Coupling: Benny/Ray V.

Rating: NC-17 for some hot gay sex (to paraphrase Grace Adler)!

Category: Drama.

Warning: Smoky, passionate sex between two delicious men. Oh, wait! Why should that be a warning? :)

Comments off and on-list welcome. E-mail: jeanniemarie@sprintmail.com.

Disclaimer: Benny and Ray's sweaty, naked bodies aren't mine, they're Alliance's. Lucky Alliance!

(c) April 12, 2000

*Meg Thatcher greeted the Italian woman and motioned her to a seat. She took her own chair and glanced out at the dark sky. The appointment was late, but Rosa Vecchio had called and asked for a favor. She had sounded quite urgent, and curiosity had gotten the better of Meg. Why would Ray Vecchio's mother want to see her?

Rosa seemed a little nervous as she settled in her chair, but she was also determined. Meg could recognize the quality in another, as she possessed plenty of it herself. Her curiosity grew keener.

"How may I help you, Mrs. Vecchio?"

Rosa shifted in her seat, then said, "I have a complaint, Inspector."

Meg raised an eyebrow but waited politely.

"I want to report Constable Benton Fraser for immoral acts with my son..."

"...Ray Vecchio!"

The circle murmured its welcome as Benny and Ray stepped inside it, Ray a trifle nervous. True to his word, Benny had tracked down a local coven for the Beltane ritual and had asked to join them. The moon was bright on this special night, and Ray fingered the material of his simple black robe.

The Priestess smiled at them, her long, blond hair blowing in the wind. Her arms were raised toward the moon, and she began to chant, "For the love of the Goddess, we consummate ourselves to Thee!"

The circle began to move, the chanting thrumming around the guests as the bonfire crackled and spat out fiery sparks. The cool of a spring evening caressed Ray's skin. He could feel sensuality all around them and his blood surged. The firelight highlighted Benny's hair and eyes, and Ray wanted to take him then and there, his...

"...Benton Fraser."

Meg couldn't quite believe what she was hearing. "Um, Mrs. Vecchio..."

Rosa raised a hand. "Please, Inspector. I know you find it hard to believe. I did, too, at first. Benton seemed like such a nice boy. He was polite and helpful and made my Raymondo happy. Now I know just how he made my boy happy. He is committing immoral acts on my son."

Meg carefully smoothed out a sheet of paper on her desk blotter. Her subordinates would be surprised to learn how diplomatic she could be when the situation warranted it. She inclined her head gravely.

"Mrs. Vecchio, I am sure that you are concerned. However, your son is not being coerced in any way in this...relationship, is he?"

"Yes, he is."

Meg frowned. "How so?"

"Your Constable has bewitched my Raymondo."

Meg's eyebrow rose again. "Excuse me?"

"Bewitched." Rosa held out a book. Meg took it.

"Wicca: A Guide For The Solitary Practitioner?"

"Yes. Benton has that book. I bought a copy to show you."

"Have you read it?"

"No, of course not!"

"It's a good book for explaining the religion of Wicca."

"It's Witchcraft."

Meg nodded. "Yes, but the sovereign government of Canada recognizes Wicca as a legitimate religion. That alone is not sufficient to register a complaint against Constable Fraser, unless he has done something against the law."

"He is lying with my son in direct violation of God's law."

Meg thought of Fraser and Ray Vecchio in each other's arms, ready to...

"...give themselves to each other." The Priestess smiled. "They are ready to be the embodiment of Wiccan love on this sacred night."

Ray swallowed. He understood what that meant. Benny had told him what was expected. They could have refused, but Ray had seen the eagerness in his partner's eyes. It was odd, once he thought about it. *Benny* wanting to do this in front of strangers? Would wonders never cease?

Benny smiled at him as the Canadian pushed back his hood. The smell of bonfire smoke tickled Ray's nostrils. Oh, god, what this man did to him! Benny began to slip the robe off his shoulders, revealing the creamy whiteness that Ray loved to caress. Next the broad chest came into view, pert nipples already hardening as a cool breeze stroked them. Ray felt another portion of his anatomy hardening.

The robe slid to the ground, revealing Benny in all his glory.

Ray nearly fainted with the beauty of it. He felt hunger, and wanted to devour the food that would nourish his soul. He reached out a trembling hand, and Benny captured it, holding it against his cheek. He drew Ray closer and whispered, "Take me, Ray. Show them that you have the blood of ancient Rome in your veins. Claim me."

Ray felt the heat rush through his body as Benny began removing his robe. He would be soon making love...

