Six woke to what felt like fingers running over her hair. Damn Twi'lek, she thought, should have left that shock collar on her. Vette had expressed curiosity more than once over the texture of Six's hair, not having her own. Six wasn't trying to encourage that level of familiarity between herself and the Twi'lek who kept treating Six like a long-lost big sister, but here Vette was, waiting for Six to doze off to defy her wishes.
"Blast it, Vette," Six growled, as her hand shot up to grasp whatever was touching her. She was surprised when she realized she had grabbed not a slim red wrist, but a broader male one. Whoever it was, she noted, their pulse was racing, most likely caused by the knife she was gripping in her other hand. Six leaned her head back, her neck muscles protesting from the nap she'd been taking in her seat on the bridge, and she realized she was looking up at Quinn. He looked horrified again as Six smiled humorlessly up at him.
"Hello, Quinn," she said, easing her grip but not releasing his wrist, "We need to find you a new look, this 'scared mouse horranth look' doesn't become you." To her surprise, Quinn smiled at that.
"You're teasing me again, my lord. Does that mean I'm back in your good graces?" Six let her fingers slide down his hand as she released his wrist, noting that his pulse was still racing as she let go. She eased her feet off of the console, grimacing at the sensation of blood returning to the limbs.
"Well, you're back in whatever graces you were in before," she drawled, as she rotated her head, trying to unkink her neck. "I'm not sure how good they were." As she leaned forward, she felt a pair of cool hands rest on her shoulders, before squeezing firmly. Her neck and shoulders tensed for a moment, then relaxed under the firm strokes of Quinn's hands, as his fingers sought out the knots and eased them away. Six let her head fall forward, enjoying the soothing touch. Most people shied away from touching her, either put off by her blue skin or the extra warmth her body radiated, she was thankful that Quinn didn't seem to be affected by either.
She shouldn't have been surprised Quinn had healing hands, Six told herself, the man had patched her up after battle enough times. But kolto injections and med scans were nothing compared to the personal touch. Six found herself leaning back into his hands as they dug into the muscles of her shoulders, then moved up her neck to soothe where the base of her skull and her neck met. He kept one hand massaging her neck, as he moved the other back down to her right shoulder, and she sighed as the ever-present tension seemed to fade. Six realized he must have remembered she was right handed, that shoulder tended to go stiff more quickly from swinging her saber. As Quinn's hands slowed and came to a stop, she couldn't help feeling dismayed. It seemed to her that his fingers lingered a moment before leaving her skin, but since she was still waking up, her senses weren't to be completely trusted.
"Better, my lord?" Quinn was still standing behind her chair; Six turned in her seat to face him, but was hesitant to get up, her feet still feeling the effects of having been propped up for so long. She rolled her shoulders, and delighted in the ease of movement.
"A man of many talents I see, Quinn. I could kiss you," she said lightly, as she raised her arms and stretched. As her eyes raked over the Captain, she noted that he did indeed look kissable. He was out of his uniform, dressed for bed in a light robe and loose pants, and his hair was mussed. The disconcerted look on his face from her statement only added to the rumpled appeal.
"That won't be necessary, my lord," he said, clearing his throat, "Think of it as part of my apology."
"If that is how you apologize, maybe you should offend me more often." Six said with a laugh. The tingling in her feet was being persistent, so she leaned over and slid off her boots. My ship, she thought, who cares if I go around barefoot. As she stretched first one leg, than the other, she glanced at Quinn again. He still had a wary look on his face, and what appeared to be a little guilt.
"May I ask an impertinent question, my lord? Since you mentioned if I have questions about Chiss I could ask you." Six noticed his tone was hesitant. She covered a yawn with her hand and nodded. "Is your skin always so warm? I mean Chiss in general, not specifically you." Six kept her hand over her mouth to cover her smile, feigning another yawn. She saw the red spots had come back to Quinn's cheeks and realized he did mean her specifically, but didn't want to admit it.
