Song Fic 'Wrong Again' by Martina McBride
I heard this song and was hit by an idea that would not leave me alone. This is the result.
This is for Sherri, who was the first to respond to my Calling Cards - which was posted on The Mag Two list only.

Vin was running late. He hated being late. He hated having to wait on someone and hated to have someone wait on him. It wasn't like it was his fault. The stupid printer ran out of paper in the middle of his report and then he couldn't find any in the office ... so he 'borrowed' some from another office. He'd replace it later, Vin thought with a shrug.

If that wasn't bad enough it started to rain. And due the rain and him being late there were no parking spaces up close ... so he had to park a mile away and walk.

Stepping inside Vin shook as much of the rain off as he could then looked around for the guys. He spotted five of them sitting at their usual table toward the back of the bar. Ok, where's the sixth. Where's his man? Vin was starting to think that maybe he'd gotten tired of waiting and left, but then he saw him standing at the bar.

God, but he's attractive, he thought. That silky wavy hair. Those eyes. That voice. Those hands. That body. Vin's body was reacting just thinking about each of those things.

Not wanting to be seen just yet, he slipped into the shadows and just watched him. Vin had to smile as one of the barmaid openly flirted with his lover. That's the price you pay for being so damned attractive, Vin silently said. Ezra was one of those people that everyone found appealing. Both men and women approached him. It was all in those green eyes of his. That's the first thing someone notices. The second thing was the accent. All Ezra had to do was open his mouth and that honey-gold voice washing over a person and before anyone realizes it ... you're hooked. And Vin was and had no problem admitting it. He loved it in fact.

Vin almost felt sorry for the woman as Ezra gently refused her offerings. He didn't know what he would have done without Ezra. The carefully guarded man had become his rock. His best friend. His soul mate. His lover.

He found his mind wondering back to almost two years ago when Ezra first joined the team.

Vin Tanner had a lousy track record when it came to relationships. He seemed to only be able to attract men and/or women that wanted to treat him like shit. It was after one of these breakups that Vin made his first drunken midnight visit to Ezra's townhouse. Hell, Ezra had only been with the team three months and it's a wonder Vin hadn't run the man off. During these visits the Southerner gave Vin whatever he needed. Be it a sympathetic ear. A hug. Or even strong arms to hold him when he cried.

Ezra held Vin's hand as well as his hair as his empty stomach sent all the whiskey he'd drunk back the way it came. Then without a word he would clean Vin up and gently tuck him into bed. And nine times out of ten ... that bed was Ezra's.

Then the next morning Vin would start all over again ... again.

He very nearly lost it all over his doomed relationship with that woman Charlotte. In his defense though, he believed what they shared was real. Vin had thought he'd found someone who would be his friend as well as his lover. But he was wrong ... again.

Vin nearly groaned out loud at that mistake. Luckily it hadn't taken him long to realize that. Or to once again find himself on Ezra's doorstep. Pouring his heart out. And while, Ezra's disappointment in him hit harder than a bullet, Vin knew that Ezra would always be there for him. Would always be his friend.

His eyes narrowed as he saw Chris step up next to Ezra. That was another mistake. Vin had thought that the sun rose and set on one Chris Larabee. Boy was he wrong. Chris the lover was nothing like Chris the boss.

Chris hated to lose control ... even in bed. It wasn't as though Chris abused him or anything like that. But he wasn't the loyal lover Vin thought he would have been. Vin had gotten the shock of his life when he walked in on Chris and some waitress he'd picked up the night before.

Apparently they had both misunderstood the nature of their relationship. Vin thought it was the beginnings of something special. Something that would last. Chris thought it was just a coming together of two lonely people looking for a release. Vin thought Chris loved him. Chris said he did just not the way Vin wanted him to. Vin wanted them to try. Chris wanted to be free.

Vin was wrong ... again.

Him and Chris had decided that they made better friends than lovers and they were right. But still it hurt. Failure always did. It was while dealing with these feeling that Vin first looked at Ezra as someone other than a friend.

They were lying Ezra's bed when the smell and feel of his body had Vin pressing closer and captured those tempting lips. Vin discovered that trying to describe Ezra's taste was like trying to describe the man himself. It was sassy, sweet, and wild with just a taste of ... gold. Just like Ezra.

Vin's body and heart sang as Ezra eagerly kissed him back. Needing to touch his new lover Vin began tugging at Ezra's clothes only to find himself being roughly pushed away.

He watched as Ezra got to his feet. And was quickly told no, as he made to follow. The Southerner said that he cared for him, but he would not be a stand in or a rebound. And that he had too much respect for Vin to try and take advantage of his vulnerable state of mind.

Of course, all Vin had understood was that Ezra didn't want him. And being the irrational shit that he was he got mad ... and left. But he hadn't been able to stay away long. Vin needed Ezra. And after some careful thinking he realized that Ezra was right. Even though that one taste of Ezra had him feeling more than he had in his entire life Vin knew that now was 'not' the time to start something that neither of them were ready for. That he wasn't ready for.

Rebounding. That's what Ezra called it. Vin supposed he was right. He hadn't given himself time to heal from one broken heart before he found himself involved with someone else. Then Ezra showed up at his apartment in the middle of the night, sat him down, and told him flat out that Vin would never find true happiness through someone else. That he had to first learn to be happy with himself. Ezra went on to say that Vin needed to learn to be alone. Once he did these things Ezra said that then he could look for someone that would enhance his own feelings of self worth.

