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Peter awoke with a start, disoriented for only a brief second
before he realized he was in his own bed. He reached out
for John, but his hands only found an emptiness on the side
of the bed where John should be. Had it all been a dream
then? No, that side of the bed was still warm, so John had
been there.

He could see a soft light from under the door and he realized
that John was out in the living room. He got out of bed and
pulled on his robe, then walked out to look for John. John
was standing by the couch, getting something from his bag.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."

"No problem. We should probably eat dinner anyway. What
time is it?"

"Ten."

"Hungry?" Peter asked as he stepped up behind John and wrapped
his arms around him. It was cold in the room and John should
have had better sense than to be standing there naked.

"I'm starving. Do you have any food that I might find edible?"

Peter nuzzled John's neck, "I think I might have something
you can handle. What's this?" Peter took the prescription
bottle out of John's hand. Isoniazid, usually referred to as
"INH". The most common drug prescribed for tuberculosis
treatment.

"TB?" Peter's stomach tightened with fear as he looked at
John.

"I tested positive for being infected with it. My X-rays
and other tests came out fine, so I don't have full-blown
TB. I just have to take one of these every day for anywhere
from six to nine months and the infection will be gone.
It's no big deal."

"You're sure that you're all right?"

"I'm fine. Really."

"Well, you won't stay fine for long if you stay out here
with no clothes on."

"It's not my fault that you keep your place this cold. Not
that it matters anyway, I'm used to it. It's always freezing
in my room."

"You should talk to Weaver about that. As your landlord,
she has the responsibility of providing you with heat."

"Peter, the thermostat is set at a reasonable temperature.
She can't help it if heat rises. I try to look on the bright
side, this summer, it will be nice and cool down in the
basement."

"Well, it's not summer right now. It's the middle of January
and there's snow on the ground. I want you back in bed."

"I thought you were going to feed me."

"I'll bring it to you. Now, get." Peter pushed John in
the direction of the bedroom, giving in to the impulse to
slap that firm butt.

"Ouch!"

"It didn't hurt that much."

"Oh yeah? Take off that robe and let me slap you on the butt
and we'll see how much it hurts you."

"Can't. I have to fix you something to eat before you starve
to death. Go get warm in bed. I'll bring your medicine in
with your food."

"Yes, Dr. Benton," John replied with a grin.

"Don't get smart with me, John. I just might make you eat
tofu."

"Consider me in bed already." John disappeared into the
bedroom.

Peter smiled and went to the kitchen to prepare something
that both of them would eat. Luckily for John, Carla had
put her foot down regarding Reese's diet so Peter had stocked
up on some non-vegetarian items. He cut up some cheese and
sliced a loaf of French bread, then made open-faced sandwiches
and put them under the broiler. While the cheese melted, he
cut up some apples and pears, then looked in the refrigerator
for something else. If he remembered correctly, John had
a huge appetite. He grinned at that, knowing that John's
appetite for sex was just as huge as the one he had for
food. He saw that he had some ice cream cups left in the
freezer and he grabbed those, then checked on the sandwiches.
When everything was ready, he put it all on a tray, poured
some juice and returned to his bedroom.

John was sitting up in bed, waiting for him. "Hey, that
looks good, but what did you fix for yourself?"

"Very funny, John."

"Who said I was joking?" John asked with a smile.

"Then maybe you won't eat until I'm full."

"I think there's plenty there for the both of us, don't you?"

"I think so." Peter put John's juice on the nightstand, then
placed the tray in the middle of the bed, taking his juice
off of it and putting it on the nightstand on his side of
the bed. Then he shed his robe and crawled under the covers.
John was already trying to eat one of the sandwiches, despite
the fact that it was still too hot to touch.

"You're going to burn yourself, let them cool a little bit."

"Peter, they taste best when they're just out of the oven.
The cheese is all melty and gooey. Here." John held the
bread out and Peter took a tentative bite. It did burn his
mouth slightly, but John was right about how good it tasted.

"Well?" John asked.

"It does taste better when it's fresh from the oven. You
need to take your medicine."

"I haven't forgotten about that. It's just that I can't
take it now."

"Why not?"

John finished his sandwich, "It has to be taken either one
hour before or two hours after eating."

"John, why didn't you say something before?"

"I was going to take it and then come back to bed. But, when
you mentioned eating, I realized that I was really hungry.
I think I can stay awake for two more hours, or I can just
go on and take it now. It won't kill me to take it with a
meal once."

"You shouldn't mess with a prescription like that. You were
prescribed it for a reason and you should follow the
instructions. I don't want you to jeopardize your health."

"I'm not."

"So, how did you find out about it?"

"We did a screening because of all the patients that were
seen after I found that woman who had it. So far, I'm the
only one who has tested positive, probably because I was
standing so close to her."

"What woman?"

"Back when we were treating Corinna Nelson. While Lucy and
I were out looking for the girl's father, I ended up finding
a woman who had full-blown TB. A lot of her neighbors
were infected as well, then there were the ones who just
tested positive for infection, like me."

"I see."

"Are you planning to eat the ice cream?"

"Since there are two cups, I thought we could each have one.
You should have some fruit first."

"You really are a health nut, aren't you?"

"I think that our bodies are important and shouldn't be
sullied by chemicals and other things that are bad for us.
There's nothing wrong with a healthy diet. You might want
to try one sometime."

