A/N: As always Huge thank yous for reviews they make me smile! It also helps the old noggin out with motivation! Also many apologies for late update..Exams this week so I've been studying and there were minor blackouts...no power no internet... I know excuses, excuses! Anyways Enjoy!
"I take you, Alicia to be my lawful wedded husband… nice slip if only we had a recorded the ceremony." Jim said laughing with others at Taylor's faux pas during the exchange of vows. They were all seated around a large outdoor table in the Shannon's Backyard. Round Lanterns with tea candles provided the lighting and other paper decorations of pin wheels and cranes suspended in the air above them on string along with a few well placed chem. lights. The table was set up with a couple more flower arrangements and a few tea candles in open jars.
They had shared a large roast with vegetables and salad. There was also a liberal amount of sparkling non alcoholic apple cider being shared in lieu of Champagne since no one wanted to nurse a hangover with work in the morning. At least that was the excuse they used as Taylor was giving no one the day off except himself and Alicia. The perks of being married to the boss as Kate called it.
It was a perfect wedding even with the slip ups and starting late and the 'reception' was getting even better as the men removed their jackets and they all relaxed into their chairs with the ladies and enjoyed each other's company and the down time.
Taylor sat at one end of the table with Alicia at his side, not having to hide their affiliation or keep a professional distance. He comfortably leaned back in his chair with his arm around the shoulders of Alicia's chair as they sat at the large table surrounded by those who attended the wedding as well as Reynolds who gate crashed in the hopes of seeing Maddy and Josh who had finished his day shift at Boylan's.
"Let it go already" Taylor said, his neck slightly red from embarrassment. He had been so thoroughly distracted by Alicia that he had trouble concentrating through the whole ceremony. Never in his life had he made such a faux pas.
"Yeah cut the man some slack it's not like we see Alicia all gussied up. It was very distracting, even I was distracted and I don't even swing that way" Kate said tongue in cheek she ducked just in time missing Alicia's hand that had gone to smack upside the head.
"Like you're one to talk, getting you to wear a dress is harder than getting you into the infirmary" Elisabeth said shaking her head in amusement. Kate an expression of mock shock.
"Hey, I'm in a dress right now. Which by the way is made for a woman with shorter legs than me" Kate said as she tugged on the short skirt of the dress as it was riding high on her legs.
"You got the legs flaunt them. Don't you agree Malcolm?" Elisabeth asked him.
"I'm quite fond of them" Malcolm replied with a smile as he placed his hand on Kate's thigh under the table as Kate took a sip of her cider from the champagne flute.
"Well you can appreciate them later" Kate told him earning a few laughs as she lifted his hand from her thigh and placed it back on the table.
"So you guys having a honeymoon?" Kate asked looking to the Newlyweds.
"Yes, three days R&R, Jim and Guzman will be in command" Taylor told them. Guzman and Jim nodded as they had already been given their instructions. They were to pretend Taylor and Wash were OTG and if anyone asked for either of them. They were to take a message and an appointment time three days from now with whatever excuse they wanted to use. As long as it was believable.
"Well we'll try not to burn down the Colony while you two are gone" Kate said.
"It would be appreciated considering your proclivity for setting things on fire" Alicia said.
"It was two fires which were very small that were more smoke than fire. Over six months ago." Kate stated.
"So the roast two nights ago" Malcolm drawled innocently.
"Was not on fire" Kate clarified for the table as Malcolm was implying it had been. The others looked to Malcolm in amusement waiting for him to dispute her claim.
"It's true, it was more smoke than fire" Malcolm said in agreement.
"And it was a good roast-" Kate started.
"Once you cut away the charcoal edges" Malcolm said finishing her sentence.
"See I'm getting the hand of this cooking 22nd century style" Kate said.
"Yes, it must be so hard to go from discovering fire and cooking with it to cooking on a stove top" Josh said being a smart ass and failing.
"Like you should talk, you can't find cook a meal to save your own life" Maddy said rolling her eyes at her brother much to everyone else's amusement.
"The Shannon men are lacking in that department" Elisabeth said smiling at she looked to Jim.
"Hey, I have never set the kitchen on fire and I can cook pancakes" Jim said defensively.
"So this staff meeting in four days, you guys going to announce your other news?" Elisabeth asked.
