As always, I do not own any of these characters, just the words I try to get them to say… Some times they saw a lot more than I want them to…… LOL
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CHAPTER 4
Susan slowly woke. She hated living in space. It was always dark; no way to tell by the amount of light, what time it is. She rolled over, and looked at the chrono display. She was shocked. It was 1100. She couldn't remember the last time she slept this late. When she looked to the right, she found that side of the bed empty.
"Lights twenty percent." Talia was gone, but there was a note.
Dear Susan,
I awoke before the alarm went off. You were sleeping so soundly
that I didn't want to wake you. Thanks for last night. I had a great
time. I do appreciate that you trusted me enough to tell me about
your Family. One thing I will say now that I didn't say last night, try
when you can, to remember the good times. You looked so happy
when you talked about them, and the time at the beach. I hope I am
not being too bold, but I wonder if you have plans for the evening?
If not, would you like to go to dinner this evening? Let me know.
Talia
Susan lay back on the bed lost in thought. Where was this going? Susan thought, Better yet, where do I want this to go??? Another part of her mind began to scream at her in her mother's voice.
Suzotchka, remember, you can never tell anyone about your gift. Stay away, as far away as possible, from the Psi Corp, and all telepaths. Remember what they did to me. Don't let them do that to you!
"But, Mama, you never prepared me… for Talia," she whispered aloud. Susan knew that Talia had changed her views on telepaths as a person since she came to Babylon 5. At the beginning, Talia had been Psi Corps by the book type of telepath. Then things changed: Ironheart; Alisa Beldon; Bester, and his Psi Cops... And she had finally had a drink with Talia. At first, she had done it just to get the telepath to leave her alone. But, Talia persisted. And to this day, Susan was grateful that she didn't give up on her.
Rolling over in bed, she could smell the essence that was Talia on her sheets. She smells so good, Susan thought as she breathed deeply from the pillow Talia had slept on. She knew she had to get up. She felt a bit of a headache when her feet touched the floor. She was sure it was the combination of the wine, and all of the vodka she drank. She decided a hot, steamy shower would help to clear her head. Ten minutes later, she was drying her hair. She decided to leave it down, and dressed in an old flannel shirt, and jeans. Her biggest plan was to laze around today. Smiling, she activated BabCom and sent Talia a message, asking her to call, and yes, she would very much like to have dinner.
Susan's door chimed about an hour later. She hadn't expected company. Maybe it was Talia. "Who is it?" she called.
"Daily Moments…" a voice called. "I have a delivery for a Susan Ivanova."
Susan knew of it. It was an expensive, floral boutique in the Zocalo. With a questioning look on her face, she walked over to the door, and hit the activator panel to open it. The deliveryman had a bouquet of red roses. "Susan Ivanova?"
She nodded.
"I have a delivery for you. Would you sign here, please?" he pointed to his clipboard where, she signed, and then handed her the red roses.
"Wait a moment," she said. She wanted to give him a tip.
"That's okay… It has been taken care of," and he continued walking. She looked up and down the corridor, but no one was in sight. Wonder where my 'bodyguards' are?
Smiling, she walked back into her quarters. She buried her nose into the gorgeous blooms, and deeply inhaled the heady fragrance. They smelled so good. It had been so long since she had real roses. Taking them to the kitchen, she filled a vase with water, and then the roses. In the very bottom, she found a note:
Hope you enjoy these bloom that are as gorgeous as you are.
But, no signature. That's very strange. If Talia had sent them, I would have thought she would have signed it. Besides, the handwriting on the note with the flowers was different from the handwriting on the note Talia had left on her bed. "Well, I am not going complain." She took another whiff before setting them on the table. She picked up a book that she has been reading over the last few weeks. It was a romance novel. A few minutes later, she was immersed in it. When she finished it, she looked at the chrono display. It was still early, and she slid down to get comfortable. I'll just close my eyes for a few minutes.
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She heard a noise…. Susan turned over, and promptly fell into the floor.
Her landing shocked her awake. She glanced at the chrono display. She had been asleep for almost four hours. It was now 1720. The noise turned out to be the beeping of her BabCom unit.
"Play messages," she grumbled, as she got off the floor, and walked to the unit.
"One new message," the computer replied. "First message received at 1300." The image of Talia filled the screen. "Good morning… or should I say good afternoon. I just wanted to say I am still game for dinner. Since I didn't reach you, how about meeting at Earhart's for drinks about 1800. We can decide about where to go from there. I will be in meetings for the rest of the afternoon, so just meet me there. If you don't show, I will know something came up. Hopefully, I'll see you later."
Her image disappeared, and the computer reported, "End of messages."
"Of course, I want to go to dinner with you," Susan said aloud. It then dawned on her she had less than an hour to get ready, and she dashed to her bedroom.
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At exactly 1800, Susan walked through the doorway of Earhart's, and began scanning the room. She recognized several of the Starfury pilots that were gathered around the bar. One of them motioned her over. She smiled her thanks for the invitation, but shook her head to decline. She spotted her guest. Talia was seated at a corner table out of the flow of traffic. She had finally decided to dress causal, and she had worn a dark blue silk shirt, and matching pants. A gold chain with multiple gold coins attached draped from her neck to her waist. Unconsciously, she smoothed her top before walking towards Talia's table.
Talia felt someone was looking at her. She looked up, and smiled when she spotted Susan. God, she is absolutely drop-dead gorgeous, she thought. She observed and felt emotions from others that indicated they thought so too. "Good evening, Susan," Talia said as Susan reached her table. Talia noted her flushed cheeks, the almost sparkle to her eyes, and she had put on a fragrance that Talia hadn't smelled the Commander wear before.