"I have no problems with my diet. I eat balanced meals
most of the time."

"I don't think huge amounts of caffeine and donuts or bagels
constitute a well balanced diet. You could do better."

"Here, have some fruit." John popped a piece of pear into
Peter's mouth, hoping that Peter would be so busy chewing

that he wouldn't have time to lecture him on nutrition.

Peter chewed quickly while John grinned at him. After he
had swallowed the last of the pear, he tossed a ice cream
cup at John. "Here, eat it. Eat both of them if it will
make you happy."

"Thanks." John happily ripped the lid from the cup,
grabbed a spoon and dug in. "I love chocolate ice cream."

"I would have never noticed that if you didn't bother to
point it out to me."

"Want some?" John extended the spoon toward Peter, who just
shook his head. "Peter, you said before that you wanted some,
now I'm more than willing to share. Open up." The spoon
was almost to Peter's mouth when John turned it over and
the ice cream plopped onto Peter's chest, making him jump.
John slowly smiled, "Oops."

"You did that on purpose," Peter smiled back.

"Me? Are you accusing me of deliberately dropping that on
you? Why on earth would I do a thing like that?"

"Well, if I stretch my imagination a little, I would say
that you did it just so you would have an excuse to lick it
off of me."

John's eyes changed to an even darker brown. It was a color
that Peter had noticed several times during the evening and
he smiled because he knew that John was becoming aroused.
John leaned over and slowly licked the ice cream away,
lingering long enough to tickle Peter's chest with his tongue.

"Is that what you think I wanted to do?" John looked
directly into Peter's eyes, all thoughts of his physical
hunger forgotten. All he could think about was the hunger
he felt for the man beside him.

Peter nodded, "Exactly. So, why don't you just put the ice
cream aside and do what it is you really want to do?"

John put the ice cream and the spoon back on the tray, then
moved the tray to the floor. He grabbed Peter's ankles and
pulled until Peter was flat upon the bed, then he began to
do as Peter suggested. It wasn't that difficult for the two
of them to keep themselves occupied for two hours so that
John could take his medication.

Peter smiled as John snuggled up to him, stifling a
yawn, "Tired?"

John nodded, "A little. I like being here with you."

Peter could feel John's smile against his chest and he
sighed, "I like being here with you, too. When do you have
to be back to work?"

"I'm off all day tomorrow. What about you?"

"Same here. But, I do have to go with Carla and Reese to
see a therapist in the morning. It should only take a few
hours. Will you stay here while I'm gone?"

"Peter, if none of this had happened tonight, would you spend
more time with Reese tomorrow?"

"I really don't know. I always try to spend as much time
with Reese as I can, but there are times when it's easier
said than done. I'd still like to know if you'll be here,
no matter what time I get home."

"I'll stay. I have to go home to do some laundry and pack
some clothes."

"I'll leave you my key then."

"Okay."

Again, Peter could feel his smile. "What's so amusing?"

"I'm just happy, that's all."

"Me, too. But, I'm also sleepy and I have to get up early."

"So go to sleep already."

"I would, but my lover keeps talking to me."

"If I recall correctly, it was you who began this entire
conversation."

"Then I suppose I'll have to be the one to end it as well."
Peter bent his head slightly and kissed John's forehead.
"Goodnight, baby."

"Goodnight."


A gentle kiss on his cheek awoke John, and he opened his
eyes to find Peter sitting on the side of the bed.

"Morning," John said with a yawn.

"Morning. I won't keep you awake for long. I just wanted
to get some of your blood so I can drop it off for testing
on my way to pick up Carla and Reese. Stick out your arm."

John stretched his arm out, wincing slightly as he felt a
sting when the needle pierced his skin. The vial quickly
filled with his blood and Peter removed the needle, then
put a small bandage on the puncture site. He leaned over
and kissed John on the lips.

"I'll see you later. You can go back to sleep now."

"I hope things go well."

"Thanks."

Peter stood and left the room and John fell back to sleep.
When he awoke later in the morning, he was alone. He lay
still, trying to see if he could hear any sound at all in
the apartment, hoping that Peter had not yet left. But,
Peter had said he needed to get up early and it was almost
ten. That certainly wasn't early. Convinced that he was
truly alone, John got out of bed and quickly dressed. He
noticed that Peter had taken the time to remove their dinner
debris from last night. Well, the least he could do was
change the sheets on the bed. He searched the apartment
until he found a linen closet, then made the bed with fresh
sheets. Peter had already cleaned the kitchen, so there
really wasn't anything else that John could do to help out.
He made sure he had Peter's key in his pocket, then he put
on his coat, grabbed his bag and headed home.


Peter had not realized that Carla was talking to him until
she reached out and touched his arm.

"Peter, are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Carla. My mind was just elsewhere."

"I think the therapist will be good for Reese, don't you?"

"She seems to know what she's doing. I'm not sure I'll do
well with the sign language class though."

Carla laughed, "You'll do just fine, Peter. I'm looking
forward to taking lessons. Are you going to ask Elizabeth
if she wants to take lessons too?"

"Why would I do that?"

"The therapist did say that it would be helpful for Reese
if all the people who were going to be around him on a
regular basis knew ASL."

"I'm not seeing Elizabeth anymore. She broke things off
right before Christmas."

"I'm sorry. You never said anything. From the way you
looked this morning, I just assumed that...well, never mind
what I assumed. You should speak with Jackie about this."

