Diplomacy

Title: Diplomacy
Author: Ky (venom69)
Fandom: Star Trek: Voyager
Rating: ADULT
Summary:."You don't have to break into my Quarters to obtain my thoughts on Ships business, Commander. We both know that."
Character/Pairing: Janeway/Chakotay, Janeway/Kashyk
Spoilers: None… the show’s ended!
Warnings: Sex, language.
Prompt Number for fic101: 43 - Valley
Author’s Notes: Song belongs to Meat Loaf. I blame

shayenne for this, since it was sparked by a comment that she made… Sequel to Honesty. (Which was a sequel to Lists.)
Disclaimer: Usual guff. Not mine, promise to put them back where I found them.
Date: 17/01/07

***

You're right, I was wrong
To ever leave you
I made a mistake
I'm sorry now

***

They've been out of Devore space for well over six months when he hails them.

When the Shuttle is picked up on sensors, it's not recognized by their database - not even from their records of previous encounters with him - and they don't know exactly who the occupant is until Kashyk's face appears on the view screen.

His smile is still the same mixture of seduction and danger that she remembers and Kathryn finds herself sucking in a sharp breath at the sight of him.

It may have been well over six months, but she remembers very well her mixed feelings of attraction and repulsion.

"Inspector Kashyk." Her greeting is formal and she is impressed with the stability of her voice.

Beside her, Kathryn can practically feel Chakotay tensing in his chair and part of her tingles in memory.

"Captain Janeway. Lovely to see you again."

Yes, I'm sure. It's good to know that, despite everything, her memory hasn't embellished his arrogance. "What can we do for you?"

"I was hoping that we could meet."

So you can screw me over again? "And why would I agree to that, Inspector?"

"Please, that title is no longer relevant to me."

"New line of work?" Slaughtering small children in ritual sacrifices, perhaps?

"Actually, I'm in the market for a job at the moment." He raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps you could help me."

Or perhaps I could toss you out of an air lock, you swine.

As much as Kathryn wanted to say no - not to mention the plethora of profanities that scrolled through her mind at a rather rapid pace - she was intrigued.

After their last encounter, she hadn't imagine seeing Kashyk again any time soon.

Plastering what, she hoped, was a diplomatic smile on her face, she nodded once. "We'll beam you aboard."

***

When he met her in the Ready Room less than five minutes later, Kathryn made sure that she was on the right side of the desk this time.

The arrogant man that entered a few moment after her had sat in this chair once too often and it was more a show of who had the upper hand than anything else, but Kathryn relished the small nod of acceptance that he shot her way.

Clearly he knew who was on the greener side of the grass.

When he sat across from her, Kashyk spend a good - and long - minute staring at what parts of her he could see, making no secret of his wandering eyes. Kathryn was just starting to feel the faint stirrings of awkwardness - or was that arousal? - when he finally spoke.

"You look lovely, as always."

She wasn't going to roll her eyes, but she wasn't going to let him sweet-talk his way into her Ship or her bed, either. "What do you want?"

"So formal?"

"Did you expect anything less?"

He inclined his head and smiled. "I suppose not."

Kathryn studied his features, wondering exactly which part of her had been drawn to him all of those months ago.

Whatever it was, she couldn't see it now.

He wasn't conventionally attractive, that was for sure, but he still held his air of temptation around him. Darkness and danger mixed in to a tall, lean package. Temptation wrapped in arrogant confidence.

Only she wasn't so tempted now, not after....

Slamming the door to those thoughts, Kathryn ignored the faint stirring in her lower belly.

It had been far too long - since the day she had last seen Kashyk, as luck would have it - since her First Officer had taken a meeting with her and, well, reminded her of why she'd wanted to screw his brains out the first day they met.

She wondered, briefly, if Kashyk's return visit would prompt another one of those meetings.

"I thought you might need a Devore advisor on your crew." Kashyk continued, oblivious to the direction that her thoughts had taken. "After all, you are alone out here, so far from home."

"And your kind don't leave Devore space." She shrugged. "We crossed those boarders months ago, which makes you useless to me in terms of the Delta Quadrant."

Conventionally attractive or not, the man was still damn compelling.

He leant forward in the chair. "But I'm sure I could be useful to you in, shall we say, other ways."

