Title: A Close Shave
Author: Dee
Rating: R
Word Count: 2198
Pairings: Gil/Nick
Characters: Gil Grissom and Nick Stokes
Warnings: Fluff and AU
Spoilers: None
Disclaimer: In my dreams they are like, totally mine!
Beta: jayceepat and podga for their invaluable help in the Americanisation of the fic and their insightful comments. I thank high_striker for his wonderful icons. I am indebted to them all. Any errors are mine.
A/N: A follow up to Burned



A Close Shave

A cool shower had calmed the most obvious beard burn on Nick's face and he was persuaded to eat in the cafeteria but as he whispered to Gil in the line to pay for their breakfast his ass was still 'burning like he'd had something hot and hard shoved up it.'

Gil had very nearly dropped the tray of juice and food he was carrying and only just managed to retrieve the swaying glasses and the wobbling food. Nick had innocently enquired, "You okay there man?" Gil had been unable to respond for fear of choking and further endangering their breakfast.

When they were seated at a table Gil took the opportunity to try to get his own back. "So Nicky - can't take it hot and hard then?"

"I wouldn't go so far as to say that Gil, after all I managed well last night, I think. But you know my poor ass has suffered on the outside more from your beard scraping around my ass cheeks. Now your tongue... well that's a different matter altogether....you know maybe you should have used that talented tongue of yours to lick my ass to soothe the rash 'til we can get some lotion. The problem with that, of course, is that it would put your beard in the same proximity and that's not good at all."

Gil was dumbstruck looking at Nick......he'd thought he was a relatively shy man....but here he was sitting in the middle of a crowded restaurant discussing their sexual antics. Okay he was talking quietly but with such......what was the word...aplomb...not an overly used word to be sure – but it fit the bill.

Gil could feel himself getting hot and hard in his pants and there was no doubt that he would have difficulty standing at that moment without some serious readjustment of his clothing.

"Nick....weren't you shy about me....about me..." Gil looked around and lowered his voice, Nick comically looked around too, parodying Gil and leaning closer, "....y'know...rimming you ...last night?"

"Was I....oh yes....I was 'cause I'd never done it before y'know...but now....no problem...I thought I might have a go with you later.....after I've shaved of course."

"Nicky!" Gil's pants were way too tight now and his erection was straining against its confines.

"What?" Nick did 'innocent' to perfection.

"Please tell me that you are hard as I am; please tell me that you too will have difficulty walking in a straight line out of here?"

"Straight? Now that's an unfortunate use of the word." Nick smirked

Gil burst out laughing and that did attract the attention of a family on the next table. Gil blushed. Nick was amazed. He'd known Gil Grissom for a number of years before they became lovers but he'd never seen him blush before...ever!

"That's a nice colour on you Gil."

"You are....what.....incorrigible...Nick Stokes.....and I never knew. I love you I really do!"

"Notwithstanding your beard, I love you right back, man." Nick deadpanned his reply.

Gil started to chuckle quietly and leant his head on his hand with his elbow on the table. Nick hadn't seen him like this before. Relaxed and happy; he'd seen a bit of both before, he supposed, but not like this.

"Gil?"

"Mmmm?"

"You look good, man, happy."

"You make me happy, Nick; you make me very happy."

"Likewise!" Nick smiled his thousand megawatt smile across at Gil.

"Eat up, we need to get our stuff and get on the road. Two priorities for today Nick, shaving and rimming."

It was Nick's turn to laugh – though he managed to be a little more discreet than Gil had been.

They packed up their camping gear and stowed it in the back of Gil's truck. Then hit the road back to Las Vegas. As they neared Gil's neighbourhood, Gil detoured to a pharmacy and went in to get some lotion for Nick's face...and his other sore parts!

When he came back he'd got a bag of other goodies too, lubricant....in several flavours and condoms in several colours.

"I almost bought some ribbed condoms...but I'm not sure they would be as pleasant as they could be...given our....differences.....what did Greg call them...'manginas'?"

"Oh, man, gross."

"Greg does appear to have a wealth of useless information. What?" This last question was a response to Nick's incredulous look at him.

"You calling Greg on his useless info'...man you're the world champion!"

"Nick, that's not fair, my information is informative and most usually in context with what we're doing."

"It is?"

"Now that we're a couple Nick, I would expect a bit of loyalty from you, you know."

"Right; hang onto your every word and look at you through my lashes and giggle....that sort of thing?"

"Sarcasm....Nick..."

"I'm allowed man, I'm suffering from injuries here and a smartin' ass like you wouldn't believe...and I know I said I didn't blame you......" Nick tried to feign hurt but ruined the effect entirely with a smirk turning into a laugh.

"Perhaps I should keep my beard just to teach you a lesson in respect?"

"No probs man, just remember: beard equals no ass – no beard equals lots of ass!"

"A convincing argument....."

They drove on for the few minutes it took to get to Gil's townhouse in a happy silence. Both men thinking about Nick's ass – from completely differing perspectives of course.

After unpacking the truck and putting on a pot of coffee Nick took his lotion and in Gil's bathroom started to apply it to his sore parts. It was instantly soothing. He hadn't shaved and decided he may leave that a few days to give his face a little recovery time.

Gil was storing the camping gear and a little while later joined Nick in the bathroom.

"Need any help reaching those unreachable bits Nicky?"

"Nope...but can I wear one of your baggy tees and a pair of your sweat pants... to give my wounds a little breathing space?"

"Mmmm...my tees and sweat pants aren't baggy on me Nick...are you insinuating something here? And...when did your minor rashes become wounds?"

