Title: Damn you! Author: Vibienne Email: vibienne71@hotmail.com Summary: Follmer/Reyes, a dress, and well… Rating: PG Disclaimer: These characters are the property of CC and 1013 Productions. No profit is made. No copyright infringement intended. Feedback: PLEASE. Archive: You want it, you have it. Just let me know. The knock on the door made Monica panic even more. Brad was early. He was never early. For the past 15 minutes she had tried to pull that bloody zipper up. She was invited to a function and luckily Brad had agreed to go with her. Why had she asked HIM, anyway? Why did she even agree to attend in the very first place? And why did she want to wear this dress of all dresses? It was black, it went down to just above her knees, it was tight, hugged her figure perfectly, and two very thin straps let it hang off of her great shoulders. Okay, she knew she looked good… and that was exactly the point! Why could she not resist the urge to get Brad’s attention? It knocked again. “Coming,” Monica shouted from the bedroom and rushed to get the door. Brad was all smiles. “Hi, you’re early. I am not quiet there yet,” she greeted him and hobbled back to the bedroom, holding her dress together at the back with one hand. “Make yourself at home,” she told him. “Take your time, Monica. I am in no hurry to get there.” Yeah, neither was she, really. But one had certain social obligations, and this was definitely one of them. “Oh, come on, Brad. It’ll be fun. They’ll give us good food and free drinks…hopefully.” Monica pulled at the zipper, silently cursing it. “Nice place you have!” Oh, she forgot Brad hadn’t seen her new apartment. “Thanks, I am loving it. It has a nice vibe to it,”…very much unlike this darn dress, she thought. “You remember that place you had in New York? Those God-awful walls in your bedroom…what were they, turquoise?” “Aquamarine, Brad. I am not surprised you remember the bedroom.” She hadn’t finished the sentence when she realized what she was doing. Was she flirting with him? Stop it, stop it, stop it right now! She heard Brad’s voice from the kitchen: “So, why didn’t you ask Mr Doggett to go with you? You two seem inseparable these days.” Ugh- he was such a twat at times. She quickly remembered why she couldn’t ever have a relationship with him. “You know people, Brad. There will be at least a handful of FBI-people there, and just like you, they would start thinking too much, and you know John, it would make him uncomfortable!” “So you ask me.” Was there an element of hurt-feelings in his voice or was she imagining it? “Everyone knows we are old friends, Brad. And what’s wrong with me wanting to spend a nice evening with an old friend? Damn-it!!!” Now she had done it. Jammed the zipper once and for all. It would neither go up nor down, it was well and truly stuck in the middle of her back. And now she didn’t even have the chance to just take off the dress and wear something else. Fine, she’d have to cut herself out of it. Great. This was all just great. Now she was in trouble. She looked at herself in the mirror and shook her head in disbelief when Brad appeared in the doorway. “You alright, Monica?” he asked and his lively eyes looked her up and down. She knew that look. Instantly a huge wave of body memory washed over her. It made her skin tingle. Hadn’t she decided long ago she wouldn’t let him affect her like that any more? Wasn’t she so over him? But he looked so attractive standing there in the dim light of her bedroom door. He looked so good in his suit….had they ever attended a black-tie due together? She couldn’t remember. Goodness he looked hot. The way he studied her…excited her beyond explanation. “My zipper broke,” she whispered at his reflection in the mirror. He grinned in a very smug way and Monica quickly regained her composure. “Just help me, Brad, alright.” He slowly walked towards Monica. “I can’t get this zip anywhere, and I can’t go like this.” She felt like such a fool. For a second she was glad she hadn’t asked John out. She felt Brad put his great hands on her back and she watched him lean down to take a closer look at the task at hand. He looked at that bit of naked back that was exposed. It looked warm and soft, and the smell of her hair and her perfume instantly gave him flashbacks of a lot of naked things that had happened between them in the past. The memory made him want so desperately to rip that dress right off of her. What was it about Monica Reyes he found so utterly irresistible? He had been with so many women. He knew women liked him, and he never made a secret of the fact that