The Book Shop - Chapter Six
Title: The Book Shop
Author: bsgroxmysox
Rating: T
Word Count: 1800
Summary: Since the decommissioning of the Battlestar Galactica, Laura Roslin's life has changed dramatically. Now it's time for her to move to a new town and make another change. Will the support from a familiar face and a new friend help her get back on her feet?
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters just borrowing them for a little fun
Thank you to the bestest beta. *blows kisses at bsg_aussiegirl*
*
Laura awoke slowly. She could feel the blankets stirring gently against her bare skin and there was a heavenly smell of food drifting towards her.
Emily must be working on something special next door. Sometimes when she was working on a big project Laura could smell it from her apartment. It was her favourite way to wake up.
A deep baritone was crooning some old Gemenese song in the other room. Wait, why was there a man in her apartment?
Her eyes startled open. Now wide awake she could clearly tell she wasn’t in her own bedroom. She was lying in large double bed, the sheets crumpled around her. There were glass double doors slightly ajar, and a soft breeze was rustling the fine material which covered them. Over the singing, she could hear birds calling and the crash of waves against sand.
She was in Bill’s house. She had stayed in Bill’s house last night?
In Bill’s bed?
It all came back to her in a sudden rush.
They had danced for what felt like hours, only stopping when she admitted her feet had begun to pain her. There was a set of doors at the end of the deck that piqued her interest.
“What’s through there?”
“The bedroom.”
“Oh. Where the magic happens?”
He smirked at her humour. “I only bought this house a year ago. It hasn’t seen any magic since I’ve been here.”
Curiosity got the better of her and she cheekily opened one of the doors, pausing before she went in to see if he would object. He simply stood watching her with a small smile playing on his lips.
She entered the room and the first thing she laid her eyes on was the bed. This big, beautiful bed with the sheets and covers pulled tight with military precision.
“Oh, Bill, how can you not have broken that bed in?” she teased.
He came to stand beside her, staring at the bed himself.
“Never had the opportunity. That’s not true. I just...I didn’t want to...with her that is. With someone else maybe but...”
She let him babble on awkwardly for a moment, smiling at how boyishly handsome he looked at that moment.
She had been giving him a lot of mixed signals since they had first met again in the book shop-- becoming friends only to push him away; kissing him only to literally pull away again; teasing him now about his sex life.
Was he now stammering clumsily because he wasn’t sure where he stood with her?
She needed to give him a clear signal. And she was over going slow.
Moving determinedly towards the bed she sat at the edge, scooting backwards until she could recline fully without her feet hanging over the edge. She made sure her hair was fanning out on the sheets below her, from her previous experience she knew it excited men. And from the look on Bill’s face, he was no exception.
She crooked a finger at him, beckoning him closer. Bill didn’t need to be told twice, he crossed the room in two strides and deftly maneuvered until he hovered on the bed just above her.
“Laura?” The rest of his question was in his eyes.
Lifting herself just enough to press her lips against his and wrap her arms around his neck she pulled him closer, letting him know in no uncertain terms what she wanted.
Laura blushed at the memory. She had been so brazen, offering herself like that. She had wanted him, knew that he wanted her too, and she just went for it.
And boy. had they gone for it. Her aching muscles reminded her of that, but Gods, was this ache worth it.
I should have been dating military men all along.
The subject of her musings appeared in the doorway, carrying a tray with breakfast and tea on it. Laura changed her mind: this was her favourite way to wake up.
“Hey, you’re awake. I made breakfast.”
“I can see that. Cooked dinner last night and breakfast this morning. What did I ever do to get so lucky?”
Bill placed the tray on the bedside table and stretched beside her, holding himself above her on one arm to gaze at her.
“Well, that thing you did last night--,” he wiggled his eyebrows at her. “--you know what I’m talking about.”
“Oh, you liked that did you?”
He murmured in the positive, lowering himself to bestow a chaste good morning kiss on her lips. Quickly, however, it soon escalated way past the definition of chaste. They only pulled away with a wet smack when Laura’s stomach growled loudly.
Bill laughed. “More of that later, perhaps.”
He picked up the tray, waiting until she sat up with her back flat against the headboard before laying the food in her lap.
Laura ate the meal greedily, famished after such a workout last night.
Bill chatted about his guests that were due to arrive at his house today. His son, Lee, was coming along with his best friend and a handful of other other people Bill had worked with in the military.
“So, this is the first time I’ll be meeting Sam. Kara called me a few days ago, said she’s very nervous about us meeting.”