"What other good news?" Malcolm asked curiously.
"I'm pregnant with twins" Alicia said, Guzman choked on his drink when Alicia said 'twins'.
"You alright there Guz?" Taylor asked.
"Twins?" Guzman coughed in surprise.
"It's what happens when two over achievers get together and -Ow!" Kate said as Alicia pinched her arm. The others laughed as it wasn't the first time Kate was pinched for being close to saying a cheeky comment. Those who didn't know the news smiled and offered their congratulations.
"Congratulations Sir, Ma'am" Reynolds said a long with everyone else. Jim pointed at him from the across the table and gave him a serious look.
"Hey don't get any ideas Reynolds Taylor and Wash are not the shining example to follow, marriage then babies. Not for another 10 years at least" Jim half told and half warned the young soldier.
"Copy that, Mr Shannon" Reynolds stuttered embarrassed and slightly going red in the cheeks as did Maddy who was blushing madly from mortification.
"Oh Dad!" Maddy exclaimed shaking her head while the others at the table were smiling and laughing. The night continued as the food, drinks and laughter flowed, soon the cake was placed at the head of the table along with pots of tea and coffee.
"The Ice Age is not coming or ever going to happen" Malcolm told Kate shaking his head at her baiting him. He fell for it everytime, it was like she was testing a well known theory for holes.
"You can't say that with certainty just because we all live in some freaky parallel universe does not mean we miss out on all the major stuff" Kate argued obstinately sitting back in her chair folding her arms a signifying she was not going to change her opinion even if it was amusement sake.
"I agree with her" Jim piped in with a smile as Malcolm gave an aggravated sigh while the others smiled and chuckled. Alicia and Taylor were firmly staying out of the conversation and observing the conversations going on as it was fair more amusing.
"Oh you're just agreeing with her to goad Malcolm" Elisabeth said Jim smacking playfully on the arm. Zoe had fallen asleep lying on Jim's chest something the girl was getting a little too big and heavy for but Jim didn't mind as he knew these days were numbered.
"No, I do agree with her. I remember watching an old TV show called 'Fringe' on my plex, they explained it all, they even used pictures to explain it" Jim said matter factorily. Kate sat up at 'Fringe' and looked surprised.
"You've watched Fringe?" Kate asked Jim who rubbed the back of his neck with a hand.
"Yeah, I was dating a girl in high school who was into vintage TV" He explained awkwardly which made it obvious said girl was not Elisabeth.
"The things we pretend to be interested in for the sake of love" Guzman said mockingly.
"Speaking of Love, can we cut the cake now?" Alicia asked getting everyone's attention.
"Please" Kate said answering both Malcolm and Alicia as Malcolm gestured to if she wanted him to pour her a cup of tea. Kate got up from her seat and started taking pictures of the cutting of the cake and more photos of those around the table. She and Maddy were now taking turns so no one was left out.
The cake was a simple two tier design vanilla cake beautifully decorated with thick frosting and berry topping. After the couple went through the motion of sharing a piece of the cake before Taylor took over serving up pieces of cake to the table. It didn't take long for Zoe to rouse from her sleep and dig into her piece of cake much to the amusement of those around her.
"I like where Zoe's priorities" Kate said as she retook her seat snapping a random photo of her piece cake for no reason in particular before picking up her fork and taking a bite.
"Of course you would" Alicia said with a smile.
"What am I being charged with now?" Kate asked innocently.
"I think I remember spending a few hours with you in the Market with Max telling you all about the food you can eat and how to cook it" Alicia said, she could remember the day clearly as Kate spent 4 hours talking with Max the 'green grocer' discussing all of Terra Nova's vegetables and fruits. Her asking him what nearly everything was and what it tasted like, texture, smell and then exchanging recipes as Max gave them a few taste tests.
"I was being thorough and Max is quite knowledgable" Kate said before she ate a bite of her cake and murmured in pleasure. "Maddy this is delicious" Kate added, she now understood why Zoe was inhaling her piece.
"I agree, this cake is amazing. The whole afternoon and night has been amazing. Thank you everyone" Alicia said as she licked the frosting off her thumb. Taylor served her a slice of cake.
"I second that" Taylor said, he had already given a speech thanking them all but it didn't hurt to appreciate them again.
