Title: Listen To What I Hear
Fandom: CSI: Vegas
Author: Angelise
Pairing: Gil/Greg/Warrick
Summary: There comes a time when Gil will lose something precious.

Turning away from the entertainment unit set in the wall, Gil walked back to where Greg was sitting on the couch. He paused to smile at Warrick, who was somehow finding room for one last piece of tinsel on their eclectically decorated Christmas tree. "Sing another carol," Gil instructed. He pulled Greg to his feet and tenderly kissed him. "Just one more. Please." Taking a seat on the coffee table, Gil looked up at his two lovers. "The harmony of your voices is quite unique."

Warrick slipped his arm around Greg. "Okay, one more. But then I have to go take a nap." He raised an eyebrow at Gil. "Some of us aren't so lucky as to have the holiday off."

"One of the many benefits of management, Warrick." Gil collected his neglected glass of buttered rum. "At least the three of us will have New Year's weekend off."

Greg rubbed his hands together and grinned. "And if I remember right, a certain someone promised to go skydiving with us." He turned to Warrick and nudged him in the side. "Am I correct? He did promise."

Before the black man could answer, Gil interrupted, "If I don't hear two voices raised in song in the next few seconds, that promise is null and void."

Ignoring Gil's threat, Greg and Warrick took several minutes to confer with each other before finally deciding on which song to serenade their lover with. Testing the older man's patience just a tad, they stole an additional moment to kiss each other thoroughly.

Greg's infectious grin appeared again when Gil harrumphed quite loudly. "Just wetting the ole whistle," he explained merrily. Before Gil could respond, Greg tapped Warrick on the chest and they began to sing 'O Holy Night.'

Tilting his head in Warrick's direction, Gil listened intensely, his gaze riveted on the two men's faces. As soon as the song was finished, he joined them, wrapping an arm around each one's waist, pulling them close enough to kiss. "I love you both," he whispered, the expressed rarity of these words resulting in a tightening of the arms holding him.

"Ditto." Greg ruffled Gil's hair. "How 'bout we put tall, dark and handsome here to bed?" Taking hold of their hands, Greg rushed his two lovers down the hallway leading to their bedroom.

Laughing, Warrick glanced over at Gil. "Why do I have the feeling his enthusiasm has nothing to do with putting me to sleep?"

Greg stopped just inside the doorway to the bedroom and faked a look of surprise. "You mean you actually want to go to sleep?"

Shaking his head, Gil heaved a noisy sigh and, with an absolutely straight face turned to Greg and said, "I can't believe he wants to go to sleep. I was so looking forward to chaining him to the bed so that you and I could investigate his tolerance for torture."

With a wicked glint in his eyes, Greg grinned and nodded his head. "A most worthy research project." Tapping his chin with one finger, he examined Warrick's lean form for several seconds. "I think we should blindfold him. See how he handles sight deprivation."

Throwing his hands in the air, Warrick backed away from his lovers. "Help!"

+++++++

"Come on, Warrick. Greg wants to try out his karaoke machine."

Warrick unfolded his long frame from his corner of the couch. "I knew we shouldn't have bought him that thing." He smoothed his hands over his denim-clad thighs. "If I hear Greg singing Aerosmith's 'Walk This Way' one more time, I'm going to permanently gag him." An indulgent smile was aimed at his younger lover, followed by a groan when Greg held up the Aerosmith CD for Warrick's approval.

Gil positioned himself in front of Warrick and rubbed his hands along the man's broad shoulders. "Just be thankful he's not into yodeling. Then I, myself, would insert the gag." Reaching up, Gil brushed his fingers across the tall man's mouth. "Go sing with him. Make him happy."

"And just when are you going to add your voice to this unique harmony of sound?" Warrick captured Gil's fingers and kissed them.

Acknowledging his lover's caress with a smile, Gil pulled his hand free and walked over to the entertainment center. "They haven't built a bucket strong enough to carry this voice of mine." He flicked several switches before turning back to face Warrick. "Besides, I like having a front row seat so that I can watch the two of you together."

"You are so full of shit." Warrick pointed his finger at Gil. "You just like ogling our bodies while we sing."

"Am I that transparent?" With an absolutely innocent look on his face, Gil slapped Warrick on the arm and pushed him toward Greg. "Sing me a love song, gentlemen."