Laura struggled to keep up with all the names he was mentioning. Kara, she knew that name; Zak’s fiancee. Bill had told her how protective he had become of the girl since Zak’s death. It was just like him, to take someone under his wing. Kind of like he had with Laura when she first came to town, no matter how many times she had almost ruined it.
“He’s the pyramid player, right?”
Bill nodded and snagged a piece of toast from her plate. She glared at him, trying to intimidate him into backing off her breakfast.
“That look doesn’t work without glasses, Roslin,” he laughed. “Your chin dropped as if you were trying to glare over a pair of lenses but without them your glare has no power.” He proved his point by grabbing another piece of toast and smirking at her between mouthfuls.
“I need to add ‘observant’ to your list of characteristics.”
“It’s the--”
“Military training, I know.”
Suddenly full, she pushed the tray away before Bill moved it back to its previous position on the bedside table. He stretched out beside her, resting his head on her lap. Her hands began to comb through his hair.
They didn’t talk for a few minutes; they just let the sounds from outside the bedroom wash over them.
“I have to go soon,” Laura sighed.
“I know.”
“I need to leave before your guests get here.”
“I know.”
He extricated himself from her embrace and helped her find all of her clothes. She thanked him with a kiss to the cheek and moved into the bathroom to get dressed and freshen up. When she came back out, the bed had been made and the breakfast tray removed.
She found him in the kitchen with his back to her, washing the dishes. She moved behind him, stroking her hands from his shoulders down to where his arms were submerged in the water.
“Thank you for last night,” she whispered.
“My pleasure.”
“Mine too.”
She grinned as she remembered Emily’s words from yesterday morning. He turned his head towards her and she gave him one more kiss.
“Will you come by later? Meet everyone?”
She stiffened behind him and he quickly clarified: “As my friend. I’ll introduce you as my friend, the book shop owner, and nothing else, I promise.”
“It’s not that, Bill...”
“Yes, it is.”
Damn him for being right.
“Okay,” she breathed. “I’ll come by for dinner.”
“Thank you, Laura.”
She kissed him one last time and left.
*
Bill reclined on his deck chair, puffing on a Virgon cigar and listening to the melody of the crashing waves mingling with the loud snores from the inebriated pilots currently sleeping on his living room floor. He was aware of a rustling behind him before his former XO plopped down into the chair beside him. Never taking his eyes off the starry sky, he passed another cigar to his friend.
They were silent for a few moments before Saul couldn’t take it any longer.
“The Secretary of Education, Bill?”
Bill took another puff of his cigar before he responded. “She’s come a long way.”
Laura had upheld her promise and attended dinner at Bill’s house for the second night in a row, but she didn’t stay the night this time. The group had been drinking for a while by the time she arrived, including Bill, but thankfully no one had been too rowdy--that had come after she had left.
During the dinner Bill had sat her between himself and Boomer who, due to being in her seventh month of pregnancy, was not drinking either.
His crew was clearly interested in the former cabinet member joining them for dinner, but respect for the old man kept them from voicing anything inappropriate. Sam was new to the group dynamic as well, so everyone was just as interested in him as they were in Laura.
His former crew were their usual buoyant selves, and he was pleased to see Laura joining in every now and then.
Once, while everyone was absorbed in a particularly funny story Tyrol was telling, Bill had felt a hand brush against his thigh. The hand slid from his knee upwards and gave one quick squeeze before moving away.
Laura’s face remained trained on Tyrol. not giving anything away. Bill hid a smirk by taking a sip of his ambrosia.
When things had taken a turn towards rowdy, Laura volunteered to walk Boomer back to her hotel. Bill walked outside with them and stole a quick kiss when Tyrol was saying goodbye to his wife, both oblivious to the romance between their former Commander and the book shop owner.
Bill was brought back to the present by the sound of gruff laughter. Saul was reclined on the deck chair next to him watching him.
“You’re frakking her, aren’t you?”
Bill stayed silent, fixing his gaze on the ash that toppled from the end of his cigar to the deck below.
“I’ll take that as a ‘yes’. And judging by that smile in your eyes it’s a bit more than frakking.”
“Shut up, Saul.”
Bill remained quiet for a few minutes until the gentle snores of his best friend broke through the silence of the night. Not bothering to wake him, Bill shuffled along the rest of the deck and went into his bedroom.
As he reclined on the bed he was suddenly aware of how lonely it was. One night in his bed and Laura Roslin already had him feeling like it was bereft without her. Lying on his side he ran his hand down the side of the bed she had slept on. Her scent was still on the sheets.
Pushing his nose into the pillow she had slept on, he breathed in deeply, falling asleep as he imagined her in the bed with him again.