"You're welcome Sir" Guzman said as if he was the one who did all the hard work.
"Yeah it must have been hard day for you" Jim scoffed in good humour.
"You guys had it easy with the decorating and the flowers whatever else you did. While I had to make this happen" Guzman said mockingly as he gestured to himself. The table laughed at him and some even shook their heads.
"Yes, we all know you take the longest in the bathroom" Alicia said.
"gotta make sure all those curls are just right" Kate quipped.
"At least some of us take some pride in how we look before we walk out the door" Jim said to Kate.
"You're just jealous because looking good comes so naturally to me" Kate said waving a dismissive hand at Jim's comment.
"She's so modest" Malcolm quipped earning him a few laughs.
"Just like you Malcolm" Elisabeth said tongue in cheek. The laughter continued with a few 'oh, good one' murmured here and there.
"So when are you two going to get hitched?" Taylor asked seeing an opening to ask the two. He noted an awkward exchange of looks between the two before Kate answered.
"Oh you know anywhere between now to five years if we are following Jim's approved lines of what an acceptable 'courtship' looks like" Kate said with a cheeky smile. Jim pointed at Reynolds making eye contact with serious expression.
"Reynolds they are not the example to be following either. Marriage, then moving in together, then all the other stuff, no deviating from this course" Jim told him.
"Yes Sir" Reynolds said awkwardly as he made note of the ever increasing list of rules, he almost made him wish he hadn't dropped by or at least stayed but then he would have never been given the honour of celebrating his Commander and Lieutenant's nuptials or spend time with Maddy.
"Oh looks like we fail at being a shining example of couplehood" Kate said to Malcolm with a mock sad expression at their subsequent failure.
"You failed when you forgot to lock the door to Malcolm's office" Jim told her, making a face of disgust.
"Perhaps you should have knocked first" Kate suggested.
"What were you- never mind" Josh said feeling stupid for even beginning to ask the question as he already knew the answer.
"You ever heard of discretion?" Taylor asked Kate and Malcolm who were both blushing and smiling cheekily, not even a hint of shame.
"It was 11 at night and I can't believe we are having this conversation right now" Kate said.
"If it helps the lock on my office door has broken for over a year" Malcolm added.
"No it doesn't, I'm scarred for life." Jim informed them.
"So dramatic, I now know where Zoe gets it from" Elisabeth said dramatically rolling her eyes.
"I'm not dramatic" Zoe stated as she had finally come up for air finishing her second piece of cake.
The night grew to an eventual close as Alicia and Taylor called it night as Zoe passed out and Kate didn't look far behind the little girl. She also knew Jim and Guzman had an early morning which gave her and Taylor many excuses to call it a night without it being about them wanting to go home and get started on their honeymoon.
Alicia and Taylor walked home after a send off from the others which involved receiving a bag of dinner leftovers and cake along with a bag with Alicia's toiletries and clothing she had been in earlier that day. It was considerably late at night which allowed Alicia to enjoy wearing her dress and walking arm in arm with Taylor as the Colony was asleep bar the soldiers on patrol.
When they arrived at the house Taylor opened the door open and placed the bags inside the door before he moved towards Alicia.
"What are you trying to do?" She asked.
"I'm carrying you over the threshold. It's tradition" he told her. Alicia nodded and allowed him to pick her up in his arms bridal style. She wasn't going to argue over something as trivial as taking a few steps indoors and knew it would keep Taylor happy.
"You really pulled out all the stops today, when you said we'd have 3 days of R&R I thought you were being optimist. Not that you had everything planned" Alicia said in an amused tone as she looked around the house that was dimly lit with chem. lights but it was enough lighting to see Taylor had done some decorating.
The dining table had two large baskets of fruit and vegetables along with a basket of baked goods on it along with flowers. There were more flowers placed around the room and path of petals to the bedroom. All recycled from the wedding or so Alicia assumed as they were the breeds of same flowers with exception to the path of red white and pink flower petals set into a path to the bedroom.
"You're only getting married once Alicia and I wanted it to be special, no half measures." He said as he lowered Alicia to her feet and closed the front door making a show of locking the door and disabling the door bell. They were not going to be disturbed. He had stocked the fridge and freezer with food but not the redecorating of the living space of the petalled path to the bedroom. He made a mental note to thank Elisabeth and Kate later.
