Title: Under The Mistletoe
By: Star Kindler
Pairing: Nick/Warrick
Summary: There's something Warrick has to get Nick to do before he can make full use of the mistletoe.

Warrick looked up from the shattered glass window he was piecing together for his current case, and his eye twitched as he caught sight of Nick in the lab opposite the one he was currently sitting in.

He'd been staring at that thing on Nick's lip for two months, and it was getting so he had to practically sit on his hands and bite his tongue to refrain from saying or doing anything that might get him in trouble. But if Nick didn't do something about that thing that crawled on his face while it gasped its last breath, Warrick was going to have to do something drastic.

Why Nick would want to hide his face under that thing was beyond Warrick. Nick actually liked it, which was unfathomable to Warrick, because as far as he knew, Nick never had any inclination to grow facial hair before.

If he didn't know better, Warrick thought Nick might just be trying to hide himself from the world. Not that Warrick could blame him in the least, since Nick had been through more shit in the last six years than any of the rest of them, and Warrick could see where not attracting the sort of attention Nick usually did would be appealing. Still, it irritated Warrick more than a little to see the other lab techs and officers give Nick odd looks and smirks, especially after the first week or so. Even with that ugly moustache, Nick was still better looking than all of them, hands down. And none of them had anything on Nick's personality.

Even Tina had said something on more than one occasion about the moustache, until Warrick snapped at her about a month ago and they'd ended up in a fight that ended with them not saying a word to each other for three days. For some inexplicable reason, her attitude had pissed him off worse than anyone else's had, and he couldn't explain it to himself, let alone to her. Things between them were still icy, and oddly enough, Warrick hadn't been able to bring himself to care.

Things hadn't been going well for his marriage, which was beginning to look more and more like a colossal mistake on his part. Apparently Tina thought so as well, because she'd informed him the night before that she was going with her parents to her grandmother's home in Reno; she'd taken her two week vacation, and she didn't know when—the unspoken "or if" drifted through the room with all the grace of a drunken elephant—she would be back. Warrick hadn't missed her, nor had he attempted to contact her; that alone told him maybe it was time to call it quits. If he was completely honest, he didn't want her to come back.

At that moment, all Warrick wanted was to get rid of that thing on Nick's upper lip. Maybe he could talk Nick into removing it as a Christmas gift to him.

"Hey, Warrick, how's it going?"

Warrick's musings interrupted, he turned his head toward the door and gave Greg a smile. "Slow and boring, but it's going."

Greg smirked as he jerked his head toward Nick. "Might go faster if you quit staring at Nick."

Warrick feigned innocence as he said, "I don't know what you're talking about. I wasn't staring at him."

Greg rolled his eyes and shook his head as he stepped closer. "Warrick, Warrick, Warrick…you are talking to the person who used his first two years at the lab making Nick-watching an art form. Work that pseudo-innocence on someone who hasn't been there," Greg said as he stood by Warrick and rested a hand on his shoulder. In a softer voice, he said, "I take it things aren't going well with Tina."

Warrick sighed and shook his head. "No. She's gone with her parents to visit some family. Who knows when she'll be back, or if she's even coming back? Damned if I don't want her to stay away."

Greg slid onto the stool next to Warrick and slipped on a pair of gloves. "Maybe she shouldn't come back. You're miserable, and she's miserable, and my guess is it started before Nick slapped that lip warmer on his face. Or am I wrong?" he asked as he started helping Warrick reassemble the glass.

Warrick shook his head. "You're not wrong. And I wasn't Nick-watching. I was simply contemplating tackling him and shaving that thing off."

Greg chuckled, taking the hint that it was time to drop Warrick's marital issues. Greg was flattered Warrick would actually confide in him, but Greg doubted he'd be Warrick's confidant if he hadn't overheard an argument Warrick and Tina had over the phone about two weeks before Nick started sprouting facial hair. "You really should. That way we won't have to look at it anymore, and Nick won't have anything to hide behind."

"You think that's what he's doing?" Warrick asked as he found two connecting pieces and put them to the side.

"I know that's what he's doing. It's been a couple of years since I was blown up, and I still have issues from time to time. Nick has issues, and I don't blame him at all, but hiding behind that ugly thing isn't going to make them go away. I say I go get my electric razor from my locker, and we ambush him next time he goes to the bathroom."

Warrick laughed out loud. "Nah, man, I was thinking something more subtle than that. I'll take care of it, and if I get my way, it'll be gone by New Years' Eve."

"I hope so," Greg said with a fake sigh. "So, how about we get this thing put back together and see if there's any prints?"

