I know there are probably too many post- Hot Zone fic's out there, but oh well, here is my take anyway.
Disclaimer: Don't own, don't make any money from my "borrowing" of these beloved characters.
John had grown tired of looking for Elizabeth and was walking back from the last place he could think to check, the southwest pier. McKay and Beckett had interrupted any chance he had of explaining to Elizabeth why he commanded Bates to open to doors and break quarantine. If he was honest with himself, he'd been relieved to duck out of the conversation just as he was slightly relieved she had eluded him tonight. He wasn't sure he was ready to explain his actions, his desperate need to ensure Peterson never made it to the control tower. He could hardly admit to himself his desire to protect Elizabeth went far and above the normal call of duty.
Still, he was restless. He knew she was angry, but his body craved the nearness of her own. His ears suddenly perked. A clinking sound echoed from an empty lab across the hall. He raised a small flashlight and eased his way deep into the room. As an afterthought, he pulled his weapon from his holster in case any errant bugs or troublesome Wraith had managed to infiltrate the city.
The noise echoed again, stirring familiarity somehow. He was suddenly craving a beer. Turning towards the sound, he spotted moonlight streaming through large windows to his right. Not windows, doors, he realized. This room had a balcony.
He stashed the flashlight in his pocket and headed for the doors, still somewhat warily holding his handgun. The balcony appeared empty and he grudgingly lowered his weapon and gazed upon the scene before him. The moonlight glistened upon the rippling ocean waters and the sound of the water gently whipping against Atlantis' piers was comforting somehow. This was even nicer than the southwest pier, he thought. Elizabeth would love it here.
Clink. John spun around, pulling his gun up eye level as he did so. His eyes met Elizabeth's peering at his own over the bottle of beer she was drinking from. She made no effort to hasten her movements. She slowly finished her sip and lowered the bottle to the floor of the balcony. It landed with a clink.
What… the hell. She looked like she was on her way to or from a date, no wonder he hadn't found her earlier. She had on some kind of flimsy white blouse and he had to tear his eyes away from the plunging neckline. Thoroughly distracted now, his eyes journeyed leisurely down to her hip where her shirt tied at the side. It almost begged to be untied.
He suppressed a rising growl of frustration and looked down. He should have sent his eyes in the other direction because his heart jolted when he spied her long legs. Long bare legs. A loose black skirt was tucked between her propped up knees and his eyes trailed down the curves of her calf muscles down to her bare feet. Black high heels lay haphazardly in a heap to her side.
Clink. The bottle sounded as she nicked it against the floor while pulling it back to her lips to consume another long slow sip. She never moved her eyes from his own. If anything her stare seemed to intensify, even when a wayward tendril of hair swept onto her face from the gentle breeze. Clink. She had lowered the bottle down again. He noted the six pack of beer tucked off to her side.
John realized he was still holding his gun and tucked it back into the holster. She hadn't even flinched when he turned holding the gun. Not good. Clink, the bottle moved up again. The whole not talking thing probably not a good sign either.
John steeled himself as he moved towards her. Strangely, she didn't protest when he sat next to her, nestling his back into the wall beside her. She didn't object when he snatched the beer she was setting down and drew a long satisfying drink. The cold beer trickled refreshingly down his throat.
He could feel her body almost rigid beside his, feel the heat in her fingers as they brushed against his own as they continued to pass the beer back and forth. Clink. She deposited the empty bottle back in the cardboard holder and pulled a fresh beer out. She wrenched the top off with the bottle opener, almost smiling when the lid spiraled back towards him. He could see several more beers in the container, but after taking a sip she passed the fresh bottle towards him and they continued to pass it back and forth.
They drank for a while in silence. When John polished off this beer he swiveled towards Elizabeth as he pulled the next beer from the container and popped the top. He faltered, his hand stalling halfway to his mouth when he spotted a bit of lace peeking out from blouse. She softly cleared her throat and his eyes darted away from her chest, a flood of heat racing up his neck. He awkwardly offered her the first sip attempting to cover his distraction. Her brow arched and he would have sworn the corner of her lips twitched before her face morphed back into a carefully crafted aura of indifference. Her eyes still simmered and now they bored into to his own, never leaving them as she sipped from the bottle.
She took a second sip before passing him the bottle. He remained sitting facing her side; her head was slanting sideways looking at him as she continued to rest against the wall.
"Elizabeth, you understand why I…" He stalled.
"I'm off duty, Major, and I'm not interested in playing this game tonight." Elizabeth snatched the beer back from him. "Why don't we just skip the part where you justify your reasons for protecting me and I'll pretend I'm only angry because you disobeyed an order."
