Chapter 69: 69. W.W.S.D.

After all the excitement and stress of the day, Sarah and I headed straight to our cabin as soon as we were finished dinner. All I wanted at that point was to get some sleep, but my girlfriend had other ideas. I wasn't really in the mood for it at first, but she managed to convince me that some post-crisis sex would benefit us both. And she was right. It went a long way to help work off the stress and tension I'd been carrying all day long.

Though by the time we were done I found myself hoping the ship's cabins were sound-proof, otherwise I'd feel guilty about keeping Rebecca up late with the noises Sarah and I got each other to make. For that matter I wondered if the captain needed some similar outlet for the stress and anger she was carrying, after nearly losing the ship and her life.

As far as I knew Sarah hadn't made any recent advances towards our captain, but as I drifted to sleep in my girlfriend's arms I found myself thinking about the boss. I couldn't help wondering if maybe it was time we tried reaching out to her again, to see if maybe she was ready to get a little closer.

That thought was still on my mind in the morning, and before we got up I decided to ask Sarah about it.

As we cuddled I commented, "I was thinking about Rebecca."

"Was the sex that bad last night, you're giving up on me and moving in with the captain instead?" Sarah teased.

I rolled my eyes and gently swatted her arm, "I'm serious. Have you talked to her at all lately, about maybe getting closer?"

She shook her head, "Not since we were at the Hammersmith, when she said it was going to take time."

"That was more than twenty days ago," I pointed out. "And yesterday was as hard on her as it was on you and me."

"Twenty days still isn't much against twenty-nine years of keeping to herself," Sarah countered. "I get what you're saying though. I'm still working with Jenny until we reach our next stop, and you've already been spending time with the captain right? You'll have plenty more alone time to talk with her, while me and Jenny are busy."

That made me blush, and I asked "You don't mind?"

Sarah gave me a kiss then grinned, "I don't mind cutie. In fact I'd be happy if you did. I agree with you that Rebecca could probably use some intimacy. If I brought it up again that might come across like I'm pushing her, but maybe if you talk with her that'll be different? If nothing else it'll let her know we're both interested."

"Ok," I nodded slowly. "You're right. I'll try and figure out how to talk to her about it."

"Keep me updated," she replied with another grin. "And if you get anywhere with her, I want to hear all the juicy details afterwards."

That got me blushing again, but I also had a little smile on my face as I finally pulled myself up and out of bed. Neither of us bothered putting on anything fancy, I picked a nightshirt while Sarah went with another t-shirt and panties combination.

As usual we found Rebecca up and waiting for us in the mess. I still wasn't used to her younger appearance though, and the shorts and tube-top she was wearing this morning didn't help. She had a cup of coffee in front of her, and the frown on her face told me she was still upset about the events from yesterday.

Jenny was there as well, she greeted Sarah and I as we entered the mess. We both greeted the two of them, then I got to work making us another nice breakfast while my girlfriend got us both coffee and set the table.

As soon as we were all done eating, Sarah and Jenny headed down to the workshop to continue their project. I started cleaning up, and Rebecca got herself another coffee then sat back down at the table again. She hadn't actually said much yet this morning, and she still had that frown on her face as she stared at the table.

Once I was finished tidying up the mess I got myself some water then sat down across from the captain and asked, "How are you doing this morning boss? Still feeling angry?"

"Yeah," she nodded. After a sip of coffee she added, "Sorry I'm not going to be good company for a while Amanda."

I gave her a weak smile, "It's ok, I understand. I'm here for you though, if you want to talk about it? Or if there's anything I can do to help, just ask ok?"

She nodded quietly, then had another sip of her coffee.

It didn't seem like she was going to say anything, so after a gulp of my water I asked "You're angry with Lebeau?"

Her frown shifted to a scowl as she replied, "Angry doesn't begin to describe how I feel about him. He better hope I'm in a generous mood the next time we're on Ecclestone's World, because right now the only thing up for debate is how slowly I kill him."

I wasn't surprised to hear that, even if it made me uncomfortable to think I was working for someone who'd openly discuss premeditated murder. And I hadn't forgotten what Rebecca told us during that conversation about her past. She was an ex-marine, special ops soldier, in a genetically modified body. If anyone was capable of doing murders it was her.

On the other hand if she did decide to go and put an end to Lebeau, I wasn't going to try and stop her and I probably wouldn't lose any sleep over it. I just didn't want to be there when it happened.

"We're probably not going to be back there for at least twenty days right?" I finally asked. "Nine days to Fuminja, then ten or twelve days at Rolandan-2 for repairs, before we figure out what we're doing next."

She nodded quietly, then had another gulp of her coffee. She didn't say anything though, and another long silence settled across the table between us.

I had a sip of my water as I tried to figure out what to do. The problem was I had no experience at this sort of thing. I wanted to help her, I was positive she needed something more than just words. I wasn't sure I was prepared to jump into bed with her like Sarah seemed to think, but I was certain the captain needed something more than coffee booze and words.

The frustrating thing was I felt certain Sarah would actually know what to do or how to handle the situation. She was better around people, and she was more outgoing, she had much more experience being social than I did.

