"Your Majesty," Killian greeted, as he and Johnson made their way over to where the Queen was standing, already waiting for them.
"Lieutenant Jones," she returned, before nodding her head at Johnson in a way that clearly communicated the other man was being dismissed. "I was wondering if you'd mind accompanying me on a tour of the base?"
"Not at all," Killian assured her, folding his arms behind his back as he allowed her to take those first few steps toward the entrance of the hanger. He wasn't entirely sure if he should be the one to lead the tour or if he should allow her to do so, given that she outranked him. Killian was so lost trying to work out what protocol would dictate for such a situation that he was a little surprised when the Queen turned back to the men in suits following them both and said, "I'm certain that Lieutenant Jones is more than capable of keeping me safe on base. Leave us be."
The commanding tone her voice carried left absolutely no room for arguments from anyone, but it was having a completely unexpected effect on Killian. He'd encountered many women in positions of power throughout his time with the Royal Air Force. But none had ever made it look and feel quite as effortless as Queen Emma did. And he wasn't expecting that to be as arousing as it was.
When they were finally alone and a good distance away from the hanger the party was being held in, the Queen fell into step beside Killian, and he took that as his cue on how to conduct the rest of their tour. If she felt comfortable walking beside him, he could at least take the lead and steer her towards the more interesting parts of the airbase.
Killian intended to start their tour with a look at some of the fighter jets that they housed on the base. The aircraft was usually the part people were most eager to see, and they never failed to help with breaking the ice. But Queen Emma apparently needed no such help to initiate a conversation.
"Aren't you going to ask me why I requested you for this tour, Lieutenant?"
"I uh…" The truth was that Killian had been planning to ask that question eventually. He just wasn't entirely sure how to go about phrasing it in a way that didn't sound offensive. "I was going to," he finally admitted, after a moment of awkward silence.
The Queen hummed a little at his words but didn't provide him with an answer. Instead, she asked, "Tell me a little about your life here on base. Why didn't you bring your son with you?"
Killian stopped walking for a moment to turn and stare at his Queen in shock, but her steps didn't falter.
"Oliver's settled back home," he eventually replied, after jogging a little to catch up with her again. "It takes him a while to build up the confidence to confide in others enough to make friends. I didn't want to unsettle him just to bring him out to Cyprus for a few months and then have to go through the process of trying to resettle him when we returned."
The Queen made that humming sound again and Killian had no idea how he was supposed to interpret it. But she didn't give him long to dwell upon it. They had already approached one of the other large hangers on base, and the doors were wide open, showing off the jet that had been parked inside of it. As he had expected, the aircraft seemed to steal most of Her Majesty's attention away from him.
"Can we take a look at the plane?" she eventually asked, inclining her head in its direction.
"Sure," Killian agreed, before he hesitantly added, "But it's uh… it's a fighter jet, Ma'am. We prefer not to use the term 'plane' for the aircraft used here."
Queen Emma finally turned away from the hanger in front of her to fix Killian with a look that had him squirming a little in place. While he didn't know her well, he was pretty sure that he could detect a slight hint of amusement at the corners of her eyes.
"Oh, really? And why is that?" she asked, folding her arms over her chest to offer the man her full attention. Killian kind of wished she hadn't. The Queen had one of the most intense stares he'd ever encountered in his lifetime.
"Plane is often associated more with commercial use, Ma'am. We uh… a lot of civilians feel uncomfortable with its use in a military setting."
The Queen continued to stare at him for the longest moment and Killian was starting to worry that he'd said something wrong. But before he could apologise for whatever it was that he'd done to offend her, Queen Emma's stance softened and she gave a gentle nod of her head. "I suppose that makes sense," she agreed, before turning back around to head inside the hanger.
Killian released a hefty sigh of relief as she did before he followed after her.
He watched from a safe distance as Queen Emma made her way around the jet slowly, taking in the size of the aircraft and the different functions she could see that were a part of its design. When she was back at the nose once more, she turned to Killian with a somewhat mischievous smile and asked, "Can I sit in it?"
