Burning desire - Lana Del Ray

Dedicated to the lovely FalconRukichi who has been following and reviewing my fic for the last 8 years! Perhaps if you make it to 10 years I'll have to do something extra special!

Thank you also to my other reviews - they definitely motivated me to get this out in time for Valentines! (I stayed up till 6am writing and I have work at 8am haha)

I'd prefer to make some more changes but wanted to get this out for all us singletons out there today. I hope this update makes your day, and gives you your romance fix for this V-day!

Chapter 18 - An exercise in symmetry, the other half

Leon's head was throbbing. He was glad he squeezed in a frigid shower before he made his way here, even if it did mean he was late. Being pulled away from a very pleasurable situation to be stuck in a room with people bickering back and forth like immature kids would have been completely unbearable otherwise. As it was, his frustration was just about reaching his limit; from being interrupted mid-session with Angela, to wasting everyone's valuable time on a futile argument. He would have put a stop to their bickering, but at least it meant everyone else in the room was distracted and he could use this as an opportunity to think about the situation.

For starters, he wasn't sure why he was here. His job was in the field, acting on information as it was relayed to him, not in the thick of…whatever this was. He had forgotten how bureaucratic this part of the process could be and he tried to think of what value he could add as he assessed the situation. The team had finally opened the trucks he had seized from their raid at the dock and they had also run tests on the large number of vials they found in them. From what they could tell there were at least two different substances in the trucks. One was an RNA based formulation that seemed to partially match the sequence for the T-virus; the second looked to be a protein encapsulated virus, but didn't look anything like the T or G viruses.

It was the purposes of these two substances; how they were going to be used by the enemy; and the potential risk it had to people that everyone was arguing about. The first could be another vaccine for the T-virus. Being RNA based, it was harmless, although they had no idea why they had such large quantities of it. Did the enemy have such large numbers on their side that needed to be protected? Were they planning on a wide-spread T-virus infection event? Were they planning on selling it or could it be for a large number of enemy allies who would be joining in a future confrontation?

The second substance was throwing up even more heated debate. Could a new virus strain, more infectious and deadly than both the T and G have been created? What could be worse than the T or G virus? The team admitted to needing to take more drastic action to determine the risk it posed and while they had tested it on some lab mice, no changes had been observed. Knowing how quickly the other viruses took to act…the lack of change worried them. Could it be a slower acting virus that was harder to detect? They needed more time to observe, but the contents of the trucks cemented one thing. The situation definitely involved the T and G virus and the case was dire as they had no idea what this new enemy was planning.

Leon couldn't help but feel a bit frustrated with the situation. The truck findings threw up more questions than it answered and they didn't have a clue who was in the shadows pulling the strings on MfE and the Special Forces agents. He had no new leads to offer, not until someone from the SF team they had in custody started singing. He was used to chaotic, action-packed missions, not sitting and waiting like this.

Also he didn't quite want to admit to himself…that he wanted to be with Angela. The shift from being single-mindedly focussed on his work to wanting to be with her continued to disturb him. He tempered the fears these thoughts raised around his commitment to his work and mission by recognising that his current situation was very different to his norm. Being stuck in an office with people who liked the sound of their own voice rather than being in the field and facing danger at every turn made his thoughts and emotions seem more reasonable.

At some point, he decided it was a waste of his time to continue to sit around here. He wasn't getting or providing anything of value to the conversation and he'd much rather spend this time in the bedroom. As he got up to leave the group, he was once again brought back to the double edged sword that being with Angela presented. He had no intention of 'loving and leaving' her. Their desire for each other…stoked their respective passion and it was alluring like a siren song. But the better it felt, the more guilt he felt; him staying close to her would just risk hurting her in the end. He wanted to give in to his desires, to be able to jump in head-first, especially as he had never lost his interest and attraction to her despite their time apart. But part of him knew he should nip this all in the bud before it went any further. If he was sensible and benevolent, he would avoid being too intimate with her. He wanted to call what happened yesterday a mistake, but couldn't. In the least, he knew he needed to focus on the mission. Him wanting to ignore Hunnigans and his lack of attention to the current situation proved to him he was starting to let this…whatever it was, take priority. He knew he found it too easy and tempting to give in to her while they were together, to give in to what being with her offered.

As he made his way back towards Angela's apartment, he tried to steel himself - right now they both couldn't afford to get lost in each other. He couldn't let his primitive parts do the thinking for him, he couldn't…but his brain ceased to think further. He had opened the apartment door and walked down the short entryway to see Angela wearing a pair of skimpy shorts and a very threadbare loose T-shirt that was clinging to her damp and sweaty body.

An attractive woman like Angela looked like a ripe peach in the desert when she worked up a sweat. Combined with the mustled hair it presented an intoxicating image of what she might look like writhing beneath him. She hadn't heard him enter and the opportunity to watch her threw his previous resolve out the door and firmly locked it. His eyes roved across her moving form appreciatively, admiring her strong, accurate strikes that were both powerful and graceful, honed with years of practice and experience. The spell over him broke, however, when he noticed how out of breath she was and he intervened. "Angela. You shouldn't be pushing yourself. You should still be resting."

