A/N: If you wish to read the NC-17 version please head on over to the Quicksilver Database, where you can find all my altiverse stories in the Cassandra Project section.
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July 1985
"Are you sure you two will be okay? Celia asked yet again, as Peter carried her bags towards the door. "I hate leaving you two alone for the holiday..."
"We'll be fine," Darien assured her for the fifth time. It wasn't like the Fourth of July was a big deal in this town, especially not on a weekday. Most businesses were still open for the day, he wasn't interested in the parade and the town's cheesy fireworks display wasn't for hours yet. "'Chele's been living on her own for years and its not like you haven't left me home alone before."
"I seem to recall the last time we went to visit Kevin you ended up spending the weekend in jail, thanks to that Liz Morgan," Peter commented dryly from the doorway.
Darien looked down, suddenly finding the cracks between the floorboards a fascinating study and shuffled his feet a bit. "I remember." He glanced over at 'Chele who was sitting on the steps watching the proceedings in silence.
"No! Michele will not be responsible for your actions. You make the wrong choice and only you will deal with the consequences." Peter's voice was firm, but lacking any anger. "Do you understand me?"
Darien's head came up to meet his uncle's eyes without flinching and he stood up straight as he responded, "Yes, sir." He had no plans on screwing up his last few weeks here in Cold Springs as he in no way wanted to risk losing his scholarship or ruining his chances at college.
"All right, we've left you cash for pizza or what have you," Celia reminded Darien needlessly. "And you know where the emergency money is." She raised a finger to wag at him. "No parties...."
"No friends over, no long distance phone calls, I remember." Darien gave her a lopsided grin. "I promise."
Celia eyed Darien carefully and seemed to determine that, for a change, he was being sincere instead of doing his best to give her a convincing lie. "Be careful."
'Chele got to her feet and moved to stand in front of Celia. "Celia, go. Let Kevin show you all the great things he's done. The house'll still be standing when you get back."
Celia sighed. "I know, Shelly, but that doesn't mean I won't worry. I wish we could have scheduled this better," she muttered and then gave them a smile before looking over at Peter who was tapping a finger on his thigh. "We'll be back late morning Saturday - that's the day after tomorrow."
"Celia," Peter said with some impatience, "we don't want to miss our flight."
"Yes dear." She gave Darien and 'Chele each a quick hug and then walked out the door, the relief on Peter's face obvious as he hefted the bags and shut the door behind him.
Darien bounced over to the door and slid the curtain on the narrow window aside to watch them walk to their car. As soon as his uncle got behind the wheel Darien released the curtain, spun about and rushed 'Chele who backed away laughing until she was partway up the staircase, which was where Darien finally managed to get his hands on her. Since she was standing a couple steps higher they were practically eye to eye and he curved an arm about her so he could pull her close, making her squeal in delight.
"You could at least wait until they get down the street," she giggled even as one of her hands threaded its way through his hair.
"Don' wanna," was the muffled response, his face buried in the hollow of her throat. With a small amount of encouragement he shifted her until she was lying on the stairs beneath him, both her hands now tangled in his hair as he made his way down the conveniently placed vee of her shirt at the same time as he slid the strap off her shoulder.
"Glad to know I can inspire such enthusiasm," she sighed as she arched up towards him.
Darien froze, uncertainty suddenly rushing to the fore, and rolling off her, he slid back along the step to lean against the spindles of the banister. "Sorry,"
'Chele levered herself up a look of complete confusion on her face. "Darien, what did I do wrong?"
He ran a hand through his hair while gathering his thoughts. The last few days, with her spending the mornings locked away with his uncle, which, he admittedly slept through for the most part, and the rest of the day with himself, had been confusing for him. He'd begun to wonder exactly why she'd allowed this... this relationship to happen. For, while his heart was aching to touch her, she seemed to be treating the whole thing like it was nothing of great importance, and to him it was. He certainly didn't want to be nothing more than some summer fling to be enjoyed while it happened and then later forgotten. When he finally spoke his words were harsh and full of the pain and confusion he was feeling. "Guess I must seem rather childish compared to the other guys you've been with."
