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Downing the rest of her drink, her fourth one, she already contemplated ordering another. Although part of her doubted there was enough alcohol in all of the colonies to wash away the bitter emotions that she felt like choking on it didn’t mean she couldn’t try.“One of those days?” the voice of a man had her look up.In her slightly inebriated state, with thick smoke clouding the bar’s air, she had to blink twice before he went into focus in front of her. By her first estimate, he was at least ten years older than she was, maybe fifteen. His dark hair was becoming white, which gave him a rather distinguished air. Well, it would be distinguished if it weren’t for the look on his face.
She shrugged. “Yours doesn’t seem to be much better.”It wasn’t as if she cared. She didn’t. If he was offended by her tone of voice he didn’t show. He only let out a brief snort. Before she could stop him, he had ordered her another drink, as well as one for himself. Getting out a package of cigarettes, he took one out and lit it. Briefly, she considered telling him to get out of her way with his acid fumes. Then she thought better of it, took the cigarette out of his hands and took a deep breath. Gods, this felt good. Alright, she had quit smoking three months ago, but right now she needed this.“That was mine,” the man beside her mumbled.But rather than trying to get his cigarette back, he just got out a new one for himself.“What made your day so shitty?” he asked, taking a puff.She gave him another quick look. What did he care? Most likely he didn’t, and that was just his try at How to do Small Talk in a Public Place for the Desperate 101.Not bothering with the way she appeared, she snorted.“I ended my affair with my married boss today.”She downed half of her glass at once.“What made your day the Hades it is?” she asked back.At first it didn’t seem he wanted to answer, and she watched how he drained his drink almost without swallowing, ordering the next one as soon as the glass hit the counter.“Signed my divorce papers.”“Do you want me to say I’m sorry or would you rather have me congratulate you?”He eyed her before he began to laugh out loud.“You’ve got spunk, gotta hand it to you.”She shrugged. “For some a divorce seems to be the end of the worlds, for others it’s only a beginning.”“You seem to be the practical kind, what made you go for your boss?”“Pardon me? My boss went for me. Same difference. Shouldn’t have happened. But it has.”“Why did you end things then? Again?”“Do I detect a hint of sarcasm here?”“Hint? Anyway, what was it?”“Why do you care?”“I’m here, you’re here. I’d rather hear about your misery than think about my own.”This man was…“This thing with him… it was going nowhere. I’m too young to spend my life as someone’s mistress.”“You knew all that when you started the affair, didn’t you?”She narrowed her eyes at the man who apparently just couldn’t let it go. Didn’t he know that his questions might be considered rude? Help, if he always behaved like that…Tell me -- what’s your job?” she shot back.“Why do you ask?”“Because I hope it’s not one that brings you in close contact with people.”He gave her a queer look. “I’m a doctor.”She laughed, couldn’t have helped herself if she had tried. “You? A doctor? One of the kind that treats living and breathing human beings?”“Sorry to break your heart, but yes, I am.”That certainly was a surprise. How could a man this gruff treat patients? Didn’t the scare them away at first sight? Make that at first scowl. She downed the rest of her drink, and he waved to the bartender for another round.“You didn’t answer my question,” he said.“What was your question?” Had he asked one? She couldn’t remember.“Why you mind being a mistress now if you didn’t mind when you started the affair.”Oh, that one.She shrugged, hoping to look nonchalant but thinking she was failing thanks to her increasingly inebriated state.“When we started this affair I had no idea he was such a lousy lay.”Her companion sputtered on his drink, something she noted with some satisfaction.“I see.”“You don’t.”“Don’t what?”“See.”“Dammit, woman, are you always that complicated?”“Yes, I am. But feel free to get off my back.”“Lady, I wasn’t on your back to begin with.”This discussion began to feel outright weird.“So why did you divorce your wife?“Not because she was a lousy lay if you want to imply that.”“Gods dammit, I didn’t mean to imply anything. This is typical guy.”“What is?”“Thinking that the world revolves around sex.”“Says who?”“Now you’re trying to be witty.”He let out a groan.“We’re getting divorced because she didn’t like the fact that I’m gone for most of the year. And for sex, she found someone else in the meantime.”“Ouch.”“Yeah.”She dimly wondered how it was that you didn’t share your troubles with the people you thought were your friends, but a stranger seemed to be perfectly fine. Maybe because a stranger wouldn’t judge you, and if he did, why should you care. You wouldn’t see them again.“What kept you away from home?”“My job.”“So you’re not working in a hospital?”He grunted “I’m with the fleet.”