His large frame stretched across the smallish bed, Mal eventually decided he couldn't concentrate on the gorram book in his hand. Tossing it onto the table, he shut the lights. His room went completely dark.

Shifting the pillows, he rolled over onto his side. It still burned him up that she'd offered to whore for him. For him.

Worse. He couldn't do a thing to stop her.

Unless he thought of something by morning, when they'd be landing on Persephone. Maybe he'd dream up an idea. They did seem to come to him at nights.

Forcing his eyes shut, he concentrated on relaxing and getting to sleep.

Just as he was drifting off, a light knock on the door sounded. It was barely a tap, but it was amplified by the metallic bulkhead and the relative quiet of the ship. The tap came again, this time a little louder and followed by a soft voice.

"Mal...?"

"Yeah, I'm awake. Come in." He swung his legs over the side of the bed just as the lights went on and she came inside.

It was disconcerting, to say the least. A woman, in his space. And not just any woman. Inara, with her silky thin shawl, clinging and revealing her figure more than hiding anything. He let out a sigh and spoke more harshly than he intended. "What do you want?"

The silk fabric of her night clothing billowed around her as she descended the step ladder into his bunk. When she turned around, she met his eyes as if reading his thoughts and implicitly understanding why his greeting was somewhat less then gracious.

"I couldn't sleep..." she answered simply, her gaze skimming over his bare chest as she took a tentative step toward him.

"You want me to help you sleep?" He couldn't help staring, especially when she came to a stop right in front of him. So close, he could feel the warmth emanating from her body. He swallowed. "I think maybe a warm glass of milk might be more... effective."

"No..." she said with a slight shake of her head. It wasn't clear whether she was answering his question o