Written for "Leather & Lace Challenge 2018" - Prompt - Fake Relationship
Distraction
Kira Ryder had looked forward to the evening. Days before, she received a vid-call from Reyes Vidal, who invited her to Sloane's party on Kadara. Not only was it a chance for her to feel normal since she became the Human Pathfinder, but it was also an opportunity for her to hopefully get to know Reyes more. Kira knew she shouldn't let herself get any closer to him than being a business partner – he had the connections to help her establish an outpost on Kadara if convincing Sloane fell through (and that was highly likely). The fact that he left her with the alcohol bill when they first met should've been her first clue to run away, even though he had since made up for that.
But then she thought about the times they worked together – the way he gazed at her when he thought she wasn't looking, and even those moments when he flirted with her (and she would actually flirt back – she was certain she heard her squad roll their eyes from behind her). They even worked well as a team during firefights.
Kira knew why… Reyes was the first person since she became Pathfinder who made her feel normal. With him, Kira could somewhat drop her guard and be herself, at least as much as she allowed. He even once said that if she needed to vent, she could talk to him. Kira hadn't taken him up on that offer yet, but just knowing that he was there if she needed to talk was, well… it simply made her feel good.
Between missions, Reyes was never too far from her mind… and that alone threw her for a loop. She had not allowed herself to have feelings (if one called it that) for anyone since about two years before she left the Milky Way (not counting the six-hundred-plus years in cryo). Even so, after she arrived at the party entrance, Kira was taken by surprise by the fluttering of her own heart when Reyes showed up. 'Fashionably late,' he said, but at least she didn't have to wait all that long. In that moment, she decided to see where the night took them. If she was honest with herself, she wouldn't mind if this ended with a one-night stand. That was easier than romantic relationships anyway.
Then he went off to do… whatever it was he planned to do… and left her here by herself at the party. That annoyed her since he was the reason she was there in the first place, but Kira decided to make the best of it; a few drinks (though she turned down Umi's 'test concoction' or whatever it was called), a little gambling, calling Sloane 'your majesty' (her brother Luke would've got a kick out of that) during a brief conversation between them, and she even helped out a turian who screwed up a date with an angaran. Eventually, she chatted with Reyes's friend Keema. It was about business at first until the subject of Reyes himself came up.
"He likes you," Keema said to her.
Kira rolled her eyes. "Oh yeeeah, that's why he ditched me at a party he invited me to…"
Keema gave her a subtle smile. "The thing about Reyes is he always has a good reason. You'll see."
Kira was sure Keema meant well. Heck, she was willing to take her word for it… but she couldn't help but be skeptical. So when Kira found Reyes searching for… something… in the storage room a few minutes later, she at least felt more disappointed than mad at him.
"Damn it. Why can't the serial numbers be in the same place?" Reyes grumbled aloud as he tried to search around the side of the box he was behind.
Oh yeah, Keema, Kira thought with a shake of her head. He likes me all right…
Kira placed her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Take the night off, come out for a drink," she mocked. She rolled here eyes as her voice dropped in annoyance at her next words. "Should've known you were up to something."
"Ryder!" Reyes shouted as he quickly stood up. He extended his hands out at his sides like he was a kid who was just caught stealing candy. "It's not what it looks like!"
"So you didn't use me as a distraction to go through Sloane's stuff?" Kira pointed out bluntly.
Reyes dropped his hands back to his sides. "…Okay, yes. But it's for both our benefits, I promise-"
"You've been making a lot of promises…" Kira cut in with another glare. She was just about to ask what he was looking for that was apparently more important than the party when suddenly, Reyes looked over her left shoulder. She turned to see what he saw, but there was no one there. Then she heard the footsteps that got louder and louder with each passing second.
"Shit!" he called out. "Someone's coming! We need a distraction!"
Kira didn't know what compelled her to do it, especially considering how annoyed she was with him. Before she had time to think, she closed the space between them, grabbed hold of his vest with both hands, and pulled him in to claim his lips with her own in a searing kiss.
Reyes hummed with surprised and Kira felt the vibration of that sound upon her lips. Kira soon felt his hands grab hold of her hips and he returned the kiss with more fervor. He pulled her in closer, and his fingers pressed into her hips and incited a soft moan from her.
The both of them stumbled a bit before Kira felt her back press against one of the storage crates. She moved her arms to wrap them around his shoulders as one of Reyes's hands slid to press into the small of her back. Instinctively, Kira lifted one leg to wrap around his waist while Reyes used a free hand to hold the back of her thigh. He hummed again as he pressed into her. He then coaxed her lips with his tongue before she opened her mouth to allow entry.
Kira knew that this was all a show for whoever entered the storage room, but this was… a bit more than what was supposed to be a 'distraction.' She felt hot all over like the temperature in the room had just risen, and every inch of her nerves jolted like she was being touched by live wire.
Six-hundred years in cryo can probably do that, she tried to rationalize in her head.
Kira did hear someone speak from behind them, but she paid no attention to what they said. She didn't even hear them leave the room seconds later. Apparently Reyes did since he ended the kiss to turn his head to look at the entrance to make sure that whoever had been there moments ago was actually gone.
Already, Kira missed having his warm lips on hers despite feeling almost breathless. Kira noticed that he was out of breath too. She thought to pull him in for another kiss, but she stopped herself before that happened. She slid her hands from the back of his neck and let them rest on his shoulders. At the same time, Reyes's hand - the one that held her leg - moved to her hip and she slowly put her foot back on the ground.
It's not real, she chastised to herself. It's just us pretending in order to keep us out of trouble. Nothing more.
"I think we're in the clear," Reyes murmured almost too carefully as he turned his head again to stare at her. His eyebrows were slightly raised and his amber eyes seemed to give her some kind of silent question.
Kira wasn't sure what to say to that look, so instead she ribbed at him. "Maybe another kiss? Just to be sure."
Reyes chuckled as he gave her one last light squeeze of her hips. "Now you're just teasing me," he said just before he removed his hands from her.
As Reyes moved to jump on one of the boxes to access another (and to find the bottle of whiskey he was looking for), Kira giggled and smiled in response to his words. At the same time, she realized suddenly they were genuine and not as forced as it had been since she woke up from cryo.
Moments before, Kira was certain that she and Reyes pretended to be in a relationship so that they didn't get in trouble by one of Sloane's people. Heck, she was annoyed with him just seconds before that. But after that kiss and the way her nerves seemed to ignite in the moment and the way he looked at her afterwards, well… she wasn't so sure what she felt anymore.
Kira decided to see how the rest of the night played out. She needed the remaining time to know for certain that what she was feeling in her heart for the smuggler was real and not just a desire for a one-night stand.