"I will. You don't think it's too cold for Reese out here,
do you?"

They were walking through a park, enjoying the fresh air.

Carla shook her head, "No. He seems fine. He likes being
outside. So, who are you seeing that made you look so happy
this morning?"

"Who said I was happy this morning?"

Carla laughed, "Come on, Peter. I know you at least that
well. You were positively glowing when you stopped by to
pick us up for the appointment. Is it anyone I know?"

"It's someone you've met, yes." Peter looked away from Carla,
not wanting to tell her about John, yet knowing she had the
right, as Reese's mother, to know whom he was seeing. "It's
someone that I've loved for a long time now. I just never
had the courage to admit my feelings."

"You've never been very good at showing your feelings, Peter.
I think that Elizabeth had a lot to do with helping you learn
to open up. It's not John Carter, is it?"

Peter faced her, "Why would you ask that?"

"Is it?" She looked serious.

Peter nodded, "Yes. It is."

"I had wondered when you were going to get around to
admitting how you felt about him," she smiled to let him know
that she wasn't upset with him.

"Why would you think it was him?"

"You would whisper his name from time to time while we were
making love. I think you even dreamt about him every so often."

"Oh." Peter looked away from her, feeling guilty and
wondering if he had ever whispered John's name when he was
with anyone else. "Carla, I'm so sorry if I hurt you."

"Peter, you gave me Reese and he's been a most wonderful
gift. I knew that there was never any deep love between us,
even before I got pregnant. I just hope that you have
finally found the love and happiness that you deserve."

"So do I. So, you're cool with this?"

"I don't have a problem with your relationship, but if John
Carter is going to be a part of your and Reese's lives,
then he should learn ASL."

"I'll mention it to him."

"I was going to ask if you wanted to spend the rest of the
day with Reese, but I guess that you have other plans, huh?"


"Yeah, I do. We can take Reese over to the playground. I
think he'd like to play for a little while. I don't have
to hurry back." Peter tried to not feel too guilty about
staying away from home, since he knew that John wasn't
going to sit there alone to wait. John had told him he had
to do laundry at home. He could spend several hours with
his son and probably still get back home before John returned.
And that would include the trip to the hospital to pick up
the lab results from the blood samples he had dropped off
earlier.


Kerry grinned at John as he entered the house. "I was
beginning to think that you had found a new place to live."

"No. I wouldn't just up and move out on you, Dr. Weaver."

"I realize that, Carter. I was joking with you."

He grinned back at her, "I knew that. So, aren't you
working today?"

"I traded shifts with Mark. I'm meeting with the private
detective I told you about."

"The man who is supposed to help you find your birth parents?"

She nodded, "Yes. He has some papers to show me and I need
to give him the rest of the information he requested. I hope
this works out."

"So do I. Well, I need to get a shower and then I have a lot
of laundry to do."

"Okay. He'll be here in a few minutes, so if you hear an
extra voice, you'll know who it is."

"Thanks for the warning." He went on downstairs and got
ready to take his shower. He made a mental note to pack his
shaving kit in case he ended up spending the night with Peter
again. He did have to be to work by six in the morning, and
he hated the idea of having to catch the El all the back to
his place just to shower and shave.

John winced as the droplets of hot water hit his body. He
wasn't used to having someone kiss and nip at him the way
Peter had done last night and he was a little sore. He also
had more than one red mark adorning his body, showing just
how complete Peter's attentions had been. He hoped there
weren't any hickeys on his neck; that would be more than a
little embarrassing. He would have to check on that when
he got out of the shower. He smiled as he washed, remembering
the tender way that Peter had touched him. He found himself
thinking the same thing that Peter had thought last night,
"Why couldn't we have admitted this sooner?" Things would
certainly have been a lot different, that was for sure.
Peter wouldn't have Reese and John wouldn't have had to
nurse a broken heart after Anna returned to Philadelphia
with her old boyfriend. Life was too full of the "What
ifs?", that was for sure. Satisfied that he was as clean
as he was going to get, John then quickly washed his hair,
then got out of the shower. He wanted to hurry and get
his laundry done so that he could be back to Peter's
apartment before Peter returned. He was more than anxious
to find out what Peter had in store for him tonight. Or
maybe even that afternoon. As he dressed, he examined his
body in the mirror, but all of the signs of Peter's loving
were below the collar line, so he was safe from hospital
gossip for now.

Once dressed, he made short work of the laundry, taking
chances with mixing some of his colors and hoping that
nothing would bleed. He missed being able to afford using
the cleaners all the time, but he was getting used to doing
his own laundry and hadn't messed anything up in a long
time. This time he lucked out and everything turned out
okay. Unfortunately, despite the good time he had made with
his laundry, it was the beginning of rush hour when he left
the house and he had to stand the entire trip on the one
that he managed to squeeze onto. In order to get back to
Peter's place, John had to change trains, and he barely
missed the train that would take him to Peter's. By the
time he finally arrived at the apartment, a sullen lover
greeted him in the hallway.

"When I gave you my key it was with the assumption that
you would be back here first." Peter held out his hand for
the key and John gave it to him.

"I'm sorry. I tried to get here but I missed a train
connection. Have you been waiting long?" John followed
Peter into the apartment and shut and locked the door.

"Ten minutes. Why didn't you drive over here?"