"I don't need you for that either." Kathryn took perhaps a little too much pleasure in the surprise on his face.

Perhaps.

Kashyk sat back again, just a little defeated by her quick decline of what he probably considered a generous offer. "Would you like the truth?"

"It would be nice." And a surprising change.

He sat forward in the chair, elbows resting on his knees. With his fingers laced together, Kashyk met her gaze and she saw, perhaps, the most honesty in the dark pools that she had ever seen in their dealings with each other.

Not that she took that to mean much.

"I think it's safe to assume that the Devore Imperium would have me killed if I were to go back."

"My heart bleeds."

He didn't pay any attention to the sarcasm in his voice. "And I think that you and I could have a mutually beneficial partnership."

"Why do you think I'll help you?"

Kathryn wondered, briefly, if there was any particular reason that she was baiting him or it was simply that she knew the longer they were in the Ready Room together, the better the chances that she would be having a conversation - to put it politely - with a certain Angry Warrior later in the evening.

She forced her thoughts away from the possibilities as harshly as she had pulled them from the memories, focusing on the man before her.

"Well, we worked together so well last time." The grin that slid across Kashyk's face reminded her of a snake preparing to devour its prey whole.

Kathryn shivered involuntarily.

Ignoring her body's reaction, she raised her eyebrow and folded her arms across her chest. "And you betrayed us."

"Now pretend that you wouldn't have done the same in my position."

He had a point, damn him.

If their positions were reversed, she probably would have done the same thing. Though she doubted that she would have taken the same joy from it that he had.

Kathryn decided quickly that she wasn't going to dignify him with a response.

"Regardless of that fact, there is no good reason for me to trust you. I don't need people on Voyager that I can't trust." And that, she told herself is reason enough to march him off this Ship right now.

"I believe that I recall reading in your database that the people of your species believe in 'second chances.' Don't tell me that the Great Captain Kathryn Janeway doesn't subscribe to that theory?" Kashyk raised his eyebrow again.

"Oh, the Great Captain Kathryn Janeway believes very much in second chances."

"Why is this different?"

She glared at him. "Because I don't usually give second chances to people that wouldn't hesitate to shoot me in the back."

"Nonsense." He waved his hand. "Your back is much to lovely to shoot."

***

She sent Kashyk back to his little borrowed - stolen - Shuttle with instructions to wait for her to contact him - he seemed amused at the sight of her ordering him around so comfortably - and called Chakotay and Tuvok to her Ready Room.

When they entered, she was still sat behind her desk, but a cup of coffee had been replicated and she cradled it in her hands, doing her best to smile encouragingly at them, nodding to the two vacant chairs across from her. "Take a seat."

"Was your meeting successful?"

Tuvok, bless him, was clearly capable of asking the question in the most delicate way possible. Chakotay looked like he was itching to strangle someone.

"As you can imagine, Inspector Kashyk hasn't really changed much."

"For what purpose did he seek us out?"

"Basically, he wants a job."

"Doing what?" Chakotay bit out.

"Pretty much anything we offer him, I think." She wondered if Chakotay would ask about the position of 'Captain's bed warmer' - a position he rejected when he walked out on her while she lay sated and slumped on the ground six months ago - but he stayed silent. "What are your thoughts?"

"What would we have him do?"

That was the logical question that she needed.

What could he do that was semi-useful and didn't leave him in the position of screwing them - or her - over with inside knowledge at the earliest possible moment?

Security was out of the question.

So was tactical.

Thanks to his race's xenophobia, he was useless as an advisor on anything that they were likely to face in the coming years.

She wouldn't let him near Helm for fear that he'd run them into the nearest asteroid when they weren't looking.

Sickbay... well, she didn't imagine that he had much of a desire to heal people and it was probably a big ask for someone like him to take the Hippocratic oath.

What if they created a role with his talents in mind? Something specifically designed to suit his capabilities and still let her sleep at night without worrying about what he could up to without supervision?

She couldn't imagine him having any real desire to return to Earth with them and if they ever became depended on him - Surely they'd need a lamb slaughtered eventually, right? - then they would be screwed.

Kathryn has a sudden - and enjoyable - image of Inspector Kashyk, on his hands and knees, scrubbing the transporter pad with his toothbrush.