* < Next Chapter
Previous Chapter >
Author: bsgroxmysox
Rating: T
Word Count: 1800
Summary: Since the decommissioning of the Battlestar Galactica, Laura Roslin's life has changed dramatically. Now it's time for her to move to a new town and make another change. Will the support from a familiar face and a new friend help her get back on her feet?
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters just borrowing them for a little fun
Thank you to the bestest beta. *blows kisses at bsg_aussiegirl*
*
Laura awoke slowly. She could feel the blankets stirring gently against her bare skin and there was a heavenly smell of food drifting towards her.
Emily must be working on something special next door. Sometimes when she was working on a big project Laura could smell it from her apartment. It was her favourite way to wake up.
A deep baritone was crooning some old Gemenese song in the other room. Wait, why was there a man in her apartment?
Her eyes startled open. Now wide awake she could clearly tell she wasn’t in her own bedroom. She was lying in large double bed, the sheets crumpled around her. There were glass double doors slightly ajar, and a soft breeze was rustling the fine material which covered them. Over the singing, she could hear birds calling and the crash of waves against sand.
She was in Bill’s house. She had stayed in Bill’s house last night?
In Bill’s bed?
It all came back to her in a sudden rush.
They had danced for what felt like hours, only stopping when she admitted her feet had begun to pain her. There was a set of doors at the end of the deck that piqued her interest.
“What’s through there?”
“The bedroom.”
“Oh. Where the magic happens?”
He smirked at her humour. “I only bought this house a year ago. It hasn’t seen any magic since I’ve been here.”
Curiosity got the better of her and she cheekily opened one of the doors, pausing before she went in to see if he would object. He simply stood watching her with a small smile playing on his lips.
She entered the room and the first thing she laid her eyes on was the bed. This big, beautiful bed with the sheets and covers pulled tight with military precision.
“Oh, Bill, how can you not have broken that bed in?” she teased.
He came to stand beside her, staring at the bed himself.
“Never had the opportunity. That’s not true. I just...I didn’t want to...with her that is. With someone else maybe but...”
She let him babble on awkwardly for a moment, smiling at how boyishly handsome he looked at that moment.
She had been giving him a lot of mixed signals since they had first met again in the book shop-- becoming friends only to push him away; kissing him only to literally pull away again; teasing him now about his sex life.
Was he now stammering clumsily because he wasn’t sure where he stood with her?
She needed to give him a clear signal. And she was over going slow.
Moving determinedly towards the bed she sat at the edge, scooting backwards until she could recline fully without her feet hanging over the edge. She made sure her hair was fanning out on the sheets below her, from her previous experience she knew it excited men. And from the look on Bill’s face, he was no exception.
She crooked a finger at him, beckoning him closer. Bill didn’t need to be told twice, he crossed the room in two strides and deftly maneuvered until he hovered on the bed just above her.
“Laura?” The rest of his question was in his eyes.
Lifting herself just enough to press her lips against his and wrap her arms around his neck she pulled him closer, letting him know in no uncertain terms what she wanted.
Laura blushed at the memory. She had been so brazen, offering herself like that. She had wanted him, knew that he wanted her too, and she just went for it.
And boy. had they gone for it. Her aching muscles reminded her of that, but Gods, was this ache worth it.
I should have been dating military men all along.
The subject of her musings appeared in the doorway, carrying a tray with breakfast and tea on it. Laura changed her mind: this was her favourite way to wake up.
“Hey, you’re awake. I made breakfast.”
“I can see that. Cooked dinner last night and breakfast this morning. What did I ever do to get so lucky?”
Bill placed the tray on the bedside table and stretched beside her, holding himself above her on one arm to gaze at her.
“Well, that thing you did last night--,” he wiggled his eyebrows at her. “--you know what I’m talking about.”
“Oh, you liked that did you?”
He murmured in the positive, lowering himself to bestow a chaste good morning kiss on her lips. Quickly, however, it soon escalated way past the definition of chaste. They only pulled away with a wet smack when Laura’s stomach growled loudly.
Bill laughed. “More of that later, perhaps.”
He picked up the tray, waiting until she sat up with her back flat against the headboard before laying the food in her lap.
Laura ate the meal greedily, famished after such a workout last night.
Bill chatted about his guests that were due to arrive at his house today. His son, Lee, was coming along with his best friend and a handful of other other people Bill had worked with in the military.
“So, this is the first time I’ll be meeting Sam. Kara called me a few days ago, said she’s very nervous about us meeting.”