"...with Benton Fraser!""

Rosa glared at the audacity of it. She could not believe that the Mountie she had taken into her home had betrayed her so.

That was the way Meg was reading the situation. She took a deep mental breath and remembered her diplomatic training.

"Mrs. Vecchio, I can't censure Constable Fraser for a homosexual relationship. As long as he does his duty, and your son is not coerced..."

"But I told you! He has bewitched my Raymondo!"

Meg shook her head. "You're not likely to prove that to anyone's satisfaction. And without such proof, there is nothing I can do."

Rosa shook her head. "There must be! Inspector, this is my son's life I'm talking about!"

"But if he's happy with the way his life is, there is really nothing that can be done."

"I can't accept that!"

"Mrs. Vecchio, I understand that this must be difficult for you, but what do you want me to do? Constable Fraser is not breaking any Canadian laws."

"I want you to send him back to Canada."

Meg felt a chill. "And what about your son?"

"He will be free of that...of Benton."

"What if he chooses to go with Constable Fraser?"

Rosa's expression was pure suffering. "I would have to prevent that."

"How?" Meg asked gently.

"I just would." Rosa sniffed and took a tissue out of her purse. "My Raymondo must be..."

...in heaven.

Ray looked down at his kneeling Mountie and gulped as Benny smiled, his face glowing with love. Benny opened his perfect mouth and swallowed Ray's cock, Ray jerking forward and twining his hands in his lover's hair. Pelt, pelt! He nearly laughed. Oh, how dear were those days, the days of self-discovery and of the friendship blossoming and growing. And best of all, it had brought them to this moment, his shy and nearly-virginal Mountie kneeling naked before him, sucking on his cock, and wanting to open himself to his lover.

Ray nearly came, his body shivering with his lust and the cool air and the sounds of the chants as the coven danced around them. Their faces were hidden by their hoods. Benny's gold pentagram hung around his throat. He had taken it out of a cedar box and asked Ray to put it on him. He treasured it as much as Ray treasured his crucifix or rosary beads.

Warm, wet nirvana. Satin mouth. Silken tongue. Sure, steady hands gripping his thighs.

Ray felt dizzy.

The bonfire crackled as the trees whispered, the perfume of flowers filling the night air. He looked down into those shining eyes and that mouth with his cock deep inside it and bucked his hips. Benny released him, lightly nipping his thigh, and then turned around and got down on all fours, presenting himself to Ray.

Ray licked his lips and reached out to touch...

...the Mountie figurine on Meg's desk. Rosa started at it, then looked at Meg.

"Do you really want your country to be represented by a man who sleeps with other men?"

Meg shifted in her chair. She picked up the figurine and felt its cool ceramic body in her hand.

"We recognize that there are all sorts of people who are Canadian."

She put the figurine down and looked at Rosa, who shook her head with a mixture of sadness and disappointment.

"Thank you for seeing me, Inspector. I shall let myself out."

Meg watched the older woman go, and wondered about Ray Vecchio and...

...Benny.

Benny was below him now, keening and rocking his hips back as he tried to impale himself further on Ray's steel-hard cock. Sweat gleamed on the Canadian's gold-tinged skin as Ray pumped in and out, grasping his lover's hips hard. There would be bruises tomorrow on the fair skin.

Ray thrust in, deeply, and the tangy smell of bonfire smoke touched his nostrils. Along with Benny's sweat, which he could pick out of a hundred sweaty, naked men. And he tilted his head back, seeing the stars and the moon and hearing the chants rising up all around them and he felt...

...sad.

Meg actually felt sorry for Ray Vecchio. If that was the way his mother thought, and the rest of his family, it would not be easy on him and Fraser. She'd known about the two of them for quite a long time now. She knew that Turnbull knew about them and was pleased. She had never had a problem with a gay subordinate. Or two, she thought wryly. She had been attracted to Fraser at one time, but he had not been right for her.

She tidied up her desk. She would have to warn Fraser and Vecchio. Rosa Vecchio was not a woman to be trifled with, that was certain. She paid her silent respects to a woman whom she recognized as someone of equal strength.

She glanced at the moon and smiled. Most of the covens in the greater Chicago area had already performed their rituals. Her coven was waiting until almost midnight. And she was going pay tribute to the Goddess tonight.

She hoped Louise had used the lemon-scented oil tonight.

Meg touched the figurine for a moment, then left the office, turning out the lights while miles away, the Roman warrior laid his head on the back of his Celtic beloved while the bonfire crackled.*