"I don't know." She finally admitted, banishing the pleasant image to the back of her mind and promising herself that she'd revive it later when she needed a good laugh.

"Do you trust him?"

Kathryn shook her head quickly, swallowing a mouthful of her coffee before she answered. "No, Chakotay. I don't trust him."

Tuvok cocked his head to the side. "Then would the answer not seem evident?"

"You would think so." And the rational part of her brain was definitely made up. But that feeling in her lower belly was still fluttering madly - a fluttering that increased parallel to the frown on her First Officer's face - and she couldn't silence it regardless of how hard she tried. "But... maybe he could be useful."

Thought she still wasn't sure exactly how - beyond getting her laid again, in one way or another - Kashyk could be of any use to them.

"Doing what?" Chakotay snorted mirthlessly and Kathryn really could see the bed warmer comment floating through his mind. "He's betrayed us once before and a leopard doesn't change it's spots."

"But a snake does shed it's skin." She retorted quietly, drumming her fingernails against the cup in her hand.

***

At the end of the day, Kashyk made her decision easier - and that shocked the hell out of her more than his desire to stay with them - by offering to travel with Voyager for a few days and "See how things go."

They had his shuttle secure in one of the shuttle bays - thought not the one that he used before - and he was assigned temporary quarters and a guard who was instructed to "Become his new best friend and don't hesitate to shoot him if you have to."

Of course, it was all a moot point when Kathryn still didn't know exactly how to make use of him.

Or even is she wanted to make use of him, for that matter.

Kathryn sighed.

Right now, she thought it was her best option to give him a duty shift with someone that could take him out if he got any ideas and someone that could watch him like a hawk.

If he could handle the duty shift - particularly since they were in a boring space and he wouldn't exactly get to interrogate anyone - then she would be faced with what to do with him tomorrow.

She sighed again, trying to think of a relatively 'safe' duty shift for him to take and someone that would be appropriate to watch him/kick his ass...

***

The next day, after alpha shift, Seven stood before Kathryn with her hands clasped behind her back as she made her report.

'Report' of course, meaning more questions than answers.

"He was most logical and efficient."

Sighing, Kathryn nodded. "Would you work with him on a permanent basis?"

"I believe he would make a compelling shipmate."

Kathryn already knew that.

Hell, he was a compelling everything - which may be half her problem - and she needed someone to tell her where he could work and not be a risk to them.

Of course, Astrometrics seemed likely - and Seven could kick his ass before he even thought of doing any damage - but if he chose to 'accidentally' miss a wormhole or something, they could miss a chance to get home.

She might be the Captain, the final decision might be hers, but right now, she really needed someone that had the answers...

"Thank you Seven." She waved her hand, dismissing the young woman.

Seven nodded at the wave and remained in her place. "Will Inspector Kashyk become a permanent part of this crew?"

The Borg never could take a hint.

"I'll let you know when I know."

***

Calling up the landscape that she wanted, Kathryn created a basic setting - two chairs and a small table that had a coffee pot on it - and asked her companion to sit.

"You are troubled?"

She sighed. "Very much so."

"The Inspector?"

"The Inspector." She nodded. "I'm not sure what to do."

"Would the answer not be obvious? You do not trust him and you do not know what position he could fill on the Ship."

"I know. But..." Perhaps she was thinking more with her clit than her brain this time. "...I feel like I should consider it."

"It is always wise to consider ones options."

"We could find something for him to do. Seven seemed fine with him working in Astrometrics for the day."

"Would you be comfortable with that?"

"Probably not." The idea that his readings would 'miss' a wormhole or some other anomaly still gnawed at her. "Or we could find some other role for him... though I don't know what we could come up with that would be appropriate for him and still keep us comfortable."

"Perhaps, then, you have the answer you seek."

"But is it foolish of me to just dismiss him as a potential ally? We don't have all that many friends out here, much less ones that are very talented in manipulation and negotiation." And the slaughtering of small animals still might come in handy.

Her companion tilted his head to the side a little. "Might I ask why you chose to have this conversation with myself instead of Commander Chakotay?"

Kathryn had seen that one coming.

