The BLTS Archive- Into Temptation by Janie (janie@jmangham.freeserve.co.uk) --- ARCHIVE:..ASCEM, JuPiter Station OK. Any one else, please ask. DISCLAIMER: Star Trek Voyager and the characters are the property of Paramount. No infringement of their copyright is intended. The story is all mine. Lyrics are copyright Neil Finn/Crowded House/EMI AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sequel to Downfall, which you probably ought to read first! --- I requested a meeting in your quarters cos we needed to talk about what happened the other night, and it seemed the most interruption-free place to do it. We shouldn't have left it so long, but we both know that ship's business has to take precedence over personal matters. I guess I was also a little unsure of the reception I'd get for bringing the subject up. However, in spite of the various scenarios that had been playing themselves out in my mind, I still wasn't prepared for the sight that greeted me when the doors slid open. --- You opened up your door I couldn't believe my luck You in your new blue dress Taking away my breath. --- I'm hoping the swish of the doors closing masked my sudden intake of breath. I mean, I'm just so used o seeing you in uniform, or trousers and a tunic on the rare occasions you get to wear civvies, that I must've stood there gawping like an idiot. You looked gorgeous, utterly beautiful, the delicate fabric shifting slightly with the air currents accentuating your curves in all the right places. If this is what Chakotay had to contend with on New Earth, no wonder he was a lost cause. --- And you All you did was smile at me and offer me coffee! You're no help for a drowning man! --- Sitting with you on the couch, each of us grasping a mug, no longer seemed like the big deal I'd imagined it to be. In fact, it felt like the most natural thing in the world, so much so that I pushed the little warning voices to the back of my mind and chose to ignore them. As we talked of nothing much in low gentle voices, my arm crept round you of its own volition, and still neither of us thought to move it. In a warm rush of feeling, I found myself wanting to draw you close and kiss you. --- The cradle is soft and warm Couldn't do me no harm Showing me how to give Into temptation Knowing full well the Earth will rebel --- When I thought to breathe again, I remembered why I was here. However, the Tom Paris with the easy patter had deserted me, leaving me with all the finesse of an awkward teenager. I guess I was trying to tell you how much I'd enjoyed our time in the Holodeck, but that I was very conscious that two other people were involved here besides you and me. --- Into temptation A muddle of nervous words --- Judging from your reaction, I don't think it came out like that! You stood and very deliberately placed your mug on the table, before moving to the viewport. You never said a word. --- The sentence is all my own And the price is to watch it fail --- I guess I feared that I'd overstepped the mark this time, so I said goodnight and headed for the door. Just as my hand reached for the controls, you spoke so softly I thought I was imagining it. I turned to look and there you were, half in shadow, half bathed in starlight, with a wistful look on your face. Before I knew what was happening, I found myself across the room, gathering you into my arms and burying my face in your hair. Throwing caution to the wind at this point, I kissed you with as much tenderness and passion as I could muster. --- As I turned to go You looked at me for half a second An open invitation For me to go Into temptation Knowing full well the Earth will rebel Into temptation Safe in the wide open arms of hell We can go sailing in... --- Later, as you snuggled deeper into my arms that were tracing lazy patterns over your skin. I felt such a deep sense of belonging and rightness that it had to a crime. The chrono reminding us that both B'Elanna and Chakotay's shift would be ending shortly brought us back to reality like a bucket of icy water. --- Lose yourself When you linger long Into temptation Right where you belong --- The computer has just informed me that it is now 04:45, and it appears that once again sleep has eluded me. You know, a long time ago, after the real Sandrine had bailed me out of a similar situation, I promised us both that I'd learn from my mistakes and not go down that road again. She merely shrugged, said "Que sera sera" and went to serve another patron. --- The guilty get no sleep In the last slow hours of morning Experience is cheap I should've listened to the warning --- Truth is, at this moment in time, I'll gladly go down this road again and again. There's something about you that I've not found in anyone else, and it has me captivated, intoxicated, enchanted. And I don't want to let it go, even though I worry about us getting found out and the hurt that would cause. --- But the cradle is soft and warm Into temptation Knowing full well the Earth will rebel Into the wide open arms No way to break this spell Break this spell... Don't tell. --- The End