The Christmas Revelation

Chapter 1

It was Christmas Eve.

Jim and the four younger members of his team had gathered at Jim's condo for what had become somewhat of a holiday tradition: meeting at midday for heavy hors d'oeuvres and fellowship before celebrating with their families.

The five teammates had spent the past hour eating, laughing, talking, and sharing memories.  Afterwards, they had drifted back into the room they typically used for their briefings.

Nicholas and Shannon sat side by side on the familiar black leather couch, engrossed in conversation and thoroughly oblivious to everything else around them.  Jim set his wine glass down and disappeared up the stairs, headed for the restroom.  Grant had been standing idly by waiting for the perfect opportunity.  Seeing it, he quickly rushed to catch up with Max, who had started toward the kitchen for more food.

"Hey, buddy," Grant said in a stage whisper.

Max turned around.  "What is it, Grant?"

"Look what I've got," the black agent smiled.  As Max watched, Grant reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small sprig of mistletoe, attached to a string and a small hook.

Max's lips curled into a lazy grin.  "What are you going to do with that?" he asked, keeping his baritone voice as low as he possibly could.

"Watch.". Grant tiptoed behind the couch, reached up, and swiftly slid the hook onto the edge of the pedestal lamp sitting nearby.  Then he scooted the lamp close to the back of the couch until the mistletoe was hanging perfectly above Shannon's head.

As Grant shuffled back to the place where he'd previously been standing, and Jim appeared on the stairs, Nicholas perceived that something was amiss, looked up, and made eye contact with Grant.

"What's going on?" he asked, his slight smile reflecting his suspicion.

Grant, still grinning, glanced upward, and all four teammates followed his eyes until their own rested on the small green plant hanging just above them. Jim smiled slightly in mild amusement, while Max’s expression was impossible to decipher.

"Looks like you're going to have to kiss her, pal," advised Grant. “You’re both under the mistletoe.”

Nicholas glanced quickly at Max, then lowered his eyes until they locked with Shannon's.  "I guess we are," he smiled warmly, and he planted a gentle kiss on Shannon's right cheek as everyone else watched.

"Nicholas," Grant said, winking at Max, "you're going to have to do better than that, man.  It's Christmas.  It's tradition."

Nicholas cleared his throat nervously and looked once again into the blue eyes of his pretty teammate, who looked just as nervous.  He forced a sigh.  "Yes, well, I suppose we mustn't break tradition," he said in a half-whisper.

"No," she returned in the same tone, "I suppose not."

Then, slowly, the two friends drew closer until their lips met - a chaste moment at first.  But before either of them could stop what was happening, they each felt the kiss go deeper - though neither could say which of them was taking the lead.

For a moment, they lost track of both time and the fact that three pairs of eyes were upon them.  Shannon draped her arm across Nicholas' shoulders, and the dark-haired agent's fingers got lost in Shannon's dark brown hair.

After a long and somewhat uncomfortable moment, one of the spectators cleared his throat - no one was really sure which one.  Nicholas and Shannon suddenly remembered where they were, and hastily broke the kiss. Nicholas smiled softly, while Shannon lowered her eyes demurely, her cheeks a very faint shade of pink.

Grant let out a loud whistle and opened his mouth to make a comment; before he could get a word out, Shannon quickly got to her feet, reached up, and grasped the mistletoe off the nearby lamp.

"I think this has caused enough trouble for one night," she said breezily, without looking at anyone.

"I think it's time for a toast,"  suggested Jim, a bit awkwardly.  Nicholas reached over and picked up the two wine glasses off the coffee table.  He handed Shannon's to her, with a slight smile, and she took it without meeting his eyes.

"To us." Jim began wistfully, "working together to make the world a better place.  To remembering old friends...."

The teammates grew somber as each of their thoughts settled momentarily on Casey, who'd been taken from them only a few months before.

"....and welcoming new ones," he continued, smiling fondly at Shannon.  "I am grateful for each one of you, and I couldn't ask for a better team."

"To us," Grant echoed, and then the others followed suit as they clinked their glasses together. 

Then an awkward silence seemed to fall upon the group, and each of them knew the time had come to disperse.  While none of the team members had spouses or children, all had extended family or close friends with whom they were planning to spend the rest of the evening.

Max was the first to set down his glass and pick up his coat. “I’d better get going,” he murmured. Then he bid goodbye to his three male companions with stiff handshakes, gave Shannon a quick hug, and bolted out of the condo like he was running late for something important.