Her words were like a kick in the gut. The air seemed to thin and he found her eyeing him expectantly. His eyes fell downward and he cursed softly. That damn shirt was going to be the death of him. How did she expect him to even try to understand what she'd just said, all he could see was the lace and think about the soft skin beneath. He ripped his eyes away and glanced at the depleting six pack.
He pulled the bottle back. "This is my favorite beer" He grimaced as the words escaped. It wasn't the time for small talk, but functioning on auto-pilot, he instinctively looked to move the conversation back to safer ground. Anything that would distract him from her lacy bra and bare legs. He took a long sip.
"I know." She pulled the beer back. "I was saving it for your birthday."
"It's not my birthday."
She arched an eyebrow as she polished off the bottle. Right, he realized. She was angry. Pissed enough to drink his birthday present. He watched as she pulled the bottle back from her mouth. Her tongue snaked out, capturing an escaping droplet of the beer escaping down her bottom lip. He bit down on his bottom lip fiercely, but not before his sudden intake of air emerged louder than the waves lapping against the pier.
Looking pleased with herself, Elizabeth allowed her tongue to wander slowly across her bottom lip. She moved to a kneeling position, her hair brushing across his face. He drew in a deep breath of the scent of her hair, aware his body was almost sizzling from her proximity. She opened another beer and stood up just inches before him. The curves of her chest pressing against his own for the briefest of moments before she was on her bare feet, pattering gracefully towards the rail of the balcony.
She leaned down on her elbows looking out over the water, the beer clutched tightly in her hand. One of her bare feet tucked behind her, hooking onto the calf muscle of her other leg.
As John stood to his feet, she began to sway gently and he forced himself to turn his back to her. Every part of his body seemed to be on full alert and the slightest attempt at rational thinking pained his head. He couldn't wrap his mind around this challenge she was presenting him.
He was much more adept at dealing with Elizabeth's anger when it was cool and remote. Professional anger. The polished civil coolness she had mastered so skillfully, that he was equipped to handle. This woman he'd discovered tonight was simmering in a much more sensual manner. He replayed her words again in his mind and it finally sunk through his thick skull. She knew, he realized. She knew he cared about her, a lot more than he was supposed to.
"Major?" Elizabeth's voice was deeper when she was angry.
He reluctantly turned back towards her and his breath caught when he spotted her. She was facing him now with her elbows propped behind her on the rail. With every rise and fall of her chest, he'd swear he could feel waves of heat washing over him.
When he steeled himself enough to meet her eyes, he spotted a flash of disappointment. She knew he was going to feign ignorance, pretend he didn't understand her challenge. But the flicker faded again and he was left staring into two emerald pools boiling with an emotion he didn't recognize.
"Maybe I should go."
She pushed her heel backward into the pier, propelling her body away from the rail. She drew a leisurely sip from the bottle of beer as she ambled closer to John, her eyes never wavering from his own. She passed him the beer as she stopped before him. He had just begun to sip from the bottle when she spoke.
"I suppose I could always try ordering you to leave."
He choked down the beer, coughing in what he could only assume was a most unattractive manner. He'd been so focused on himself, on his reaction to her; he'd forgotten to ask why she was really angry. He tried to catch his breath as she stalked forward. He found himself retreating backwards even further as she advanced, her eyes burning into his.
"I had the opportunity to keep you safe. Atlantis was at risk, but you were safe and for once it was something I could ensure, something I could control." Elizabeth took the beer from his hand and set it on the floor.
The backs of John's knees struck a chair behind him. He sank into it with a thud, grateful for the support. The world around him had begun to spin as he digested her words. He slumped over resting his forehead in his hands, his elbows on his knees.
"You can be so damn selfish in your selflessness. Do you have any idea how I feel when you throw yourself headfirst into every whirlwind of trouble we encounter?"
His gut coiled, hearing the raw emotion in her voice. He may have been selfish, but he'd never realized he had people who cared that much… that she cared. Her fingers wove through his hair, gently scratching his scalp and sending a shudder through his body.
He found his hands instinctively reaching out and up. His fingers grasped her hips, pulling her closer. Her stomach pressed against his forehead as he clung tighter. Her words from earlier finally resonated in his mind. She didn't want to pretend.
He finally pulled his eyes from the floor to meet hers. Her eyes locked fiercely upon his own and he felt his nerves firing up one explosive sensation at a time. Her lips parted slightly as she tilted her head down towards him. He reached up to her face, his thumb brushing over her bottom lip as his fingers extended across her face reaching into her hair. His other hand edged up under her shirt at the small of her back. Elizabeth gingerly lowered herself to her knees before him, their foreheads touching, her mouth, just a tantalizing breath away from his own. He hesitated and her mouth veered to the side.