"Well you definitely ticked all the boxes, I'll never forget this day" Alicia said as she turned to face him wrapped her arms around his neck. A smile graced her lips as she pressed her body against his.
"It's not over yet" Taylor told her, Alicia looked to the clock on the wall and then smiled back at him.
"Mmm you only have half an hour left best use your time wisely Commander" Alicia informed him in a salacious manner.
"I believe I have 72 hours to whatever I like with you Mrs Nathaniel Taylor" Taylor told her with smirk.
He pulled her hard against him, filling his hands with her softness, sliding his palms along the bare skin of her arms and down the back of her dress, breathing in the familiar, sweet scent of her hair as he kissed her in deep, ravenous, soul reaching kisses. He felt her hands run down from his neck to his chest before pulling his jacket off before she reached to the hem of his T-shirt.
She seemed determined to get his clothes off him, and as far as brilliant ideas went, he was right there with her, one-hundred-percent. He found the zipper at the back of her dress and unfastened it, then pulled back to yank his shirt free from his body.
He watched as her dress fell from her body like a sheet
Her dress fell off her in a sheet, pooling at her feet, leaving her naked save for a pair of plain white knickers.
She was beyond beautiful he took a moment to take it in, to savour the moment as this was the first time they were making love as man and wife. A small smile played across his lips.
"Part of me wants to stand here and just look at you all night," he told her.
Alicia glanced down at his arousal then smiled. "Another part of you won't be very happy if you do that." she informed him cheekily.
"Damn straight," he said with a laugh before he picked her up in his arms bridal style and carried her to the bedroom.
3 days later,
Alicia sat at the conference table tapping away at her plex catching up on her work. She tried vainly to maintain her professional façade but her brain was still in honeymoon mode. The Last 72 hours had been satisfying on many levels. She wished that she and Taylor were still cocooned in their house making love right now instead of on duty but work was just a necessary evil. She looked up when Malcolm greeted her and took a seat on the opposite side of the table to her and was soon joined by Kate who had come into the Command Centre with Baz.
"Kate, nice to see you put some efforts into your looks today, if I didn't know any better I'd say you're trying to catch my eye" Baz teased Kate who took her seat next to Malcolm. Alicia noted the cup of hot tea in her hand and barely conscious look on her friend's face and her feminine attire. Kate was looking like she had put the minimum amount of effort into her appearance and managed to look respectable. She was wearing a navy blue maxi dress. It had a jersey tank top as the top half and cinched under her bust then flowed with a long soft cotton skirt. Her hair was out in its natural loose waves.
"That's right this is all for you Baz" Kate said with a teasing smile as she leaned on her elbows drinking her tea. Baz and the sixers had returned to the colony with lumber, sand and meteoric ore among other necessary supplies. The sixers and the others were unloading the supplies in the main square and packing them away before having the rest of the day off.
"You even smell nice" he commented as he made a show of sniffing her hair before moving to his chair on Alicia's side of the table. The other department heads started coming into the room.
"I always smell nice, hey Alicia we still on for lunch?" Kate asked before taking another long draw of her peppermint tea wishing it were Matcha Green tea. She noticed that Alicia was wearing her wedding and engagement ring but said nothing wondering if anyone else would pick up on it.
"Of course" Alicia said at her usual chair to the right hand side of the head of the table, Kate covered her mouth with a hand and yawned.
"Geez Wallace don't you ever let your women sleep?" Baz asked.
"I assure you Baz, Kate gets her 9 hours of sleep nightly" Malcolm said with a smirk as he rubbed Kate's arm, the redhead leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.
"Kate should come into the infirmary after the meeting. I'll do a full work up" Elisabeth said as she had taken a seat at the table.
"I'd rather you have a cup of coffee so I can have some proper tea instead of this herbal stuff. Just give in you need it" Kate said with a cheeky smile, she opened her eyes and adjusted herself in her chair so she was comfortable and keeping a professional distance from Malcolm. Elisabeth smiled and shook her head.
"No, the stakes are too high" Elisabeth said.
"What's the stakes?" Alicia asked.
"If I cave first I have to babysit Zoe for every Friday and second Saturday nights. If Elisabeth caves I get two bottles of Boylan's finest pink Muscat wine" Kate said with a dreamy face as she could already taste the muscat wine.
