Chapter 5

Kaylee plopped down into her favorite lawn chair as she watched the rest of the crew gather in the cargo bay. Jayne and Mal were dragging crates and containers over to serve as makeshift benches arranging them in an arc with the speakers assumedly standing in the center. Simon let out a pained grunt as he sat down beside her. Poor guy's gonna be pretty tender for a few days she thought. Then a mischievous grin came to her face as she thought of Simon being completely at her mercy.

"What are you thinking about?" Simon asked, smiling at her. That boyish grin of his made her giddy all over. It just made her want to jump 'im and do things that were decidedly less innocent. She was happy to see that his swollen eye was finally starting to open. Kaylee wasn't sure how long she stayed lost in his eyes before remembering he had asked her a question.

"Oh, nothin' really." She let out a short mischievous laugh. "Just thinkin' that you better be real nice to me, seein' as how I have you at my mercy!"

"You know, doctors take an oath. They're not supposed to harm their patients," chided Simon.

"Don'cha remember? I'm a nurse!" She leaned in close and whispered in his ear. "A very. Naughty. Nurse."

Kaylee leaned back and giggled at his obvious arousal and embarrassment.

Mal pulled the last crate into position and glanced at Simon, remarking, "They must have knocked you around harder than I thought. Your face is still redder than a tomato!"

Jayne snorted and added, "I think he's still swelling."

Kaylee felt a little guilty for finding Simon's embarrassment so adorable but she was unable to contain her laughter. Of course, she wasn't feeling guilty enough not to add to his misery. "You should relax Simon, if ya took things easier you wouldn't be so stiff!"

Before Jayne could sit next to Simon and ridicule him further, River pushed him out of the way and stuck out her tongue before stealing the seat next to her brother. She said, "Simon needs me here," as she smiled and hugged her brother, "