The Heat

 

The medbay had finally gone quiet. The scent of antiseptic still lingered, clinging to Erik’s jacket like a reminder of the chaos they’d just survived. Ra stood near the stainless-steel sink, rinsing a cloth in warm water, her sleeves rolled up, her skin kissed by bruises and starlight.

Erik sat shirtless on the edge of the medical table, his lean frame tense, his jaw tight. Blood had dried down his forearm where the Reptilian had taken a bite—a last-ditch effort before Erik took the bastard down.

Ra returned, her eyes on the wound. “You let that lizard get in a shot? Didn’t know you were into foreplay.”

Erik chuckled, wincing as she dabbed the cloth over the torn skin. “You know me. Always trying to spice up a fight.”

Ra smirked but didn’t look up. Her focus was laser-sharp, but Erik noticed the faint tremble in her fingers. The adrenaline hadn’t left her yet.

“You okay?” he asked.

She blinked, finally meeting his eyes. “I should be asking you that, hero. You fought a ten-foot Reptilian with your bare hands.”

“And look at me. Still pretty.”

Ra rolled her eyes, but a smile tugged at her lips. She reached for the healing salve, fingertips brushing against his thigh as she stabilized the bandage.

Erik’s breath hitched.

It wasn’t just the pain.

It was her. Every part of her. The closeness. The tension. The way her eyes flicked to his lips when she thought he wasn’t looking.

“Ra,” he said softly, his voice stripped of humor.

She paused, hand frozen mid-motion. “Yeah?”

He didn’t speak. Just reached up, gently brushing a curl away from her face. His fingers lingered at her temple, tracing her skin as if committing it to memory.

Ra’s breath stilled. “Erik...”

“This thing between us,” he murmured. “We keep dancing around it. Dodging it. Pretending it’s strategy when it’s not.”

Her heart thudded loud enough she was sure he could hear it. “You’re in a situation.”

“With a woman I haven’t kissed in months,” he replied. “You know that.”

Ra stepped back, her armor cracking. “And I’m in one that just nearly died for me.”

Silence fell. A silence so heavy it had gravity.

Erik slid off the table, towering now, a whisper away from her. His gaze bore into hers, not demanding but yearning. “I’m not asking you to choose. I’m asking you not to lie to yourself.”

Ra opened her mouth. Closed it. She didn’t have the words—not ones that wouldn’t start a war.

But her hand found his chest, fingers curling slightly. She could feel his heart beating.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Their faces inched closer. Lips hovered. Breath tangled. A kiss not yet taken but already branded into the air.

Then she pulled back, eyes glassy, voice rough. “I can’t. Not tonight.”

Erik nodded slowly, understanding but aching. “Then let me stay. Just here. Like this.”

Ra leaned her head against his shoulder. They stood like that for a long time—two warriors, two hearts, one electric storm of what-if between them.

Unspoken.

Unresolved.

Unavoidable.