Vin agreed with him. So after a talk with Chris, he took two weeks of vacation and headed for the hills. Or rather the mountains. The first two days nearly drove Vin crazy as he tried to adjust to not being able to touch or even talk to Ezra. But he knew it had to be done. Vin had to regain his balance. So with a new found resolve everything began to fall into place and he took a good hard look at his life. And he hadn't like what he'd saw. In the past year Vin had bounced from one failed relationship to another. Each failure weighed heavily on his heart and his self-confidence.

He feared he would never recover. Would never find someone to share his life with. That the hollow empty feeling in his gut would never go away. But he was wrong again.

Upon his return Vin was determined not to fall into the same rut. It took some work, but with Ezra's help Vin was slowly regaining what he had lost. And it felt wonderful. He felt wonderful.

Him and Ezra had grown even closer. Ezra was his closest friend in the world. Vin knew he could tell the Southerner anything and knew he wouldn't be judge because of it. It was within this closeness that love began to grow.

Vin knew that the love he felt for Ezra was the kind of love he'd been searching for. Ezra was his true love. That acknowledgment both frightened and excited him. Frightened not only because this was Ezra, but because Vin had been so wrong before. He didn't ... couldn't afford to be wrong again.

He was excited for partially the same reason. This was Ezra! His best friend. The person that held his hand. The person that held him. The person that knew of his fears. And of his dreams. Ezra had seen him at his worst ... and was still his friend. Vin wasn't sure if he wanted to risk that.

They had all been at Buck and JD's watching the game. Well, Vin was watching the game and Ezra. He saw Ezra get up and walk from the room and without conscience thought Vin followed him as if being pulled by a string. Ezra had been unusually quiet the last few days and whenever Vin asked, the Southerner assured him that all was good. But he knew better. And he was determined to find out just what was going on.

Vin stepped into the kitchen just in time to see Ezra close the backdoor and still he followed. He stood on the patio watching his friend and secret love swaying gently in a hammock. However, upon seeing him Ezra surged to his feet. And for one glorious moment their eyes met and Vin saw the love that Ezra was unable to hide.

Acting purely on instinct Vin slowly closed the distance between them, giving Ezra time to change his mind. Not only had Ezra not changed his mind, but he boldly met and held Vin's gaze. Vin didn't stop until he was standing directly in front of the other man. He gently took one of Ezra's hands in his, slowly twined their fingers together then leaned in closer. So close that their nervous breathes mingled.

For Vin it felt like it he was about to be kissed for the first time. He could feel his heart pounding. Could hear a rushing sound in his ears. Hell, he even had butterflies in his stomach. Vin saw the wildly beating pulse at the base of Ezra's neck and knew he felt the same way too. Lifting his free hand, Vin placed a finger at that pulse point and trembled as it jumped in response.

As Vin slipped his hand around the back of Ezra's head, he stepped closer still, and lowered his head. The touch of their lips was explosive and had them both trembling and gasping in response at the simple pleasure they found. Both whispered the other's name in a needy breathless tone.

Two sets of dazed, passion laden eyes made brief contact before their lips messed together in a deep kiss that quickly brought them to the edge. It would have been so easy to give into their bodies's demands for release, but Vin wasn't about to rush into anything and with a heart felt groan he broke the kiss. But didn't step back. Vin wanted ... needed to feel Ezra's trembling body against his own.

He refused to make the same mistakes with Ezra. Vin knew he would not survive if this man wasn't in his life. And in a breathy voice he told Ezra just that. To Vin's immense relief Ezra agreed that they should take things slow.

Someone bumped into to him and brought him back to the present. Vin sighed because even now he trembled as he remembered that kiss. Looking across the crowded bar blue eyes met green and the love they felt for each other was there for the world to see. Two halves of the same whole. Never had Vin been so happy at being so wrong.

At Ezra's smile Vin felt a warmth spread through him and found himself falling for this man all over again.

Slowly they closed the distance between them and just as they met a song began playing and with a smile Vin took one of Ezra's hands in his and slipped the other around his lover's waist. Pressing their foreheads together Vin began to softly sing along, unaware that the couples around them could hear him.

Some of them frowned because at first the song didn't appear to be a happy love song, but as they listened to the words they began to understand that it was the perfect love song.

From the day we met
You made me forget
All my fears
Knew just what to say
And you kissed away
All my tears

I knew this time I had finally found
Someone to build my life around
Who'd be a lover and a friend
After all my heart had put me through I knew that it was safe with you
And what we had would never end
Wrong again

Everybody swore
They'd seen this before
We'd be fine
And you'd come to see that you still loved me In good time

And they said there's nothing you can do It's something that he's going through It happens to a lot of men
And I told myself that they were right That you'd wake up and see the light
And I just had to wait 'til then
Wrong again

And it seemed to me the pain would last My chance for happiness had passed
And nothing waited 'round the bend
I was sure I'd never find someone
To heal the damage you had done
And my poor heart would never mend
Wrong again
Wrong again

Not caring who heard him Vin said, "I love you."

With another blinding smile Ezra said, "I love you, too."

That smile combined with those words had Vin feeling ten foot tall and bullet proof. Wrapping an arm around Ezra's waist, he then cupped the back of Ezra's neck, spun them around a couple of times, then dipped him.

Standing he pulled a laughing sparkling eyed Ezra even closer to him and returned his smile. Then pressed a kiss to his forehead. Vin shivered as he felt Ezra's hands slip inside his jacket and tug his shirt free of his jeans so he could touch his back.

Vin tightened his hold and got lost in the feel of Ezra in his arms. Closing his eyes he rested his head on Ezra's as Ezra buried his face in the crook of Vin's neck. They both began to gently sway to a rhythm that only the two of them could hear.

Once again Vin was glad he was wrong again.

The End