Chapter Two

She felt his presence before she actually saw him in the corridor. Jean Luc was walking just ahead of her as she rounded the corner. They would enter the turbo lift together if she didn't stop and…

He stopped, a little stiff as he whispered, "Beverly?"

He didn't even bother to turn around first, as he could feel her presence behind him. A small gift from the Prytt. he thought with a sigh. Though the implants had been out for a few weeks now, Jean Luc could still sense when Beverly was near - an aftereffect of their telepathic connection down on the planet Kes Prytt. He first felt a small fizzle at the back of his neck, about where the implant had been, then it grew into a tingle through his arms and legs before settling into his chest as a very pleasant feeling- like the feeling of returning home.

He couldn't be sure, as he would never bring it up with Beverly, or any other doctor for that matter, but Jean Luc surmised that since the implants had reacted to being in close proximity, that the aftereffects were still related to their physical closeness to each other.

It had distracted him at first- sitting in the observation lounge for a senior staff meeting - but he had grown used to it, and secretly, he was heartened to have such a connection to Beverly, even when no other connection seems possible.

"Oh, hi" Beverly replied. As he turned he thought he caught a small wince in her eyes, as though she had been caught. Was she trying to get away from me again?

"I was just returning to my quarters for the night." He said weakly. "Would you…" he faltered, trying again, "I would love to hear about how its going with Wesley. Do you have time for a drink?"

Beverly smiled. Progress Jean Luc thought, taking their brief conversation as an opportunity to examine her more closely. She looked tired and anxious - he hoped he wasn't the cause of any of those feelings.

Jean Luc knew she had been avoiding him, but this was the closest thing to a family that he had - her and Wesley. Family stays together through arguments and awkwardness. Love bears all things, the thought flitted through his mind as his tingling sensation settled into the "home" feeling.

He hoped their relationship could bear this latest blow. He had never meant for her to find out about his feelings. The shock, no, surprise that she felt as she uncovered his feelings about her and Jack. He was so ashamed, but also a bit surprised himself. Jean Luc truly believed that she had known his true feelings all along. He had spent many an hour wondering about an errant glance, a casual brush of the hands… only to discover that she really never knew how he felt.

But then during the chase…

When they had reached the force field on Kes Prytt, Beverly began trying to open a passage in the field with her tricorder. The Prytt were closing in, and just as things seemed hopeless, a small hole opened in the field wall. She shoved me through the gap to save me before I even knew what was happening. The gap closed before Beverly could follow through and the pair wound up starting at each other through the field waves. In that moment we did not exchange words - no words were needed. There was only warmth, connecting us.

It felt like a sunrise, it felt like the first time Jean Luc had gone into space, it felt like...the sensations radiating across his chest this second. It was a feeling he carried ever since - but now without the link, he couldn't tell if she still felt the same way. Jean Luc wanted so badly to capture that pure feeling of love and keep it within him for the rest of his days….keep her with him for the rest of his days.

"You know," Beverly replied, "I am going to take a rain check for tonight Jean Luc. Thank you for the invitation, though." She brushed his arm as she walked past and into the turbo lift.

Jean Luc exhaled slowly as the feelings of Beverly's presence slowly dissipated.

He felt a slight chill as he turned back to where he was walking - putting his captains mask into place as he saw Riker walking towards him.

"Was that Beverly in the turbo lift?" Riker asked, an incredulous look on his face, "did she tell you about Wesley?"

"Uh, no, Number One" Picard replied, she just avoided me again, "is he all right?"

Riker shook his head "He sure isn't making friends while he's here. Let me tell you about what happened in Engineering today…"

Author's Note: thanks for the feedback guys, I fixed the spelling on Bev's name. My Mom is spelled with the -ey so I get confused :)