Chakotay should - and usually would - be the logical choice as a sounding board for her concerns and questions.

Unfortunately, after the last visit and their subsequent 'meeting', Kathryn doesn't think that she could talk about this with Chakotay without her ending up naked.

Not that it would be a bad thing, really...

"Commander Chakotay doesn't like Kashyk." She finally answered. She was dancing around the whole truth and she had a feeling that her companion knew that. "And I don't think that he could put that aside to answer my questions objectively. I don't know what to do about this and I need someone to put their own feelings aside and offer advice."

Admitting that she needed help - after so many years of proving that she didn't need it - wasn't quite as hard as Kathryn had expected it to be.

"It would seem logical to, as humans say, 'go with your gut.'"

Kathryn smiled at her old friend. "You're avoiding offering direct advice aren't you, Tuvok?"

"Indeed."

***

Walking back and forth outside of his temporary quarters wasn't achieving anything beyond making the guard think that the Captain had lost the plot.

Kathryn knew that she needed to either go in and speak to him or go and find something else to do - something that didn't scare random crew members, preferably - but telling herself that didn't help and she continued her pacing.

Kashyk had been onboard for the previous three days, each day spent in a different department barring security and engineering.

His first day in Astrometrics had gone well - Seven even called him competent - but the second day in Airponics hadn't been a big hit. They'd known for quite a while that if there was someone tending to their crops, they could probably forgo a lot of the replicator rations that they used.

Unfortunately, being a farmer didn't really suit Kashyk and there were pesticides involved so Kathryn wasn't all that thrilled about it either.

His third day had seen him assigned to general maintenance. While he hadn't actually done anything wrong, there was still the knowledge in the back of her mind that, sooner or later, he was going to have to do a job - with tools, no less - on the Ship on his own. Leaving him to, potentially, do a lot of damage.

It was looking better and better for her transporter pad VS his toothbrush idea.

But still, three days of relative success didn't mean that she wouldn't be sleeping with one eye open while he was with them and she had still yet to find a solution as to where they would put him if she decided that he could stay.

Come to think of it, she still hadn't decided if she was willing to let him stay at all yet, let alone what he would do.

It had been different before, all of those months ago.

She had suspected that he would betray her - hell, they all expected it - but she hadn't known with absolute certainty that he was capable of it, which had made it easier to trust him - if only a little - then it was now.

And it probably didn't help that, over the past three days, Kathryn had been reminded of why she'd kissed him back in the cargo bay, despite the dangerous game of shadows and deception that they'd both been playing.

He still annoyed the hell out of her - and she still really wanted to knock a few teeth out - but, if it was possible, she almost wanted to bed him more now than she had six months ago.

Damnit. Focus, woman!

Rationally, she looked over her options again and she knew that it came down to a simple question: let him stay or boot him out the nearest air lock and hope that he couldn't hold his breath.

Letting him stay brought all sorts of complications with it. There was the obvious issue of what he would do on a day-to-day basis. There was the trust issue. When their next crisis arose, she didn't want to be worrying about how to solve that plus what he was up to.

Turning him away could turn out to be a fatal and hasty mistake. Even if he didn't know a lot about what lay ahead, he was still an incredible intelligent man that could, potentially, be an asset.

And then there was the problem of him looking at her like he wanted to devour her - in the good way.

But that was a whole different kettle of fish.

Well... whatever happened in the coming hours, she could certainly say that she had considered all of the options.

Mentally steeling herself, she rang the chime on Kashyk's door. She heard him call out "Come," and the doors slid back.

An old quote popped into her head as she stood at the entrance to his quarters.

I walk through the valley of the shadow of death...

Kathryn stepped over the threshold.

***

Kashyk rose from his position on the sofa when she entered. "Captain."

The doors slid shut behind her and Kathryn could almost hear the guard's relief that he wouldn't be subjected to a muttering and pacing Captain anymore. "Inspector."

"To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?"

"I was wondering why you chose to leave Devore space and find Voyager?" She really wasn't, but it beat the hell out of showing her indecisiveness. For now.

He shrugged. "The Imperium were... shall we say, reluctant to trust me. They couldn't make heads or tails of what happened between you and I. In the end, it seemed more logical to leave before they decided that I wasn't trustworthy and tried to kill me."

