Fooling Around In Boats by Rita

"Well, what do you think?"

Chris Larabee asked with a bit of pride as he lowered his expensive canvas duffel to the wooden deck.

Vin Tanner slung his shabby military knapsack off one shoulder slowly, looking around at the obviously expensive boat. Almost reluctant to settle down too quickly on a trip he hadn't even wanted to go on. He shuffled his feet slightly, as if testing the sway of the deck beneath him. It had been a very long time since he'd been on the water and it certainly hadn't been on anything this small or this nice. The boat was only swaying gently as it was still tied off.

Larabee snorted gently at Tanner's hesitation.

"Did you take the motion sickness pills?"

"Yes."

Tanner was lying. He'd never suffered from motion sickness in his life but that had been one of the many excuses he'd used to avoid this trip. Both men stowed their gear, along with the provisions they'd brought along, and Chris began to check over the boat. He wanted to make sure the old college friend who'd offered him the use of his boat for the weekend had been truthful when he'd remarked that it would be ready to go anytime they arrived.

"So, what now?"

Larabee noted Tanner's still obvious reluctance to move away from the other boats in the crowded marina, almost as if he didn't want to be alone with Chris.

"Well, we'll have to motor out of the marina and the harbor," Larabee explained. "It's too difficult to maneuver with sails here. But once we're in the bay..." Chris's grin widened at the prospect of feeling the sails fill with wind and being able to move quietly and freely.

"I've seen boats sailin' right up to a dock," Vin argued, fixing on the discrepancy to distract himself from his feelings of unease.

Chris merely looked amused at Vin's unfamiliarity. "I'm sure you have...in movies but that's not how it's done in real life. Taking a boat out or in under sail, even one this size, straight up to a dock or a marina can be a dangerous thing to do. Even as good as I am, I'm not going to risk it."

Vin threw Chris a glance at the good as I am remark. He would have taken offense at it, but he knew that Chris didn't mean to point out that his had been a life of privilege. Just that he was confident in his abilities.

"Well, just so long as you really know what you're doin'." Vin pushed his hair out of his eyes and retrieved his sunglasses. The rays of light glinting off the water made them a necessity. Chris had warned him to bring them along. Chris had put his on as soon as they'd gotten out of the rental car.

"I'll teach you everything you need to know, Vin." Chris promised as Vin gave him a jaundiced look.

"You'll like it, Vin. I promise. There's nothing, absolutely nothing, so much worth doing as simply fooling around in boats."

Vin almost flinched at the words, then realized that he shouldn't take everything Chris said as having a double meaning.

"Is that another one of the quotes you're always pullin' on me?"

"Yep. But I can't remember the source. Come on. Let's get under way."

Tanner was as nervous as a cat about the prospect of being alone with Chris on the boat out of sight of land. He repeatedly went over all the reasons he'd tried to turn down Chris's invitation to celebrate the successful closing of a particularly long and difficult case. He'd used every excuse he could come up with, even lying about being prone to motion sickness, but Chris had persisted and he'd finally given in.

He settled himself into the co-pilot's seat as Chris instructed watching as his boss...his boss...he firmly reminded himself, started the engines and got the Maverick slowly underway.

Chris had explained all the things required to get a boat such as this one ready for sail last night as they'd shared drinks with the rest of the team. He'd told him about everything from maintenance to simple provisioning and Vin had been tired just listening to the seemingly never-ending list. Then with an unholy grin of glee, Chris had informed him that he'd had a service crew from the marina do all the work ahead of time. Vin had considered shooting him right then.

The evening had ended with everyone going off for they own well-planned long weekend, with Buck and J.D. even eyeing Vin a bit enviously that he had gotten the invitation from Chris instead of them. Josiah, Nathan and Ezra didn't seem to mind a bit. In one way, Vin was glad that Chris had chosen him to come. The invitation had been completely unexpected. Why hadn't Chris asked Mary Travis or one of the girls from the office building who were always making their interest known? But still, they'd been through some harrowing cases lately with little time to relax and the senior agent had promised him that a long weekend in the sun would be good for them both.

So, here he was. More out of curiosity than any real desire to be onboard a ship out on the uncertain waters. Chris had spoken several times of his passion for sailing but the responsibilities of his job left him little time. As he relaxed and watched Chris work the boat, even helping with the detailed instructions, he began to see the charm of being here and his infatuation with it. Both Chris and the boat were in their own way thoroughbreds.

