Daniel jerked his head up at the sound of his name. Ethan was nodding toward a man a little ways off, unloading boxes from an unmarked van. It was certainly odd, especially at this time of night, but nothing worth the amount of concern Ethan was showing.

"What is it?" Daniel asked, pitching his voice low.

"I recognize that guy," Ethan said. "He works for the organization. What's he doing out here?" Daniel shrugged.

"Second job?" Ethan shook his head.

"No way. This guy's been involved for years, way longer than me." He paused, looking around, and Daniel already knew enough to dread what he was about to say. "I'm going to get closer."

"No you're not," Daniel hissed, but it was too late; Ethan was already slipping out of the light of the street lamp. Thankfully he was disguised a bit by the small crowd dispersing as the musicians packed up. With a sigh, Daniel followed after him, sticking to the shadows but trying to walk casually. He was just a few feet behind Ethan, and caught up quickly when Ethan came to a stop about halfway down the block. They watched as the man, accompanied by two others, worked at unloading crates, carrying them into the building the van was parked in front of.

Daniel and Ethan stood silently, watching as the back of the van slowly emptied out. Suddenly, Ethan was moving forward again.

"Ethan!" Daniel called out, his voice low but urgent as he followed the other man.

"They got their timing off," Ethan replied without slowing down. "They all ended up inside at once, we should have at least thirty seconds before the first one makes it back out." He wasn't wrong; Daniel had noticed that their overlapping pattern had been slowly closing as the men's different work paces converged, but that didn't explain why they were walking closer.

They trotted up to the back of the van seconds later, and Ethan reached in, opening the top of one of the crates. "Holy…"

Daniel caught the reflection of light on the metal handle of the building door as it started to turn, and he grabbed Ethan, who slapped the top of the box closed as he was pulled away. Daniel aimed for the closest and darkest shadows, in the alley next to the building. It was too close, though; there was no way the man wouldn't see them and suspect--

Suddenly Daniel was shoved against the wall of the alley, Ethan's slender form pressing him against the damp, cold bricks.

"What the-"

Before he could finish the statement there were lips on his, hot and insistent. A probing tongue swiped over his lips, and he felt his own falling open instinctively, opening under Ethan's insistence without even a whisper of protest.

Ethan moaned loudly against Daniel's lips, silencing any protests. A warm body pressed against his own, a thigh wedged between his legs, providing sweet pressure on his suddenly burgeoning erection. Daniel's hands settled on Ethan's hips, but he could only clutch at him, holding on as Ethan deepened the kiss, groaning in a deep, guttural sound that shot straight to his dick.

"Hey!" The voice cut through the sudden fog of lust, and Daniel remembered where they were. "This is private property. Get a room!" He felt Ethan bury his face in Daniel's chest, as if embarrassed, and realized the ploy.

"Sorry," Daniel called out, trying to sound properly sheepish. "Got carried away."

"Whatever," the man said, waving a hand at them. "Just fuck off, we're working here." Daniel raised a hand in apology and put an arm around Ethan, guiding him out of the alley -- face carefully angled away from the man who was returning to work -- and back up the street the way they came.

They didn't speak until they got back to the car, still parked outside the Chinese restaurant.

"Do you think he saw my face?" Ethan asked, biting his lower lip. Daniel ran over what happened in his mind, and slowly shook his head.

"I don't think so. Quick thinking with the, uh…"

"Making out?" Ethan laughed, the sound a little high-pitched with nerves. "I couldn't think straight, so I just went with my strengths."

"After which I couldn't think straight," Daniel grumbled. "But it worked, so I can hardly complain. What did you see in those totes?" Ethan's expression turned immediately somber.

"Drugs," he said shortly. "Multiple kinds of pills. That was an alarming amount of drugs, and they're absolutely being shipped by the same organization I'm involved with.

They spent most of the ride home in silence. Daniel was trying to figure out why an organization based in Gannon would be running drugs; Bonville had long had a drug problem, but it had never been a big issue in Gannon. Why did it suddenly seem like his little town's underbelly was growing darker and darker?