"Okay, I'm going to assume all the blood rushing downward is causing the synapses in your brain to misfire." Darien's head snapped up in time to see her stand and storm down the steps, her bare feet slapping the bare wood in counterpoint to her irritation.
"Crap," Darien snarled and after spending a moment fighting with himself, went after her. He caught up with her just as she was walking out the kitchen door and onto the back porch. "'Chele wait." His voice cracked on her name, his emotions leaking into his words.
She stopped, but didn't turn around to look at him. "I don't deserve that from you. Especially when I damn well know exactly how many girls you've been with in the last year and I can guarantee you its far more than the number of guys I've been with." Her voice was soft, hurt.
"No, you don't." He leaned against the post and stuffed his hands deep into his pockets. "Can you forgive me?"
With a sigh she went to him, set her hands on his hips and leaned her forehead against his chest. "Just stop thinking you're too young for me or not good enough or the half dozen other manufactured worries you've managed to come up with. Shoot, for a while there I was wondering if you'd ever get the hint."
Darien hands, which had found their way out of his pockets to run lightly up and down her back, stopped moving. "Wha... What?"
'Chele tipped her head up to look at him. "You heard me. I figured you weren't interested."
"Not interested? Girl, you've been driving me crazy for years." Darien was amazed at how easy it was to say those words, to finally tell her the truth.
"Then I guess you owe John one, don't ya?" she questioned with a grin.
"Nah, if someone hadn't dared me I never would have taken the chance," Darien responded softly and grinned when she blushed.
"Well, if I'd known it would be that easy..." Darien cut off her words by using the best weapon in his arsenal and kissed her, groaning softly. His hands came up to cup her face even as he ran his tongue across her lips to request entrance, which she eagerly granted. Picking up where he'd left off on the staircase, he slipped the strap of her snug-fitting tank top off her shoulder and down her arm. She moaned as his hand shifted to explore the newly revealed flesh.
She broke the kiss; her head tipping back as she arched into his hand. "Damn it, Dare."
He chuckled as he continued caressing her, one hand set behind her back for support. "Problem?"
"Only if you consider givin' your neighbors a free show a problem," she muttered as she slid her hands under his shirttail and along the edge of his low-slung shorts.
"Watch it there," he warned, his voice tight. It was unlikely she hadn't noticed his very natural and uncontrollable reaction. "Unless you want to give them a real show."
"Hmm, tempting." Actions suiting words, her fingers hooked inside his waistband and tugged gently.
"Don't start something you ain't gonna finish," Darien hissed, his hands shifting quickly to set atop hers, but without moving them away.
Wiggling her fingers, Darien sucked in a breath as he tried to maintain some sort of control. "And who says I'm starting anything?" she teased.
He was debating the merits of talking her into going inside and spending the day lazing about with far fewer clothes on when a car went rumbling down the street out front, its speakers blaring, "Relax don't do it, when you want to suck it to it. Relax don't do it, when you want to come." for the entire neighborhood to hear.
'Chele began to giggle. "I didn't know my life came with a soundtrack."
At her words, Darien broke out into laughter finding the timing of the song more than amusing. Finding his legs still unsteady, he slid down the post until sitting on the top step.
'Chele sank down behind him and wrapped her arms about his neck. "Could be worse I suppose, could have been that circus music." She hummed a few bars, which made Darien laugh even harder. "I like it when you're happy, D."
"Well, you do seem to have some influence in that area." He reached up and curled his hands about hers. What he wanted to do next involved getting her quite horizontal, but he somehow knew she was more than content to just sit here like this for the rest of the day. The only thing she'd mentioned wanting to do on this so-called holiday was to watch the fireworks later. "Any ideas for how to kill the day?"
"Ummm, maybe a picnic at the lake? Too damn hot for much else. I wish this heat wave would break," she mumbled the last into his hair, as she pressed her head up against him and sent little tingles of pleasure down his spine.
