Coming to full alertness, Captain Jean-Luc Picard tried to discern what had woken him so suddenly. He listened and heard it again: a soft sound coming from the main living area. Not wanting to alert the intruder to his wakefulness, Picard quickly threw on his robe and padded to the door on silent feet.
He strained to make out the familiar landmarks in his quarters, but the faint glow of stars passing by at warp speed offered very little light to see by. Picard thought he could make out the dim form of a figure moving cautiously past his desk. He stealthily moved further into the room and drew a breath to call for security, but was caught off-guard when the figure suddenly darted towards him.
Before he could react, a pair of feminine arms wrapped themselves around his neck, and a pair of equally feminine lips found his.
As he struggled to break free of the embrace, he felt her breathe against his ear.
"Did you miss me?" she purred.
"Vash?" he replied, taken aback. A brief surge of fear pulsed through his veins as he continued to disentangle himself. He glanced at the ceiling and commanded, "Computer, lights. Thirty percent."
He escaped her grasp and attempted to put some distance between them.
"Oh, come now, Jean-Luc," she continued to advance on him with a devilish smile. "I know you've missed me. In fact, I'm here to show you exactly how much I've missed you."
"Vash, you don't understand," he protested as she started to tug on his arm and pull him towards his sleeping area. "Things aren't the same."
"Oh, I'm sure you've moved some things around a bit since I was last on board," she teased as she sauntered backwards. "But I'm pretty sure I know the wa—"
The word died on Vash's lips as she glanced over her shoulder to find her face mere centimetres from a pair of very blue eyes.
Startled, Vash instinctively reeled backwards.
Jean-Luc glanced past his ex-lover at Beverly, who leaned against the door frame leading into his—their, he corrected himself—bedroom. Arms casually crossed, clad only in a green negligee, she looked stunning. Even with her sleep tousled hair, she was striking to behold.
"Hello Vash." Beverly said as she straightened and stepped past the petite brunette. Beverly's smile was almost glacial as she added, "How lovely to see you again."
Jean-Luc inwardly winced. He'd been on the receiving end of that pseudo-smile on more than one occasion and he almost felt pity for Vash.
"Ah, Doctor… Crusher," Vash stammered as she tried to regain her equilibrium. "I didn't expect to find you here."
Arching an eyebrow, Beverly moved to retrieve her matching robe from the back of the chair where it had been hastily deposited earlier in the evening.
"I see," she replied, cinching her robe closed. "And just who did you expect to find?"
Not easily cowed, Vash retorted, "Well, Jean-Luc. Obviously."
"Hmm, and now that you've found him, you can head off to your guest quarters," Beverly said as she gestured toward the door.
"I don't have any," Vash replied with a smirk. "I wasn't expecting to need them."
"It seems to be turning into a rather unexpected evening for you, isn't it?" Beverly quipped.
Jean-Luc stepped swiftly over to his desk. "I can authorize some for you," he said as he lowered himself into his chair. "It will only take a moment."
Smiling her most winning smile, Vash replied, "Thank you, Jean-Luc. You've always been so considerate of my needs."
Beverly made a gagging gesture just out of Vash's field of view, and he coughed to cover his urge to chuckle.
Beverly padded barefoot to the replicator. "Can I get you something to drink while we wait?" she asked their visitor.
Jean-Luc resisted the urge to gape as Beverly casually invited Vash to sit and join her for a glass of brandy. If he'd been a betting man, he'd have wagered that his fiery CMO would begin tearing strips of flesh from the intruder, not encouraging her to stay for a drink. He activated his computer terminal and idly wondered if he'd slipped into an alternate universe.
His hands flew over the keyboard as he input the necessary commands and authorizations. The sooner he got that blasted woman out of his quarters, the better.
"Done," he said. He rose from his seat and approached the sitting area. "I've arranged a billet for you on deck nineteen."
Vash pouted. "But, Jean-Luc, that's so far away."
Ever the diplomat, he sought a polite way to explain that her presence was no longer desirable, and if he could, he'd have her beamed onto the next scrap trawler they passed.