Nicholas stared after him for a moment, then his thoughts were interrupted by Shannon’s voice in his ear. “Well, I'm off to my sister's," she sighed.

"I need to get going, too," Nicholas said quickly.  "I'll walk you out."

The two agents bid goodbye and Merry Christmas to Jim with handshakes and hugs.  As they turned toward Grant, his face held a solemn expression.

"About the mistletoe," he offered, "I was just having a little fun.  I'm sorry if I embarrassed you guys."

Shannon reached out and gave Grant a soft hug.  "It's all right, Grant, really." As she withdrew from his embrace, she smiled shyly at Nicholas.  "It was...nice."

"Yes," Nicholas agreed softly.  "Very nice."  Then he gripped Grant's hand in a firm shake and added a fond shoulder slap, and he and Shannon made their way to her car.

As Nicholas opened the car door for his friend, she hesitated slightly before giving him a warm hug. "Merry Christmas, Nicholas."

"Merry Christmas, Shannon," he returned, grasping her hand and kissing it gently.  Then she slid behind the wheel of her white Lexus, and Nicholas closed the door and watched as she drove away.

Chapter 2

Once Shannon was out of sight, Nicholas climbed into his BMW and headed towards his apartment. Inside, he was a jumbled mess; his brain and his heart going a thousand miles an hour in what seemed like a hundred different directions.

He'd invited some acting friends over for Christmas Eve dinner, and there would be just enough time to prepare the meal he'd planned before the first of them would be arriving.  Nicholas tried to set his mind on all the things he would need to do in the kitchen once he got home.

But getting what had happened tonight out of his head wasn't that easy.

Just a Christmas kiss between good friends under the mistletoe.  That's what Nicholas kept telling himself.    Yet he couldn’t deny that its intensity had taken them both by surprise.

But while Shannon was an extremely attractive woman, Nicholas’ heart belonged to Max - and any pleasure he might have gained from the kiss was tempered by the look in his partner’s eyes when he left the condo. They’d shaken hands, but there’d been no warmth in Max’s grasp, and he’d left off the customary shoulder slap. None of the other team members knew that Nicholas and Max were lovers; the little gestures of affection that were normally so commonplace among the team members had extra special meaning for them.

But not tonight. Not after that kiss.

Nicholas longed to go after Max, to reason with him and talk things through. But both men had plans for the early evening - plans that would be next to impossible to cancel now. Nicholas, of course, had his dinner party to host. Max, not overly fond of crowds or strangers, was planning to spend a few hours with his nephew - Ray’s son, whom he hadn’t known about until just a couple of years ago. Then later tonight, Max would return to Nicholas’ apartment to welcome Christmas Day together.

At least, that had been the plan. But now Nicholas wasn’t sure if he’d even see Max tonight. And that frightened him.

It took extraordinary effort for Nicholas to concentrate on his cooking.  And occasionally, little things would happen, like a kitchen timer going off or a saucepan boiling over, that caused him to jump out of his skin because his mind was elsewhere.

Once his friends arrived, it was a little easier to get lost in good food and warm conversation. Max and Shannon didn’t stray too far from his mind, but if his guests noticed, they didn’t say anything. It felt like forever, but eventually the last of his company said goodbye and Nicholas was once again alone with his thoughts.

As soon as he closed the door behind the last remaining guest, Nicholas reached for the phone and dialed Max’s number. It rang once, twice, three times, and then he heard Max’s recorded greeting. Silently he hoped that meant that Max was headed his way, but he decided to leave a message just in case.

“Max, it’s me,” he said, his voice thick with tension. “I hope you’re on your way here. I need to see you tonight.” Then he hung up the phone, with no choice but to wait.

*******

The little red sports car was making its third trip up the Pacific Coast Highway. Max had bid goodbye to his nephew Michael almost an hour before, and since then had been driving aimlessly in a futile effort to clear his mind.

He glanced at his wristwatch. Nearly eleven. The dinner party should be over by now, the guests dispersing. It was time for Max to be on his way to Nicholas’ apartment.

But Max didn’t know how he felt about that idea right now.

On one hand, he was angry. Angry at Grant, for coming up with the damn mistletoe prank in the first place. And angry at Nicholas, for obviously enjoying the hell out of kissing Shannon, despite the fact that he was supposed to be in love with Max. The more the blond thought about that, and allowed the anger to consume him, the easier it was to forget about his planned romantic evening with Nicholas and just go home.

