X-Files characters © Ten-Thirteen, Chris Carter, and 20th Century Fox, and used without permission. No copyright infringement is intended. All Rights Reserved. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

I always welcome comments via e-mail at lcooksey@mindspring.com. This story may be distributed freely, so long as no fee is charged and this header is preserved.

Mulder kicked off his shoes and undid his tie, smiling. It’s nice when a case goes well, he thought. No grand conspiracies had been broken, no shadowy government agencies exposed, no little gray men apprehended. On the other hand, he and Scully had solved the mystery they’d come to investigate. [I have no idea what this is, so don’t even ask. <g>]

He knocked on the connecting door to Scully’s adjoining hotel room. "Scully? You decent?"

After a moment, she opened the door on her side, and he opened his door. "Yeah, I was just about to change. What is it, Mulder?"

"Do you really want to go out to eat?" he asked.

She smiled up at him, shaking her head. "Not really. Want to order pizza in?"

"Chinese?" he suggested.

"Okay. I’m just going to change, then. I’ll let you know when I’m done," she said, closing her door.

While Mulder changed into jeans and a polo shirt, Scully pulled on her jeans and slid into a T-shirt. She opened the door on her side again, and saw that Mulder’s was still open. "Mulder?" she called. Hearing water running in his bathroom, she busied herself hanging up her work clothes. After a few minutes, she decided that the T-shirt was a little light for the air-conditioning in their rooms, and decided to switch to a sweatshirt.

Mulder came out of his bathroom and saw that both connecting doors were open. "Hey, Scully," he said, walking into her room. He stopped as she looked up, startled.

She was standing in front of her bed, her open suitcase lying on top of it, holding a Quantico sweatshirt in one hand. She looked at him in mild surprise, naked to the waist.

Most of the time, when he looked at Scully, he saw only his partner, his best friend, the one person in the world he could really trust. But now all he could see was a beautiful woman.

Oddly, she did not look vulnerable. Her blue eyes gazed evenly at him. Her skin was perfect, so smooth. Her breasts — Mulder suddenly snapped out of his reverie and realized that he was staring. "Shit," he said softly, spinning in place to put his back to her. "I’m sorry, Scully. I should have knocked, but the door was open."

"It’s okay," she said, her voice muffled as she pulled on her sweatshirt. "I decided to change shirts, and I just didn’t think about closing the door. It’s my fault." But Mulder didn’t turn around. Just stood there with his back to her.

Scully sighed. Though he could be hard to read sometimes, she could tell by the tension in his shoulders that he was very upset, so she decided to make a joke of the situation. "Come on, Mulder," she said with a laugh, "I’m not that bad to look at."

He turned around slowly, shocked, and took Scully by both shoulders, holding her gently, staring earnestly into her eyes with a terribly hurt look on his face. "Don’t say that. Don’t say that, Dana. Not even as a joke." His right hand moved slowly up to touch her face. "You’re beautiful," he whispered, caressing her cheek.

With every bit of self-control he possessed, Mulder pulled his hand away from her face, and let go of her. He swallowed and stood there awkwardly, his arms hanging at his sides, waiting for her reaction. He felt as if he was stepping off the edge of a cliff and didn’t know if he was going to fall, or fly.

Scully looked up at his uncertain expression, remembering the feel of his hand on her cheek. She stepped closer to him, sliding her arms around his waist and hugging him, resting her cheek against his chest, closing her eyes. She felt his arms circle her shoulders and back, his chin resting on the top of her head. "Thanks, Mulder," she said softly into his shirt.

Fox Mulder kissed the top of her head. It was the only time he’d held Dana when she was neither hurt nor scared. It terrified him. I don’t want to let go. I love her. What am I going to do? He held onto her tightly, reveling in the feel of her warm body against his.

Dana let her hands begin to roam over his back, sliding smoothly over the soft cotton of his shirt. She rubbed her cheek on his chest, feeling the hairs there crinkle under the fabric. Mulder sighed and made a noise deep in his throat. She smiled and kissed his chest, once, twice. She sought for a nipple and nuzzled against it through the shirt with her lips. He moaned this time, his hands sliding from her shoulders, one moving down to the small of back, the other upwards to cup the back of her head.