Laura struggled to keep up with all the names he was mentioning. Kara, she knew that name; Zak’s fiancee. Bill had told her how protective he had become of the girl since Zak’s death. It was just like him, to take someone under his wing. Kind of like he had with Laura when she first came to town, no matter how many times she had almost ruined it.
“He’s the pyramid player, right?”
Bill nodded and snagged a piece of toast from her plate. She glared at him, trying to intimidate him into backing off her breakfast.
“That look doesn’t work without glasses, Roslin,” he laughed. “Your chin dropped as if you were trying to glare over a pair of lenses but without them your glare has no power.” He proved his point by grabbing another piece of toast and smirking at her between mouthfuls.
“I need to add ‘observant’ to your list of characteristics.”
“It’s the--”
“Military training, I know.”
Suddenly full, she pushed the tray away before Bill moved it back to its previous position on the bedside table. He stretched out beside her, resting his head on her lap. Her hands began to comb through his hair.
They didn’t talk for a few minutes; they just let the sounds from outside the bedroom wash over them.
“I have to go soon,” Laura sighed.
“I know.”
“I need to leave before your guests get here.”
“I know.”
He extricated himself from her embrace and helped her find all of her clothes. She thanked him with a kiss to the cheek and moved into the bathroom to get dressed and freshen up. When she came back out, the bed had been made and the breakfast tray removed.
She found him in the kitchen with his back to her, washing the dishes. She moved behind him, stroking her hands from his shoulders down to where his arms were submerged in the water.
“Thank you for last night,” she whispered.
“My pleasure.”
“Mine too.”
She grinned as she remembered Emily’s words from yesterday morning. He turned his head towards her and she gave him one more kiss.
“Will you come by later? Meet everyone?”
She stiffened behind him and he quickly clarified: “As my friend. I’ll introduce you as my friend, the book shop owner, and nothing else, I promise.”
“It’s not that, Bill...”
“Yes, it is.”
Damn him for being right.
“Okay,” she breathed. “I’ll come by for dinner.”
“Thank you, Laura.”
She kissed him one last time and left.
*
Bill reclined on his deck chair, puffing on a Virgon cigar and listening to the melody of the crashing waves mingling with the loud snores from the inebriated pilots currently sleeping on his living room floor. He was aware of a rustling behind him before his former XO plopped down into the chair beside him. Never taking his eyes off the starry sky, he passed another cigar to his friend.
They were silent for a few moments before Saul couldn’t take it any longer.
“The Secretary of Education, Bill?”
Bill took another puff of his cigar before he responded. “She’s come a long way.”
Laura had upheld her promise and attended dinner at Bill’s house for the second night in a row, but she didn’t stay the night this time. The group had been drinking for a while by the time she arrived, including Bill, but thankfully no one had been too rowdy--that had come after she had left.
During the dinner Bill had sat her between himself and Boomer who, due to being in her seventh month of pregnancy, was not drinking either.
His crew was clearly interested in the former cabinet member joining them for dinner, but respect for the old man kept them from voicing anything inappropriate. Sam was new to the group dynamic as well, so everyone was just as interested in him as they were in Laura.
His former crew were their usual buoyant selves, and he was pleased to see Laura joining in every now and then.
Once, while everyone was absorbed in a particularly funny story Tyrol was telling, Bill had felt a hand brush against his thigh. The hand slid from his knee upwards and gave one quick squeeze before moving away.
Laura’s face remained trained on Tyrol. not giving anything away. Bill hid a smirk by taking a sip of his ambrosia.
When things had taken a turn towards rowdy, Laura volunteered to walk Boomer back to her hotel. Bill walked outside with them and stole a quick kiss when Tyrol was saying goodbye to his wife, both oblivious to the romance between their former Commander and the book shop owner.
Bill was brought back to the present by the sound of gruff laughter. Saul was reclined on the deck chair next to him watching him.
“You’re frakking her, aren’t you?”
Bill stayed silent, fixing his gaze on the ash that toppled from the end of his cigar to the deck below.
“I’ll take that as a ‘yes’. And judging by that smile in your eyes it’s a bit more than frakking.”
“Shut up, Saul.”
Bill remained quiet for a few minutes until the gentle snores of his best friend broke through the silence of the night. Not bothering to wake him, Bill shuffled along the rest of the deck and went into his bedroom.
As he reclined on the bed he was suddenly aware of how lonely it was. One night in his bed and Laura Roslin already had him feeling like it was bereft without her. Lying on his side he ran his hand down the side of the bed she had slept on. Her scent was still on the sheets.
Pushing his nose into the pillow she had slept on, he breathed in deeply, falling asleep as he imagined her in the bed with him again.
* < Next Chapter
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