The wind died late that afternoon. In the dead calm with nothing else to do, Chris stated his intention of shortening sail and doing some serious sunbathing. Vin followed suit. Actually, Vin wore his bathing suit. Chris unselfconsciously dropped his shorts and merely covered his more delicate areas with a towel from the bathroom. A hand towel, Vin noted.

Vin grabbed one of the magazines he'd purchased in the airport and began to look over an article wherein the author vented his fervent dislike for automatics over revolvers. The sun did feel good, baking out the memories of too many close calls during the last few weeks and easing the stiffness of some of the bruises he'd taken during the last bust but the combination of the bright sunlight and the fine print of the magazine threatened to give him a headache. Glancing at Chris, he seemed to already be dozing so Vin discarded the magazine and allowed his mind to wander. Unfortunately, the direction his mind took was somewhere it shouldn't be and he'd almost decided to give up and go inside until the wind picked up again as Chris had assured him it would when he was startled by the sound of motors.

Both agents were on their feet instantly and Chris pulled his shorts on revealing that he'd laid his gun casually under the cushion where he'd been resting his head. Vin had secreted his SIG under another magazine.

Two motorboats roared by, then as they realized the sailboat was becalmed, instantly swerved away so that their wake wouldn't hit the boat too hard. The boats were piloted by a young man and a girl who waved apologetically before moving off.

Chris turned to see that Vin had been as prepared as he was just in case. They grinned a bit sheepishly at each other, then replaced their weapons but the relaxed mood had been broken.

"Beer?"

Vin nodded and Chris went down the steps to the cabin, returning with two ice-cold bottles. They settled on the bench seats watching as the boats slowly disappeared from view. Chris drank half his beer in one long gulp, then watched as Vin merely sipped his. Then the senior agent eyed the younger man thoughtfully as he slumped a bit on the hard seat, throwing one arm over his eyes. Chris cleared his throat quietly before he spoke.

"You didn't want to be alone with me, did you?"

"What?" Vin sat upright abruptly, almost dropping the slick bottle.

"Why, Vin?"

"I ain't go no idea what you're talkin' about, Larabee. I ain't used to boats and I get sick sometimes and..."

Vin's excuses died as Chris looked at him with what Vin had begun to refer to in his own mind as that look. The one that meant Chris didn't believe a word he was saying. And he sure as hell didn't believe him now.

"Are you afraid of me? Or of you?"

Vin snorted. "I ain't afraid of much of nothin', Larabee. And I sure as hell ain't afraid of you."

Chris's voice softened and he turned towards his partner...his best friend. "Or are you afraid of what might happen if we're alone together?"

"Larabee, I think you've been out in the hot sun way too long. You're imaginin' things."

Without warning, Chris eased his hand behind Vin's head and gently, as though he might bolt from the contact, drew him closer until their lips almost touched. If Vin had resisted in any way, Chris would have stopped instantly but he didn't resist. He didn't really help either, he just went with what Chris started. Until their lips finally touched.

Chris had never kissed a man before and he assumed that Vin hadn't either. Hell, he'd never even considered kissing a man before he met Vin Tanner and the scrawny Texan managed to smart-ass his way into first his heart and now, it seemed, his very soul.

They started slowly, just lightly touching their lips together until Chris grew a bit bolder and began teasing Vin's mouth with his tongue, urging him to open to him. With a soft moan, Vin surrendered to the onslaught causing Chris to moan in return at the soft heat of Vin's mouth and the way he leaned into the contact. Chris broke away first, breathing ragged and face flushed. He couldn't believe that he'd finally done what he'd been day-dreaming about for months. And now he wasn't sure what Vin was going to do. Kick the shit out of him? Resign? Both?

Vin was having a hard time breathing as well. His best friend who also happened to be his direct supervisor, his boss, had just kissed him. And the hell of it was, he'd liked it. More than liked it. And from looking at the state Chris was in, he'd liked it too. What the hell was going on here?

"Look, Vin, if you want to beat the crap out of me, I'll understand. But don't do it right now, okay? Could we just wait until we cool off and maybe get something to eat. And drink. Definitely something to drink."

Vin merely nodded. He didn't trust himself to speak right now. When Chris told him to just stay put that the galley wasn't large enough to two people to work in, he slid back down on the bench. He couldn't have moved from that spot if the boat had been on fire.

"Well, Tanner, if that was the appetizer than I sure as hell can't imagine what dinner is gonna be like."

THE END