“’Nara?”

Mal said again after a while

“your head feelin’ like mine?”

“If yours is feeling like very small people had a very large party in it last night then yes” she replied, her face showing a whole range of emotions. This she allowed for only an instant before her Companions mask slipped back on. She got slowly off the bed and stood up, then tried daintily to step over Mal but her drunken head would not allow this and she tripped.

Mal rolled sideways and in one fluid movement caught her, stopped her from falling. Inara gasped when his calloused brown palms touched her silken skin and their eyes locked as he lowered her gently to the floor beside him.

Their eyes never left each others as for a few moments they lay together on the floor.

“Man could get lost in those eyes.”

Mal thought as he stared deep into her warm brown orbs, his hand tentatively reaching out to touch Inara’s face. As for her, she knew that if he touched her then, in that moment, everything would change, and there would be no turning back. So she did what she always had done. She left.

Leaving him alone on the floor.

****

It was almost an hour later when a grumbling stomach forced him to emerge from his bunk. His hazy memory had allowed him various snippets of last nights “Shindig”. He was now convinced that his misbehaving crew had something to do with the shock he had received this morning. Which meant they would be waiting for news, and that was a meeting he could do without. He also wanted to avoid Inara, he didn’t know what to say to her. All he knew was that last night he had slept, with her in his arms. And it had felt right. This morning he had woken happy, without knowing why.

As he moved along the empty walkway to the Galley he slowed. She was there. Inara had also been called from her shuttle by a complaining stomach and was making herself some breakfast. He stood in the shadows, watching. She always moved so gracefully, always looked so beautiful. Her dark eyes were so mysterious, held secrets. But lately he