Except she'd already committed her time to helping Jenny, and they were working to a tighter deadline than before. So odds were my girlfriend was going to be too busy for the next nine or ten days to be able to focus on our captain.

It took me another minute or two before it finally hit me. Sarah and I were close enough and we'd spent enough time together, I could probably guess what she'd do or say. And just like that, I knew what to do.

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I looked across the table at the boss and asked, "Rebecca, would you mind if I gave you a hug?"

My question was obviously the last thing she expected to hear, and I almost broke into a grin as I watched her eyebrows perform a series of gymnastic manoevers. They jumped up, dropped into a frown, then one by one edged back up again. Meanwhile she opened her mouth then closed, and finally opened once more.

After five or ten seconds she finally asked, "Why?"

"Because I think you need one," I replied with a shrug. "When was the last time you had a proper hug?"

Her expression fell back into a frown, but this looked sad rather than angry.

"Twenty-nine years," she replied. She didn't even have to think about it, and she didn't have to elaborate. It was obvious she hadn't had a good hug since Ellery died.

I got to my feet and moved around the table to stand next to her chair, then held my arms out and offered "C'mon. Stand up, I can't give you a proper hug while you're sitting at the table."

The captain looked up at me, and I could see the conflicting emotions in her eyes and expression. She was wary and uneasy, but she was also interested and tempted. I was positive there was also some vulnerability that she was struggling to keep hidden.

It took her a good thirty seconds, but she slowly pushed her chair out from the table then got to her feet. And as soon as she turned to face me I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around her midsection as I pressed myself against her.

I felt her muscles all tense up as I held her, she was obviously feeling awkward and uneasy. She didn't try and push me away though, and after another half minute or so her arms very slowly and tentatively raised up to wrap around my shoulders.

We stood like that for another minute or so, it was probably the most awkward hug I'd ever been a part of, but I felt like it was important.

Eventually I suggested, "How about we continue this on the sofa in the lounge?"

Rebecca nodded quietly, she let me take the lead. I gently guided her across the deck from the mess into the lounge, then onto the sofa.

She took a seat in the corner, and I curled up next to her. I kept my left arm around her waist and leaned myself against her right side. It wasn't quite a hug, but it was the best I could manage as long as she remained sort of stiff and awkward.

It took her another minute or so but eventually her right arm made its way around my shoulders. I could feel she was still tense and wary, but it was progress. I didn't want to push too hard either, so from that point I figured I'd just let her get used to this.

For that matter I needed some time to get used to it myself. Considering my only experience with this stuff came from Sarah, I really wasn't used to taking the lead.

We were both quiet for a while as we sat together in a slightly awkward cuddle, but in the end it was Rebecca who spoke up first.

"So um, sorry if this is awkward or impolite," she began in a quiet uneasy voice, "But would it be ok if I touched your tail? I've um, kind of wanted to do that for ages."

I couldn't help grinning as I replied, "Sure. Thank you for asking by the way. You know Sarah would just grab it whenever it got in arm's reach."

My tail was off to the side opposite her, but I wrapped it around my right hip then across my lap and onto hers.

She grimaced, "I know. And um, it's been awfully tempting now and then."

That made me smile, and I watched as she slowly reached out with her left hand. At first she just gently placed her hand on my floof, where the red gave way to white. Her eyes widened slightly as her hand sank into the soft fur. It only took a couple more seconds before she started slowly running her hand down along the fur to the tip of my tail. Then she reached over to where my tail was across my lap and let her fingers sink in, before stroking it again out to the tip.

I quietly bit my lip to keep from smiling too wide as I watched and felt her gently petting and stroking my tail. At the same time I could feel her muscles starting to relax, as she gradually forgot her tension and awkwardness and just focused on the floof instead.

My mind wandered to a half dozen silly teasing comments I could imagine my girlfriend making as our brave stoic taciturn captain gradually relaxed and let herself give in to the joy of petting a big warm soft floofy tail. Like in addition to co-pilot, medic, cook, and mascot, apparently I was now the ship's emotional support fox too.

I pushed those thoughts away for now, I didn't need to channel that side of my girlfriend at the moment. I'd done well enough imagining what her caring and outgoing side would do.

Rebecca continued petting my tail as we both relaxed a little more. We ended up in a proper cuddle, curled up together on the sofa. And my tail gradually moved from resting across her lap to being hugged against her chest. My head rested against her shoulder, and I even started purring softly at one point.

The gentle rumbling in my chest made Rebecca pause briefly as some of her tension returned. Fortunately she knew it meant I was happy and content, so she let herself relax again and resumed the petting and hugging.

Eventually she half-whispered, "Thanks for this Amanda. I didn't realize how much I missed this sort of thing, or how much I needed it."

"You're welcome Rebecca," I replied softly. "I'm glad I could help."

In the end we didn't do anything more than cuddle, but we spent most of the day doing it. And by the time we got up and I started fixing dinner, the boss seemed a lot more relaxed and calm than I'd ever seen her before.