"Sounds good to me," Warrick said, glad for the change of subject. "Did we get anything back on the DNA yet?

"Hey, Nick," Warrick said as he walked into the locker room to find Nick changing his shirt. After a quick peek—okay, maybe not quick so much as a long leer—before turning his attention to his own locker. "Have any plans for Christmas?"

"Hey, 'Rick. Nah, man. I'll just be at home, since I decided not to go to Texas," Nick said. "What're your plans?"

"Same as yours. Tina's with her family, and I don't think she's comin' back." Seeing Nick's confusion, he added, "Things haven't been so great. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who thinks we made a mistake rushing into it."

"Well, since you've got nothin' to do, why don't you come over? I think between the two of us, we can manage to make a dinner and not ruin it completely," Nick said with a smile.

Moustache or no, it warmed Warrick to see that beautiful smile. Oh, yeah, he had it bad. If only he'd realized that before getting married. Returning the smile, he said, "Sure. Why don't we head out for breakfast and we can decide who's going to buy what?"

"Sounds like a plan to me. Let me just take this last report to Grissom. You wanna go to Tony's?"

Warrick nodded. "That's fine. I'll meet you outside." Suddenly, his holiday was looking much brighter.

In the early evening hours of Christmas Eve, Warrick knocked on Nick's door, bags in hand. This year it was the night shift's turn to have time off for Christmas Day, which meant that swing shift was staying half a shift late, and day was coming in half a shift early. In keeping with their normal schedule, Warrick and Nick decided to spend the evening hanging out and then preparing everything for dinner before they went to sleep. Then, just before noon, they'd put on the turkey, and around four they could get everything else going. That way, everything would be ready by the time Greg and Gil, both of whom ended up going to breakfast with them the morning they hashed all this out and had nothing to do for Christmas, arrived at Nick's with the desserts.

Warrick was glad they'd talked Grissom and Greg into coming with them that morning, when they all ran into each other in the parking lot. Only Nick, Catherine, Brass, and he knew that Gil and Greg were together. No one dared tell Sara about it, since there was no telling what she might do. And it was nobody else's business what the two got up to in their personal lives. This dinner would give Gil and Greg a chance to hang out with friends and not have to pretend that they weren't head over heels, crazy to the point of psychotic obsession in love with each other. Personally, Warrick thought it was kind of cute. Not that he'd voice that opinion, ever. He'd never live it down.

He only hoped he and Nick would be able to get to that point. It had been nice the last few days, spending his free time with Nick, reconnecting with his friend. Warrick hadn't spent nearly enough time with Nick since he'd married Tina. Hopefully he wasn't too late to do something about it.

Nick opened the door and the smile on his face was enough to stop Warrick's heart for a beat or two. "Whatever it is you're sellin', I'm not sure I'm buyin'."

"Then you're gonna have to hit the few stores open tonight and fight off the last minute shoppers," Warrick said, shoving a few sacks into Nick's arms. "And I'll just sit here and laugh at you."

"Come on in, then," Nick said with a laugh as he turned and headed toward the kitchen. "Where's the turkey?"

"In the car. I only have two hands, you know," Warrick told him as he unloaded the grocery bags onto the kitchen counter. "There are only a couple more things. Why don't I go get those and you can start putting this stuff up?"

"All right," Nick said as he started pawing through the bags.

Smiling at Nick's happy expression, Warrick walked out of the kitchen and back outside, where he picked up the turkey, the beer and sodas, and his overnight bag. His gifts for everyone were already at Nick's; he'd dropped them off the day before, not wanting to have to bring it all at once. Dropping his overnight bag in the corner of the front hall, Warrick headed back into the kitchen to find Nick with his head in the fridge.

Not one to miss an opportunity to ogle, Warrick leaned against the counter and watched as Nick's ass wiggled to the upbeat rhythm of a Christmas song that was drifting out of the living room and through the house. Warrick didn't know the song, but if it continued to inspire Nick to swing that sweet ass of his, it was about to end up on Warrick's "all-time favorites" list.

"Like what you see?"

Warrick grinned, unrepentant about being caught. "If I said yes, will you keep doing it?"

Nick looked at Warrick and rolled his eyes. "No, 'cause then you'd be lyin'," Nick told him as he took the turkey and slid it into the refrigerator. "Now if it was Catherine, then I'd believe you."

Warrick appreciated Nick's not mentioning his soon-to-be ex-wife. He'd talked to Tina on the phone two days ago, and they'd both agreed that it was better in the long run for them to call it quits now, before children became a possibility and things got messy. Warrick wasn't surprised she wanted to end the marriage, but her saying that they should have never married in the first place because they'd both known Warrick was in love with Nick was surprising, especially since Warrick hadn't figured it out until a few weeks ago.

