Chapter 10: The McCoy ring
Leonard McCoy wasn't even fully awake, but already smiled. Lying on his side he slowly opened his eyes. He felt incredibly happy seeing Jamie sleeping next to him, lying on her belly, face turned into his direction and her hair sprawled like a sea of dark gold over her bare back and shoulders. The sheet had slipped down a little and only covered her body only partially. Which made Leonard even more smile.
He was really tempted to touch her, wake her and show her how much he loved her. But he couldn't take his eyes off her for minutes. His wife...
Finally, Leonard slowly and carefully sat up, trying to not wake her. His gaze wandered down her back and trailed along the curves of her body.
When his eyes travelled back to her face and hands - one next to her face, the other over her head - he felt like something was missing. Jamie's hands were empty.
In this very moment Leonard McCoy wanted nothing more than to see his ring on her finger.
He slipped out of bed, still careful not to wake her. He took his bag that was sitting on a chair in the living area and pulled a tiny red velvet box out of a hidden inner pocket. It was as old as its precious content. Vintage.
Leonard smiled when he opened the little case and remembered the day his mother had given it to him. It had been at his rushed and weird Starfleet graduation after the Nero incident. A strange occasion and also odd, because it was years after his divorce. But - it was after she'd seen Jamie for the first time.
When he now came to think of it - his mother, who still didn't know about the recent developments, had known all along and given him the ring to give it to her some day.
The doctor shook his head at the realization how perceptive his mother always had been. Oh, she'd liked his first wife. But never enough to entrust her with this heirloom which had been in their family for centuries now. He remembered his mother once saying that Joanna would get the ring.
But then there had been that day. With the words "You know for whom and when" she'd placed the box in his hands.
Yeah, it was Jamie. It had been her all along. And it was today. Should have probably be a long time ago if only he'd had the courage to admit his feeling to himself and her.
"We've been so stupid..." he whispered looking at the elegant silver band with a white diamond, accompanied by a two smaller ones.
Leonard took the sparkling ring out the box, put the box back in the bag and went to the sleeping area. He leaned against the arch separating it from the living area and watched Jamie sleeping for a few more moments.
He was about to go to the bed and put it as a belated engagement ring on her left ring finger... but hesitated. He imagined what it would be like if Jamie woke up to the ring on her finger and discovered it.
But then another idea formed in his mind and made him smile, even smirk.
Jamie was set on using the white alert to make their decision about the marriage public. And although he liked just being alone with her and having her alone to himself, some part of him longed for showing the whole ship - hell, the whole universe - that she was his wife and that he loved her with every fiber of his being.
So, he wasn't a man who was putting himself and his romantic feelings on display - this time however it was exactly what he wanted. And what he would do the moment their news would go public.
There was just one minor problem: Jamie hadn't told him when her big reveal to the crew would be taking place... All he knew was that it would be this day or the next.
After watching his wife a few more minutes Leonard got dressed, put the ring into one of the pockets of his uniform pants and started to make breakfast. No mess hall. He wanted Jamie to himself before their shifts started. He knew that as soon as everyone knew about them they wouldn't have much time to themselves. The ship was already bursting with questions, but giving the crew the answers would create even more.
It was strange. After his divorce Leonard never thought he would fall in love again, never thought he would get married again. Yet here he was. And he couldn't wait to move in with her and marry her a tenth and real time.
As soon as Jamie's special edition of the white alert would be out, he could get some boxes and ask a few people help him to bring his stuff over. Or Scotty could beam it over. The doctor just wasn't sure if he trusted the transporter enough.