But even as Max tried to focus on his anger, the more rational side of his brain provided counterpoints. Grant didn’t know, couldn’t have known, that Nicholas and Max were together; it was just supposed to be harmless fun, not evoke feelings of jealousy. Max had seen the nervous look Nicholas had thrown him before the kiss, but truthfully he’d had little choice but to play along, with everyone’s eyes on him. And of course his partner had enjoyed the kiss; Shannon was a beautiful woman, and Nicholas had already confessed to Max that he was sometimes attracted to women. But he’d sworn that Max had his heart.

Was that still true?

Max sighed, as he realized that the only way he was going to know for sure was to talk to Nicholas himself. With a bundle of nerves in his stomach, he turned his car around and headed toward Nicholas’ apartment.

Chapter 3

Nicholas was sitting in his recliner, watching out the window, when the headlights turned into his driveway. Instantly, he got to his feet and was waiting at the open door when Max’s lanky frame exited the driver’s seat.

“Max,” Nicholas breathed. “I was afraid you wouldn’t come.”

Max remained silent as he walked past his teammate and entered the apartment. He waited until Nicholas closed the door before answering.

“Well, I’m here,” he said, his voice low.

The lack of affection in Max's voice  shook Nicholas to the core.  Suddenly, all of the energy drained out of him and he sank down onto the sofa.

"Max, I'm sorry," he said dejectedly, his voice thick with unshed tears.  "Grant didn't really give me a choice in the matter."

Max sighed heavily and ran a hand through his hair, then he sat down beside his partner without touching him.  "I know that, Nicholas," he said quietly.  "What I need to know is, how it felt when you kissed her.  And don't say you didn't feel anything, because I know better."

It was Nicholas' turn to sigh.  "It's complicated," he admitted, looking down at his hands.

"Nicholas." Max waited until the dark-haired agent looked up and met his eyes.  "We can work through this.  Just be honest with me."

Nicholas paused, as if choosing his words carefully.  "I hadn't kissed a woman...that way...in years," he began, "so I was nervous about what feelings it might bring forth for me." His eyes were liquid pools of brown.  "Almost as soon as our lips met, she took things deeper... and I sort of got lost in the intensity of the moment."

Nicholas' gaze was apologetic, and Max knew he was being sincere.  The blond nodded slightly.  "I can see how that would have happened," he shrugged.  "Shannon's an attractive woman."

"Yes, but even so," continued Nicholas, "I wasn't thinking of her that way, nor am I even now."  Nicholas reached out and tentatively grasped Max's hand, sighing slightly in relief when he didn't resist.  "I only want to be with you, Max.  You have to believe me."

Max studied Nicholas' face for a long moment, then he smiled slightly and squeezed his lover's hand.  "I do believe you," Max assured him.

Nicholas visibly relaxed and let out the breath he'd been unconsciously holding.   "Oh, thank goodness." He reached for Max, and the blond allowed his dark-haired companion to wrap him tightly in his arms.  "I was afraid I'd lost you."

Max could feel Nicholas trembling slightly, and he squeezed him a little tighter.  "I was afraid you'd want to be with her."

After a moment, Nicholas loosened his embrace.  Still holding Max at arm's length, he gazed deeply into the sparkling blue eyes.  "I am attracted to her," he conceded, "but you are the one I love."

Max's lips curled into a sideways grin.  "You'd be a fool not to find her attractive, Nick," he said reassuringly.  "Thank you for telling me the truth."

Max lifted his finger and touched the dark-haired man's lips tenderly, then gently pressed his own lips where his finger had been. The ensuing kiss was passionate and electrifying, a celebration of their renewed relationship, and it brought Nicholas to a level of intensity of which his kiss with Shannon had only scratched the surface.

Both men felt their midsections respond accordingly; before they even realized what was happening, their shirts were lying on the floor and Nicholas was stroking his lover's bare chest as the kiss deepened.  Then the shorter man broke the kiss and dropped to his knees, his hands working quickly until both men were completely disrobed.

Nicholas' mouth found the blond's expansive manhood, and his tongue fondled it teasingly, threatening to push them both to the brink.  Max moaned softly as he stretched his large frame across the sofa, and he closed his eyes in sheer ecstasy as his partner entered him.