Kathryn nodded. It sounded like total crap to her. "I see."

"Shall I assume that you've come to a decision?"

As much as she wanted to appear definitive.... "No, actually. That's why I'm here."

"You'd like my opinion on whether or not I think you should let me stay?" He raised and eyebrow and Kathryn had to agree with the absurdity of the notion.

"To be honest," A concept that she wasn't certain that he was familiar with. "I'm just not sure what you could do on a day to day basis. Or why, for that matter, you 'd even want to come with us."

He gestured for them to sit and, against her better judgment, Kathryn perched on the edge of the sofa, her body turned slightly to face him.

"As I'm sure you can imagine, a Devore renegade isn't welcomed with open arms on many worlds throughout this Quadrant."

"Yes, I can imagine. But why do you assume that we're any different? Do you not remember what happened last time?"

"I remember last time very well." And his eyes told her that he wasn't thinking about his betrayal. "Which is why I came back."

Kathryn ignored his comment.

He could flirt with her until they were blue in the face, but she still had the same question circulating through her mind. "But what would you do?"

"Diplomatic relations?"

She couldn't imagine needing to confuse and threaten people with his type of 'diplomacy'.

"Technological development?"

Which would provide him access to every piece of technology in Starfleet and their entire database.

Pass.

"I enjoyed working with Seven in Astrometrics."

She still wasn't exactly sure how she felt about that one, either.

"I could scrub the transporter pad with a small brush."

It was way to tempting to be professional.

"If you're that worried about the technological side of the Ship, I could serve the crew coffee."

And why should I believe that you wouldn't slip something in it?

He shrugged when she didn't respond to any of his suggestions. "What do you think?"

About his suggestions? She didn't know what to think.

She frowned. "You don't seem to be playing the humbled and reformed man like you did last time."

Kashyk met her gaze evenly. "I haven't changed, Kathryn."

"I have."

And then he kissed her.

***

Some hours later, when she finally made it back to her Quarters, she was relatively unsurprised to find Chakotay on her sofa.

Same spot, same look. Same outcome...?

"Commander."

He didn't move from here he sat, one leg crossed over the other and his arms along the back of the sofa. He simply raised an eyebrow and watched her.

"What can I do for you?" She shrugged out of her uniform jacket, tossing it towards her bedroom, not caring that he watched her. What was the point? He'd already seen her naked.

"You've been gone for quite a long time."

She had, but that wasn't his concern. "Keeping tabs on me?"

"Wondering what you're going to do, actually."

Kathryn frowned, her hands moving to her hips and her chin tilting into the air in defiance. "You don't have to break into my Quarters to obtain my thoughts on Ships business, Commander. We both know that."

"Yes, we do." He moved his arms from the sofa and folded them across his chest. "But, honey, I have to tell you, we're all a little concerned that your decision making skills are being controlled by your clit. Again."

The word 'honey' brought back an excessive amount of memories, especially with the inflection in his tone and Kathryn told her body - very firmly told it - that she was not going to give in to him.

At least, not right away.

"Again? I seem to recall that we won the last round with Kashyk. Surely I couldn't have been thinking with my clit then?"

"Perhaps," He agreed evenly. "But none of the crew take comfort in your public mating rituals."

Is he serious? Kathryn snorted. "This from the man that let himself get taken over by the Borg? I hate to break it to you, but that little mating ritual was pretty damn public."

"We've been through that before, Honey."

It was a little weird discussing this with him.

Weird, but really, really erotic at the same time and she fought the urge to rub her thighs together and see what kind of reaction she could get - both from him and her own body.

"Yes, we have. And you told me that I wouldn't win the argument." And, at the time, she really hadn't been in a position to consider fighting him very much on that one.

Chakotay rolled his eyes. "She remembers."

She was unlikely to forget anything about that night. But she was also not prepared to let him to that to her again.

It wasn't fair and she wasn't going to let him fuck her as punishment and then walk out.

Not again.

She was determined.

Well, she was determined right up until the point when he was standing next to her, his body pressed against her side.

One large hand was on her belly, the other cupping the back of her neck. His left hand fiddled with the small hairs at the nape of her neck while his right hand stroked over her stomach.

There was no way that this could be considered a fair fight.

