#beejpeg

He squeezes his eyes shut and holds his breath. But he may as well be resisting a hurricane. His nose brushes against Peg's as he turns his head slightly and looks. And sure enough, there's Leo Bardonaro. BJ's gaze snaps straight to his like a puzzle piece clicking into place.

Leo's slouched in one of the chairs, his long and lanky legs spread wide and sprawled. His shirt, unbuttoned just a touch too far, letting the light from the crackling fire shine on his smooth skin. His tousled hair is messy, ruined by someone's fingers. Perhaps his own rather than a partner's. BJ posits this because a girl has stopped by his chair to talk to him, but Leo merely glances up at her with a grin, says a few words, and she goes on her way.

Then Leo's eyes find him once more. He smirks, amused, then brings his glass to his lips and takes two sips. BJ watches his Adam's apple bob as he swallows, his face heating.

"BJ?" Peggy asks, barely audible.

BJ sucks in a sharp breath as his focus shoots back to her. "Sorry. I don't mean to…" He forces a smile and tucks her blonde, wavy hair behind one ear, then leaves a gentle kiss on the tip of her nose. "Have I told you how lovely you are tonight?"

"Only about half a dozen times," she murmurs with a faint drawl, that hint of dryness that he's always loved. She bites her bottom lip, then glances over her shoulder.

A spark of panic rushes through him. "Peggy, could we—"

"Oh!" She turns back, sparkling with triumph. "Oh, I think I see what has you so distracted."

His grip tightens on her hip. He can feel the sweat breaking on his forehead. With a chuckle and a shake of his head, he replies, "I'm not distracted."

"BJ."

"I'm not." He articulates both words slowly, patiently.

Peggy huffs, then leans to cup her hand around his ear, shielding her lips from view. "It's him, isn't it? The man sitting by the fire."

His heart slams to a stop. And then it takes off faster than a stallion's. "We shouldn't talk about that right now."

"I'm not asking for a discussion," she whispers. "I'm curious. All you have to say is yes or no."

The gravitational pull between BJ and Leo draws him right back in. When their gazes meet, Leo cocks his head, eyes narrowing thoughtfully. After another drink, a droplet lingers on his lips, and he swipes it away with his tongue. The memories hit him like a truck—Leo pinning him to a wall just out of sight of the Inner Quad while the full moon shone above, his mouth slamming against BJ's, his tongue slipping inside to rub over his own, how only a week had passed from that moment before Leo had his hand inside of BJ's pants while he whispered the filthiest words that BJ had ever heard right against his lips.

He could lie to Peggy. But what would be the point? She had been the one to bring up the idea in the first place, that while they were long distance during college, they could quash their loneliness in the arms of someone of the same sex. They never discuss their experiences, not in letters, not in the rare phone calls that they're able to make—and BJ isn't sure if he'd be able to verbalize what Leo does to him without the skin melting off his face, not to his precious Peggy—but he has acknowledged in the past that he'd found someone. It had felt like the right thing to do.

He doesn't want to become a man who lies to Peggy, who betrays her trust when she's given it with such innocence. BJ shivers under the weight of Leo's gaze and Peggy's body alike. "…yes."

Peggy hums. She thumbs over his boiling red cheek, making his lids flutter shut with a gasp as tingles follow her touch. "Why do you think he's looking?" she whispers.

Why indeed? BJ gulps. "I-I don't know."

"Mm."

For a long moment, they hover there together, BJ so restless in his skin, his body wanting nothing more than to scoop her up and rush away so that he can worship her exactly like he wishes, but his legs chained to the chair. Then Peggy takes his face in both hands and holds him there as she kisses him fiercely. He tightens his arms around her with a shocked moan. Her lips work against his with a hunger that she's never allowed herself to show when they aren't alone. And God help him, but he answers in turn, grabbing a fistful of her skirt in a trembling grip as he surges up to meet her.

Peggy breaks the kiss with a giggle. She leans back just enough for him to see the wicked gleam in her eyes. "All right. So let him watch."

"Peggy," BJ whispers frantically, barely able to contain himself.

"I want him to see," she replies. Her warm breath brushes over his lips with every word. "I want him to know who claimed you first."