Archive of Our Own

The door of Captain John MacTavish's office closes with a quiet click, two pairs of footsteps shuffling into the room before coming to a stop in front of his desk. Tav looks up from his paperwork with a barely restrained sigh. The conversation that he was about to have, one that he’d had multiple times before, was one of the few things that made him question why he'd ever put in the effort to climb the ranks, and almost made him regret it. Still, it had to be done.

"At ease," he says, watching the two soldiers move smoothly from standing at attention to ease, hands behind their backs and feet shoulder width apart. He nods at the chairs in front of them, close to the desk. "Have a seat."

They follow his instruction, each settling into a chair while Tav pulls another piece of paper from a folder on his desk to work on as they speak. "I'm going to keep this short. Before either of you worry, I didn't call you here to discipline you. Relax." 

Neither seem to lose any of the tension in their shoulders, but Ghost's head tilts ever so slightly, expression hidden behind the mask and sunglasses. Tav takes it as a sign to continue.

"I'm aware that the two of you have worked together before," he starts, glancing down at the report, "for quite a long time, too. I have no intention to split you apart as you've proven your professionalism whilst on the field – which is all I care about, to be frank. Your personal lives and relationships are none of my business. However," he pauses, levelling a serious look at each of them. "As your captain, I'm asking you to keep it professional whilst off the field as well, just for the next week, so that we can avoid any altercations with the visiting General." He marks a spelling mistake to correct later on and, at their silence, looks back up at the two. "Understood?"

There's a long silence that hangs heavily in the air, and the two in front of him share a glance, before finally Ghost takes in a breath. "Permission to speak freely, sir?"

Tav's eyebrows furrow a little at the words, but he nods, hoping that he wasn't going to have to argue his point or pull rank. The man has always been stubborn – something that Tav liked about him in all honesty – but it did cause friction between them every once in a while. Tav just hoped he’d understand what he was saying. He was only trying to help them, after all. "Granted, Riley."

He leans forwards, eyes hidden behind his glasses but still somehow making his glare obvious. "What in the ever-loving fuck are you talking about, sir?"

Roach's eyes shoot over to Ghost, wide with panic, but Tav is used to his borderline insubordination and doesn’t give any reaction to his outburst. He only looks back down at the paper in front of him. "The two of you. I'm fine with it, but the General could have you discharged for fraternisation, Ghost."

"Frat-" Ghost cuts himself off, more thrown off than Tav had even seen him before. "Fraternisation, sir?"

Tav nods slowly, only looking up again because of how off-guard Ghost seemed to be. "Aye, that's what I said."

Suddenly Roach is shaking his head, hands raised in front of him as if surrendering. "It's not like that, sir! We're just friends!"

That makes Tav pause, and he turns his gaze over to the shorter man. "Really?"

He nods aggressively, his curly ginger hair bouncing with the movement. "Yes, sir."

Before Tav can get a word in, he's cut off by Ghost. "I'm not even gay, sir. We're just friends."

Tav, who'd been looking at Roach, got to watch the sergeant's eyebrows shoot up in surprise as he turned to look at Ghost, utterly dumbfounded by that last statement. "You're not?" He asks, baffled.

"What? No! Why would you think-" 

Tav clears his throat to get their attention back before the conversation can derail any further. "Enough. Like I said, I don't need to know about your relationships." The two men were still looking at each other, Roach's expression full of shock and Ghost's body language not far from that of an aggravated cat – Tav almost expected him to start hissing at the sergeant. "That's..." he searched for the words, "good to know, though. It certainly makes my job easier, I thought I'd be stuck turning a blind eye."

Roach turns back, blinking at him with his wide green eyes. "Yeah, you... you don't need to worry about that, sir."

Now desperately wanting to get out of the conversation, Tav nods. "Well, then. That's all I needed you for. You're both dismissed."

They both stand from the chairs, Roach moving back to attention and saluting before he makes an about turn and heads for the door. Ghost, instead, just lazily stands up and nods at Tav before following after the sergeant. 

"You're not gay?" Roach asks, voice carrying through the door as it shuts. Then, quieter as they walk away, "I don't believe that." He sounds so confident in the statement that it almost makes Tav laugh. He looks back down at his paperwork and decides to finish off the last few reports for the day and then head to the pub to hopefully forget the whole conversation.

–/–/–

Roach had been right, in the end. Only three months after that conversation had happened with their captain, he’d had the joy of witnessing Riley’s gay awakening during a spar with their captain, who, as an openly gay man, made a flirty quip in an attempt to piss Ghost off. It was like his brain momentarily shut down, and Roach had to struggle to hold his laughter in when Riley was thrown to the mat and barely managed to remember to tap out afterwards. He admitted to Roach a few days afterwards that he was, in fact, gay. Or at the very least bisexual.

At first it was cute, and a little funny to watch such a lethal man fluster around their captain like a high schooler with a crush whilst Tav remained entirely oblivious. In fact, he probably still believed that Ghost was straight; it wasn't like he'd come out to the whole team, after all. Only Roach knew. But as time went on and Ghost refused to even ask Tav out for a drink, Roach decided he’d have to do it for him — if only to save himself the aggravation.  

Almost five months since they’d been called into Tav’s office, and two since Ghost had last sparred with the captain, he was still contemplating exactly how to go about setting up his superiors. The opportunity to do so came on a random Thursday evening. 

The team had been training in the north-east of England when, on their way back to the base they were stationed at, they received news that the barracks had been flooded. After moving all of the soldiers out of it, there was no room left for the 141 to stay overnight. Their choices were limited — contact another base nearby and hope that there was room, or find a hotel. Their captain chose the latter.

After getting their room keys and being dismissed for the night, most of the team decided to go out for drinks in the local town, and Roach found himself turning down Meat's invitation to join them all with the excuse that he had an old friend who lived locally to meet up with. It was a lie, but he needed an excuse to go somewhere else with Ghost so they could both drink without worrying about the mask. Even if they were caught out, none of the team had seen Ghost's face so they wouldn't recognise him.

–/–/–

An hour after his team leaves the hotel, Tav finally finishes off drafting the logistics paperwork he knows he'll have to complete once he returns to home base. He takes a shower and, after a minute or two of contemplation, he decides that he could also benefit from taking the remainder of the night off. He'd heard the team discussing plans earlier and, while they'd gripe to him about "team bonding", Tav wasn't interested in joining them all in a busy pub – especially when drinks would inevitably lead to clubs and late night shenanigans. Roach had the right idea, going off on his own to a quieter pub to meet his friend. 