Chakotay, 2 - Janeway, 0.

Damnit.

"Have you really thought about what you could be exposing this crew to?"

She might need to get laid more often - and the moisture between her thighs was conformation of that fact - but she wasn't stupid. "Do you really think I'd make this decision without considering what I could be exposing the crew to?"

"Yes." He answered quickly, moving forward to nip at her chin.

The contact stung and as much as she wanted to knee him where it would hurt, she wanted him to do it again more.

What would Kashyk say if he could see the evidence of this?

Letting him push her back, Kathryn winced when her hip connected none-too-gently with the edge of her desk. She was grateful that, at least this time, she would have something to steady herself with.

"Is this supposed to help me make my decision?" She asked.

Chakotay nipped at her chin again. "Would it work?"

Yes! "No."

"Good answer, honey." He chuckled. "I do love it when your spirit comes through."

Pulling her from the desk, Chakotay held her hip with one hand and used the hand on her neck to bend her over until her elbows were supporting her and her ass was pointed back at him.

Kathryn had always hated being bent over by her partner of choice.

It was a male-power trip and it had always made her feel uncomfortable and used. She'd never gotten off being fucked this way and she wondered what he would do - or if he would care - if she didn't get off this time.

But he pulled her uniform pants down to pool at her ankles - her underwear going with it - and then his hand was between her legs and, position be damned, her world was reduced to something the size of her clit.

His other hand moved to cup her ass and she knew without a shadow of a doubt that he could make her come without all that much effort.

Bastard!

Two fingers moved to the lips of her vagina, casually running back and forth as though he had all the time in the world, spreading the moisture that he found there. The pads of his fingers circled her clit teasingly, more intent on exploring than arousing.

"So, tell me," he said conversationally, thrusting those two fingers into her. "Did you fuck him this time?"

What is it with this man and having conversations with me when we're like this?

There was no stinging sensation this time and Kathryn pushed back to take as much as she could, her body demanding more. "Chakotay..."

The tip of his finger pushed dangerously against her anus and Kathryn automatically clenched her muscles in protest. "Honey, focus."

Easy for him to say!

"Did you?"

Had she fucked Kashyk?

No.

He'd kissed her as they sat on the sofa in his temporary quarters. He'd kissed her and she had let him - it had been good, too - and they had ended up lying on the floor, his body cradled between her spread thighs, rubbing against each other, before she'd come to her senses.

As much as her body was screaming for her to get laid again, he wasn't what she needed.

She had pushed him off her and he had nodded. "Make your decision about my place on the Ship," He had said. "And then make your decision about this."

Blinking away the memory, Kathryn finally shook her head. "No."

Chakotay moved away from her ass and tapped her protruding spine through her uniform top and tank. "Took you a while to answer there, Honey."

"I didn't fuck him."

Slipping his fingers out of her, Chakotay pulled the zip down on his pants, once again not bothering to remove them.

Holding his erection firmly in his hand, he ran the tip through her moisture, smirking as she pushed back against him. "You're not very convincing, honey."

Kathryn didn't say anything, but moaned her protest when he would let her push herself onto him.

One of these days I'm going to hold him down and fuck him!

He pushed forward a little, letting the head rest inside of her. As much as he would love to tease her, Chakotay knew that he didn't have the patience - and last time had just made him want her more - and he doubted that she would stand for it.

"What are you going to do?" He asked, thrusting into her fully.

Kathryn's internal muscles contracted around him - it didn't help that she couldn't spread her legs very far because of her pants trapping her ankles - and she had no idea that he had spoken until she felt the sting on her ass from his palm.

"Answer me, honey."

Huh? "What?"

"Is he staying?" Chakotay growled - growled, oh god - the question at her.

"I don't know."

The sting on her ass told her his response before he spoke. "Wrong answer."

Kathryn moaned when he pulled out of her but sighed in contentment when he pushed all the way back in almost immediately.

At least he wasn't teasing her this time.

"Is he staying?" Chakotay pulled out of her again, the head resting inside of her as she strained backwards, fighting against the big hand that held her hip.

So maybe he is teasing then.

She was tempted - way too tempted - to say yes, just to see what he would do, but she couldn't bring herself to lie to him and she hadn't made a decision yet.