"Oh, uh…" Killian's head turned left and then right as he scanned the space for a set of portable stairs they used for such occasions, and when his gaze finally caught on one, he turned back to offer his Queen a small smile. "Yes, Ma'am. I'll be right back."
It proved harder to move the staircase on his own than it did when a small team of people was usually involved in preparing a craft for flight. However, Killian soon managed to find the right angle to push it at to get it to roll across the concrete floor, and over to where the pilot's hatch was located on the aircraft.
After making sure the staircase was firmly fixed in place and wouldn't roll away while they were both climbing it, Killian turned to one side and held out a hand in silent invitation to his Queen.
"Carefully, Ma'am. We wouldn't want you to fall," he instructed, as he watched her begin to climb the steps. Killian told himself to wait and give her some space to make the climb, as the last thing he wanted to do was crowd her. But he also didn't want her to trip and hurt herself, so he allowed his eyes to follow her form as she made her way up each of the steps.
He had just stepped onto the bottom rung to begin his own climb when his gaze caught on the way the Queen's jeans tightened over her backside every time she lifted her leg. The movement was almost hypnotic, and for just a brief moment he forgot where he was, what he was doing and, most importantly, who he was with. That was until a voice called down to him, "Are you quite finished staring at my arse, Lieutenant Jones?"
"Oh, God. I am… I am so sorry, Your Majesty," he rushed to apologise, as he quickly lifted his eyes to meet her stare. He'd been expecting to see disgust and horror on his Queen's face when he did, but that touch of amusement seemed to be dancing around the corners of her eyes once more, and he felt himself relaxing a little at the sight of it. "I uh… I wish I had an excuse for my actions but… I don't."
"It's quite alright, Lieutenant. You're not the only person in this hanger who's been hypnotised by the sway of a pretty arse before," she told him, and then gestured to the jet just behind her. "Now… how do I get into this thing?"
"Allow me, Ma'am." Killian took the steps two at a time to get to the Queen's side as quickly as he could. He offered her another apologetic smile and then stepped as far to the side as the small platform would allow, to lean around her and open the hatch. When he pulled back, the length of his body brushed against the side of hers in a way that Killian hadn't felt in far too long, and it did absolutely nothing to help the growing attraction that was building inside of him for his Commander-in-Chief.
"Thank you, Lieutenant," she said, stepping past him to peer down into the cockpit of the craft.
Killian took a step back and watched as his Queen surveyed her surroundings for a moment, clearly looking for the easiest way down. He didn't hesitate to step up and offer her his hand when he realised just how difficult it would be for the slight woman to climb in gracefully.
"Carefully now, Ma'am," Killian instructed, when she placed her hand into his and tightened her grip on his palm. "There are a lot of expensive and delicate electronics inside the cockpit, so try not to clip anything with the heel of your boots."
Queen Emma threw a quick disapproving look at him over her shoulder before she turned her attention back to the craft. She carefully lifted her right leg over the edge of the jet and placed it down just as cautiously inside of the small space.
"Would you take the blame for me if I damaged anything, Lieutenant?"
"Yes, Ma'am," he replied without hesitation. Because even if their Queen did end up damaging an expensive piece of technology, Killian knew he would face the wrath of his superiors for being the person present when she caused the damage.
"That's sweet of you, Lieutenant. But I would never ask you to do that," she assured him, before carefully lifting her left leg and placing it back down beside her right. As she let go of his hand, the Queen turned back to give him a small teasing smile and then added, "Besides, unlike some people in this room, I actually pay attention to what's going on around me."
Killian's face flushed bright red when he caught onto her meaning, but thankfully, Her Majesty was already distracted with easing herself down into the pilot's seat and taking in the console in front of her.
"Well… this is cosy," she eventually remarked, before flashing another look up to the man peering down at her. "How do I look, Lieutenant?"
"Every inch the commander of our forces, Ma'am," he replied, allowing a smile to brighten his face at the Queen's look of utter delight upon hearing those words.
Thanks for reading and reviewing.
For those of you who don't know, I'm going through some difficult times personally at the moment both with my health and in my private life, so I'm afraid updates will remain sporadic for the time being because I just don't have the time or energy to dedicate to my fandom life right now.