"Dressed? Yeah, probably a good idea..." He looked at her evenly, eyes a little more lively, and reached down to pull a gun and holster out from under his pillow, strapping it to his thigh before he'd even bothered looking for his clothes. "Never feel quite dressed without it," he commented.
She raised an eyebrow, licking her lip lightly. "Gotta admit... that's an interesting look... could get a little chilly though...
"Well..." He leaned forward with a faintly expectant look, just close enough to intrude on her personal space the littlest bit ... and then grinned. "That's because you're standin' between me and the rest of my duds, there."
She rose to the challenge, stepping even closer, eyes mischievous and a saucy grin firmly in place. "Am I now?"
He still had her tag clutched in his hand, pressing itself deeply enough into the palm of his hand that he was sure it would score his flesh for all to see. Who the hell was this woman? She'd moved into his life like a thunderbolt; strong as Zoe, but obviously wilder. He wasn't going to back down, though; he'd done too much of that lately. He stepped forward, eyes shadowed and intense. "Yes, you are, Kara Thrace. Course, I'm not real bright ... might be I'm missin' something."
"You might be..." She whispered, licking her lip "Tell me... what is it you see and maybe I can help..."
"I see..." He leaned forward just a mite closer, bringing those hazel-green eyes into sharp relief. "I see a woman standin' perilously close to another bathtub..."
She leaned closer, noses practically touching "Do it and I'll kick your ass..." She said in a sugary sweet tone, followed by a near sensual whisper "you smell good..."
He chuckled softly, tiling his head a little to one side, moving their noses a little out of alignment. "I smell like an old barn on fire ... full of smoke and stale booze. That dunkin' shake something lose, Kara?"
"Smells damned good to me..." she whispered, her breath caressing his lips as she held her position.
"Maybe because you smell the same?" He countered, hands moving down to hitch at his hips. Oh, he liked this woman. Not an ounce of give in her...
"Could be... or maybe I just like old stogies and cheap whiskey" She gave him a slight wink, her heart thundering in her chest. There was nothing like a good game of cat and mouse to get a gal worked up.
He leaned back a little to grin that faint lopsided grin of his, then looked all serious. "Why, Miss Thrace, I do believe you're playin' with me." He leaned forward a little on the balls of his feet, bringing his hips a little closer to her. "I might start to think you had an ulterior motive..."
"An ulterior motive?" She feigned a truly innocent look "Why Sir I have no idea what you're talking about..."
"Well, that is a gorram shame... because I was so lookin' forward to seeing how you tried to get revenge on me, but seein' as you're all sweet and innocent like ... I'll just have to settle for my clothes." He started to move slowly around her, eyes not leaving hers as he made sure that he didn't come anywhere near the other bath.
She gave him a playful wink, drawing her tongue over her lip. "Revenge is a dish best served cold... and I don't see anything in this room that I would describe as cold... save maybe the bath water"
"Well..." he drawled the word out slowly, "I think everything in this room is plenty hot enough already ... particularly after that cloud of steam that appeared when you were doin' your impression of a fish just before..."
"Are you sayin you think I'm Hot, Mr. Reynolds?" she teased.
"Why, Miss Thrace ..." He leaned forward again, moving them back nose to nose as if teasing again... right up to the point where he moved one hand fast as a viper up to the back of her head, pulling her towards his mouth to kiss her hungrily.
She groaned, returning the kiss just as hungrily; her arm slipping around his neck and fingers tangling into his hair.
He kept the kiss going, sucking on her lower lip a little, not breaking it for several long, endless seconds. Then, he stepped back quickly, ducking past the bathtub. "Good thing you don't have an ulterior motive, Kara ... else that might constitute me bein' teasin'..."
She was caught off guard, leaning back against the doorframe, still trying to catch her breath. It took only a moment before she recovered, running her tongue over her lip. "I may have to protest unfair tactics..."
He pulled the shirt on over his head, not bothering to undo the buttons as he put it on, before moving the braces of his britches up to his shoulders. "Tactics, Kara? Why, were we fightin' a war perhaps, or playin' a game? I thought you didn't have any ulterior motives there..."
She grinned at him. "Now I never exactly said that... but my motives are mine to know...
He hooked his coat up with his foot, pulling it up from mid thigh and over his shoulders in an easy, practiced motion. "See? Typical woman."
She whistled appreciatively. “Style and grace... I may have to revise my motives..."
He shrugged the coat on a little more comfortably, then grinned. "Don't you go changin' on my account ... I reckon you're pretty damn fine just as you are."
"You think so?" She gave him a wink and a very flirty smile before reaching for the door handle. "Ready for the next big adventure?"
"More of an adventure than bathin'? Better hope that some higher power's on our side, I'm not sure I can stand the pressure..." He kept his face calm and deadly serious, right up to the point he quirked both eyebrows up at once.
She wrinkled her nose in a genuine laugh before opening the door. "The world is ours Mal... think its ready for the likes of us?"
"I think that depends entirely on how big a gun it's packin." He waited until her back was turned, and slipped the tag into his pocket. He'd be keepin' hold of that, yessir.
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