Title: Interlocked
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Greg Sanders/Ryan Wolfe
Fandom: CSI: Vegas/CSI: Miami
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Greg Sanders or Ryan Wolfe, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

"Ready to go pick out our collars?" Ryan asked Greg as he pulled into the parking lot of a small shop. Greg looked out of the window, a pink blush rising to his cheeks as he took in the sign on the front of the store before turning back to Ryan.

"How did you know this was here?" he asked, raising an eyebrow in question and obviously trying to pretend that he wasn't blushing. "It's not like sex shops have advertisements everywhere, so I know you didn't get the address from any of the local papers."

"I asked Catherine if she knew of any places like this," Ryan mumbled, not wanting Greg to know that he'd gone to their boss with that kind of a question, but knowing that he had to tell the truth. "I told her that I was interested in picking up a few things."

"At a sex shop for gay men?" Greg burst out laughing, leaning back against the seat. "Well, if she had any doubts about you being gay, she doesn't now. Not that it matters. Everybody already knows I'm dating a guy. They probably think we're the perfect partners."

"That's because we are," Ryan said softly, capturing his boyfriend's hand in his and twining their fingers together. "They just don't know how perfect we are for each other. I hope we'll be able to let them all know one day, instead of hiding it."

Greg sobered and nodded, sighing softly. "I'm kind of surprised that nobody's put two and two together and made five yet," he admitted, shaking his head. "And I'm really surprised that Catherine didn't tell you to ask me, instead of telling you about this place herself."

"She did say that my partner might know more about it than she did," Ryan admitted, a rueful smile on his face. "I was careful to let her know that we don't talk much about our personal lives. I didn't want to give her any kind of suspicions about us."

"That's a good thing," Greg told him as he opened the car door. "Well, are you ready to go find a set of necklaces?" He wasn't referring to them as "collars" any more, which Ryan was grateful for. He didn't consider what they would be wearing a symbol of ownership.

"I think we are," Ryan answered with a smile, getting out of the car and taking Greg's hand as they headed for the front door. Greg hesitated a moment before pushing the door open and entering the place, taking a deep breath as they walked inside.

Ryan had never been inside a gay sex shop before; he had expected it to be somewhat garish, but it wasn't. It looked just as any other kind of shop would; there was nothing designed specifically to titillate, or to make the place feel uncomfortable in any way.

"We probably ought to pick up some lube while we're here," Greg told him, obviously trying to seem as though he was in places like this every day. "We might be running out, and we definitely don't want that to happen." He gave Ryan a slight smile, moving closer to him.

Could Greg feel uncomfortable just by being here? Ryan hoped not; he wanted to explore the place now that they were inside. He was sure that they would be coming back to this place, and he wanted to get a feel for it, to have some idea of what was here.

He looked around, realizing that the lube was on a shelf not far from them. Ryan picked up a bottle, almost laughing aloud as he saw the name of the lube. "Boy butter?" he whispered to Greg, seeing that his boyfriend was just as amused as he was. "Interesting name."

"It's pretty appropriate, isn't it?" Greg asked, his eyes sparkling with laughter. "After all, you do butter my buns." Ryan couldn't hold back his laughter at those words; he slid an arm around his lover's waist, pulling Greg to him.

"If you keep saying things like that, I'll be laughing too hard to concentrate on what we came here for!" he said, leading his boyfriend towards the counter at the side of the shop. The clerk was smiling quizzically at them, as if he was wondering what they were laughing about.

"Hi," Ryan said as they approached the counter, not entirely sure how to go about describing what he was looking for. "We're in the market for some jewelry. We're looking for necklaces that might be called collars -- something with hearts and a little lock."

"I think we might have just what you're looking for," the clerk told him, moving to the side of the counter where jewelry was displayed under the glass case and fitting a small key into the lock. Ryan and Greg both watched as he withdrew a silver necklace, holding it up to the light.

Ryan's breath caught in his throat as he looked at the piece of jewelry; he could already imagine seeing it around Greg's neck. It was intricately wrought, the links of the chain appearing strong yet delicate at the same time, almost lacy in appearance.