"Well...could be that I'm just a perfectly honed specimen of prime Texan....and you're..." Nick thought better than pursuing this line of reasoning. "....anyway...my injuries have escalated in relation to the importance that my ass has taken in this relationship. It needs to be pampered and cared for because it now has a particular purpose in life."

"Well it certainly wiggled its way out of that tight corner."

"I don't....it doesn't wiggle." Nick was indignant on behalf of his ass.

"Now how would you know that when you face forward and your ass is behind for me to see?"

"It's just something I know, okay... hey let's talk about your ass for a change."

"I think you've just, fairly recently, implied that my ass is a fat ass."

"Oh no, I did nothing of the sort; man, your ass is magnificent, a truly wonderful specimen to behold!"

Gil stepped closer to Nick, they were almost touching and when he spoke Gil's voice had dropped an octave, his breath hot on Nick's (sore) face.

"You want a piece of my ass Nicky?"

Nick gulped in some air. "That.....would....be good......"

"You want to give topping a go?"

"You want to give bottoming a go?" Nick whispered back, having recovered somewhat.

"Think I might Nicky...think I might." Gil skimmed the pads of his fingers down both of Nick's arms, hardly touching him, Nick felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise and then there was his dick....that wanted in on the action too.

Gil's forehead rested against Nick's. "Let's get rid of this beard first, what d'you say?"

"I say what are you waiting for?"

"We...I thought you could shave me?"

"Me? I've never shaved anyone...well except myself."

"Now's the time to learn then. Come on my stuff's in the cabinet."

The sexual tension broken, Gil moved around Nick to retrieve his shaving gear from the cabinet. He brought out shaving foam and Nick's eyes nearly popped out of his head when Gil pulled a cutthroat razor out of a leather pouch. It looked lethal and Nick was absolutely sure he'd been to more than one crime scene over the years where such a razor had been the weapon of choice for some murderer.

"I don't think so Gil...if I slipped man, I could slice through your jugular!"

"You won't, you'll be fine...I want you to do it." That seductive tone again and Nick was caught like a rat in a trap...wrong analogy he thought, but it'd do.

"I can't say 'no' to you...but if I cut you man I'll never forgive myself...on the other hand it would be payback for my sore ass."

"Oh, oh...should I be a little bit worried here?"

"Nah...I'll be careful....I promise. Come on...don't you have to warm your skin first?"

"You do know a bit about it then?"

"Yeah, my Daddy used to go to guy when I was a kid and I'd go along for the ride and the candy that I used to get."

"No candy here Nick...but I can, maybe, promise you some sweet times ahead. I'll go get a chair - you soak a hand towel in hot water."

When Gil came back in he'd stripped down to his boxers and had a hard back chair from his bedroom. He put it in front of the wash basin and felt the water the towel was soaking in - it was good and hot. He pulled the towel out and wringing it out as quickly as he could he then wrapped it about his face.

Nick pulled another towel from the rail and wrapped it around Gil's shoulders. He shook the can of foam.

"You should really have soap in a dish and a brush to apply the soap to your face."

"I had a brush for ages but it just wore down and I never bothered to get another one...perhaps I should...so you can do this for me more often?"

"Maybe. You ready?"

"I am."

"Here goes then."

Nick removed the towel from Gil's face and squirted the foam into his hands and then worked it into the warm beard, making sure it was covered and had penetrated to the skin beneath. He picked up the razor and dipped it into the hot water still in the sink.

Gil watched Nick's every move. Nick caught his eye and smiled as he waited for the blade to warm up.

When he thought it was warm enough he took it out of the water and moved behind Gil. With his left hand he lifted Gil's chin up and gently pulled his head back until it was resting on his solar plexus. Smiling into the upside down face of his lover, he put the blade on Gil's neck beneath his beard line and then dragged the blade up over the hair. Gil's eyes closed and Nick felt him relax.

Nick swirled the blade in the hot water to clean the hair from it and repeated the process on the same part of the beard. This time the blade slid over the skin and cleared it completely of hair. He cleaned the blade again and repeated the process again and again until Gil's face was as smooth as it could ever be. Neither man had spoken.

He then wet a little of the towel again and used the heated cloth to wipe any remnants of foam from Gil's face.

Gil opened his eyes and looked up at Nick and smiled. "I enjoyed that very much. For a man who's never done it before you have a knack."

"Thank you Sir. Should I charge you?"

"I could pay in kind, would you like that?"

"What have you in mind Sir?"

"How about I start by giving you a thorough massage of your sore bits and pieces with that lotion and we could take it from there?"

"That would do nicely."

"Then let's begin."

An Extra Bit.

The major talk at the lab when they went back to work was the complete turnaround in their appearances. Now quite a few suspected there was 'something going on', but this was a strange turn of events. While they'd all seen Gil clean shaven, no one had ever seen Nick with a beard. It was only a few days growth and didn't appear to have the same luxuriant cover as Gil's facial hair, but nevertheless it was a good look on him. It did appear that his skin was redder than normal beneath the beard growth.

"What's with the beard, Nick?" Catherine wanted to know and the others were all quiet waiting for his reply.

"Nothing much...couldn't be bothered to shave."

"And what about the rash underneath it?"

"Oh. Well...." Nick's face and his 'rash' had suddenly got a whole lot redder. "Allergy to something...or other....." He petered out at his lame excuse. He should have thought that it wouldn't get past Catherine.

"And you Gil, what's happened to your beard?"

Gil paused and then an evil smirk spread across his now plainly visible face.

"It appears it was an allergen...."

The End