Inara caught herself again winding the tassel from her shawl around her finger in that absent-minded manner and sighed. It was not supposed to be this nerve-wracking, she was sure. She stood and forced herself to walk calmly to her wardrobe, removing the shawl as she went. If she couldn't keep herself from fiddling with the tassels, she could simply take away the temptation. She folded the shawl carefully and deliberately, placing it back within the confines of the closet and stepping back to close the door.

Now, faced with an urgent need to do something , her eyes fell upon her bed. She decided changing the sheets there couldn't possibly be a bad idea and set about the chore.

...the way his kiss had made her tremble...her breathing shallow...she hadn't thought it could happen again...the smell of his skin, the way he had been so gentle, almost afraid he would hurt her...or she would stop him...his eyes...the contained emotion in those eyes...his eyes would haunt her, she knew...his touch...

She sat on the bed, trying to regain a calm mind. Her stomach did another flip and she closed her eyes and stifled a groan. No matter what Simon had to say, she would find out how to proceed... She took a deep breath and held it a moment before breathing it out slowly. She repeated the breathing exercise three more times before standing up again. Inara's reflection in the mirror before her showed a calm, beautiful woman in an understated jade-colored sari. She unconsciously found her gaze lingering on her abdomen curiously...and turned abruptly to change the sheets.

The problem, she soon discovered, was that mindless tasks left the mind to wander. What would she do? What could she do? How would people react if she kept... Would his eyes continue to haunt her in the face of another? A son? A daughter? Would this lead to more? How would Zoë feel? How would he feel?

She still hadn't told him. That thought stopped her cold. He would not be happy to discover Simon knew first. Although, Simon wo