Waiting until Nick finished putting the perishables into the fridge, Warrick stepped closer to Nick, until they were almost touching. He was definitely in Nick's personal space. "Just 'cause I like the ladies don't mean I can't love the men," he said into Nick's ear, keeping his voice low and sexy.

The dazed, slightly lustful look on Nick's face was priceless, and Warrick wished he had a camera to capture the moment. Giving Nick a moment to compose himself, Warrick grabbed a beer and headed into the living room.

The vision before him was a pleasant surprise. In the back corner of the room, near the doors that led to a large patio outside, stood a large tree. It was a Douglas fir, about eight feet tall, full and round and decorated with silver garland, multicolored lights and a lovely assortment of ornaments. Also scattered about the tree were candy canes, and wouldn't those be fun to torment Nick with tonight? Under the tree were all the gifts spread out neatly, making a pretty, festive picture.

The tree wasn't the only decoration in the room. Stockings were hung over the chimney. Warrick found it touching that there was one not only for him and Nick, but also for Gil and Greg. Garland lined the mantle, and red poinsettias sat on either side of the hearth. A ceramic Frosty sat on one of the end tables, and on the coffee table were a complete miniature set of the characters from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Around the room were various decorations that looked to be hand carved and painted. Warrick knew Nick liked to work with his hands, and he wondered if Nick had done them himself. He'd have to remember to ask.

The last things to catch his eye were the little sprigs of green that hung inside the door frames of the house. Warrick grinned, knowing that Nick put them up for Greg's benefit. Gil wasn't one for public displays of affection, but Greg had a knack for tearing Gil's guard down when they were in Nick and Warrick's presence.

Warrick smirked as he took a long pull from his beer. Maybe if he got lucky, he'd get Nick underneath that mistletoe.

"There a reason for that smirk on your face?" Nick asked as he walked into the room, his own beer in hand.

"Just thinking about how much use Greg's gonna get out of the foliage," Warrick said, nodding up at the mistletoe above Nick's head.

"Yeah, I'm sure he's gonna have Gil under it every chance he gets," Nick said with a slight smile.

Warrick couldn't miss the wistfulness in Nick's voice, or the quick look in his direction. Greg had told him more than once that Nick had a thing for him, but Warrick never put much stock into it, until he'd realized how much Nick meant to him. After that he started paying attention, and he could see what Greg had been talking about.

Better to do something about it now, however, than to do nothing, Warrick thought to himself, and he sauntered up to Nick until he was once again in Nick's personal space. "I might be willing to see that you get some use out of this little decoration, if…"

"If what?" Nick asked in a throaty tone that sent shivers up Warrick's spine. To Warrick's eyes, Nick looked surprised by his flirting.

"If you get rid of this," Warrick said, brushing a finger across Nick's moustache.

Nick raised an eyebrow. "What? You don't like it?"

Warrick leaned against the doorframe and smiled. "You're gorgeous no matter what, but it's not you. I know my Nick is still under there somewhere, and I'd really like to see him make a comeback." My Nick. Warrick hadn't realized how true those words were until he said the aloud.

Moving closer to Nick until he was nearly pressed up against him, he brushed his lips against Nick's, ignoring the tickling of Nick's moustache, and said, "Would you? For me? I'll make it all worth it."

Nick pulled his head back and frowned. "What about Tina?"

Warrick shook his head. "We've called it quits. As soon as she gets back, we're gonna get a divorce. We both decided it was time, and we've agreed to just leave it as we came into it. Neither of us wants it to get ugly. Enough about her. Are you gonna shave? I'll kiss you even if you insist on keeping it, but I've always preferred my men without facial hair."

"But we're under the mistletoe now," Nick said with a grin. "Maybe you should make use of it to give me incentive."

Warrick didn't need to be asked twice. Tilting his head slightly, Warrick leaned forward until his lips brushed against Nick's, gently at first, the touch feather-light. He pressed his mouth against Nick's a little more firmly for a second or two before lightening the touch again, and he continued to do so until Nick finally groaned and wrapped his arms around Warrick's neck and pulled him into a deep, soul-sucking kiss.

Nick's mouth was pure fire, and Warrick couldn't keep himself from devouring it. When Nick gasped against his mouth as their cocks brushed against each other, Warrick slipped his tongue inside, giving himself a taste of what he'd almost missed out on by being so blind.

When breathing through their noses wasn't enough, Warrick pulled back. Panting heavily, he asked, "Think that's enough incentive?"