He hangs his towel up to dry and pulls on some clothes more suited for the chill of the autumn evening. Picking up his jacket and wallet from the shoddy desk beneath the window of his hotel room, he considers if it would be worth checking in with the rest of the team, but that would mean going out of his way to find where they were.

The door closes with a quiet click and he begins walking down the hallway. The rest of the team would probably be halfway-drunk by now, anyway, but he does wonder if Ghost had gone with them. He stops by the door of the room the man has been assigned for the night and considers for only a moment before knocking. Ghost never usually goes out with the team but Tav thinks that he might as well try to convince him to at least get a drink or two in a quieter place. He'd been acting odd for the past few months now. Or, more odd than usual, that is. He figures it'd be good to give him the opportunity to relax, and maybe talk about what was getting to him.

There’s no reply, and Tav is surprised when he realises that the room was quiet and no light shone out from under the door. It was highly unlikely that Ghost would be asleep, so Tav supposed Ghost must've followed after the others or gone somewhere on his own. He can’t help feeling slightly disappointed as he continues towards the exit of the hotel. Ghost was always good company and Tav would never pass up the opportunity to spend time with him. He likes the man, more than he probably should, but he feels like he's done a good job at hiding it – if he hadn't half of the team would surely know by now, and Ghost would've undoubtedly reminded him that he was straight. Tav doesn't mind that, happy to have the man's friendship and any level of trust.

But, Tav thinks as he steps out of the hotel into the cool night air, perhaps Ghost had noticed, and that was why he's been acting so strangely around him. He hopes that his strange behaviour isn’t because he feels uncomfortable. Tav decides he'll have to pull him aside at some point and check up on him. The last thing he wants is to be yet another CO to fail Riley.

He wanders for another ten minutes before he stumbles across a small pub on a street corner, the amber lighting from inside reflecting on the wet pavement and drawing Tav in with the promise of a warm atmosphere. It doesn’t seem busy from what he could see through the windows, so he decides to chance the place.

He scopes out the room as he steps through the door, instinctually checking exits and the crowd around the place. Most people had gathered at the bar, aside from a small group standing around a game of pool, and the rest were scattered around the tables. There were a few booths along the edge of the room and Tav naturally looks to the one in the corner to see if it was still empty.

It wasn't. In fact, sitting on one of the benches, opposite a slightly taller man, was Roach. He was surprised to see him, and it seemed that feeling was mutual when the sergeant's eyes flicker over the room and meet his own. He considers just leaving him to it and walking to the bar to get a drink, but, he supposes, now that he's been spotted he should at least go over and greet him.

-/-/-

Roach finds himself sitting opposite an unmasked Ghost in the corner of a small pub only a few hours later, far away from where the rest of the team had mentioned. They were both in civvies, nursing a pint each and chatting about the training exercise, when out of the corner of his eye Roach recognises a familiar face.

For some unknown reason, their captain must've decided to go out alone instead of following the rest of the team. He sees Roach immediately, walking over casually from the door. "Gary, I thought you went with the others?"

He looks up at his captain with a shrug. "I wanted somewhere quieter."

"Aye. Nice to get a break from 'em all sometimes." And then his eyes land on Ghost, and he tilts his head a little. "Who's this?"

The opportunity was far too good to pass up, and Roach decides that he'll have to apologise to Ghost later, because he was about to throw him in the deep end. "This is my friend Simon," he says before turning to Riley with a smile that’s far too innocent for his liking. "Si, this is my captain."

Tav reaches across the table to shake Riley's hand. "Call me Tav," he greets, all confidence and charming smile. It earns a small nod and an almost shy smile from Riley, but he doesn’t say anything.

As they’re shaking hands, Roach sips at his beer to hide his grin. "He's had a bit of a gay awakening and I'm trying to find someone to help him with that." He looks at Tav, ignoring the way Ghost's cheeks suddenly flush red and he shoots a glare his way, pulling his hand back from Tav’s. "You know what I mean?"

Tav huffs a laugh, standing up straight again. "Can't be you?"

Roach knows he looks utterly scandalised by the idea. He puts his glass back on the table and frowns up at Tav. “I’m not going to fuck my best friend.”

Tav seems amused by it all, making a show of glancing around the bar. "I'm sure there's a guy here who'd-"

“It can’t just be anyone,” Roach says quickly. It was then that Riley’s expression changes minutely as he realises what exactly he was planning. “I need to know the guy’ll actually take care of him, y’know?” Tav also seems to catch on at that, and there’s a glint in his eye that tells Roach he’s interested. “Aye? Have you got someone in mind?”

Roach lets the silence linger, ignoring the way Riley kicks him under the table before shooting him another glare over the top of his own almost empty glass, his cheeks burning redder with each passing second. He'd hoped Tav would give in after a moment, but when the quiet carries, Roach sighs dramatically. "Don't make me ask you, sir."

Finally Tav relents. He looks over to Simon and silently tilts his head in question. It earns the dark flush over Simon's cheeks spreading up to his ears, but he doesn't say anything so Tav slides into the booth beside him, his arm resting over the back so that it was around Simon's shoulders without actually touching him yet. He shifts until he can meet the man's eyes and smiles at him. "How about a drink first?"

Giddy at having finally worked something out, Roach kicks back at Ghost under the table before he stands up. "I'll buy you guys a round." And as he turns towards the bar, he spares him one final grin. "Talk to him, Si."

–/–/–

It takes until the man beside him lifts his glass to drink for Tav to recognise him. He'd never seen Riley without the full mask, and Tav knew that if he wasn't so aware of the scar through his bottom lip because he himself had accidentally caused it, he probably wouldn't have recognised him at all. All the other scars would've inevitably distracted him from the fact that he knew that voice, those eyes. But he'd seen Ghost lift the bottom of his mask to drink and seen the way the scar on his bottom lip from a spar gone wrong pulled as he did so – even years later. He'd cleaned that wound and stitched it himself, could probably trace where it was on his face with his eyes closed – not that he'd been given the chance to touch Riley at all besides in spars since then.

What worries Tav is that he'd already been flirting with Simon for what must've been almost twenty minutes before he realised, and now he was conflicted. Simon – the name that 'S' must stand for in Riley's heavily redacted file – didn't seem to notice Tav's recognition.