"Ok let's get this meeting started" Taylor said as he walked into the room with Shannon and Mira behind him. They took their seats at the table as Taylor took up his usual spot at the head of the table.
"Before we start I want to get some announcements out first. I'm not going to beat around the bush" Taylor said he looked around the table knowing that only four people at the table had no clue what he was going to say. "Lt Washington and I are married"
Silence descended on the table as those who didn't know were gobsmacked by the news that was until Baz spoke.
"About time you made an honest woman out of her. We'll pretend my invitation got lost in the mail" Baz said with a smile as the others followed suit with polite congratulations and happy smiles at the good news.
"It was an intimate ceremony, three days ago. Other news Wash is pregnant" Taylor said with a proud smile. He held Alicia's hand and watched the reactions of the others. Alicia knew it was a risk the Sixers finding out about the marriage and the pregnancy but it wasn't like she could hide her pregnancy forever and it was time to stop hiding.
"Geez Taylor you don't muck around" Baz remarked as the others offered their congratulations once again. Alicia felt glad to see the consensus of jubilation at their news. Not that she expected anyone to be upset or show displeasure but still it made her feel better.
"I'm not getting any younger either" Taylor bantered the others at the table chuckled. "Onto the next announcement" Taylor said Bas held up his hand and Taylor paused allowing Baz to speak.
"Let me guess the next announcement will be that Kate is up the duff with his babe" Baz said to Taylor as he gestured to Kate then Malcolm as the chuckles died down.
"Nice Baz, Oh and just for the record I'm not pregnant" Kate told the table.
"Then what's with the dress?" Baz asked.
"I was tired and it was easy" Kate said.
"So much I could say to that" Baz said with a smile.
"You have been spending way too much time with Carter" Kate told him, she excused herself before yawning. Taylor was about to remark her fatigued appearance when Elisabeth jumped in first.
"Kate and I are giving up caffeine for a month. It's day two without caffeine" Elisabeth explained to the others at the table, Taylo chuckled as he knew Kate lived on green tea so it couldn't be easy for her to kick the habit.
"Anyway, the other announcement is that I have found my new deputy." Jim said as he lifted a medium sized black box roughly 8.1 inch x 4.9 inch x 12 inches in dimension onto the table with a heavy thud in front of Malcolm.
"What with the heavy box?" Kate asked.
"This is your Portable Biometric Access Handgun Mini Safe, an early birthday present for Malcolmus" Jim explained.
"Wow, you shouldn't have" Malcolm drawled dryly.
"You wanted a gun safe for Kate my new deputy to store her gun in at home." Jim said smugle.
"Oh Cheers" Kate said with a smile as she placed her tea to the side and pulled the heavy box closer to her so she could get a better look. It was black metal with a hand print engraved in the top with sensors Kate assumed were used to open the door which had a pressure lock as there was no handle.
"Kate, we'll discuss the finer details this afternoon. Work out a schedule between construction and your new duties as a deputy" Taylor said.
"Take her, with the sixers return back I have a full complement of workers again. I don't need her anymore" Baz said waving a dismissive hand.
"I feel so loved" Kate said dryly as she looked up from her inspection of the gun safe.
"Anyway, that's it for announcements let's get down to business" Taylor said taking control of the meeting before Kate and Baz got into a bantering session. The two were renowned for rapid firing conversations that no one could get two words into. It seemed to be something Kate brought out of people around her. The meeting continued for another 30 minutes covering a varying amount of details of what was happening over the next two weeks now that Baz was back with supplies.
"So how long have you been on the 'No Caffeine' Kick?" Alicia asked as she and Kate had finished Lunch and were now indulging in a pot of blueberry mint tea.
"Two days, 6 hours, 30 minutes and 5 seconds. All my super powers are gone. I need caffeine to function" Kate said as she had her head rested on the table.
"You'll survive" Alicia told her as she took a sip of her tea. Kate made a small whiny noise and shook her head.
"No I won't. How do you do it?" She asked.
"I just tell myself in 7 months I'll have two beautiful babies which is worth giving up booze and coffee" Alicia told her. Kate looked up at her with tired eyes and looked to be contemplating the idea of being pregnant before dismissing the idea entirely.
