Chapter 10 - Shall We Play A Game?
Riddick watched her go, noting that he hadn't heard her lock engage. "Interesting," but he wasn't going to indulge his curiosity and check the door to see. Instead, he headed for the kitchen, sidestepping the shoes left on the floor. He hadn't actually been there that long before Jack had shown up, only a few minutes, so he hadn't really looked around her apartment. There was a jacket on the floor under the chair that she'd dropped her backpack in. Stacks of books lined the wall separating the living room from what he assumed was the bedroom. There were notebooks and papers piled around the computer station in the corner. Music discs and vid-discs in and out of their cases were stacked on and around an entertainment unit. Now that he had a chance to look around he noted, with a smile, that Jack was a slob.
The kitchen was small and, unlike the living room, neat. Like she probably spent very little time in here. Looking through her cupboards he found the usual things, dishes, cereal, canned food, nothing out of the ordinary. There was, as promised, a bowl of fresh fruit on the counter. Taking a round fruit from the bowl, he scratched the peel with his thumbnail and sniffed it, smiling. A fresh orange. He had to rely on his sense of smell because, even with the colored contact lenses cutting down on the starburst glare he saw most of the time, he couldn't see many colors. Mostly just shades of gray.
He was glad it was an orange and not a grapefruit. It had been a while since he'd had any fresh fruit; he hadn't been to many nice places lately. But Orion Station was almost completely self-contained, with a hydroponics and farming bay that harvested enough fresh produce to supply the station and its visitors. HP fruits and vegetables weren't nearly as good as the real thing, grown in dirt and nursed by the sun, but it was better than anything freeze dried and beggars couldn't be choosers. Grabbing a beer out of the fridge and a plate from the cupboard, he went back into the living room to wait.
Sitting back down in the chair he'd just vacated, he started to put his feet back on the table, stopping himself when he remembered her face as she'd told him to get his 'damn boots' off her coffee table. Smiling to himself, he leaned down, unlacing the boots, and pulled both them and his socks off, sitting them to the side of the chair. He didn't run around barefoot much, but he actually preferred it. Leaning back in the chair, he propped his bare feet up on the table, sitting the beer on one of the side tables and the plate with the orange in his lap.
After peeling the orange and eating half of it, he could still hear the water running in the bathroom. He wondered briefly what she could possibly be doing in there that was taking so long, but realized that was not the thing to think about as he was coming up with some very interesting images in his mind. Looking for something, anything, to take his mind off that line of thinking, he picked up one of the books from the top of the stack. 'Night of the Twin Moons.'[i] The cover art depicted an alien looking world with two large moons looming over the horizon. Not exactly a classic, but from the condition of the book, it looked like it had been a favored read.
Flipping open the book to one of the dog-eared pages, he very nearly spit out his beer. The scene depicted in writing was erotic to say the least, and did very little to alleviate the images flashing through his mind. Picking up two more books from the pile, he could tell from the cover art on the others that they had very similar themes. "Damn, is this all the girl reads?" He was almost afraid to look through the vid-discs. Or maybe he was intrigued. "No wonder she's sexually frustrated." But before he had a chance to peruse the vids he heard the water shut off.
Jack reluctantly stepped out of the shower. She was half afraid to have to face Riddick knowing he'd heard everything she and Alejandro had said to each other, afraid she'd not be able to look him in the eye. She took the time to dry and brush out her long hair, killing time before going into the bedroom to dress. Having no idea what to wear, she chose a pair of soft, black leggings and a stretchy, royal blue t-shirt that hung halfway down her thighs, gently hugging the curves of her body. She stood for a moment at her door, taking a deep breath before walking out into the living room.
When she saw him sitting there she felt her heart drop into her stomach then up into her throat before settling back to its rightful place. If she'd thought he had looked at home before she was wrong. He'd looked comfortable before, now he looked at home and sexy as hell. Her mouth felt like she'd been sucking on cotton and it felt like the temperature had increased about ten degrees from the bedroom to the living room. She saw the book he held in his long fingered hands and felt her face flush with color.