"Talia," Susan replied as she set down before a glass of white wine. She noted that Talia was wearing an emerald green dress that complimented her coloring. In this light, Susan would have sworn Talia's eyes looked almost green. She always dress so stunningly, Susan thought.
"I hope you don't mind, I ordered for you?" Talia asked, and suddenly felt very shy.
This morning she had awoke before the alarm went off, and quietly ordered it to suspend. She found herself curled in the Commander's embrace with her back pressed against her, and Susan's arm draped over her hips. Susan was softly snoring, and with each exhaled breath, it caressed her exposed neck. It sent goosebumps down her arms. Desire stirred in her loins feeling her with such warmth, she felt a wetness flowing between her legs, and her breaths came in ragged gasps. She forced herself to close her eyes and do mental relaxation exercises to get her feelings barely under control. Resisting rolling over and kissing Susan was the hardest thing she had ever done. Finally, she gently moved out of the embrace without waking Susan.
Fifteen minutes, and a hot shower later, she was dress, but still she didn't want to just disappear without explaining why she did not wake her. A quick search of the top drawer of Susan's desk found pen and paper. She had jotted a quick note, and decided to place it on the pillow she had slept on. Still, she found she could not force herself to leave. She hesitantly sat down on the bed, and enjoyed watching Susan sleep- the rise and fall of her chest, the way the wrinkles of stress were washed from her face as she slept, and the soft snoring. Talia drank it all in.
As if drawn by a magnetic, Talia reached out and tucked a wayward dark lock of hair behind Susan's ear, and traced a finger along her cheek. She smiled when Susan slightly moan. Leaning forward, she brushed her lips against the same cheek, then had to quickly pull back to get out of way of Susan's arm as she blindly reached out for her. Talia held her breath for she thought she had awaken her. But, Susan just moaned in frustration. Her eyes remained closed. Talia quietly rose from the bed. She kissed her fingertips and lightly pressed them to Susan's forehead before she left the peace of Susan's quarters into the harsh realities of the world of Babylon 5.
"Of course not," Susan said as she took a sip. Suddenly her throat felt very parched, and the wine was sweet but not too sweet, and left a slight tart after taste. She had never tasted this wine before, but she enjoyed the choice.
When she looked back at Talia, Susan found she was staring at her without seeing her. Talia seemed to be deep in thought. I wonder what she is thinking? "Talia, a credit for your thoughts?" Susan asked.
Talia shook herself out of her reverie. "Sorry, Susan, I was just thinking, and drifted away. I must be a little more tired than I thought." Taking a sip of her wine, "What were you saying?"
Susan laughed, "Nothing important. How was your day?'
"Actually, it went quite well. I enjoy it when both of my clients are willing to be honest, and I am there just as a reassurance that things are as they seem. How was yours?"
"I was lazy today. I didn't get out of bed until after 1100. By the way, why didn't you wake me when you awoke?" She asked.
"You looked too peaceful. With you job, I am sure it isn't often you get to sleep in," Talia replied.
"True," Susan said. "Thanks for leaving the note. At least then I knew you had got off to work okay."
Talia's stomach growled. "Excuse!" Talia blushed, and Susan laughed. Talia enjoy the sound of her laugh. "Sorry. I missed lunch," she admitted.
"Then let's remedy that situation," Susan said stating the obvious. "Any preferences?"
"How about The Salad Bar? We can get in there fairly quickly," Talia suggested. Her stomach growled again. The blush that touched her cheeks before now deepened.
Susan laughed heartily which only increased Talia's discomfort. Great the only thing she is going to remember about this evening will by my growling stomach.
Susan motioned for the check, "That sounds good to me. I am surprised it isn't my stomach growling. I had stretched out on the couch to read and fell asleep. So, I haven't had anything since my morning coffee." After signing for the check, the two ladies left the bar.
It wasn't until they were window browsing the shops in the Zocalo on the way to the restaurant that she spotted the Security Chief watching them from a distance. He made no move to join them. If anything, he tried not to be noticed watching them. Susan then remembered why he was there. Her temper flared for a moment, and then remember who she was with, and tried to calm down.
Talia sensed the momentarily change of mood, and she looked in the direction Susan was looking. Finding nothing amiss, she asked, "Something wrong?"
Great, Susan!!! She caught me. Susan smiled, "No, nothing is wrong. I just thought I recognized someone, but I guess not." Making a motion for the telepath to precede her, she followed behind.
After finishing their meal, the two set sipping on some after dinner tea. Conversation remained light, and eventually, she forgot about Michael and his paranoia. Mischievously, Susan asked, "Talia, do like chocolate?"
Talia got a look on her face that only a true lover of chocolate could get- an adoringly smiled, "I haven't met a chocolate that I didn't like." It was her one down fall. She usually spent some of her savings each month on the decadent staple. Dreamily, she looked at Susan. "Why do you ask?"
Leaning closer so only Talia would hear her, Susan whispered, "I have a source that occasionally sends me some each month, and I got a message, just as I was leaving, that I had a package for pickup." Looking conspiratorially at her dinner companion, "Would you like to go with me, and see what I got this time?"
Talia fairly beamed. "Count me in. Where is this 'package'?"
"Actually it is left in my Starfury locker in Hanger 12. Up for a little reconnaissance and retrieval?"
Talia signaled for the check, and slapped Susan's hand away when she reached for it, "I invited you to dinner. I pay." She handed the check and the credits to cover it to the waiter. Once he left, Talia turned to Susan, "Lead on to Hanger 12."
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TBC…
There is more to come soon as the muse strikes me…. Appreciate any comments, or suggestions…