"I don't have a vehicle anymore. I thought you would
have heard about that." John dropped his bag on the
floor beside the couch, then sat down.

"No. Tell me about it now."

"It was burned the day Lucy and I were looking for Corinna
Nelson's father."

Peter sat down on the couch beside him, "It seems to me
that a lot of bad things happened to you that day. You were
exposed to TB, you dislocated your shoulder, and now you're
telling me that you lost your Jeep. Did anything else happen
that I should know about?"

John shook his head, "That's about it. But, I think that's
more than enough, don't you?"

"More than enough. So, didn't the insurance company cover
the loss?"

John nodded, "Oh sure. There was excellent coverage on the
Jeep. The only problem is that my grandparents gave the
Jeep to me when I graduated from college and they put it in
the name of the company for tax purposes or something like
that. So, the company got a nice check, but grandfather
refuses to give me the money because he feels I was acting
irresponsibly the night it was destroyed. He's also still
upset with me because I won't give up medicine to work for
him."

"That doesn't sound fair."

"My grandparents don't play fair, Peter. My grandmother was
donating money to Carol Hathaway's clinic and Carol came to
me one day because Gamma had put a stop on one of the checks.
Gamma did that to make me come to her so she could attempt
to coerce me into working for the company. When I turned her
down she made some comment about me enjoying the rewards of
the company, meaning my trust fund, but not ever wanting to
be responsible to the family or the company. I told her if
she felt that way then she could keep the trust fund. She
knew I didn't care about the money, but used it anyway to
try to get me to do what she wanted. Although, there are
some times when I think that she really did want me to give
up the trust fund and not give up being a doctor."

"I don't think I like your family very much, John."

John laughed, "Sometimes, I don't think I like us very much
either. But, they are the only family I have, so I'm stuck
with them. So, how did things go with the therapist?"

"Good. They went well. She's also deaf and it looks as if
we'll all benefit from having her teach us sign language.
I think it would be a good idea if you also learned it.
There is a very real possibility that you'll be around Reese
on a regular basis, so you should be able to communicate
with him."

John's eyes grew big, "Really? You want me around that much?"

Peter slowly nodded, "I thought I had made it clear to you
that I loved you. Yes, I want you around that much, John.
I also told Carla about us."

John's cheeks immediately reddened, "You didn't? You couldn't.
Please tell me that you didn't?"

"I did. John, I have nothing to be embarrassed about. I
love you. As the mother of my child, Carla has the right
to know whom I'm involved with, especially if it's going to
be a long-term relationship."

"I agree with you about that. It's just...well, it's just
embarrassing to know that she knows."

Peter decided that it would be best to avoid embarrassing
John even further and not tell him that Carla had already
known how he had felt and how it was that she knew.

"She doesn't have a problem with it and she likes you,"
Peter said.

"I suppose I can learn to live with the fact that she
knows." John looked away from Peter and began to pick at
a string hanging from the edge of the cushion. "Peter,
would you consider right now to be close enough to tonight
for us to, um, for you to show me more?"

Peter grinned, "I was just thinking about that very thing.
Yes, John. Right now is close enough. Come on. This time,
I'm going to take my time undressing you." They went into
the bedroom and the next lesson began.

Before Peter could even close the bedroom door, John had
begun to unbutton his shirt. Peter stepped up from behind
and reached around his body, trapping John's hands.

"I want to do that for you," Peter said.

John let his hands drop to his side as Peter pulled the
fabric out from his waistband and continued to unbutton the
shirt. As soon as the shirt was open, Peter's hands began
to roam over John's belly and chest, caressing and lightly
scratching the skin. John leaned back against his lover,
feeling Peter's erection against him. With a smile playing
over his lips, John reached back and ran his hand up and
down the length of Peter's penis.

Peter pulled his body away. "Not so fast, John. I'm the
one in charge here right now. Your turn will come later."

"I thought it was my turn to come now," John grinned.

Peter's answer was to move his hands to John's nipples,
pinching them both at the same time with the thumb and
forefinger of each hand. A warm sensation radiated from
John's nipples, flowing down until it centered itself in
his groin. His erection was pressed tight against his
pants and he wanted Peter to unzip him and give him some
release. Peter had other things on his mind. He walked
around to stand in front of John, then pulled John toward
him and lowered his mouth to John's chest, taking an erect
bud into his mouth and sucking hungrily. John grabbed Peter's
shoulders, holding him in place. Peter responded by grabbing
John's hands again and pulling them down while he switched
his attention to the other nipple. Peter finally stepped
back and slipped the shirt off John's shoulders, letting
it fall to the floor. He ran his fingers along the reddened
evidence of their previous lovemaking.

"I think I got a little carried away with you," he murmured.

"It's not so bad."

"I'll try to be a little more careful tonight." Peter
unbuckled the belt at John's waist, then undid the button
of the fly and slowly unzipped the pants. Hooking the
waistbands of John's boxers and pants with his thumbs, Peter
slowly sank to his knees, pulling them down at the same time.

Peter sat back on his haunches as he gazed upon John.
Reaching out, he lightly caressed the skin on John's inner
thighs before moving his hands higher and capturing his
penis and scrotum. John gasped as Peter tightly gripped
his shaft. This was what he wanted, he thought, then he
amended that; what he really wanted was to have Peter's
mouth on him.