"Everyone's gonna be at the lake today, I wanna do something just for us." He mulled for a few minutes while she took her time exploring the back of his neck and shoulders with her teeth and tongue. He thought up and tossed away a good dozen ideas before he realized he'd not yet fulfilled his end of their mutual corruption bargain for this visit. Over the years he'd taught her how to pick locks, use the standard burglary tools, crack a safe with little more than a flashlight and a deft touch, which she had in spades, and run some basic cons, like the shell and card games. This was the perfect time to teach her something new and a bit more ambitious.
"Feel up to a bit of a drive?"
"Define 'a bit'," she requested, her chin settling on his shoulder.
"I wanna head into Sacramento. We can still have a picnic and we'll catch the big fireworks display instead of the crappy one here." He turned sideways so that he could look at her. Several emotions warred with each other on her face, in her eyes, but she finally settled on curiosity mixed with wariness.
"And? I know you, Darien, there's gotta be another reason you want to make a three hour drive." She sat back, her turn to lean against the post.
Darien shrugged. "Time for your next lesson."
Her look brightened instantly. "Really, what this time?"
He tapped her on the nose, trying not to grin at her unabashed enthusiasm. "The fine art of casing a place."
***
The deep bass rumble rattled the window in its frame and forced wakefulness on the lean figure lying on the bed; with a sharp jerk he went from horizontal and completely relaxed in a deep sleep to sitting up and wide awake, his heart pounding at the sudden rush of adrenaline through his system. His eyes darted about in shock, still not having quite realized he was indeed awake until a bright flash of light outside followed quickly by another window-ratting boom gave him the connection he needed. With a muttered curse, he slumped slightly and scrubbed his face with his hands before looking over at the clock on his nightstand.
It was just after 10am though the thick dark clouds and driving rain outside made it appear to be that deep pre-dawn gloom. Getting up he walked to the window and slid it shut, thankful the rain was been driven against the front of the house, else his floor would be soaked. "Guess you got your wish 'Chele, the heat wave broke." Yawning and scratching the back of his head he shuffled out of his room and too the bathroom to get minimally human.
They'd gotten back just before 3am, the traffic after the fireworks had been far worse that he'd thought it would be. Worth it though, the entire day had been a blast as they wandered through randomly chosen stores, office buildings and hotels in the city while he gave her the basics of how to spot even the subtlest electronic security or plainclothes security guards. By the time they were ready to call it quits and go enjoy that picnic they'd packed, she'd been well on her way to mastering a new skill and, though horribly tempted, he refrained from talking her into pulling a small heist he and Liz had been considering.
Heading downstairs, he went directly to the kitchen. Now, that he was conscious he was in need of vast quantities of food, and was not surprised to find 'Chele already awake. She stood at the open back door and visibly flinched as another bolt of lightning momentarily brightened the gloom. The crack of thunder followed almost immediately, the screen door rattling against the frame.
"Well, at least the heat wave went out with a bang," Darien commented.
'Chele turned about with a smile as she rubbed her head. "Noise finally wake you?"
"Yep." He went to the pantry, perusing the offerings that he'd memorized several days ago and decided on the box of Frosted Flakes. "What about you?"
"Woke me an hour ago, when it started." She sat herself down at the table where a cup of coffee sat. "Just been getting louder, is all."
"Wonder how long it's gonna last?" Darien asked of no one in particular as he poured the milk over the flakes.
"The worst should be over in an hour or so, but the rain's supposed to hang about all day. Looks like we won't be heading out to the lake after all."
Darien, his mouth full of cereal nodded as he set the bowl on the table and then sat down. Swallowing he pointed at her with the spoon. "Uh, we could go to the movies. That Back to the Future one is supposed to be pretty good."
"Michael J. Fox is a cutie," Michele said, grinning over the top of her mug. "Sounds like a plan." She reached over, grabbed the neatly folded newspaper, and began thumbing through it for the local movie times. The theater in town had only four screens, but they were huge compared to the rinky-dink ones in those monstrous Cineplex's that were springing up everywhere. There were some advantages to living in a small town.