Angela turned in surprise at his voice, face lighting up as she realised he had returned. His comment had been firm and full of concern, but it didn't stop her from quipping back. "Leon! I think I'm the best judge of that and what…my body is or isn't able to handle". She said mildly breathlessly.

Leon approached her slowly, his eyes darting briefly across her body like he could have devoured her there. Voice low he responded, causing her heart to clench with desire. "If you can land a hit on me, I'll declare you fighting fit and I'll even spar with you regularly."

She responded with a mischievous smile. "Give me a few minutes to recover." She turned away from him and took a swig of water. She tried to give herself a chance to catch her breath before she took him on, but the thoughts running through her mind were making that a bit difficult. Her excitement from seeing him return and the opportunity to feel his hard body against hers as they sparred had her biting her lip and suppressing a quiet whimper.

They squared up against each other, ready to begin their session when Angela paused. It was the perfect opportunity to tease him while also evening out the playing field a bit. She smiled at him innocently as she slowly tugged off her damp T-shirt. She smirked when she saw it had the desired effect as his hands visibly stilled and lowered slightly.

Leon was entranced as he watched her stretch and arch her body before she exposed her tight sports bra dotted with lace. It looked far more like lingerie than he expected and his whirring brain appeared to forget what they were doing when faced with her half naked body. Not that he minded being able to enjoy the view. That was until he saw her smirk and decided that two could play that game. He pulled off his shirt, careful to flex with the movement to make sure his muscles rippled. The slightly agape mouth of surprise before she bit her lip in anticipation had been just desserts.

In the meantime, Angela couldn't help thinking that despite who won, there would definitely be no losers today. She had always appreciated the skin-tight tactical shirts he favoured and had always been silently thankful to whoever designed it for how it accentuated the lines of his firm muscles through the fabric. However, she could see that even her favourite tactical shirts didn't do him justice. The sensuous curves of his masculine body made her think of marble. Smooth, hard and perfect to the touch. She could imagine how velvety his chest and stomach would feel beneath her fingers, like a river worn rock.

With the first mental punches thrown, they started sparring in earnest. It didn't take long for her to reach her goal, but she found that her pounding heart and flushed face had little to do with the exertion and more to do with the glistening body in front of her and the feel of her fist against his skin. What started as an exercise to test her fitness soon morphed into something more primal. As they could feel the heat of each other's bodies and the slickness of their skin, they gave in to a desperate need to get the other on the floor. The lack of command over their movements and the sense of abandon in their sparring, evident. Their groans filled the air as they each fought for dominance to get the other under them.

Angela found her stamina running out, or more accurately found herself at her limit. Had she been completely honest with herself, she should have called it quits five minutes ago when they had both taken off their shirts. Seeing his opening, he tackled her to the ground and pinned her down.

Bodies so hot that it felt like their skin was burning each other; the sheen of perspiration helping bodies glide over each other as their musky scents mingled and exhilarated their senses. The sensation, tantalising like warm silk sliding across their body and through their hands.

The sun, low in the sky, had been setting on them for a while, a warm twilight glow that warmed their bodies further. Submitting finally to their desires, their hands roamed each other hungrily as they kissed each other hard. Mouths devoured each other, as if both were too exhausted to maintain any polite passion and ferocity far greater than their earlier spar, they were unable to stop from touching and stroking each other. A messy passionate coming together as his hand roughly pushed up into her hair, tangling up the damp tendrils and pulling deliciously across her scalp as the strands captured his hand and prevented him from removing it. So lost in each other he let the full weight of his body fall into hers, the sensation reassuring and welcoming. As if he was the only thing stopping her from floating away and would keep her anchored with him forever.

Angela's hands were already digging into his shoulder blades as she pulled him into her body harder, as if she could consume him. Her hand slid between their tightly squeezed together bodies to touch the hard bulge she felt against the soft flesh of her thigh. When their proximity hindered their progress,Leon lifted himself up slightly to give them better access. She paused to drink in the sight of him poised above her; his bent arm beside her head, trapping her as damp strands of his hair dangled so close to her face they almost tickled her skin. Her hands left the buttons on his tactical pants to his deft hands as they moved up to explore the wet skin acros his firm abs and his chest. Their loud pants erotic music to their ears until a loud rumbling stopped Leon with his hand on his waistband and Angela with her hands on his chest.

They looked at each other, slightly bewildered as if they were pulled out of a deep nap until her stomach rumbled again. It took a moment for them to realise she was starving and Leon started chuckling as he lowered himself back to her body. She stammered briefly, embarrassed and acutely aware that her passion and desire seemed to pale in comparison to her basic needs. It didn't take long for her to join in on the laughter, never thinking they'd be interrupted by their own bodies.

Leon looked down at their sweaty bodies, "Should we shower first?" he said suggestively.

"I might bite you too hard if I don't get some dinner in me first.''

"I think I might like that, but I guess that might be better for dessert."