Of course he’s aware of who Tav is, he'd even introduced himself to the man, so there was no doubt of that. And yet, Riley stays there next to him, more flustered than he'd ever seen him but returning his flirting. Tav figures that Riley doesn’t plan on revealing himself, but doesn’t mind the fact too much. By the sound of what Roach had said before he'd bought a round of drinks and left them for the bar, Riley was still figuring himself out. Tav decides that he doesn’t mind helping him with that. Riley knows him. He knows that Tav won’t hurt him. He was probably his safest option. 

Tav wonders if this had been planned beforehand, and how long ago. Maybe this is why Riley has been acting so strange recently? 

Beside him, Simon shifts, their thighs brushing. He'd almost finished the drink Roach had bought him – only his second of the night, so he didn't need to worry about the man being drunk. He'd seen Riley neck a bottle of Vodka once and he’d barely been tipsy – it was impressive to say the least. 

He'd already invited the man back to his room before he'd recognised him, and he finds that he doesn’t regret it one bit. In fact, now he was filled with an odd determination to ruin the man in the best way. If Riley wants him for the night, whether he was supposed to recognise him or not, Tav wasn't going to turn down the opportunity for anything. 

Riley swallows down the last of his pint and Tav squeezes his thigh gently where his hand has been resting for the past ten minutes. The glass is placed back on the table and brown eyes turn to look at him again. 

"I should let Gary know before we leave." 

Tav nods, squeezing his thigh one final time before standing from the booth and helping Riley up. "Come on, then."

They walk to the bar together, and Roach looks far happier than Tav expects when Riley tells him that they’re leaving. He throws a wink to the man, his voice only slightly teasing when he tells him, "have fun," before turning to Tav. "I'll see you tomorrow, sir."

He nods. "Have a good night, Sanderson."

Gary waves them off and they leave the cozy little pub and start off towards the hotel. Riley inches closer to him as they walk and Tav throws caution to the wind and wraps an arm around him. If he was going to do this, he was going to do it properly.

-/-/-

“Do you smoke?”

The question catches Riley off guard, so stuck in his own head that it takes him a moment to process what Tav had said, but he looks up from the pavement and his eyes meet calming blue. Slowly, he nods.

“Quiet, aren’t you? That’s alright, I’m sure you’ll be plenty loud by the end of the night.” Tav pulls a box of cigarettes from his jacket as he says this, thankfully not commenting on the way that Riley’s cheeks burn bright red. Instead, he focuses on taking one from the box, placing it between his lips and returning the box to his pocket. From his jeans pocket he retrieves a lighter that Riley immediately recognises, because it was the one that he’d supposedly lost two weeks ago. He tries his best not to react at the sight of his own lighter, with Tav’s eyes watching him. 

As the cigarette lights, Tav takes in a deep breath, holding it in his lungs for a moment before he lets it out again in a cloud of smoke. Then, with one more drag, he takes it from his lips and holds it out to Riley. 

Riley’s already blushing as he takes the cigarette and puts it between his own lips and he can’t help but wonder how he’s going to survive the rest of the night if he can barely handle this. His lighter disappears back into the captain’s pocket, and he focuses on taking a slow drag as he walks, trying to let the smoke calm his slightly frayed nerves. He wants this. God, he wants this. But he still feels nervous. So much so that he can feel himself trembling slightly, a mixture of excitement and pure anxiety thrumming through his veins. He desperately hopes it isn’t noticeable.

“Cold, are we?”

Riley feels his face burn hotter and he almost chokes on the smoke as he breathes out. “A little,” he lies. 

True gentleman that he is, MacTavish pulls his jacket off and drapes it over Riley’s shoulders. It makes the guilt in his chest squeeze tighter, and he really shouldn’t be doing this. He should tell the captain who he really is. He should stop lying and apologise for both himself and Roach. Stop this before it goes too far. “Thank you,” he says, instead.

Tav smiles down at him and wraps his arm back around his shoulders, squeezing him gently. “You’ll tell me if you don’t want something, won’t you, doll?”

Riley takes one last drag of the cigarette before handing it back over. “Yeah. I… same for you, right?”

Tav chuckles, a quiet grounding thing, rumbling from deep within his chest and making Riley feel warmer. He could get drunk off of the sound alone. “You don’t have to worry about me.”

“I am, though.” The words fall from his mouth before he can stop them, and he suddenly finds himself flailing to explain. “You aren’t just doing this because Gary wants you to, right?”

Tav’s arm drops from his shoulders to wrap around his waist instead, fingers splaying out and making it suddenly very hard for Riley to keep his breathing steady. “Gary just made the suggestion. I’m more than happy to show such a pretty man a good time.”

He looks back down at the pavement, unable to handle the constant compliments. Every fibre of his being wants to hide away from the attention, but he can’t do anything but avert his gaze and hope that his face isn’t red enough to see. Tav only laughs again and squeezes his waist reassuringly, and Riley knows that he’s definitely noticed. 

The rest of the walk is quiet. They pass the cigarette back and forth until it burns out, and Riley forces himself to let Tav lead him. The hotel is simultaneously a welcome sight and the most terrifying thing Riley has ever set his eyes on. He knows his nervous shaking is noticeable, even if he hides his hands the whole elevator ride and on the short walk to Tav’s room. 

Tav opens the door for him and he steps in, standing awkwardly as Tav follows him through the doorway and shuts it behind them. Gentle hands cup Riley’s face and tilt it up so that Tav can see him properly. The look in his eyes is so careful and it makes his heart clench more. He shouldn’t be here. This was an absolutely terrible idea, not to mention a huge breach of MacTavish’s trust. 

“You look like a deer in headlights,” he says, humour in his tone but expression genuine. “We don’t have to do anything, Simon.”

He could be kicked from the task force for this. It doesn’t matter how much he wants this, it was selfish of him to even let it get this far. He shouldn’t keep lying. He should tell him now, before anything more could happen. 

“No, I want to,” he admits, instead. “I’m just…”

“Nervous?” Tav finishes for him, thumbs brushing back and forth over his cheekbones, so gentle that he leans into the touch without even realising at first. Despite it all, Riley nods, because yeah. He was fucking petrified. “That’s okay. I won’t hurt you.”

“I know,” the words are out of his mouth before he can stop them. He tries not to outwardly panic as he thinks up an excuse. “I- Gary wouldn’t have trusted you if he thought you might.” 

-/-/-

“I know.” 

