“Lee,” she said softly, halting his movements as she pressed a hand softly to his chest. He froze, almost immediately. And she could feel the alertness in his body, the fluttering pulse beneath that warmth and strength. One word from her and he would back down. He wouldn’t try this again.
She leaned deeper into the touch, into the feel of him, as she traced her fingers over a patch of his suit. She wanted to try—again and again if that’s what they needed to get this right. He wasn’t just another guy to her. He was Lee—her Lee.
“I don’t want to rush this,” she breathed, at last glancing upward.
“Okay.” He didn’t move. Didn’t even adjust his position, like he was afraid he’d scare her off at any moment. And in the past, he might have.
She rose higher on her knees, tilting her head, just a bit. He needed to know that she wanted this—that she wanted him.
“It’s just that, with our history, with everything, I don’t want to go too fast and ruin this,” she said.
“Okay,” Lee said again with that quiet confidence of his, a secret little smile turning up one of the corners of his lips, the kind that only she recognized and he probably wasn’t even aware. The kind that had her seeing charred and smoky stars all over again. She couldn’t say how long that tension had been building between them. Forever?
“Okay.” It was her turn to relax her lips into a tiny smile.
“But Kat—”
“Yeah?” She could feel her body tightening up everywhere.
“I’m not going anywhere.” His breath wafted towards her again, that sweet breathing of a thousand words of mischief shared between them.
She didn’t hold herself back anymore as she leaned forward the rest of the way and caught his bottom lip with hers, sucking, ever so gently.
His lips grazed hers, his hands tangling in her hair as she clung to him.
And then they were falling in a tangle of limbs and stuttered breaths as they lost their balance. Lee cradled her head to his chest as he fell backward onto the mats, gasping out laughter in splutters and cries of shock. Only once the huffed breaths and laughter had ceased did Kat slowly roll off of him.
But she made no move to stand up, not as she peered down at him, studying the soft arc of his lips.
“Try that again,” Lee breathed.
The walls of her stomach fluttered as she smiled, caressing his face with her hands. And then, with purpose this time, she leaned in.
His lips were electric—magnetic and tantalizing. Each touch a jolt of static as Lee took her weight from her and slowly lowered her down on top of him, until it was just she andhim and that strange, kinetic pull that had always drawn them together. She was prepared to spend the rest of the afternoon hiding away down here and testing this new static.
They both flinched as the door split open on the opposite end of the room.
Kat jumped off of Lee, heart pattering in her chest as she turned, scrubbing her hands down her face. When she peered back around, she saw Lee had also risen to his feet. He stood there, adjusting the fabric of his pants before rolling his shoulders back.
Kat’s eyes widened before she burst out laughing.
His eyes were twinkling when he motioned with his head for her to follow him over to the far end of the room. They collected their things, leaving the matted room and one very confused cadet behind them.
They were rounding the hallway again, Lee claiming they’d scarred the poor cadet and Kat insisting it was for the betterment of the cadet’s personal education, when Kiara and Kamata dipped their way.
The twins stopped mid-stride.
“Hey.” Kamata’s hands slid coolly to her hips.
“Hey yourself.” Kat nodded, all of her giddy energy evaporating. In its place, only chilly tension lingered, fused much too heavily with memories from the last time they’d been together on the raid.
“Kiara,” Lee said, interjecting himself into their staring contest, but Kat kept her eyes on the twins.
“Seen any space alligators slinking around?” Kiara dragged her eyes casually across to Lee, before letting them jump back over to Kat, the black zircon piercing in her nose glinting.
What the actual void?
Kat glanced between Lee and Kiara. She was clearly missing something, but the ridiculousness and arcane nature of the notion had cracked some of the strain between them.