She pressed a soft kiss on his neck, sending sparks shooting down his spine. "Don't you want to kiss me?"
"Elizabeth, we can't-" He hated himself for even saying it.
"We can't or we shouldn't?" Her breath was hot against his ear. "We can do whatever we want, John. Actually, you would have made me look like less of a fool today if they knew we were together. We both know what everybody already thinks, I'm sure you're aware of the watch they keep on our separate quarters at night. They are all trying to win the betting pool."
John fought for focus as Elizabeth pressed another kiss, just below his ear. "John?"
He drew in a deep breath in as the scent of her hair danced upon his nose. Her curls were starting to tickle his face but he could care less. His fingers dropped onto her neck kneading the coils of tension.
"John?"
"Hmm…" He was still fighting to focus and his hands were drifting farther and farther down her back.
"I gave Cadman money to bet on tonight."
He pulled back, sucking in his breath when he saw her face. Her teeth pressed against her lower lip and her eyelids were heavy, smoldering now not angrily, but expectantly. His hands had reached her lower back and he now grasped her hips, pulling her up from the ground and across settling her onto his lap. She brushed her nose against his and flickered the tip of her tongue against his lips.
The last of his resistance burned away and he urged her closer, his hands clasped around her waist pulling her flush against him as her teeth began to nip at his lower lip. He pushed into her kiss and somehow hauled his body into a standing position bringing Elizabeth along with him. One of her legs tucked around his waist, teasing him mercilessly from the pressure of their lower bodies forced together, while the other stretched out to the floor.
"John?" She gasped, probably wondering if he was again trying to push her away.
He clamped down on her mouth, claiming what he had so long denied and trying to assure her for once he had no intentions of running away. He wove a hand back into her hair and grasped the back of her thigh with the other, pulling her firmly against him.
He slackened his grip on her, allowing her other leg back to the floor. With a willpower he didn't know he possessed, he pulled his lips away from her.
"John?" Elizabeth asked again.
He delighted in the dazed, wanton look in her eyes. An unsatisfied look he was for once more than happy to be the recipient of. "We wouldn't want you to lose the bet now would we?"
He grasped her hand and began tugging them out of the lab.
"I have more beer in my quarters." Elizabeth whispered huskily as they started down the hallway.
John reversed their footsteps and began heading for the other transport. The door to the transport closed and his eyes fell upon the scant piece of bare skin between Elizabeth's shirt and her skirt. His eyelids felt heavy as his hands fell to her waist, his thumbs skimming her soft pale skin. "I don't deserve you."
"If you are joking because of the beer, then no you don't." The transport doors whooshed open and Elizabeth tugged him into the hallway.
"I was thinking of today."
She pulled him to a stop in the middle of the corridor, her door just beside them. "What happened today can't happen again, John. So we learn from it and we'll handle it better the next time we disagree."
He moved to sweep a strand of hair from her eyes and his fingers followed the strand down to where it fell at her shoulders. Somewhere along the journey here, the ties on her shirt had loosened and he bit down to suppress the growl that rose in his throat when he spotted a luscious expanse of lace and creamy skin beneath her blouse.
She laughed throatily and his breath hitched at the sensual sound. Her high heels dropped from her hand, clattering loudly on the tile floor. Elizabeth reached up and threaded her hands through his hair, pulling his lips to hers. His fingers hooked into the waist band of her skirt and he pulled her flush against him. His tongue pushed into the moist heat of her mouth and he groaned into their kiss, already imagining pressing into another intoxicating part of her body.
A loud whistle pierced the air. "Get a room!"
John pulled away grudgingly from Elizabeth. He scowled down the hall and spotted Cadman with a hand over her mouth, not entirely suppressing her muffled laughter. McKay stood to her side still frozen with a shocked expression plastered across his face. If it hadn't been for the timing, John would have found more enjoyment in Rodney's discomfort.
"Cadman." John tried not to hiss.
"We'll just be leaving." Cadman grabbed McKay's hand and tugged him down the corridor.
John looked at Elizabeth and could only imagine the earful he'd get from McKay when he finally recovered. Her curls danced wildly about her shoulders, her cheeks were flushed and her lips swollen. John's hand scrubbed through his hair and he tried to straighten his rumpled shirt. They were both a mess, it was no wonder Rodney looked so traumatized.
Elizabeth waved opened the door to her quarters and turned back to John, her palm landing on his chest. Her eyes simmered with want and he couldn't imagine anyone looking more beautiful than she did at that moment. Her fingers fisted into the fabric of his shirt and she drew John inside.