Title: Negotiation
By: Caroline Crane
Pairing: Nick/Greg
Rating: PG
Summary: It's only a half hour show.

Greg's not crazy about double shifts to begin with, but Nick's got the day off and that makes the hours crawl by even more slowly. So he's in a hurry to get home, letting out a dramatic sigh and leaning hard against the door when he finally makes it inside without any more calls on his cell phone summoning him back to the lab.

The TV's on in the living room, and he grins at the thought of crashing on the couch with Nick and forgetting the past sixteen hours. He pushes himself off the door, peeling his jacket off as he makes his way into the living room to drop onto the couch next to Nick. "God, I thought today would never end."

"Tough case?" Nick asks, barely glancing away from the TV long enough to look at Greg.

That's not exactly the welcome he was expecting – Nick's supposed to be glad to see him, maybe even push him down on the couch and kiss him like he's been thinking about it all day. Greg's been thinking about it all day – at least when he wasn't busy thinking about the case – and he expected a little more when he got home than 'tough case?'.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Okay."

"Okay? That's all I get?"

"Whatever you want, G."

And now he knows Nick's not listening to him, because he's still staring at the TV and Greg frowns as he finally registers what Nick's watching. It's one of those reality shows – Emergency Room or Real Vets or something like that, and he can't believe Nick's ignoring him for Animal Planet. He rolls his eyes and leans over the other man, reaching for the remote and that gets Nick's attention. He pulls the remote out of Greg's reach, tearing his attention away from the TV long enough to frown at Greg.

"Do you mind?"

"Nick, come on. I had a really long day and I just want to go to bed."

"So go to bed," Nick answers, leaning in to brush a distracted kiss across Greg's forehead before he turns back to the TV. "I'll turn it down."

He's always known that Nick can be dense, but this is ridiculous even for him. They've been together long enough for Greg to know how to get his attention, though, so he leans in and presses his mouth to Nick's neck, feathering hot kisses along soft skin until he reaches Nick's ear. "I was thinking it would be a lot more fun if I didn't go alone."

"In a minute, okay? This is almost over."

"You can watch this any time," Greg murmurs, worrying Nick's earlobe between his teeth before he pulls away to press hot kisses along Nick's jaw. "Me, on the other hand…okay, you can watch me pretty much any time too, but…"

"Shut up, shut up. I wanna hear what happens."

"What?" Greg looks at the TV, eyes narrowing when he sees why Nick's more interested in some show about vets than he is in Greg. "You've got a thing for Dr. Cheekbones."

"Dr. Petersen."

"Whatever. You've got a thing for him."

"I do not. I just want to hear what happens to the dog. It got hit by a car and they're not sure if they have to amputate its leg or not. Some people shouldn't have pets, man. Who lets their dog just run out in the street like that?"

Nick's jaw is set in that angry line he usually reserves for murderers and arguments with Warrick, and Greg would think it was cute if he didn't think Nick had ulterior motives. "Fine," he says, pulling away from Nick and standing up. "Watch your doctor save the day or whatever. I'm going to bed."

He takes a few steps toward the hall, and he can't believe Nick's actually going to let him walk away, but before he reaches the door the TV clicks off and he hears Nick stand up. "Greg, wait."

"I thought you wanted to see what happens." He doesn't turn around when Nick sighs, because he's pretty sure he can't hide the grin tugging at the corners of his mouth and he knows if Nick sees it he'll turn the TV right back on again.

"I'll catch it in reruns," Nick answers, hands landing on Greg's shoulders to slide down his back.

And he knows he should quit while he's ahead, but he turns in Nick's grip anyway. "Sure you can tear yourself away from Dr. Cheekbones?"

"I told you, it's Dr. Petersen. And I don't have a thing for him."

"Right, so you just watch for the cute little puppies."

Nick rolls his eyes, gripping Greg's hips and pushing him toward the bedroom. "Didn't you say something about going to bed?"

Greg knows Nick's just avoiding the subject, but he's pushing Greg through the door to their bedroom, and as long as he's getting what he wants Greg's not going to complain.