Their lovemaking was equal parts sensual and feverish, reflecting both their intense love for one another and their desperation to make everything between them right again.

*******

Shannon shivered slightly as she guided her car towards home, but it wasn't entirely due to the cold.  She, too, had been distracted all evening; her sister Pat had chided her for being a million miles away, ultimately chalking things up to "man troubles.". She'd begged Shannon to spend the night - it was already after eleven - but Shannon had politely refused, saying she had a lot of things to take care of the next day.  So she'd said goodbye to her older sister and headed out, with Nicholas heavy on her mind...

Even from their very first mission together, when the team had lost Casey, Shannon and Nicholas had quickly become close friends.  It was the sort of bond where each one knew exactly what to expect from the other.  Besides, they were professionals; even if the mission at hand called for them to play a more intimate role, there were certain boundaries they would never think of crossing.

But suddenly, tonight, that innocuous kiss under the mistletoe had changed something.  Suddenly, the woman who'd found the dark-haired agent's presence so comfortable before, grew nervous at the thought of facing him again.

As Shannon approached the side road that would take her back to her apartment on the outskirts of the city, she flipped on her turn signal.  But as she drew closer, she realized that she wasn't going to be able to rest.  She had to talk to Nicholas.  They had to work through this, before the next mission.

She flipped the blinker off and continued straight.  She glanced at the illuminated digital clock in the dashboard.  It was nearly midnight, but Shannon had a funny feeling Nicholas was still awake, too.

Chapter 4

Just as both men reached the moment of release, Nicholas saw headlights flicker briefly in the nearby window.  He pulled out as quickly as he could. 

The lights hadn't hit the sofa directly, so Max hadn't seen them, but he knew instantly that something was amiss.

"What's wrong?" he asked urgently.

"Someone's here!" Nicholas answered breathlessly.

"At this hour?" Max's voice was incredulous, as Nicholas hastily handed him his clothes and began to throw on his own.  "Who could it be?"

As Nicholas buttoned his shirt, he walked to the window and peeped around.  Then he looked at Max, his face a mask of terror as he recognized the Lexus.  "It's Shannon!"

Max cursed aloud as he, too, dressed quickly - but not quickly enough.  His shirt was still unbuttoned when they heard the knock at Nicholas' door.

At first, Nicholas did not answer.

"Should I hide?" Max whispered to his companion.

Nicholas shook his head.  "Max, your car is outside," he reminded the blond.  "There's no way she didn't see it."

A second knock.  "Nicholas?  It's Shannon."

"Just a minute, Shannon," Nicholas called out.  Once Max finished buttoning his shirt, Nicholas opened the door.

"I'm sorry," the dark-haired agent apologized.  "Please come in.".

Shannon obliged gratefully, trying to ignore the warmth of Nicholas' hand touching her waist as he ushered her inside.  He took her coat and hung it on the rack as he flipped on the hallway light and Shannon's eyes fell upon Nicholas' companion.

"Hello, Max," she greeted.  "I didn't expect to see you here this time of night."

"Max and I just had some things to talk about," Nicholas rushed to answer.

"Oh," breathed Shannon.  "Well, I hope I'm not interrupting."

"Not at all," Max replied, making an extra effort to put warmth into his voice.  "I was just getting ready to leave."

"I'll walk you out, Max," offered Nicholas, grabbing his coat while the blond planted a quick kiss on Shannon's cheek.  "I'll be right back," he said to Shannon, who nodded in response.

Once they'd reached Max's car, the blond spoke.  "She's here to talk about that kiss."

"I know," acknowledged Nicholas.

"So what are you going to do?"

"I have to be honest with her," Nicholas sighed, "and tell her I'm in love with someone else."

Max nodded.  "Do you think she'll suspect it's me?"

Nicholas shrugged.  "It's possible." He looked at Max thoughtfully.  "What do I tell her, if she asks?"

Max knew why he was asking the question.  He knew the risks of another team member finding out about them, but at the same time he knew that Nicholas didn't want Max to think he was ashamed of their relationship.

It was Max's turn to sigh.  "Tell her the truth," he answered.  "Whatever happens, we'll deal with it."

"Okay," Nicholas agreed after a slight pause.

"I'd better get going," the blond advised, and after an affectionate shoulder slap he climbed into his car.

"Be safe," Nicholas called as Max pulled out and drove away.  Then Nicholas' heart came up in his throat as he returned to his apartment, and to Shannon.

