Disclaimer
MGM owns SGA.
Little ol' Des owns little to nothin'.
This chapter is all setup. The fun starts next time.
Stargate: Atlantis
Hot Flashes
by Destiny Brighthope
2. Size Matters
(1 of 3)
They were kissing again, hot and heavy, delightful little moans escaping her throat, her delicate lips caressing his. Rodney hadn't made out this much since grad school. Usually his affairs burned bright like a match, brief and intense. But Jennifer wanted to go slowly and savor their intimacy. Rodney tried to respect that—he really did. But whenever they kissed for longer than a few minutes, his libido took over. And his hands wandered.
"Damn it, Rodney!"
"Sorry, sorry." Without realizing it, he'd been toying with the zip on her sweater. He had it worked down to her belly, exposing her lacy white bra and a generous portion of creamy flesh. The sight mesmerized him until she pulled the garment closed and fled, leaving him speechless on the couch. He wanted to follow, but her glare kept him rooted to the spot until the door swished shut behind her.
Had there been tears in her eyes?
Rodney spent the next week in an isolated lab far from the Tower, throwing himself into work to give Jennifer the space she obviously wanted. They spoke rarely, and the one lunch they shared passed in a tense silence that made their tablemates uncomfortable. The weekly briefing with Mister Woolsey would be tomorrow morning, and the base commander made it clear to Rodney that his and Jennifer's issues had better be worked out before then. But every time Rodney reached for his radio, he chickened out.
The lab was quieter than usual that night, Rodney having taken most of the equipment offline to run diagnostics. The silence gave him plenty of time to face his demons, a feat he accomplished by leaning against a console and muttering to himself.
"Women are a waste of energy. Think of all you can accomplish without the distraction." He reached up to tap his radio and scratched behind his ear instead.
"Your every relationship has been a colossal failure. This one won't be any different." He succeeded in opening a channel, but his throat seized up when he tried to pronounce her name.
"For God's sake, she's five-and-a-half-feet tall. Why are you so intimidated?" This time for sure. He tapped the radio. "McKay to Keller."
"Yes, Rodney?" A hand squeezed his arm. He jumped, slipped, and smacked his head against the console.
Touching the back of his head, he winced. "Jennifer?"
She was at his side in an instant. Two of her were in fact. Rodney screwed his eyes shut. When he reopened them, the twin beauties had coalesced into one.
"Sorry," she said. "I thought you heard me come in."
"How much did you overhear?"
She smiled. "Do I really intimidate you?"
He groaned but allowed Jennifer to help him to a sitting position. He could have managed himself, but he'd missed her touch since their fight.
"I'll get you some ice for that bump," she said and started to stand.
Rodney caught her hand. "We need to talk." He expected a protest, but Jennifer surprised him by settling beside him, shoulder to shoulder, without a fight.
"I've been trying all week," she said.
"I...know."
"That sounded like an accusation." She rested her head against his shoulder. "I didn't mean it to. Rodney—?"
His lips crashed into hers. After an initial squeak she relaxed into the kiss as if the last week had never happened. Determined to prove he could show restraint, Rodney maneuvered an arm around her shoulders and used his free hand to gently stroke her cheek. Even that was too much for her, and she broke off the kiss.
He sighed in frustration and snapped, "Jennifer, if you don't want to be with me, tell me now."
His harsh tone made her flinch, and Rodney felt a tidal wave of guilt wash over him. But when he tried to apologize—a far too frequent occurrence in this relationship—she pressed a finger to his lips.
Taking a deep, steadying breath, she whispered, "I want to be with you, but I'm afraid you'll be disappointed."
He shook his head. "I don't understand."
Her tongue darted out to wet her lips. "You know how stressed I've been lately?"
"Trying to perfect Carson's Wraith retrovirus?"
"Plus my patients on base and off world. To catch up on work, I've skipped gym visits, eaten junk food instead of going to the mess hall, even stopped taking self-defense classes because you—" She poked him in the chest. "—don't like me spending time with Ronon."
"I never said that."
"Of course not. You only groaned every time I mentioned it."
"Because I've seen your gym clothes."
"Well, I stopped." Jennifer poked him again. "And I've been too busy to find another instructor."
He claimed the hand poking him and pressed it to his heart. "What does this have to do with you not wanting to—?"
"Well, look at me."
He did. "You're gorgeous."
"Don't."
"What?"
"My thighs, my hips, my waist." She released a ragged sigh. "I've gained weight, Rodney. Until I lose it, I'm embarrassed for you to see me naked."
[to be continued]
RoryFaller beta read. Thanks, Rory!