Nick, also panting and looking even more surprised than earlier, nodded and said, "Oh, yeah, man. Hold that thought. I'll be back in five minutes."

Warrick watched in a daze as Nick all but ran toward his bedroom. Then he smiled and went to sit on the couch. He kicked off his shoes and turned on the television, waiting patiently for Nick to come back out.

He hadn't felt this good in…well, since before Nick's abduction. Even after he got married, when he thought he was in love with Tina and everything was good, there was always that underlying worry about Nick that wouldn't go away. Above everything, Nick was his best friend, and he had truly feared Nick wouldn't bounce back from it. Every day for two months afterward, Warrick woke up every morning and wondered if it was the day that Nick finally decided he'd had enough and high-tailed it back to Texas.

Warrick chuckled to himself. He never even thought the expression "high-tailed" until Nick came into his life. Shaking his head, he focused his attention on the sports ticker at the bottom of the screen.

Fifteen minutes later, Warrick switched off the television and frowned. He couldn't imagine what was keeping Nick so long. There was no way it took fifteen minutes to get rid of that moustache. Well, there was one way to find out what was going on. Warrick pushed himself off the couch and headed down the hallway to Nick's room.

Knocking lightly on the semi-closed door briefly before pushing it open, his breath caught in his throat and the sight before him made his knees weak.

Nick was lying on the bed, on his side, with no shirt on that amazing upper body and pajama pants riding low on his hips. He gave Warrick a moustache-free smile and patted the bed. "I was wonderin' if you were gonna come lookin' for me. I was about to come out there and get you."

Warrick didn't need an engraved invitation. As he strode across the room, he lifted his sweater and shirt over his head in one smooth motion. One knee pressed into the bed as Warrick pushed Nick back. Warrick swung the other leg over Nick's body so he was straddling him, and then Warrick let his body press down onto Nick's as he rested his elbows next to Nick's head.

"Damn, I could eat you alive," Warrick murmured. Bringing his head down, he licked along the freshly shaved skin. "I don't know why we didn't ever do this sooner."

Nick nipped Warrick's jaw. "Because it took you forever to get your head out of your ass. I'd all but given up on you, man, which was why I was so surprised you actually kissed me. I thought you weren't interested."

"Oh, hell, I'm interested." Warrick took Nick's mouth in a hard, brief kiss. "I'm very interested." Moving down a little, he bit down on the curve of Nick's neck. "And I'm gonna take my time showing you how much I am."

Warrick drew his tongue down Nick's neck, from Nick's chin to the hollow of his neck, where he lightly scraped his teeth along the slightly salty skin, eliciting a deep moan from Nick, a sound which went straight through Warrick's body and caused a pleasant tingle in his groin.

Wanting to hear much more of that, Warrick brushed his mouth and tongue down toward Nick's left nipple. He trailed his tongue around the sensitive skin, tonguing the small brown peak to complete hardness before sucking it into his mouth.

"Fuck!" Nick ground out as he slid his hands up Warrick's body to pull Warrick's head closer. His nipples had always been extremely sensitive, though few of his partners had ever given them much attention. "Oh, yeah, just like that, baby," he gasped out between breaths.

Warrick noted that Nick was enjoying his attentions, and he filed that information away as something he could use in the future to drive Nick insane…preferably while tied to the bedposts and at Warrick's mercy. But at the moment, all he wanted to do was spend the rest of the night exploring the beautiful body underneath him and discovering every single erogenous zone Nick had.

Warrick lifted his head and looked at Nick. "How far do you wanna take this? It's up to you, cause I'm good with whatever you want."

Nick pushed Warrick up and turned his body to rummage through the top drawer of his nightstand. Then he fell back and slapped a bottle of lubricant and a condom in Warrick's hand. "That answer your question?"

"Oh, yeah," Warrick said, leaning down and capturing Nick's mouth in a deep, heated kiss. Dropping the lube and condom next to them, Warrick slid back down and took Nick's right nipple into his mouth, biting down before laving it with his tongue.

"Mmm," Nick moaned as he pulled Warrick's mouth off his chest. "Need more. Save the foreplay for another time. I want you to fuck me, now!"

Warrick chuckled as he climbed off the bed. While he watched Nick shove down his pants and kick them off the side of the bed, Warrick unfastened his own jeans and stepped out of them. Taking a moment, Warrick drank in the sight of his best friend, lying there in all his amazing glory. "I have never seen anyone who looked as good as you."

"I have. I'm looking at him right now," Nick replied, his voice husky with desire. "Now get your ass over here and fuck me!" He flipped over onto his stomach and wiggled his ass at Warrick.