*******

"I'm sorry about that, Shannon," Nicholas apologized as he closed the door behind him.  "Can I get you something?" he offered.   "Make you some coffee?"

"No, thank you," Shannon replied softly, as she patted the cushion on the sofa beside her.  "Just come sit with me.  We need to talk."

Nicholas sighed heavily and obeyed her request.  "Yes, we do."

Shannon reached over and took her teammate's hand in her own. "You're nervous, too," she observed.  He offered no resistance to her taking his hand, but she hadn't been surprised to feel it trembling slightly, and she knew he could feel hers doing the same.

"A little," he admitted. 

"I hope I wasn't too...forward...with you, earlier," she said quietly, her eyes shining like sapphires

Nicholas smiled slightly.  "It was very...intense...that's for sure."

It was Shannon's turn to sigh, for it wasn't the response she'd been hoping for, but she took a deep breath and laid it all out there.  "The truth is, kissing you brought forth...feelings in me that I'd never realized were there before.  And I was just wondering if it did the same for you."

Nicholas reached up with his free hand and gently touched her cheek.  This was going to be difficult.   "Shannon," he whispered,  "you are an incredibly beautiful woman.  But I have to tell you something."

"There's someone else," she guessed, biting her lip and dropping her gaze.  It was not a question.

"Yes."

"It's Max, isn't it?" she asked suddenly,

Shocked by the abruptness of the question, Nicholas' jaw and stomach dropped to the floor, and Shannon knew from the look on his face that she'd guessed correctly.

"Why else would he be here at your place at midnight on Christmas Eve," she observed, gazing down at her hands.   "Besides, I've seen how he looks at you." Shannon looked up at her friend once again, recalling the look she'd seen in the blond's eye when he was leaving the party.  "He was jealous of the kiss, wasn't he?"

"Yes," Nicholas admitted.

"But everything's okay now between the two of you?"

"Yes," he said again.

Shannon's pretty brown eyes met the soft ones of her companion.  "Does he make you happy?" she asked in a half-whisper.

Nicholas smiled in spite of his nerves.  "Very happy."

Shannon returned his smile.  "Good.  You deserve to be happy.  Both of you."

Nicholas reached out rather awkwardly to grasp his teammate's hand.  "Shannon, I'm sorry," he said, for the third time tonight.

"Don't be," she responded, reaching up with her free hand to wipe away a lone tear that had formed in the corner of her eye. "You know I care about both of you very much, and I'm glad you have each other."

Nicholas smiled his thanks, but then he sobered.  "I don't have to tell you the implications if this gets out."

Shannon squeezed his hand.  "Don't worry, Nicholas," she assured him.  "I'm not going to say anything.  I don't want to see you get kicked off the team; it's too much fun working with you guys."

"Thanks, Shannon," he said warmly, and she reached up to caress his cheek.  In so doing, she caught sight of the illuminated clock on the stove just inside Nicholas' kitchen.  It was nearing one a.m.

"Gosh, look at the time," she said hastily, standing up.  "I'd better get home."

"You could stay here tonight," Nicholas suggested, as he also got to his feet.

Shannon shook her head.  "Nicholas, that's not a good idea, and you know it," she whispered.

"I know," Nicholas shrugged, "but neither is driving this late at night, and I do have a guest room upstairs."

"I'll be fine," she assured him, grabbing her coat off the rack.  "Besides, you might have some other company later on."

Nicholas, seeing that he wasn't going to get her to stay, helped her with her coat.  Then she reached up and planted a gentle kiss on her friend's cheek.  "I'll let myself out, Nicholas," she advised him.

"Good night, Shannon."  Nicholas told her.  "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas," she answered, as she closed the door behind her and shuffled to her car.

A few moments later, Max was parked at a nearby gas station when he saw the familiar white Lexus rounding the corner and heading toward Shannon's apartment.    Once she was out of sight, he pulled out of the parking lot in the direction from which she had come.

Chapter 5

Max and Nicholas spent most of Christmas Day together, sleeping well into the day after being up so late, and then enjoying each other's company before Max returned to his apartment late that evening.  The next morning, Grant called Max early and the two of them went for a motorcycle ride, as they often did, down the Pacific Coast Highway.

As they rode, the conversation he'd had with Nicholas the day before was heavy on Max's mind.

*******

"So how'd it go with Shannon?" Max asked when he returned to Nicholas' apartment.