"Pick a mid-afternoon one, we'll have dinner at the Joe's after," he suggested, knowing that even if he gorged on popcorn and candy during the movie he'd still be able to eat one of Joe's double-cheeseburgers after.
'Chele snickered as if she knew what he was thinking again. "You love to eat don't you?"
"Well, it is on my top ten list of fav things to do," Darien responded then lifted the bowl to drink the remaining milk. He got up and rinsed the bowl out in the sink then stuck it and the spoon in the dishwasher, which he noted needed to be run sometime today. Just before they left, he decided. He'd do a last dish hunt and then let the thing run while they were out of the house. Moving towards the coffee maker he grabbed himself a mug and poured himself a cup into which he dumped two packets of Sweet-n-Low. Sipping it, he leaned back against the counter and watched her quietly. She was still driving him nuts on multiple fronts, one moment nothing more than the friend he'd known for years, the next this sexy-as-hell temptress and the next this adorable redheaded kitten. He'd discovered he could derive an inordinate amount of pleasure from just watching her sleep. An innocent smile graced her lips and made her look even younger than usual. The fact that she was his caused an ache deep in his gut, one that he was terrified to examine too closely, one that was too new and like nothing he'd felt for any of the other girls he'd been with... well it scared the hell out of him at times.
"How about the 2:15?" she asked, looking over her shoulder at him. "Late lunch or early dinner at Joe's, then head back here to watch TV."
"Sounds good to me," he answered, his chest suddenly tight with longing.
Sliding the chair back she carried her now empty cup to the dishwasher and set it inside. Then she walked over to him, a finger trailing from his wrist back to his biceps. "You having second thoughts again?" she asked softly as she leaned in to kiss the spot where her finger had stopped, her teeth grazing lightly across the skin and making him shiver in reaction.
"No." His hand came up to run along her face. "No more second thoughts." Damn, if she wasn't the temptress once again. Her eyes drifted shut as she leaned into this hand, rubbing her face against him the way a cat would and stunning him with the sheer sensuality of it.
"Good. Seeing as we've got a few hours to kill it's your turn for a new lesson," she told him, sidling in even closer and plucking at his beat up t-shirt.
"Biology?" he asked with grin.
"Hmm, reproduction, perhaps?" she suggested playfully and laughed when he responded by plucking at her shirt in return.
"Oh please," he begged softly, the plucking turned into a caress.
She shook her head. "Maybe later. Darwinism versus eugenics."
Darien knew she could see the confusion in his eyes as he tried to figure out what she was referring to. "Darwinism, that's basic genetics, right? Evolution as opposed to creation. Natural selection and all that."
"Dead on." 'Chele nodded, offering no help and leaving him to dig through his mind for the second.
"Eugenics... I've heard of it. That's, ummm... that design your kids idea? Pick the best genes from multiple donors and combine them to create planned effects. Anything from eye color to I.Q. I think?" Darien was not certain he was awake enough to figure this one out.
"Exactly right, though greatly oversimplified. Now, what if I suggested you could reprogram the body after birth. Could alter any of those things, even fix problems, like birth defects after the genetic structure has supposedly been set?" Something in 'Chele's voice got his attention. Not eagerness so much as seriousness. Like this subject was something more than just a college grade for her, something personal.
Sipping at his coffee he mulled what she'd said, it seemed so much like science fiction that he wasn't quite sure what to make of it. "Well, I thought that once the genes donated by the sperm and ova paired, that was it. That's what you got." He set the cup down on the counter, sure he was right. He'd got A's in the advanced biology class, even snagged some college credit points with it. "Eugenics is different, you literally pick your base pairs, both male and female, to choose the results. Or you could once they finish mapping the human genome."
"So you were paying attention in class." 'Chele laughed softly and Darien shoved her gently. "What if you could do things like improve intelligence, enhance senses, speed healing or a host of other things?"
Darien flashed on the conversation he'd overheard between 'Chele and his uncle several days ago. "You're serious aren't you?"