Words couldn't describe the way Tav’s chest swelled with relief at how naturally Riley said those words, almost as if he surprised himself with them. He knows more than most people do how hard earned Riley's trust was – and rightfully so. It fills him with even more determination to make his night as good as it could be, even if he was still nervous. His brown eyes broadcast his worry, even if he was trying to hide it, and Tav knows he’ll have to move slowly for the rest of the night. The last thing he wants is to scare the man away. “We’ll go at your pace, aye?”

“Okay,” he says, and something flashes behind his eyes like he’s conflicted, a few moments pass and Tav waits patiently as they do. Eventually his expression evens out into calm like he’s come to a final decision, and he reaches up to place one hand over Tav’s, keeping it against his cheek as if he’d ever want to move it away. “Can- will you kiss me?”

“Anything you want, sweetheart.”

Tav tries hard not to be selfish about it. He’s careful, letting Riley set the tone. The first kiss is a gentle brush of lips, barely a taste, but it still sends electric sparks dancing through Tav's body. He keeps his cool even as the grip on his wrist tightens, even with the little surprised noise escaping Riley's throat. His thumbs brush over scarred cheeks before he pulls away just enough to look at him.

He’s beautiful. That's all Tav can think. His pale cheeks dusted with a light red and his pupils blown wide with a sudden want. Still, Tav tilts his head. "Okay?"

He doesn’t get a verbal response, but only a second passes before Riley's hands reach up and his fingers tangle in Tav’s hair to pull him back in for another kiss. Tav went willingly, of course,  kissing him again and finally giving into the urge he’s had for months to grab his waist and pull his body in close. This time it’s a little messy, slightly desperate. His knee slides between Riley's thighs almost on instinct, and when he makes another noise Tav can't resist the urge to lick into his mouth as if he could swallow the sound.

Between kisses, Tav dips his hands beneath Riley’s hoodie, finding that he isn’t wearing any extra layers underneath. His skin is warm against Tav’s palms, smooth aside from various patches of textured scar tissue that Tav desperately wants to run his fingers over and trace until he could know them all without sight. He feels his way up slowly, caressing scars gently enough to pull a shiver from the body that holds them, and then finally he returns his hands to Riley’s waist, squeezing gently.

Regretfully, he pulls back from the kiss, but he only manages enough time for a breath before Riley’s mouth is on his again. He doesn’t mind at all. Instead of speaking, he gently tugs Riley along with him as he backs himself towards the bed, careful not to cage the man in. When the back of his knees hit the mattress he stops and tugs at the hem of Riley’s hoodie in silent question. He’d expected the man would need some gentle encouragement, so he’s surprised when Riley pulls back from him just for long enough to shuck off his hoodie before returning to the kiss.

Tav allows him for a moment longer, almost as unwilling to stop if it weren’t for the urge to show him how much more he can do. As soon as they break apart for breath, Tav dips his head further to press his lips against the pale skin of Riley’s neck. He keeps his hands on his waist as he slips a thigh between his legs, delighted by the surprised groan it earned. “There’s a good lad,” he murmurs the praise against his neck and hears him swallow thickly. “Tell me what you want, now.”

Riley’s breath catches in his throat, the hand in Tav’s hair tightens. “I- I don’t know,” he whispers.

“Don’t be shy.” He leans back to look at him properly, moves a hand from Riley’s waist to cup his cheek like he did earlier. He can feel the heat from his blush against his palm, and he slides his other hand lower until his fingers dip just below his waistband. Before he can push any further, the man ducks his head a little.

“Fuck me?”

Tav hadn’t really expected the reply, knowing how stubborn his lieutenant could be sometimes. He smiles and kisses his forehead. “Of course, dove.”

He was careful about getting Riley onto the bed, letting him get comfortable with a pillow behind his head and another beneath his hips. He pulls his own shirt off when Riley tugs at it with a wordless pout, and then begins working the man’s jeans and boxers down. He’s slow with it, not enough to worry the other man, but enough to make sure Riley has the time to stop him if he so wants. More scars reveal themselves along his hips and down his legs, and Tav wants to kiss each one as he goes. He refrains from anything like that, knowing it could scare Riley off. Instead, he drops his clothing to the floor and grabs a small bottle of lube that he thankfully hadn’t thought to remove from his bag before leaving early that morning.

He settles between Riley’s legs easily and leans forwards to kiss his inner thigh, watching as the man’s pretty blush spreads down his neck. He wonders distantly if that blush would continue down his back, following the light freckles that he’d spotted reaching over his shoulders and tracing down his spine.

“Do you know how this works?” he asks as he squeezes some lube out onto his fingers and rubs them together to warm it up.

Riley’s face somehow flushes an even darker shade of red and he throws an arm over his eyes as he shakes his head. 

“That’s alright, we’ll take it slow. Need to prep you, okay?” He still doesn’t get a verbal response, only a nod. He allows him to hide behind his arm for now, letting his clean hand rub up and down Riley’s thigh to soothe him. “Breathe for me,” he says, carefully bringing one finger down to circle his rim a few times. As Riley breathes out he slowly presses it in, feeling his thigh twitch inwards slightly as if to close his legs. “Easy,” he murmurs, hearing a quiet sound catch in Riley’s throat. He gets up to the second knuckle and Riley shifts a little, almost as if he’s unsure whether to move away from or towards the feeling. “Talk to me, Simon, how does that feel?”

There’s a beat of silence before Riley responds, muffled behind his arm. “It… feels weird.”

“Bad weird?”

He shakes his head. “No, ‘s good.” And then, quieter, “keep going?”

Tav praises him again quietly, pretending not to notice when he moves his arm from his face to peek down at him. Instead, he focuses on pulling his finger back out enough so that he can start to stretch him out with a second. He’s as slow and careful as he can be with it, but the stretch still has Riley squirming. He slides his free hand down from his thigh to rest on his stomach, not to hold him still but just as a gentle weight to keep him grounded. “Deep breaths, doll. You’re doing so well. So good for me.”

Where his hand rests on Riley’s stomach he can feel his breath stutter at the words, but it evens out again into slower more deliberate breaths. Tav gives him another few moments before continuing to stretch him further. With each exhale he presses a little deeper, murmuring praise and gentle encouragement with each quiet noise that he pulls from the man.

The lube eases the push, and he’s slowly able to press two fingers in past the second knuckle. “There you go,” he murmurs, beginning to move his fingers in and out gently. Riley makes a sound in the back of his throat, hips tilting into the movement, and when Tav looks at his face he’s blushing again. He opens his mouth to say something, but a wordless gasp fights its way past his lips instead. 

