Forever Tomorrow: Sleep to Dream
Sleep to Dream A Forever Tomorrow Story By Sephy Persephone_Elysian@yahoo.com Paris, 2005 "Jade," Methos sounded surprised as he answered his door, "What are you doing here?" "Lovely to see you, too, Methos.". He smiled at her. Not that annoying smirk of his but a real smile. The sight made her insides quiver, strengthening her wavering resolve. "It's good to see you again. Come in." "Nice place," she observed as she walked in. Compared to his normal Spartan accomodations, this place seemed positively decadent. There were actual paintings on the walls, sculptures on stands around the foyer. A stereo, as yet unseen, touched the air with soft jazz from speakers above her head. She took it all in one slow pivot, savoring each glimpse into his mind. "Moving up in the world, are we?" Methos chuckled. "That's one way to put it. Here, let me take your coat." His hands were warm, solid through the folds of her overcoat. She shrugged the coat off and waited, tiny hairs standing on her body as bare skin was revealed. She closed her eyes, keeping her face at an angle so that he wouldn't see the blush she felt tingling there and she waited. She wasn't disappointed. There was an intake of breath that she heard only because she was so near. After getting the address for this place from Joe, Jade had spent a sleepless night trying to decide just how she was going to handle this. Finally, she had settled on the direct approach. And the direct approach was aided by something Amanda had once said to her when the woman had been in one her rare, charitable moods. 'If you want a man, sometimes the best approach is to hit where most men are vulnerable and then wring concessions out of him. And to do that you have to be willing to use what nature gave you to your advantage. You can't let yourself get tripped up by remorse. Remember you have to divide his brain from his libido if you want to conquer. No surrender, no retreat.' Well, the short Italian minidress she was wearing, tight in all the right places was a definite start in the right direction, she thought. All in all, it was sort of exhilarating; she'd never considered planning relationships the way one would plan a full-scale attack. She turned around, hair loose and shining against the deep blue of her dress. Methos was staring at her, unable to keep his eyes in his head or on her face causing her to shiver as he perused her. At last, he managed, "Aren't you a trifle underdressed?" Shrugging, she smiled sweetly. He didn't quite manage to avert his eyes as she did so, she noted with some smugness. "I thought you were going to put up my coat." "What?" "My coat, Methos. Don't tell me you're becoming senile after a five thousand years," she teased. "Oh, yes. Sorry about that," he seemed to recover his composure. "So to what do I owe the honor of this visit?" "I haven't seen you in months. I think I was actually starting to miss you," she said following him downstairs. "Perish the thought," he said dryly, "How did you find out where I was?" "Joe." She felt a bit guilty at the revelation. Methos could tend to be a bear about his privacy and the last thing she wanted was for him to come down on Joe for telling her where to find him. Surprisingly, he appeared nonplussed by the revelation, his expression thoughtful as they reached the foot of the stairs. Unlike MacLeod or Richie, Methos was not only difficult to read most of the time, it was very near impossible to tell what he was feeling. His shielding was impeccable and not for the first time, she cursed it and him for being so damn opaque. A clue, a hint, anything to tell her how to proceed would have been welcome. "Want some coffee or something?" he asked as walked into another room. "I'd love some," she walked into his living room/kitchen. It was filled with dozens of crates, some full, others barely begun. She gestured, "What's all this?" He slowed in his ministrations with the coffee pot. His eyes seemed distant as he beheld the room. "Just packing up a few things." "Going somewhere?" "In a manner of speaking." "Why? You just got back to Paris. What's your hurry?" she protested. He seemed uncomfortable, eyes watching the flow of steaming black liquid into a mug. "It's about time for me to disappear." "Disappear," she echoed, her mind going blank. He couldn't disappear, she gripped the countertop. Not now. Not now that she'd finally made up her mind. And that was exactly what he was planning to do. "I've been Adam Pierson for a long while now. People will begin to notice things, things I don't want them to notice if I don't leave soon." "Watchers." The word came out a low hiss. He met her gaze, "Joe's been staving it off for a year now but the fact of it is that it's time for Adam Pierson to disappear. Permanently." She stared at him, her heart catching in her throat at the thought. Methos not around? Her mind could wrap itself around the notion. Sure, he'd disappeared for long periods of time, often dropping in without a word from God knows where, but he had never stayed away for long. He had never used the word 'permanently' before. The words seemed so final, as if he had no intentions of ever coming back, as if he were saying a good-bye to her right here and now. "Where will you go?" Somehow she managed to find her voice. "I don't know. I was thinking of an extended safari for a few decades. You know a Stanely and Livingstone thing, " he quipped. "That isn't funny," She shrilled and winced at the fearful sound of it. The amusement died on his lips. "I know but I don't have a choice. I have to leave before the