"Tell me what you're thinking," Peter said, smiling.

John looked down, brown eyes making contact with brown eyes,
both pairs even darker than normal due entirely to the
presence of the other man. "I want to feel your mouth on me."

"I'd like that." Peter raised up on his knees and began to
slowly lick his way up the shaft. "Is this what you had
in mind?"

"God, yes," he gasped. "I like that."

"Do you like this?" Peter sucked on the taut skin of the
underside of the shaft.

John closed his eyes. Did he like that? What kind of a
question was that? Hell, yes, he liked that. He tried to
answer Peter, but his lover now had his balls in his mouth
and was sucking on them. When John finally felt cool air
against them, he looked down to see that Peter was getting
ready to take the head of his penis into his mouth.

"Peter, you forgot the condom," John said.

Peter shook his head, "I didn't forget it. We don't need it.
We both tested negative for everything."

"Really? For everything?"

"For everything." Peter closed his mouth over the head,
sucking softly, then sliding his mouth lower and pressing
his tongue firmly against the shaft before he slid his mouth
back upward to tease the ridge around the head with his
tongue. He swirled his tongue around the head, nipping the
ridge with his teeth - hard enough to be felt, but gentle
enough not to hurt. He was also busy with his hands. With
one hand, he was gently kneading John's balls and with the
other, he was lightly caressing John's butt, an action which
also helped to hold John in one place. Peter kept playing
with John until he felt it was time for John to get his first
taste of anal pleasure. As Peter lowered his head as far as
he could on John's penis, he managed to get his index finger
into his mouth as well and before the spit could dry, he
had the finger in place. Sucking hungrily on John, Peter
slowly inserted the tip of his finger inside his lover.

John gasped as he felt Peter's finger enter him and he
practically whimpered as the finger made contact with his
prostate. When he had been dating Liz during his surgical
rotation, she had introduced him to anal penetration. He
was surprised that he had forgotten how good it could feel,
or maybe he had forced the pleasant memories from his mind
because to acknowledge that pleasure would lead him to
wonder even more if he would ever get that kind of pleasure
from Peter. Well, now he knew the answer to that. With
what Peter was doing to him, it was impossible to think, so
John finally gave up entirely on that idea and just let
himself feel.

Peter could tell that John was getting close to climaxing
and he didn't want that happening - yet. He pulled his
finger out and once again John made that unusual whimpering
sound, followed by a soft "no" as Peter removed his mouth
from his penis and stood to kiss him. As their kiss ended,
Peter pulled John around and pushed him down on the bed.
He then removed John's shoes and socks, then pulled his
clothes off.

"Roll over and I'll give you a massage," Peter said.

John rolled onto his stomach and let out a long sigh as
Peter straddled his hips and began to knead the muscles at
the back of his neck. "That feels really nice."

"I thought it would. You looked tense."

"Fighting the rush hour commuters can do that to a person."

John closed his eyes and relaxed as Peter worked his hands
over his back. Despite that fact that this was not a
sensual massage, John's erection never abated. If anything,
he felt harder than before. He briefly thought about
asking Peter to just go on and make him come, but he didn't
want to sound as if he was begging for release. If Peter
could handle going a long time without relief, then so could he.

"Roll over," Peter's voice was husky as he lifted himself
off of John's legs.

John rolled over and Peter straddled his hips once more as
he began to softly stroke the front of his body. Peter had
to keep telling himself to keep away from the obvious
erogenous zones, namely John's nipples and penis. He smiled
as the thought occurred to him that previous experience had
shown him that every inch of John's body was an erogenous
zone for him.

"What's so amusing?" John asked.

"Nothing." Peter shifted lower on John's body and moved his
hands to his legs, caressing the muscles of his thighs and
legs. "Feeling relaxed?"

"Oh yeah. Very relaxed."

"It looks as if one part of your body wants to make a liar
out of you," Peter said as he ran his finger up the length
of John's penis.

"That's because you haven't massaged that part yet."

"Is that a fact? I can't believe that I would accidentally
miss such an obviously tense body part."

"Well, you did."

"So it seems." Peter tightly grasped the shaft of John's
penis and rubbed the tip with his thumb, grinning as that
made John moan softly. Without warning, he lowered his mouth
upon the swollen organ, sucking greedily.

John grabbed the bedspread with his hands, holding on tightly
as Peter attacked him with his mouth. He found himself
thrusting upward, wanting even more contact with Peter.
Wanting, needing release.

"Don't stop, please don't stop this time," John begged in a
whisper.

Peter's answer was to once more insert his finger into John's
anus as he sucked on him. Again, there was that whimper,
quickly followed by another as Peter slowly began to move his
finger in and out, making sure that each inward stroke pushed
against the prostate. Peter glanced up and saw that John
was having a difficult time keeping still. The bedspread was
being pulled toward him as he held it in a death grip with
each hand. Eyes closed, John was moving his head from side
to side and his entire body was quivering. John's thrusts
were becoming even more pronounced as he neared his climax
and Peter briefly entertained the thought of stopping right
then and letting a few minutes pass before allowing that.
The brief thought went right out the window as John began to
come with a strangled cry. Peter kept sucking and swallowing,
taking in all that John gave him, savoring the taste of the
younger man. John tasted as good as Peter had imagined he
would and he lingered over John's penis, sucking on him long
after he was spent.

