Work Text
The outer door to M's office opened as James was leaned against her desk, staring intently in that way that made a girl think she was the only one he'd ever looked at before. He was asking, not for the first time, her out to dinner. But before she could refuse, Moneypenny was interrupted by the click of stiletto heels and, "I'm afraid Miss Moneypenny can't accept."Lorraine Broughton stood in high-waisted pencil pants and a crisp blouse. She was unfolding her suit jacket from her arm and slipping into it. "Because she's having drinks with me.""Dare I propose a trio?"Lorraine pursed her lips. "Three's a crowd. I believe M is ready for you now."Bond waggled his eyebrows at Moneypenny before going through the outer door. When it closed behind him, Moneypenny leaned back in her chair, studying Lorraine. She crossed her arms. "I can hold my own you know.""I didn't mean to suggest otherwise.""Didn't you?"Lorraine's lips curled into a small smile. "Why don't we get that drink?"Moneypenny sat back in her chair, thoughtful. Fraternizing was strictly forbidden--not that that mean it didn't happen and happen quite regularly. But hers was a unique position, making her intrinsically aware of the difficulties that could arise. And yet, she'd found herself standing and pulling on her coat, a double breasted, wool affair of a sensible ankle length. And it did seem oh-so-sensible next to the wide-collared trench that Lorraine pulled on. One drink--Stoli on ice for Lorraine and vodka tonic with a twist for herself--became two, and Lorraine quickly abandoned convincing Moneypenny to have a third because the third drink was not really what she wanted. Moneypenny knew that much. And she might have brought asked Lorraine home with her--because the idea of going home with Lorraine simply did not seem like something one did--after the first, but she did not want to seem overeager.It had been a long time since she had felt a younger woman's skin beneath her fingertips. Moneypenny didn't worry that her own was wrinkled, dry with the winter chill. If Lorraine had wanted something else, she could have gotten it. She'd made her intentions quite clear with few words and the almost unnerving focus in her green eyes. Almost. Moneypenny had not been unnerved.One night had become a succession of nights. It was not regular enough to give it a name, but it was not irregular either. Moneypenny might have driven herself mad because she, more than most, was privy to the comings and goings of agents. It would have been easy to anticipate and, worse than that, to plan and to hope. But she did not. If Lorraine was there and wished for her company, she could make herself known. Moneypenny needn't expend the effort of waiting because the quasi-casual commitment suited her, as it did Lorraine. It probably, she knew, suited Lorraine to think she would be there if the need arose, just as it suited 007 to think she pined for him.And perhaps it was several years of this that made Moneypenny complacent in the arrangement. When she arrived home on a November evening to find Lorraine sitting alone in the half light waiting for her, it startled her, yes, but it did not surprise her. One did not give a spy a key. If she wanted to come in, she would. Moneypenny guarded her privacy within the walls of her own consciousness, so she did not see it as an invasion, really. Lorraine had already helped herself to a drink, so Moneypenny turned on a lamp, warm light illuminating the healing bruises on Lorraine's face. She raised her eyebrows as she busied herself with slipping out of her shoes and preparing her own drink. This was certainly not the usual initiation to their encounters. Moneypenny took a seat across from Lorraine, who was holding her glass next to her blackened eye. "That looks nasty.""It could have been worse.," Lorraine replied, shrugging as she took a long sip of the vodka. They both knew Lorraine was scheduled for a debriefing in the morning. They both knew Moneypenny would be there, unseen behind the mirror. Where their affair was a breach in protocol, the timing of this night would seem particularly egregious if discovered, even though it would not be. "Do you want to talk about it." Sometimes Moneypenny offered, though she always knew it would go no further. Lorraine finished the vodka before closing the distance between them, straddling Moneypenny in her chair. It was unclear what the outcome of the debriefing would be. These were matters that were particularly sensitive. And with each piece of the wall that had so recently tumbled, Moneypenny had the sense that the whole agency felt some sense of how precarious their usefulness might be becoming. She felt this too in the way Lorraine kissed her then, tasting the bite of the vodka. It was slow, probing, but there was still some sense of urgency underneath it as Lorraine began sliding buttons out of their holes in Moneypenny's shirt.Moneypenny ran both hands through Lorraine's fringe of hair and sighed as the kiss broke. "I think you can wait for the bedroom.""Not now."The feel of Lorraine's lips on her neck made Moneypenny shiver. She pushed Lorraine's skirt higher up her thighs, feeling dots of soft skin underneath her fishnets. But Lorraine caught her hands and brought them up, kissing her palms in turn. She wanted Moneypenny rather than wanting from her. And that in itself was a delight. Moneypenny let herself relax into the chair. Her shirt fell open, still tucked into her pencil skirt, and Lorraine teased her breasts over the fabric of her bra, kissing her chest. But she went no further than that before she slid to her knees on the floor, spreading Moneypenny's legs with the flat of her palms. She unclipped Moneypenny's stockings from her garters and carefully rolled them down, kissing the goose pimples on Moneypenny's legs as she did. Moneypenny closed her eyes and let her head fall back as she felt Lorraine's lips through the silk of her knickers. Lorraine brushed her fingertips against Moneypenny's public curls as she removed the knickers, but after that, she only used her tongue, hot against Moneypenny's own heat. She held to Moneypenny's thighs, even as Moneypenny began to squirm, delighting in how undignified she herself could become with Lorraine's mouth against her. She let out a little cry when she came, and for a moment, Lorraine rested her cheek against one of Moneypenny's thighs. Then, she came up and kissed her, cupping her chin. Moneypenny licked the taste of herself off her own lips when Lorraine pulled away. There was something in Lorraine's half smile, a melancholy that rarely let itself through. And in the way she pulled on her jacket, there was a finality. But Moneypenny knew, more than most, that these things could never last.