A/N: I am impatient with waiting on a supposed 3rd book to the Six of Crows series. I was crazy over Kaz and Inej's slow burn relationship so I decided to write how I think their relationship could play out with Kaz' contact issues. This is my first piece of writing that I have ever completed so let me know what you think.

Inej

Inej slipped through the window to her room. Her eyes were drawn to the dark figure sitting on the edge of her bed, back to her. She already had a knife drawn and her eyes darted quickly around the room to check for any other intruders. She stepped closer to the bed silently.

"Inej," she heard a raspy deep voice say.

"Kaz?" she lowered the knife in relief. "What are you doing sneaking in here in the dark?" She walked over and turned on the lamp that stood atop the small table by the dresser. She peeled off her cloak and began to unstrap her daggers.

He stared at her with his coffee colored eyes under those dark brows. She stopped and noticed his eyes looked pained. She moved to stand in front of him.

"Kaz? Are you alright? Has something happened?"

He shook his head so slightly and cleared his throat, his eyes falling to a spot on the floor. "I need…" he trailed off. "I need help. I want you to help me."

This wasn't like Kaz. He didn't ask, he told and the Dregs did as he commanded. "Alright, who do I need to spy on? Or what do I need to steal for you?"

"No Inej," he looked vulnerable and her furrowed brow pronounced her confusion. "I want you to help me with my...affliction. I need this weakness to be gone so it cannot be exploited against me."

She understood then and wondered if that was the only reason. "It will just take time, Kaz. Time and practice. But yes, I can help you."

He was still clutching his cane with his leather gloves even though he was sitting. She gently took it away and rested it against the wall next to the bed. "Lay down."

He looked up sharply and opened his mouth to protest but she cut him off, "Just do it. I'm in charge now and I'm tired."

He grumbled but he shifted on the edge and sprawled his legs onto the bed, his hands helping lift his bad leg up. Inej moved around to the other side and crawled in next to him. He kept his eyes on the ceiling, his breathing slightly labored.

"We'll start slow," said Inej. "Just small steps."

She reached over and put her bare hand on his gloved one, just resting on top of it. "How is this?"

"Not that bad," he said gruffly. "I touch people through my gloves all the time. Usually in a fight though."

"So why don't you take them off, or do you want me to do it?"

"I'll do it." He tried to keep his hands steady as he peeled off his gloves.

"I'm just going to touch your hand lightly. You need to try to do everything you can to relax and you tell me when it's too much and I need to stop."

Kaz

He nodded and she hovered her hand over his, then brushed her fingertips over his knuckles which he automatically clenched. She covered his hand with hers and he took a sharp breathe in, squeezing his eyes shut. The water rushed upwards and the sheets clutched around his body, choking him and dragging him down until he was drowning into the bed. "Stop!"

She removed her hand and he panted. "We're going to try that again in a minute after you calm down," she said gently, no judgement in her voice. "This time face me."

He rolled from his back onto his side and looked into her brown eyes.

"Focus on me," she whispered. "Try not to close your eyes."

He took in her molten eyes framed by her dark lashes. Her hair hung loose from its usual plait and spilled thick down her back and over her shoulder. Her scent of soap and lavender hung all around him in her bed. He wondered what burying his fingers into that hair would feel like or what she might taste like. But first he had to make it through this test. She moved her hand over his and he didn't take his eyes off of her. His hand still trembled, but he didn't clench it into a fist this time. Her touch sent sparks all the way up his arm. But the cold and clamminess of dead flesh crept back and he started shaking again.

"Stay with me Kaz," said Inej. "Stay in this room, don't let your mind leave."

He realized he had closed his eyes again and forced them open. She was so close but so far at the same time. It was painful that he couldn't just reach out and take her in his arms like he'd imagined time after time again.

She slowly withdrew her hand and his body was relieved, but his mind filled with longing for her to touch him again.

"That was better. I think that's enough for tonight Kaz. We can try again tomorrow night. Or you can just stay here, I don't care. I'm tired and I need to sleep." She rolled over on her other side and pulled the blanket up and over her.

Kaz would've stayed and watched her sleep, but he forced himself up, put on his gloves again, and picked up his cane. "Goodnight Inej."

Every night he came back to her and he progressed slowly. A few nights in, she had interlaced her fingers with his and he was able to hold it without a bad episode. He realized after half an hour that she had fallen asleep like that and he gently extricated his fingers from hers trying not to wake her. He stared at her angelic face and her perfect mouth. He raised his arm and with trembling fingers brushed some hair back that had fallen across her cheek. Her hair was silky between his fingers. She stirred then and he pulled his arm back.

"Mm Kaz?" she murmured.

"Yeah, still here," he said.

She half opened her sleepy eyes. "Sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep on you."

"That's alright," he said.

"Stay."

He swallowed.

"Just stay. It's not like I can try anything on you." she smiled sleepily at him and he knew he wouldn't say no even as his face flushed with the thought of sleeping next to her.

"I'll stay."

"Just don't hog the blanket." She wrapped it up around her shoulder and was already drifting back to sleep.

The next night she touched his face. Running her fingers from his hairline down his cheek to his jaw. A new kind of shudder ran through him. One that wasn't bad. One that amplified his desire for her, but when she went down his neck, he seized up again. It became the worst when she made him take off his shirt. For days, he couldn't get past her hands on his arms or his chest without a full panic attack. But Inej was patient and gentle and Kaz had thought no one would know how deadly she was if they witnessed them in this room.