“Yeah?” Tav hums, his free hand sliding up his body again while he begins to part his fingers and stretch him further. “How’s that feel, love?”

“’S good. Feels big.”

“Want me to slow down?”

“No, just,” he cuts himself off with a short gasp, squeezes his eyes shut. “I’m worried you won’t fit.”

Tav huffs a laugh at that, kisses his inner thigh again. “Don’t worry about that just yet,” he says, but when Riley doesn’t seem to relax, he moves up to kiss his scarred jaw. “It’ll fit.”

He doesn’t seem convinced, so Tav begins to add a third finger, still kissing at his jaw and neck. This close, he can hear every aborted noise that Riley makes as he’s stretched out slowly, and it makes him hungry for more. He pushes his fingers in, feeling him clench around them, and Riley opens his mouth as if to say something just as he crooks his fingers up and slowly drags them back. 

A choked moan cuts off any legible words as his body jolts and his back arches off of the bed. “There it is,” Tav smiles against his neck. “Okay?” He asks, but doesn’t give Riley the time to answer as he repeats the movement. 

The man’s hips thrust down into the feeling and his moan trails off into a high keen. “Fuck,” it doesn’t sound like anything Tav had ever heard from him before, desperate and edging towards a whine. 

“Yeah?” Tav coos, leaning down to kiss his thigh again.

Riley’s hips buck again, and he whines properly when Tav follows the movement with his hand instead of giving him that beautiful friction once more. “Do it again,” he pants out, “please?”

How could Tav ever deny him when he asked so politely? He works up to a slow rhythm with his fingers, listening carefully to what movements pulled the most desperate sounds out of Riley. He focuses less on fucking him with his fingers, instead keeping a deep pressure that had the man falling apart beneath him. Back arching prettily and pleads for him to keep going stuttered out between shy moans. 

“A-ah, fuck,” he groans out, fingers clutching at the sheets beneath him and head dropping back against the pillows. Tav follows him down for another kiss, gluttonous for the way he pants and moans into his mouth but is still desperate enough to bring one hand up to tangle in Tav’s hair and kiss him deeper.

On a particularly high moan, Tav finds himself smiling against his lips. “Aye?” he coos, unable to help the slight teasing lilt in his voice – not that Riley seems to mind, judging by the hitch in his breath and fingers tightening in Tav’s hair. “How does that feel, gorgeous?”

“Feels so good,” Riley gasps, eyes squeezing shut with the overwhelming pleasure. “Fuck, please.” He doesn’t even seem to know what he’s begging for, and Tav is entranced by it all, the way his body clenches and pulls him closer, the desperate edge growing in his voice while his thighs close around him. How his blush spreads up to his ears and over his shoulders, painting him with a gentle red that has Tav wanting to bite at the warm skin it covers. The way his hips roll, seemingly by their own will, to chase his fingers, and the way precum leaks from his dick and his muscles tense throughout his body… 

Tav knows that Riley’s getting close and he doesn’t mind one bit. There was a sense of pride in his chest with the knowledge that he could bring one of the most powerful men he knew to the edge with only three fingers. Watching him fall apart like a dream, begging him to keep going as if the thought of stopping would ever enter Tav’s brain.

In fact, it takes him half a second to catch up when Riley hiccups out a quiet “wait-“ against his mouth. He stops immediately, hearing an outright whine fall from Riley’s lips at the loss of friction, and he pulls back to look at him and see what’s wrong.

“Hold on,” Riley gasps out, his hand that had been clenched in the bedsheets reaches down to grasp at Tav’s wrist even though he’d stopped the second the word had left his mouth. “Don’t want it like this,” he says, breathless, brown eyes meeting Tav’s for only a moment. “I-I want you in me.”

Tav nods easily, kisses the corner of his mouth and pulls his fingers out, careful with the movement as Riley shudders beneath him. “Anything you want, beautiful,” he says softly, the words fall from his mouth without a thought and he has half a mind to be grateful that he hasn’t slipped up and called him Riley or Ghost yet. 

He makes quick work of taking off his own jeans and boxers, pouring a generous amount of lube into his hand and slathering it over himself as he kneels between Riley’s legs. He doesn’t miss the nervous tension in his body, wipes his hand off to lean over Riley and hold his face carefully, cradling him with one hand and tracing scars with the other. “We’ll do this at your pace, aye? I don’t want to hurt you, doll.” And then, keeping his tone a little more serious just to be sure, “tell me if you need to stop.”

“Yessir.”

He’s already lining himself  up to start pressing in when he processes the response. He doesn’t think Riley even realised what he’d said, too focused on what was happening to consider his own words like he normally does. Tav decides not to say anything, running a hand up and down Riley’s inner thigh to soothe him as he begins to press forwards.

He goes at a snail's pace, watching Riley’s face carefully for any signs of discomfort. 

The head of his cock stretches him open slowly and Riley seems to fight himself not to squirm away. His breath catches in his chest, and Tav squeezes his waist to soothe him. “Breathe for me, there’s a good lad.” 

A bitten off sound of impatience escapes Riley’s mouth, but despite it he takes a slow breath in and holds it for a moment before releasing it and Tav presses in just that little bit more. Finally, the head of his cock sinks into him and Riley clenches around the intrusion with a groan.

Tav pauses there for a small while, letting Riley adjust to the new feeling. He leans down to kiss his collarbone while he waits. “Alright?”

Riley nods, hands coming up to clasp together behind Tav’s neck, pulling him closer. “Keep going,” he breathes.

“Tell me if you need a moment?”

He huffs, his usual impatience making a return. “I will, just-“ he cuts himself off as he rolls his hips up, pushing Tav deeper and pulling a swear out of both of them. 

“Fuck, you’re tight,” Tav grunts, dropping his forehead against Riley’s shoulder as he listens and slowly pushes in. He keeps it slow, for his own sake as much as Riley’s. The feeling of Riley around him, warm and wet and clenching around his cock like a vice, had heat pooling low in Tav’s belly, but he wanted this to last. “Like you were made for me.” His hips stutter forwards just a little and it punches all the air from Riley’s lungs. He almost stops moving but Riley angles his hips up. 

“Please, Tav, I can take it.” 

He can see the desperation written across Riley’s entire body, hear the hint of frustration at how slow he was moving. He can’t help cooing at the man, gentle praise for being patient spoken against the soft skin of his neck and shoulder. 

The sound from Riley’s mouth is somewhere between a whine and a grumble, and his eyebrows furrow in the same way they always do when he’s pouting about something. “Just fuck me already.”