"Very. My parents were working on this, had been since the early sixties. Their theories are sound." She stepped away to pace the room a bit, going into full lecture mode. "It's not anything new, not really. The Romans used to make living weapons out of babies by feeding them tiny amounts of poison until they built up a resistance. Eventually their bodies became so flooded with it they became poisonous. Just a touch or kiss could kill."
Darien nodded. "I've read about that, they were called... Damn. I can't remember."
"Catevari," 'Chele supplied.
Darien sniggered. "Is that a sexual position or an Italian Opera?"
He was pleasantly surprised when she laughed. "Oh, that's a good one. I'll have to remember it next time it comes up in a lecture. Substance tolerance is inevitable over long periods of use. That's why alcoholics and drug users have to imbibe more to achieve the same high. My parents took the idea of body tolerance and combined it with the functionality of a vaccine." She paused, and he knew she was waiting for him to put the pieces together. He also knew she'd give him the time to figure it out, would lead him towards the answer if he got stuck and not just explain it to him. He was always amazed at the amount of patience she had.
"All right, let's see if I can do this. A vaccine works by forcing the body to react to say... this year's flu shot so that it creates antibodies that will know how to fight that particular flu in the event it tries to invade the host body. But it's of little or no use if another strain of flu attacks." He glanced at 'Chele who nodded encouragingly.
"Now, how would that apply to a Catevari?" she prompted.
"Ummm, you know I'm not nearly awake enough for this." He commented pushing away from the counter and going to the table. He spun one of the chairs about and sat down, resting his arms along the back.
"You can do this. Trust me." She was still slowly pacing the room, soft steps back and forth as the rain continued to fall and the occasional rumble of thunder chased after the lightning.
"Okay, in its simplest form vaccines do nothing more than cause the body to create a counter, a solution to defeat an invader." He stopped considering. "Whether antibodies or a histamine response, like after a bee sting." He caught on then. "So, in theory, you could create a 'vaccine' that the body would try and counter by creating the poison. Once created it would always be there and could probably be goosed into overproduction ? like a severe histamine response ? and the body wouldn't care, 'cause it's already adapted to it." He waited for her to stop and look at him. "But can the human body be... forced to produce what is essentially a foreign substance. I mean, yeah, some animals like snakes and frogs are poisonous, but humans aren't. Are they?"
Michele stopped and looked him in the eye, something almost frightened buried in their storm-tossed-sea color. "That's the real question, now isn't it?"
***
The people spilling out of the theater were chatting happily and relieved to find the rain had let up for the moment. The torrential downpour had passed with the end of the late morning thunderstorms and turned to a steady drizzle, more than enough to dampen everything yet not quite heavy enough to warrant raincoats or umbrellas. The inclement weather had been a boon to the theater as the majority of the people that would normally have been out at the lake or any of the other nearby recreational areas were lured into the darkened interior to spend a couple hours losing themselves in another reality.
Most of the crowd moved off quickly, wanting to take advantage of the respite to get a few errands completed or to just wander about the quaint downtown area that was reminiscent of the one so recently seen in one of the movies by a good fifty people. The grass covered town square with park and city hall at one end and the town's library at the other, complete with the pair of lions guarding the entrance.
'Chele found it peaceful compared to the hustle and bustle of L.A. and Pasadena, far more like where she'd grown up.
They stepped out of the flow of people to lean against the exterior wall of the building, still laughing softly, posters advertising movies coming soon flanking them to either side.
"Okay, I gotta admit it was pretty good. Even if you were drooling over the wrong Fox the entire time." Darien nudged her and she nudged right back.
"True, but which one am I going home with?" She grinned as she moved to stand in front of him. "Let's just walk to Joe's, it's only a few blocks."
Darien glanced up at the late afternoon sky, noting the clouds had thinned enough to allow weak and watery rays of sunlight through and create the faintest hint of shadows upon the ground. "Yeah lets." He draped an arm about her shoulders they headed up the block and past the various small town shops that lined what passed as the main drag for this sleepy mountainside village.