When they arrived at Ethan's apartment, Daniel's mind was still reeling a mile a minute with the possible implications of what they had seen tonight, but as soon as the door clicked shut behind them, Ethan was on him.

That same hot, insistent kiss from the alley, perhaps with a bit less desperation now, but every bit as passionate, took Daniel's breath away for the second time in one night.

"Stop thinking," Ethan said, pulling away from Daniel's lips just long enough to bite at his jaw, as if in warning. "We're still on my date night, and I'm not giving that up just yet, I don't care what we saw."

"Ethan," Daniel said, though it took a lot of effort to string words together, "We should-"

"No," Ethan said, his voice a bit harsh. "They've taken damn near every good thing I ever had. They don't get this, too, not a second time." Daniel looked down into Ethan's eyes, startled by the raw emotion in the other man's voice. Before he could respond, Ethan's lips were back on his, and clever fingers were undoing the belt that held his slacks up. The erection that had made itself known even in the tense situation in the alley earlier was back with a vengeance, and Ethan had worked his hands into Daniel's pants in no time, running his fingers up and down the length of it in a loose, light stroke that made him want to beg for more.

"I guess I could be convinced," Daniel finally replied, hoping his voice didn't sound as unsteady as he felt. Ethan chuckled, his mouth hot and open against Daniel's neck.

"I can be very convincing," Ethan promised as he slid to his knees, dragging Daniel's pants and underwear down with him. Daniel opened his mouth to protest, but the sound that came out instead was a deep, guttural groan as Ethan swallowed his erection straight to the root. His hands instinctively went to the top of Ethan's head, burying his fingers in the dark waves of hair as Ethan pulled back, swirling his tongue around Daniel's cock in a positively sinful way.

Ethan began bobbing his head in a steady rhythm, wasting no more time on foreplay. It was clear his sole intent was to get Daniel off, and between Ethan's superb oral skills and the intensity of the evening so far, it really wasn't going to take long.

The small apartment was filled with the sounds of Daniel's heavy breathing combined with the wet noises from Ethan's work. Every once in a while, Ethan let out a pleased hum, the vibrations sending waves of pleasure up Daniel's spine. His fingers dug into the back of Daniel's thighs as Daniel struggled to not pull his hair.

Suddenly Ethan pulled away, licking a broad stripe up the bottom of Daniel's cock.

"You taste so good," Ethan said, his voice rough. Daniel couldn't help but shudder, knowing his cock in Ethan's throat had caused that. "I've been thinking about your cock in my mouth all night, you know that?"

Daniel had never been good at talking dirty, but Ethan made it sound natural. It was easy to believe him, too, the way he looked at Daniel's cock like a starving man might eye a feast. He took it into his mouth again, and Daniel gasped as his skilled tongue swirled around the head before taking him all the way in.

It was just a couple of minutes later when Daniel felt himself nearing the brink, racing toward the point of no return, and his fingers tightened in Ethan's hair.

"I'm going to come," he grated out, his teeth clenching with the effort as he tried to pull back. Ethan was having none of it; he clenched his fingers on Daniel's thighs and held him in close, hollowing his cheeks with suction. Daniel could only hold on helplessly as his hips jerked, and he came in Ethan's mouth, roaring his pleasure into the small room as his vision whited out around the edges.

He went weak at the knees when he came, but Ethan's arms around his legs kept him upright. As he shuddered through the aftershocks of his pleasure, Ethan stood, grinning at what Daniel assumed had to be a dumbfounded look on his face. Daniel leaned in, capturing Ethan's lips in a searing kiss, groaning when he tasted the salt of his own seed.

"Let me return the favor," he said when he pulled away, his voice still breathy. Ethan grinned, a little sheepish.

"Too late," he replied, looking pointedly at the front of his pants, where a wet spot was visibly spreading. "I really like giving blow jobs," he said with a shrug. Daniel could only laugh, drawing Ethan to him.

"I'm certainly in no position to complain!"

The next few days went quickly; almost too quickly, if you asked Ethan. At the warehouse, he spent the day practicing hacking into the security camera systems, over and over again until he felt he could almost do it in his sleep. At home, he spent the nights answering questions from Daniel about his day, who took detailed notes and scowled at the lack of actionable evidence.