"Dana, please!" he pleaded hoarsely.

"What?" she asked, her breath hot against his skin through his shirt. "Please, stop, or please, more?"

"I love you," he replied unexpectedly.

"Oh my God," she whispered, looking up at him in surprise.

He looked away, whispering, "I’m sorry."

"Oh, Mulder, don’t be sorry. I love you, too. It’s okay," she said, reaching up to his cheek, turning his head to face her again. "I’m scared, too, but it’s okay."

Hearing her words, some of the tension went out of his face and body. He smiled at her and leaned down to kiss her. They both moaned as their lips met. Mulder became very aware of how Dana’s stomach was pressed against his crotch, how her hips pressed against his leg.

She pulled away from the kiss and looked up at him, a question in her eyes. "Fox?" she asked tentatively. When a smile slowly spread across his face, she said it again, smiling brightly back at him. "Fox." He broke out into a grin this time and Dana laughed, repeating his name like a chant. "Fox, Fox, FOX, FOX!"

"Okay, okay," he said, laughing. He scooped her up and carried her over to a large padded armchair, where he sat down with her in his lap. They began to kiss again, learning about one another slowly as they began to explore with mouths and hands.

Dana felt Fox’s tongue touch her lips, and she reached out with her own tongue, inviting him into her mouth. His eyes closed and he accepted her invitation eagerly, playing with her lips and tongue, tasting the heat of her mouth. He shuddered, painfully aware of his arousal as she pulled back and began to kiss and bite his throat. He slid one hand under her sweatshirt, caressing her back.

Shuddering, she chuckled and whispered in his ear, "I feel like a teenager."

"Oh, good. I thought it was just me," he replied, sounding very relieved. He stroked her face very lightly, a look of wonder in his eyes.

Dana smiled at him, touched deeply by his gentleness, by his almost shy manner with her. She grinned even more broadly as she pulled off her sweatshirt and Mulder’s eyes went wide. His jaw dropped a little as he glanced up at her face. "You’re sure?" he asked. She bit her lip and nodded. He slid both hands up along her torso, brushing the sides of her breasts, and pulled her close, kissing her behind the ear. "I want you," he whispered huskily.

"Do you?" she teased, stroking his hair.

"So much," he replied, moving his lips to her throat, his hands still stroking her breasts and sides.

"I want you, too, Fox. I want to make love to you." His head snapped up and he looked like he wanted to say something, but instead he swallowed and licked his lips. "What?" she asked gently. "Tell me."

"I can’t begin to tell you how much I want you, Dana, but…. You’re just so petite. I’m afraid I’ll hurt you."

"Why? You don’t like it that rough, do you?" she teased.

He leaned his head on her shoulder. "That’s not what…." His voice faltered.

Dana thought she knew what he was worried about. "Mulder, you’re tall and I’m short. That’s bound to produce some logistical problems. We’ll take it slow and work it out, okay? I won’t let you hurt me. You aren’t that big."

His eyes went even wider as he looked up at her. "How do you know?"

She turned a delightful shade of red that made her hair pale by comparison.. "Well, one of the times you were in the hospital and I was sitting with you…. Let’s just say that must have been some dream you were having. You look like you’re… very well proportioned to your height," she finished politely.

It was his turn to blush. "Oh. Thanks." I don’t believe it. She saw me with a woody. I’m going to die. I’m just going to sit here and expire, right in this chair.

The expression on his face was priceless. "You’re welcome. Take your shirt off," she commanded, helping him as he complied after a moment of being stunned. She brushed her fingers across his chest, playing with the hairs there, massaging his muscles first lightly, then with more vigor as she kissed him again.

Emboldened, Fox cupped one of her breasts in his hand and brushed her nipple with his thumb, catching her moan in his mouth as they both shuddered. He massaged the soft flesh gently as they continued to kiss.

Dana stood suddenly, and pulled him to his feet after her, walking to her bed. She closed her suitcase carefully and moved it from the bed to the table in the corner of the room, then pulled down the blanket and the sheets. She lifted her head and caught Mulder’s eyes.

"You’re really sure about this, Scully?" he asked, a little nervous.