There were no Saks Fifth Avenue or Neiman Marcus here, just Annie's Antiques and J. J.'s Outfitters. Even at this time of the year, one could purchase snowshoes and skis along with a swimsuit and beach towel. Darien memories of living in southern California might have faded over time, but the incongruity still made living in Cold Springs a fit that just wasn't quite right on him.
They entered Joe's, which was themed after a 50's style diner complete with the metal tables and bright red plastic booths that included the mandatory jukeboxes, although the music was thoroughly modern with only the occasional Elvis song snuck in for theme-value. Shouts wafted out from the back corner where the teens of the town typically hung out.
"Hey, Fawkes." Rich was sitting on the back of the seat, resting against the wall in the huge corner booth.
Glancing at 'Chele, who nodded, Darien set a hand on her back and escorted her towards the back. There were nine of them, Rich, John, the twins, Tristan and Christian, and assorted girls.
"Have a seat 'Chele," Tristan offered as he patted the red plastic cushion beside him.
'Chele did so, and Darien grabbed an empty chair from a nearby table, spun it about and set it in the aisle at the end of the booth, his arms resting along the back as he settled onto it. "Angelo putting up with us today?" Darien asked of the owner and cook of Joe's.
"Money talks, my friend." John slapped Darien on the back and took up his perch on the edge of the horseshoe shaped booth across from 'Chele. "Didn't see you two at the lake yesterday. You... umm, spend the day inside?" He tried to sound disinterested, but failed miserably.
"We went to Sacramento for the day. Had a picnic, robbed a bank, watched some fireworks. The usual." 'Chele answered in a bored tone. It took everything Darien had to keep a straight face.
"Robbed a..." John leaned forward to grasp 'Chele's hands in his own and turned to glare at Darien. "Please tell me you are not attempting to corrupt so fair a maiden?"
"Maiden?" Rich sniggered causing Janice to smack him in the stomach with the back of her hand. "Ow!" he complained, and then took a moment to wheedle her into a kiss to make it all better.
"And who says it was Dare's idea?" 'Chele asked slyly, making Christian just about choke on his soda.
Sondra pounded him on the back until he finally figured out where the soda was supposed to go internally and drew in a breath of clean, non-carbonated air.
John, having apparently absorbed this new data dove into the fray headfirst. Good thing it was the hardest part of his body. "So, how much did you get?"
Michele turned to Darien, an amused glint in her eyes. "Jeeze, are these guys always so easy?"
Darien chuckled and reached out to tweak her nose. "That's my girl. I'll make a con-artist out of you yet."
The sudden groans from about the table as they realized they'd been had were followed by a flurry of balled up napkins aimed at the guilty, but unrepentant 'Chele and Darien, who did their best to return fire while the entire group laughed in pure merriment.
***
The door shut, cutting off the sound of the deluge going on outside the house. Just as they were walking back to her car after leaving Joe's the skies had opened back up. No dreary drizzle this time, but a full-blown downpour that had them soaked to the skin in seconds. "Damn, if I had known that was gonna happen I'd a bought an ark," 'Chele grouched.
Darien shook his head vigorously, spraying water everywhere. "You look like a drowned rat."
Squeezing some of the water out of her shirt, she flung it at him. "Like you look any better."
Though tempted to retaliate Darien noticed that not only were they both dripping on his aunt's hardwood floor, but 'Chele was turning an awfully pretty shade of blue. He urged her toward the stairs with a gentle swat on her pert bottom. "Go get out of those wet clothes and I'll clean up this mess."
"You sure? I can wait a few if you want some help," she offered as water dripped off the end of her nose. She sneezed three times in quick succession, shivers finally overtaking her.
"I'm sure, go take a hot shower and warm up." He leaned down and gave her a quick kiss, noting her lips were noticeably cool. She scampered away leaving a trail of damp footprints in her wake, her shoes squeaking with each step, much like he knew his own would do.