Finally, Peter lay down on top of John and kissed him on the
mouth. John's lips parted and he eagerly pulled Peter's tongue
into his own mouth, sucking hungrily on it before allowing
Peter free reign in there.

Peter broke off the kiss, grinning.

"What's so funny now?"

"I made you scream."

"Did not."

"I did, too. You screamed."

"That was not a scream. And even if it was, it doesn't count
because you only said that you would try to make me scream
last night."

"I don't recall putting a time limit on that."

"It doesn't matter. I didn't scream," John was practically
pouting now.

"Then I guess I'll just have to keep working on you until you
do scream."

Without further word, Peter was off of John and out the door
of the bedroom. John lifted his head to watch him leave, then
let it drop back to the bed. That had been incredible and
John reasoned that if Peter's finger had felt that good inside
of him, then Peter's penis would feel even better.

"Now who's smiling?" Peter asked as he returned to the bedroom.

"I was just anticipating what it will be like when...well,
when you actually enter me." John hoped he didn't look as
embarrassed as he felt.

"They say that anticipation makes things even better. And
you will have quite a long time to anticipate that particular
activity. I told you yesterday that I want to take my time
with you and get you used to anal penetration before we "go
all the way" so to say."

"I don't need to get used to anal penetration. Been there
already."

"I don't think my finger counts. That's why I bought a few
things this afternoon."

John raised up on one elbow as Peter stood beside the bed
and emptied the bag that he had brought in from the living
room. John had noticed that Peter had a shopping bag when he
had arrived, but he had assumed it had held something for
Reese. "You spent a lot of money somewhere," John commented.

"It will be worth it. Believe me."

"Oh, I do. This is familiar." John picked up a very thin
vibrator. "Very familiar. I like this."

Peter's eyes narrowed, "You told me that you had never been
with another man before, so how would you know what that
feels like?"

"I had a girlfriend once who liked to use one on me. She was
pretty wild as far as sex went. That's what I meant about
already being used to anal penetration."

"That must have been that doctor groupie who gave you the
sexually transmitted disease. Or was it Harper Tracy?"

"It was Liz and you don't have to make her sound as if she
was some type of slut."

"John, that's exactly what she was and you know it."

Deciding to avoid a fight, especially since fighting with
Peter might mean that he wouldn't be allowed to spend the
night, John reached over and picked up a tube of lubricant.
"Vegetable oil works just as well you know."

"If you're going to criticize everything I buy, then next
time, you can do the shopping."

John grinned and dropped the lubricant. "I like everything
that you've bought, but I really don't see any need for the
other, uh, toys right now. I want you."

"We've already discussed that, John. I don't want for your first
time to be painful or to hurt you in any other way."

"We didn't discuss anything. You told me what you wanted.
Well, now I'm telling you what I want." John stood and
pulled Peter to him, kissing him hungrily while his hands
were busy at the waist of Peter's pants. In seconds he
had his hand on Peter's penis, stroking it longingly before
falling to his knees and taking it into his mouth. He was
as unmerciful to Peter as Peter had been to him, maybe even
more so, because just as he sensed Peter's body beginning to
tense as he neared climax, he stopped and stood.

"If you want any kind of release, then it will have to be
found inside me, Peter." With that, John turned his back
on Peter and pulled back the covers of the bed, then climbed
into the bed to wait for Peter.

Peter stood there, knowing that he had been beaten on this
round. He quickly stripped, then grabbed the lubricant
from the foot of the bed and got into bed with John. "Roll
over onto your stomach. It's one of the easiest ways for
the first time."

"One of the easiest ways, huh? What's the other way?"

"For you to be on top."

John smiled, "That sounds nice."

"I'm giving into your demands this far, don't push your
luck, okay."

"Don't you want to look at me while we do this?"

"Yes, I do. But, I don't know exactly how that will work,
so we'll do it the way I know."

"Peter, figuring it out will be half the fun. First, we
start with you on your back." John sat up and pushed Peter
down onto his back, then he straddled his hips and leaned
down to tease a dark nipple with his teeth. "I'm sure that
we'll find a way to get what we both want."

Peter remained silent as John's mouth toyed with him, then
John feathered kisses along his neck. "I'm as ready as
I'll ever be and I think you'll burst if you get any more
ready," John said.

Peter nodded as John sat up, then he opened the lubricant
and squeezed out a large amount onto his fingers. "Raise
up some so I can reach you."

John lifted up and squealed as Peter worked the lubricant
around and into his anus. "That's cold."

"Sorry. You'll be warm soon enough." Peter applied even
more lubricant to John, then generously coated his own
penis. "Are you sure you're ready for this?"

"Peter, I've been ready for this for a long time. Now take
me," John demanded.

Peter nodded and held his penis upright as John slowly
lowered his body down onto it. "Not too fast at first.
Stop after you take the head...damn, that feels good!" Peter
exclaimed as John took it all in at one time. It was
apparent that John was going to do this his own way or no
way at all. He looked up at John to see if he was all right.
John's eyes were tightly closed and Peter couldn't tell if
the look on his face was one of pain or extreme pleasure.

"John?" he whispered.

"Yeah?" John's voice trembled.

"You okay?"

