1593 words, long chapter. The next one is short. Sorry, I can't break chapters worth a darn.

Chapter Nine

Jess caught her breath as she waited for the link up with Becker. She was nervous. She had tried to reach him last night, but couldn't. After she left work, of course, he finally called in. The night coordinator assured her that he was safe.

As she slept, another village had an incursion, this time of oversized gazelle or deer or something. Even though she knew he was alright, she needed to see him.

She tried to relax. Why was she so nervous? She smiled because she actually knew the answer: she was waiting for him. He just naturally made her heart beat faster and every nerve tingle.

Her stomach did flip flops. She thought, giggling, 'The butterflies belong on my blouse, not in my tummy.' She adjusted the turquoise blouse that happened to feature colorful sequin butterflies.

She quickly checked her mirror. "Nothing popping out," she said with a nervous giggle.

"That's always good," joked Connor.

Jess jumped.

"Sorry, didn't meant to startle you," he said. "I just wanted to check in with the Yemen professors."

She nodded and smiled.

He walked over to her. "Don't worry. I won't be long." He smirked. "I won't interrupt your video date."

Jess scowled at him. "It's not a date," she mumbled.

Connor laughed. "You look nice anyway."

"Thank you."

"New outfit?"

Jess frowned. "I thought you were here for the professors, not to quiz me on my wardrobe."

"Sorry," he said chuckling. "My mind is back on the anomalies."

"Good." There was a beep. Jess gasped and smiled. "We're connecting."

Just then the monitor filled with the dim interior of the Zabid HQ. Becker stood, his back to them, naked from the waist up.

"Oops," said Connor.

Jess blushed, but couldn't take her eyes off the very nice picture.

Connor smirked as she watched, spellbound. After a few moments, he cleared his throat.

Jess jumped again. "Oh, hey Becker!" she yelled a bit loudly. She winced at the sound of her own voice. "Sorry."

"Caught you at a bad time," said Connor.

Becker turned, pulling a light blue, moisture-controlled shirt over his head. "Actually, it's not," he said, moving to the desk that held the laptop. He sat down. "About an hour ago was bad. I was wrestling with a crocodilian off the coast."

"At least you were cool," said Connor.

Becker chuckled tiredly. "Not really. The water was hot and when we walked out, the sand stuck to us. It was not pleasant."

"But are you alright?"

He nodded. "Yes. I'm fine, Jess. Thanks. I feel better after cleaning up. Gator innards stuck pretty good too."

"Yuck," said Jess. "Well, that won't happen anymore. You should have a shipment any moment…"

Just then the room was illuminated with light, but not as harsh as in daytime. "Sorry," said Professor Abid, entering the room with two soldiers, helping carry a large crate.

"Ooh, there's the shipment I was talking about," said Jess.

"More food?" asked one of the soldiers.

"Sorry," said Jess, laughing.

They pried off the lid, as Becker sat, watching. "What did the fashionable young coordinator send us?" he asked. He winked at the camera. "You look lovely, by the way."

Connor stifled a laugh as Jess blushed. "Thank you. I felt like butterflies today," she said.

"I miss butterflies," Becker said, staring longingly at the monitor.

"Among other things," said Connor.

"Oh, hi Connor," said Becker, making Connor laugh loudly.

Jess frowned and elbowed him.

"Don't get mad at me," he said, "you're the one who's distracting him!"

Becker laughed. The soldiers exclaimed, so Becker turned to see. They each held an EMD.

"Nice guns!"

"Weird guns," said the other soldier. "Yazi, go get Dhjami, he's got to see these things."

His colleague nodded, opening the door, bathing the room in soft light again.

"I thought it was night," said Jess. "Where is the light coming from?"

Becker smiled. "The sun lasts longer here. It's actually setting. It's not as hot now." He winked. "Only about 30 degrees Celsius." (90 degrees Fahrenheit)

"I'll have to send you a fan," said Jess. "I'm sure they make battery powered ones."

"You promised Lester you'd watch your spending," he said with a smirk.

"I can't have you dying in the desert, Becker!"

Connor laughed. "Yeah, she wants you back here before that."

Jess grimaced at Connor. She sighed. "Anyway…speaking of Lester, he is very concerned about the structures in the area, especially Zabid."

"Why?"

"It's a World Heritage Site," said Abid.

Becker looked clueless.

Jess giggled. "Lester says its old."

Becker laughed. "Oh, Ok. So don't wreck it too much."

"Actually, you can," said the professor. "The preservationists probably would appreciate the modern concrete and stuff coming down. Just watch the original construction."