He walked quickly to the kitchen and grabbed the mop from the closet, as well as a bunch of hand towels. Using one to dry his hair a bit, he juggled the rest of the items and went back to the foyer. Dropping the towels on the floor he spread them out so that they would soak up the majority of the water, then he went to work tracking down an eliminating the stray drops and puddles with the mop. By the time he'd finished, the mop rinsed and rung out, the towels in the washing machine, he was fighting the urge to shiver. He also noted that his feet were doing a damn good imitation of prunes soaked in wine, squishing with every step due to the amount of water that had invaded his sneakers.
Running upstairs he rushed into the bathroom, thankful 'Chele's room had its own bath; right now was not the time to be walking in on her no matter how much he might appreciate the view. He stripped and dove into the shower, the water set as hot as he could take it. It took a few minutes, but he successfully fought off the chill, to the point of being pleasantly drowsy by the time he turned off the water and stepped out.
Wrapped in one of the huge fluffy towels, he hung his soaked clothes up to drip into the tub and dry a bit before he took them down to the dryer. The towel secure about his waist, he strode to his room and pulled out clothes to get dressed. His jeans were on, but not buttoned, the towel running through his hair, which made it stand up oddly, when there was a soft knock on his door.
"Yeah?"
"You decent?" 'Chele asked, her voice muffled through the thick wooden door.
Darien chuckled, "Never."
The door opened and 'Chele poked her head in to look about. He waved for her to enter, which she did, shutting the door most of the way behind her. She was wrapped in that ugly yellow terrycloth robe he'd seen a couple times before. It was ratty, with pulled threads in spots and generally in need of a good burning, but it was the robe her mom had given to her for college and she'd yet to find the courage to get rid of it.
Still, he let his eyes rove over her, noting the fact that the robe fell to just above her knees and did little to hide her slim waist or the curves above and below. Her hair hung in damp ringlets, but she was no longer shivering, attesting to the fact she had indeed taken a shower to warm up a bit instead of just drying off.
Tearing his eyes away, he forced himself rummage through his bureau for a shirt to wear for the evening. They still had hours to kill before either of them would be interested in going to bed.... 'Sleep,' he corrected mentally, though going to bed certainly seemed like a wonderful idea to part of his body, which reacted accordingly and made him wish he hadn't grabbed the snug-fitting jeans he was currently wearing. Something looser and with far more give in certain areas would be of great benefit at the moment.
The sudden compelling urge to conjure up what she would look like without the robe made his hands freeze in place, curling into the cotton of the shirt. He snarled mentally at himself to change tracks and fast before he found himself in a head on collision with reality.
'Chele's hand on his arm made him nearly jerk away in reaction, he'd been so focused on trying to control himself and not get all worked up with little chance of going anywhere. "You okay?" she asked hesitantly, her hand sliding up towards his shoulder.
"Umm, fine." It took him a moment to find his voice, her delicate touch doing a very effective job at derailing any potential train of thought. "So, uh, what do you want to do tonight? Veg in front of the TV, video games." He swallowed with some difficulty as she leaned in to brush her lips over his heart. "Poker?"
She poked him in the gut with one finger then looked up at him. "None of those. Was thinking something far more close contact."
Darien growled deep in his chest and fought the urge to pounce on her. Instead, he stepped back, not far, just enough to put a bit of space between them. He was having trouble accepting what he thought he was hearing even though his body was proving itself to be more than interested in her hinted at offer. "'Chele, I'm not quite sure... I mean I don't wanna push you into anything you're not..."
She closed the distance and set her fingers over his mouth. "Dare, I am the one person you shouldn't try the 'are you sure' routine on. I know how well it works for you, but it's completely unnecessary."
He shook his head and moved her hand; setting it over his heart so she could feel the way it was pounding. He dropped the shirt not caring that he missed the drawer and drew her closer to him. "It's not that, it's... I..." He wasn't sure how to put it into words. Those other girls had just been ...girls. He'd liked them well enough, had fun with them, got over them quickly enough when they ended it, but this was Michele. She wasn't just any girl, she was his best friend and while he'd had fantasies about doing this for years he'd never once thought, the last week and all its mutual exploration non-withstanding that it might actually happen. "'Chele,"
"Darien just shut up and kiss me."