"I don't know." She finally repeated.

Chakotay nodded, but she couldn't see it. "So you did fuck him, then."

How did he get from 'I don't know' to there? "No, I didn't."

"But you wanted to."

It wasn't a question, but something in her started responding before her brain could really process the sentence escaping her mouth.

The fact that he thrust into her at the exact moment she started speaking didn't help her concentration either.

"No." She shook her head and her whole upper body moved with her. "I thought I wanted to, but then he was on top of me and I knew that he wasn't the one I - Oh!"

Her ass stung under his palm again and Kathryn made herself focus on exactly what she had said, running the sentence through her desire-fogged brain.

It took all of three seconds before it hit her and her face reddened in embarrassment.

She might not want to lie to him, but he probably didn't need that much detail.

"See why we were worried?" He asked.

Kathryn didn't know what to say to that, so she ground her hips against him - and that did some nice things to her insides - and let her head fall forward in defeat. "I'm sorry."

"Doesn't it concern you," He asked, pulling back from her moving body. "That you can't seem to control yourself around him?"

I can't control myself around you either, apparently. "Yes." The word came out in a sob - half of shame and half of desire as he pushed his hips forward again.

While the hand that had been holding her hip moved to her clit, the other slapped against her ass again. "At least you recognize it."

Last time, she'd been able to gain some semblance of control over their coupling simply by saying Kashyk's name.

He had been angry - though he had called it annoyed - and the simple word had been enough to prompt him into giving her what they both wanted.

This time, however, Kathryn thought that his voice was tinged with disappointment and the only thing that she felt was shame.

Whatever she could say for Chakotay, he was certainly right in his analysis; Kashyk did have a strange effect on her.

But then he did too, so maybe they could call it even.

Apparently satisfied with their conversation, Chakotay's thrusts became steady and controlled.

Sweat ran between the valley of her breasts, pooling under her shirt. Every forward movement of his body made her inch more and more onto the desk until her breasts pushed against the edge. His thumb stroked her clit in time to the movement of his hips.

Kathryn whimpered.

I'm going to die.

When it came, her orgasm wasn't the powerfully blinding explosion like last time, but a rush of pressure dissipating from between her legs, making her entire body tingle and hum in satisfaction. A billion feelings that she couldn't understand rushed through her, making her toes curl and her eyes screw shut.

She didn't scream, but she did sob for a deity that she didn't really believe in.

It was only thirty seconds into her aftershocks that she realized he hadn't stopped moving.

And, what's more, his thumb was still working her clit with the same intensity.

Her thighs clenched in protest at the over-stimulation, her body trying to move away from his touch.

She couldn’t orgasm one after another; she couldn’t walk the fine line between pleasure and pain. "No... no, I can't."

"Well you're going to, honey." His voice was tight with effort as he continued his thrusts, pushing into her over and over again, his hips slamming against her body and his hand slapping against her ass whenever she moaned her protest.

The zipper of his pants rubbed against her tender skin with every movement and it made her shiver, her thighs trembling under the force.

Despite her verbal protests and her body trying to curl away from him, it didn't take long before she sobbed again, gasping and whimpering her way through a second orgasm. His release followed hers and Kathryn wasn’t sure if she was disappointed or grateful when she felt the rush of semen.

Her arms and legs wouldn't hold her up and Kathryn felt like she was going to fall until he pulled her to the ground in a controlled - and relatively graceful - move.

They lay panting and sweaty and she stared at him, waiting for him to do, well, something.

It was at this point, last time, that he had patted her hand, told her that she would eventually see him angry and then zipped himself up and left. She'd lay on the floor for almost half an hour, trying to make sense of his visit before she'd made it to the bed.

Neither had mentioned it again.

Breaking her thoughts, Chakotay pulled her into his arms and it took several long moments before her breathing was steady enough to speak.

"You're not allowed to leave this time." She said quietly.

"I won't." He patted her ass, red from his own hand. "Is he staying?"

That was an easy one to answer now, though part of her still wondered what would happen if Kashyk stayed on the Ship. Still, aside from what she could get out of it, the danger wasn't worth the potential gain.

Kathryn shook her head. "No."

"Good girl, honey."

***

End