"It's beautiful," Greg whispered as the clerk laid the necklace on the counter for them to inspect it. It was exactly what Greg had said that he wanted; two interlocked hearts, with a small lock holding the two of them together. It could be seen as both a collar and a necklace.

But that wasn't what Ryan saw when he looked at it; instead, he saw the physical symbol of himself and Greg, their hearts and bodes entwined, interlocked with each other for all of eternity. It didn't look like a collar to him; it looked like a declaration of love, of togetherness.

He picked up the necklace a little gingerly, surprised at how strong and sturdy the delicate-looking chain felt in his hands. He wanted to put it around Greg's neck, but he would wait until they got home, where they could be alone and make a ritual of it.

"I think this is perfect for us," he said, looking at Greg to see if his boyfriend agreed with him. Greg smiled and nodding, reaching to take the necklace from Ryan. He held it up against his throat, turning to the small mirror on the counter to see how it looked.

"Silver or gold?" Greg asked, a slight frown marring his brow. "I like both. I don't know which one would be better for us." He looked toward Ryan, raising his brows, obviously wanting an opinion. "Which one do you like better? I can go either way."

"So can I," Ryan told him with a smile. "But I usually wear gold jewelry, so I'd probably go for that. I think the silver looks perfect on you." The delicate hearts gleamed against Greg's skin, the lock twinkling with a sparkle that Ryan hadn't noticed before.

He leaned closer, squinting at the hearts, realizing that the sparkle he saw was a tiny diamond in each one. His eyes widened in surprise; he hadn't expected something this exquisite to be for sale in a sex shop. His opinion of the place had suddenly risen to new heights.

They were going to be expensive necklaces, but well worth the money. If this was what Greg wanted, then this was what he would get, Ryan thought with an inward smile. If his boyfriend wanted the moon and the stars, then he would try his best to get them. This was much easier.

"I love these," Greg murmured, reluctantly laying the necklace back down on the counter. "I know they're expensive, but they're perfect. I'm buying you one," he said to Ryan, flashing his lover a grin as he looked over at Ryan. "Don't even think about arguing."

"And I'm buying you one," Ryan told him, laughing. "I don't care about the cost -- if it's what you want, then it's worth whatever the price is. We just have to make sure they're the right size, and that we're both comfortable with them."

They spent a few more minutes trying on different sizes of the necklace until each of them had found what they wanted; when Ryan pulled out his credit card, he was astonished to find that it didn't cost as much as he had thought it would.

Greg asked where the bathroom was and excused himself for a few moments; when he'd left, Ryan gave the clerk a rueful smile. "Is it just me, or are those necklaces a lot less expensive than they should be? Are the diamonds in them fake? Is that why?"

The clerk shook his head, smiling as he put their necklaces into velvet-lined boxes and slipped them into two bags. "No, they're real, all right," he said with a laugh. "But when I see two people who're so perfect for what they're getting, I try to cut them a deal, since I own the place."

"I think we both appreciate that," Ryan murmured, a little overwhelmed by the man's words. He hadn't expected anyone to see the two of them in that light; he had thought that only he and Greg could know just how perfect those necklaces were for the two of them.

"It's obvious that you two are a couple in love," the man told him, his voice soft. "And I like to see people in love. Too often, people just come in here for something to liven up a one-night stand. So when I see a couple who are as interlocked as those hearts, I try to help them along."

Ryan nodded, swallowing hard to dislodge the lump that had suddenly appeared in his throat. "I've always felt like I belonged with him, ever since the first second I met him. I didn't know that it was so obvious to other people that we're meant to be."

"It is if you look hard enough." The owner of the shop smiled at him, leaning on the counter and watching with a satisfied expression as Greg came back from the bathroom, taking Ryan's hand when they headed for the door. "You guys come back soon."

"We will," Ryan told him, squeezing Greg's hand and giving his boyfriend a loving look as they walked out to the car. The store owner was right; they were interlocked, now and forever. And he couldn't wait for they day when they could proudly proclaim that fact to the world.

***