"And how do I tell the difference?" asked Becker. "More importantly, how do the creatures tell?"

Jess giggled. "That was Lester's concern. So, I sent the EMDs. No more worries about creature guts on the stucco and adobe."

"No, but you still have to watch for dinosaurs flattening them," said Connor.

"Yes," said Jess, eyeing Becker. "On behalf of your boss, I humbly request you keep the damage to a very low minimum."

Becker laughed. "I'll try, but only because you asked."

Connor bit his lips to keep from wisecracking. To his amusement, Abid had done the same.

The door opened, this time dust blew in. "Watch it! We want the desert kept outside!"

"Sorry, professor," said 'sergeant' Djhami, "but in my defense, it's hard to keep it there." He walked in, with professor Sabban and about four soldiers. The small room was crowded now.

Djhami looked at the monitor. He saw Jess and smiled pleasantly. "Good evening, Miss Jess Parker."

She smiled back. "Good morning, Sergeant."

He laughed. "I hear you have sent us more gifts. Guns, huh? Too bad. My men are hungry."

Jess laughed. "I'll send more food right away."

"Jess…"

"It's for your survival, Becker!" cried Jess. "Darn the budget! Besides, we have allies. I won't let them starve."

"Oh, I think I love you," said Djhami.

Becker immediately turned at the comment.

"I think he was joking, Becker," said Connor.

Jess shot him another harsh glare.

"Let's see these guns," said Djhami. A soldier tossed him one. He held it, turning it over and scrutinizing it closely. "This is a gun?"

Becker smiled from ear to ear.

Jess giggled. "He's your soul mate, Becker."

Becker nodded and laughed. "Trust me, wait until you see them in action."

Jess nodded. "Don't underestimate then like Becker did. It's painful," she said.

"It is," agreed Becker. He traded smirks with Jess.

"Hmm," said Djhami, studying the weapon.

Becker turned his attention back to Jess. "Sorry I missed you this morning."

Jess smiled. "You mean last night," she said. "It's fine. You were busy. You've been busy a lot. A crocodilian, huh?"

Becker nodded. "It and the deer things apparently have been here a while. We didn't register any anomalies in Yemen at all today."

"If the villages are that remote," said Connor, "and no one has been actively hunting creatures, they could be stranded. Our data shows a lot of anomaly activity over the months," said Connor.

"Yeah," said Becker rubbing his eyes. "I think the stranded theory is right. We don't know how many though. I don't want to be rounding them up forever."

"I don't want that either. You need to come home," said Jess.

Becker smiled, tiredly but warmly. "I miss you."

Every head in the room looked at the Captain, but this time there were no smirks or comments. The way he said it had sounded so forlorn that each man felt compassion.

Even Connor was quiet.

"I miss you too," said Jess. "Why don't you get some rest, Becker? You look so tired."

He sighed. "I haven't been sleeping well."

"It's probably the heat," said Jess.

"Or the dust, or the bugs," said Abid.

Becker stared at Jess. "Yeah, it must be one of those things."

"It's quiet for now," said Sabban. "Why don't you turn in early?"

"You have gone on every call," said Djhami. "Even I and my men have rested. You have not."

"I doubt I could sleep."

Jess held his gaze, wishing she was with him, to comfort him. Slowly, she smiled. "Try, for me?"

Becker's smile finally perked up. "How can I argue with that?"

She giggled. "You can't."

"OK, Jess. I'll try."

"We will make sure Yemen remains safe," said Djhami grandiosely.

Jess giggled. "There you go. You have back up."

The sergeant laughed.

Becker sighed. "Did you need to talk about anything, Jess, ARC-related, I mean?"

"No, everything is fine on this end. Connor wanted to talk to the professors."

"That's perfect," said Abid. "Let us scientists do our work while you recuperate."

Becker nodded. "They're all yours, Connor." He started to move, but looked back at the monitor. "We'll talk again soon, right, Jess?"

"Absolutely," she said. "Now, off you go. Sweet dreams."

He nearly blurted out that he'd dream of her, but he caught himself. "Hopefully, Jess," he said, then he smiled.

Jess blew him a kiss, but stopped herself. "Good night. See you soon."

Becker got up and Abid took his chair. Sabban dragged one over to the laptop. "We're ready to conference, Mr. Temple," said Abid, smiling cheekily.

Connor laughed. Jess let him take her chair and she took a break. She sighed dreamily as she stirred her tea. She smiled and blushed as she thought, 'Maybe he'll dream of me.'

End of Chapter Nine