“You are? So you wear dog tags, don’t you?”The part of her that clung to soberness screamed in outrage at her question. It was beat into submission by the rest of her that was more than halfway wasted.“Yes, I do. And you’re asking me that why?”Good question, too bad she didn’t have a good answer. Or any answer at all. She nearly sighed. There was a reason she seldom got drunk. Every time she did, she lost her inhibitions right along with her common sense. But dammit, ditching the idiot she had called her boss and lover for over two years, she figured she deserved to party and to forget. But how to party with friends if you hadn’t told him you were frakking your married boss in the first place?After more than a minute, he began to think she wouldn’t answer him. This woman was a strange one. Beautiful in an uncommon way, slender, with a nice rack, and her eyes blazing with humour and intelligence. And yet her remarks were caustic, and by the looks of it she was more than just a bit drunk.“So what about dog tags?”She snapped out of whatever was going on in her mind, and before he could do as much as blink, she reached out for him, opening two buttons of his shirt and removed his dog tags from under his tanks. The way her knuckles brushed along his skin made him shiver. What the frak?He watched how she held his tags in her hand, appearing to weigh them before she tugged at them experimentally.
“What could one like about dog tags?” he groused, although he was more confused, more rattled by her behaviour than he liked to admit.“Under the right circumstances, they are nice to hold on to.”Was she flirting with him now? Would he even realise when a woman flirted with him?Mesmerised, he watched how she downed the rest of her drink, never letting go of his tags.He had no idea what this was supposed to mean, or how he should react. Although why should he question it either? They didn’t know each other, both wanted to forget.“You can let go of them now, you know?”He might have said it, but he sure as Hades didn’t mean it.“I don’t want to.”“And if leave now.”“I might have to follow you.”In spite of her impaired state, she rolled her eyes at herself. Then she began to giggle. It was a lovely sound, lighting up her face.“I’m sorry, I’m not usually like this.”“Like this?”“Drunk.”“Well, it’s not that bad.”Another giggle. “It is, but thanks anyway.”“You’re going to let go now?”She looked at where her hand was still holding to the two tags, then looked up at again, mirth dancing in her expressive eyes.“No.”What was she doing here? Flirting with a man who had annoyed her just a few minutes ago? Although he wasn’t that bad a guy, was he? Only just now she had seen traces of amusement flickering in his dark eyes. He didn’t even look bad, despite his brooding nature.Still, she should go home, find her bed, drink a generous amount of water and sleep through the next few hours.
But there was still the fact that she was holding on to his dog tags as if her life depended on it. Was she crazy? After all, it had been years since she’d seen some up and close. It had been one of her rare one-night stands. It had been with a sturdy, ruddy-skinned stranger, and the man had had the bluest eyes she had ever seen. He hadn’t talked much, but neither had she. The night they had spent together had been incredible, and it was with regret that she left his hotel room the next morning. Still, it didn’t pay off to entangle with guys of the fleet.On the other hand they were useful when it came to uncomplicated, liberating sex. Reigning in another fit of giggles that wanted to break free at her thoughts, she looked up and down the bounty she had secured. He was a tall man, easily had several inches on her, wasn’t lean but far from being overweight either. There were lines of worry on his face; still, she liked what she would call his rough charm. He would do.And no matter what he could do, it just had to be better than what she had shared with Richard. Really, what had that jerk been thinking? Calling her in for a meeting, only to tell her to undress without as much as looking at her. No, she was better than that, wasn’t a slut who needed it so badly that one could treat her without the least amount of without an ounce of respect.He watched her thinking and wondered if she knew how open her face was, that he could see her mirth as plainly as her anger a few moments later. Although he had no idea why, he thought she would be more guarded under normal circumstances. But being in a shady bar, getting drunk, was as far from normal as one could get, which was exactly the reason he had ended up here tonight. Damn his stupid ex-wife for taking the enjoyment out of shore leave on Caprica. He had owned a house once, now he had a tiny apartment cramped with a bed and stacks of books. Down here, he existed, but didn’t live.The woman in front of him got up and stood straight before him. She let go of his dog tags, and strangely, he didn’t like it. It would be the smart thing for the two of them to forget they had met in the first place, but he didn’t feel like acting smart.