In response, she put her hands on his arms and turned quickly, dragging him across her hip and throwing him onto the bed. He hit the mattress and bounced and she was on top of him in an instant, straddling his hips and pinning his shoulders down with both hands as she kissed him. He began to laugh and she released his mouth, closing her eyes in pleasure at the feel of his body shaking under hers. With a grin, he lifted his hips off of the bed then, lifting Dana as well, causing her to moan and open her eyes.

"Very nice," she said in a deep voice, before she closed her mouth over one of his nipples, tracing the circle of it with her tongue. He groaned and took a handful of her hair in his hand, stroking her head and neck with his other hand.

Rolling over, Mulder put Scully under him on the bed. He kissed his way down to her breasts, savoring the sweet and salty taste of her skin, the warmth and softness of her flesh. He pinned her to the mattress with his weight, pressing his erection against her crotch with a low groan. "Sorry, Dana. I guess I’m in kind of a hurry."

She groaned back at him in profound arousal, matching him thrust for thrust through their clothing. Her fingers stroked his hair, dug into his shoulders and pulled him closer for a kiss. "That would make two of us," she said breathlessly as she unfastened her jeans. "We can take it slow some other time." Mulder closed his eyes for a moment, overwhelmed, then reached to turn off the light. "No, leave it on," Dana said. Mulder swallowed and nodded.

She struggled with her pants, and he helped her pull them off. She folded her jeans and underwear up carefully and rolled onto her side to lay them on the floor next to the bed. Mulder put a hand on her waist and kissed her back and shoulder. Dana tossed her hair back with a flick of her head, baring her throat to him, snuggling backwards against him.

He took the hint, wrapping his arm around her waist and kissing her throat passionately. After a few minutes, she turned in the circle of his arms and pulled him closer, lying on her back, guiding his right hand down to her hip as she kissed him. Mulder teased her for a while, stroking the inside of her thighs lightly, getting close but never quite reaching his goal.

Dana moaned, finally, saying, "Fox, if you don’t do something soon, I’m going to have to hurt you."

He laughed, knowing that he could barely restrain himself any longer, anyway. Nervous as he was, nervous as they both were, they were far more open and at ease than they’d ever been with any other lovers their first time together. If there were weaknesses and faults they’d not seen yet in one another, Fox didn’t know what they could possibly be. And yet, here she was, making herself vulnerable to him, accepting him….

"Earth to Mulder."

"Sorry. Got distracted there for a moment." He kissed her in apology.

Dana laughed and shook her head. "You think too much, Fox. It’s one of your many charms." She smiled up at him, and as he watched, the tone of the smile changed from humor to anticipation and hunger. "I want you," she whispered at him in a voice that took his breath away, her blue eyes boring into his hazel ones.

His first instinct was to look away, her gaze was so intense. But he wanted, needed this intimacy with her more than anything else in his life at that moment. Touching her, he made the intimacy physical as well as emotional, and he watched her eyes close in ecstasy, her lips parting in a sigh. ‘I love you,’ he wanted to say, but all that he could manage was a moan as he buried his face in her hair, then kissed her everywhere he could reach as he rocked his groin against her thigh, stroking her with his hand.

Dana held onto the back of his head as she kissed him, her body moving along with his hand and his hips, and she reached down between them to stoke him through his jeans as she swiftly rose to her climax. She pressed her face into his chest to muffle her moaning as she saw stars, closing her eyes tightly. Gasping, she let her head fall back against the pillow, and clutched Mulder’s body close to hers. It took her a few minutes to realize that he was breathing very hard as well.

"Fox?"

He laughed — God, she loved to hear him laugh — and said, sheepishly, "You’re not going to believe this, Dana, but I creamed my jeans." There was a hint of wariness in his eyes. He knew Dana would never laugh at him, never humiliate him, but the fear was old, and deep. Years of hurt and betrayal had taught him to shield his feelings. But he wanted so much to trust her with everything he had, everything he was.

Dana bit her lip and tried to think of something safe to say. "That’s very flattering," she finally answered. "I mean, I know I’m good, but I had no idea."

It was the right tact to take, sending Mulder into a paroxysm of laughter. He withdrew his fingers from inside her slowly, as she shuddered, and hugged her close, rolling onto his back, shaking with mirth. "You’re a wild woman. Who’d have suspected?"