Finally, the night of the next break-in came, and Ethan found himself in a van a block away, Michael himself sitting next to him.

"Are you in?" Michael asked, his voice as relaxed as ever.

"Just a few more seconds," Ethan answered distractedly, tapping at the keyboard. A few more clicks, and suddenly the six screens in front of him all lit up with the feeds from the cameras both inside and outside of the house.

"Good," Michael said, drawing out the word into a satisfied drawl. "Can you control them?" Ethan nodded, demonstrating by zooming in and moving a few cameras to point around their respective rooms. Michael nodded his approval.

"Wait…" Ethan froze as a person walked into view on one of the screens. It was a young woman, with an infant propped on her hip. "They're home."

"Mmm." Michael hummed thoughtfully as he leaned back in his chair. "Looks like it. What would you recommend?" Ethan hesitated. He knew this was a test, but…

"Postpone the operation," he replied. "The fatality a couple weeks ago brought too much scrutiny, there's no reason to risk another." Michael stared at him for a long moment.

"You're right." He paused, picking up a nearby walkie. "We have a complication. Call it off, meet back at headquarters." He leaned forward, placing the walking back in its holder before turning to Ethan. "Use the cameras to map out the house, and mark where most of the valuables are located." Ethan nodded, and spent the next half hour doing exactly that, creating a digital map of the home as Michael watched on.

"All done," Ethan said. He clasped his hands together, trying to hide their shaking. In all his time with the crew in the past, he had never had to come out on a job, but part of him was glad he'd been here -- if this had been a real job and not the test he was convinced it was, that woman and baby might have been killed if he hadn't seen them on screen.

The drive back to the compound was silent, Michael looking over the plans Ethan had put together. When they arrived, he signaled Ethan to follow him to his office.

Once they were seated, Michael pinned Ethan with a long look before speaking.

"I assume you think tonight was a test," he said shortly. Ethan blinked in surprise, then shrugged.

"It would make sense," he admitted.

"It would," Michael agreed. "But I took a chance on you. I absolutely had men on standby tonight near that house. You likely saved that young woman some trauma."

"I… wouldn't have thought that would be a priority for you," Ethan said carefully. Michael shrugged.

"It's not the top of my priority list, no. But I don't enjoy people being hurt. I like to avoid complications when I can. We'll try hitting that home again another time when there is no one home," he said dismissively. "No huge loss. It was a test, of sorts, but one I was absolutely willing to act on. In the future, I won't be accompanying you out into the field." Ethan hesitated before replying.

"How are these robberies worth the time and effort?" he asked. Michael raised an eyebrow, so Ethan continued on. "Selling the stolen electronics and jewelry, you might make, maybe, a few thousand per home. That's not a lot to an operation like this. Why waste time on it?"

"You're not wrong," Michael acknowledged, nodding. "It doesn't bring in a lot of cash. Really, it only covers enough to keep the men I have working on it satisfied. But it pays to have… fingers in a lot of pies," he said slowly. "And it pays to keep the authorities focused on the obvious, while we slip the real money-makers in under their noses." He was watching Ethan closely for a reaction, so he did his best to look surprised, though this was exactly what he'd been fishing for.

"The real money-makers?" he repeated, turning the phrase into a question.

"Yes," Michael said, sitting back in his chair. "You're not quite ready for that yet," he said bluntly. "But you're doing good work, and I don't think it will be long before you're helping us figure out how technology can enhance our other… pies," he said with a slow grin. He pulled an envelope out of his desk and slid it over to Ethan. "For your work tonight." Ethan leaned forward to pick it up, and fought the urge to suck in a sharp breath at how thick the envelope was.

Michael dismissed him for the evening, and Ethan hurried out, weaving his way through the crowded club. Usually it wasn't even open when he left for today, but tonight's excursion had him out later. As soon as he was outside, he pulled out his phone, summoned a Lyft, and shot of the text to Daniel that they had agreed upon for him to send when he was out of harm's way.