"Elisabeth thinks the caffeine is impeding my recovery. Something to do with my body being burned out blah blah" Kate grumbled as she put her forehead back on the table.
"I feel like I should be talking to Elisabeth" Alicia said in amusement.
"I'm fine, my blood work is fine, everything is fine. I'm just excessively tired because I have four broken ribs and my internals are still healing from Lucas's 'playtime'. It's just stupid it was over 7 months ago" Kate grouched.
"Well I know how you like leaping tall buildings and catching bad guys and run circles around the colony but seven months ago you were cooked from the inside out. Your heart kicked the bucket not once but twice in less than a week. These are not injuries that heal up in a couple of weeks they take months of recovery and rehab" Alicia told her.
"I know" Kate said with a sigh, she lifted her head and smiled at Alicia "So how was the honeymoon?" Kate asked she wriggled her eyebrows suggestively.
"Good" Alicia said the understatement of the century.
"Only good?" Kate asked with a slightly crestfallen expression. Alicia smiled widely and shook her head at Kate as she knew the redhead wanted every dirty detail but Alicia was not going to share.
"Yes and thank you for the food supplies and everything else" Alicia said referring to how the house was done up and also for the wedding and reception. She allowed Taylor to take credit but she knew who was behind all of it.
"The heart of petals on the bed was overkill but Elisabeth wouldn't be persuaded from it" Kate said in reflection.
"No, the apples and the honey jar with the label of health warnings and instructions was overkill" Alicia told her, Kate laughed.
"What? You didn't like it?" Kate asked innocently when she stopped laughing for a moment.
"You have such a graphic mind-"
"And the vocabulary to back it up" Kate added proudly before Alicia could finish.
"I guess I should be grateful you didn't draw pictures" Alicia said, her cheeks turning a lovely shade of pink at the memory of what Kate wrote and the subsequent activities that followed that were very pleasurable.
"I was going to but Zoe was in the room when I was writing the note" Kate said casually. Alicia shook her head at Kate. "What? She was in the lounge room and I was at the kitchen counter. It's not like I had her proof read it" Kate added.
"Anyway it was good to have Taylor all to myself no interruptions for three days and that is all I am telling you" Alicia told her.
"Spoilsport, I have to rest and relax which means living vicariously through you and Taylor and your crazy hot honeymoon sex adventures" Kate said.
"I would think you and Malcolm would already be having a lot crazy hot sex"
"You'd think so but you'd be wrong. He refuses to have sex with me to help me mellow out my caffeine withdrawls and refuses on medical grounds because I quote 'You're injured, you're extremely tired and you need to rest'. Like that is even a good excuse?" Kate said in dramatic disbelief, Alicia chuckled.
"He's being considerate and looking after your health" Alicia said. Kate shot her an incredulous look.
"Why do you have to be on his side? You're my friend you should be saying he's an asshole. I want caffeinated beverages" Kate said with pout, Alicia made a derisive noise before laughing as Kate groaned putting her head back down on the table.
"Mira" Lucas said he got up from his bed when he heard the door open, he had expected to see his father but was pleasantly surprised as Mira walked into the room.
"Lucas, your father said you wanted to talk with me" Mira said she did not hide the fact she was suspicious of him or his motives.
"I asked to see my friends" Lucas said in a toying tone.
"Oh I am your friend today?" Mira asked sceptical of why she was here. Lucas had never been her friend and barely a business associate due to his anti social nature.
"Closest person I have to one. Please have a seat I have only had my father for company the past couple of weeks" Lucas drawled as he gestured to the table and chairs.
"I imagine that was educational for you" Mira commented dryly as she took a seat at the table opposite Lucas.
"Sometimes, I'm shocked he let you in here. Usually when he says 'I'll consider it' it means a 80% likelihood of him saying 'no'. Tell me how is he? I haven't seen him in three days" Lucas said.
"He looks well" Mira said, the old man was glowing with happiness as was his new wife. Marriage didn't seem to affect their professional lives or her situation yet.
"Tell me how Lt Washington looks, does pregnancy suit her?" he asked, Mira quirked an eyebrow as she hadn't thought Lucas knew let alone that he would broach the subject with her.