"Aren't you pushy?" Warrick said, unable to resist the temptation before him. He jumped back onto the bed and situated himself between Nick's legs. Popping open the cap, he coated his fingers quickly.

Nick shivered as a cool, slick finger brushed against his hole. As Warrick's finger slid inside him, deep and easy, Nick released a shuddery, relieved breath. Warrick was lying on top of him, and his finger was in Nick's ass, and Nick still couldn't believe his luck. It had hurt when he found out Warrick married Tina, and Nick thought he'd never have his chance. But here he was, and he was going to make the most of it, and he'd be damned before he let Warrick go now that he had him.

Nick groaned as a second finger slid into his ass. "God, yes, right there," he gasped as he pushed back onto Warrick's fingers. "Enough! In me, now."

If Nick deemed himself ready, Warrick certainly wasn't going to argue. He tore open the condom wrapper with his teeth and rolled it onto his cock. Slicking himself up, he tossed the lube to the side and positioned himself at Nick's opening.

"Oh, damn," Warrick groaned as he slid into Nick's body inch by inch. Nick was tight around his cock, and he could feel the heat even through the condom. He'd had sex with men before, and not one of them had felt so good, so perfect wrapped around him. Fully embedded within Nick, Warrick leaned against him and pressed kisses along Nick's back.

Nick relaxed his body and enjoyed the pressure of Warrick's weight on top of him. Having Warrick's thick cock split him open and fill him completely was the most incredible thing he'd ever felt. He'd only been with one other man, and that had been in college. No one else had ever been worth his career, but this…this was worth giving it all up, if it meant he could feel like this all the time. "Please move," he pleaded with Warrick, even as he flexed his muscles around the base of Warrick's dick.

Warrick growled when Nick's ass squeezed. He took his time pulling out of Nick's ass, and thrust in just as slowly. "Tell me, Nick. You want me to go slow, make it last until you're begging and writhing beneath me? Or do you want me to take you hard and fast, make your ass feel it so strongly that Gil and Greg are gonna know what we did tonight?"

"Hard and fast. I want them to know I belong to you," Nick said, getting up on his hands and pushing back against Warrick, impaling himself on Warrick's prick. "Move!"

Warrick obliged, pulling out and slamming back in hard, his pace furious, the sound of his balls slapping against Nick's ass seeming to echo throughout the room. The grunts and groans coming from Nick were making him crazy. Nick was so responsive, pushing back into him, giving as good as he got, so much so that Warrick wasn't too sure who was fucking whom anymore.

It wasn't going to last long. Warrick wasn't going to last long, but he had enough presence of mind to reach in front of Nick and grasp Nick's cock, jerking him off hard and fast.

Nick wasn't a loud lover, shuddering and coming with a soft groan, but the feel of Nick's come coating his hand was enough to push Warrick to the brink, and a few more thrusts and he was coming deep inside Nick, his hips jerking as he rode out his climax.

Warrick managed to roll them over to their sides before collapsing in a limp heap of post-orgasmic bliss. As soon as he was soft, he slipped out of Nick as carefully as possible. He managed to pull off the condom and clean them off with Nick's pants, and then he curled up behind Nick and wrapped his arms around his lover, pressing light, sleepy kisses to Nick's shoulder. "Man, that was good."

Nick turned around and hooked one leg over Warrick's. "Yeah, it was. I'm hopin' we'll get to do that more often," he said, unable to voice his desire to spend every Christmas for the rest of his life just like this.

Maybe Warrick was a mind reader as well as gorgeous, intelligent, and sweet, because he said, "Hell yeah. We've gotta get in a lot of practice for next Christmas, and the one after that, and the one after that…"

"I like the sound of that. I know we can't really tell anyone, but I'd like Gil and Greg to know, and maybe Cath and Jim," Nick said as he tucked his head under Warrick's chin and made himself comfortable.

"I don't think we'll have to. I think Gil and Greg are going to figure it out tomorrow, when I keep pullin' you under the mistletoe."

"You better. I didn't spend two hours yesterday searching for that stupid plant just for Gil and Greg to get some action."

Warrick pulled back and looked at Nick, amusement lighting his eyes. "You bought that for us?"

Nick had the decency to blush. "I was kinda hopin', but if you didn't wanna kiss me, I knew Greg would appreciate it."

Warrick laughed and pulled Nick back to him. "Get some rest, you little sneak. I wanna get up in a while so we can go make out under the mistletoe. Might as well get our use out of it."

Nick sighed and yawned. "Sounds good to me."

To Warrick, it sounded perfect.