One Night Stand

A white hot light streaked behind her eyes and she didn't even hear herself scream with pleasure. He yelped beneath her but she was so lost in her own orgasm that she didn't register the deep, erratic convulsions of his.

After a moment, Alex could feel the stillness and the heat still filling her. Spent, she pulled away and collapsed on the bed beside him, panting heavily. Then the panic set in. What had she just done?!

He rolled over and she could smell the whiskey on his breath. As she began to berate herself for her drunken foolishness, her pussy twitched. The jolt brought both desire and satisfaction as her body tried to restore itself to normal size. She indulged herself in the memory of what they'd just done.

He realized before he opened his eyes that a woman was in his bed. Bobby looked and his heart raced with fear when he saw it was Alex. He checked himself; he was naked. From the looks of things, so was she.

He licked his dry lips and found himself stirring up blurry memories of… sex. For his part, he was completely willing to pursue this further with her, sober. He was terrified that she wouldn't feel the same way. How drunk had she been?

Moving to his side brought him closer to her sleeping body. As her scent overtook him, his fears were temporarily allayed. Bobby allowed himself to reminisce on the events of the evening.

It wasn't the best night's sleep. As she sobered up, her mind began to race with all the possibilities that could result from what they'd done. Alex slipped out of bed to relieve herself and considered leaving.

Looking at Bobby, she knew she couldn't. Running away would only postpone the inevitable, and add another layer of insecurity to the mess they'd gotten themselves into. She slipped on her underwear and slid back into the bed. Before she could convince herself to sleep again, he got up and went to the bathroom. She rolled to her side and pretended to be asleep when he returned.

"You're awake?" He asked softly, lying down beside her.

With her heart clenched, she rolled back onto her back. "Yeah," she replied.

"You… regret it," he stated.

"No, Bobby, I… I don't know what to think yet."

"I'm sorry."

"Why?"

"I took advantage-"

"Bobby, I was a part of this, too."

"But you were drinking, and I-"

"I wasn't that drunk," Alex said. In the silence that followed, she grew worried again. "Do you regret it?"

"N-no," he said slowly. "Regret is definitely not… what I'm feeling."

"But you're sorry it happened."

"Only if you are," he protested. Met with silence, he turned to his side and tentatively let his hand drift over her waist and then settle there. To his surprise, her hand alighted on top of his. "W-what do we do?" He asked.

Her fingers swirled the hairs on his forearm. "I'm going to get some more sleep," she announced. "And then I'm going to go to work. And maybe in a day or two I'll know what all this means."

He was glad for her answer, glad someone could make a decision; give them a plan. But he was terrified at the thought of waiting a day or two. She turned her back to him, and on an impulse he scooted closer and spooned her, leaving his left arm over her waist. For Bobby, sleep was now impossible, but he rested comfortably, happy that she hadn't pulled away.

Surprisingly, work was the same as ever. Years of working together had trained them both to keep their personal feelings at bay. The only thing that was different for Bobby was the occasional memory that intruded when he caught the shape of her as she moved.

For Alex, everything was routine unless she got too close to him. If she stood too close, she could feel his energy and it cranked up her desire. So she was careful to step away if he got too close, and to keep her distance. She'd given him a deadline, though. By the end of two days, she was going to have to tell him something.

By the end of day two, Bobby was getting restless. As they stepped into the elevator, they found themselves alone. "Dinner tonight?" He asked suddenly.

Nervously, Alex said, "Sure."

"My place, at 7," Bobby said. Before the doors opened fully, he slid his fingers along her hand and then walked out.

Dinner was just an excuse, but Bobby had given it his very best. Too bad neither of them felt much like eating. Bobby twirled his fork back and forth between his fingers and his leg shook under the table.

Alex avoided his eyes.

Abruptly, his fork clattered against the plate. "I know what I want," he said. "But I want to hear from you."

When her eyes finally met his, she could read his mind. "I, uh…" Alex crossed her legs and cleared her throat, looking down again. His stare was too much; his desire too intense. "I… want to give it a try," she said.

"To what end?" He asked bluntly.

"How the hell am I supposed to know that, Bobby?" Now her fiery eyes met his.

"Because that's really the problem, isn't it? If we pursue this with the intention of it working, there's no problem. But if we go in half-assed, with no… commitment, we lose everything when it falls apart."

"You think it will fall apart?"

He frowned. That wasn't what he was trying to get through to her at all. "If I fall in love with you Alex, if I start a relationship with you, I'm in it for the long haul. I'm not going to back off at the first signs of trouble."

Alex was silent, stunned. The thought of the long haul was almost as scary as the thought of everything falling apart.

She waited too long, and angrily, he started to clear the dishes away from the table.

"Bobby, don't—"

"I can see how you feel, Eames. It's fine. It's better this way. We're good friends, good partners, better to keep what we have."

"That's not how I feel, Bobby." He dropped his silverware into the sink. "Bobby. That's not how I feel." Alex got up from the table and walked up behind him. The anger was coming off him in waves, and she was afraid to touch him. "I… I guess I've been thinking the same thing, though not in so many words. When you used the word 'commitment' it sort of surprised me." She saw the slight release in his shoulders, and she put her palm on his back. "You're absolutely right, Bobby. And as afraid as I am of losing what we have, I have to believe that ten years of friendship is a pretty damn solid foundation for a romance."

Bobby turned, and she raised her arms to his neck. He rested his hands on her hips. "I want to do this, Bobby," she said.

"Eames, I… I lied to you," he admitted.

She looked at him expectantly.

"I'm already in love with you," Bobby said, and lowered his mouth to meet hers in a deep but gentle kiss.