“I’m going home now,” she announced, reaching into her purse to get out her wallet. “Or you could pay and take me out of here,” she added.That was an invitation if ever he had heard one. Still he needed a moment to process what had just transpired. Hades, he wasn’t a good-looking man, or a charming one for that matter. So why did she…? But then, did it matter?Snapping out of it, he reached for his own wallet, handed the bartender a generous amount of cubits – likely way too much – before he looked at her and quirked his eyebrow.She smiled before walking out of the place with him in tow like an enchanted puppy. This couldn’t be good. Maybe she was just part of a gang wanting to attack innocent, smitten men. Wait… since when did he believe in such nonsense, and who said something about being smitten? But then he was smitten, wasn’t he?Once they were outside, the sound of music dimmed and a gust of warm summer wind carressed them.“Where are we going?” he asked his companion.She seemed to be rather steady on her feet – her heels – but he wasn’t sure either of them was up to a walk through half of Caprica City.She turned and smiled up at him.“My place. Or do you have any better ideas?”
He didn’t, and so shook his head, not finding the words needed in his surprise. Her place? So she really…? Alright, he should get a grip and realise that wonders indeed happened, even to old dogs like him. Walking up to her, he had a hard time not to kiss her there and then. He’d be allowed to kiss this woman? Touch her? Run his hands over what seemed to be miles of incredibly long legs?She giggled again at his blatant staring.“Let’s get going.”She led him through a maze of alleys and streets. He usually possessed a good sense of direction, but now found that nothing wanted to register with him. Nothing, that is, apart of the beauty who thankfully didn’t insist on small talk and just led them onwardsWhen she stopped after maybe five minutes, he nearly continued on. .“I want to see them again,” she said.“See what?”“Your dog tags.”“You’re obsessed.”“Might be. Problem?”“No, but…,”He didn’t get around to formulating any response. Without further ado, she was on him, reaching for his barely hidden tags, walking their bodies backwards until he hit the wall behind him.“They suit you.”“Why thank you. I…” Again, he didn’t have the chance to finish, this time because, from moment to the next, he found his arms full of exhilarating woman. She was pressing her body against his, and his thinking – if one could have called it thinking in the first place – stopped. Without forewarning, her lips were on his, and dammit, did she hum? While the last blood seemed to leave his brain, he tried to catch up with what was happening. Gods, her lips were invitingly soft, and she smelled so frakking good.Deciding that he had let her set the pace for long enough, he turned them around so it was her back against the wall. Then he took charge of the kiss. Either she’d slap him and send him home like a chastised puppy, or she’d go with the flow. It was a risk he was willing to take. Running his tongue over her lips, tasting faint traces of the liquor she had consumed, she opened up to him, allowing him to slide his tongue into the warm, moist cavern of her mouth. The taste of liquor got stronger, but underneath it was a taste that he thought was uniquely hers. Not that she was a pliant kitten - quite the contrary. She took as much from the kiss as she got, exploring his mouth when she felt like it. While one hand was still holding on to his dog tags, the other had come up to the nape of his neck and was rake across his skin with her sharp nails. He didn’t mind, relished the multitude of sensations this woman had awakened in him.Damn, he was hard for her, wanted her. Wanted her right frakking now. No matter how far away her place really was, it would be too damned far. Upping the ante, he ran a hand down her side and along her thigh until he reached the hem of her dress. Only pausing for a small moment, to give her time to slap him now should she feel so inclined, he let his hand slide under the fabric, and up again. Her legs were soft and smooth, and for an insane moment he wondered what it would be like to do this properly, with them on a bed and her legs wrapped around him. It nearly made him stop, the wish to get her home so he could feel her this way overwhelming. But then he had reached the juncture of her thighs and could feel the scrape of satin covering her sex. Her panties were wet, making him close his eyes and inhale sharply. Breaking their kiss, he nibbled away along her neck, spurned on by her breathless moans and whimpers. Slipping one digit under her panties, he let it trail over her mons, her labia, before slipping between her folds to dip in to her wetness and caress her clit. A loud moan was his reward. He teased her with light touches, delighted in the way her hips pressed into his hand, seeking more friction. She was uninhibited, shameless, a trait he loved in women. Wanting to hear more of her, needing to feel more, he pulled down her panties, helping her out of them and stuffing them into the pockets of his pants.Searching out her sex once more, he now did not hesitate anymore but slid two fingers into her welcoming heat while his thumb caressed her pleasure point in slow circles. She shuddered, hummed, and only when one her hands stroked his cock through the fabric of his pants did he realise that she was still holding on to his dog tags. She really was obsessed with them.But she knew what she was doing, and it had been too long since that last time he had been with a woman. If she kept this up, their encounter would be over before it had really begun. Taking hold of her busy hand with one of his while pulling away his other hand, he stilled them both. This action met with her disapproval. A low growl he wouldn’t have thought her capable of escaped her lips, and she bit down on his bottom lip none too gently. It seems he had scored a wildcat.