He looked up from the book, grinning. "I was beginning to think I was going to have to come in there and get you." He knew that it was dangerous to tease her this way, especially when he'd promised himself that he'd keep his hands off, but it was fun to see the heat rise in her cheeks. Most of the women he associated with weren't really the type to blush.
She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. I'm going to go get something to drink, I'll be right back." She sidestepped her way into the kitchen, tripping over her shoes on the way. "Oh, that was cute," she chided herself as she pulled a beer out of the fridge and opened it, taking a large swig. "Well, on the up side, there isn't a whole lot you could do to embarrass yourself more." Rolling her eyes to the ceiling she said a silent prayer that she hadn't just jinxed herself.
He noted that she seemed nervous, that made him smile. As long as she was nervous it was easier for him to remind himself that she was off limits. He did want to get to know her, find out what sort of person she had become, but the line for him was very clear (provided he didn't let her blur it). He was glad she didn't hate him; he didn't think he could have handled that, but the fact that she was apparently attracted to him, while a great ego boost, was not helpful. He couldn't let anything happen between them because in four days he would be gone from her life again and he didn't want her to hate him. He knew enough about women to know that she would feel used and betrayed and he wasn't going to let that happen.
He noticed on a shelf over the fish tank there was a chess set. Moving silently across the room, he reached up and took the set down, the dust on it telling him it wasn't often used. "Do you play?" he asked her as she came back through the kitchen doorway.
She hadn't expected him to be standing there, but this time she didn't jump. *Bully for me,* she thought, taking another drink of her beer, she had a feeling she was going to need another one. "Yeah, some. Imam taught me." She took a minute to look at him, at his face; really look, not just appreciating his physique. He looked so much like he had thirteen years ago and yet so different. His head was still shaved, a bit closer now than it had been then, but he had grown a goatee and when she looked closely she could see an almost imperceptible scar running from the outer edge of his lip down his chin that hadn't been there before. But those were only small changes, the biggest thing was his eyes.
She found herself mesmerized by his eyes. They were a dark, liquid brown, like melted chocolate. Obviously contacts, it wasn't easy to blend in when your eyes were the color of mercury. The brown was nice, very attractive, but it seemed so strange to Jack. She had always loved his unique, quicksilver eyes. In certain light they had looked like the surface of still water, a dark mirror that disguised hidden depths. At other times they seemed like a cat's, reflective, open, and revealing the dangerous tiger that hid beneath the surface. She realized after a few minutes that she was staring, and that he was staring back at her. It embarrassed her a bit that she'd been staring so openly, but she didn't turn away.
"Well?" he asked, quirking a brow.
His voice was low, betraying no emotion of any kind. She couldn't tell if he was angry that she'd been staring or not, she doubted he was. "I miss your eyes." She realized what a strange thing it was to say, but that didn't seem to ever stop her.
"This is what they looked like before the shine job." Or at least a good approximation. He shrugged. "What, you don't like it?"
"No. I mean yes, they are very nice." She smiled, apologetically. "They just don't look like you, you know?"
A strange smile played across his lips. "That was kind of the point."
"Well, ok, you've got me there." Jack laughed at herself. "Sorry." She pointed to the board in Riddick's hands. "So, you want to play a game? I remember you used to enjoy playing Imam, I'm not nearly as good as him, but." she shrugged, crossing the room to flop down on the couch, feeling a little more at ease. "Might be fun anyway."
Riddick's smile widened as he crossed the room, sitting the chessboard on the table and settling back into the chair. "I think that's the best offer I've had in a while."
Jack's eyes widened as she tipped the bottle up for another drink. "Really? You should get out more."
----------------------- [i] This is my homage to one of the most fabulous writers of all time. Jean Lorrah (an accomplished and published novelist). Night of the Twin Moons (which is a Star Trek Fan Fiction/Novella centering around Sarek and Amanda) was the first erotic fan-fic I had ever read and the stick by which I measure all the erotic fan-fic I read. All I can say is, if you EVER have a chance to get your hands on one, DO IT! My husband STILL begs me to read it LOL! It's just that good!