he loved them, as well. Yet there was something about Monica he could not quite get over. She was probably the most exciting, dazzling and phenomenally beautiful woman he’d ever met. She had the most gorgeous smile, the greatest mouth; the most beautiful and seductive brown eyes. She had a good heart and a talent to always let it shine through. At the same time she was pure sex. Many times he had tried to intellectualize his feelings for her. The fact that there were real, heartfelt feelings was the extraordinary part about it all. Maybe all those things that had never been said made him come back for more…and this “more” she had refused; from instant they saw each other again. “Stand still, Monica,” he told her and pulled at the zipper, which still wasn’t moving anywhere. She said:”You know, this is quite funny, actually.” The determined look on his face made her laugh. “Oh, I am having a great time,” Brad said quietly with a genuine smile on his face. “You know, if we can’t get that zip moving, you’ll have to cut me out of this dress.” Brad lent into her back a tiny bit more and in a low voice he slowly and softly whispered: “Baby, I would give anything to cut you out of this dress right now.” Monica knew he wasn’t joking. She felt his hot breath on her neck and it sent shockwaves through her body. Her eyes flung shut. All she could think of were their naked bodies, the heat, and their passionate kisses from all those years ago. Why did he still have such power over her? What was it about Brad she found so compelling? Why did it only take that one touch, that one flicker in his eyes? Why would she forgive him all the heartache he had caused her? The term ‘fatal attraction’ sprung to mind. She knew they weren’t for each other…yet the longing for him easily took over; again and again and again. She thought she had gotten so over him. She thought she had grown up. She thought she could look him in the eyes with sincerity and tell him ‘no, there is nothing there anymore, let’s just be friends’. Well, if it wasn’t love then it was that devilish lust which didn’t make anything any easier. He had always known exactly what to do to her. It was lethal. He was lethal: his eyes, his mouth, his hands… Caught in this sudden rush of emotions she pulled his hands around her waist to rest on her stomach. Brad pulled her into a tight embrace, burying his face in her hair. It felt too good to be any sort of good news. How could someone who had left her feeling so alone at times make her feel so good and complete at moments like these? Neither spoke. They just stood there holding each other. Monica was the one to break the silence. “Brad, we need to go.” “Yeah,” he whispered into her hair. Why did things around her get so intense so quickly? “I’ll fix this dress and we can be off. Don’t worry.” He had to admit to himself that he had no idea how to handle the situation. The way she excited him was disturbing. He hadn’t felt like this ever since… she left. “Just bear with me here.” Brad knelt down to inspect the jammed zip. As Monica felt his breath against her skin she decided to just GET OVER IT! “Maybe if I straighten this then I can…” Brad was mumbling to himself when there was a sudden loud zip-sound…and Brad saw he had managed to pull the zipper all the way down; exposing all of her back, as well as her underwear. Brad found himself eye in eye with the tiniest bit of black lace. With so little left to the imagination he jumped to his feet- out of shock or sheer helplessness, he wasn’t sure. He took a few hasty steps into the room…just away from Monica…and buried his face in his hands. “Jesus, Monica. I am so sorry!” He sat down on the edge of the bed, shaking his head. “What are you trying to do to me?” Monica was as shocked as him, but his sudden, unpredicted, boyish, and outright cute reaction made her giggle. And then she laughed out loud. Brad’s face also cracked into an exhausted smile. He tilted his head to look at her, laughed as well, and let himself fall back onto the bed. “You are unbelievable, Monica. I have no words.” The way Brad was half-lying there on her bed…made her feel good. Somehow! She knew she had a lot of affection for him still, she just couldn’t tell him. But it felt good to laugh with him. She had missed that. Unfortunately she felt she couldn’t tell him that, either. She was too afraid he’d say something hurtful. He had always been most hurtful when she had poured her heart out to him. But a lot of water had flown under the bridge, and her feelings for him had changed. They had! Yes, they had, she told herself