steps to the garage. "No." Heero's answer was flat and left no room for argument. Quatre sent Duo a good-natured shrug. Then, because Heero made no move to do so, Quatre opened the back door of their nondescript unmarked car for Duo. "Where are we going?" Duo asked, determined to be pleasant. "To talk to the scum of the earth," Heero shot back as he pulled out of the garage. "Sounds fascinating," Duo said, and meant it.
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