Before the Battle

Enemies and Friends 8/8

~~~TAIRA~~~

I finally managed to get out of my uniform and take the shower. Shira volunteered to clean up the blood in the kitchen, which I welcomed. Apparently he saw my reluctance to do this, so he declined my help and sent me away.

Usually couples would argue about who was going to do the dishes, but instead we were discussing who was to clean the blood off the floor.

I was standing in the bedroom looking for a clean shirt to put on when he appeared in the doorway. "I didn't have time to finish the dinner, do you want to eat out?"

I shook my head. The hectic events of the last hour had taken away my appetite and I wasn't in the mood to go out anyway.

I just smiled tiredly and reached out to him. "Come here."

He came closer, his arms wrapped around my waist, and studied my face for a moment.

"Good?" He asked, though he seemed more upset by the whole situation than I was.

"Just an ordinary day," I grinned sarcastically. "Hours of boring meetings, Marat's insults, finding out I'm being followed by an imperial scout, a dead body in the kitchen... and let's not forget Maya catching us in bed."

If I had to choose, the worst moment of the day would still be when I saw Maya standing in the doorway while Shira and I were...

The memory alone was enough to bring heat to my cheeks.

Shira smiled, the tension in his face easing a little.

"You're making a big deal out of this, it was nothing."

"Not everyone is an exhibitionist like you," I frowned at him.

He was holding me close, those blue-grey eyes boring into mine, and I let my eyes fall to his lips.

I didn't want to think about it anymore. I wanted to forget everything and everyone until there was only Shira and his soft, hot mouth.

I kissed him eagerly, closing my eyes and taking in only the movement of those perfect lips as they began to gently touch mine.

Then, as my tongue darted into his mouth, I tasted the faint hint of blood. His lower lip was bruised. I ran my tongue over the wound several times, as if I could heal it, wondering how he had got it.

I could have ask, but I didn't want to interrupt the moment and distance myself from him. I savoured his closeness, after this crazy day I deserved it.

While I became more and more consumed with desire by each passing second, I could tell from Shira's touch that his mind was somewhere entirely different.

I drew back, my pulse racing, my breathing intermittent, and cupped his face between my hands, looking him straight in the eye.

"Put it out of your mind," I ordered, hoping he would do so we could  keep going.

"I'd like to, but..."

To my displeasure, he freed himself from my arms and sat down on the unmade bed.

"I can't figure out what he's up to."

And that clearly unnerved him.

I didn't want to deal with it right now, I'd rather pull Shira back to me and kiss him until neither of us could catch our breath.

But he needed to talk about it.

And considering how little he'd shared his feelings and thoughts with me, I wasn't about to stop him. It took a long time to convince him that he could talk to me about anything. Still, he kept a lot to himself.