Tav laughs, breath hot against scarred skin until he leans back to look at him properly again,  thumbs rubbing back and forth over his waist. “Demanding little thing, aren’t you?” He smiles. “You were being so sweet earlier.”

He squirms in his hands, but his pout stays there. “You’re taking too long,” he complains stubbornly. It only makes Tav smile more, the Riley he knows finally beginning to show through all of the nerves and vulnerability. 

He listens, knowing better than to tease the man for too long, beginning to push in a little more insistently. Brown eyes turn away at the movement only for Tav to catch his chin with one hand. “Look at me, sweetheart,” he encourages gently. Hesitantly, Riley does, cheeks coloured a deep red. “There you are. Keep looking.” 

With that, Tav continues to press into him. With each slow, gentle thrust he bullies himself deeper into Riley. This close he can hear every stuttered breath and aborted moan. He can see each and every little change in Riley’s expression as he pants through the intrusion. He sees the exact moment the head of his cock glances over his prostate as his lips part on a heady moan and his body arches up into Tav’s. 

He can’t help but swear as Riley clenches around him, but he doesn’t look away, keeps his eyes on Riley’s until he finally bottoms out with a low groan. They’re both panting for breath, but he doesn’t pause for long because Riley presses his hips up in a silent plea that Tav was unable to withstand.

He pulls back slowly and feels that tight heat clench around him instinctively, as if he doesn’t want him to leave. When he thrusts back in he can feel Riley’s moan rumble through his chest, mixing with his own. “Fuck, you’re tight,” he finds himself groaning, answered only by a wordless whine. The next thrust is a little harder and it punches another moan out of the man beneath him. “Gorgeous,” he breathes, unable to help it. “So perfect for me.”

The pace he builds up is slow but deep, thorough. It hits every part of Riley that has his head falling back and his eyes squeezing shut. Tav allows it for now, instead focusing on pressing his lips to every scar that he could reach. The one on his temple, the twin scars on his cheeks, the one through his bottom lip. He moves slowly down his body, keeping the steady pace and watching Riley unravel beneath him.

“W-wait, I’m so,” Riley’s words trail off into a moan, and he reaches up with one hand to grip Tav’s shoulder. 

“There's a good lad, you’re alright.” He can feel the way Riley clenches at the praise, but he keeps his pace even, gentle despite the way Riley’s hips jolt beneath him. “Does it feel good, sweetheart?” 

Riley nods desperately, opens his mouth to reply but only manages another breathy moan.

“Yeah?” He teases. “Gonna come for me?”

“‘S too soon,” he manages, stomach muscles tight with his valiant effort to keep himself from falling over the edge. 

“‘Course not, doll. You’re doing so well, want to feel you come on my cock.” 

Riley swore, one hand sliding down from Tav’s shoulder to his wrist and squeezing while the other grips at the bedsheets. There’s a moment where Tav can feel Riley let go of his control and relax into the feeling before he finally tips over the edge. 

His orgasm shakes through him, ropes of come landing over both of their stomachs, and his moan rumbles from deep in his chest, tapering off into a whimper when Tav doesn’t stop. His pace is still slow but it suddenly feels like so much more. Riley swears again, suddenly realising that maybe this was the part that had those other men in Tav’s room practically screaming from the pleasure.

Riley’s breath catches and then releases on a whine. Tav leans down again, a gentle kiss to his lips and another to the tip of his nose as he shudders from the movement pressing him deeper inside. “Perfect aren’t you?” Tav says, pace slowing even further. “Think you can give me another?”

Riley doesn’t seem to think about it for too long, nodding up at him. When Tav only tilts his head in question, waiting for a verbal response, Riley drops his gaze. “Please.” 

It’s all the encouragement that Tav needs to pick up the pace again, held close by Riley’s arms wrapping around him to grasp at his shoulders, short nails digging in hard enough to leave marks — not that Tav was complaining. 

For every thrust, Riley’s cock, still half hard and already filling back up, catches between their stomachs and pulls another gasp from him. As much as it was mesmerising, Tav knows that if it keeps happening Riley would be done faster than he’d be able to keep up with. 

He pauses just for long enough to lean back and readjust Riley’s legs over his shoulders before he carefully leans down again, practically bending him in half so that he can press even deeper. He uses his grip on Riley to pull his hips up and use the leverage to thrust deeper. 

The new angle pulls an outright wail from Riley, his head thrown back and his hands scrambling for purchase in the bedsheets. He clenches around him desperately, all words abandoned in favour of wordless moans and whimpers dragged from his throat on almost every thrust. 

The sound of skin on skin echoed through the room, only interrupted by Riley’s moans and the low string of praise running from Tav’s mouth. He keeps the pace up, and Riley can’t do anything but fall apart beneath him, pleading with every other breath.

But then, “Captain- please.” It comes out the same as all the other begs, but Tav sees the change in Riley’s eyes as he realises what he’d said, the way his breath catches and stomach tenses with the knowledge that he’s outed himself. 

Tav can’t feel anything but pride that he’s managed to ruin him so beautifully that he can’t even think properly. He slows down so that he can grind deep, feeling Riley clench around him like a vice. “Aye?” he hums, feeling Riley shiver at his tone, teasing and just on the edge of mean. “Who’d have guessed my lieutenant would beg so sweet?”

The next noise that escapes Riley could only be described as a whimper. He throws an arm over his face, eyes squeezing shut and blush spreading down his neck.

Tav couldn’t have that. He nudges the offending limb away and tuts at him as brown eyes meet his own. “Don’t get shy on me now, Riley, let me see that pretty face.” The blush over his skin darkens, red over his throat and shoulders where Tav desperately wants to feel the heat from it against his tongue. “You were being so good for me, doll.”

“Sir,” he barely manages the word between moans. “John- please,” 

The sound of Riley, so utterly ruined by him alone, has the knot in Tav’s stomach tightening drastically. He leans down again, watching for any hesitation and pleasantly surprised when he’s dragged closer for a short, messy kiss, open mouthed and desperate. Tav doesn’t get far when he pulls back, one of Riley’s hands in his hair keeping him near. 

“Fuck, Simon, look at you. So good for me.” 

A high moan rips from Riley’s throat in response, his fingers tightening in Tav’s hair. “I’m close,” the words sound like a beg and Tav can feel him clench down around him, sending Tav hurtling closer to the edge faster than he was used to. 