"She knows about us," Nicholas replied simply.

Max nodded tersely.  Shannon was a smart woman.  Of course she'd have figured it out.

"I don't think she'll say anything." Nicholas continued.

Max ran a hand through his hair.  "What if she does, Nick?" he asked.  "What if Jim finds out and makes us choose between our relationship and the team?"

Nicholas grasped his partner's hand.  "Max," he said, his voice husky, "as much as I love being a part of this team, I love you more."

Max scooted closer and drew the dark-haired agent into his arms.  "You'd really quit the team to be with me?"

"Of course I would.". Nicholas smiled, settling comfortably into his lover's embrace.  "Would you?"

"Yeah," Max agreed, his lips curling into a sideways grin.  And the two men sat there for a long time, content in the knowledge that whatever happened they would choose to be together.

*******

Max was still deep in thought as he and Grant stopped for a rest and removed their helmets, and at first he didn't realize that Grant was speaking to him.

"Did you hear me, man?"

Max snapped to attention.  "I'm sorry, Grant.  What were you saying?"

"I just said I wonder when we'll be called up for the next mission.  It's been over a week now."

"Good question," Max mused.  Then he forced a sigh.  "Do you ever get tired of it, Grant?"

Grant looked at his teammate quizzically.  "Tired of what?"

"Not being able to have a normal life."

"What, flying off to a different part of the world every week and putting ourselves in danger isn't normal?" Grant quipped with a ghost of a grin.  But then he sobered, for he knew exactly what Max meant.

"I'm not sure if my life has ever been normal," Grant observed, a twinge of sadness in his voice.  "Dad lived and died for this work.  The IMF was in his blood even before I was born.  It's all I've ever known."

"So it's in your blood, too."

Grant looked squarely at his blond friend.  "I think that could be said for all of us.  I mean, none of you grew up in the business, but you each have that one thing that drove you toward this line of work."

"Righting the wrongs of the world," Max continued the thought.

"Yeah," Grant affirmed, "the job that never ends."

Max thought about that for a moment.  "So if there's always going to be evil in the world," he mused, "at what point do you just stop fighting?"

Grant glared at Max.  "Saying it that way makes it sound like our work's not important," he said, slightly offended by his friend's question.

"That's not what I meant," Max assured him quietly.  "But when do you know it's time to step aside and leave the jet-setting to the younger folks?"

"You mean retire?" Grant cried incredulously.

Max shrugged.  "Maybe."

Grant was quiet for a long moment.  "I don't know if anyone in the IMF ever truly retires," he finally responded.  "Even the agents who don't do field work anymore usually stick around to serve as consultants."

"Jim retired once," Max reminded his friend.

"Yeah, but he came back."

"If Tom Copperfield hadn't died-"

"I think he would have come back anyway, eventually," Grant interrupted.  "Like I said before, it gets in your blood."

Max nodded.  "Besides, I'm sure retirement can get lonely," he mused quietly.  "I know that most of us have given up having a family to be a part of the team."

Max eyed Grant carefully, hoping he wouldn't take offense at what Max had just said.  Grant sighed heavily.  "Jim was my father's best friend before I was born," he answered, "but he never really approved of his agents having families.  He put up with it from my dad, Copperfield, and a few others, because he knew there was no one better at their jobs.  If there had ever been a moment where Jim thought having a family had compromised the mission in any way, they'd have been off the team.  And they all knew it."

Grant sighed again.  "I guess I never really thought about getting involved with someone..."

Except for that once, he thought, shuddering internally at his encounter the previous year with Shelly Davis, a woman he thought he loved but who robbed him blind and then tried to kill him.  He wasn't about to mention that again.

"...because I knew how it felt, having Dad gone all the time, not knowing when or if he was coming home.". He swallowed hard.  "I would never do that to someone I loved.  The team is no place for a family, or even a relationship.  It just isn't fair."

Grant cast a sideways glance at Max, who was mulling over his latest comment pensively.  A little too pensively, he thought.

"Max," he asked suddenly, "are you involved with someone?"

"No," Max retorted, but his reply was a little too quick and defensive.

"Then what's with all the questions?" Grant countered, raising an eyebrow.

"Just thinking out loud," the blond answered.  "I was just curious if you'd ever thought about those things, too."