"You."

"Yeah, I did suspect. But I had no idea! You’re dangerous." She hummed and nuzzled him, tracing the lines of his chest with one finger. "That tickles," he said.

"Good. It’s supposed to tickle. I don’t want you to fall asleep. We’re not done yet." She could feel his sharp intake of breath and she grinned, loving the effect she had on him.

"I should go get cleaned up, then," he replied, sliding out of bed and heading for the bathroom.

Scully got up a few minutes later and walked over to the bathroom. She pushed the door open slightly, surprising Mulder, who was naked and standing at the sink with a washcloth. He raised his eyebrows at her and she just smiled at him, looking him up and down. He fought the urge to cover himself with the washcloth, letting her get a good view. Then again, as long as she was standing in the doorway, leaning against it, he took advantage of the opportunity to look her over as well. Beautiful.

"You know, Mulder, this is the first time I’ve seen you naked without a bunch of tubes running in and out of your body," she said with a grin and a chuckle. "You’re really handsome." He grinned like an idiot back at her and dried himself off.

Dana turned and walked back to the bed and Mulder realized that he must have made some sort of noise at the enticing sight of her backside in motion, because she looked over her shoulder at him. "You want to follow up on that sentiment?"

He flipped off the bathroom light, walking back into the bedroom. "I’d love to, but I hope you’ve got a prophylactic on you, Dana, ‘cause I’m fresh out."

"You’re a bad boy, Fox. You should always be prepared! But I think I’ve got a few in here somewhere," she replied, looking in her suitcase, and coming up with a small handful of them. She laughed at the shocked expression on his face and shrugged.

"You are just full of surprises tonight," Mulder said, shaking his head, taking one of the condoms from her hand and tossing it onto one of the pillows.

She grinned wickedly at him and made a point of depositing the rest of them on the bedside stand. His eyes widened to the point where she took mercy on him, saying, "Don’t worry, Fox. I don’t expect us to use all of them. Not in one night, anyway."

He had a sudden thought. "Why haven’t you asked me about my sexual history? You know, HIV status, that sort of thing."

"I’ve seen your hospital files. You haven’t had sex in the last six months, have you?" she asked.

"With anyone besides myself, you mean? More like a year," he said with sad puppy-dog eyes.

"Well, we can fix that," she said, taking his hand and leading him over to the bed, where she crawled in under the covers. He followed eagerly and curled his body around hers as they lay down, their legs entwined, their mouths locked in a long slow kiss. She was a great kisser, and he gave himself up to her without hesitation.

After what might have been hours, Dana began to work her way down his torso, sliding one hand between his legs. He held his breath and she said, "Don’t worry, Fox, I don’t bite. I just want to see what I’m getting myself into."

"What’s getting into yourself, you mean," he replied, deadpan.

She cupped his balls in her hand, as much a threat as a caress. "We’ll see."

"Yes, ma’am," he said quickly.

"Oh. I think I like the sound of that," she said with a smile.

"Yes, Mistress?" he suggested.

Her hand slid up around his penis, stroking him firmly. "Maybe some other time. Let’s stick to vanilla sex for tonight."

He groaned and squirmed. "I like vanilla," he said breathlessly. "I think I love vanilla, as a matter of fact." Any further smart remarks were cut off as she took him into her mouth and he made an inarticulate noise.

She worked on him for several long minutes, slowly and carefully, delighting in the little sounds he made, in the way he stroked her hair and face very lightly, with just his fingertips. When she came up for air and stretched out alongside him again, his face was blissful. He reached for her, but she caught his hand and placed it on his chest. "Just lay there and enjoy it for couple more minutes," she said, caressing his now hard erection.

"What about you?"

"In a minute, Fox. I’m not in as much of a hurry as I thought," she replied. He closed his eyes again and rested his head on the pillow, moving his hips in time with her hand, sighing. She continued, "Now isn’t this more fun than staying late in the office with a couple of videos?"

"So far," he said non-committally.

"You live dangerously, Mulder," she warned, raking her fingernails very lightly across sensitive skin. He twitched and gasped. "Apology accepted," she said with a laugh.