He looked at her, although the dim lighting out here made it hard to see.“Easy.”“I don’t want easy.”“So I see.”She had lost her mind, totally lost it. Not only had she tried to bring a stranger home, but now she was in the process of making out or even frakking him in a public place. But damned the consequences. He was so good in what he was doing, his fingers having worked her with skilled determination. It had been ages that any man had brought her near the brink of orgasm in such a short time. And then he had stopped.A part of her clouded mind told her it might be because she had brought him too near to climax as well.
Never mind that he had left her aching, wanting, and abandoning even the last of her rational mind, she reached for his pants and did quick work of freeing his cock.He didn’t try to stop her but showered her neck with kisses. His hands caressed her breasts, freeing one of the confinements of her dress and bra. Bending down to suckle at her nipple, he sent her arousal skyrocketing. Right now, she wanted nothing more than for him to fill her, to make her feel and forget at the same time. He might be a stranger, and decidedly not a charming one, but she felt she could trust him with her body tonight.Once she had freed his hard flesh, he didn’t waste time but pulled his head away from her neck before he lifted her up.
Gods, yes. Lowering her, she sank down on his erection, and in spite of their mutual urgency, he took his time, gave her body time to adjust to his intrusion. Once they were completely joined, she made sure her legs had gripped his waist tightly before she pulled his head down to hers, wanting to taste him once again, to rejoice in penetrating his mouth as he was penetrating her body.He lifted her and they found a hard, fast rhythm. She had expected more fumbling, stuttering movements, but there was nothing of that kind. They were in tune, as impossible as it should be. And it felt good, so good, the way he filled her over and over, sending her closer to the abyss with each delightful stroke inside of her. They were in danger of exposure, and she should be quiet, but how could she contain her emotions when she felt free, unburdened for the first time in months. This was her moment out of time. She would make the most out of it, take all this man offered her.“Dammit,” he cursed when they had broken their kiss for air.His uttered ‘Touch yourself’, a gruff command, told her he was affected as she was, that despite the intense, wonderful feelings created by their union, it would be over way too soon. Nothing good ever lasted forever. Reaching between them, she found her clit swollen, aching, and it didn’t take more than a few caresses before she fell into sensual oblivion, contracting around his still thrusting member. Her cry of release was loud, piercing the night, but she hardly cared, riding the wave, enjoying each long second of bliss. So lost was she in the sensations that she only realised he had followed her over the edge when he pressed even closer into her, a loud moan rising from his throat. For a long moment, they clung together, lost in the space where one’s thinking still hadn’t set in again and all was focused on the feelings and sensations of a sated body.Eventually, they did have to let go.Whenshe slid back to the ground, her knees were slightly wobbly and he had to steady her.She felt wonderful, didn’t want this to stop, to start thinking again just yet. Looking up at the man who had just provided some exquisite relief, she made a decision.To him, she looked even more beautiful now, a bit ruffled, skin hot to the touch from their exertions. If he were able to truly see her, he was sure there would be a flush highlighting her fair skin. He longed to see even though he knew it was impossible. Reaching out to her, he stroked some damp tendrils of hair behind her ear. She giggled softly.“I didn’t expect that to happen.”“Me either.”“I don’t usually do that.”He chuckled. “Me either.”Not wanting to resist the impulse, he kissed her again, softly this time. She sighed into the kiss, a sound so filled with contentment that it had silly male pride roar up in him.With a sigh, she pushed him away and walked around him, quirking her eyebrows.“Ready?”“For what?”“To go home?”Did that mean…? So this wasn’t the end just yet?Obviously, he had hesitated for a second too long.She walked up to him, fisted his dog tags once more and tugged lightly.“Time to move, soldier.”THE END