"I think we've all thought about them, at one time or another," Grant admitted.  "But we make choices, and then we live with the consequences.  And for most of us, giving up family is one of those consequences."  He flashed Max a wide grin.  "I guess we're all married to the job."

"That's all right.". Max returned his smile.  "You guys are the only family I need."

Max quickly put his helmet back on and revved his motor before taking off.  Grant followed suit, but this time he was the one deep in thought.

He'd never heard Max talk about such things before.  Retiring from the team, when he was still so young, and in obvious great shape.  And he'd never known Max to be so concerned about relationships before - although, in light of recent events, it kind of made sense.

Grant, too, had caught the look on Max's face at the Christmas party, when Nicholas and Shannon had shared a kiss under the mistletoe - a look he had recognized as jealousy.  But surely Max wouldn't be foolish enough to get involved with a teammate!

He wouldn't blame his blond friend for being attracted to Shannon.  Hell, they all probably were, Grant smiled.  But then his smile faded slightly, as he considered the other possibility.  He knew that Max and Nicholas were very close, and that their dark-haired teammate spent a lot of time with Max between missions - although, so did he. Maybe it meant something, and maybe it didn't.

Grant briefly pondered telling Jim about his suspicions, but ultimately decided to leave well enough alone.  He just hoped that his friend had the good sense to stay out of trouble.

Chapter 6

Three days later, the team was called to Jim's condo to be briefed on a new mission.   The gathering itself was somewhat strange; Nicholas sat on one sofa with Shannon, but they were miles apart.  Max sat on the other beside Grant, but he purposely avoided eye contact with anyone.

Afterwards, Jim dismissed the team to get packed for West Africa.  But as they stood up, Jim spoke again.

"Nicholas, Max, could I see you two for a moment?"

Both agents looked surprised.  "Sure, Jim," answered Nicholas,. Grant and Shannon each smiled faintly, then turned quickly and exited the condo, as the other two agents sat back down on the sofa side by side.

Not one to mince words, Jim got right to the point.  "What if I told you I know the truth about your relationship with one another?"

Nicholas swallowed the lump that had come up in his throat and looked at Max.  Their eyes met, communicating volumes without speaking, and then they both turned to look back at Jim.  "Okay," Nicholas answered.

"'Okay'?" Jim echoed.  "That's all you have to say?"

"Well, we're not going to deny it, Jim," said Nicholas.  "It's the truth."

Jim looked uncharacteristically flustered as he rose up from his chair and glared at the two men.  "You already know I don't approve," he said sternly.  "It's unprofessional at best, and could potentially jeopardize our missions." He paused thoughtfully.  "You realize that if I determine that your relationship is a liability to our organization, I could have you both dismissed from the team."

"We know, Jim," acknowledged Max, his voice low.

"And that's okay with you?"

"Of course, we don't want to have to leave the team, Jim," Nicholas replied.  "But if we're forced to make a choice, we choose to be together."

Jim's steely blue eyes shifted from Nicholas to Max, who nodded in agreement.

Jim forced a sigh.  "How long has this... relationship..." he uttered the word half in contempt, "...been going on?"

Nicholas looked briefly at Max, then back at his leader.  "Almost six months now."

Both men could tell by the look on Jim's face that it wasn't the answer he'd been expecting.  "Six months," he repeated, and they both nodded.  "Six months, and I found out because Grant hung some mistletoe at our Christmas party."

Jim sighed deeply and sat back down in his chair.  "Twenty years ago, I took over a team in which two of the members were romantically involved," he began.  "I didn't approve then, either, but I allowed them to stay on the team because they were always professional, and they were the best at what they did."

Jim gazed at his two junior team members, smiling slightly.  "Obviously, the same can be said for the two of you, so for now, I'm not taking any action."

Nicholas and Max sighed in relief under their breaths, but remained composed on the outside because they could sense a 'but' was coming.

"However, I'll be watching you very closely," Jim advised sternly.  "If at any moment I see anything remotely unprofessional, I'll send you both packing."

Both men nodded solemnly, for they knew that their leader was dead serious.  "Thank you, Jim," Nicholas spoke for both of them.  "We won't let you down."

"Good.". Jim smiled slightly, rising to his feet and laying a fatherly hand on each man's shoulder to soften his words. "Now go get your things together.  We leave in three hours."

"Right, Jim," smiled Max.  As Jim exited the condo, he reached over and caught his lover in a sideways hug, and the two men set off to prepare for the next mission.

The End :)