Watchers put two and two together." "What about Mac, the others?" "I suspect that Mac will be able to hold on to his head even with me gone for a while. And Joe has got enough to take care of. As for Ryan, well ... Ami'll sort him out eventually. " "What about me? If you go, who will I have to spar with?" "Megabyte?" he ventured. The world was moving too fast and she felt vaguely dizzied by the prospects. It must have shown on her face for Methos sprinted to her side. "Here sit down." The couch he set her on was soft, inviting and she sank back. He hovered near her, concern evident. "You can't leave," she said dully, "Not now. Not when..." "When what?" Methos asked quietly. Something in his tone made her look up, studying him before the realization hit. She didn't have to say a word. He already knew. He knew how she felt and the words she wanted to say. He knew and he was watching her with an uncharacteristic streak of compassion and something else in those dark eyes. Jade wasn't sure to be relieved because she didn't have to spell it out for him or mortified that it had been so obvious. "How long have you known?" Curiosity impelled her to ask. "Some time now." "And you never said anything?" "What was there to say?" She bit her lip. "How about how you felt or don't feel?" "Jade," his voice told her he was sorry. She inhaled, trying to bite back the pain of rejection, hot and slick as bile rising in her throat. God, this was so hard and it hurt so much. Very nearly as much as the thought of him walking away and never seeing him again did. "Was it me? I'm not pretty or interesting enough?" hurt crept into her voice, eyes blinking back stinging tears. "No, it's not that." "Then what is it?" "I had hoped you'd grow out of this foolish crush, that you'd find someone else." "But I didn't. Must have been highly entertaining for you to watch me make a fool out of myself," she said voice low, angry now as the words came out in a slow hiss. "Jade, stop," he knelt in front of her, "Never once was I laughing. Not once." He was so close to her, she could smell him, the scent of after shave tickling her nose. It was a distinctly male smell and it made her feel better because it revealed that five thousand years or not, he was a man like any other. He ate, drank, shaved like any other. She stared into those dark eyes, saw something there, something that made her close the gap and let her lips touch his. Warm, he was so warm and his mouth was so soft against hers. She wanted more, she needed more, needed to feel him. Methos started, breath caught in his throat as she let her hands rest on his shoulders, following his lips as he tried to pull away. "Jade, don't do this." There was a note of desperation there that had been absent moments earlier. As if with a kiss she threatened to shatter that mask he wore for everyone. That mask that kept him apart and alone, that mask she wanted to grind under her heels. Her fingers drew lazy circles on his cheeks, "Do you want me?" He tried to turn away from her laser-beam gaze, but her hands prevented him, sliding up to hold his face in her grasp. Finally he said, "Yes, damn it, I want you. So much that..." "Then why don't you ask?" "Because you don't know what you're asking. Do you know what it would mean to share my life? We'd be one step ahead of everyone hunting me. What kind of life is that? You deserve better than having to sit in a hotel room wondering where we'll be two days from now." "I'm not a little girl any more. You don't have to protect me," she tried to kiss him again but this time he managed to evade her. "Yes I do. I have to protect you from me because I'm selfish. I want to take you with me, ruin your life just as long as I don't have to let you go. But it would seem that MacLeod has finally gotten to me because I can't think of anything but what a selfish bastard I am for feeling this way." She slid to her feet, not once removing her gaze from his. One hand reached up, catching the silver zipper ring at the vee of her dress and pulled down, the fabric pulling away then sliding to the floor. His mouth went slack as his eyes came to the realization that the only thing underneath that dress had been naked skin. The blush from earlier returned with a vengeance and she hugged her waist, resisting the urge to hide herself. She was gratified at the way his eyes darkened, the Immortal swallowing hard. "You seem to have trouble grasping that some things change over time. This," she pointed at herself, "is one of them." "I noticed," he sounded a trifle strangled. "Good. I was beginning to worry about your eyesight. So what are you going to do about it?" She poured defiance and challenge into every word. "I'm sure I'll think of something." "Here, let me help you," and she lowered herself next to him, knees resting against the hard floor as she did. There was no resistance now when she kissed him. And no gentleness either. He took her lips savagely, like her, hungry for a banquet he had long denied himself. Hands traveled over the bare skin shoulders and back, triggering a million prickles of sensation. "Damn you, Jade Weston. Someone should teach you a lesson about playing with fire," he growled against their joined mouths. She let out a small breath at where his hands came to rest. Her lips quirked. "I was sort of hoping you could help me out on that one." Methos sucked in a breath as she found a sensitive area just behind his ear. "Where in God's name did you learn that?" "You'll find I'm full of surprises," she purred. "I can hardly wait." ***End.
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