for the tenth time that evening. She took a few steps towards the bed and sat down next to Brad. “It’s bad enough being in the same room with you at times, Brad. I don’t think we need to embark on any sort of activity in the bedroom…not even DIY.” She gave him one of her most gorgeous and catching smiles, and allowed Brad to take a deep look into her warm, dark and phenomenally beautiful brown eyes. They held each other’s gaze for a while and Brad lifted his hand to touch her naked back. Slowly he traced the fine line of her spine. It still felt so familiar, and since Monica made no attempt to move away from him, he continued. “Did you ever think about me, Monica?” There was no challenge in his voice; just a silent plea for her to tell him, yes, she had. She couldn’t look into his eyes. She knew there was a lot of hurt in hers, but to see a glimpse of heartache and regret in his broke her heart. There had been days when she missed him so much she wished she had never met him in the first place. She had so desperately wanted him to be the person she saw in him. Why, why, why had he always hurt her feelings? There had been times when he was so cold and distant she despised him for it. And then there were times when they were alone together, he took her into his arms and anticipated her every wish. The light in his eyes, and the way he had expressed his insatiable desire for her had always won her over again. And now, years down the line, he was lying on her bed looking as good as ever. It wasn’t fair. “Of course I thought about you, Brad.” He continued his sweet caress and the way he looked at her made her feel quite drunk. She took a very deep breath and told herself to try and think with her head for a second. Seeing how difficult the situation was for her, Brad sat up, got onto his feet and pulled her up into a standing position. “Come here,” he said in a comforting tone and pulled Monica into an embrace. They held each other for a few seconds, separated, and with their faces only inches apart Brad’s hands found the zipper of Monica’s dress…and pulled it all the way up ever so gently. “Magic,” Brad whispered. Reading the innuendo in his beautiful eyes, Monica could only get out a faint “Yeah!” She felt the heat building up between them. She felt her thoughts turn real foggy, her head started spinning and she tried to focus on anything but his great mouth…which was right there. And yet all she could think of was the feeling of his lips on hers, his tongue in her mouth, his hands on her body, his mouth on her body… “Let’s go, then.” Her lips brushed past his as she broke the moment. Brad knew that she was trying her hardest to stay in control of the situation. She tried to be so cool, but he knew that look in her eyes when she wanted to leave reason outside the door. He had seen it too many times. Monica quickly checked herself out in the mirror. Great, the dress was whole, and it looked good. She stepped into her heels and smiled at Brad through the mirror. They looked so good together. It wasn’t fair. “This isn’t fair, Brad.” She told him, and knew he understood what she meant. He stepped towards her, put his hands on her shoulders and gently but firmly massaged her neck. “No, it isn’t.” Again it was Monica to break their contact. She picked up her coat and her purse from the chair next to the bedroom door. “Let’s go.” She put on her coat, put her house keys into her pocket, switched off the lights and was just about to open the door for them, when Brad pulled her around by the arm, and kissed her with such a force, it frightened the life out of her. The instant their lips met Monica felt a huge explosion of lights, and for a second she couldn’t remember her life. Gosh, she had missed the way he could make her feel. Now that it had come to it, she didn’t resist him for a minute. She gave into that overwhelming feeling of lust, threw common sense and all those years of thinking out of the window. When they finally stopped, Monica looked into his secretive eyes, put her arms around his neck and kissed him again. The kiss was sensual, careful, seductive, sexy and very tempting. When she broke away this time, she leant into him so that their noses and foreheads touched. Brad still had his eyes closed. In a husky yet well articulated voice that made him dizzy, Monica whispered:”Damn you, Brad Follmer. Damn you!” He smiled, let go of her and lead Monica to the front door. “Let’s go, Agent Reyes.” She gave him an accusatory look, and the way he looked back at her made her blush and made her heart race. “Damn you!” she whispered again.