A million thoughts were running through John's head. Was he
okay? Taking Peter inside of him at once had not been the
brightest thing he had ever done. The stinging pain had
brought tears to his eyes, but he had experienced worse pain.
Having Lucy do a shoulder reduction on him without the
benefit of painkillers when he had been stupid enough to
dislocate his shoulder - that had been pain. Bad pain.
This was a good pain because the feelings that came after
it were ones that he had never felt before. Peter's penis
was pressing tightly against his prostate and the sensations
created by that were indescribable. Was he okay? This was
what he had dreamt of all these years. Peter Benton had
now claimed him as his own and it was a claiming that John
never wanted to end.

"I am wonderfully fine, Peter. Now what? Which one of us
moves first?"

"Well, if I say that you do, then you'll make me go first
and if I say that I do, then you'll go first. But, one of
us needs to do something or we'll be sitting here like
this all night."

"And just how is that bad?" John opened his eyes and looked
down at Peter, thinking that having Peter in him all night
would be quite nice indeed.

"I don't know, but I'm sure there's a reason.." Peter
gasped, then continued, "Oh, God, John, you should at least
warn me before you decide to do something." While Peter had
been busy talking, John had decided to go first and was now
slowly moving up and down on Peter.

"If you don't like it, I can always stop."

"Don't you dare stop now." Peter was now thrusting in
counter-point to John's movements. John was tight and warm
and enthusiastic. Peter reached up and pulled John's upper
body down so that he could kiss him and he found himself
surrendering his mouth to John's thrusting tongue. Since
their mouths were otherwise engaged, Peter wasn't able to
hear John's soft moans, but he felt them against his lips.
Their coupling grew more frantic and Peter could feel John's
erection pressing against his belly. He reached for it,
encasing it with his hand and stroking it fast and hard.
Since he had been so ready for John, he was quite surprised
when John violently came first, his warm semen coating both of
their bodies.

Peter could feel John's breath, hot and fast, against his
throat and he stopped what he was doing in order to give
the shuddering man time to recover from his orgasm.

"Oh, God, Peter, don't stop now. Please don't leave me
like this," John begged.

"I thought you wanted me in you all night long?"

John groaned, then sat upright, looking down at Peter,
his face flushed and his eyes bright. Despite how good it
felt to have Peter in him, he wanted Peter to climax, and he
wanted to see Peter's face when he did. He raised up slightly,
resuming their lovemaking. A shiver ran up his spine as Peter
gently caressed his hips, then he also began to thrust into him
once more, the thrusting becoming more urgent as he sought
release. Peter cried out loud as he found that sweet release,
shooting load after load of his own semen into John's body.
When he was spent, John lay still on top of him, trying to keep
from moving so that Peter wouldn't slip out.

"Now, that was a scream," John whispered as he nuzzled Peter's neck.

"That was not a scream."

"That was a lot closer to a scream then the noise I made,"
John grinned.

Peter shook his head, "Nope. You screamed."

"Well, I guess we need to recreate this entire evening just
to see which one of us is correct."

"I can live with that. But, I think we should shower and
eat first."

"That sounds good." John slowly lifted his body off of Peter's,
making a face as he straightened out his legs. "Man, I don't
think I ever appreciated the muscle aches that women have gone
through in order to be on top like that."

Peter glanced down at himself, relieved to see that there was
no evidence of blood on his penis. Hopefully that also meant
that he had not bruised John.

"Are you showering with me?" John asked.

"Of course." Peter got off the bed and they went into the
bathroom where John proceeded to show Peter that he was just
as good at performing oral sex on him in the shower as he
had been in the bed.


The next morning, Peter was smiling happily as he scrubbed
for surgery. The night and afternoon before had not gone
according to his plans, but had turned out very well anyway.
John was a passionate, sensual and caring lover who wasn't
afraid to go after what he wanted when he wanted it. Peter
had wanted to take his time with John so that he wouldn't
physically hurt him in any way. John had decided that having
Peter inside him was what he wanted and he wasn't going to let
Peter's arguments get in the way of his desires. Not that
Peter was complaining. As far as he was concerned, John
could be stubborn like that all he pleased. Perhaps the best
part had been later in the evening, long after they had eaten
dinner. Once they had showered and prepared dinner, they
had lingered over dinner, talking. Peter had then demonstrated
some sign language to John and the next thing they knew, it
was ten o'clock. Peter made sure that John took his medicine,
then they got ready for bed. Again, John had been demanding,
insisting on performing oral sex on Peter until he came,
then allowing Peter to have his way. They ended the evening
with John on his stomach and Peter entering him once again.
Peter had taken his time, making his strokes long and easy.
He came a long time before John did, though and he offered
to perform oral sex on John once more. John had refused,
insisting that Peter remain right where he was while he used
his hand. Peter reached around and brought John to climax
that way, resting against his lover's back. It didn't take
long for John to come, and afterward, he snuggled backward
against Peter, holding Peter's arm against his body.

"Can't we just lay like this for a little while?" John asked.

Even though he wasn't erect, it still felt nice to be inside
of John, so Peter said yes. What he hadn't counted on was
falling asleep. When the alarm went off at five, he awoke to
find himself still inside John. As John slowly awakened, he
realized that Peter was still in position and he wiggled his
butt against Peter, giving him an obvious invitation to take
him once more. Peter found himself instantly hard and he
didn't need much persuading to take make love to John once
again. Afterward, it was his turn to prove to John that he
could perform oral sex just as well in the shower as he
could in bed.

"I think someone had a good day off from work." Lucy Knight
said to Elizabeth Corday as they began to scrub in.