Riddick watched her go, noting that he hadn't heard her lock engage. "Interesting," but he wasn't going to indulge his curiosity and check the door to see. Instead, he headed for the kitchen, sidestepping the shoes left on the floor. He hadn't actually been there that long before Jack had shown up, only a few minutes, so he hadn't really looked around her apartment. There was a jacket on the floor under the chair that she'd dropped her backpack in. Stacks of books lined the wall separating the living room from what he assumed was the bedroom. There were notebooks and papers piled around the computer station in the corner. Music discs and vid-discs in and out of their cases were stacked on and around an entertainment unit. Now that he had a chance to look around he noted, with a smile, that Jack was a slob.
The kitchen was small and, unlike the living room, neat. Like she probably spent very little time in here. Looking through her cupboards he found the usual things, dishes, cereal, canned food, nothing out of the ordinary. There was, as promised, a bowl of fresh fruit on the counter. Taking a round fruit from the bowl, he scratched the peel with his thumbnail and sniffed it, smiling. A fresh orange. He had to rely on his sense of smell because, even with the colored contact lenses cutting down on the starburst glare he saw most of the time, he couldn't see many colors. Mostly just shades of gray.
He was glad it was an orange and not a grapefruit. It had been a while since he'd had any fresh fruit; he hadn't been to many nice places lately. But Orion Station was almost completely self-contained, with a hydroponics and farming bay that harvested enough fresh produce to supply the station and its visitors. HP fruits and vegetables weren't nearly as good as the real thing, grown in dirt and nursed by the sun, but it was better than anything freeze dried and beggars couldn't be choosers. Grabbing a beer out of the fridge and a plate from the cupboard, he went back into the living room to wait.
Sitting back down in the chair he'd just vacated, he started to put his feet back on the table, stopping himself when he remembered her face as she'd told him to get his 'damn boots' off her coffee table. Smiling to himself, he leaned down, unlacing the boots, and pulled both them and his socks off, sitting them to the side of the chair. He didn't run around barefoot much, but he actually preferred it. Leaning back in the chair, he propped his bare feet up on the table, sitting the beer on one of the side tables and the plate with the orange in his lap.
After peeling the orange and eating half of it, he could still hear the water running in the bathroom. He wondered briefly what she could possibly be doing in there that was taking so long, but realized that was not the thing to think about as he was coming up with some very interesting images in his mind. Looking for something, anything, to take his mind off that line of thinking, he picked up one of the books from the top of the stack. 'Night of the Twin Moons.'[i] The cover art depicted an alien looking world with two large moons looming over the horizon. Not exactly a classic, but from the condition of the book, it looked like it had been a favored read.
Flipping open the book to one of the dog-eared pages, he very nearly spit out his beer. The scene depicted in writing was erotic to say the least, and did very little to alleviate the images flashing through his mind. Picking up two more books from the pile, he could tell from the cover art on the others that they had very similar themes. "Damn, is this all the girl reads?" He was almost afraid to look through the vid-discs. Or maybe he was intrigued. "No wonder she's sexually frustrated." But before he had a chance to peruse the vids he heard the water shut off.
Jack reluctantly stepped out of the shower. She was half afraid to have to face Riddick knowing he'd heard everything she and Alejandro had said to each other, afraid she'd not be able to look him in the eye. She took the time to dry and brush out her long hair, killing time before going into the bedroom to dress. Having no idea what to wear, she chose a pair of soft, black leggings and a stretchy, royal blue t-shirt that hung halfway down her thighs, gently hugging the curves of her body. She stood for a moment at her door, taking a deep breath before walking out into the living room.
When she saw him sitting there she felt her heart drop into her stomach then up into her throat before settling back to its rightful place. If she'd thought he had looked at home before she was wrong. He'd looked comfortable before, now he looked at home and sexy as hell. Her mouth felt like she'd been sucking on cotton and it felt like the temperature had increased about ten degrees from the bedroom to the living room. She saw the book he held in his long fingered hands and felt her face flush with color.
