"I thought you said you weren't much of a cook." Reyes leaned against the wall, watching with interest as Sara whisked "butter-approximate" and sugar together. They'd spent the last few hours hunting down kitchen supplies and spices, and now she had flour smudged on her cheek and his kitchen smelled like Christmas.
"I'm not. But baking is different. My mother used to say that cooking is an art, while baking is a science." Sara's nose scrunched up, and she reached for the powdered eggs. "I understand baking. Follow all the directions, and you get cookies. It's all about rules and chemical interactions. Cooking requires flair and finesse. Neither of which I possess."
He smiled. "I'd say you have plenty of flair." Reyes stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "That thing you did this morning with your mouth, for example, required it." His lips brushed along her hair as his fingers skimmed over her hipbones. He hummed appreciatively as she chuckled softly.
"Don't you dare distract me!" Sara measured out a teaspoon of vanilla and dropped it in the bowl. "Do you have any idea how long it's been since I've had a freshly-baked anything, let alone a cookie?" She motioned toward the molasses. "Can you add that in slowly while I keep mixing?"
"I wish you'd let me pull some strings and get you real butter and eggs." He picked up the measuring cup and began to pour, leaving one hand on her thigh. When she shifted against him, he couldn't resist kissing her cheek, further smudging the flour. Sara was delicious and Reyes had had enough of being patient.
"Hey! None of that now," she scolded him, although she was laughing, too. "If I'd let you go through your contacts, I'd still be waiting for ingredients and I have to have these cookies today."
"Funny, I know exactly what you mean by that." His voice dropped a pitch, and his mouth trailed across her jaw and down her neck. Sara shivered under his touch, but she kept folding flour into the dough and Reyes groaned in frustration. "My god, woman. I knew you were determined, but all this for some cookies?"
"What can I say? I have a sweet tooth." She smiled wickedly at him. "Besides, these will go great with whiskey."
"Whiskey and cookies." Reyes didn't bother hiding his skepticism. "That doesn't sound right."
"Trust me!" Sara began dropping spoonfuls of dough on the baking sheet. "You want something sweet to balance out the whiskey, but you don't want anything too sugary. And chocolate is out of the question. A nice, rich molasses cookie will be perfect."
His mouth watered at her words. "But I'm hungry now." Reyes nibbled on her ear to emphasize the point. Sara's low laugh told him she knew exactly what he meant, and she turned to smile at him.
"Then eat one of your beloved protein bars, you impatient monster." Sara was truly heartless. She bent down and slid the cookie sheet into the oven, closing the door with a satisfying thump. "Timer's set. Ten minutes until cookies!"
She bounced a little with excitement, and licked a stray bit of dough off her thumb. Reyes followed the motion, taking her hand and kissing the spot where her tongue had been a moment before. Her other arm wrapped around him as she laid her head on his shoulder. Sara was warm and light, she smelled like cinnamon and ginger. She'd ditched her jacket and scarf when she'd begun to bake, and even in cargo pants and a T-shirt, she looked as alluring as ever.
He slid his hands under her shirt, tracing his fingers along the waistband of her pants as he dropped kisses along her hairline. Again he marveled at the softness of her skin, a stark contrast to the tension in her muscles. But she began to relax, pressing her lips to his jaw. He could feel her lashes flutter as she breathed in deeply.
He wanted her like a man dying of thirst. He wanted to drink her in, all at once, but he knew he could only take small, quick drafts. This shore leave, this uninterrupted thirty-six hours was as close as he'd yet come to drowning himself in her. Reyes couldn't voice his thoughts, and so he kissed her instead, taking all he could in the moment.
He didn't know if she understood, but her fingers began to dance over his shoulders and chest as she deepened their kiss. They moved together, paying no mind to the mixing bowl that clattered to the floor when Reyes lifted Sara to sit on the tiny kitchen table. She tugged on the hem of his shirt, and he broke away only long enough to make sure no clothes would come between them again.
The afternoon sun painted her skin gold, highlighting the curve of her breast and the hollow between her collarbones. He dropped to his knees, following the light as it played over her, leaving a trail from her neck down to the sweetness he craved. Reyes looked up at Sara, her face flushed, lips parted, breathing quickly and gazing at him in perfect trust.
The timer went off.
Reyes snapped back to himself and began to laugh.
"Don't worry about the cookies," Sara started, but he was already standing and pulling them from the oven.
"I wouldn't want to deny you after all your efforts today." He winked at her, and Sara began to laugh too.
"I suppose we need to let them cool off." She crooked a finger at him. "You could indulge your sweet tooth while we wait."