Elizabeth eyed Peter carefully, then smiled, "He looks like
the cat that ate the canary, only he isn't feeling the least
bit guilty about it."

"So, Dr. Benton, did you have fun yesterday?" Lucy asked.

Peter nodded, "I most certainly did. Did you have a good
time on your day off?"

"It was okay. There was a movie that I wanted to go see
and I called Dr. Carter to see if he would go with me, but
he wasn't home. I ended up going with Dale Edson instead.
I just don't understand men, I thought that Dr. Carter
liked me. I mean, we've been out a few times and we've
even kissed. He told me that he would be home all day
yesterday and that he would be available to go out if I
wanted to do something. So, why wasn't he home? At the
very least, he could have called me and let me know that
had made other plans." Lucy addressed most of her remarks
to Elizabeth.

"I have no clue as to what makes the male mind tick, Lucy.
Peter, can you enlighten us?"

"Sorry. That would be giving away a highly classified
secret. Maybe John had something unexpected come up."

"Maybe. It had better not be his old girlfriend. Man, I
hated Roxanne. She was so clingy and whining all the time."

"You can always try to figure out some tactful way to ask
Dr. Weaver about his whereabouts," Elizabeth suggested to
Lucy. But, she wasn't looking at the young woman. Her eyes
were on Peter as she tried to figure out if he knew he had
just called Carter "John". Lucy certainly hadn't noticed,
but then again, to the best of Elizabeth's knowledge, Lucy
had never snuggled close to Peter in the night only to have
him whisper "Carter" in her ear. Oh, the first time it had
happened, she had been able to convince herself that he had
said "Corday", despite the fact that Peter never addressed
her by her last name. The second and third times, it had
been clear that it was John Carter who was on Peter's mind.
Knowing that had made it a little easier to bring their
relationship to an end, although she stilled valued Peter's
friendship. If she was right and Peter had spent his time
off with John, then she hoped that he had finally found the
happiness that he so rightly deserved.

Lucy's face brightened, "Yeah, that's not a bad idea. She
would certainly know if Roxanne spent the night there. I
need to know what kind of competition I'm up against.
Thanks, Elizabeth."

"Don't mention it, Lucy. There are times when a woman has
to use all means at her disposal to get her man."

"Hurry up, ladies. We do have a surgery to perform," Peter
growled as he finished rinsing, then he left them alone.

"What happened to his good mood?" Lucy wondered.

"I have no idea. Peter's like that though, one minute he's
in a good mood and the next he's all sour."

"How could you stand it?"

"He was very good in bed."

Lucy blushed, "Oh, I guess that could make a person
tolerate just about anything, couldn't it?"

They laughed and finished scrubbing.


After the surgery, Peter gave Elizabeth and Lucy orders
pertaining to the post-op care of the patient, then he headed
straight for the Emergency Room. He saw John heading for
one of the exam rooms and he grabbed him by the arm and
pulled him into an empty room.

"Peter, I've got a patient waiting."

"Let him wait. We need to talk."

"Okay, we can get together in a little bit. I have a break
coming up soon."

"We need to talk now. Does Kerry Weaver know you were at
my place?"

John's cheeks reddened, "No. There's no way she would know
that. I certainly didn't tell her."

"Good enough. I think that Lucy's going to ask her if you
had any company staying overnight with you. It seems that
you ran out on her and any possible plans she might have
had for a date."

John got even redder, which Peter didn't think would have
been possible. "Oh, man, I forgot all about that. I did
tell her that I didn't have any plans for my day off. But,
we didn't have a date. Honest, Peter. We've only been out
a few times and that was before I knew how you felt. Honest."

"What about the kiss?" John was so sure that Peter thought
something was going on between him and Lucy that Peter
couldn't resist teasing him.

"You know about the kiss? It didn't mean anything, Peter.
It was just a kiss and some necking, but nothing serious.
I never took her to bed. You have to believe me." John
was nearly frantic.

"Whoa. Calm down, babe. I was just teasing you." Peter
reached out and caressed John's cheek, "Nothing that
happened before matters to me. Do you understand that?
The past is the past. All that matters to me is what's going
on between the two of us now and what will happen to us in
the future."

John barely nodded, "I understand. But, that was a mean
thing to do to me."

"I know. I'm sorry. Here, let me see if I can make you
forget all about it."

Peter leaned forward and captured John's lips with his own,
pushing the younger man back against the door, grateful
that the door in this room opened inward and not out toward
the hallway. John's lips parted, giving him permission to
enter, which he hungrily did. He loved the way John tasted
and not even coffee or sodas could quite mask that taste.

The kiss slowly ended and Peter asked, "Is that better?"

"Yes," John whispered, his eyes still closed.

"Good," Peter said as he patted John's cheek. "You have a
patient to see."

"A patient?" John vaguely asked, then he remembered he was
at work. "Oh, yes. I have a patient to see. Sixty-five
year old man complaining of stomach pain."

"Do you think you need a surgical consult?"

"I haven't even seen him yet, but hang around just in case.
Do you want to get some coffee later?"

"Page me when you get your break. If I'm not busy, I'll meet
you in the cafeteria."

John nodded, then left the room to go examine his patient.
Peter took a deep breath, then he went out also, but he headed
for the admit desk to see if there were any possible surgical
cases on the board.
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