He looked up from the book, grinning. "I was beginning to think I was going to have to come in there and get you." He knew that it was dangerous to tease her this way, especially when he'd promised himself that he'd keep his hands off, but it was fun to see the heat rise in her cheeks. Most of the women he associated with weren't really the type to blush.
She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. I'm going to go get something to drink, I'll be right back." She sidestepped her way into the kitchen, tripping over her shoes on the way. "Oh, that was cute," she chided herself as she pulled a beer out of the fridge and opened it, taking a large swig. "Well, on the up side, there isn't a whole lot you could do to embarrass yourself more." Rolling her eyes to the ceiling she said a silent prayer that she hadn't just jinxed herself.
He noted that she seemed nervous, that made him smile. As long as she was nervous it was easier for him to remind himself that she was off limits. He did want to get to know her, find out what sort of person she had become, but the line for him was very clear (provided he didn't let her blur it). He was glad she didn't hate him; he didn't think he could have handled that, but the fact that she was apparently attracted to him, while a great ego boost, was not helpful. He couldn't let anything happen between them because in four days he would be gone from her life again and he didn't want her to hate him. He knew enough about women to know that she would feel used and betrayed and he wasn't going to let that happen.
He noticed on a shelf over the fish tank there was a chess set. Moving silently across the room, he reached up and took the set down, the dust on it telling him it wasn't often used. "Do you play?" he asked her as she came back through the kitchen doorway.
She hadn't expected him to be standing there, but this time she didn't jump. *Bully for me,* she thought, taking another drink of her beer, she had a feeling she was going to need another one. "Yeah, some. Imam taught me." She took a minute to look at him, at his face; really look, not just appreciating his physique. He looked so much like he had thirteen years ago and yet so different. His head was still shaved, a bit closer now than it had been then, but he had grown a goatee and when she looked closely she could see an almost imperceptible scar running from the outer edge of his lip down his chin that hadn't been there before. But those were only small changes, the biggest thing was his eyes.
She found herself mesmerized by his eyes. They were a dark, liquid brown, like melted chocolate. Obviously contacts, it wasn't easy to blend in when your eyes were the color of mercury. The brown was nice, very attractive, but it seemed so strange to Jack. She had always loved his unique, quicksilver eyes. In certain light they had looked like the surface of still water, a dark mirror that disguised hidden depths. At other times they seemed like a cat's, reflective, open, and revealing the dangerous tiger that hid beneath the surface. She realized after a few minutes that she was staring, and that he was staring back at her. It embarrassed her a bit that she'd been staring so openly, but she didn't turn away.
"Well?" he asked, quirking a brow.
His voice was low, betraying no emotion of any kind. She couldn't tell if he was angry that she'd been staring or not, she doubted he was. "I miss your eyes." She realized what a strange thing it was to say, but that didn't seem to ever stop her.
"This is what they looked like before the shine job." Or at least a good approximation. He shrugged. "What, you don't like it?"
"No. I mean yes, they are very nice." She smiled, apologetically. "They just don't look like you, you know?"
A strange smile played across his lips. "That was kind of the point."
"Well, ok, you've got me there." Jack laughed at herself. "Sorry." She pointed to the board in Riddick's hands. "So, you want to play a game? I remember you used to enjoy playing Imam, I'm not nearly as good as him, but." she shrugged, crossing the room to flop down on the couch, feeling a little more at ease. "Might be fun anyway."
Riddick's smile widened as he crossed the room, sitting the chessboard on the table and settling back into the chair. "I think that's the best offer I've had in a while."
Jack's eyes widened as she tipped the bottle up for another drink. "Really? You should get out more."
----------------------- [i] This is my homage to one of the most fabulous writers of all time. Jean Lorrah (an accomplished and published novelist). Night of the Twin Moons (which is a Star Trek Fan Fiction/Novella centering around Sarek and Amanda) was the first erotic fan-fic I had ever read and the stick by which I measure all the erotic fan-fic I read. All I can say is, if you EVER have a chance to get your hands on one, DO IT! My husband STILL begs me to read it LOL! It's just that good!