He finally brings a hand between them to wrap around Riley’s dick, matching the pace of his thrusts with his hand. He kisses his temple again and feels Riley turn his head to leave an open mouthed kiss against his neck. The kiss turns into a whimper against his skin, and then suddenly Riley bites down on his neck with a lengthy moan, as his orgasm rushes over him. 

It’s only just hard enough to sting, enough to leave a mark on his neck for everyone to see, but the thought of that, along with the feeling of Riley so tight around his cock has Tav tumbling over the edge after him, a low moan falling from his lips as Riley seems to milk him for all he was worth.

He tries his best to stroke him through it until they begin to come down. Riley, somewhat shyly, lets go of his hair and releases him from his teeth so that Tav can lean back and lower him down to the bed again. 

They’re both still panting for breath, but Tav knows he needs to say something because Riley’s eyes fall away to his shoulder — whether he’s avoiding eye contact or just looking at the mark he’d inevitably left there, Tav doesn’t know. He brushes his clean hand through the man’s dark hair and it finally earns Riley’s eyes back on his. “Okay?”

His cheeks flush a dark red again but he nods. “Yes, sir.” 

“Christ, Simon, you don’t need to call me that.”

“I-“ whatever Riley was going to say was cut off as Tav’s hands caress over his thighs and he carefully pulls out. He doesn’t move from between Riley’s legs, though, or stop tracing patterns along the softer skin there. “I didn’t…”

Tav waits for a moment, but when it becomes clear that Riley isn’t going to finish his sentence, he speaks. “I guessed it was you from the start, if that’s why you’re worrying.”

His dark eyebrows tick down a little, a mixture of guilt and confusion written across his expression. “How?”

“Even if I’ve never seen your face, I recognise this.” He lifts his hand and traces the scar over his bottom lip. 

Riley blinks. “You didn’t forget about that?”

“It was my fault. How could I forget?”

“I’ve got a lot of scars,” he shrugs, and before Tav can argue, “if it makes it better, I didn’t know Gary was planning this.”

He levels him with a serious look. “I don’t do anything that I don’t want to, Simon.” And as Riley seems to consider those words, Tav reaches for his own T-shirt that was hanging off the side of the bed, leaving Riley to his shocked silence so that he could wipe over their stomachs and his own hand, his touch gentle over Riley’s skin. When he’s done he looks down at where his come is slowly dripping out of Riley and, without thinking, he uses two fingers to push it back in. 

The feeling makes his breath hitch, and his thighs close around Tav’s waist again. He doesn’t have to say anything, because Tav pulls his fingers back and shifts out of the space between his legs, leaving a kiss against his knee before he stands from the bed. “Come on, I’ll get the shower running for you.”

Riley looks away again, sitting up and shifting awkwardly. “You don’t have to.”

“I said I’d take care of you. You think that doesn’t include after?” When he doesn’t get a verbal response, just a half-hearted shrug, Tav cups his face in one hand to shake it fondly. “Just relax, sweetheart, I’ve got you.”

With red cheeks, Riley stands from the bed and follows Tav into the bathroom. He watches him turn the shower on and check the temperature before herding Riley in and then stepping in beside him with a quiet check for if he was okay with it. He clearly doesn’t expect the way Tav pulls him close under the spray and gently begins helping him wash, but he allows it all the same, relaxing into his hands. Tav knows what a privilege it is just to see Riley in such an unguarded state, let alone to be allowed to take care of him, so he takes his time with it. 

He starts with his body, calloused palms smoothing over scarred skin. He moves from his shoulders down, careful where he’s still sensitive, and Riley’s blush is steadfast across his cheeks and down his neck, his gaze only meeting Tav’s for moments at a time. He’s flustered, his hands hovering awkwardly between them after Tav cleans them, but he never once hesitates or pulls away from the touch. Tav doesn’t rush at all, cleaning him slowly, massaging out tense muscles and tracing scars as he goes, and then, once he’s clean, Tav leans him against his chest to massage shampoo into his hair. He has the pleasure of feeling Riley’s body melt into his, the full weight of him resting against his chest and slow breaths warm over his skin.

“Head back, doll,” he murmurs, surprised by how willingly Riley allows himself to be moved around. “I thought you’d be more of a brat,” he admits quietly, rinsing his dark hair out. Riley peeks an eye open and frowns but doesn’t say anything. “You’re always arguing with me. Just shows what a sweet thing you are deep down, aye?” It earns a disapproving grumble in response. 

“I’ve just never… you know.”

“Never been with a man?” Tav finishes for him, earning a nod. “So the gay awakening thing was true?”

Riley nods again, pouting. “I think you’ve set the bar too high,” he says, and it pulls a surprised laugh from Tav, pride swelling in his chest at the words. 

“Is that right?” The last of the shampoo runs down the drain and he gently tilts Riley’s head forwards again. “Well, if you ask nicely I’d be inclined to do it again.”

There’s a quiet moment where the words don’t seem to register in Riley’s head, but when they do he blinks up at him. “What, really?”

“Aye. I couldn’t turn down a pretty thing like you if I had to.” 

Riley blushes and grumbles under his breath, but doesn’t reply. They lapse into silence for a small while as Tav begins to massage the conditioner into his hair, fingers gentle but firm. He lets the quiet sit for a while, enjoys feeling Riley relax under his touch, but eventually his curiosity gets the better of him. 

“Who was it then?” Tav asks, earning a confused hum in response. “When did you realise?”

He doesn’t expect Riley’s blush to return full force as he ducks his head to hide against his chest. “I’m not tellin’ you that.”

“What? Why not?” he asks, his curiosity only growing because of the man's reaction. “I’ll ask Roach,” he laughs, though he truthfully wouldn’t, and he knows that Riley knows that. 

“He’s more scared of me than he is you.”

Tav chuckles at, hands sliding down so that his thumbs are beneath Riley’s jaw to tilt his head back again. “Aye, I’m sure. Spooky bastard that you are.” He gets the privilege of watching a smile spread across those scarred lips and his heart squeezes at how soft the moment felt. He wishes he could stay there forever in that moment. “At least tell me what he did to make you realise?” His tone is softer now, no trace of the teasing left, and it seems to make Riley pause and consider the question.

“It’s stupid.” He eventually settles on saying, his eyes still closed as his hair is rinsed. 

“Well I’d never expect a rom-com scene out of you,” he says, smiling when Riley opens his eyes just to glower at him. “Come on, dove.”

Riley eyes him for a moment longer, shivering at a gentle pass of Tav’s fingers along the nape of his neck. “He said something to me. During a spar.”