"Now touch me," Inej told him one night. He had finally passed the shirtless phase which had taken longer than he'd like to admit. His eyes widened with surprise but he didn't argue. He reached out his hand and rested it on her bare shoulder. Her skin was soft and warm, the opposite of a dead body for sure so he focused on only that. He never knew skin could be this soft. Inej had small feminine hands but they had many callouses built up from climbing all over Ketterdam. He had the sudden urge to put his lips on that skin, but he wasn't sure if Inej would want that so he ran his hand down her arm instead, fingers brushing over the raised scars that had accumulated over years of being his spider. He had no idea if Inej held the same desires for him. There had been the few times she had hinted at something between them, like onboard the ship after the Ice Court and when she had let him lean into her... But Inej had only been touched and abused by horrible men so he wouldn't be surprised if she never wanted to be that way with a man again. He had only asked her to help him with his affliction, she had never said anything about helping her with hers.

She scooted closer, closer than she'd ever been before. His heart hammered against his chest so loud he thought the whole block may hear it. His arm wrapped around her, his hand on the small of her back.

"Can I come closer?" she whispered.

He didn't trust himself to speak so he gave a slight nod. She put her body up against his shirtless chest, snuggling her head up against his neck. His muscles froze up and he fought the bile that threatened to rise.

"Stay with me," he heard her whisper.

She is not a dead body, he repeated in his mind. He would not let his demons take this moment from him. Not when this is what he has wanted for so long. He forced his mind to only focus on her warmth against his skin, her chest rising and falling, the fluttering of breath on his neck and her scent that had become intoxicating to his senses. His muscles slowly relaxed.

"Are you alright?" Inej's lips brushed the side of his neck when she spoke sending shockwaves up and down his side.

Not in the slightest, he wanted to answer. He wanted this, he wanted more but he wasn't sure he could ever have it. When they were done with this training, what would happen? He spent every day looking forward to nightfall to be with her. Once he was 'cured', he wouldn't be able to make another excuse to spend every night by her side.

"Yes," he said almost regretfully.

She pulled her face away from his neck to look at him. "You're almost there, Kaz," she smiled at him. "You should be proud of yourself. You'll be invincible now!" she teased.

Kaz didn't respond and she turned away from him to go to sleep as usual but she kept her back leaning against his chest and in this position he had no choice but to wrap his arm around her torso. Her hair fell away from the back of her neck which was dangerously close to his lips. His memory flashed to the one time he had tried to kiss her neck months ago. He still remembered the warmth, the sweat, the smoothness of her skin under his lips, and the shame of the panic attack that followed.

After a few minutes, he could not stop himself from leaning forward and pressing his mouth onto her caramel skin. She inhaled sharply revealing that she wasn't asleep yet. She turned back towards him suddenly and he realized that he had just kissed the deadliest assassin in all of Kerch without her permission. He tensed waiting for her response, but she just rested her face close to his.

"I was going to save that session for tomorrow night, but if you insist…" she said as she put her small hand on the side of his face and placed her lips a hairsbreadth away from his. His breath was ragged and his mind went numb as she closed the distance. Very slowly she brushed his lips against his light as a feather. He swore the air crackled around them.

"You alright?" she whispered against his mouth.

"Yes," he croaked back as he ran his hand up her back and finally buried his fingers into her hair at the back of her head. He pulled her towards him for a deeper kiss. Lightning struck him in that moment, he was sure of it. He heard her sigh and his arms started trembling again but not because of his weakness. He was drowning but not in dead bodies or cold water. He was drowning in caramel skin and dark hair scented with lavender and he never wanted to emerge.

Inej

As soon as Kaz pulled her into him, she knew she was lost forever. She had never wanted another man after her time at the Menagerie, but he had always been different. She may not know all of Kaz' secrets or his entire past, but she knew him better than anyone else. And he knew her, through and through. They had a trust in each other that would not be broken and grew deeper with every job, every heist, and now every touch. He had no idea how many times she had dreamed of this moment. How she thought it could never come to fruition because of his severe issues with skin contact.

And now she found her fingers buried in his short dark hair, her lips moving slowly against his, her tongue tasting mint from his mouth, her body pressed against his bare chest, and somehow one of her knees had found its way in between his. She felt his hand slide down her back and rest on the side of her hip and it was her turn to freeze. She pushed away, breathing heavy.

"Sorry, did I do something wrong?" Kaz' eyes were full of concern.

"N-no Kaz...it's not you," she inhaled slowly as she tried to shake her demons away. She looked at him and stroked his hair, "It looks like from this point we need to take it slow...for my sake," her eyes apologetic.

She could see that he understood completely. "Inej, I will never push you and you never have to apologize to me. I wish I could change your past so those things never happened to you. I would hunt down every person who has hurt and used you and I would gut all them if you asked me to. I would make them suffer. But I will only do what you ask of me. Whatever you tell me you want."

She smiled at him, "Just you, Kaz. I want you." She knew he was thinking about that moment on that ship back to Kerch when he had told her the same thing.

Kaz flashed one of his rare smiles back at her and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "Then we just go slow. Small steps."

How could there be anyone else in the world more perfect for her? "Thank you," she whispered as she tilted up her face to kiss him again.