"It's Aerosmith," Greg and Warrick yelled in unison. "They don't sing no stinking love songs."

"I beg to differ." Gil joined his lovers at the karaoke machine and proceeded to show them just how wrong they were.

++++++++

"We'll take a cup o' kindness yet for auld lang syne."

"Happy New Year." Gil handed Greg and Warrick a glass of champagne, waiting for each man to take a swallow before kissing them so that he could savor the traces of its flavor on their lips. He smiled at the rakish tilt of Greg's party hat, his spiked hair peaking out from the edges.

"One drink, gentlemen, and then it's off to bed." Gil emptied his glass and carried it into the kitchen. "There's a clear blue sky waiting for us to glide through tomorrow."

"You are going to love skydiving, Gil." Warrick walked up behind his lover and reached over his shoulder, sitting his dirty glass in the sink.

Gil startled slightly and quickly turned around to hide his reaction. "Excuse me?"

"Greg is so excited about tomorrow. We're going to have to pry him off the ceiling to get him to go to bed." Warrick pulled the gray-haired man into his arms and nuzzled his neck.

Gil tipped back his head, encouraging Warrick to move his talented mouth down his throat. A quick nip of teeth on his Adam's apple caused him to moan quietly. "Why don't you dig out that crowbar and see if you can get Greg down from the ceiling. I'll join you in bed as soon as I finish up these dishes."

Knowing better than to protest Gil's need for having a clean kitchen before retiring to bed, Warrick nodded his head and turned away. A sound of surprise escaped his lips when he was hugged from behind, the tight grip of Gil's embrace nearly stealing his breath away.

Warm lips investigated the sensitive area behind his ear before pressing kisses to the back of his neck. "I love you, Warrick," was whispered to him as Gil's hands found their way underneath his sweater, their heat caressing his naked skin. Warrick nearly lost control when Gil chuckled softly and widened his exploration to the area below Warrick's belt.

"I think the dishes can wait for once. Let me clear this mess off the counters and lock up. Then?. " Gil expertly loosened Warrick's belt and slipped his hand inside the man's jeans, a groan of pure hunger welcoming his touch.

"Gil?." Reluctant to leave his lover's embrace, Warrick turned to complain but once he saw the light of desire in Gil's eyes, he was more than happy to obey the softly spoken request. "Meet you under the covers."

With practiced ease, Gil quickly put the kitchen to rights before strolling into the living room. Turning off the lights as he went, he checked that all the doors were locked and the security alarm was set. As he turned to head down the hallway, a light from the entertainment center caught his attention and he discovered that Greg had left the CD player on. Reaching out to push the power button off, he noticed a CD half hidden under the book of Christmas carols Greg had brought home from the library. Recognizing his handwriting, Gil collected the silver disc and tapped its edge against his chin, hoping beyond hope that fate would be kind to him and keep his hearing loss at a minimum. He knew it was an impossible expectation but since he had been welcomed into Greg and Warrick's hearts, he had begun to believe in miracles. And just in case the powers-to-be deemed it necessary to steal away his hearing, he would continue to take advantage of every opportunity to record Greg and Warrick's voices so that he could listen to the recordings as often as possible.

With a small smile on his face, he inserted the CD into the player and, after slipping on Greg's headphones, he punched the play button. Sinking to his knees, he closed his eyes and rested against the wall, promising himself he would listen to only one song. After a moment, Gil lifted his hand and increased the volume. A frown appeared on his face and he impatiently slapped the headphones covering his ears. Increasing the volume again, he brought his knees up and circled his arms around them, burying his face, hiding the uncharacteristic moisture that had sprung to his eyes.

"No," Gil whispered hoarsely. He rocked back and forth before vehemently crying out, "No. Not yet. I'm not ready." Gentle fingers tangled themselves in his hair and Gil looked up into Warrick's concerned eyes.

"What's wrong?" Warrick sank down beside his distraught lover.

Pulling off the headphones, Gil stared into the darkness. "I can't hear you singing." With a sudden burst of violence, he thrust the headphones away from him before once again looking up at Warrick, the agony of his loss plainly written on his face. "Your voice? I can hardly hear it now."

Forcing down the flood of emotions that threatened to swamp him, Warrick wrapped an arm around Gil's bent figure and touched his face, making sure Gil was looking at his lips.

"Just listen to my heart. That's all you need to do. Just listen to my heart."

The end