"I'm sure it would if she was in fact pregnant" Mira said as she lied in an even tone to him. Lucas narrowed his eyes at her assessing whether she was being truthful.
"Don't lie to me Mira. I heard Haynes tell Doctor Shannon about Wash's whoring round with my father" Lucas said, Mira made a derisive noise and rolling her eyes at Dr Haynes being his source of information.
"You should know better than to listen to that woman" Mira said before she chuckled as if mocking him for thinking along those lines.
Taylor had spoken with her privately before the senior staff meeting. He had informed her privately of his marriage to Lt Washington and her current condition being pregnant. She honestly didn't give a Dino's ass what Taylor and Wash did with each other but congratulated him as it was the polite thing to do.
She wondered why he would tell her privately until he told her that Lucas wanted to speak with her and while he was allowing it, he asked that she not disclose Wash being pregnant or their marriage as he wanted to tell Lucas the 'happy' news himself. Mira of course had no issue with the request as she felt withholding the information gained her more favour with Taylor than with Lucas.
"All rumours hold a grain of truth" Lucas said.
"I only arrived back this morning from being in the Jungle and I can tell you that your father's lapdog is not with pups" Mira said rolling her eyes at Lucas's inquiry.
"Cute" Lucas said.
"There is a pool running on when Kate will announce she is pregnant though she's been showing signs" Mira said idly, deflection was her best course of action and she was only repeating a 'rumour'.
"Signs?"
"Excessive fatigue, mood swings, she's also wearing a lot of loose clothing barely doing any work. Dr Wallace has become quite protective of her. Carter has kept me apprised of her condition so we can adjust our bid." Mira said, though all of kate's signs were of a caffeine withdrawal and the woman's laziness.
"What will you win?" Lucas drawled sarcastically.
"First preference for when housing becomes available. I don't want to spend however long it takes to reopen the portal in the barracks. How long are you going to pretend the calculations aren't finished?" Mira asked as she was tired and wanted to go home and wanted to have a shower not make idle chit chat with Lucas.
"Who said they were finished?" Lucas asked.
"Escher did, he said he had the calculations ready to go and all we needed was for Malcolm to repair the terminus." Mira said carefully maintaining her cool even though she was ready to throttle him.
"He used us, we were played" Lucas said, Mira stayed quiet and narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm working on them but it's soo hard" he drawled in a fashion that told her he wanted something.
"Oh and what can I do to make you work faster?" Mira asked not wasting time.
"Information about what's really going on out there, also a way out" Lucas said in a low voice.
"Impossible" Mira hissed.
"Nothing is impossible, there is always a way." Lucas said, Mira shook her head at him. "I'm not talking about breaking me out today or tomorrow but in the next few months would be preferably. I don't plan on wasting my life away down here" Lucas told her.
"Lucas you can earn your father's trust and get your freedom can't you be satisfied with that?" Mira asked.
"No, it will take years for him to let me out"
"Lucas be satisfied with having your life back."
"This is not a life! I'm in the brig"
"We are all paying for our crimes"
"Yet you get to walk around free and I'm here being punished!"
"You think my life up there is a picnic? I'm working construction detail and sharing a barracks with 30 other people. 85 million years away from my child"
"A child you'll never see unless you help me out of here"
"Once you finish the calculations and the portal is re-established I'll help you"
"No-"
"Yes, I've been burned enough in the past month to know better. It's time you delivered your promises first before I even consider putting my neck out for you"
"What happened to wanting to see your daughter? I promise you if you don't help me you'll never see her again" Lucas told her.
"Then I will never see her again and you will rot in this cell" Mira said calling his bluff with a shrug she got up from her seat. She made to the door when he spoke up.
"Why don't we meet in the middle?"
"I'm listening"
"I will show progress if you get Kate to come and talk with me"
"I will need time to convince her"
"Let's say 3 weeks"
"Impossible, you left deep scars on that woman. She'll never agree to see you"
"Then I suggest you be persuasive, give her your sob story tell her about your child and how much you miss her and that I need Kate's forgiveness as I can't concentrate on my work because of my overwhelming guilt blah blah" Lucas told her in a bored tone.
"What do you get out seeing her?" Mira asked.
"What does it matter to you?" He asked.
"It doesn't, I'm merely curious" Mira said in a off the hand manner.