"Yes, well, as you can see—"
He glanced at Beverly and detected a mischievous twinkle in her eye. The tips of his ears grew hot as he faced the uncomfortable task of discussing his personal life. He found it galling that—though necessary—Vash would be the first person he and Beverly disclosed their romantic relationship to.
"I'm sure you can surmise from the circumstances surrounding your arrival that letting yourself into my quarters without invitation was neither something I expected nor condoned," he said, hoping she understood what he was saying without having to come out and say it.
Vash sighed. She shifted her gaze between Jean-Luc and Beverly, and back again.
"You're happy?" she asked him.
"Incredibly so," he replied, his lips twitching into a grin. No matter how hard he tried to maintain an air of decorum, every time he thought about the glorious woman in his life, he had to resist the urge to smile like an idiot.
Vash turned to Beverly. "And you?"
"Blissfully content," Beverly replied as she slowly sipped her brandy.
"Well, that's going to put a damper on my vacation," Vash said as she set her drink on the coffee table and stood. She picked up her travel bag from where it lay near the door and hoisted it onto her shoulder.
Turning just before the exit, Vash addressed him again, "You know, Jean-Luc, things like this wouldn't happen if you'd just be a little more open about your relationships. When I beamed on board, everyone I asked assured me you weren't seeing anyone."
Jean-Luc opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out.
Rising lithely from the sofa and sauntering over to Jean-Luc's side, Beverly interjected, "Actually, Vash, things like this wouldn't happen if you'd just knock."
Jean-Luc waited for the door to his quarters to close and then turned to face Beverly.
"I'm sorry. I had no idea—" he began, hoping to stave off the worst of her ire, but she simply smiled and waved away his words as if what had just occurred were no big deal.
"You have nothing to apologize for, Jean-Luc," she said. She padded back over to the sofa and resumed her curled up position.
Jean-Luc followed her into the sitting area. He sat down heavily beside her and scrubbed his hands across his face.
"It's one thing—as one's relationship progresses—to mention previous partners," he said, shaking his head. "It's an altogether different magnitude of unpleasantness to have a former partner show up in one's quarters in the middle of the night."
"It's alright, Jean-Luc," she murmured. "I understand."
"I must confess, your equanimity is somewhat surprising."
"Oh?"
He blushed. "I'm not certain I would be so gracious a host if our situations were reversed."
Beverly chuckled. "She made a mistake. I didn't see a need to shame her or make her suffer for her poor judgment."
Jean-Luc raised an eyebrow.
Beverly patted his knee before crawling into his lap and nuzzling his neck. He pulled her closer and breathed her in. He thought his vintner's nose detected a hint of their earlier love-making and his body stirred, ready for more.
Sighing, she continued, "I know I love you, Jean-Luc Picard, and I trust you love me."
"With every fibre of my being," he replied as he lifted her hair and began to place gentle kisses on the back of her neck.
She lightly traced whorls and spirals on his chest with her fingernail and his pulse quickened.
"Reacting without fear or jealousy at her arrival sent a much stronger message about the depth of our relationship than anything cutting I could have said," Beverly added. "No matter how satisfying those remarks would have been."
"You are truly a remarkable woman."
Beverly lifted her head, met his gaze, and rolled her eyes. "Don't be too impressed. It's not like I enjoyed the experience. That woman sets my teeth on edge, and the thought of you with her makes me want to do unethical—and excruciatingly painful—things with my laser scalpel."
Jean-Luc laughed.
"Shall we go back to bed?" she asked.
"You're certain you're not upset?"
Beverly let out an exasperated sigh. "There's no way you could have known she'd drop by like that."
"But—" he tried to explain.
"No arguing, Jean-Luc" Beverly replied, her tone mockingly serious. "What happened tonight wasn't your fault. But, if you're feeling as though you need to do something to make amends, there's one thing you could do."
"Anything," he said, relieved there was a way he could show her how much he regretted their encounter with Vash.
She smiled impishly before answering. "Get a better lock for the door."