"Remind me never to piss you off, Dana," he said with a grin, rolling onto his side and taking her in his arms. "I can’t believe we’re doing this."

"No!" she said sharply, putting her finger on his lips. "No questions, no hesitation. We’ll think about all of that in the morning, okay?"

Taking her hand in his, he nodded solemnly, then kissed and sucked on each finger, slowly, one at a time, swirling his tongue around each one, until she closed her eyes and murmured his name very softly, over and over. He kissed her wrist, the inside of her elbow, her throat. Whispering into her ear, he asked, "So what’s the verdict, Dr. Scully? Are we going to fit?"

"Hmm? Oh, I don’t think that’s going to be a problem. We just need to take our time, make sure I’m well lubricated and give me a chance to get used to it. It’s been longer since I’ve had sex than you have, I think."

He touched her gently, intimately, and she closed her eyes. "It doesn’t look like lubrication’s going to be a problem, Dana. But I know a good way to be sure."

He kissed her deeply, then slid down along the bed, moving to lie with his head between her legs. He stared at her vulva for a few seconds, fascinated at how different women could look there, then pressed his mouth to her, sliding his tongue along and between the sensitive folds of skin. She moaned and stroked his hair, and Fox smiled to himself, pressing his tongue inside of her as far as he could reach. She gave a little cry of pleasure and he closed his eyes and moved with her as she arched her back and hips against him, sliding his tongue in and out. He focused all his attention on the way she felt, the way she smelled and tasted, committing every detail to his photographic memory.

"Fox," she said shakily a few minutes later. "I want you to make love to me. I want to make love with you. I want you now." She held her arms out to him, the condom in one hand and he took it from her and put it on carefully, then rested within her arms in anticipation, kissing her.

She laughed and when he pulled away a little, puzzled, she laughed again at his expression. "Here," she said, wiping the tip of his nose off with her fingers. "Your nose was wet, and it tickled." He relaxed, laughing soundlessly at her.

Dana positioned herself under him, keeping her right leg between his legs. "Let’s try this to start, Fox, all right?"

"Anything for you," he replied huskily. He reached down to guide himself into her, but she reached for him instead, leaving his hand free to stroke her face and hair. "Okay," she said softly and he entered her, just barely. She moved her hand to his hip and pulled him closer, a little at a time, as he thrust gently.

As he gradually settled against her, as deep as their position would allow, she said, "You don’t have to be quite so gentle. It feels good. You feel good."

He nodded, unable to speak, and propped himself up higher on his forearms, thrusting harder into her. Dana attacked one of his nipples with her mouth and he moaned, moving faster.

After what seemed like forever, Mulder finally pulled her away from his chest and kissed her hard. Staring into her eyes, he rasped, "I want to feel you come, Dana. Please."

"Anything for you," she whispered, reaching between their bodies to stroke herself. When she moaned and shuddered, he could feel her climaxing, and he let himself go, leaning down against her, burying his face in her hair, losing himself in his own climax.

As she recovered, Dana clutched his hips as he slowed down, each thrust still sending a little shiver through her, and she panted against his chest. She was blissfully happy, insanely happy, and she laughed for sheer joy. "That was wonderful. Are you still alive in there?" she asked after a few minutes.

"I’m not sure," he said into the pillow. But he propped himself up a little, not wanting to suffocate her. "You’re really short, did you know that, Scully?"

She pulled his face down for a kiss. When they finally parted, she said, "You have a fine grasp of the obvious. Must be why you joined the FBI. And, as much as I hate to have you move, I’m afraid I can’t let you fall asleep in this position."

"I know," he sighed, kissing her several more times, reluctant to be parted from her. But she was right, and he finally withdrew from her with a painful sigh, which she echoed. Disposing of the condom in the wastebasket, he snuggled up against her. "I love you," he said as she pulled the covers up over them both.

"I love you too, Fox. Are you sleepy? Are you going to stay here with me?" she asked, yawning, giving him a kiss.

"Yeah, Dana, I’ll stay here. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in the world."

He settled in behind her, and his breathing soon told her that he was, in fact, asleep. Letting herself drift off, she fell asleep as well. That night, for the first time in years, Fox Mulder had no nightmares.