Rodney opened the door to his quarters to find her standing in the hallway, her head slightly bowed with her long strawberry blond locks surrounding her face like a living, colorful frame. When she looked up at him Rodney knew right away what she wanted by the shine in her bright hazel eyes. He never even had the chance to say 'hi' before she uttered three little words that would be the beginning of the end of their on again/off again relationship.

"I want you."

Rodney's heart began thumping in his chest so hard it almost hurt. It always did when Laura Cadman announced with her usual lack of subtlety what she wanted. It was one of the aspects of their association, so to speak, that he found equally endearing and annoying. Right now, however, he was feeling neither annoyance nor endearment. He was feeling his rapidly beating heart sending blood away from brain in an effort to starve that very valuable asset and therefore rob him of the power of logical thought.

And it was working perfectly. Despite himself he stepped aside to let her in, and she didn't hesitate. She strode into his room with all the confidence of someone who had been in there many times over the past year. They had come to know each other's rooms and habits. They had, in fact, come to know each other all too well, emotionally and physically.

And it was through that acquired knowledge that Rodney knew what to do when he turned to find Laura standing next to his bed looking at him, her face contorted into and odd yet beautiful look that was somewhere between pleading and demanding. He moved towards her, not at all unnerved by the intensity of her stare or the way she subtly licked her lips as he got closer to her. Okay, maybe he was a little excited by the lip licking thing, but the last vestiges of thought disappeared as he put his hands and her shoulders, drew her closer to him and planted his lips onto hers.

A slight moan escaped her mouth and went directly into his as his hands slipped along her shoulders and moved up onto her neck to cradle her head. Their lips danced with each other, waiting only moments before allowing their tongues to join in, and before Rodney knew it Laura's hands were roaming over his stomach and chest.

She abruptly stopped their kiss and looked into his eyes again. "I need you."

Rodney captured her lips with his again and a moment later the room was filled with the sounds of deep, wet kisses that were building them both into a physical frenzy that would have only one release.

For a moment his brain reengaged. 'I want you.' 'I need you.' She'd said that to him many times, and for some reason his mind harkened back to his sister and a song he'd heard her play on one of his rare visits home and she'd been heart broken. A guy had told her that he wanted her and needed her but that he didn't love her. For some reason, Jeannie hadn't believed that that two out of three ain't bad.

He did. He was quite content with a beautiful, sassy, kickass Marine needing and wanting him. As for love, he could do without it and all the crap that went with it. Definitely.

Laura suddenly stopped the kiss and smiled at him. "I love you," she declared breathlessly for the first time ever.

Rodney couldn't help but return her smile. He leaned in towards her and said just before his lips found hers again, "I love you, too."

A/N: "Two Out of Three Ain't Bad" was written by Jim Steinman for Meat Loaf and released in 1977 as a single and then on the epic album, Bat Out of Hell.