"Yes, Quinn, it is" she said, as she stood to test her footing, "Higher metabolisms, helps us to be better suited for colder climates. Essentially, however, our physical nature is almost identical to Humans. Other than certain 'cosmetic differences', of course." He backed away from her chair somewhat, making room for her to use the back for balance if need be, but Six noticed he remained in close proximity. Standing behind her chair reminded her of what had awakened her in the first place. "Quinn, did you stroke my hair while I was asleep?" she asked. The wariness evaporated as guilt took over his expression. Six thought he looked like he trying to decide between denial and confessing.
"Yes, my lord," he said, drawing himself up stiffly. His sense of honor must have won, Six thought, as he went with confession. "I'll admit, I was curious about the texture. But it wasn't my place, and I'm sorry." Six gave him a smile and leaned slightly towards him.
"I never would have thought my hair would be such an attraction," she said, with a chuckle, "Usually it's my skin that draws more attention. Vette had expressed the same curiosity. In fact, I assumed that's whose wrist I was grabbing." Quinn laughed at that, and she noticed it was genuine, with no undertones of nervousness.
"Well, she mentioned before retiring to her quarters that she thought she saw you sleeping out here," he confided, "I thought I should check, and see if I needed to rouse you and take you to bed." Quinn's face went red the moment the words escaped his mouth, as if realizing just then how the statement sounded. Six's smile turned into something sultrier, as she watched Quinn flounder, trying to reel back his words. "What I meant, my lord, is to make sure you got to your quarters, to your own bed." But even as he stammered, Six saw the heated gleam in his eyes, the same one that usually appeared when she made an inappropriate remark. She decided to use the ammunition he had unwittingly given her.
"Are you sure, Quinn? I think you may have said it right the first time," she kept her voice low, using it to pull him towards her, "Just like I don't believe you stroked my hair for 'curiosity'. At least not the type you're trying to convince me of." Her method had worked, Six noticed that not only had Quinn moved closer to her but his fingers grazed hers on the back of her chair. His eyes smoldered with the fire she'd always suspected was there, but he had buried under his professionalism.
"My lord, did you mean what you said earlier?" His voice was husky, but there was a determination to it she hadn't heard before, at least not when he dealt with her.
"I say many things, Quinn, and I usually mean them. You'll have to be more specific." Six saw his eyes flash defiantly again, knowing he recognized that she wasn't going to make this easy.
"What you said about 'getting this out of our systems'," Quinn spoke the words carefully, as if they had sharp edges and he didn't want to risk cutting himself, "You have a distinct talent for putting images into one's head, my lord. You said, 'to help relieve the tension'. I'll admit there is some tension here." His body was almost touching hers and his hand covered hers completely now, his fingers wrapping around her wrist. Six wasn't sure if the massage he had given her made him feel more at ease touching her, but she noticed he was becoming less hesitant. In truth, she had made the offhand comment earlier to get a rise out of Quinn, but now it the idea seemed better and better.
"Oh," she said, making the word sound breathy, "You mean the night no one has to know about?" She reached up to trace his jaw line, before letting her hand settle on his chest. "Well, one of the first things to remember, when you proposition a girl, is we like to be called by our names. If you're asking me to bed, you could call me 'Six'." She craned her head up and let her name hiss against his mouth. This was a delicate balance she was trying to maintain, pushing him just hard enough to get a reaction, without scaring him off. His control seemed unflappable, even as his arms had eased around her waist, she could feel the tension in his touch. But a smile was starting to shine through his intense look as he leaned down.
"I would say, if you want to come to bed with me, you should call me 'Malavai'." He stopped just short of kissing her, letting her make the next move. Always the strategist, Quinn, she thought. She knew as well as he, whoever made the next move would be blamed if it ended badly. However, she'd been dying to see what lie under that armor of control and was willing to take the chance. She reached her free hand up and around the back of his neck to pull him to her, closing the distance.
"Sounds like a good idea, Malavai." She murmured, before touching her lips to his.