Author's Note: Okay, it's not all that long... but it's cute, and a little mushy.

OOOOOOOOOOO

Carson was asleep when she reached her quarters. Not only asleep, but…

Aw, man, he's snoring…

She smiled as she closed the door behind her, looking at the man sleeping so soundly in her bed.

It's not that bad.

It sounds like he swallowed a chainsaw

She snickered, softly, and headed for the coffee pot that was on her dresser. The coffee that was in it should still be hot. Maybe a little strong from sitting all afternoon, but she didn't mind strong.

You just don't want to wait for a new pot to brew

That, too.

Sure enough, the coffee was warm. She poured a cup and took an appreciative sip before heading into the bathroom. The next step to fighting off the chill was to take a hot shower.

You're not cold, you know? It's all in your head

You're in my head, too. Why don't you warm me up?

Smart ass. Fine, get in the shower and wrinkle yourself

She allowed a soft chuckle, since the bathroom door was closed and it wouldn't wake Carson.

Stripping out of her uniform, she turned on the water in the shower and waited for it to get hot enough that she could just barely stand it, and then stepped under the spray. The best thing about Atlantis was the unlimited water they had access to, and the fact that there was no need to ration showers. For which Melony was grateful, because she loved a long hot shower.

When she finally turned the water off and stepped out of the shower she was feeling a lot better. Warmer and wrinkled, just like Talon had said.

I'm always right

Yeah? What about that time that you said those Goa'uld weren't going to be dumb enough to fall for that whole broken ship trap?

That doesn't count

She reached for a towel.

What about the time that you said Simmons was bluffing and he really had that straight flush? You cost me twenty bucks, as I recall.

That doesn't count, either

What about-

Fine, I'm not always right. Happy?

She smiled.

Maybe.

Talon started muttering to himself in the back of her head, and she was still grinning when she pulled on a sweatshirt (Green Bay Packers) and a pair of sweats and left the bathroom.

Knowing that Carson wouldn't mind, Melony slipped under the blankets with him, and cuddled up against him. Sure enough, he woke just a little when she did, sliding an arm sleepily around her and pulling her close with a contented sound.

"Are they back?" he asked her, his voice slightly muffled.

"Yeah," she whispered, putting her hand on his side, just below his ribs. "Everyone's fine… go back to sleep."

He mumbled something that she couldn't understand, but he was already almost back to sleep – he'd never really woken all that fully anyways – and slid his hand along her waist, just brushing bare skin when the hem of her sweatshirt slid up a little. She held her breath, tensing, but Carson didn't do anything else. He simply pulled her up against him as well as he could, and with a soft sound, fell back to sleep, his chin resting on her still damp hair.

Melony sighed, and ran her hand along his belly for just a moment. Like her own shirt, his had slipped a little as well, and she was touching bare skin now. Since he was asleep, it wasn't bothering him, and she loved touching him like this. Loved it so much, she was half-tempted to wake him up and see if she was ready to do a little more than simply cuddle.

The only things that stopped her were the fact that he was asleep and she didn't want to wake him, and the fact that she wasn't one hundred percent sure she was ready for it – and she didn't want to start something with him that she wouldn't be able to finish. That wouldn't have been fair to him.

Instead, she sighed, feeling just a little frustrated. Okay, maybe a bit more than a little. And closed her eyes. Stupid libido, anyway.

Talon chuckled in her mind, and then helped ease her into a calmer state, eventually putting her to sleep. He was better than a sleeping pill, and they both knew it.

OOOOOOOO

When Carson woke up a bit later –a couple ofhours later, actually – he wasn't shocked to find her in bed with him. He vaguely remembered her coming in and waking him, telling him that Sheppard and the others had returned. He was a bit chagrined to find that he had his hand up under her sweatshirt, resting against the warm skin of her belly – right below her breasts, which meant it was way up her shirt. He was also surprised to find that her own hand was in a similar spot on his stomach.

He wondered if moving his hand would wake her. And worried that waking her while his hand was under her shirt would make her think he'd been trying to make a move on her while she was sleeping – something that just wouldn't do. He'd probably be able to explain it – if Talon didn't kill him, first – but it'd undo a bit of the progress that they'd made in their estranged relationship. Progress that had the two of them back in each other's arms – which was more than he'd ever figured would happen again.

Deciding that it was just as good an idea to leave his hand where it was until she woke, he lay still, resisting the urge to stroke her belly tenderly – which definitely would have woken her, and probably would have found himself being thrown out the door when he woke Talon. Instead, he closed his eyes, and listened to the steady sound of her breathing, and felt her heart beating, even though his hand wasn't that close to it. It was all acoustics.

Eventually, he drifted back to sleep, too warm and comfortable to stay awake.