Tav’s mind unconsciously begins running through every person he’d seen Riley spar with recently. “Was it Roach?”

Riley’s eyes widen and he shakes his head. “Christ, no. He’s an officer.”

And suddenly it felt like a guessing game. With his hands still in Riley’s hair – no longer rinsing it but just stroking through it absentmindedly – he thinks about the few officers he knows that Riley had sparred with over the past few months. “What did he say?”

“He was just… flirting. To throw me off, you know.” His smile grew at Tav’s expression. “If I told you exactly what he said, you’d know who he is.”

He frowns. “I don’t remember any officers flirting with you.” If he had seen it, he would’ve told them to back off – especially without the knowledge that Riley was, in fact, gay.

“For such a smart man, you’re really dense, sir.” 

Tav finds himself spluttering at that, his hands falling from Riley’s hair. Before he can argue, Riley begins to laugh. It’s a quiet thing at first but it grows into a giggle that he couldn’t ever be mad with. “Can’t you just tell me?”

“It’s no fun that way.” Riley turns to him with a cheeky grin that he’d seen thousands of times, though it’d been half hidden behind a mask back then — and what a shame that was when it was so pretty.

“And you’re sure I was there to see it? I definitely heard him?”

“I’m sure.” He nods, and as Tav’s mind continues to fail him, Riley huffs a laugh and reaches up to run his slender fingers through his mohawk. “Don’t hurt yourself thinking too hard.”

He bats away his hand with a mock-glare that only has Riley’s grin widening, before he begins ushering him out of the shower and into a towel. He doesn’t mind Riley’s eyes on him as he quickly washes himself before turning off the shower and joining him to dry off together. 

Riley walks awkwardly as they leave the bathroom and head back into the bedroom, and Tav feels an odd wave of possession rush over him at the sight. Still, as Riley begins complaining about the training from that afternoon – something about the sniper positioning being unrealistic – Tav couldn’t stop thinking about who had made Riley suddenly come to the realisation that he liked men.

An officer who he had to know because he’d seen him spar with Riley. Adams was the only lieutenant he could think of, but he had a wife and kid and was too frightened of The Ghost to ever try something like flirting with him. 

He flicks on the bedside lamp and turns off the main light as he thinks.

The only other officers Riley sparred with outside of mandatory training was Captain Harrison and… 

Oh. Oh.

The realisation had him freezing halfway to his bag that had his spare clothing in it. Riley had called him dense, and he supposed he was right. He spins around to look at Riley, and whatever expression he’s wearing has the man pausing mid-sentence. “It was me?”

For what must’ve been the hundredth time that night, a blush spread across Riley’s cheeks and down his neck. “You’re still thinking about that?”

“Was it?” He pressed, practically stunned because, yes, he had been flirting with Riley when they’d last sparred, but that was months ago and they hadn’t sparred since. Tav had assumed he was angry with him for it, even if he’d brushed off all of his apologies. 

Now Riley wouldn’t look at him again, head ducked down and arms crossed over his chest as if to hide himself. “What if it was?”

He knows better than to fall for the defensive tone Riley says it with, knowing from past experiences that it was anxiety causing it more than any real annoyance. “I think I’d be happy with that.” He settles on saying, watching Riley’s eyebrows knit together for a moment before his expression softens into something more vulnerable and he looks up again.

“Really?”

“Aye,” he says simply, nodding, before deciding to forgo any clothing for now and settle on the bed. “Are you staying?”

Slowly Riley shuffles over until he’s standing just out of arms reach. “You want me to?”

“I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t.” 

Riley seems to relax at that, only a little shy as he clambers into bed beside him. Tav reaches over him to flick off the light before dropping his arm around Riley and pulling him closer. He can feel the man’s gentle breaths against his neck, warm and soothing, especially when he shuffles closer to tuck his head under Tav’s chin. It also means he can feel Riley’s unsteady inhale before he speaks, breaking the silence. “John?”

“Simon?”

There’s a long silence between them, but when Tav goes to pull back to look at him, Riley’s hands grip him tighter and he presses his face into his shoulder. Tav just settles around him again, allowing one hand to rub up and down his back and feeling him shiver under the attention. 

“You’d really do it again?”

“Aye,” he pauses but keeps tracing patterns over his back. “But only if that’s what you want, Simon.”

The silence lingers just long enough for Tav to start feeling worried that maybe, somehow, Riley was regretting this all. He just hopes he can’t hear the way his heartbeat ticks up in speed where his head rests against his chest. 

“I think I’d like that," he says, and he suddenly sounds like he’s fighting off sleep, voice barely above a whisper. Tav is so busy being relieved at the words that it catches him off guard when he somehow shuffles even closer, intertwining their legs and tucking his head under Tav’s chin with a sigh. "Do you think you could sweet-talk the brass into letting us stay here for a few more days?"

Tav huffs a laugh into his dark hair, sending a few strands awry which he uses a hand to gently smooth back into place. "You just want an excuse not to run the obstacle course tomorrow." 

"Well, it's your fault I won't be able to walk tomorrow," he grumbles, and Tav can practically hear his pout. "Maybe I'm just enjoying the hotel."

"This place is a shithole."

Riley actually moves back to look at him then, smiling. "It's better than the barracks. The shower can fit both of us."

"That's your standard?"

Riley huffs, though his expression betrays his fake annoyance, a smile spreading across scarred lips. "We can't all afford five star hotels, sir."

"Then how about you use some of that leave you've got stored up and I'll take you to one." It's a bold ask, but the way that Riley stays in his arms even now made him feel like maybe they could have this. The man seems to consider him for a moment, as if he was expecting Tav to laugh or take back the offer, but when he only tilts his head in question a blush dusts over Riley's face again.

"Okay."

"Yeah?"

"I want a room with a bath, though."

The declaration pulls a laugh from Tav, which in turn has Riley shooting him a flustered glare. He just uses a gentle hand on the back of Riley's head to guide him back to his chest again. "Anything you want, doll." And then, quieter, "get some sleep, aye?" 

Riley hums, settling back into him with long sigh. "G'night, John."

Not for the first time that night Tav finds himself wishing that he could stay there forever, with Riley tucked close to him and no danger in sight. He knows that they’ll have to talk about everything properly at some point, establish if this was purely a physical thing or if there was more to it — he really hopes there’s more to it — but for now the moment feels far too peaceful to disturb, and he wants to hold onto that serenity for as long as he can, even if it’s only for the night. "Goodnight, Simon."